All posts tagged: shortage

Ukraine war briefing: Zelenskyy boosts army wages and seeks foreign recruits to counter manpower shortage

Ukraine war briefing: Zelenskyy boosts army wages and seeks foreign recruits to counter manpower shortage

Published by Sam Flores

Ukraine has secured a €90bn ($104bn) loan from the EU allowing the government to increase defence spending to a record 4.4tn hryvnias ($97bn) this year. The funds are due to start flowing this month. Zelenskyy said his government would raise the basic military wage by one-third to 30,000 hryvnias ($700). The step was aimed at matching the country’s average monthly salary, which has steadily risen during the war due to staff shortages, military analysts and economists said. Infantry soldiers fighting on the frontline will receive an average monthly salary of 300,000 hryvnias (about $7,000), up from about 100,000 to 150,000 hryvnias at present. They will also be offered a new type of fixed-term contract for 10, 14 or 24 months for combat duties. Source link

South Korean Protesters Keep Calling for Re-Run of Election After Ballot Shortage

South Korean Protesters Keep Calling for Re-Run of Election After Ballot Shortage

Published by Sam Flores

SEOUL, June 6 (Reuters) – Protesters outside a ⁠ballot-counting ⁠site in South Korea ⁠on Saturday rallied for a second day, demanding a ​re-run of local elections held earlier this week. Around 10,000 citizens were estimated ‌to have gathered at ‌the SK Olympic Handball Stadium as of 5:30 p.m. (0830 GMT), ⁠where votes ⁠were counted from Wednesday’s elections to pick mayors and local ​government officials and assembly members, Yonhap News Agency reported, citing an unofficial police estimate. Representatives at Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency were not immediately reached by ​Reuters to confirm the estimates. The protests follow a ballot shortage ⁠that prevented ⁠some eligible voters from ⁠casting ​their ballots across the country, prompting the resignation of the head of ​the National Election ⁠Commission. Fifty of 14,300 polling stations ran out of ballots and voting was temporarily suspended at 22 polling stations due to delays in receiving supplies, according to the election commission. Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said ⁠in a televised speech that the ballot shortage was intolerable and ⁠a violation of the right to vote. He demanded …

Why do we have a housing shortage while the population falls? Just look at my crummy first L.A. apartment

Why do we have a housing shortage while the population falls? Just look at my crummy first L.A. apartment

Published by Sam Flores

My first apartment building in Los Angeles was a crowded, cockroach-infested dump. It was an eight-unit building on Berendo Street in Koreatown, painted Pepto-Bismol pink. It had no air conditioning. Bars on the always-open windows. Ratty carpet in the hallway. In 2011, my husband and I moved in sight unseen. We were newlyweds in our early 20s, fresh out of college in Oklahoma. I had just gotten a job at The Times, and we were too broke to travel to California to check the place out beforehand. The real estate agent, apparently sensing our naivete over the phone, asked: Are you sure? How could we not be? We were moving to the City of Angels! And a one-bedroom apartment for $950 was a steal. A few years ago, all the units were converted to condos. The listing on one real estate website described the 1925 building as “a revived Italianate 8-unit courtyard beauty” and our old unit as having trendy exposed brick walls and designer lights. Our 693-sq-foot unit last sold in 2021 for $325,000. …

1 In 10 U.S. Surgeons Quit Practice, Study Warns Of Shortage

1 In 10 U.S. Surgeons Quit Practice, Study Warns Of Shortage

Published by Sam Flores

By Dennis Thompson HealthDay ReporterFRIDAY, May 22, 2026 (HealthDay News) — American health care is experiencing a surgeon shortage, a new study says. Oral and maxillofacial surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, and plastic and reconstructive surgery had the highest five-year attrition rates, researchers found. “Surgeons deliver a disproportionate amount of high severity, sensitive healthcare, which is especially critical right now in a country with an aging population,” said senior researcher Dr. Timothy Pawlik, a surgical oncologist at Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus. “These findings show that surgical attrition is a real problem, and that we need to address it in a nuanced and tailored way, focusing on certain subspecialties that are highest risk, and focusing on mid-level providers who are most likely to leave surgery,” Pawlik said in a news release. For the new study, researchers tracked nearly 225,000 surgeons in 19 specialties from 2013 and 2023. On average, the United States had between 154,000 and 157,000 surgeons year-to-year, researchers found. However, attrition rates started rising sharply in 2020, likely due to surgeons …

Diet Coke break: How the aluminium shortage could be affecting the production of your favourite soft drink

Diet Coke break: How the aluminium shortage could be affecting the production of your favourite soft drink

Published by Daniella Wilson

Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more When I told my housemate there was a Diet Coke shortage, she almost fell to her knees. “Do not come to me with this news. I’ll go and protest. I’ll get arrested. My day is ruined. I’ll genuinely be insufferable to be around,” she screamed, clutching the side of the fridge. In the hellscape of 2026, the drink of choice for many looking for that addictive boost at lunch before sending a flurry of fizz-fuelled emails is in danger. In recent weeks, reports have emerged that Diet Coke is vanishing from shelves across India as addicts start to stockpile the cans due to fears of an aluminium shortage linked to the Iran war disrupting supplies of the metal. Hands off: the drink has been …

‘Remain calm’: Japan is gripped by fears of a naphtha shortage. What is it and why are people worried?

‘Remain calm’: Japan is gripped by fears of a naphtha shortage. What is it and why are people worried?

Published by Sam Flores

A pedestrian walks past a monitor displaying a chart of the Nikkei 225 Stock Average outside a securities firm on in Tokyo, Japan.Photograph: Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images” loading=”lazy” width=”960″ height=”768″ decoding=”async” data-nimg=”1″ class=”rounded-lg” style=”color:transparent” fifu-data-src=”https://i2.wp.com/s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/Q_OCE6nIr.QWrDldAAfEng–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTc2ODtjZj13ZWJw/https://media.zenfs.com/en/theguardian_763/9abbfb26b6850470d3db010a30469b9d?ssl=1″/> A pedestrian walks past a monitor displaying a chart of the Nikkei 225 Stock Average outside a securities firm on in Tokyo, Japan.Photograph: Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images (Photograph: Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images) Japan’s government is fighting to cushion the economic impact of the Middle East war, as the shortage of oil sends inflation rising, with the crisis threatening to undermine prime minister Sanae Takaichi’s wide poll lead. Amidst it all, new polling shows that Japan has seen a surge in concern over shortages of naphtha, a crude oil product that is used to make a wide variety of products. Related: Iran war oil shortage forces Japan snack giant to use black-and-white packaging But why the concern about a product that few had heard of just several months ago? What is naphtha? Commonly used to refer to a range of highly flammable liquid mixtures …

The Protein Shortage Is Coming

The Protein Shortage Is Coming

Published by Sam Flores

In retrospect, maybe the protein Pop-Tarts were a bit much. Americans, broadly speaking, are in a state of protein mania. We are eating it at breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert, and just about anytime in between. We like it in chips, candy, soda, water. We like protein so much, in fact, that we’ve been eating it all up. Whey-protein prices are surging, and a shortage may be imminent. “Demand is strengthening,” the USDA warned in a recent report, and “inventories remain tight.” Some manufacturers have already sold their supplies for the full year. Since January, wholesale prices for food-grade whey powder have risen by more than 50 percent, to the highest level on record, according to the commodity-pricing experts at DCA Market Intelligence. Retail prices are going up, too: Six months ago, a two-pound jug of Optimum Nutrition’s “delicious strawberry”–flavored whey protein powder went for about $40 on Amazon; now it’s $54.03. “We’ve absolutely felt it,” Stephen Zieminski, the CEO of the supplement company Naked Nutrition, said of the shortage in an email to me (though …

Rivals Season 2 Review: More Drama, More Chaos And No Shortage Of Bonking

Rivals Season 2 Review: More Drama, More Chaos And No Shortage Of Bonking

Published by Sam Flores

Electoral stress, public scandal, news broadcasters in crisis, class tension – no we’re not talking about 2026. The time has come to jump back to 1980s Rutshire and slide between the sheets for another romp with Disney+’s Rivals. Yes, after a two-year wait that’s left us as full of yearning as Freddie and Lizzie’s slow-burn romance, Jilly Cooper’s iconic bonkbuster is about to hit our screens for a second season – and fortunately, it’s a repeat performance worth shouting about. To catch you up: when we last left Rutshire, David Tennant’s baddie Tony Baddingham was lying bleeding out after a whack to the head by his ex-mistress Cameron Cook (Nafessa Williams). Meanwhile, the only Tory we’ve ever fancied, Rupert Campbell-Black (Alex Hassell), was confessing his love to Taggie, Freddie Jones and Lizzie (Danny Dyer and Katherine Parkinson) finally took their affair to a much-needed climax and Aidan Turner’s Declan O’Hara won the IBA’s franchise bid, but lost his wife Maud (Victoria Smurfit) in the process. And after being left on a cliffhanger for two years, …

Diet Coke parties are all the rage in India as aluminum can shortage bubbles up

Diet Coke parties are all the rage in India as aluminum can shortage bubbles up

Published by Sam Flores

The party was a hit with Gen Zers, who she says are craving more alcohol-free experiences. Tickets were sold out, and attendees showed up wearing Coke-themed outfits, danced to house and pop music, and made their own Diet Coke “concoctions” inspired by Dua Lipa’s recipes. The pop star has posted videos on TikTok in which she adds pickle juice and pickled jalapeños to the drink. “We had a cocktail menu, which we like to call the Coke-tail,” she said — it notably didn’t include alcohol. Around 150 people showed up at the party on April 26, she said. Demand for Diet Coke and drinks with alternative sweeteners has surged in India, where nearly 10% of the adult population is diabetic, according to a 2023 study by the Indian Council of Medical Research. The country’s youth, especially, has become health-conscious, Gupta said. “I saw everybody consuming it to a point where now in every house party which used to have Coke or Sprite bottles, it’s all been replaced by the zero sugar,” she said. The party …

Trump’s B buyoff to cancel offshore wind farms is a bad deal for taxpayers amid energy shortage

Trump’s $2B buyoff to cancel offshore wind farms is a bad deal for taxpayers amid energy shortage

Published by Sam Flores

The U.S. is in a bizarre situation in 2026: It’s facing a looming energy shortage, yet the Trump administration is making deals to pay offshore wind developers nearly US$2 billion in taxpayer money to walk away from energy projects. These politically motivated moves are costing Americans far more than just the buyouts. Communities have been laying the groundwork for offshore energy projects for years. Offshore wind development brings jobs and economic development that reshape regional economies, with the scale of public and private investment reaching into the hundreds of billions of dollars over years. East Coast communities have built up ports to support the industry and launched job-training programs to prepare workers. Construction, maintenance and shipping businesses have sprung up, along with secondary businesses that support the industry. Losing the projects, and the threat of losing other planned wind farms, will also likely mean higher energy prices. And while some offshore wind farms are moving ahead, developers must account for both lost momentum and increased uncertainty from the Trump administration. As a result, Americans will …