All posts tagged: strain

US diesel prices soar past a gallon, deepening strain for hauling everyday goods : NPR

US diesel prices soar past $6 a gallon, deepening strain for hauling everyday goods : NPR

Published by Sam Flores

FILE – The price for diesel fuel is displayed on a pump at a gas station Friday, Sept. 4, 2026, in Dickson, Tenn. George Walker IV/AP hide caption toggle caption George Walker IV/AP Diesel prices in the U.S. hit yet another record on Friday, soaring past $6 a gallon on average as Washington’s war with Iran disrupts the world’s flow of fuel. The national average of $6.05 is up from $5.85 last week and $3.70 this time last year, according to motor club AAA. Higher diesel prices mean more expensive transportation for a long list of everyday goods. That’s because diesel is used for many freight and delivery networks. And some businesses have already passed along steeper costs to consumers in the form of added fees on online orders and packages in the mail. Shoppers may feel more and more sticker shock, particularly in the grocery aisle. Perishable foods, like meat and produce, face one of the most immediate strains of expensive diesel because they need to be hauled in and restocked frequently — or …

“Strain Is Spreading”: FT Exposes Private Credit Distress At Decade Highs

“Strain Is Spreading”: FT Exposes Private Credit Distress At Decade Highs

Published by Jenni Sidey

Since last fall, we have repeatedly flagged the private credit sector’s growing vulnerabilities. Earlier coverage detailed how the asset class ballooned into a $2-3 trillion opaque market after banks retreated from riskier lending, only to face a wave of high-profile defaults (First Brands, Tricolor), surging redemptions that forced gates at major vehicles, rising PIK usage, and AI-related risks to software-heavy portfolios. In February, the red flag got about as red as it gets… But, as a wave of private-credit providers unleashed their PR teams – and the story slipped off the lips of the TV talking-heads – it remains top of mind for traders, as we most recently noted: Which leads us to a new story this morning from The Financial Times which underscores that the pressure is no longer contained. “Strain is spreading across private credit portfolios, with some of the largest funds taking writedowns and warning about problem loans as the industry faces its biggest challenge in almost a decade,” the FT reports. An analysis of Solve data shows that the value of …

Race for vaccine against rare Ebola strain gets .5m boost

Race for vaccine against rare Ebola strain gets $8.5m boost

Published by Sam Flores

The vaccine candidate is a Bundibungyo version of the Ervebo shot, which was created by Merck (MSD in Europe) and has already been approved for Ebola Zaire. It uses a rVSV platform, where a modified version of VSV virus is used to train the immune system to react to target pathogens – in this instance, the Bundibungyo species replaces Zaire. “The only part that is variable here is the starting material,” Dr Raman Rao, the chief executive Officer at Hilleman Laboratories, told The Telegraph. “We’ve used the same process and mechanism [as Zaire Ebola] to make the product in manufacturing, including the formulation to make it stable.” Hilleman was set up to bridge the “valley of death” in early medical research – the gap between an academic concept and a commercial product. It has already been working on a second-generation version of Ervebo which can be refrigerated at 2-8C and has a manufacturing partnership with SK Biologics in South Korea. Previously, the Ebola shot had to be kept at ultra-cool temperatures of -70C, presenting huge …

San Andreas fault at highest earthquake strain in 1,000 years, study finds

San Andreas fault at highest earthquake strain in 1,000 years, study finds

Published by Sam Flores

It lurks ominously beneath California’s many natural wonders, a reminder that nothing in this landscape is truly permanent. It’s been described as “the mother of all earthquake faults,” the source of both our geological birth and, perhaps, our ultimate undoing. But the most unnerving thing about the San Andreas fault these days may be its silence. It’s a mystery scientists are still trying to unlock. The San Andreas is central to any discussion of California. It’s the massive 800-mile spine of the state, trundling up the Coachella Valley to the San Gabriel Mountains, and pushing along the edge of Silicon Valley to beyond the Golden Gate. There is no simple answer for why California’s longest fault, responsible for some of America’s most powerful earthquakes, has produced so few in the last century. But it is clear that the quiet period is only increasing strain on the San Andreas, as well as on the state’s second-longest fault, the San Jacinto. A new study underscores the concern. Researchers estimated that key sections of the fault in Southern …

There’s no treatment designed for the Ebola strain ravaging DRC. But now there’s hope : NPR

There’s no treatment designed for the Ebola strain ravaging DRC. But now there’s hope : NPR

Published by Sam Flores

A health worker takes a woman’s temperature as part of Ebola screening efforts in Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo. As part of the effort to quash the outbreak, the first patients have been enrolled in a clinical trial to test two drugs against the Bundibugyo strain of the virus that is spreading there. In addition, researchers plan to study whether another drug could protect people exposed to the virus. Daniel Buuma/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Daniel Buuma/Getty Images It’s been over 50 days since the Ebola outbreak was declared in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda. Clinicians on the ground are working to save dying patients, but they lack crucial tools to fight the kind of Ebola that’s spreading. “We urgently need treatments that can help people affected by Bundibugyo virus disease,” says Amanda Rojek, a physician scientist at the University of Oxford — that’s a rarer species of Ebola than the much-researched Zaire strain behind many previous outbreaks. But because of that rarity, there are no specialized treatments to give patients. Nor …

Japan moves toward first-ever consumption tax cut, adds to fiscal strain

Japan moves toward first-ever consumption tax cut, adds to fiscal strain

Published by Sam Flores

TOKYO, June 17 : Japan is moving toward temporarily cutting its consumption tax on food to 1 per cent in what would be the first effective reduction of its kind, further straining its already worsening finances without any clear signal on how it would be funded. The proposal, presented by a senior executive of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) to a government panel on Wednesday, would slash the current 8 per cent food levy for two years from April next year and serve as a bridge until an income-linked benefit system is introduced. It would also be paired with targeted cash benefits for low- and middle-income households worth about 600 billion yen ($3.75 billion) annually, broadly equivalent to the final 1 per cent of the food tax. “Overall, we intend to effectively reduce the consumption tax on food and beverages to zero,” Itsunori Onodera, an LDP lawmaker who chairs the working group of the government panel on the social security system, told reporters. The move is a notable shift in tax policy. Since the …

906 Suspected Cases and 223 Suspected Deaths From Bundibugyo Strain of Ebola, WHO Says

906 Suspected Cases and 223 Suspected Deaths From Bundibugyo Strain of Ebola, WHO Says

Published by Sam Flores

By Olivia ⁠Le ⁠Poidevin GENEVA, May ⁠29 (Reuters) – The World ​Health Organization said ‌on Friday that ‌there ⁠are ⁠906 suspected cases of Ebola in ​the Democratic Republic of ​Congo, including 223 suspected ⁠deaths that ⁠are being ⁠investigated. An outbreak ​of the Bundibugyo strain ​of ⁠Ebola is continuing in the Democratic ⁠Republic of the Congo, with cases ⁠also reported in Uganda. There are currently no approved vaccines or therapies specifically for the ⁠Bundibugyo virus disease, the WHO said. (Reporting by Olivia Le ​Poidevin Editing by ​Madeline Chambers) Copyright 2026 Thomson Reuters. Photos You Should See – April 2026 Source link

The promise of an appropriate education for every child with a disability is under strain

The promise of an appropriate education for every child with a disability is under strain

Published by Sam Flores

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) has been a bipartisan priority for decades, but the federal government has never fulfilled its funding promise and the law has not been updated to reflect the realities of a post-pandemic educational landscape, leaving states and local districts to absorb the costs and students with disabilities vulnerable and exposed. Source link

‘Daisy Clover,’ ‘Andromeda Strain’ Actor Was 84

‘Daisy Clover,’ ‘Andromeda Strain’ Actor Was 84

Published by Daniella Wilson

Peter Helm, the actor from Toronto who appeared on such 1960 shows as Naked City, Wagon Train and Ironside and in films including The Longest Day, Inside Daisy Clover and The Andromeda Strain, has died. He was 84. Helm died Thursday in his sleep at his home in West Hills, his friend David Timmerman told The Hollywood Reporter. Survivors include his sister, actress Anne Helm (Follow That Dream, The Magic Sword, The Iron Maiden), and a daughter, actress Tiffany Helm (Friday the 13th: A New Beginning). The colorful Helm appeared alongside Jane Fonda, Dean Jones and Joey Heatherton on Broadway in 1960 in the Josh Logan-directed There Was a Little Girl, a drama about rape, then acted onstage with Myrna Loy in a 1962 production of James Kirkwood’s There Must Be a Pony that aimed for Broadway but missed. He and Heatherton would enjoy a great friendship while traveling the world together over the years, and she told THR that he was “a great actor and a great person, top of the world.” The pair …

US-Iran truce under strain amid stalled talks and attacks on US allies

US-Iran truce under strain amid stalled talks and attacks on US allies

Published by Sam Flores

Washington and Tehran have been swapping proposals in an effort to end the conflict which broke out on February 28. The two sides have held a single round of talks so far amid a fragile ceasefire in place since April 8. The truce has come under strain following a likely-Iranian attack near a UAE power plant. The stalled talks and rising tension are also worrying markets. FRANCE 24’s Philip Turle breaks it down for us. Keywords for this article Source link