Category: Flash News

On February 17th, the US Department of Energy announced that the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) had fewer than 50 employees laid off this week, all of whom were probationary employees mainly engaged in administrative and clerical work. Previously, it was reported that the National Nuclear Safety Administration of the United States issued dismissal letters to 325 employees on the 13th. Later, the organization revoked some of the termination letters and hoped to restore these employees to their original positions.

On February 17th, Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed held talks with visiting Jordanian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Overseas Chinese Affairs Safadi in the capital Doha. The two sides focused on discussing the regional situation, including the Gaza Strip, Syria, and Lebanon. Mohammed emphasized that Qatar firmly opposes any attempt to forcibly relocate residents of the Gaza Strip. He pointed out that such a plan would lead to another outbreak of conflict in the Gaza Strip, exacerbating the suffering of the Palestinian people.

On February 17th, as an important component of institutional investors in the A-share market, fund companies deserve attention to their research trends. According to Securities Times Data Treasure, fund companies have conducted research on a total of 549 listed companies since the beginning of this year. From an industry perspective, industries such as electronics, mechanical equipment, pharmaceuticals and biology, computers, and automobiles are the most popular among fund companies, with over 40 listed companies surveyed. The electronics industry has 76 companies surveyed by fund companies, making it the most closely watched industry; In contrast, the number of surveyed companies in the coal, petroleum and petrochemical, non bank finance, and real estate industries is relatively small, all less than 5. From the number of fund companies participating in the survey, the number of fund companies participating in the survey exceeded 100 in 13 industries, among which the number of research fund companies in electronics, mechanical equipment, medicine and biology, and computer all exceeded 390. Only 7 companies in the media industry were surveyed, but 131 fund companies participated in the survey, with an average of over 18 fund companies surveyed per company. (Securities Times)

On February 17th, a winter storm continued to spread in the eastern United States, with over 110 million people under weather alerts and multiple states threatened by heavy rainfall, floods, and strong winds. Since the 15th, multiple flash flood warnings have been issued in some areas of Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia, and North Carolina. The rainfall in the border area between Kentucky and Tennessee reached 10.1 to 17.7 centimeters, and two people have died in Kentucky due to floods. As of the morning of the 16th local time, data from the US power tracking website PowerOutage.us shows that over 438000 users in Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee, and North Carolina have experienced power outages.

On February 17th, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office announced that Prime Minister Netanyahu will hold a cabinet meeting on the 17th to discuss the second phase of negotiations on the Gaza ceasefire agreement. In addition, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office stated that Netanyahu has instructed the Israeli negotiating delegation to travel to Cairo, Egypt on the 17th to discuss the first phase of the ceasefire agreement with Hamas.

On February 16th, US Special Envoy for the Middle East, Witkov, stated that he has had separate conversations with the Israeli Prime Minister, the Qatari Prime Minister, and the Director of the Egyptian Intelligence Agency regarding the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip. Witkov stated that during the conversation, he made a productive and constructive call for the second phase of ceasefire negotiations in the Gaza Strip. Next week, all parties will continue to discuss how to achieve the second phase ceasefire, and the location of the discussion is still to be determined.

On February 16th, Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed held a phone call with Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, focusing on the situation in Lebanon and the implementation of the Lebanon Israel ceasefire agreement. Mohammed reiterated Qatar’s firm support for Lebanon during the call, stating that it is necessary to ensure the unity and territorial integrity of Lebanon. He emphasized the importance of fully implementing the Lebanon Israel ceasefire agreement and the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from occupied Lebanese territories. Mohammed also stated that Qatar supports the new Lebanese government’s efforts in developing the economy and will continue to provide assistance to the Lebanese people.

On February 16th, US Special Envoy for the Middle East, Vitkov, stated that he will travel to Saudi Arabia tonight with US National Security Advisor Mike Waltz to hold talks on Russia related issues. Witkov expressed the hope that the talks could make some really good progress on the Russia-Ukraine conflict. He also stated that US officials are having separate conversations with Ukrainian officials. On the same day, Ukraine’s First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Yulia Sviridenko stated that the Ukrainian government delegation has begun preparations for Ukrainian President Zelensky’s visit to Saudi Arabia. Previously, multiple media outlets reported on the 15th, citing US officials, that senior officials such as US Secretary of State Rubio are scheduled to start negotiations with Russian representatives on the Ukraine issue in Saudi Arabia in the coming days, while preparing for a meeting between Putin and Trump.

On February 16th, the Israeli Cabinet has officially voted to confirm Eyal Zamir as the next Chief of General Staff of the Israeli Defense Forces. Zamir will take office on March 5th. According to Israeli law, the candidate for the Chief of Staff of the Israeli military must first pass the review of the Senior Appointment Advisory Committee and then be confirmed by a Cabinet vote. The outgoing Chief of General Staff of the Israeli military, Khaliv, issued a statement on January 21 this year, stating that he was responsible for the Israeli military’s mishandling in the attack on Israel by the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) on October 7, 2023. Therefore, he applied to resign on March 6 and has submitted his resignation letter to Israeli Defense Minister Katz and Prime Minister Netanyahu.