The World is Smoldering:

Sabotage Hits France’s Rail Lines as Olympics Begins
French officials say fires were set along several lines of France’s high-speed trains causing outages that could last for days
https://www.wsj.com/world/europe/sabotage-hits-frances-rail-lines-as-olympics-begin-916e7cba?mod=latest_headlines
France’s rail network was the target of a major act of sabotage Friday, hours before the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, officials said, bringing service on several high-speed rail lines to a halt in disruptions that are expected to last for days.
Officials said fires were set at around 4 a.m. local time at three sites around the country’s rail network in a coordinated and precisely targeted attack. The damage is disrupting service on the lines that bring traffic to Paris from the north, southwest and east. The saboteurs cut and then burned signaling cables, requiring laborious repairs that will take days, officials said.
One team of saboteurs targeted a line that serves southeast France but was foiled by rail authorities, officials said. 

Brazil Sees Elon Musk’s Starlink as a Political Threat
https://www.wsj.com/world/americas/brazil-sees-elon-musks-starlink-as-a-political-threat-0e80cd58?mod=latest_headlines
Elon Musk is so popular in this farming region that his face is plastered in stores alongside herds of cows, and local magazines depict him as a superhero. The billionaire’s appeal is simple: His satellite company Starlink has connected Brazil’s vast rural and jungle expanses to the internet. 
“We were all rooting for Starlink to come to Brazil…we knew what a big change it would make,” said Arthur Cursino, a ginger farmer here who once had to climb a tree to get a cellphone signal and now, thanks to Starlink, runs one of Brazil’s most popular YouTube channels on farming.
But Starlink’s rapid expansion has come as officials in the administration of leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva have raised concerns about Musk’s growing influence over the country. After getting regulatory approval two years ago, Starlink eclipsed competitors in May to become the country’s biggest satellite internet provider. 

 America Is Running Out of Generic Drugmakers. Another One Is on the Brink.
https://www.wsj.com/health/pharma/america-is-running-out-of-generic-drugmakers-another-one-is-on-the-brink-dbd8bb17?mod=latest_headlines
Each day the USAntibiotics plant churns out a million doses of the crucial antibiotic amoxicillin that promise to cure Americans of everything from earaches to pneumonia—and ease a pressing shortage for children.
But the plant’s prospects are dim. It can’t charge enough to cover overhead, because competitors sell their wares at bargain prices. USAntibiotics isn’t close to breaking even. 
“It’s not for lack of trying,” said Rick Jackson, a health-staffing businessman who rescued the factory from near bankruptcy two years ago and has poured more than $38 million into purchasing and refurbishing it.
The generic drug business has become a hostile environment for American companies. Prices for the often critical medicines have dropped so low that it has become difficult for U.S. manufacturers to compete with companies overseas. 

Fed Seen Signaling September Rate Cut at Next Week’s Meeting
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-07-26/fed-seen-signaling-september-rate-cut-at-next-week-s-meeting?srnd=homepage-americas&sref=k5DuN3at
The Federal Reserve is likely to signal next week its plans to cut interest rates in September, according to economists surveyed by Bloomberg News, a move they say will kick off reductions each quarter through 2025. 
Nearly three-quarters of respondents say the US central bank will use the July 30-31 gathering to set the stage for a quarter-point cut at the following meeting in September. They’re divided, however, about how policymakers will do so. 
Half of respondents see officials signaling the upcoming move with both the policy statement and Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s press conference 30 minutes later, but others anticipate the Fed to use one method or the other. All respondents expect the Fed to keep rates unchanged at a more than two-decade high at next week’s meeting.

Trump on Taxes, Tariffs, Jerome Powell and More
https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2024-trump-interview/?srnd=homepage-americas&sref=k5DuN3at
Polls show a very tight race between him and President Joe Biden, but his fundraising is through the roof. It’s also now clear his 34 felony convictions haven’t upended the race. A big shock will come two days later, at the first presidential debate, and it will be Biden who’s left reeling. Then a bigger one will arrive on July 13, when Trump narrowly dodges an assassin’s bullet. 
Outside Mar-a-Lago’s gates, the rest of the world isn’t so sure. There’s worry about what another Trump presidency could portend. Wall Street firms from Goldman Sachs to Morgan Stanley to Barclays have begun warning clients to expect higher inflation as Trump’s odds of recapturing the White House and imposing protectionist trade policies have risen. Giants of the American economy such as Apple, Nvidia and Qualcomm are grappling with how further confrontation with China could affect them and the chips everyone relies on. Democracies across Europe and Asia worry about Trump’s isolationist impulses, his shaky commitment to Western alliances, and his relationships with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin. And while polls universally show that American voters favor Trump’s stewardship of the economy over Biden’s, it’s unclear to many exactly what they’ll get if they opt for another round with him.

‘It is time for this war to end,’ Harris tells Netanyahu; ‘I will not be silent’ on Palestinian suffering
https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/25/harris-israel-gaza-war-palestinians-netanyahu.html

“It is time for this war to end and end in a way where Israel is secure, all the hostages are released, the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza ends and the Palestinian people can exercise their right to freedom, dignity and self determination,” said Harris.

 . .To view a PDF of the MiSsile – CLICK HERE`