Source: Reserve Bank of India
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The Reserve Bank of India today released the data showing daily merchant and Inter-Bank transactions in foreign exchange for the period February 03, 2025 – February 07, 2025
Ajit Prasad Press Release: 2025-2026/177 |
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Source: Reserve Bank of India
Ajit Prasad Press Release: 2025-2026/176 |
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)
WithSecure Corporation, Interim Report 1 January – 31 March 2025, 25 April 2025 at 8.00 EEST
WithSecure Interim Report 1 January – 31 March 2025: Elements ARR growth continued, 70% ARR growth for Cloud Protection for Salesforce
Highlights of January – March 2025 (“first quarter”)
Outlook for 2025 (unchanged)
Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) for Elements Cloud products and services will grow by 10-20% from the end of 2024.
At the end of 2024, Elements Cloud ARR was EUR 83.3 million.
Elements Company segment’s Adjusted EBITDA will be 3-7% of revenue.
Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) for Cloud Protection for Salesforce (CPSF) will grow by 20-35% from the end of 2024.
At the end of 2024, CPSF ARR was EUR 12.8 million.
Cyber security consulting business will be divested in 2025. Elements company and CPSF will have their own guidance going forward. Both are recurring, subscription-based businesses, which is reflected in the new guidance.
Medium-term financial target (for Elements Company segment) (unchanged)
Over the next three years (2025-2027), WithSecure will become a “Rule of 30+” company.
The components of the target are
WithSecure is targeting to reach a sum of the components that exceeds 30.
Figures in this release are unaudited. Figures in brackets refer to the corresponding period in the previous year, unless otherwise stated. Percentages and figures presented may include rounding differences and might therefore not add up precisely to the totals presented.
CEO Antti Koskela
First quarter of 2025 was marked by many unusual events impacting the world politics and economy. Despite the turbulence, both of WithSecure’s businesses remained on the growth track. Elements Cloud Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) increased by 8% to EUR 86.6 million (EUR 80.5 million), and the Elements Cloud revenue grew by 6% to EUR 21.9 million (EUR 20.6 million). Cloud Protection for Salesforce, reported as a separate segment from the Elements, had a 70% ARR growth to EUR 13.9 million (EUR 8.2 million).
In a world where cyber security is not just a technical challenge but also a geopolitical one, we believe that how and where technology is built truly matters. Our strategy is to become a flagship for European cyber security, and we are positioning ourselves at the forefront of this transformation. Given the geopolitical situation, we have seen significant interest in a European alternative among our partners and customers. We signed an agreement in the beginning of the second quarter to divest our Malaysian entity to a partner, who will become WithSecure’s preferred distributor in the region. Once this transaction is complete, all WithSecure’s products and services will be developed and delivered from Europe. We continue to develop our partner channel, and signed several new key partner agreements during the first quarter.
Inside Elements Cloud, the ARR for Elements Cloud software and co-security services increased by 14% to EUR 65.7 million (EUR 57.8 million). The growth is driven by both new customers and the expansion of existing customers. Especially the new portfolio items Exposure Management and Elements MDR, launched in May 2024, have already begun to contribute to the growth. The Managed services ARR declined by 8% to EUR 20.9 million (EUR 22.7 million). The ARR decline is mostly related to customers in the UK.
Elements Company Adjusted EBITDA in the first quarter was EUR 0.9 million (EUR 0.7 million, restated figure). Operative cash flow was EUR -2.6 million (EUR -2.4 million). Cash flow was impacted by the previous year’s bonus payments, as well as the additional costs related to divestments.
Cloud Protection for Salesforce (CPSF) continued with a strong performance and achieved a 70% growth of ARR, to EUR 13.9 million (EUR 8.2 million). The growth was driven by many new enterprise customer logos, as well as smaller Salesforce users who want to protect their Salesforce Cloud from vulnerabilities caused by external content uploads. The CPSF segment became profitable for the first time, with EUR 0.4 million Adjusted EBITDA (EUR -0.4 million). We continue to develop CPSF as an independent business inside WithSecure, while keeping the strategic review options open.
The divestment of our Cyber security consulting business, announced on 23 January 2025, is progressing as planned. The carve-out process is ongoing in collaboration with the buyer, and the target to close the transaction during the second quarter of 2025 remains valid.
Financial performance – WithSecure Group
| (mEUR) | 1-3/2025 | 1-3/2024 | Change % | 1-12/2024 |
| Continuing operations | ||||
| Revenue | 30.1 | 28.8 | 4% | 116.0 |
| Cost of revenue | -5.7 | -5.9 | -3% | -23.4 |
| Gross Margin | 24.4 | 22.9 | 6% | 92.6 |
| % of revenue | 81.0 % | 79.4 % | 79.8 % | |
| Other income for adjusted EBITDA1 | 0.1 | 0.4 | -83% | 2.0 |
| Operating expenses for adjusted EBITDA1 | -23.1 | -23.2 | 0% | -92.6 |
| Sales & Marketing | -11.8 | -11.3 | 4% | -47.9 |
| Research & Development | -8.1 | -9.1 | -11% | -35.0 |
| Administration | -3.2 | -2.7 | 18% | -9.7 |
| Adjusted EBITDA1 | 1.3 | 0.2 | 618% | 2.0 |
| % of revenue | 4.5 % | 0.7 % | 1.7 % | |
| Items affecting comparability (IAC) | ||||
| Other items | 0.0 | 0.3 | -100% | -1.0 |
| Divestments | 0.0 | -0.7 | -95% | 1.2 |
| Restructuring | -0.1 | 0.4 | -130% | -1.1 |
| EBITDA | 1.2 | 0.3 | 339% | 1.1 |
| % of revenue | 3.9 % | 0.9 % | 1.0 % | |
| Depreciation & amortization, excluding PPA | -2.1 | -2.2 | -3% | -9.0 |
| PPA amortization2 | -0.5 | -0.6 | -17% | -2.2 |
| EBIT | -1.5 | -2.6 | 43% | -10.1 |
| % of revenue | -4.9 % | -8.9 % | -8.7 % | |
| Adjusted EBIT1 | -0.8 | -2.0 | 61% | -7.0 |
| % of revenue | -2.6 % | -7.0 % | -6.0 % | |
| Discontinued operations | ||||
| Revenue | 6.5 | 7.4 | -13% | 31.4 |
| Adjusted EBITDA1 | -1.6 | -0.2 | -736% | 1.1 |
| % of revenue | -24.4 % | -2.5 % | 3.6 % | |
| Items affecting comparability (IAC) | ||||
| Divestments | 0.6 | 1.1 | ||
| EBIT | -2.3 | -0.4 | -548% | -29.3 |
| % of revenue | -36.1 % | -4.9 % | -93.6 % | |
| Combined operations | ||||
| Revenue | 36.6 | 36.2 | 1% | 147.4 |
| Adjusted EBITDA1 | -0.2 | 0.0 | n/a | 3.1 |
| % of revenue | -0.6 % | 0.0 % | 2.1 % | |
| Earnings per share, (EUR)3 | -0.02 | -0.01 | -66% | -0.22 |
| Deferred revenue | 69.5 | 69.9 | -1% | 67.7 |
| Cash flow from operations before financial items and taxes | -2.6 | -2.4 | -5% | 2.1 |
| Cash and cash equivalents | 22.7 | 32.3 | -30% | 27.3 |
| ROI, % | -3.1 % | -7.1 % | -34.1 % | |
| Equity ratio, % | 60.4 % | 77.1 % | 59.1 % | |
| Gearing, % | 7.3 % | -18.9 % | 0.4 % | |
| Personnel, end of period | 964 | 996 | -3% | 961 |
Events after period-end
On 14 April 2025, WithSecure published its intention to divest the Malaysian entity and business operations to LS Systems Group. The transaction is expected to close during the second quarter of 2025. The responsibilities of the Malaysia site will be transitioned to WithSecure’s European locations. The transaction underscores WithSecure’s commitment to the European way in cyber security, and ensures consolidation of all WithSecure’s operations in Europe.
Additional information
This is a summary of WithSecure’s Interim Report 1 January – 31 March 2025. The full report is a PDF file attached to this stock exchange release. Full report is also available on the company website.
Webcast
WithSecure’s CEO Antti Koskela and CFO Tom Jansson will present the results in a webcast on 25 April starting at 14.00 EEST. The webcast will be held in English and can be accessed at
https://withsecure.events.inderes.com/q1-2025
Questions in written format are requested in the webcast portal. Presentation material and the webcast recording will be available on the company website
Materials | Investor Relations | WithSecure™
Financial calendar
During the year 2025, WithSecure Corporation will publish financial information as follows:
WithSecure observes at least a three-week (21 days) silent period prior to publication of financial reports, during which it refrains from engaging in discussions with capital market representatives or the media regarding WithSecure’s financial position or the factors affecting it.
Contact information
Tom Jansson, CFO
WithSecure Corporation
Laura Viita, VP, Controlling, investor relations and sustainability
WithSecure Corporation
+358 50 487 1044
investor-relations@withsecure.com
Attachment
By Koroi Hawkins, RNZ Pacific editor
The former head of BenarNews’ Pacific bureau says a United States court ruling this week ordering the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM) to release congressionally approved funding to Radio Free Asia and its subsidiaries “makes us very happy”.
However, Stefan Armbruster, who has played a key role in expanding the news agency’s presence in the region, acknowledged, “there’s also more to do”.
On March 14, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to defund USAGM outlets Radio Free Asia and Middle East Broadcasting Networks, including placing more than 1300 Voice of America employees on leave.
“This order continues the reduction in the elements of the Federal bureaucracy that the President has determined are unnecessary,” the executive order states.
Armbruster told RNZ Pacific Waves that the ruling found the Trump administration failed to provide evidence to support their actions.
“[Judge Royce Lamberth] is basically saying that the actions of the Trump administration [are] likely to have been illegal and unconstitutional in taking away the money from these organisations,” he said.
Order to restore funding
“The judgments are saying that the US administration should return funding to its overseas broadcasters, which include Voice of America [and] Radio Free Asia.”
He said that in America, they can lay people off without a loss, and they can still remain employees. But these conditions did not apply for overseas employees.
“Basically, all the overseas staff have been staff let go, except a very small number in the US who are on visas, dependent on their employment, and they have spoken out about this publicly.
“They have got 60 days to find a job, a new sponsor for them, or they could face deportation to places like China, Cambodia, and Vietnam.
“So for the former employees, at the moment, we are just waiting to see how this all plays out.”
Armbruster said there were hints that a Trump administration could take such action during the election campaign, when the Trump team had flagged issues about the media.
Speed ‘totally unexpected’
However, he added the speed at which this has happened “was totally unexpected”.
“And the judge ruled on that. He said that it is hard to fathom a more straightforward display of arbitrary, capricious action, basically, random and unexplained.
“In short, the defendants had no method or approach towards shutting down USAGM that this Court could discern.”
Armbruster said the US Congress funds the USAGM, and the agency has a responsibility to disburse that funding to Radio Free Europe, Voice of America, and Radio Free Asia.
The judge ruled that the President does not have the authority to withhold that funding, he said.
“We were funded through till September to the end of the financial year in the US.
“In terms of how quickly [the executive order] came, it was a big surprise to all of us. Not totally unexpected that this would be happening, but not this way, not this hard.”
BenarNews ‘gave a voice’
The BenarNews Pacific bureau was initially set up two-and-a-half years ago but evolved into a fully-fledged bureau only 12 months ago. It had three fulltime staff based in Australia and about 15 stringers and commentators across the region.
“We built up this fantastic network of people, and the response has been fantastic, just like Radio New Zealand [Pacific],” Armbruster said.
“We were doing a really good thing and having some really amazing stories on our pages, and big successes. It gave a voice to a whole lot of Pacific journalists and commentators to tell stories from perspectives that were not being presented in other forums.
“It is hard to say if we will come back because there has been a lot of court orders issued recently under this current US administration, and they sometimes are not complied with, or are very slowly complied with, which is why we are still in the process.”
However, Armbruster remains hopeful there will be “some interesting news” next week.
“The judgment also has a little bit of a kicker in the tail, because it is not just an order to do [restore funding].
“It is an order to turn up on the first day of each month, and to appraise the court of what action is [the USAGM] taking to disburse the funds.”
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
Source: Hong Kong Information Services
The Home Affairs Department today appealed to registered electors for the Ha Ling Pei and Ho Chung Indigenous Inhabitant Representative Elections, and for the Tung Chun Wai Resident Representative Election, to vote in the Rural By-election on Sunday.
Eleven Rural Representative vacancies are open in the by-election, and 13 valid nominations were received during the nomination period.
Two candidates are running for an Indigenous Inhabitant Representative post on the Tung Chung Rural Committee in Ha Ling Pei, while three candidates are standing for an Indigenous Inhabitant Representative post on the Sai Kung Rural Committee in Ho Chung. Two candidates are running for a Resident Representative post on the San Tin Rural Committee in Tung Chun Wai.
The other six candidates have been returned uncontested. These are the candidates to be Indigenous Inhabitant Representatives of Kap Tong, of Ping Tun, and of Kwun Yam Shan and Kong Pui, and the candidates to be Resident Representatives of Tai Po Tau, Wai Tau Tsuen and Kwong Shan Tsuen.
No valid nominations were received for the Resident Representative vacancies in Wu Shek Kok and Kam Shan Village.
Polling will be held from noon to 7pm.
The department reminded electors to bring their original identity documents or other specific alternative documents to the polling station as specified in the polling notice.
Source: Republic of China Taiwan
On the afternoon of April 24, President Lai Ching-te presided over the fourth meeting of the National Climate Change Committee. In his opening statement, the president stated that the government will steadily implement a carbon pricing system, carefully plan a Taiwan version of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), and assist enterprises to gradually compile a product carbon footprint digital database, while promoting the circular economy and industry internationalization to create a Green Taiwan brand. He also stated that we will leverage our financial market, driving society as a whole to take sustainable action; and expand capacity to foster green-collar professionals, laying the foundation for Taiwan’s sustainable future.
President Lai emphasized that regardless of how the external environment changes, green transition and sustainable development are the cornerstones of long-term national prosperity. He stated that the government will work with the private sector to turn crises into opportunities and actively address the challenges of climate change and net-zero transition to promote an orderly transition. This, he said, will keep the nation on the path forward, make Taiwan stronger, better, and more resilient, and leave a prosperous and sustainable homeland for future generations.
A translation of President Lai’s remarks follows:
Today is the fourth meeting of the National Climate Change Committee. First, I would like to once again thank all of the advisors and committee members for your active participation over the past several months. The valuable suggestions you have provided allowed us to propose new emissions reduction targets at the last meeting as we continue to move toward our vision of net-zero emissions by 2050.
The day before yesterday was Earth Day, and I was in this same room to meet and exchange ideas with many friends from environmental protection groups. I am very grateful to these forerunners and partners for their efforts and contributions to protect this land, Taiwan.
Amidst global climate change and the reshaping of international trade patterns, extreme weather disasters occur frequently around the world and requirements for carbon reduction in international supply chains continue to expand. The government of the United States has also recently proposed new tariff policies that present Taiwan’s industries with many challenges.
We have observed that as many industries are facing increased uncertainty in their operations, the private sector has adopted a wait-and-see attitude regarding carbon reduction and environment, social, and governance (ESG) efforts. In response, the administrative team is actively assessing the situation and continuously adjusting strategies; it will definitely support our industries.
However, regardless of how the external environment changes, green transition and sustainable development are the cornerstones of long-term national prosperity. We must remain committed to resilient and forward-looking strategies to promote the transition to low-carbon models and sustainable development for domestic industries, build comprehensive green supply chains, enhance the international competitiveness of our industries, and bolster our national strengths.
The government will work with the private sector to turn crises into opportunities, and actively address the challenges of climate change and net-zero transition. This will allow Taiwan’s economy to continue transitioning and progressing and remain committed to moving toward low-carbon and sustainable models. This will also keep the nation on the path forward and make Taiwan stronger, better, and more resilient.
At today’s meeting, the Ministry of Environment (MOENV) will deliver a report on responding to ongoing changes and seizing opportunities for green transition, and the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) will report on financing for the green and energy transition to support Taiwan’s net-zero efforts. Those reports will explain how the administrative team is strengthening climate governance and execution, as well as how they are assisting various sectors to face challenges, align with international standards, seize opportunities, and jointly move toward a new low-carbon and sustainable future.
The government will steadily implement a carbon pricing system and align with international standards to avoid foreign tariff penalties on high-carbon industries, which will ensure a competitive advantage for exports. We will also carefully plan a Taiwan version of the CBAM to maintain reasonable and fair domestic competition.
The government will assist enterprises, especially small- and medium-sized enterprises, by providing carbon reduction tools such as carbon footprint verification and ESG disclosure, and will gradually compile a product carbon footprint digital database and support export enterprise efforts to meet international requirements. At the same time, we will drive resource integration and promote the circular economy and industry internationalization to create a Green Taiwan brand.
In promoting net-zero transition, the financial sector plays a crucial role. By designing diverse investment and financing tools and financial products, and incorporating ESG factors into credit assessments, the financial sector can lead the way for enterprises and the public to take climate risks seriously. At the same time, it can support the development of low-carbon industries, thereby driving society as a whole to take sustainable action.
Taiwan is a major financial market in Asia. On a solid foundation in ESG and sustainable finance, we must leverage our financial market, contributing Taiwan’s wisdom and strength to achieve the global net-zero transition.
At the last meeting, I mentioned that strengthening social communication and climate change education are very important. Currently, the Executive Yuan, MOENV, and central government agencies have launched a series of social communication meetings regarding the proposed flagship carbon reduction projects for six major sectors, namely energy, manufacturing, transportation, residential and commercial, agricultural, and environment. At these meetings, representatives are invited from industry, government, academia, research institutions, and civil society groups to actively engage in dialogue and forge a consensus through collaborative thinking about climate solutions.
In addition, the MOENV is collaborating with colleges and universities to establish an alliance to foster professionals in the net-zero and green-collar sectors. To this end, it will set up separate training centers in the north, central, southern, and eastern regions to expand capacity to train green-collar professionals. I also hope that, in addition to lectures given on university campuses, online courses on climate and net-zero topics can be designed specifically for high school students and teachers.
Because we cannot leave anyone behind on the path to net-zero, we must actively engage in dialogue with young people and gradually prepare them to enter emerging green sector jobs to empower the nation and lay the foundation for Taiwan’s sustainable future.
Let’s work together with the financial sector, industry, and all sectors of society to promote an orderly transition, achieve our vision for net-zero emissions by 2050, and leave a prosperous and sustainable homeland for future generations. Thank you.
Following his statement, President Lai heard a report on responding to ongoing changes and seizing opportunities for green transition from Minister of Environment Peng Chi-ming (彭啓明) and a report on financing for the green and energy transition to support Taiwan’s net-zero efforts from FSC Chairperson Peng Jin-lung (彭金隆). Afterward, President Lai exchanged views with the committee members regarding the content of the reports.
US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for Washington State Patty Murray
***PHOTOS and B-ROLL HERE***
Mount Vernon, WA — Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, visited the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival and heard about how Trump’s trade war is affecting the agricultural landscape and depressing Canadian visitation to the valley, where tourism is a large driver for the regional economy. The Skagit Valley Tulip Festival was established in 1984 as a simple two-day celebration, but has since grown to a month-long, county-wide tradition. The festival’s mission is to support the ongoing preservation and celebration of Skagit Valley’s agricultural and cultural heritage with a variety of educational and community engagement initiatives. The festival features five major farms and gardens and attracts more than one million visitors, on average, from around the globe.
Senator Murray was joined for the visit by Leo Roozen, President of the Washington Bulb Company; Brent Roozen, and Nicole Roozen, Executive Director of the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. The visit began at the Washington Bulb Office, where Murray heard about the history of their family-run business and how Trump’s chaotic trade war with Canada is creating new uncertainty for them and has meant less Canadian visitation to the region, which hurts their business’s bottom line. Next, Senator Murray received a tour of the greenhouse and bulb production facility, followed by a tour of the RoozenGaarde display gardens down the road. RoozenGaarde is the oldest and largest garden in the Tulip Festival. The Roozens began farming tulips in Holland before settling in Skagit County in 1947 where they established the Washington Bulb Company, planting their first display garden in 1984.
“The Tulip Festival is such a big deal for Skagit County—not only does it draw in hundreds of thousands of visitors each year, but it’s a huge driver of economic activity for the region, so it’s important to be here in person,” said Senator Murray. “It was especially important for me to hear from tulip growers about how their businesses, and this year’s festival, is already being affected by Trump’s trade war with Canada. Northwest Washington agriculture and businesses are on the very front lines of Trump’s trade chaos—and his tariffs on Canada, the retaliatory tariffs, and Canadians’ widespread anger over Trump’s provocations are already seriously hurting their bottom lines. There is simply no reason for us to be picking trade wars with our close allies like Canada and I’ve been loud about how Congress needs to step in and put an end to this chaos—but the bottom line is that we need Republicans to stand up with us and say ‘enough.’ I’ll be taking what I heard here today back with me to the other Washington as I keep fighting to advocate for our state’s trade economy and end Trump’s pointless trade war that is hurting Washington state.”
“We are honored to welcome Senator Murray to the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival and RoozenGaarde,” said Nicole Roozen, Executive Director of the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. “The Senator’s visit underscores the meaningful role agriculture plays in Skagit Valley and reaffirms the importance of supporting the communities that help this region to flourish.”
Washington state has one of the most trade-dependent economies of any state in the country, with 40 percent of jobs tied to international commerce. Washington state is the top U.S. producer of apples, blueberries, hops, pears, spearmint oil, and sweet cherries—all of which risk losing vital export markets due to retaliatory tariffs from key trading partners including Canada. Additionally, more than 12,000 small and medium-sized companies in Washington state export goods and will struggle to absorb the impact of retaliatory tariffs. Canada is Washington’s largest trading partner, accounting for nearly $20 billion in imports and $10 billion in exports. China is the world’s second-largest economy and Washington state exported over $12 billion in goods to China last year—making China Washington state’s top export partner—and imported $11.2 billion in goods, the most in imports from any country aside from Canada. Trump’s tariffs during his first term were extremely costly for Washington state—for example, India imposed a 20 percent retaliatory tariff on U.S. apples, causing Washington apple shipments to India to fall by 99 percent and growers to lose hundreds of millions of dollars in exports.
Senator Murray has been a vocal opponent of Trump’s chaotic trade war and has been lifting up the voices of people in Washington state harmed by this administration’s approach to trade and calling on Republicans to end Trump’s trade war—which Congress has the power to do—and take back Congress’ Constitutionally-granted power to impose tariffs. Earlier this month, Senator Murray brought together leaders across Washington state who highlighted how Trump’s ongoing trade war is already a devastating hit to Washington state’s economy, businesses, and our agriculture sector. Senator Murray also took to the Senate floor to lay out how Trump’s chaotic trade war is seriously threatening our economy, American businesses, families’ retirement savings, and so much else. Last week, Senator Murray joined her colleagues in pressing U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer on how the Trump administration’s tariffs are affecting farmers across the country.
Last week, Senator Murray held a roundtable discussion in Tacoma with local businesses and ports, toured local businesses in downtown Vancouver, and held a roundtable discussion in Vancouver with local businesses and ports to highlight how Trump’s trade war is hurting businesses and our economy Washington state. Earlier this week, Senator Murray met with small business owners in Seattle’s University District to hear how Trump’s tariffs and the broader economic uncertainty are affecting them.
Source: Reserve Bank of India
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In the underwriting auction conducted on April 25, 2025, for Additional Competitive Underwriting (ACU) of the undernoted Government securities, the Reserve Bank of India has set the cut-off rates for underwriting commission payable to Primary Dealers as given below:
Ajit Prasad Press Release: 2025-2026/175 |
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US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for Tennessee Bill Hagerty
NASHVILLE, TN—United States Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN), a member of the Senate Appropriations, Banking, and Foreign Relations Committees and former U.S. Ambassador to Japan, today joined Kudlow on Fox Business to discuss the ongoing negotiations to bring a peace deal to the Russia-Ukraine war, along with President Donald Trump’s strength in tariff negotiations with China.
*Click the photo above or here to watch*
Partial Transcript
Hagerty on Trump’s toughness against Russia: “President Trump has continued not only to retain sanctions in place, but actually enforced them, which the Biden Administration never did. The Biden Administration talked tough, but they did not enforce sanctions. What President Trump has done is actually gone into secondary sanctions. I think you read about the fact that President Trump has gone in and sanctioned a Chinese refinery, the buyer of Russian crude [oil]. That is the way to deal with this. That’s the way to put maximum pressure on Russia, their banks, the purchasers of crude oil. That’s the way to deal with this. He’s doing it. The pressure has been maintained and mounting on Vladimir Putin.”
Hagerty on weakening Russia by regaining U.S. energy independence: “You’re absolutely right, Dave. And President Trump’s been extremely clear about not only wanting to get back to energy independence, but energy dominance for America. That’s bad for Russia, that’s bad for Iran, that’s bad for Venezuela, but it’s great for our allies and for us.”
Hagerty on the need to end the Russia-Ukraine war: “I think about the fact that [Treasury Secretary] Scott Bessent traveled to Ukraine to put in place a deal for critical minerals that would’ve engaged our economy with theirs. Zelenskyy said, of course I’ll sign it, but I’d like to wait [until] I get to meet with Vice President [JD] Vance in Munich. He goes to Munich—Vice President Vance is courteous enough to meet with him—and he tells Vice President Vance, I’d like to actually sign it with the president at the White House. We accede to that. We let him come to the White House, and what does he do? He tries to re-trade the deal on international TV in front of everybody. I think it really is amazing. I think how congenial President Trump has been in dealing with both of these parties. He wants to bring this to an end, and I’d like to say this: Dave, every week this waits, we’re losing roughly another 5,000 lives. It’s time for both parties, Russia and Ukraine, to get to the table and bring this to an end […] I don’t know the answer in terms of who’s advising Zelenskyy, and I would say this: had it been [Former President] Joe Biden in that Oval office, in that meeting, it would’ve worked, but it certainly is not going to work with President Trump. He wasn’t going to tolerate that sort of behavior. He wasn’t so hungry for a deal to be celebrating it in the Rose Garden. He sent Zelenskyy home, and he should have.”
Hagerty on Trump’s strength against Iran’s terror regime: “Well, Dave, I’ll remind you that everyone said that the Abraham Accords couldn’t be done, but President Trump was able to deliver on that. If anybody can deliver peace in the Middle East, it’s Donald Trump. I think the Iranians should understand and appreciate the fact that President Trump is not going to take this anymore. It’s going to be maximum pressure. They are the greatest state sponsors of terror, not only in the region, but in the world. They’re in a very difficult place right now. You mentioned, Dave, oil prices are coming down. That’s not good for Iran, right? We started enforcing sanctions, rather than just talking about it the way the Biden Administration said, that’s not good for Iran. Their economy’s in a tough spot right now. Now is the time to negotiate. Now is the time to end this program of terror, to end their nuclear program, and bring peace back to the Middle East.”
Hagerty on the tariff negotiations between the U.S. and China: “[China tends] to overplay their hand, whether it’s their use of the Belt and Road Initiative, or whether it’s the situation they find themselves in now, again, retaliating against President Trump when he warned them not to, and find themselves in an extraordinarily difficult box. China has a very export dependent economy. They’ve also not played by the same rules that every other major economy does. They steal intellectual property. They subsidize industries. They need to come to the table now and look to actually make a deal […] I worked very closely with the team that negotiated the phase one deal in the first Administration, because they worked with me on the two trade deals that we did with Japan. They committed, at that point, to $200 billion worth of purchases from America. They fell short. China needs to keep its word; China needs to step up. If you think about what happened during the Covid crisis, if you think about the spy balloon that flew across America, there’s a real issue of trust right now. That issue needs to be resolved. China needs to prove that it’s a reliable partner.”
US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator Pete Ricketts (Nebraska)
April 24, 2025
OMAHA, NE – Today, U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts (R-NE) issued the following statement in response to a deadly terror attack in Kashmir:
“As President Trump has said, the United States stands strong with India against terrorism. Prime Minister Modi and the Indian people are in my prayers as they mourn this horrific attack.”
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Source: Reserve Bank of India
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US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for Connecticut – Chris Murphy
WASHINGTON—U.S. Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and U.S. Representatives John Larson (D-Conn.-01) and Jahana Hayes (D-Conn.-05) joined a coalition of over 100 Congressional Democrats in writing to the Acting Commissioner of the Social Security Administration (SSA), Leland Dudek, to demand that he keep Social Security field offices open. Americans will also deliver the letter in-person to Social Security field offices across the country today, in a show of support for Social Security workers and the services they provide.
Multiple reports have revealed that Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) directed SSA to close field offices across the country — only to reverse course after public backlash and deny the plans altogether. Given the lack of transparency surrounding the status of field offices nationwide, the lawmakers pressed Dudek to ensure that DOGE does not close the offices that so many Social Security beneficiaries rely on for services and assistance.
Approximately 170,000 Americans visit a Social Security field office for assistance with Social Security benefits each day. Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has threatened to close dozens of these offices as part of its attack on the SSA. In Connecticut, this could affect field offices in Hartford, Bridgeport, Waterbury, Willimantic, New London, New Haven, New Britain, Stamford, Meriden, Torrington, Danbury, Ansonia, East Hartford, Middletown, and Norwich.
“[B]eneficiaries need the opportunity to seek assistance from SSA in person…Closing any of these field offices will make it harder for individuals to access their benefits,” the lawmakers wrote.
The lawmakers include a list of every SSA field office across the country and press Dudek to commit to keeping every single one of them open.
On Thursday, Social Security Works, Indivisible, P Street, and AFGE organized volunteers to deliver copies of the lawmakers’ letter to field offices across the country — in blue, red, and purple counties — in support of the field offices and their staff. Volunteers plan to visit at least 50 offices in Arizona, Nebraska, California, New Jersey, Colorado, Nevada, Florida, New York, Georgia, Ohio, Illinois, Oregon, Indiana, Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, Massachusetts, Vermont, Maryland, Washington, Michigan, Wisconsin, and North Carolina.
The initiative is part of Senate Democrats’ Social Security War Room, a coordinated effort to fight back against the Trump administration’s attack on Americans’ Social Security. The War Room coordinates messaging across the Senate Democratic Caucus and external stakeholders; encourages grassroots engagement by providing opportunities for Americans to share what Social Security means to them; and educates Senate staff, the American public, and stakeholders about Republicans’ agenda and their continued cuts to Americans’ Social Security services and benefits.
U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Ill.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), Angus King (I-Me.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) also signed the letter.
U.S. Representatives Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.), Jake Auchincloss (D-Mass.), Becca Balint (D-Vt.), Sanford Bishop (D-Ga.), Brendan Boyle (D-Pa.), Julia Brownley (D-Calif.), Salud Carbajal (D-Calif.), Troy Carter (D-La.), Greg Casar (D-Texas), Judy Chu (D-Calif.), Gilbert Cisneros (D-Calif.), Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.), Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.), Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.), Danny Davis (D-Ill.), Chris Deluzio (D-Pa.), Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas), Sarah Elfreth (D-Md.), Veronica Escobar (D-Texas), Valerie Foushee (D-N.C.), Lois Frankel (D-Fla.), Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), Sylvia Garcia (D-Texas), Daniel Goldman (D-N.Y.), Maggie Goodlander (D-N.H.), Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), Hank Johnson (D-Ga.), Julie Johnson (D-Texas), Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Calif.), Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), Robin Kelly (D-Ill.), Greg Landsman (D-Ohio), John Mannion (D-N.Y.), Doris Matsui (D-Calif.), Jennifer McClellan (D-Va.), Betty McCollum (D-Minn.), LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.), Grace Meng (D-N.Y.), Dave Min (D-Calif.), Gwen Moore (D-Wis.), Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.), Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Frank Pallone (D-N.J.), Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.), Josh Riley (D-N.Y.), Deborah Ross (D-Pa.), Andrea Salinas (D-Ore.), Linda Sanchez (D-Calif.), Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), Darren Soto (D-Fla.), Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Jill Tokuda (D-Hawaii), Norma Torres (D-Calif.), Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.), Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Pa.), Marc Veasey (D-Texas), Nydia Velázquez (D-N.Y.), and Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.) also signed the letter.
Full text of the letter is available HERE.
Source: Panasonic
Headline: Biosensory Dome (Spatial Design)—Digitally Expressing the Healing Powers of Nature
Mikako Miura
Solution Development Division,Electric Works Company,Panasonic Corporation
Yoshiteru Hara
Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai,Japan Promotion Committee,Panasonic Holdings Corporation
Nariaki Iwatani
anno lab Inc.
Ippo Hayashida
anno lab Inc.
Masahiro Ihara
anno lab Inc.
Co-creation as the First Step of a Slightly Lofty Challenge
Hara: This is the second time Panasonic collaborated with anno lab. The first was an exhibit with biophilia* as the overarching theme.
＊Biophilia: A concept emphasizing connectivity with nature and being in harmony with it.
Miura: Biophilia and the concept of the Earth area, a “720° cycle,” are tightly linked. That’s why we wanted to ask for anno lab’s support again in designing the Biosensory Dome.
Ihara: We usually create digital content for exhibitions in science and other museums. Although we are quite familiar with exhibits leveraging digital technology, the abstract theme of digitally recreating nature posed a rather formidable challenge.
Hara: The breadth and depth of the theme were precisely what made designing this exhibit so difficult. The other exhibits in the Earth area had a clear starting point: “How can we express the 720° cycle with this technology?” On the other hand, there were no requirements regarding technologies to be used for the Biosensory Dome.
Miura: Instead of installing real natural elements like houseplants, we were tasked to digitally reproduce nature with whatever means available. Because we had absolutely no limitations, it took us a long time to find a solution.
Hayashida: Once we found the direction to take, we received increasingly challenging requests, which communicated to me that these people are 120% serious about the exhibit. That invigorated us and made us want to reciprocate.
Iwatani: For people like us who are used to creating digital content, we can see the feasibility of a project, whether for good or for bad, at the ideation stage. If anno lab had taken on this challenge alone, we would not have been able to deliver as bold an exhibit as this one. But Panasonic pushed us outside of our comfort zone, and we watched the exhibit evolve. I could see the true value of co-creation by how the number of possibilities ballooned.
Hara: This project was initially a little above everyone’s pay grade. But I think our handiwork exceeded our expectations because we dared to challenge ourselves beyond our skill levels.
Digitally Reproducing Fog, Sunlight Filtered Through Trees, Breath, and Warmth
Ihara: After countless discussions and some failures, we finally settled on the themes of “fog and airflow” and “light and breath,” under which we are now creating exhibits.
Hayashida: I was put in charge of creating the device producing the mist. We use a machine resembling a water basin to generate mist, which we then illuminate. The result is that you can enjoy drifting mist similar to a morning fog or a sea of clouds.
Miura: Visitors can interact with the exhibit in many ways. The experience is not only visual but also tactile: they can stick their hand into the mist and stir it or blow on it. What were the challenges in creating and adjusting the device?
Hayashida: Because mist is fluffy and elusive, it was tough to make it move the way we wanted it to. Particularly difficult was striking the optimal balance between retention and diffusion. If the wind were too weak, the mist would not move, and then…nothing. On the other hand, if it were too strong, the mist would look too “busy.” It took me a very long time to configure the device so that the mist would stay inside it but continue to drift around.
A device that controls the amount of mist and airflow to create an illusory drifting of fog
The Breathing Sphere expresses lifelike softness and warmth
Hara: Originally, we were only planning to control the amount of mist, but ultimately, we needed to control the airflow as well. Thanks to anno lab’s innovative solution to this difficult request, I believe we succeeded in creating an exhibit that is both natural and entertaining for visitors. The Breathing Sphere in the other dome was designed by Mr. Ihara.
Ihara: I considered the soothing effects of nature from various angles and decided on the theme of “the breathing of a child sleeping in the shade of a tree with sun rays shining through it.” The Breathing Sphere was born out of trial and error in an effort to somehow express the up-and-down motion of a child’s chest while napping in the warm sunlight.
Miura: The Breathing Sphere is a large ball with a soft texture. It is also slightly warm to the touch and expands and shrinks. It’s kind of magical, like touching a living thing or lying in the shade on a sunny day.
Ihara: In actually building the exhibit, I realized how difficult it was to create something unprecedented or with no correct answer. Our goal was to make the Breathing Sphere feel natural and comfortable to the people who saw it, and thus this goal was essentially unquantifiable. We did everything possible to design the exhibit in such a way with digital technology.
Hara: We basically experimented with many ideas, and the team members would make a decision on the best one based on their intuition. We would then find a path that might work, proceed that way, and then repeat the process.
Iwatani: My mission was to quantify the comfortable state that Mr. Ihara, Mr. Hayashida, and the other team members discovered with their senses so that we could reproduce this state digitally. I was put in charge of setting comfort parameters and controlling the equipment and programs.
Ihara: Mr. Iwatani was also responsible for controlling the lighting in the dome.
Iwatani: We are using Panasonic’s new lighting technology leveraging micro LEDs. Light usually travels in only one direction; however, the novelty of this technology is its ability to control light so that you can illuminate multiple directions with a single light source or create dynamic lighting effects. Since it is not yet on the market, we held numerous discussions with the developers to find the most effective way to use it.
Miura: We explored the comfort of nature through a very hands-on approach—depending on people’s senses. Once we had a clue, we digitally reproduced the state and then observed it again with our senses. We switched back and forth between analog and digital approaches every day as we sought the best way to fashion the exhibit.
Ihara: We simply “arrived” at the current design through trial and error, rather than moving forward with a clear goal in mind.
How Do You Play with This and What Do You Feel? Leaving the Answers to Children
Hara: Because we focused on how it would resonate with people’s intuition or feelings, the exhibit was not designed with an agenda like “This is how we want you to feel” or “That is how you should experience it.”
Miura: Of course, we offer sensory stimuli that most people would find comfortable and pleasant, but some kids may dislike the sensations, and that’s okay. What’s more important is that children be connected to how they feel, whether it’s pleasant or uncomfortable.
Hara: When I visited the Biosensory Dome, I got a pleasant feeling from seeing Ms. Miura grinning as she touched the Breathing Sphere. I newly discovered that we can enjoy multisensory stimulation through not only touching the Breathing Sphere and mist but also watching people having fun with them.
Miura: I want children to freely explore without worrying about rules or guidelines when interacting with the Biosensory Dome. If I can convey through this exhibit the notion that there are a thousand different ways to have fun, and experiences vary from person to person, then I will have achieved my goal.
Ihara: To me, the Biosensory Dome is like a sandbox. You can build a castle, dig a river, or just listen to the whisper-like sound of sand falling. It would be great if everyone could freely explore like that. But if it’s too free, some kids start wondering, “Where can I start?” That is why we wanted to provide some gimmicks to stimulate their curiosity. They can at least start from stirring the mist or touching the Breathing Sphere.
Iwatani: It’s only adults who try to manipulate certain feelings in children, whether it be through exhibits, interactive experiences, or play. Children don’t look back on every fun and new experience, or try to put into words their accomplishments or events that lead to their growth, right? We want children to play like children. Having said that, it would be nice if kids could sense that somebody behind the scenes created these natural experiences. For example, you get comforted by the sight of sunshine penetrating tree leaves or sitting around a fire. But behind those natural experiences, there was someone who planted the tree or lit the fire. It is my hope that children can sense that, even if only vaguely.
Hayashida: I would be happy if the Biosensory Dome struck a chord not only with small children but also with teenagers. Naturally, I want them to experience the beauty and comfort in what we created, but it is also my hope that they would take it a step further and see the ingenuity in reproducing nature with digital technology, or ask questions like “How did they do it?” “Who are the people that made this?” It would be wonderful if both their senses and their intellect were stimulated, and that some would be inspired to choose engineering or manufacturing as their career.
Hara: I really look forward to seeing how children let their imagination run free in this unrestricted space.
Source: Panasonic
Headline: Cellulose Fiber kinari—
Plant-Derived Biodegradable Molding Material
Hideo Yamamoto
R&D Management Department, Mold & Die Technology CenterManufacturing Innovation DivisionPanasonic Holdings CorporationManagement Department, Mold & Die Business CenterPanasonic Production Engineering Co., Ltd.
Shin Obinata
CEO, sekisai inc.
Rie Noritake
Organizer,100BANCH
Eagerness to See What Would Happen Led to Our Collaboration
Noritake: My curiosity sparked a new collaboration when I wondered what could be created by combining kinari and sekisai’s 3D printing. I was eager to see the outcome. The team sekisai was chosen in 2020 for the GARAGE Program of the 100BANCH incubation initiative hosted by Panasonic. Although all team members were students at the time, they created beautiful pieces of work using 3D printing. Therefore, I asked them to create drinking cups for 100BANCH using kinari.
Yamamoto: We wanted to prevent the enormous quantity of paper and plastic cups used during an event from ending up as waste. However, we had only a month until the event (laughs).
Noritake: Although the schedule was tight, they created cups before the event and met our hopes for holding a sustainable event. The material kinari can be handled like plastic but has the feel and texture of a wooden material. We initially regarded kinari as only a sustainable material but then discovered its interesting features only after using it.
Yamamoto: Cellulose fiber accounts for up to 85% of kinari’s composition. Accordingly, kinari is known to be very environmentally friendly for its ability to significantly reduce the use of petroleum-derived plastic. Moreover, kinari has enhanced strength because it contains cellulose fiber, and it is highly recyclable and less prone to quality degradation when recycled.
Noritake: With its low environmental impact and high durability for extended usage, kinari is an ideal sustainable material. We assumed that its unique wooden texture would further broaden the material’s applicability, such as using it for larger objects, and this led to collaboration with sekisai.
Leaf installations made from kinari, a biodegradable material, enhancing the atmosphere of Zone 2
Excitement at Tackling the Unknown Led to an Abundant Flow of Ideas
Obinata: I was invited to the project in late 2022. Our mission is to open up the possibilities of 3D printing to people’s lives and society. Over the last two years, we attempted a variety of experiments and expressions with kinari until we achieved the creation of leaf installations. Although kinari looks and feels like wood, it offers flexibility for curvy and complex shaping.
Yamamoto: I felt excited when they first showed me 3D printed prototypes. In the initial year, I asked them to create partitions and chairs. The creation of such large items was unimaginable with conventional injection molding, which casts materials into molds. At sekisai, you are expanding the potential of 3D printing using various materials and designs. What was your impression of handling kinari, a material made mostly from wood?
Obinata: Since kinari was a completely new material for us, we had trouble at the beginning. With its specific properties, we repeatedly tested hypotheses and eventually gained the ability to handle it with high accuracy. As we groped in the dark, we consulted with the kinari team members many times.
Yamamoto: When there were things I couldn’t understand, I asked for advice by chatting within the kinari team. The team members also positively considered new trials of 3D printing. They answered my questions by approaching them with an analytical mind specific to engineers. This process literally applied the principle of making use of collective wisdom. Such a productive atmosphere arose because all of us felt this novel project was exciting.
Obinata: We forged relationships that enabled us to exchange ideas freely and openly whenever we reached an impasse in 3D printing processes. Although it was a rocky path, we were motivated to join hands and resolve all problems.
Noritake: As the coordinator, it was my top priority to create the relationships necessary to share the same goal. Hierarchical relationships cannot create new or distinctive products. On many occasions, challenges created ideas that led to new values because all team members worked together to develop quality products while maintaining pride in their own expertise.
Facilitating the Material’s Cycle along with the Hopes of All People Involved in It
Yamamoto: We were able to create very beautiful leaf installations. It was a great advance to find that kinari is usable for 3D printing, but our more important and meaningful achievement was to redefine the value behind the material. I hope that people come to understand the comprehensive background of the material’s origin and development through our leaf installations.
Noritake: Until I came to know kinari, I had thought that resins, or plastics, made no difference. However, kinari looks and feels warm, making me feel attached to it. I may have this kind of feeling because it’s a plant-derived material.
Obinata: I feel that today’s world needs warmth and imperfection unique to plant-derived materials. In industrialized modern society, we tend to shun imperfect things in an attempt to eliminate errors. As a result, our personal belongings, buildings, and towns are homogenized and standardized, losing the natural local character and warmth that creates affinity. We hope our exhibition will bring this trend into question and spread an interest in, and even amusement at, the virtue of imperfection.
Noritake: When we created a chair using kinari as a prototype, we faced a problem due to the inclusion of impurities, since kinari is a plant-derived material. Initially, we discussed ways of removing foreign materials. However, the foreign materials created textures that resembled knotty wood in the finished chair. Therefore, we came to regard such imperfection as an attractive feature.
Yamamoto: It is not technically impossible to remove impurities or smears, but we don’t want to do that for kinari. It may be considered part of our role to come up with ways of using what we receive from nature as is.
Obinata: That’s right. In today’s society, there is too much pressure to be homogeneous and error-free. However, richness dwells in inhomogeneous or uneven materials, I believe. The material kinari puts the insistence on perfection into question. We want to create products and objects that make people feel attached to appearances specific to plants and the land where the plants grew, as well as the background of the processes that gave shape to the objects in front of their eyes.
Yamamoto: Using kinari, we hope to give shape to background stories, such as how the wood and bamboo grown in people’s towns are actually formed or used, along with the passion of people who entrusted us with their materials. I believe the 720° cycle, which we must exhibit at the Expo, refers not only to a material cycle but also to conveying the hopes of the people engaged in the creation of our objects.
Leaf installations floating in the Earth area (left) made of small and soft biodegradable segments (right)
Noritake: Some materials have been discarded as waste, such as twigs and lumber remnants left at forestry sites and unmanageable overgrown plants like bamboo. It sends an important message to transform materials that were previously treated as a nuisance into something highly valuable. It makes us very happy to think that we can use something that already exists rather than something made from scratch.
Leaf installation prototypes
Obinata: Children will encounter many unknown things instead of just the familiar at this Expo. It will be fun to offer them experiences that stimulate their curiosity about things they don’t know. Aligning with our hope for the Expo, our exhibits will be recycled after the exhibition to create other things. Thus, we will be able to say our project was successful only after the recycling is achieved. I hope we hear someone saying, “This object was made using the exhibits displayed at Expo 2025,” at yet another Expo in Japan after a few decades.
Yamamoto: That would be great. I hope that kinari takes root as a seed that grows into such a future.
Source: Panasonic
Headline: Biosensory Dome (Mycelium Panels)—A Space Created by the Power of Fungi
Mikako Miura
Solution Development Division,Electric Works Company,Panasonic Corporation
Yoshiteru Hara
Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai,Japan Promotion Committee,Panasonic Holdings Corporation
Kohei Ito
BIOTA Inc.
Hironobu Tanaka
BIOTA Inc.
Kenro Hirata
Tsukiyono Mushroom World
Stimulation of Natural Textures Deepens the Relationship between Space and People
Hara: The Biosensory Dome gently stimulates the five human senses, offering experiences that reset the senses to bring healing or awaken those that have been dormant. Even before the Expo project began, Ms. Miura had been working on creating a sensory room that shares the same concept as the Biosensory Dome.
Miura: The sensory room was originally designed as a calming space for people with special needs or sensory sensitivities. Panasonic has expanded this concept into a space that offers more people moments of comfort and reset. Taking advantage of our lighting and audio technology, we have been working to create a space where people can discover their true selves.
At the center is a module made of mycelium panels
Hara: The Biosensory Dome in the Earth area is an exhibition based on the concept of the sensory room, which Ms. Miura has been developing for many years. However, it is unique in that it uses mycelium panels. How did you come up with this idea?
Miura: It all started when we wondered what it would be like to bring real nature into a space, rather than just creating a comfortable light and sound environment with technical devices. By creating a space with natural, living materials that visitors can see, touch, and smell, we hoped to stimulate a wider range of senses. So we approached BIOTA, with whom we already had a relationship, to see whether we could do something using mycelium.
Ito: At BIOTA, we apply genomic analysis to assess the diversity and balance of environmental microorganisms, and by enhancing that diversity, we aim to design societies that, for example, reduce infectious diseases and strengthen human immunity. In this context, we have made several attempts to create products with mycelium. However, we had never used mycelium to create a space. When we received this inquiry, it caused a significant debate within the company.
Hara: And the answer you came up with was mycelium panels.
Ito: Up until then, our experience had been limited to the artistic realm, such as creating objects with mycelium. That’s why we wanted to create a space in the Earth area where mycelium blends into human life—a state closer to practical application in society. We were asked to develop triangular panels that use mycelium as a building material for the dome walls.
The Biosensory Dome, featuring mycelium panels, under construction in the Earth area
Prototype and Mass Production Phases Focused on Achieving High Enough Quality for Practical Application in Society
Ito: Turning mycelium into a building material was a completely new challenge for us. We faced many difficulties before finally developing the product used in the Biosensory Dome. During the early prototyping stage, we received support from the Telostekts team, a group of students from my alma mater, Keio University, who are working on mycelium architecture. Maybe Mr. Tanaka, who designed and developed the panel, and Mr. Hirata, who supported mass production, could talk more about this part.
Tanaka: The first hurdle was the size of the panel. We had never made a product with such a large area evenly covered with mycelium. Our goal was to grow the mycelium inside triangular wooden frames so that it would spread evenly throughout the surface. However, in the beginning, we faced many problems—the mycelium did not grow enough, detached from the boards, or dried out and cracked.
Miura: How many times did you go through the prototyping process?
Tanaka: We repeated more than 30 rounds of trial and error, both large and small. We sanded the wooden frames to keep the mycelium from coming off, experimented with different temperatures and humidities to see how it would grow, and tried many other approaches.
Hara: Since Panasonic has many years of manufacturing experience, we provided rigorous feedback on the prototype. We knew we were asking for something difficult, but we also strongly felt that we couldn’t afford to compromise, since we were aiming, at a high level, to complete this unprecedented initiative in Japan of making mycelium panels truly viable as building materials.
Ito: We did not have a clear sense of the standards and the target quality level that the product needed to meet. We were grateful for the candid feedback Panasonic gave us, based on its expertise in housing construction and the development of building materials.
Hara: We did not want to end up with simply using mycelium panels for an exhibit. We believed that, in a way, it was Panasonic’s responsibility to promote this project with an eye to future commercialization and to be the first example demonstrating the possibility of using mycelium panels as a building material.
Ito: We were very happy when we completed the panels, evenly covered with mycelium, after countless discussions.
Hara: At first, we were nervous: “Will this work?” “Can we really complete this?” From that stage, we shared our ideas and worked hard together. By continuing these efforts, we eventually achieved an outstanding level of quality that everyone involved could truly be proud of. For me, this moment was the essence of cross-organizational co-creation.
Hirata: When the prototype was completed, we took the baton and moved on to the mass production phase. Tsukiyono Mushroom World normally makes mushroom beds for growing edible mushrooms. Honestly, I was surprised when our president gave us the special mission of “mass production of mycelium panels.” To us, mycelium was simply the base of mushrooms, and the idea of using it as a building material had never crossed our minds.
Miura: What was most difficult about the mass production phase, when you had to make 100 panels?
Hirata: The biggest challenge was balancing dryness and moisture to ensure that the mycelium grew evenly throughout the wooden frame. If it’s too dry, the mycelium will shrink and crack. On the other hand, if it’s too humid, it will get moldy.
Tanaka: We are very grateful for the care taken. Each panel was coated with an anti-mold agent, then covered with a protective sheet to prevent drying and to keep out contaminants.
Hirata: It was no easy task (laughs). As we struggled with making the panels, there were moments that reminded us of the profound power of nature. In growing the mycelium, we applied an anti-mold agent to prevent mold, but still, mold started growing before we noticed. I was troubled, but I also felt the strong ability of fungi and microorganisms to survive.
Ito: There were both difficult and interesting aspects of dealing with living creatures.
Tanaka: Despite the many difficulties we faced, this project’s greatest achievement was being able to go through the trial-and-error process of using mycelium as a building material—a way of directly harnessing the power of fungi for the benefit of society. A months-long exhibition at the Expo may also bring to light issues that we cannot yet see. However, these are challenges that we would inevitably have to overcome as we work toward the practical application of mycelium in society. I am excited to witness this major step toward that goal.
Ito: Mycelium has great potential as a building material. Its strength per unit weight is said to be higher than that of brick. It is also water-repellent, fire-resistant, and biodegradable, meaning it can return to the soil. Around the world, there are still very few attempts to construct buildings with such materials. Through this exhibition, I hope to gain evidence that we can show the world.
The Exhibition Expands the Senses of Children and the Potential of Natural Materials
Miura: The mycelium panel is the result of the combined efforts of the three companies. What did you think when you saw the panels installed in the Biosensory Dome?
Ito: Inside the dome, I could smell the unique scent of the mycelium, and the natural texture of the panels—each with a different color and feel—gave me the sense that the space we had envisioned would be achieved.
Hara: From the prototype stage, the level of uniformity was a key point of discussion. Ultimately, we could have created a completely white and flat mycelium panel, but we thought that doing so would lose the meaning of using mycelium in the first place.
Ito: By adopting a standard that preserves the subtle color differences of each panel and the fluffy, uneven texture that is unique to mycelium, the final product offers a true sense of nature.
Miura: I am excited to see what visitors, especially children, will take away from the natural textures we have created. I feel that in today’s world, we are surrounded by an overwhelming amount of digital information and are desperately trying to pick out what we need to live. I hope the Biosensory Dome will be a place where people can put aside this information and use their senses, such as touch and smell, to gain something and recharge their energy.
Ito: In my opinion, nature is, in fact, the stimulus that provides the greatest amount of information. The natural world is full of irregularities and ambiguity, brimming with noise in a good sense. The Biosensory Dome is a place where people can experience the processing of huge amounts of information—far greater than those of digital information—through their senses. I would be happy if visiting the dome helps open up children’s senses, and the way they see the streets they walk through and the towns they live in changes, even just a little, when they return to their daily lives.
Hara: Our generation could enjoy many natural materials in childhood, such as mud walls and tatami mats, when visiting our grandparents’ homes. As times change, such materials are gradually disappearing from our own homes. However, with the creation and practical use of products like mycelium panels, the power of natural materials is returning to our everyday lives with a fresh interpretation. As a member of Panasonic, which has been deeply involved in the production of housing and building materials in Japan, I hope this exhibition triggers such a change.
Source: International Monetary Fund
April 24, 2025
Speaker: Mr.Jihad Azour, Director of Middle East and Central Asia Department, IMF
Moderator: Ms. Angham Al Shami, Communications Officer, IMF
MS. AL SHAMI: Good morning. Thank you for joining us in this press briefing on the Regional Economic Outlook for the Middle East and Central Asia. My name is Angham Al Shami, from the Communications Department here at the IMF.
If you’re joining us online, we do have Arabic and French interpretations that you can access on the IMF Regional Economic Outlook webpage and the IMF Press Center as well. And for those of you in the room, you also have equipment to access that.
Today I’m joined by Jihad Azour, the Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department, who will give us an overview of the outlook of the region, and then we will open the floor for your questions. With that, over to you, Jihad.
MR. AZOUR: Thank you very much, Angham. Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the IMF 2025 Spring Meetings. Before answering your questions, I will briefly outline the economic outlook for the Middle East and North Africa as well as the Caucasus and Central Asia. Let me first start with a few words on the recent developments.
The global economy stands at a delicate crossroads. The global recovery of recent years faces new risks as governments reorder their policy priorities. The recent escalation in trade tensions has already damaged global growth prospects while triggering intense financial volatility. More broadly, the extraordinary increase in global uncertainty associated with trade policy and increased geopolitical fragmentation will continue to erode confidence for quite some time and represents a serious downside risk to global growth.
For MENA and CCA economies, these developments are adding to existing regional source of uncertainty, including ongoing conflicts, pockets of political instability and climate vulnerability. We continue to assess the impact of recently announced U.S. tariffs on MENA and CCA economies. While the direct effects are expected to be modest, giving limited trade exposure and exemptions for energy products, the indirect effects could be more pronounced. Slower growth will weaken external demand and remittances, while tighter financial conditions may challenge countries with elevated public debts. Oil exporting economies could also see fiscal and external positions deteriorate due to the lower oil prices. Some countries may benefit from trade diversion, but such gains could be short lived in a broader environment of trade contraction.
Let me now turn to the Middle East and North Africa. Last year was particularly challenging for the region. Conflict caused severe human and economic costs. Regional growth in 2024 reached 1.8 percent, a downgrade revision of 0.2 percentage point from the October World Economic Outlook forecast. Conflicts weigh on growth in some oil importing countries and extended OPEC+ voluntary production cuts continue to dampen activity in oil exporting economies. For GCC countries, strong non-oil growth and diversification efforts were largely offset by oil production cuts.
Despite these challenges and high uncertainty, growth is projected to pick up in 2025 and 2026, assuming oil output rebounds, conflict related impacts stabilize, progress is made on structural reform and implementation. However, expectations have been revised down compared to the October 2024 Regional Economic Outlook, reflecting weaker global growth and more modest effect of these drivers. We now project growth at 2.6 percent in 2025 and 3.4 percent in 2026, a downward revision of 1.3 and 1 percentage points, respectively. Inflation is projected to continue declining across MENA economies, remaining elevated only in few cases.
Let me now turn to the outlook for the Caucuses and Central Asia. In contrast, economic activity in the CCA exceeded expectations in 2024, growing by 5.4 percent, driven by spillover effects from the war in Ukraine, which boosted domestic demand. However, as these temporary effects normalize over the next few years, growth is expected to moderate due to weaker external demand, plateauing growth of hydrocarbon production, and reduced fiscal stimulus. Despite the moderation in overall growth, inflation is expected to increase somewhat across the region and remain elevated in a few cases, reflecting still strong domestic demand.
Let me now turn to the risks to the outlook. These projections are subject to extraordinary uncertainty and the risks to the baseline forecast remain tilted to the downside. Four key risks stand out. First, trade tension as a further escalation could dampen global demand, delay in oil production recovery, and tighten financial conditions. Our analysis shows that persistence spikes in uncertainty triggered by global shocks are associated with large output losses both in MENA and CCA. The second risk is geopolitical conflict. The third one is climate shocks. And the last one is the reduction in official development assistance. This could further exacerbate food insecurity and humanitarian conditions in low-income and conflict-affected economies. However, upside risks also exist. The swift resolution of conflict and accelerated implementation of structural reforms could substantially improve regional growth prospects. The implications of a potential peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine for the CCA region also remain uncertain.
Now the question is what are the policies that we recommend for countries and how they should prioritize them. In the face of extraordinary uncertainty, MENA and CCA economies should respond along two key dimensions, manage short term instability, and use the opportunity to advance structural reforms for long-term growth. The first priority is adapt to the new environment. Countries must take steps to shield their economies from the impact of worst-case scenarios and prioritize safeguarding macroeconomic and financial stability. The appropriate policy response will vary depending on each country’s initial conditions and vulnerability to risk.
Turning to more the long-term, countries should transform their economies. Recent developments underscore the urgent need to accelerate the long-discussed structural reforms agenda across the region. To reduce vulnerabilities to shocks and seize opportunities arising from the evolving global trade and financial landscape, it is essential to enhance governance, invest in human capital, advance digitalization, and foster a dynamic private sector. Establishing strategic trade and investment corridors with other regions such as Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia, as well as within the region, including between GCC and Central Asia or GCC and North Africa, can help mitigate exposure to external uncertainty, enable greater risk sharing, and drive sustainable economic development.
We will delve into these policy priorities at the launch of our Regional Economic Outlook in Dubai next week and in Samarkand, in Uzbekistan, where on May 3 we are organizing jointly with the Uzbek government a GCC-CCA Economic Conference where Ministers of Finance and Governors of Central Banks from both regions, as well as representatives of IFIs and private sectors, will discuss deepening economic ties between these two regions. We also invite you to join us tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. at the Atrium for a public panel discussion on the economic consequences of the high uncertainty in the MENA and CCA regions.
Before I open the floor to questions, I want to underscore the IMF’s deep commitment to supporting countries throughout the region with policy advice, technical assistance, and, in many cases, financial support. Since early 2020, we have approved almost $50 billion in financing to countries across the MENA region, Pakistan, and the CCA, of which 14.8 have been approved since early 2024.
In closing, I want to highlight our engagement to post-conflict economies. Strengthening economic fundamentals and rebuilding institutions will be essential to successful recovery. The IMF, in coordination with the World Bank and regional partners, has established an informal coordination group to support recovery in conflict-affected states in the Middle East. Our focus will be on capacity building, policy guidance, and financial assistance. We are also working closely with authorities to help stabilize their economies, restore confidence, and lay foundations for sustainable growth.
Again, thank you very much for joining us this morning, and now I would like to welcome your questions.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you very much, Jihad, and now we will take your questions. And let’s start with the gentleman here in the first row, please.
QUESTIONER: Thank you, Angham and Jihad. I’m Amir Goumaa from Asharq Bloomberg. IMF raised the gross forecasting for Egypt dispIte the regional downgrade. Why is that? And how can the MENA region turn the country trade disputes into opportunities?
MR. AZOUR: Excuse me?
QUESTIONER: How can the MENA region turn the current trade disputes and tariffs into opportunities? Like how can they make the best use of it?
MR. AZOUR: Thank you very much for your question.
MS. AL SHAMI: Should we take more questions on Egypt? Perhaps should we take more questions on Egypt. We’ll start with this gentleman and then the gentleman in the back. This one first.
QUESTIONER: Hello everyone. My name is Ahmad Yaqub. I’m the managing editor of Al Youm Al-Sabah Egyptian Newspaper. I have two questions about Egypt. The first one is about the expected exchange rate of the Egyptian pound against the U.S. dollar by the end of 2026, the next year, and the expected inflation rate and the economic growth rate of Egypt. The second question is the next trench of the program, current program with the Egyptian authorities. What is the timing of the next trench and the total amount of it? Thank you so much.
MS. AL SHAMI: And then the gentleman here.
QUESTIONER: Ramy Gabr from Al-Qahera News. The global economic outlook carries good news. Maybe for Egypt in terms of the economic growth in 2025. How do you see that and what’s the facts and numbers led to this outlook? Thank you.
MS. AL SHAMI: Over to you.
MR. AZOUR: Thank you very much. Yes, please.
QUESTIONER: I’m Lauren Holtmeier from S&P Global. I wanted to ask about the fiscal break-even prices for oil production, specifically for the countries with high fiscal break-even prices like Saudi Arabia and Iraq. And how will the lowered expectations for oil prices over the next couple of years affect their ability and their economic outlook? And I recognize that the answer for those two countries might be very different.
MR. AZOUR: Thank you very much. I had three sets of questions. One on trade and the impact of the recent trade developments on the region and how those could be turned into an opportunity. The second set of questions were on Egypt, and the third one was on the GCC and the oil market. Let me start with the first one.
Countries of the region have limited trade dependence on the U.S., and therefore the recent trade and tariff decisions will have limited direct impact on those economies. Yet it’s important also to highlight that there would be indirect impact. And also those indirect impact may take different channels. One impact is the impact that this could have on financial stability and capital flows. We saw widening of spreads over the last few years, which is an issue that could affect the capacity of emerging economies and middle-income countries who have high levels of debt. The second potential impact is impact on oil market. We saw some softening in the oil price, as well as the forwards of oil price are showing a certain extension of those softening over the year. And the third type of effect is the second-round impact due to trade diversion.
I will maybe go into more details about what are the policies that we recommend for countries to address those challenges. Few countries have more exposure to the U.S. trade like Pakistan or Jordan, and those are specific cases. I can address those. Opportunities, of course, in any change there are opportunities, and over the last few years we saw successive shocks and transformation on the geopolitical front and the geoeconomic front, and those have affected the region. The region stands at the crossroads between East and West, and therefore trade routes, connectivity, as well as also opportunities go through this region. This would require, as I mentioned in my opening remarks, for countries in the region to seek new opportunities in terms of strengthening their economic relationships and trade ties with regions close to them, as well as also within countries in the region, which will call for new way of increasing connectivity and cooperation in the region.
The second set of questions is on Egypt. Over the last year, growth in Egypt has improved, and we expect growth for the fiscal year 2025 to reach 3.8 percent. For comparison, in 2024 it was 2.4 percent, and we expect that the growth will keep improving in 2026 and reach 4.3 percent. Also, inflation went down from 33 percent on average for fiscal year 2024 to 19.7 percent in 2025, and we expect it to reach 12 percent in 2026, despite the various shocks. Those positive developments reflect the implementation of the reform program that was supported by the IMF and was augmented back in March last year in order also to help Egypt address some of the external shocks, in particular the decline in revenues from the Suez Canal.
As you remember, the program is based on four pillars. One, macroeconomic stability by addressing inflation that constitutes the main issue for economic stability through tightening the monetary policy. The second is to address the debt issue by improving the primary surplus and also through an active debt management strategy and strengthening debt management organization to reduce gradually the debt and the weight of the debt through the debt service on the economy. The third important pillar is to preserve the economy from external shocks, and this is the role of the flexibility in the exchange rate. Flexibility in the exchange rate in a time of high level of uncertainty plays an important way to protect the Egyptian economy from external shocks, and its flexibility has proven to be beneficial to the stability of the Egyptian economy. The fourth pillar is growing the economy and give a bigger weight to the private sector, and we encourage the authorities to strengthen and accelerate the reinvestment strategy that would allow more investment to come to the Egyptian economy, would give more space to the private sector, and will help the Egyptian economy and the Egyptian people get better opportunities in a time where those international changes would require an acceleration of economic transformation. The review has been completed in March, and as you know, we had also another facility that was provided to Egypt to help Egypt deal with climate issues, and our engagement with the authorities remain very active. Shall I move to GCC?
MS. AL SHAMI: Yes.
MR. AZOUR: The next trench will be with the next review. On the GCC, well, of course the direct impact of the trade shock on the region has been limited except that with the prospect of the decline in oil price, it comes at a time where we see a resumption of increase of oil production with the implementation of what has been agreed, though at a slower pace, of the December decision of the OPEC+ agreement.
As you know, countries of the GCC have different fundamentals and different level of buffers, and therefore there is no one break-even point for all countries. Our estimates are showing, though, that a decline in oil price of $10 would weaken the fiscal situation by somewhat between 2.3 to 2.7 percent of GDP, and it also, it has similar impact on the external account between 2.5 to 2.7 percent of GDP.
I would like to highlight two additional points that some countries have used the opportunity of their diversification strategy to both reduce their dependence on oil as a source of income, but also to diversify fiscally and reduce the impact of oil revenues, which we encourage other countries to follow suit.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you, Jihad. So we’ll take another round of questions from the room, and then we will turn to online. The lady in the first row, please.
QUESTIONER: Dr. Jihad, thank you for taking my question. Nour Amache from Asharq Bloomberg. I wanted to ask about Lebanon and Syria and to follow up on what my colleagues here asked about Egypt. They were asking about the next review, if it’s in June, and the next tranche in June, if we can elaborate on that. Now, regarding Lebanon, today the parliament passed the law of lifting bank secrecy. Will this make or will this make the program with the IMF faster? Will this increase the prospects of a program with Lebanon anytime soon, especially since I know the Lebanese authorities represented by the Finance Minister, the Economy Minister, and the Central Bank Governor are all here in Washington, and a lot of meetings have been undergoing? That’s regarding Lebanon. And regarding Syria, also a big Syrian delegation is here. What has been reached so far with the Syrian counterparts? Thank you.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you. One more question. Maybe we’ll go to the gentleman in the front here.
QUESTIONER: Thank you. Mohammad Al-Lubani from Jordan Al-Mamlaka TV. I’d like to ask in Arabic. In light of our dependence on American exports, [ESQUAH] said that 25 percent of the exports go to the United States. How would the tariffs affect Jordan, and are there any estimates of these losses by the Fund? And what are the recommendations of the Fund in order to face these challenges?
MR. AZOUR: The discussions are, you know, continuing, and the engagement with the authorities is taking place during the Spring Meetings. As I mentioned earlier, we look forward to the next review to see an acceleration of the divestment strategy that is one of the key priorities because of its critical impact on sustaining growth in Egypt, providing opportunities to the private sector, and also helping in the effort that Egypt is pursuing in reducing the debt. In the context of high interest rate, it’s very important to address debt service issue, and this would be accelerated by reducing the debt. Therefore, we look forward to see progress on the authorities’ plan in terms of divestment.
On Lebanon, the Fund has been supportive of Lebanon, and a staff-level agreement has been reached in 2022. Lebanon staff, Lebanon team, is and remained actively engaged with the authorities, providing technical assistance. And recently, we had two staff visits to Lebanon and the authorities have engaged with our team in order to reactivate a potential program. They have expressed their interest for that. The Lebanese economic and financial situation has been made
more challenging with the recent implications of the war and the massive destruction that in addition to the need to address the financial and economic situation, Lebanon is also facing the need to deal with the reconstruction.
The pillars of the program will remain valid as they were negotiated. Macroeconomic stability, based on addressing the legacy of the financial sector. The legacy of debt, address the debt issue. Second pillar is to deal with the macroeconomic stability through fiscal consolidation. Third pillar is to strengthen governance by reforming SOEs and also increasing and improving the confidence factor. And third is to address social issues, especially now with issues related to the reconstructions. Discussions are taking place and staff is on active dialogue with the Lebanese authorities.
We are in discussion and therefore I think the discussions that we are having during the Spring Meetings are giving the opportunity for us to understand what are the reform priorities of the Lebanese government. As you know, staff had a couple of visits in the last few weeks, and we will keep our active engagement with the Lebanese authorities.
On Syria. Of course, Syria has been absent for the last 15 years due to the war, and their engagement with the institution has been fairly limited since 2011. The last Article IV consultation with Syria took place in 2009. The international community and the regional community has been actively engaged in order to see how we could help Syria recover from a long period of war.
We had a preparatory meeting preparatory meeting in AlUla back in February where regional institutions and the international community have agreed to have another follow-up coordination meeting that took place last Tuesday where representatives from international institutions, bilaterals, have convened in order to assess the needs of Syria and also to develop a framework of coordination. The Fund is engaged to support the international community in its engagement with Syria. We have already started our assessment of the macroeconomic situation, the institutional capacity, and we look forward to continue our engagement with the Syrian authorities.
MS. AL SHAMI: Then you have one more question on Jordan.
MR. AZOUR: Yes, Jordan. In Arabic? Okay. Jordan is one of the countries that have been affected by the tariffs, but this is still limited because of the kind of exports or the relationship between Jordan and the United States. And Jordan managed to overcome, in the recent years, to overcome several shocks, including shocks related to the variability and volatility and the effect of the Gaza issues on the economy of Jordan. And the latest reviews emphasized the need for Jordan to keep stability and also, despite the external shocks, to take the needed measures in order to improve the macroeconomic situation and to reinforce the economy. And there has been discussions about supporting Jordan through a new mechanism, the Resilience and Sustainability Facility, in order to help Jordan in the measures that would help it improve adaptation with the climate change and other shocks and other pandemics. There is actually progress in this regard. And there will be a review next month by the Executive Board of the Fund about Jordan.
MS. AL SHAMI: We’ll turn to Dania, who’s on Webex online. Dania, please go ahead.
QUESTIONER: Hello, can you hear me?
MS. AL SHAMI: Yes, you can hear you.
QUESTIONER: Hi. Hello Dr. Jihad, I just have a follow-up question on the break-even oil prices for the Gulf. In the October report, countries like Saudi Arabia had a very high break-even price of around 90. I think it was the second biggest highest in the GCC after Bahrain. I just wanted to see, this figure is likely to increase given the high expenditures, the lower oil prices. How will the lower oil prices — you mentioned about the impact on GDP, but the prices, I think, since the beginning of the year have dropped by more than $10.00. So, the impact has it been considered in the Regional Economic Report? And especially because I don’t know the report, did it include the impact of the tariffs and the impact of the increase in OPEC production from May, which is accelerated? And just one clarification, with regards to Saudi break-even, some analysts include the expenditure of the Public Investment Fund. Is that part of the IMF estimates for the break-even? What’s included in the break-even? Thank you very much.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you. Any additional questions on GCC? Okay, let’s take the gentleman in the middle.
QUESTIONER: Hello Mr. Azour, Madame Al Shami, thank you for the opportunity. Philippe Hage Boutros from L’Orient-Le Jour, Lebanon. How does the IMF assess the potential impact of declining oil revenues stemming from a possible drop in prices amid the tariff crisis on the capacity and willingness of the Gulf countries to fund international aid, particularly for countries like Lebanon and Syria that urgently need reconstruction financing? Does it anticipate a significant or relatively limited effect? Thank you.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you. And we had one more question on Saudi that we received online. In light of the global trade repercussions, what is the effect on the Saudi market, especially on inflation and growth? This question comes from Mohammed Al Sulami from Al Akhbariyah in Saudi Arabia.
MR. AZOUR: Let me start with Dania’s question. Dania, let me start by saying that over the last few years from a fiscal perspective, Saudi has made a significant improvement through various reforms in order to diversify revenues outside oil and also reduce certain expenditures, including on the subsidy side. And this effort to diversify revenues has led to an increase of non-oil revenues in the GDP for Saudi. Of course, the last couple of years have been beneficial in terms of providing Saudi and other GCC countries with surplus in the fiscal as well as also in the current account, which have led to increase in buffers. Of course, still the oil sector represent an important source of revenue and it’s still also an important source of foreign currencies.
Coming to the fiscal strategy, Saudi has established a medium-term fiscal framework that anchors policies and also help them deal with the volatility in oil price and become less pro cyclicals. Of course, the increase in oil price, sorry, the decline in oil price will have impact on the fiscal and will lead to a potential additional drop in fiscal situation.
As I mentioned earlier, a decline of $10.00 per barrel or a decline of $1 million of production will have an impact on the fiscal between 2 to 3 percent. The decline in oil price is accompanied with a recovery in oil production and Saudi was one of the largest, I would say, contributor to the voluntary drop in oil export.
When it comes to the link between fiscal and the investment strategy, the investment strategy has been also put in the medium-term framework in the context of the Vision 2030 and regularly there are updates, recalibration and also phasing, based on the capacity to implement and the priorities.
In our projections, although developments were taking place almost at the time when we were releasing our outlook, we took into consideration the new assumptions on the oil price for this year as well as also on the growth projections.
The second question related to Saudi. The impact of the latest developments on the Saudi economy. Undoubtedly, the trade relations regarding the non-oil sector is limited with the United States and therefore the impact will also be limited on trade related to tariffs, especially as oil and gas are exempt from the increase in tariffs. But there will be an indirect impact, as we’ve said. Saudi Arabia also has a dollarized economy, whether on the side of exports or imports, and therefore the impact will be limited.
On the other hand, the reduction or the depreciation of the dollar will affect services, especially tourism. And this is a sector that Saudi Arabia is trying to develop by establishing new expansion for tourism in Saudi Arabia.
The other related question on support to the reconstruction in the region. Let me first say two things. One, ODA has declined over the last few years, and more recently with the decisions to stop some of the international assistance by USAID and others. This will have an important impact, especially on countries in fragility who depend heavily on aid. Countries like Somalia, Sudan, countries like Yemen. And this represents a risk not only on the fiscal side, but also on the humanitarian side on food security. This is the first point.
The second point is the region is, we’re talking here about the Levant, is going through an important prospect of post-conflict recovery. Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, and hopefully, Yemen, and Sudan. This would require strong international and financial assistance. Of course, this also would require to accelerate certain number of reforms that will allow the private sector to provide financing. Those countries have strong diasporas, and the recovery could also be co-led by international assistance, also by private sector support. And some of the reforms, be it in Lebanon or in Syria, are very important to regain confidence and will allow private sector to play its key role in recovering those economies.
The region has been very supportive. And when we look at the official assistance and the interest that is being shown by several countries in the region, be it in the recent meeting that took place in Saudi Arabia, in Al Ula, where ministers of finance from the GCC and regional institutions convened in order to explore opportunities to provide more assistance to those countries.
Again, I think it’s very important also to highlight that assistance has to accompany reform programs that will lay the ground to strong institutions will provide confidence for both citizens and also international, private and public community, in order to accelerate the recovery.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you, Jihad. We’ll take one more round of questions. The lady on the second row here, please.
QUESTIONER: Hello, I’m Mariam Ali from Dawn News Pakistan. My question is how will the global tariff war uniquely impact Pakistan? Any need of buffers in place to mitigate risks to the country? Thank you.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you. Let’s take maybe one more question. The gentleman here sitting in the front.
QUESTIONER: Thank you, , Director Azour. My question is on Yemen. Igor Naimushin, RIA News Agency, D.C. Bureau. So, last week U.S. struck Ras Isa fuel part in Yemen. I would like to ask you to outline what repercussions this strike will have on energy security and economic situation in Yemen and broadly in region? And if you could, provide any details how the IMF — what is the IMF view on longer-term risks for the region as U.S. operation on Yemen continues to unfold? Thank you.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you. We’ll take one more question from the gentleman here in the –.
QUESTIONER: Hi, my name is Magnus Sherman. I wanted to return to Lebanon. The new Prime Minister has pledged to not touch the hard currency deposits. Does the IMF support that position?
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you. And we have an online question from Camille Faris Abu Rafael. How can low- and middle-income countries in MENA balance urgent social needs with long-term fiscal sustainability amid rising debt and global uncertainty and persistently high interest rates? We’ll take these questions, and we’ll take another round. Thank you.
MR. AZOUR: On Pakistan. Pakistan made significant progress in restoring macroeconomic stability over the last 18 months and the numbers are, for Pakistan, are showing improvement both in terms of growth as well as also in inflation that dropped from 12.6 percent last year in 2024 fiscal year to 6.5 percent this year, expected to stay at this level for next year. Debt is also stabilizing in the case of Pakistan, and recently Pakistan has been upgraded by rating agencies.
Of course, trade tensions will affect relatively Pakistan maybe more than the average in the region. But I would say the impact on Pakistan directly can be offset by other measures that would allow the Pakistani economy to reposition itself in a world that is in the midst of one of the largest transformation in terms of trade, economic opportunities, and to reposition itself in order to address any risks, but also to potentially benefit from change in the trade routes.
The question on Yemen the situation on Yemen is extremely preoccupying at the humanitarian level, both in terms of food security as well as also in terms of human suffering. And this situation has been inflicting heavy toll on the Yemeni people for a long period of time. Of course, broadly speaking, instability has been one of the main issues that the region is dealing with. Instability is one of the key sources of uncertainty for the region. Addressing this instability is key in providing security for people to improve their living conditions, providing stability for the trade routes, and also provide opportunities for people to rebuild and reconstruct. The Fund is engaged to (A) keep a very strong contacts with Yemen, provide technical assistance at a time where we cannot provide because of the security situation, financial assistance. Therefore, we are actively supporting through technical assistance. And we are also in regular engagement with the authorities.
Our next plan is to reengage through Article IV in order to assess the economic situation in Yemen, help the internationally recognized government assess the overall debt situation and the debt liabilities in order, later on, to help Yemen deal with the debt situation, and provide right assessment for the donor community to provide assistance.
Political stabilization security is very important to preserve human and social conditions, and the Fund stands ready to help Yemen as well as also other countries facing fragility and conflicts in the region. And this is something that we are increasing our resources to provide support to those countries.
Lebanon. Lebanon problems are complex in terms of how to address the overall financial challenge. The solution has to deal through a comprehensive approach with all the financial issues that Lebanon is facing. A piecemeal approach is not what Lebanon needs today. A reform package that restores confidence, addresses the legacy of the past, provides opportunities for the economy to recover, by also promoting the capacity of the financial system to finance the recovery, mobilize international assistance to help Lebanon dealing with the reconstruction needs, and also support the reforms are priorities that our team is currently discussing with the Lebanese authorities.
The question related to balancing short-term and medium-term. I think it’s a very important question. We live currently in a world of high uncertainty and in our outlook this spring we have — and I would encourage you to read it, it’s very interesting piece — we have tried to assess the impact of uncertainty on the region and the uncertainty is of multiple layers. A global uncertainty, regional, geopolitical and conflict situation, but also internal or local uncertainties. Those are important issues for countries to address.
In very brief, countries need to in the short term to preserve stability and that would require to increase their buffers. And for those who have limited buffers to accelerate fiscal consolidations to reduce the risk, address some of their financing issues, especially countries who have high level of debt and for those who have buffers, preserve those and use them when they need. But I think what is really important, especially given the lasting negative impact of uncertainties on countries, is to address the medium-term issues. And addressing the medium-term issues will help unlock growth, accelerating structural reforms, improving economic conditions, provide stronger social protection framework by moving from untargeted subsidies to something that is more meaningful in terms of social support would be extremely beneficial for countries in the region.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you very much, Jihad and I’m afraid we have run out of time. Thank you all for participating with us today and as always, we will be posting the transcript online. But just a reminder that we will be launching our report next week on May 1 so stay tuned for that. And as Jihad mentioned, please join us tomorrow at 2:30 for the seminar on how countries can navigate uncertainties. Jihad, any last words?
MR. AZOUR: Only to say thank you. And thanks to our friends here, the journalists. We look forward to provide you with more details in Dubai next week with all the details, as well as also country-specific information on our Regional Economic Outlook. And two days after that, in Samarkand, in Uzbekistan, on the outlook for Caucasus and Central Asia. Thank you very much.
PRESS OFFICER: Angham Al Shami
Phone: +1 202 623-7100Email: MEDIA@IMF.org
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, April 24 — China launched the Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship Thursday, continuing efforts to advance space technology for all humanity — a vision long championed by Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Over the past years, Xi has addressed the importance of international cooperation in peaceful space exploration and development on multiple occasions.
During the meeting with the Shenzhou-12 astronauts in 2021, Xi said that progress in space science and technology will benefit people around the world, and China wants to use space exploration achievements to create a better future for mankind.
When meeting representatives of the Chang’e-5 mission in 2021, Xi stressed actively conducting international cooperation and making more contributions to humanity’s well-being.
According to the China Manned Space Agency, China is in discussions with other nations regarding potential foreign astronaut participation in the country’s future space station missions.
China welcomes international applications for acquiring lunar samples brought back by the Chang’e-5 and Chang’e-6 probes for scientific research. Scientists from various countries have taken part in researching the Chang’e-5 lunar samples.
Moreover, Chang’e-7 and Chang’e-8 lunar probes to be launched in the next three years will offer international payload capacity, according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA).
China has also signed cooperation agreements with 17 countries and international organizations on the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) construction, offering various levels and forms of collaboration opportunities.
In a congratulatory letter to the First International Summit on BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) Applications in 2021, Xi said China is willing to share the achievements of the BDS with all parties, promote the progress of the global satellite navigation industry and make the BDS better serve the world and benefit humankind.
To date, BDS services have been used in precision agriculture and smart ports in ASEAN countries, South Asia, West Asia, Eastern Europe and Africa to serve local economic and social development.
Within the BRICS framework, China will continue advancing the development of the BRICS Remote Sensing Satellite Constellation to enhance disaster emergency data sharing.
China will also provide satellite services to the Belt and Road Initiative partner countries, fostering their sustainable progress in agriculture, disaster prevention, and smart city initiatives.
When he met with representatives of space scientists and engineers who participated in the research and development of the Chang’e-6 lunar mission last year, Xi called for deepening various forms of international exchange and cooperation in the field of space, sharing development achievements with other countries, improving outer space governance, and making space science and technology achievements more beneficial to all people.
Outer space is a domain shared by humanity, and space exploration is humanity’s common cause, Xi said.
Source: IMF – News in Russian
April 24, 2025
Speaker: Mr.Jihad Azour, Director of Middle East and Central Asia Department, IMF
Moderator: Ms. Angham Al Shami, Communications Officer, IMF
MS. AL SHAMI: Good morning. Thank you for joining us in this press briefing on the Regional Economic Outlook for the Middle East and Central Asia. My name is Angham Al Shami, from the Communications Department here at the IMF.
If you’re joining us online, we do have Arabic and French interpretations that you can access on the IMF Regional Economic Outlook webpage and the IMF Press Center as well. And for those of you in the room, you also have equipment to access that.
Today I’m joined by Jihad Azour, the Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department, who will give us an overview of the outlook of the region, and then we will open the floor for your questions. With that, over to you, Jihad.
MR. AZOUR: Thank you very much, Angham. Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the IMF 2025 Spring Meetings. Before answering your questions, I will briefly outline the economic outlook for the Middle East and North Africa as well as the Caucasus and Central Asia. Let me first start with a few words on the recent developments.
The global economy stands at a delicate crossroads. The global recovery of recent years faces new risks as governments reorder their policy priorities. The recent escalation in trade tensions has already damaged global growth prospects while triggering intense financial volatility. More broadly, the extraordinary increase in global uncertainty associated with trade policy and increased geopolitical fragmentation will continue to erode confidence for quite some time and represents a serious downside risk to global growth.
For MENA and CCA economies, these developments are adding to existing regional source of uncertainty, including ongoing conflicts, pockets of political instability and climate vulnerability. We continue to assess the impact of recently announced U.S. tariffs on MENA and CCA economies. While the direct effects are expected to be modest, giving limited trade exposure and exemptions for energy products, the indirect effects could be more pronounced. Slower growth will weaken external demand and remittances, while tighter financial conditions may challenge countries with elevated public debts. Oil exporting economies could also see fiscal and external positions deteriorate due to the lower oil prices. Some countries may benefit from trade diversion, but such gains could be short lived in a broader environment of trade contraction.
Let me now turn to the Middle East and North Africa. Last year was particularly challenging for the region. Conflict caused severe human and economic costs. Regional growth in 2024 reached 1.8 percent, a downgrade revision of 0.2 percentage point from the October World Economic Outlook forecast. Conflicts weigh on growth in some oil importing countries and extended OPEC+ voluntary production cuts continue to dampen activity in oil exporting economies. For GCC countries, strong non-oil growth and diversification efforts were largely offset by oil production cuts.
Despite these challenges and high uncertainty, growth is projected to pick up in 2025 and 2026, assuming oil output rebounds, conflict related impacts stabilize, progress is made on structural reform and implementation. However, expectations have been revised down compared to the October 2024 Regional Economic Outlook, reflecting weaker global growth and more modest effect of these drivers. We now project growth at 2.6 percent in 2025 and 3.4 percent in 2026, a downward revision of 1.3 and 1 percentage points, respectively. Inflation is projected to continue declining across MENA economies, remaining elevated only in few cases.
Let me now turn to the outlook for the Caucuses and Central Asia. In contrast, economic activity in the CCA exceeded expectations in 2024, growing by 5.4 percent, driven by spillover effects from the war in Ukraine, which boosted domestic demand. However, as these temporary effects normalize over the next few years, growth is expected to moderate due to weaker external demand, plateauing growth of hydrocarbon production, and reduced fiscal stimulus. Despite the moderation in overall growth, inflation is expected to increase somewhat across the region and remain elevated in a few cases, reflecting still strong domestic demand.
Let me now turn to the risks to the outlook. These projections are subject to extraordinary uncertainty and the risks to the baseline forecast remain tilted to the downside. Four key risks stand out. First, trade tension as a further escalation could dampen global demand, delay in oil production recovery, and tighten financial conditions. Our analysis shows that persistence spikes in uncertainty triggered by global shocks are associated with large output losses both in MENA and CCA. The second risk is geopolitical conflict. The third one is climate shocks. And the last one is the reduction in official development assistance. This could further exacerbate food insecurity and humanitarian conditions in low-income and conflict-affected economies. However, upside risks also exist. The swift resolution of conflict and accelerated implementation of structural reforms could substantially improve regional growth prospects. The implications of a potential peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine for the CCA region also remain uncertain.
Now the question is what are the policies that we recommend for countries and how they should prioritize them. In the face of extraordinary uncertainty, MENA and CCA economies should respond along two key dimensions, manage short term instability, and use the opportunity to advance structural reforms for long-term growth. The first priority is adapt to the new environment. Countries must take steps to shield their economies from the impact of worst-case scenarios and prioritize safeguarding macroeconomic and financial stability. The appropriate policy response will vary depending on each country’s initial conditions and vulnerability to risk.
Turning to more the long-term, countries should transform their economies. Recent developments underscore the urgent need to accelerate the long-discussed structural reforms agenda across the region. To reduce vulnerabilities to shocks and seize opportunities arising from the evolving global trade and financial landscape, it is essential to enhance governance, invest in human capital, advance digitalization, and foster a dynamic private sector. Establishing strategic trade and investment corridors with other regions such as Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia, as well as within the region, including between GCC and Central Asia or GCC and North Africa, can help mitigate exposure to external uncertainty, enable greater risk sharing, and drive sustainable economic development.
We will delve into these policy priorities at the launch of our Regional Economic Outlook in Dubai next week and in Samarkand, in Uzbekistan, where on May 3 we are organizing jointly with the Uzbek government a GCC-CCA Economic Conference where Ministers of Finance and Governors of Central Banks from both regions, as well as representatives of IFIs and private sectors, will discuss deepening economic ties between these two regions. We also invite you to join us tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. at the Atrium for a public panel discussion on the economic consequences of the high uncertainty in the MENA and CCA regions.
Before I open the floor to questions, I want to underscore the IMF’s deep commitment to supporting countries throughout the region with policy advice, technical assistance, and, in many cases, financial support. Since early 2020, we have approved almost $50 billion in financing to countries across the MENA region, Pakistan, and the CCA, of which 14.8 have been approved since early 2024.
In closing, I want to highlight our engagement to post-conflict economies. Strengthening economic fundamentals and rebuilding institutions will be essential to successful recovery. The IMF, in coordination with the World Bank and regional partners, has established an informal coordination group to support recovery in conflict-affected states in the Middle East. Our focus will be on capacity building, policy guidance, and financial assistance. We are also working closely with authorities to help stabilize their economies, restore confidence, and lay foundations for sustainable growth.
Again, thank you very much for joining us this morning, and now I would like to welcome your questions.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you very much, Jihad, and now we will take your questions. And let’s start with the gentleman here in the first row, please.
QUESTIONER: Thank you, Angham and Jihad. I’m Amir Goumaa from Asharq Bloomberg. IMF raised the gross forecasting for Egypt dispIte the regional downgrade. Why is that? And how can the MENA region turn the country trade disputes into opportunities?
MR. AZOUR: Excuse me?
QUESTIONER: How can the MENA region turn the current trade disputes and tariffs into opportunities? Like how can they make the best use of it?
MR. AZOUR: Thank you very much for your question.
MS. AL SHAMI: Should we take more questions on Egypt? Perhaps should we take more questions on Egypt. We’ll start with this gentleman and then the gentleman in the back. This one first.
QUESTIONER: Hello everyone. My name is Ahmad Yaqub. I’m the managing editor of Al Youm Al-Sabah Egyptian Newspaper. I have two questions about Egypt. The first one is about the expected exchange rate of the Egyptian pound against the U.S. dollar by the end of 2026, the next year, and the expected inflation rate and the economic growth rate of Egypt. The second question is the next trench of the program, current program with the Egyptian authorities. What is the timing of the next trench and the total amount of it? Thank you so much.
MS. AL SHAMI: And then the gentleman here.
QUESTIONER: Ramy Gabr from Al-Qahera News. The global economic outlook carries good news. Maybe for Egypt in terms of the economic growth in 2025. How do you see that and what’s the facts and numbers led to this outlook? Thank you.
MS. AL SHAMI: Over to you.
MR. AZOUR: Thank you very much. Yes, please.
QUESTIONER: I’m Lauren Holtmeier from S&P Global. I wanted to ask about the fiscal break-even prices for oil production, specifically for the countries with high fiscal break-even prices like Saudi Arabia and Iraq. And how will the lowered expectations for oil prices over the next couple of years affect their ability and their economic outlook? And I recognize that the answer for those two countries might be very different.
MR. AZOUR: Thank you very much. I had three sets of questions. One on trade and the impact of the recent trade developments on the region and how those could be turned into an opportunity. The second set of questions were on Egypt, and the third one was on the GCC and the oil market. Let me start with the first one.
Countries of the region have limited trade dependence on the U.S., and therefore the recent trade and tariff decisions will have limited direct impact on those economies. Yet it’s important also to highlight that there would be indirect impact. And also those indirect impact may take different channels. One impact is the impact that this could have on financial stability and capital flows. We saw widening of spreads over the last few years, which is an issue that could affect the capacity of emerging economies and middle-income countries who have high levels of debt. The second potential impact is impact on oil market. We saw some softening in the oil price, as well as the forwards of oil price are showing a certain extension of those softening over the year. And the third type of effect is the second-round impact due to trade diversion.
I will maybe go into more details about what are the policies that we recommend for countries to address those challenges. Few countries have more exposure to the U.S. trade like Pakistan or Jordan, and those are specific cases. I can address those. Opportunities, of course, in any change there are opportunities, and over the last few years we saw successive shocks and transformation on the geopolitical front and the geoeconomic front, and those have affected the region. The region stands at the crossroads between East and West, and therefore trade routes, connectivity, as well as also opportunities go through this region. This would require, as I mentioned in my opening remarks, for countries in the region to seek new opportunities in terms of strengthening their economic relationships and trade ties with regions close to them, as well as also within countries in the region, which will call for new way of increasing connectivity and cooperation in the region.
The second set of questions is on Egypt. Over the last year, growth in Egypt has improved, and we expect growth for the fiscal year 2025 to reach 3.8 percent. For comparison, in 2024 it was 2.4 percent, and we expect that the growth will keep improving in 2026 and reach 4.3 percent. Also, inflation went down from 33 percent on average for fiscal year 2024 to 19.7 percent in 2025, and we expect it to reach 12 percent in 2026, despite the various shocks. Those positive developments reflect the implementation of the reform program that was supported by the IMF and was augmented back in March last year in order also to help Egypt address some of the external shocks, in particular the decline in revenues from the Suez Canal.
As you remember, the program is based on four pillars. One, macroeconomic stability by addressing inflation that constitutes the main issue for economic stability through tightening the monetary policy. The second is to address the debt issue by improving the primary surplus and also through an active debt management strategy and strengthening debt management organization to reduce gradually the debt and the weight of the debt through the debt service on the economy. The third important pillar is to preserve the economy from external shocks, and this is the role of the flexibility in the exchange rate. Flexibility in the exchange rate in a time of high level of uncertainty plays an important way to protect the Egyptian economy from external shocks, and its flexibility has proven to be beneficial to the stability of the Egyptian economy. The fourth pillar is growing the economy and give a bigger weight to the private sector, and we encourage the authorities to strengthen and accelerate the reinvestment strategy that would allow more investment to come to the Egyptian economy, would give more space to the private sector, and will help the Egyptian economy and the Egyptian people get better opportunities in a time where those international changes would require an acceleration of economic transformation. The review has been completed in March, and as you know, we had also another facility that was provided to Egypt to help Egypt deal with climate issues, and our engagement with the authorities remain very active. Shall I move to GCC?
MS. AL SHAMI: Yes.
MR. AZOUR: The next trench will be with the next review. On the GCC, well, of course the direct impact of the trade shock on the region has been limited except that with the prospect of the decline in oil price, it comes at a time where we see a resumption of increase of oil production with the implementation of what has been agreed, though at a slower pace, of the December decision of the OPEC+ agreement.
As you know, countries of the GCC have different fundamentals and different level of buffers, and therefore there is no one break-even point for all countries. Our estimates are showing, though, that a decline in oil price of $10 would weaken the fiscal situation by somewhat between 2.3 to 2.7 percent of GDP, and it also, it has similar impact on the external account between 2.5 to 2.7 percent of GDP.
I would like to highlight two additional points that some countries have used the opportunity of their diversification strategy to both reduce their dependence on oil as a source of income, but also to diversify fiscally and reduce the impact of oil revenues, which we encourage other countries to follow suit.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you, Jihad. So we’ll take another round of questions from the room, and then we will turn to online. The lady in the first row, please.
QUESTIONER: Dr. Jihad, thank you for taking my question. Nour Amache from Asharq Bloomberg. I wanted to ask about Lebanon and Syria and to follow up on what my colleagues here asked about Egypt. They were asking about the next review, if it’s in June, and the next tranche in June, if we can elaborate on that. Now, regarding Lebanon, today the parliament passed the law of lifting bank secrecy. Will this make or will this make the program with the IMF faster? Will this increase the prospects of a program with Lebanon anytime soon, especially since I know the Lebanese authorities represented by the Finance Minister, the Economy Minister, and the Central Bank Governor are all here in Washington, and a lot of meetings have been undergoing? That’s regarding Lebanon. And regarding Syria, also a big Syrian delegation is here. What has been reached so far with the Syrian counterparts? Thank you.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you. One more question. Maybe we’ll go to the gentleman in the front here.
QUESTIONER: Thank you. Mohammad Al-Lubani from Jordan Al-Mamlaka TV. I’d like to ask in Arabic. In light of our dependence on American exports, [ESQUAH] said that 25 percent of the exports go to the United States. How would the tariffs affect Jordan, and are there any estimates of these losses by the Fund? And what are the recommendations of the Fund in order to face these challenges?
MR. AZOUR: The discussions are, you know, continuing, and the engagement with the authorities is taking place during the Spring Meetings. As I mentioned earlier, we look forward to the next review to see an acceleration of the divestment strategy that is one of the key priorities because of its critical impact on sustaining growth in Egypt, providing opportunities to the private sector, and also helping in the effort that Egypt is pursuing in reducing the debt. In the context of high interest rate, it’s very important to address debt service issue, and this would be accelerated by reducing the debt. Therefore, we look forward to see progress on the authorities’ plan in terms of divestment.
On Lebanon, the Fund has been supportive of Lebanon, and a staff-level agreement has been reached in 2022. Lebanon staff, Lebanon team, is and remained actively engaged with the authorities, providing technical assistance. And recently, we had two staff visits to Lebanon and the authorities have engaged with our team in order to reactivate a potential program. They have expressed their interest for that. The Lebanese economic and financial situation has been made
more challenging with the recent implications of the war and the massive destruction that in addition to the need to address the financial and economic situation, Lebanon is also facing the need to deal with the reconstruction.
The pillars of the program will remain valid as they were negotiated. Macroeconomic stability, based on addressing the legacy of the financial sector. The legacy of debt, address the debt issue. Second pillar is to deal with the macroeconomic stability through fiscal consolidation. Third pillar is to strengthen governance by reforming SOEs and also increasing and improving the confidence factor. And third is to address social issues, especially now with issues related to the reconstructions. Discussions are taking place and staff is on active dialogue with the Lebanese authorities.
We are in discussion and therefore I think the discussions that we are having during the Spring Meetings are giving the opportunity for us to understand what are the reform priorities of the Lebanese government. As you know, staff had a couple of visits in the last few weeks, and we will keep our active engagement with the Lebanese authorities.
On Syria. Of course, Syria has been absent for the last 15 years due to the war, and their engagement with the institution has been fairly limited since 2011. The last Article IV consultation with Syria took place in 2009. The international community and the regional community has been actively engaged in order to see how we could help Syria recover from a long period of war.
We had a preparatory meeting preparatory meeting in AlUla back in February where regional institutions and the international community have agreed to have another follow-up coordination meeting that took place last Tuesday where representatives from international institutions, bilaterals, have convened in order to assess the needs of Syria and also to develop a framework of coordination. The Fund is engaged to support the international community in its engagement with Syria. We have already started our assessment of the macroeconomic situation, the institutional capacity, and we look forward to continue our engagement with the Syrian authorities.
MS. AL SHAMI: Then you have one more question on Jordan.
MR. AZOUR: Yes, Jordan. In Arabic? Okay. Jordan is one of the countries that have been affected by the tariffs, but this is still limited because of the kind of exports or the relationship between Jordan and the United States. And Jordan managed to overcome, in the recent years, to overcome several shocks, including shocks related to the variability and volatility and the effect of the Gaza issues on the economy of Jordan. And the latest reviews emphasized the need for Jordan to keep stability and also, despite the external shocks, to take the needed measures in order to improve the macroeconomic situation and to reinforce the economy. And there has been discussions about supporting Jordan through a new mechanism, the Resilience and Sustainability Facility, in order to help Jordan in the measures that would help it improve adaptation with the climate change and other shocks and other pandemics. There is actually progress in this regard. And there will be a review next month by the Executive Board of the Fund about Jordan.
MS. AL SHAMI: We’ll turn to Dania, who’s on Webex online. Dania, please go ahead.
QUESTIONER: Hello, can you hear me?
MS. AL SHAMI: Yes, you can hear you.
QUESTIONER: Hi. Hello Dr. Jihad, I just have a follow-up question on the break-even oil prices for the Gulf. In the October report, countries like Saudi Arabia had a very high break-even price of around 90. I think it was the second biggest highest in the GCC after Bahrain. I just wanted to see, this figure is likely to increase given the high expenditures, the lower oil prices. How will the lower oil prices — you mentioned about the impact on GDP, but the prices, I think, since the beginning of the year have dropped by more than $10.00. So, the impact has it been considered in the Regional Economic Report? And especially because I don’t know the report, did it include the impact of the tariffs and the impact of the increase in OPEC production from May, which is accelerated? And just one clarification, with regards to Saudi break-even, some analysts include the expenditure of the Public Investment Fund. Is that part of the IMF estimates for the break-even? What’s included in the break-even? Thank you very much.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you. Any additional questions on GCC? Okay, let’s take the gentleman in the middle.
QUESTIONER: Hello Mr. Azour, Madame Al Shami, thank you for the opportunity. Philippe Hage Boutros from L’Orient-Le Jour, Lebanon. How does the IMF assess the potential impact of declining oil revenues stemming from a possible drop in prices amid the tariff crisis on the capacity and willingness of the Gulf countries to fund international aid, particularly for countries like Lebanon and Syria that urgently need reconstruction financing? Does it anticipate a significant or relatively limited effect? Thank you.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you. And we had one more question on Saudi that we received online. In light of the global trade repercussions, what is the effect on the Saudi market, especially on inflation and growth? This question comes from Mohammed Al Sulami from Al Akhbariyah in Saudi Arabia.
MR. AZOUR: Let me start with Dania’s question. Dania, let me start by saying that over the last few years from a fiscal perspective, Saudi has made a significant improvement through various reforms in order to diversify revenues outside oil and also reduce certain expenditures, including on the subsidy side. And this effort to diversify revenues has led to an increase of non-oil revenues in the GDP for Saudi. Of course, the last couple of years have been beneficial in terms of providing Saudi and other GCC countries with surplus in the fiscal as well as also in the current account, which have led to increase in buffers. Of course, still the oil sector represent an important source of revenue and it’s still also an important source of foreign currencies.
Coming to the fiscal strategy, Saudi has established a medium-term fiscal framework that anchors policies and also help them deal with the volatility in oil price and become less pro cyclicals. Of course, the increase in oil price, sorry, the decline in oil price will have impact on the fiscal and will lead to a potential additional drop in fiscal situation.
As I mentioned earlier, a decline of $10.00 per barrel or a decline of $1 million of production will have an impact on the fiscal between 2 to 3 percent. The decline in oil price is accompanied with a recovery in oil production and Saudi was one of the largest, I would say, contributor to the voluntary drop in oil export.
When it comes to the link between fiscal and the investment strategy, the investment strategy has been also put in the medium-term framework in the context of the Vision 2030 and regularly there are updates, recalibration and also phasing, based on the capacity to implement and the priorities.
In our projections, although developments were taking place almost at the time when we were releasing our outlook, we took into consideration the new assumptions on the oil price for this year as well as also on the growth projections.
The second question related to Saudi. The impact of the latest developments on the Saudi economy. Undoubtedly, the trade relations regarding the non-oil sector is limited with the United States and therefore the impact will also be limited on trade related to tariffs, especially as oil and gas are exempt from the increase in tariffs. But there will be an indirect impact, as we’ve said. Saudi Arabia also has a dollarized economy, whether on the side of exports or imports, and therefore the impact will be limited.
On the other hand, the reduction or the depreciation of the dollar will affect services, especially tourism. And this is a sector that Saudi Arabia is trying to develop by establishing new expansion for tourism in Saudi Arabia.
The other related question on support to the reconstruction in the region. Let me first say two things. One, ODA has declined over the last few years, and more recently with the decisions to stop some of the international assistance by USAID and others. This will have an important impact, especially on countries in fragility who depend heavily on aid. Countries like Somalia, Sudan, countries like Yemen. And this represents a risk not only on the fiscal side, but also on the humanitarian side on food security. This is the first point.
The second point is the region is, we’re talking here about the Levant, is going through an important prospect of post-conflict recovery. Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, and hopefully, Yemen, and Sudan. This would require strong international and financial assistance. Of course, this also would require to accelerate certain number of reforms that will allow the private sector to provide financing. Those countries have strong diasporas, and the recovery could also be co-led by international assistance, also by private sector support. And some of the reforms, be it in Lebanon or in Syria, are very important to regain confidence and will allow private sector to play its key role in recovering those economies.
The region has been very supportive. And when we look at the official assistance and the interest that is being shown by several countries in the region, be it in the recent meeting that took place in Saudi Arabia, in Al Ula, where ministers of finance from the GCC and regional institutions convened in order to explore opportunities to provide more assistance to those countries.
Again, I think it’s very important also to highlight that assistance has to accompany reform programs that will lay the ground to strong institutions will provide confidence for both citizens and also international, private and public community, in order to accelerate the recovery.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you, Jihad. We’ll take one more round of questions. The lady on the second row here, please.
QUESTIONER: Hello, I’m Mariam Ali from Dawn News Pakistan. My question is how will the global tariff war uniquely impact Pakistan? Any need of buffers in place to mitigate risks to the country? Thank you.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you. Let’s take maybe one more question. The gentleman here sitting in the front.
QUESTIONER: Thank you, , Director Azour. My question is on Yemen. Igor Naimushin, RIA News Agency, D.C. Bureau. So, last week U.S. struck Ras Isa fuel part in Yemen. I would like to ask you to outline what repercussions this strike will have on energy security and economic situation in Yemen and broadly in region? And if you could, provide any details how the IMF — what is the IMF view on longer-term risks for the region as U.S. operation on Yemen continues to unfold? Thank you.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you. We’ll take one more question from the gentleman here in the –.
QUESTIONER: Hi, my name is Magnus Sherman. I wanted to return to Lebanon. The new Prime Minister has pledged to not touch the hard currency deposits. Does the IMF support that position?
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you. And we have an online question from Camille Faris Abu Rafael. How can low- and middle-income countries in MENA balance urgent social needs with long-term fiscal sustainability amid rising debt and global uncertainty and persistently high interest rates? We’ll take these questions, and we’ll take another round. Thank you.
MR. AZOUR: On Pakistan. Pakistan made significant progress in restoring macroeconomic stability over the last 18 months and the numbers are, for Pakistan, are showing improvement both in terms of growth as well as also in inflation that dropped from 12.6 percent last year in 2024 fiscal year to 6.5 percent this year, expected to stay at this level for next year. Debt is also stabilizing in the case of Pakistan, and recently Pakistan has been upgraded by rating agencies.
Of course, trade tensions will affect relatively Pakistan maybe more than the average in the region. But I would say the impact on Pakistan directly can be offset by other measures that would allow the Pakistani economy to reposition itself in a world that is in the midst of one of the largest transformation in terms of trade, economic opportunities, and to reposition itself in order to address any risks, but also to potentially benefit from change in the trade routes.
The question on Yemen the situation on Yemen is extremely preoccupying at the humanitarian level, both in terms of food security as well as also in terms of human suffering. And this situation has been inflicting heavy toll on the Yemeni people for a long period of time. Of course, broadly speaking, instability has been one of the main issues that the region is dealing with. Instability is one of the key sources of uncertainty for the region. Addressing this instability is key in providing security for people to improve their living conditions, providing stability for the trade routes, and also provide opportunities for people to rebuild and reconstruct. The Fund is engaged to (A) keep a very strong contacts with Yemen, provide technical assistance at a time where we cannot provide because of the security situation, financial assistance. Therefore, we are actively supporting through technical assistance. And we are also in regular engagement with the authorities.
Our next plan is to reengage through Article IV in order to assess the economic situation in Yemen, help the internationally recognized government assess the overall debt situation and the debt liabilities in order, later on, to help Yemen deal with the debt situation, and provide right assessment for the donor community to provide assistance.
Political stabilization security is very important to preserve human and social conditions, and the Fund stands ready to help Yemen as well as also other countries facing fragility and conflicts in the region. And this is something that we are increasing our resources to provide support to those countries.
Lebanon. Lebanon problems are complex in terms of how to address the overall financial challenge. The solution has to deal through a comprehensive approach with all the financial issues that Lebanon is facing. A piecemeal approach is not what Lebanon needs today. A reform package that restores confidence, addresses the legacy of the past, provides opportunities for the economy to recover, by also promoting the capacity of the financial system to finance the recovery, mobilize international assistance to help Lebanon dealing with the reconstruction needs, and also support the reforms are priorities that our team is currently discussing with the Lebanese authorities.
The question related to balancing short-term and medium-term. I think it’s a very important question. We live currently in a world of high uncertainty and in our outlook this spring we have — and I would encourage you to read it, it’s very interesting piece — we have tried to assess the impact of uncertainty on the region and the uncertainty is of multiple layers. A global uncertainty, regional, geopolitical and conflict situation, but also internal or local uncertainties. Those are important issues for countries to address.
In very brief, countries need to in the short term to preserve stability and that would require to increase their buffers. And for those who have limited buffers to accelerate fiscal consolidations to reduce the risk, address some of their financing issues, especially countries who have high level of debt and for those who have buffers, preserve those and use them when they need. But I think what is really important, especially given the lasting negative impact of uncertainties on countries, is to address the medium-term issues. And addressing the medium-term issues will help unlock growth, accelerating structural reforms, improving economic conditions, provide stronger social protection framework by moving from untargeted subsidies to something that is more meaningful in terms of social support would be extremely beneficial for countries in the region.
MS. AL SHAMI: Thank you very much, Jihad and I’m afraid we have run out of time. Thank you all for participating with us today and as always, we will be posting the transcript online. But just a reminder that we will be launching our report next week on May 1 so stay tuned for that. And as Jihad mentioned, please join us tomorrow at 2:30 for the seminar on how countries can navigate uncertainties. Jihad, any last words?
MR. AZOUR: Only to say thank you. And thanks to our friends here, the journalists. We look forward to provide you with more details in Dubai next week with all the details, as well as also country-specific information on our Regional Economic Outlook. And two days after that, in Samarkand, in Uzbekistan, on the outlook for Caucasus and Central Asia. Thank you very much.
PRESS OFFICER: Angham Al Shami
Phone: +1 202 623-7100Email: MEDIA@IMF.org
https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2025/04/24/tr-04242025-mcd-press-briefing-sms-2025
Source: Government of Canada regional news
On Thursday, April 24, 2025, awards were presented to the following honourees who were selected by a committee of representatives from the B.C. Association of Chiefs of Police and the Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General’s Police Services Division:
AWARDS OF VALOUR:
Barriere RCMP Detachment
Const. Jeremy Galvin – for their courageous efforts when responding to an armed individual on the side of a highway, quickly stopping the threat.
Bella Bella RCMP Detachment
Cpl. Chad Fitzpatrick – for their exceptional bravery and selflessness in the face of a devastating residential fire.
Chase RCMP Detachment
Const. Mario Jakic – for their quick actions, preventing a woman from falling to her death, while placing themselves in harm’s way.
Dawson Creek RCMP Detachment
Const. Lukas Bielicz and Insp. Damon Werrell (now retired) – for their exceptional courage and swift response to a bear attack.
Golden RCMP Detachment
Cpl. Lucas Sovio – for their bravery and de-escalation tactics, while responding to a suicidal individual that shot at innocent people inside their home.
Kamloops RCMP Detachment
Const. Taylor Callens – for their bravery when rescuing a woman during a suicide attempt.
Const. Matt James – for their exceptional courage and resilience in the face of grave danger.
Const. Michael Scherpenisse – for their bravery and de-escalation efforts during a potential hostage situation and apprehending an armed robber.
Constables Dylan Colbourne, Ryan Long and Howard Morine – for their outstanding bravery as they put themselves in harm’s way in pursuit of an armed suspect.
Kelowna RCMP Detachment
Const. Chris Carruthers – for putting themselves in harm’s way, while protecting the public and preventing further violence from a suspect.
Keremeos RCMP Detachment
Const. Zachary Plensky – for their incredible strength and resilience when they restrained and transported a suspect by himself, in a remote area without radio contact, while injured from the offender.
Lower Mainland Emergency Response Team
Constables Shawn Jones, Guillaume Lecours, Darryl Newman, Antony Scarpelli; and corporals Darren Bleker, Stephen Bodden, Joshua Cropley, Luke Johnston, Armand Pinnegar and Ian Sneddon – for their actions, while putting their lives at substantial risk during a dangerous situation and preventing further danger to the community.
Staff Sgt. Dave Malone – for their efforts in stopping an active shooter from continuing to take the lives of innocent bystanders in the community.
Merritt RCMP Detachment
Constables Derek Bodner, Jerry Davey, Carly Gerein, John Julyan and Nick Maciejewski; and Sgt. Brock Hedrick – for putting their safety on the line as they pursued a property theft suspect who continuously shot at them with an automatic rifle as they fled with their young child in the vehicle.
Mission RCMP Detachment
Const. Sukhdip Sidhu – for their bravery when rescuing a resident from a burning building.
Powell River RCMP Detachment
Const. Matthew Horsfield – for risking their safety and swimming 200 metres into a body of water to rescue a suicidal female.
RCMP “E” Division, Explosive Disposal Unit
Const. Tyler Folz, Cpl. Ryan Ziebart, Sgt. Peter Cucheran and Staff Sgt. Brent Elwood – for their bravery, while responding to a critical incident involving a significant explosive devices threat.
RCMP Integrated Homicide Investigation Team
Constables Ahmed Durrani, Hardip Gill, Jasmail Takhar; and Cpl. Harinder Sandhu – for their remarkable foresight, bravery and overwhelming sense of duty, while apprehending a violent individual after a shooting.
Salmon Arm RCMP Detachment
Sgt. Joseph Morrisey – for their bravery and quick action when assisting in the arrest of a violent suspect.
Sicamous RCMP Detachment
Reserve Const. Patrick Pyper – for risking their own safety to rescue a woman who fell through the ice on a lake at night.
Smithers RCMP Detachment
Const. Ashley van Leeuwen – for demonstrating exceptional bravery and composure when confronting and restraining an armed and combative suicidal male, ensuring the safety of his family and co-ordinating a safe arrest.
Southeast District Emergency Response Team
Const. Michael Dibblee – for putting themselves at substantial risk during the planned arrest of a violent prolific offender that had previously carried and used weapons in the commission of offences.
Constables Paul Cooke and Lee Taylor; corporals Dave Lewis, Stephen Prior and Matthew Rattee; and Sgt. Joseph Morrisey – for their bravery when responding and apprehending two violent suspects participating in a crime spree that threatened the lives of the public.
Squamish RCMP Detachment
Const. Hamza Khan – for their efforts in saving a victim trapped in their car after a life-threatening car collision.
Const. Mark McMahon – for their efforts during a high-risk arrest of multiple suspects involved in a brazen daytime shooting.
Sunshine Coast RCMP Detachment
Const. Joshua Jewett – for placing their own life at risk, while responding to a call of a male making threats outside a local housing facility.
Surrey RCMP Detachment
Const. Shannon Walker – for their exceptional courage and bravery in preventing further harm to the public, while arresting an armed subject.
Trail RCMP Detachment
Constables Evan Harding and Jason Zilkie – for risking their lives, while responding to a suicidal and mentally ill male behaving erratically and attempting to enter the BC Ambulance station when he produced a firearm.
Vanderhoof RCMP Detachment
Const. Chris Brown (now retired), Const. Mackenzie Sheridan (now retired), Cpl. J.R. (Edward) Gohn, sergeants Amy Floyd and Kyle Ushock – for their bravery and courage in the face of very dangerous circumstances with an active shooter.
Vernon North Okanagan RCMP Detachment
Const. Jamie Kress – for their quick efforts when responding to a call involving a suicidal female.
AWARDS OF MERITORIOUS SERVICE:
BC Highway Patrol – Parksville
Sgt. Robert Haney – for their selfless and courageous actions in a situation of extremely high risk, in order to protect the public and other police officers.
Central Highway Patrol
Const. Amber Brunner – for their selfless and courageous actions in a situation of extremely high risk, in order to protect the public and other police officers.
Creston RCMP Detachment
Sgt. John Edinger and Staff Sgt. Brandon Buliziuk – for their efforts in rescuing a newborn infant with life-threatening conditions.
Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit B.C.
Const. Lawrence Berceanu and Staff Sgt. Rob Angco – for their dedication during a complex, multi-jurisdictional and multi-national file involving the murder of a United Nations gang member in Phuket, Thailand, that led to the arrest and successful extradition of one of the three suspects.
Dawson Creek RCMP Detachment
Cpl. Daniel Cloutier – with their police service dog, for their life-saving efforts in locating an offender.
Golden RCMP Detachment
Const. Brandon Churchill and Const. Katherin Robinson (now retired) – for their bravery, empathy and teamwork in responding to a suicidal female.
Constables Robyn Diddams and Christopher Kotrba – for their bravery and de-escalation tactics when responding to a suicidal individual that shot at innocent people inside their home.
Kamloops RCMP Detachment
Const. Jean-Francois LaPierre – for their life-saving efforts while responding to a wounded individual.
Sgt. Joseph Morrissey – for their selfless and courageous actions in a situation of extremely high risk, in order to protect the public and other police officers.
Midway RCMP Detachment
Sgt. Phil Peters – for their courageous efforts in locating a wet, hypothermic individual who was trapped in a ravine by making a fire to keep them warm and alert until search-and-rescue personnel arrived.
Mission RCMP Detachment
Constables Rose Foik and Daylon Robinson – for going above and beyond when responding to a dirt bike accident in rural Mission.
Penticton RCMP Detachment
Const. Derek Ballarin – for their efforts in saving a drowning toddler in a lake, while off duty.
Powell River RCMP Detachment
Const. Anthony Stewart – for their dedication and hard work during the COVID-19 pandemic, mentoring other detachment members and ranking No. 2 as a drug-recognition expert (DRE), conducting 50 DRE evaluations, which is 11 times the national average.
RCMP “E” Division Underwater Recovery Team
Const. Marc Leblanc – for their dedication and leadership during an underwater recovery mission, setting a new benchmark for future Underwater Recovery Team operations.
RCMP Federal and Serious Organized Crime Division
Sgt. Nicholas De Winter – for their dedication during a complex, multi-jurisdictional and multi-national file involving the murder of a United Nations gang member in Phuket, Thailand, that led to the arrest and successful extradition of one of the three suspects.
RCMP Integrated Homicide Investigation Team
Inspectors Adam Gander and Matthew Turner; Sgt. Robert Kee, Sgt. Major Heather Lew and Sgt. Mike Lim – for their unwavering dedication and commitment during the murder investigation of a 13-year-old girl that resulted in a conviction of first-degree murder.
Reserve Const. Thomas Kurucz and Staff Sgt. Dave Derusha – for their integral efforts in solving an eight-year-old cold case.
RCMP Pacific Region Federal Policing Program
Corp. Janelle Canning-Lue – for their dedication during a complex, multi-jurisdictional and multi-national file involving the murder of a United Nations gang member in Phuket, Thailand, that led to the arrest and successful extradition of one of the three suspects.
Vancouver Police Department
Det. Troy Timbury – for their dedication during a complex, multi-jurisdictional and multi-national file involving the murder of a United Nations gang member in Phuket, Thailand, that led to the arrest and successful extradition of one of the three suspects.
Vernon RCMP Detachment
Const. Hayley Derzak and Cpl. Darcy Reeves – placed their own lives at risk when responding to a call involving a 17-year-old male threatening to commit suicide.
Sicamous RCMP Detachment
Sgt. Murray McNeil – for risking their own safety to rescue a woman who fell through the ice on a lake at night.
Southeast District Emergency Response Team
Const. Michael Dibblee – for their selfless and courageous actions in a situation of extremely high risk, to protect the public and other police officers.
Surrey RCMP Detachment
Staff Sgt. Mike Spencer – for their significant contribution and leadership in preparation and execution of an operational plan for the Vaisakhi parade in Surrey.
Upper Fraser Valley Regional Detachment
Const. Henry Smith – for putting their safety at risk when jumping into freezing water to save a suicidal person.
Cpl. Chris Gosselin (now retired) – for building strong relationships, trust and respect with 15 Indigenous communities within their detachment area.
Williams Lake BC Highway Patrol
Const. Kevin Wiebe – for their heroic work when saving a trapped driver in a single motor vehicle incident where the car was on fire.
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Taneshka Kruger, UP ISMC: Project Manager and Coordinator, University of Pretoria
Healthcare in Africa faces a perfect storm: high rates of infectious diseases like malaria and HIV, a rise in non-communicable diseases, and dwindling foreign aid.
In 2021, nearly half of the sub-Saharan African countries relied on external financing for more than a third of their health expenditure. But donor fatigue and competing global priorities, such as climate change and geopolitical instability, have placed malaria control programmes under immense pressure. These funding gaps now threaten hard-won progress and ultimately malaria eradication.
The continent’s healthcare funding crisis isn’t new. But its consequences are becoming more severe. As financial contributions shrink, Africa’s ability to respond to deadly diseases like malaria is being tested like never before.
Malaria remains one of the world’s most pressing public health threats. According to the World Health Organization there were an estimated 263 million malaria cases and 597,000 deaths globally in 2023 – an increase of 11 million cases from the previous year.
The WHO African region bore the brunt, with 94% of cases and 95% of deaths. It is now estimated that a child under the age of five dies roughly every 90 seconds due to malaria.
Yet, malaria control efforts since 2000 have averted over 2 billion cases and saved nearly 13 million lives globally. Breakthroughs in diagnostics, treatment and prevention have been critical to this progress. They include insecticide-treated nets, rapid diagnostic tests, artemisinin-based combination therapies (drug combinations to prevent resistance) and malaria vaccines.
Since 2017, the progress has been flat. If the funding gap widens, the risk is not just stagnation; it’s backsliding. Several emerging threats such as climate change and funding shortfalls could undo the gains of the early 2000s to mid-2010s.
Resistance to drugs and insecticides, and strains of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum that standard
diagnostics can’t detect, have emerged as challenges. There have also been changes in mosquito behaviour, with vectors increasingly biting outdoors, making bed nets less effective.
Climate change is shifting malaria transmission patterns. And the invasive Asian mosquito species Anopheles stephensi is spreading across Africa, particularly in urban areas.
Add to this the persistent issue of cross-border transmission, and growing funding shortfalls and aid cuts, and it’s clear that the fight against malaria is at a critical point.
As the world observes World Malaria Day 2025 under the theme “Malaria ends with us: reinvest, reimagine, reignite”, the call to action is urgent. Africa must lead the charge against malaria through renewed investment, bold innovation, and revitalised political will.
We – researchers, policymakers, health workers and communities – need to think smarter about funding. The economic logic of prevention is simple. It’s far cheaper to prevent malaria than to treat it. The total cost of procuring and delivering long-lasting insecticidal nets typically ranges between US$4 and US$7 each and the nets protect families for years. In contrast, treating a single case of severe malaria may cost hundreds of dollars and involve hospitalisation.
In high-burden countries, malaria can consume up to 40% of public health spending.
In Tanzania, for instance, malaria contributes to 30% of the country’s total disease burden. The broader economic toll – lost productivity, work and school absenteeism, and healthcare costs – is staggering. Prevention through long-lasting insecticidal nets, chemoprevention and health education isn’t only humane; it’s fiscally responsible.
We cannot fight tomorrow’s malaria with yesterday’s tools. Resistance, climate-driven shifts in transmission, and urbanisation are changing malaria’s patterns.
This is why re-imagining our approach is urgent.
African countries must scale up innovations like the RTS,S/AS01 vaccine and next-generation mosquito nets. But more importantly, they must build their own capacity to develop, test and produce these tools.
This requires investing in research and development, regional regulatory harmonisation, and local manufacturing.
There is also a need to build leadership capacity within malaria control programmes to manage this adaptive disease with agility and evidence-based decision-making.
Reigniting the malaria fight means shifting power to those on the frontlines. Community health workers remain one of Africa’s greatest untapped resources. Already delivering malaria testing, treatment and health education in remote areas, they can also be trained to manage other health challenges.
Integrating malaria prevention into broader community health services makes sense. It builds resilience, reduces duplication, and ensures continuity even when external funding fluctuates.
Every malaria intervention delivered by a trusted, local health worker is a step towards community ownership of health.
Strengthened collaboration between partners, governments, cross-border nations, and local communities is also needed.
Africa’s malaria challenge is part of a deeper health systems crisis. By 2030, the continent will require an additional US$371 billion annually to deliver basic primary healthcare – about US$58 per person.
For malaria in 2023 alone, US$8.3 billion was required to meet global control and elimination targets, yet only US$4 billion was mobilised. This gap has grown consistently, increasing from US$2.6 billion in 2019 to US$4.3 billion in 2023.
The shortfall has led to major gaps in the coverage of essential malaria interventions.
The solution does not lie in simply spending more, but in spending smarter by focusing on prevention, building local innovation, and strengthening primary healthcare systems.
The responsibility is collective. African governments must invest boldly and reform policies to prioritise prevention.
Global partners must support without dominating. And communities must be empowered to take ownership of their health.
The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
– ref. Beating malaria: what can be done with shrinking funds and rising threats – https://theconversation.com/beating-malaria-what-can-be-done-with-shrinking-funds-and-rising-threats-255126
Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Marilyn Strickland (WA-10)
Washington, DC – Today, during National Infertility Awareness Week, Congresswoman Marilyn Strickland (WA-10), led the reintroduction of the Expanding Access to Fertility Care for Servicemembers and Dependents Act, which would expand TRICARE coverage to make assisted reproductive services, including IVF, available to all active-duty servicemembers (including the Reserve and National Guard) and dependents – regardless of service-connection requirements, sex, gender, sexual orientation, or marital status of the servicemember or their dependent.
This bill has been endorsed by RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association, American Society for Reproductive Medicine, the Center for Reproductive Rights, and the Modern Military Association of America.
“Answering the call to serve often means making a great number of sacrifices for your country. Being able to start a family should not be one of them. This bill removes current barriers in TRICARE and helps ensure that all servicemembers can access the fertility care they deserve to start a family,” said Strickland.
“Our nation’s servicemembers and their families make incredible sacrifices every day, and they deserve access to the full spectrum of medical care to build their families. The majority of Americans — 85% — support access to IVF, one of the most effective medical treatments for those struggling to build their family. Expanding TRICARE coverage to include IVF and fertility care is not just the right thing to do—it’s a critical investment in the health and well-being of military families. RESOLVE stands strongly in support of this long-overdue change, and we urge Congress to act swiftly to ensure that no one who serves our country is denied the chance to become a parent,” said Barbara Collura, President/CEO of RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association
“For decades, the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) has been a leader in promoting policies that expand access to fertility treatments like IVF for military families, who face unique family building challenges due to the nature of their work in service to our country,” said Sean Tipton, ASRM Chief Advocacy & Policy Officer. “We thank Congresswoman Strickland, Delegate Norton, Congressman Takano, and Congresswoman Pressley for calling attention to the fact that current Department of Defense (DoD) policy – which limits TRICARE coverage for fertility treatments to only service members with a service-connected illness or injury – fails to provide our military families with adequate access to care. It’s about time we address this shortcoming so that our brave men and women in uniform do not have to juggle the out-of-pocket costs for treatment with their service, end their military careers to access health care, or forego their dreams of having a family.”
“The Expanding Access to Fertility Care for Servicemembers and Dependents Act is a critical piece of legislation. By removing legal barriers that currently exclude from insurance coverage servicemembers whose infertility is not directly service-related, and safeguarding against discrimination in coverage of this care, the Act gets us closer to ensuring that all servicemembers and their dependents can have equitable and non-discriminatory access to the fertility health care they need to build their families,” said Karla Torres, Senior Human Rights Counsel, Center for Reproductive Rights
The legislation is cosponsored by Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC), Rep. Mark Takano (CA-39), and Rep. Ayanna Pressley (MA-7).
Read the full bill text here.
Congresswoman Marilyn Strickland (WA-10) serves on the House Armed Services Committee and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. She is Whip of the New Democrat Coalition, Secretary of the Congressional Black Caucus, and is one of the first Korean-American women elected to Congress.
###
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)
JEFFERSONVILLE, Ind., April 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — First Savings Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: FSFG – news) (the “Company”), the holding company for First Savings Bank (the “Bank”), today reported net income of $5.5 million, or $0.79 per diluted share, for the quarter ended March 31, 2025, compared to net income of $4.9 million, or $0.72 per diluted share, for the quarter ended March 31, 2024. Excluding nonrecurring items, the Company reported net income of $5.3 million (non-GAAP measure)(1) and net income per diluted share of $0.76 (non-GAAP measure)(1) for the quarter ended March 31, 2025 compared to $3.6 million, or $0.52 per diluted share for the quarter ended March 31, 2024.
Commenting on the Company’s performance, Larry W. Myers, President and CEO, stated “We are pleased with the second fiscal quarter performance, including the continued improvement in the net interest margin, which has increased eighteen and twenty-one basis points for the three and six months ended, respectively. The SBA Lending segment posted its first profitable quarter since March 2024 and posted a solid level of loans originations and sales. Asset quality improved with nonperforming loans decreasing $3.8 million from the prior quarter and the ratio of nonperforming loans to total gross loans improving to 0.67%, a decrease of twenty basis points from the prior quarter. We are optimistic regarding the remainder of fiscal 2025 as we anticipate further expansion of the net interest margin, continued profitability from the SBA Lending segment, additional sales of home equity lines of credit (“HELOCS”), and stable and strong asset quality. We will continue our focus on customer deposit growth, select loan growth opportunities, preservation of asset quality, and prudent capital and liquidity management. We will also continue to evaluate options and strategies that we believe will maximize shareholder value.”
(1) Non-GAAP net income and net income per diluted share exclude certain nonrecurring items. A reconciliation to GAAP and discussion of the use of non-GAAP measures is included in the table at the end of this release.
Results of Operations for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2025 and 2024
Net interest income increased $1.7 million, or 11.6%, to $16.0 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025 as compared to the same period in 2024. The tax equivalent net interest margin for the three months ended March 31, 2025 was 2.93% as compared to 2.66% for the same period in 2024. The increase in net interest income was due to an increase of $807,000 in interest income and a decrease of $846,000 in interest expense. A table of average balance sheets, including average asset yields and average liability costs, is included at the end of this release.
The Company recognized a reversal of provision for credit losses for loans and securities of $357,000 and $1,000, respectively, and a provision for unfunded lending commitments of $123,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2025, compared to a provision for credit losses for loans and securities of $713,000 and $23,000, respectively, and reversal of provision for unfunded lending commitments of $259,000 for the same period in 2024. The reversal of provisions during the 2025 period was due primarily to a decrease in qualitative reserves and $156,000 in net recoveries recognized during the period. The $156,000 in net recoveries during the three months ended March 31, 2025 included $215,000 in net recoveries related to unguaranteed portions of SBA loans. During the three months ended March 31, 2024, the Company recognized net charge-offs of $110,000, of which $15,000 was related to unguaranteed portions of SBA loans. Nonperforming loans, which consist of nonaccrual loans and loans over 90 days past due and still accruing interest, decreased $4.2 million from $16.9 million at September 30, 2024 to $12.7 million at March 31, 2025, due primary to a $4.9 million decrease in loan balances guaranteed by the SBA.
Noninterest income decreased $150,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2025 as compared to the same period in 2024. The decrease was due primarily to a $539,000 decrease in other income, partially offset by a $154,000 increase in service charges on deposit accounts and a $127,000 increase in net gain on sales of SBA loans. The decrease in other income in 2025 was primarily due to $492,000 gain on the sale of mortgage servicing rights during the 2024 period with no corresponding amount for 2025.
Noninterest expense increased $1.9 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025 as compared to the same period in 2024. The increase was due primarily to increases in compensation and benefits and other operating expenses of $940,000 and $948,000, respectively. The increase in compensation and benefits was primarily due to an increase in bonus and incentive accruals in 2025. The increase in other operating expenses was primarily due a $656,000 reversal of accrued loss contingencies for SBA-guaranteed loans in the 2024 period compared to a reversal of $41,000 for the same period in 2025 and an adjustment to the valuation allowance related to the sale of residential mortgage servicing rights of $247,000 in 2024 with no corresponding amount in 2025.
The Company recognized income tax expense of $589,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2025 compared to $866,000 for the same period in 2024. The decrease is due primarily to greater utilization of investment tax credits in the 2025 period. The effective tax rate for 2025 was 9.7% compared to 14.9% for 2024. The effective tax rate is well below the statutory tax rate primarily due to the recognition of investment tax credits related to solar projects in both the 2025 and 2024 periods.
Results of Operations for the Six Months Ended March 31, 2025 and 2024
The Company reported net income of $11.7 million, or $1.68 per diluted share, for the six months ended March 31, 2025 compared to net income of $5.8 million, or $0.85 per diluted share, for the six months ended March 31, 2024. Excluding nonrecurring items, the Company reported net income of $9.4 million (non-GAAP measure)(1) and net income per diluted share of $1.35 (non-GAAP measure)(1) for the six months ended March 31, 2025 compared to net income of $4.5 million and net income per diluted share of $0.66 for the six months ended March 31, 2024. The core banking segment reported net income of $11.4 million, or $1.64 per diluted share for the six months ended March 31, 2025 compared to net income of $8.6 million and net income per diluted share of $1.25 for the six months ended March 31, 2024. Excluding nonrecurring items, the core banking segment reported net income of $9.1 million (non-GAAP measure)(1), or $1.31 per diluted share (non-GAAP measure)(1) for the six months ended March 31, 2025 compared to net income of $7.7 million and net income per diluted share of $1.12 for the six months ended March 31, 2024.
Net interest income increased $3.0 million, or 10.6%, to $31.5 million for the six months ended March 31, 2025 as compared to the same period in 2024. The tax equivalent net interest margin for the six months ended March 31, 2025 was 2.84% as compared to 2.68% for the same period in 2024. The increase in net interest income was due to a $4.6 million increase in interest income, partially offset by a $1.6 million increase in interest expense. A table of average balance sheets, including average asset yields and average liability costs, is included at the end of this release.
The Company recognized a reversal of provision for credit losses for loans and securities of $848,000 and $7,000, respectively, and a provision for unfunded lending commitments of $169,000 for the six months ended March 31, 2025, compared to a provision for credit losses for loans and securities of $1.2 million and $23,000, respectively, and reversal of provision for unfunded lending commitments of $317,000 for the same period in 2024. The reversal of provisions during the 2025 period was due primarily to the bulk sale of approximately $87.2 million of HELOCS during the period and a decrease in qualitative reserves. The Company recognized net recoveries totaling $38,000 for the six months ended March 31, 2025, of which $164,000 was related to unguaranteed portions of SBA loans, compared to net charge-offs of $119,000 in 2024, of which $64,000 was related to unguaranteed portions of SBA loans.
Noninterest income increased $3.2 million for the six months ended March 31, 2025 as compared to the same period in 2024. The increase was due primarily to a $2.5 million net gain on sale of HELOCs in 2025, net gains of $403,000 on the sale of equity securities in 2025 with no corresponding gains for 2024, a $248,000 increase in service charges on deposit accounts, and a $263,000 increase in ATM and interchange fees, slightly offset by a $508,000 decrease in other income due to a $495,000 gain recognized on the sale of mortgage servicing rights during 2024 with no corresponding amount for 2025.
Noninterest expense increased $824,000 for the six months ended March 31, 2025 as compared to the same period in 2024. The increase was due primarily to increases in other operating expenses and compensation and benefits of $962,000 and $453,000, respectively, partially offset by decreases in professional fees and occupancy and equipment of $454,000 and $380,000, respectively. The increase in other operating expenses was due primarily to a $721,000 reversal of accrued loss contingencies for SBA-guaranteed loans in 2024 compared to a reversal of $148,000 in 2025 and a $400,000 accrued contingent liability associated with employee benefits recognized in 2025 with no corresponding amount in 2024, partially offset by a decrease of $180,000 in 2025 to reverse previously accrued litigation expenses. The increase in compensation and benefits is primarily due to an increase in bonus and incentive accruals in 2025 compared to 2024. The decrease in professional fees and occupancy and equipment is primarily due to the cessation of national mortgage banking operations in the quarter ended December 31, 2023.
The Company recognized income tax expense of $1.4 million for the six months ended March 31, 2025 compared to $390,000 for the same period in 2024. The increase is due primarily to higher taxable income in the 2025 period, including the aforementioned net gain on sale of loans. The effective tax rate for 2025 was 10.9% compared to 6.3%. The effective tax rate is well below the statutory tax rate primarily due to the recognition of investment tax credits related to solar projects in both the 2025 and 2024 periods.
Comparison of Financial Condition at March 31, 2025 and September 30, 2024
Total assets decreased $74.1 million, from $2.45 billion at September 30, 2024 to $2.38 billion at March 31, 2025. Net loans held for investment decreased $83.7 million during the six months ended March 31, 2025 due primarily to the $87.2 million bulk sale of home equity lines of credit.
Total liabilities decreased $76.2 million due primarily to a decrease in total deposits of $91.7 million, partially offset by an increase in FHLB borrowings of $23.7 million. The decrease in total deposits was due to a decrease in brokered deposits of $112.4 million, due primarily to proceeds from the aforementioned bulk sale of home equity lines of credit and an increase in customer deposits of $20.7 million. As of March 31, 2025, deposits exceeding the FDIC insurance limit of $250,000 per insured account were 31.8% of total deposits and 15.1% of total deposits when excluding public funds insured by the Indiana Public Deposit Insurance Fund.
Total stockholders’ equity increased $2.1 million, from $177.1 million at September 30, 2024 to $179.2 million at March 31, 2025, due primarily to a $9.6 million increase in retained net income, partially offset by a $8.2 million increase in accumulated other comprehensive loss. The increase in accumulated other comprehensive loss was due primarily to increasing long-term market interest rates during the six months ended March 31, 2025, which resulted in a decrease in the fair value of securities available for sale. At March 31, 2025 and September 30, 2024, the Bank was considered “well-capitalized” under applicable regulatory capital guidelines.
First Savings Bank is an entrepreneurial community bank headquartered in Jeffersonville, Indiana, which is directly across the Ohio River from Louisville, Kentucky, and operates fifteen depository branches within Southern Indiana. The Bank also has two national lending programs, including single-tenant net lease commercial real estate and SBA lending, with offices located predominately in the Midwest. The Bank is a recognized leader, both in its local communities and nationally for its lending programs. The employees of First Savings Bank strive daily to achieve the organization’s vision, We Expect To Be The BEST community BANK, which fuels our success. The Company’s common shares trade on The NASDAQ Stock Market under the symbol “FSFG.”
This release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. These statements are not historical facts; rather, they are statements based on the Company’s current expectations regarding its business strategies and their intended results and its future performance. Forward-looking statements are preceded by terms such as “expects,” “believes,” “anticipates,” “intends” and similar expressions.
Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. Numerous risks and uncertainties could cause or contribute to the Company’s actual results, performance and achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause or contribute to these differences include, without limitation, changes in general economic conditions; changes in market interest rates; changes in monetary and fiscal policies of the federal government; legislative and regulatory changes; and other factors disclosed in the Company’s periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Because of the risks and uncertainties inherent in forward-looking statements, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on them, whether included in this release or made elsewhere from time to time by the Company or on its behalf. Except as may be required by applicable law or regulation, the Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements.
Contact:
Tony A. Schoen, CPA
Chief Financial Officer
812-283-0724
| FIRST SAVINGS FINANCIAL GROUP, INC. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS | ||||||||||||||||||||
| (Unaudited) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Three Months Ended | Six Months Ended | |||||||||||||||||||
| OPERATING DATA: | March 31, | March 31, | ||||||||||||||||||
| (In thousands, except share and per share data) | 2025 | 2024 | 2025 | 2024 | ||||||||||||||||
| Total interest income | $ | 30,823 | $ | 30,016 | $ | 63,272 | $ | 58,671 | ||||||||||||
| Total interest expense | 14,832 | 15,678 | 31,819 | 30,220 | ||||||||||||||||
| Net interest income | 15,991 | 14,338 | 31,453 | 28,451 | ||||||||||||||||
| Provision (credit) for credit losses – loans | (357 | ) | 713 | (848 | ) | 1,183 | ||||||||||||||
| Provision (credit) for unfunded lending commitments | 123 | (259 | ) | 169 | (317 | ) | ||||||||||||||
| Provision (credit) for credit losses – securities | (1 | ) | 23 | (7 | ) | 23 | ||||||||||||||
| Total provision (credit) for credit losses | (235 | ) | 477 | (686 | ) | 889 | ||||||||||||||
| Net interest income after provision (credit) for credit losses | 16,226 | 13,861 | 32,139 | 27,562 | ||||||||||||||||
| Total noninterest income | 3,560 | 3,710 | 9,663 | 6,492 | ||||||||||||||||
| Total noninterest expense | 13,698 | 11,778 | 28,641 | 27,817 | ||||||||||||||||
| Income before income taxes | 6,088 | 5,793 | 13,161 | 6,237 | ||||||||||||||||
| Income tax expense | 589 | 866 | 1,437 | 390 | ||||||||||||||||
| Net income | $ | 5,499 | $ | 4,927 | $ | 11,724 | $ | 5,847 | ||||||||||||
| Net income per share, basic | $ | 0.80 | $ | 0.72 | $ | 1.71 | $ | 0.86 | ||||||||||||
| Weighted average shares outstanding, basic | 6,875,826 | 6,832,130 | 6,861,061 | 6,828,017 | ||||||||||||||||
| Net income per share, diluted | $ | 0.79 | $ | 0.72 | $ | 1.68 | $ | 0.85 | ||||||||||||
| Weighted average shares outstanding, diluted | 6,960,020 | 6,859,611 | 6,961,829 | 6,849,928 | ||||||||||||||||
| Performance ratios (annualized) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Return on average assets | 0.93 | % | 0.84 | % | 0.98 | % | 0.50 | % | ||||||||||||
| Return on average equity | 12.24 | % | 11.96 | % | 13.15 | % | 7.38 | % | ||||||||||||
| Return on average common stockholders’ equity | 12.34 | % | 11.96 | % | 13.15 | % | 7.38 | % | ||||||||||||
| Net interest margin (tax equivalent basis) | 2.93 | % | 2.66 | % | 2.84 | % | 2.68 | % | ||||||||||||
| Efficiency ratio | 70.06 | % | 65.26 | % | 69.66 | % | 79.61 | % | ||||||||||||
| QTD | FYTD | |||||||||||||||||||
| FINANCIAL CONDITION DATA: | March 31, | December 31, | Increase | September 30, | Increase | |||||||||||||||
| (In thousands, except per share data) | 2025 | 2024 | (Decrease) | 2024 | (Decrease) | |||||||||||||||
| Total assets | $ | 2,376,230 | $ | 2,388,735 | $ | (12,505 | ) | $ | 2,450,368 | $ | (74,138 | ) | ||||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents | 28,683 | 76,224 | (47,541 | ) | 52,142 | (23,459 | ) | |||||||||||||
| Investment securities | 244,084 | 242,634 | 1,450 | 249,719 | (5,635 | ) | ||||||||||||||
| Loans held for sale | 61,239 | 24,441 | 36,798 | 25,716 | 35,523 | |||||||||||||||
| Gross loans | 1,900,660 | 1,905,199 | (4,539 | ) | 1,985,146 | (84,486 | ) | |||||||||||||
| Allowance for credit losses | 20,484 | 20,685 | (201 | ) | 21,294 | (810 | ) | |||||||||||||
| Interest earning assets | 2,219,504 | 2,234,258 | (14,754 | ) | 2,277,512 | (58,008 | ) | |||||||||||||
| Goodwill | 9,848 | 9,848 | – | 9,848 | – | |||||||||||||||
| Core deposit intangibles | 316 | 357 | (41 | ) | 398 | (82 | ) | |||||||||||||
| Loan servicing rights | 2,744 | 2,661 | 83 | 2,754 | (10 | ) | ||||||||||||||
| Noninterest-bearing deposits | 185,252 | 183,239 | 2,013 | 191,528 | (6,276 | ) | ||||||||||||||
| Interest-bearing deposits (customer) | 1,207,159 | 1,212,527 | (5,368 | ) | 1,180,196 | 26,963 | ||||||||||||||
| Interest-bearing deposits (brokered) | 396,770 | 437,008 | (40,238 | ) | 509,157 | (112,387 | ) | |||||||||||||
| Federal Home Loan Bank borrowings | 325,310 | 295,000 | 30,310 | 301,640 | 23,670 | |||||||||||||||
| Subordinated debt and other borrowings | 48,682 | 48,642 | 40 | 48,603 | 79 | |||||||||||||||
| Total liabilities | 2,197,041 | 2,212,708 | (15,667 | ) | 2,273,253 | (76,212 | ) | |||||||||||||
| Accumulated other comprehensive loss | (19,385 | ) | (17,789 | ) | (1,596 | ) | (11,195 | ) | (8,190 | ) | ||||||||||
| Total stockholders’ equity | 179,189 | 176,027 | 3,162 | 177,115 | 2,074 | |||||||||||||||
| Book value per share | $ | 25.90 | $ | 25.48 | 0.42 | $ | 25.72 | 0.18 | ||||||||||||
| Tangible book value per share (non-GAAP) (1) | 24.43 | 24.00 | 0.43 | 24.23 | 0.20 | |||||||||||||||
| Non-performing assets: | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Nonaccrual loans – SBA guaranteed | $ | 123 | $ | 4,444 | $ | (4,321 | ) | $ | 5,036 | $ | (4,913 | ) | ||||||||
| Nonaccrual loans | 12,597 | 12,124 | 473 | 11,906 | 691 | |||||||||||||||
| Total nonaccrual loans | $ | 12,720 | $ | 16,568 | $ | (3,848 | ) | $ | 16,942 | $ | (4,222 | ) | ||||||||
| Accruing loans past due 90 days | – | – | – | – | – | |||||||||||||||
| Total non-performing loans | 12,720 | 16,568 | (3,848 | ) | 16,942 | (4,222 | ) | |||||||||||||
| Foreclosed real estate | 444 | 444 | – | 444 | – | |||||||||||||||
| Total non-performing assets | $ | 13,164 | $ | 17,012 | $ | (3,848 | ) | $ | 17,386 | $ | (4,222 | ) | ||||||||
| Asset quality ratios: | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Allowance for credit losses as a percent of total gross loans | 1.08 | % | 1.09 | % | (0.01 | %) | 1.07 | % | 0.01 | % | ||||||||||
| Allowance for credit losses as a percent of nonperforming loans | 161.04 | % | 124.85 | % | 36.19 | % | 125.69 | % | 35.35 | % | ||||||||||
| Nonperforming loans as a percent of total gross loans | 0.67 | % | 0.87 | % | (0.20 | %) | 0.85 | % | (0.18 | %) | ||||||||||
| Nonperforming assets as a percent of total assets | 0.55 | % | 0.71 | % | (0.16 | %) | 0.71 | % | (0.16 | %) | ||||||||||
| (1) See reconciliation of GAAP and non-GAAP financial measures for additional information relating to calculation of this item. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| RECONCILIATION OF GAAP AND NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES (UNAUDITED): | ||||||||||||||||||||
| The following non-GAAP financial measures used by the Company provide information useful to investors in understanding the Company’s performance. The Company believes the financial measures presented below are important because of their widespread use by investors as a means to evaluate capital adequacy and earnings. The following table summarizes the non-GAAP financial measures derived from amounts reported in the Company’s consolidated financial statements and reconciles those non-GAAP financial measures with the comparable GAAP financial measures. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Three Months Ended | Six Months Ended | |||||||||||||||||||
| Net Income | March 31, | March 31, | ||||||||||||||||||
| (In thousands) | 2025 | 2024 | 2025 | 2024 | ||||||||||||||||
| Net income attributable to the Company (non-GAAP) | $ | 5,313 | $ | 3,561 | $ | 9,367 | $ | 4,481 | ||||||||||||
| Plus: Gain on sale of loans, home equity lines of credit, net of tax effect | – | – | 1,869 | – | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Gain on sale of equity securities, net of tax effect | – | – | 302 | – | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Decrease in loss contingency for SBA-guaranteed loans, net of tax effect | – | 492 | – | 492 | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Adjustment to MSR valuation allowance related to sale, net of tax effect | – | 583 | – | 583 | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Gain on sale of premises and equipment, net of tax effect | 186 | 90 | 186 | 90 | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Adjustment to previous data processing contract termination accrual, net of tax effect | – | 117 | – | 117 | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Distribution from equity investment, net of tax effect | – | 85 | – | 85 | ||||||||||||||||
| Net income attributable to the Company (GAAP) | $ | 5,499 | $ | 4,927 | $ | 11,724 | $ | 5,847 | ||||||||||||
| Net Income per Share, Diluted | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Net income per share attributable to the Company, diluted (non-GAAP) | $ | 0.76 | $ | 0.52 | $ | 1.35 | $ | 0.65 | ||||||||||||
| Plus: Gain on sale of loans, home equity lines of credit, net of tax effect | – | – | 0.27 | – | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Gain on sale of equity securities, net of tax effect | – | – | 0.03 | – | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Decrease in loss contingency for SBA-guaranteed loans, net of tax effect | – | 0.07 | – | 0.07 | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Adjustment to MSR valuation allowance related to sale, net of tax effect | – | 0.08 | – | 0.08 | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Gain on sale of premises and equipment, net of tax effect | 0.03 | 0.01 | 0.03 | 0.01 | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Adjustment to previous data processing contract termination accrual, net of tax effect | – | 0.02 | – | 0.02 | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Distribution from equity investment, net of tax effect | – | 0.02 | – | 0.02 | ||||||||||||||||
| Net income per share, diluted (GAAP) | $ | 0.79 | $ | 0.72 | $ | 1.68 | $ | 0.85 | ||||||||||||
| Core Bank Segment Net Income | ||||||||||||||||||||
| (In thousands) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Net income attributable to the Core Bank (non-GAAP) | $ | 4,883 | $ | 3,637 | $ | 9,081 | $ | 7,685 | ||||||||||||
| Plus: Gain on sale of loans, home equity lines of credit, net of tax effect | – | – | 1,869 | – | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Gain on sale of equity securities, net of tax effect | – | – | 302 | – | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Adjustment to MSR valuation allowance related to sale, net of tax effect | – | 583 | – | 583 | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Gain on sale of premises and equipment, net of tax effect | 186 | 90 | 186 | 90 | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Adjustment to previous data processing contract termination accrual, net of tax effect | – | 117 | – | 117 | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Distribution from equity investment, net of tax effect | – | 85 | – | 85 | ||||||||||||||||
| Net income attributable to the Core Bank (GAAP) | $ | 5,069 | $ | 4,511 | $ | 11,438 | $ | 8,559 | ||||||||||||
| Core Bank Segment Net Income per Share, Diluted | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Core Bank net income per share, diluted (non-GAAP) | $ | 0.70 | $ | 0.53 | $ | 1.31 | $ | 1.12 | ||||||||||||
| Plus: Gain on sale of loans, home equity lines of credit, net of tax effect | – | – | 0.27 | – | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Gain on sale of equity securities, net of tax effect | – | – | 0.03 | – | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Adjustment to MSR valuation allowance related to sale, net of tax effect | – | 0.08 | – | 0.08 | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Gain on sale of premises and equipment, net of tax effect | – | 0.01 | 0.03 | 0.01 | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Adjustment to previous data processing contract termination accrual, net of tax effect | 0.03 | 0.02 | – | 0.02 | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Distribution from equity investment, net of tax effect | – | 0.02 | – | 0.02 | ||||||||||||||||
| Core Bank net income per share, diluted (GAAP) | $ | 0.73 | $ | 0.66 | $ | 1.64 | $ | 1.25 | ||||||||||||
| RECONCILIATION OF GAAP AND NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES (UNAUDITED) (CONTINUED): | Three Months Ended | Fiscal Year Ended | ||||||||||||||||||
| Efficiency Ratio | March 31, | March 31, | ||||||||||||||||||
| (In thousands) | 2025 | 2024 | 2025 | 2024 | ||||||||||||||||
| Net interest income (GAAP) | $ | 15,991 | $ | 14,338 | $ | 31,453 | $ | 28,451 | ||||||||||||
| Noninterest income (GAAP) | 3,560 | 3,710 | 9,663 | 6,492 | ||||||||||||||||
| Noninterest expense (GAAP) | 13,698 | 11,778 | 28,641 | 27,817 | ||||||||||||||||
| Efficiency ratio (GAAP) | 70.06 | % | 65.26 | % | 69.66 | % | 79.61 | % | ||||||||||||
| Noninterest income (GAAP) | $ | 3,560 | $ | 3,710 | $ | 9,663 | $ | 6,492 | ||||||||||||
| Less: Gain on sale of loans, home equity lines of credit | – | – | (2,492 | ) | – | |||||||||||||||
| Less: Gain on sale of equity securities | – | – | (403 | ) | – | |||||||||||||||
| Less: Gain on sale of premises and equipment | (248 | ) | (120 | ) | (248 | ) | (120 | ) | ||||||||||||
| Less: Adjustment to MSR valuation allowance related to sale | – | (530 | ) | – | (530 | ) | ||||||||||||||
| Less: Distribution from equity investment | – | (113 | ) | – | (113 | ) | ||||||||||||||
| Noninterest income (Non-GAAP) | 3,312 | 2,947 | 6,520 | 5,729 | ||||||||||||||||
| Noninterest expense (GAAP) | $ | 13,698 | $ | 11,778 | $ | 28,641 | $ | 27,817 | ||||||||||||
| Plus: Adjustment to MSR valuation allowance related to sale | – | 247 | – | 247 | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Decrease in loss contingency for SBA-guaranteed loans | – | 656 | – | 656 | ||||||||||||||||
| Plus: Adjustment to previous data processing contract termination accrual | – | 156 | – | 156 | ||||||||||||||||
| Noninterest expense (Non-GAAP) | $ | 13,698 | $ | 12,837 | $ | 28,641 | $ | 28,876 | ||||||||||||
| Efficiency ratio (excluding nonrecurring items) (non-GAAP) | 70.96 | % | 74.27 | % | 75.42 | % | 84.48 | % | ||||||||||||
| QTD | FYTD | |||||||||||||||||||
| Tangible Book Value Per Share | March 31, | December 31, | Increase | September 30, | Increase | |||||||||||||||
| (In thousands, except share and per share data) | 2025 | 2024 | (Decrease) | 2024 | (Decrease) | |||||||||||||||
| Stockholders’ equity (GAAP) | $ | 179,189 | $ | 176,027 | $ | 3,162 | $ | 177,115 | $ | 2,074 | ||||||||||
| Less: goodwill and core deposit intangibles | (10,164 | ) | (10,205 | ) | 41 | (10,246 | ) | 82 | ||||||||||||
| Tangible stockholders’ equity (non-GAAP) | $ | 169,025 | $ | 165,822 | $ | 3,203 | $ | 166,869 | $ | 2,156 | ||||||||||
| Outstanding common shares | 6,919,136 | 6,909,173 | $ | 9,963 | 6,887,106 | $ | 32,030 | |||||||||||||
| Tangible book value per share (non-GAAP) | $ | 24.43 | $ | 24.00 | $ | 0.43 | $ | 24.23 | $ | 0.20 | ||||||||||
| Book value per share (GAAP) | $ | 25.90 | $ | 25.48 | $ | 0.42 | $ | 25.72 | $ | 0.18 | ||||||||||
| SUMMARIZED FINANCIAL INFORMATION (UNAUDITED): | As of | |||||||||||||||||||
| Summarized Consolidated Balance Sheets | March 31, | December 31, | September 30, | June 30, | March 31, | |||||||||||||||
| (In thousands, except per share data) | 2025 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | |||||||||||||||
| Total cash and cash equivalents | $ | 28,683 | $ | 76,224 | $ | 52,142 | $ | 42,423 | $ | 62,969 | ||||||||||
| Total investment securities | 244,084 | 242,634 | 249,719 | 238,785 | 240,142 | |||||||||||||||
| Total loans held for sale | 61,239 | 24,441 | 25,716 | 125,859 | 19,108 | |||||||||||||||
| Total loans, net of allowance for credit losses | 1,880,176 | 1,884,514 | 1,963,852 | 1,826,980 | 1,882,458 | |||||||||||||||
| Loan servicing rights | 2,744 | 2,661 | 2,754 | 2,860 | 3,028 | |||||||||||||||
| Total assets | 2,376,230 | 2,388,735 | 2,450,368 | 2,393,491 | 2,364,983 | |||||||||||||||
| Customer deposits | $ | 1,392,411 | $ | 1,395,766 | $ | 1,371,724 | $ | 1,312,997 | $ | 1,239,271 | ||||||||||
| Brokered deposits | 396,770 | 437,008 | 509,157 | 399,151 | 548,175 | |||||||||||||||
| Total deposits | 1,789,181 | 1,832,774 | 1,880,881 | 1,712,148 | 1,787,446 | |||||||||||||||
| Federal Home Loan Bank borrowings | 325,310 | 295,000 | 301,640 | 425,000 | 315,000 | |||||||||||||||
| Common stock and additional paid-in capital | $ | 28,650 | $ | 28,382 | $ | 27,725 | $ | 27,592 | $ | 27,475 | ||||||||||
| Retained earnings – substantially restricted | 182,918 | 178,526 | 173,337 | 170,688 | 167,648 | |||||||||||||||
| Accumulated other comprehensive loss | (19,385 | ) | (17,789 | ) | (11,195 | ) | (17,415 | ) | (17,144 | ) | ||||||||||
| Unearned stock compensation | (862 | ) | (973 | ) | (901 | ) | (999 | ) | (1,096 | ) | ||||||||||
| Less treasury stock, at cost | (12,132 | ) | (12,119 | ) | (11,851 | ) | (11,866 | ) | (11,827 | ) | ||||||||||
| Total stockholders’ equity | 179,189 | 176,027 | 177,115 | 168,000 | 165,056 | |||||||||||||||
| Outstanding common shares | 6,919,136 | 6,909,173 | 6,887,106 | 6,883,656 | 6,883,160 | |||||||||||||||
| Three Months Ended | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Summarized Consolidated Statements of Income | March 31, | December 31, | September 30, | June 30, | March 31, | |||||||||||||||
| (In thousands, except per share data) | 2025 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | |||||||||||||||
| Total interest income | $ | 30,823 | $ | 32,449 | $ | 32,223 | $ | 31,094 | $ | 30,016 | ||||||||||
| Total interest expense | 14,832 | 16,987 | 17,146 | 16,560 | 15,678 | |||||||||||||||
| Net interest income | 15,991 | 15,462 | 15,077 | 14,534 | 14,338 | |||||||||||||||
| Provision (credit) for credit losses – loans | (357 | ) | (491 | ) | 1,808 | 501 | 713 | |||||||||||||
| Provision (credit) for unfunded lending commitments | 123 | 46 | (262 | ) | 158 | (259 | ) | |||||||||||||
| Provision (credit) for credit losses – securities | (1 | ) | (6 | ) | (86 | ) | 84 | 23 | ||||||||||||
| Total provision (credit) for credit losses | (235 | ) | (451 | ) | 1,460 | 743 | 477 | |||||||||||||
| Net interest income after provision for credit losses | 16,226 | 15,913 | 13,617 | 13,791 | 13,861 | |||||||||||||||
| Total noninterest income | 3,560 | 6,103 | 2,842 | 3,196 | 3,710 | |||||||||||||||
| Total noninterest expense | 13,698 | 14,943 | 12,642 | 12,431 | 11,778 | |||||||||||||||
| Income before income taxes | 6,088 | 7,073 | 3,817 | 4,556 | 5,793 | |||||||||||||||
| Income tax expense (benefit) | 589 | 848 | 145 | 483 | 866 | |||||||||||||||
| Net income | 5,499 | 6,225 | 3,672 | 4,073 | 4,927 | |||||||||||||||
| Net income per share, basic | $ | 0.80 | $ | 0.91 | $ | 0.54 | $ | 0.60 | $ | 0.72 | ||||||||||
| Weighted average shares outstanding, basic | 6,875,826 | 6,851,153 | 6,832,626 | 6,832,452 | 6,832,130 | |||||||||||||||
| Net income per share, diluted | $ | 0.79 | $ | 0.89 | $ | 0.53 | $ | 0.60 | $ | 0.72 | ||||||||||
| Weighted average shares outstanding, diluted | 6,960,020 | 6,969,223 | 6,894,532 | 6,842,336 | 6,859,611 | |||||||||||||||
| SUMMARIZED FINANCIAL INFORMATION (UNAUDITED) (CONTINUED): | Three Months Ended | |||||||||||||||||||
| Noninterest Income Detail | March 31, | December 31, | September 30, | June 30, | March 31, | |||||||||||||||
| (In thousands) | 2025 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | |||||||||||||||
| Service charges on deposit accounts | $ | 541 | $ | 567 | $ | 552 | $ | 538 | $ | 387 | ||||||||||
| ATM and interchange fees | 632 | 665 | 642 | 593 | 585 | |||||||||||||||
| Net unrealized gain on equity securities | 47 | 78 | 28 | 419 | 6 | |||||||||||||||
| Net gain on equity securities | – | 403 | – | – | – | |||||||||||||||
| Net gain on sales of loans, Small Business Administration | 1,078 | 711 | 647 | 581 | 951 | |||||||||||||||
| Net gain on sales of loans, home equity lines of credit | – | 2,492 | – | – | – | |||||||||||||||
| Mortgage banking income | 104 | 78 | 6 | 49 | 53 | |||||||||||||||
| Increase in cash surrender value of life insurance | 380 | 361 | 363 | 353 | 333 | |||||||||||||||
| Gain on life insurance | – | 108 | – | – | – | |||||||||||||||
| Commission income | 255 | 210 | 294 | 220 | 220 | |||||||||||||||
| Real estate lease income | 122 | 121 | 122 | 154 | 115 | |||||||||||||||
| Net gain (loss) on premises and equipment | – | 45 | (4 | ) | – | 120 | ||||||||||||||
| Other income | 401 | 264 | 192 | 289 | 940 | |||||||||||||||
| Total noninterest income | $ | 3,560 | $ | 6,103 | $ | 2,842 | $ | 3,196 | $ | 3,710 | ||||||||||
| Three Months Ended | ||||||||||||||||||||
| March 31, | December 31, | September 30, | June 30, | March 31, | ||||||||||||||||
| Consolidated Performance Ratios (Annualized) | 2025 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | |||||||||||||||
| Return on average assets | 0.93 | % | 1.02 | % | 0.61 | % | 0.69 | % | 0.92 | % | ||||||||||
| Return on average equity | 12.24 | % | 14.07 | % | 8.52 | % | 9.86 | % | 13.06 | % | ||||||||||
| Return on average common stockholders’ equity | 12.34 | % | 14.07 | % | 8.52 | % | 9.86 | % | 13.06 | % | ||||||||||
| Net interest margin (tax equivalent basis) | 2.93 | % | 2.75 | % | 2.72 | % | 2.67 | % | 2.66 | % | ||||||||||
| Efficiency ratio | 70.06 | % | 69.29 | % | 70.55 | % | 70.11 | % | 65.26 | % | ||||||||||
| As of or for the Three Months Ended | ||||||||||||||||||||
| March 31, | December 31, | September 30, | June 30, | March 31, | ||||||||||||||||
| Consolidated Asset Quality Ratios | 2025 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | |||||||||||||||
| Nonperforming loans as a percentage of total loans | 0.67 | % | 0.87 | % | 0.85 | % | 0.91 | % | 0.82 | % | ||||||||||
| Nonperforming assets as a percentage of total assets | 0.55 | % | 0.71 | % | 0.71 | % | 0.72 | % | 0.68 | % | ||||||||||
| Allowance for credit losses as a percentage of total loans | 1.08 | % | 1.09 | % | 1.07 | % | 1.07 | % | 1.02 | % | ||||||||||
| Allowance for credit losses as a percentage of nonperforming loans | 161.04 | % | 124.85 | % | 125.69 | % | 118.12 | % | 124.01 | % | ||||||||||
| Net charge-offs to average outstanding loans | -0.01 | % | 0.01 | % | 0.02 | % | 0.01 | % | 0.01 | % | ||||||||||
| SUMMARIZED FINANCIAL INFORMATION (UNAUDITED) (CONTINUED): | Three Months Ended | |||||||||||||||||||
| Segmented Statements of Income Information | March 31, | December 31, | September 30, | June 30, | March 31, | |||||||||||||||
| (In thousands) | 2025 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | |||||||||||||||
| Core Banking Segment: | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Net interest income | $ | 14,259 | $ | 13,756 | $ | 14,083 | $ | 13,590 | $ | 13,469 | ||||||||||
| Provision (credit) for credit losses – loans | (540 | ) | (745 | ) | 1,339 | 320 | 909 | |||||||||||||
| Provision (credit) for unfunded lending commitments | 35 | (75 | ) | 78 | 64 | (259 | ) | |||||||||||||
| Provision (credit) for credit losses – securities | (1 | ) | (7 | ) | (86 | ) | 84 | 23 | ||||||||||||
| Net interest income after provision (credit) for credit losses | 14,765 | 14,583 | 12,752 | 13,122 | 12,796 | |||||||||||||||
| Noninterest income | 2,242 | 5,253 | 2,042 | 2,474 | 2,537 | |||||||||||||||
| Noninterest expense | 11,486 | 12,574 | 10,400 | 10,192 | 10,093 | |||||||||||||||
| Income before income taxes | 5,521 | 7,262 | 4,394 | 5,404 | 5,240 | |||||||||||||||
| Income tax expense | 452 | 893 | 301 | 689 | 729 | |||||||||||||||
| Net income | $ | 5,069 | $ | 6,369 | $ | 4,093 | $ | 4,715 | $ | 4,511 | ||||||||||
| SBA Lending Segment (Q2): | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Net interest income | $ | 1,732 | $ | 1,706 | $ | 994 | $ | 944 | $ | 869 | ||||||||||
| Provision (credit) for credit losses – loans | 183 | 255 | 469 | 181 | (196 | ) | ||||||||||||||
| Provision (credit) for unfunded lending commitments | 88 | 121 | (340 | ) | 94 | – | ||||||||||||||
| Net interest income after provision for credit losses | 1,461 | 1,330 | 865 | 669 | 1,065 | |||||||||||||||
| Noninterest income | 1,318 | 850 | 800 | 722 | 1,173 | |||||||||||||||
| Noninterest expense | 2,212 | 2,369 | 2,242 | 2,239 | 1,685 | |||||||||||||||
| Income (loss) before income taxes | 567 | (189 | ) | (577 | ) | (848 | ) | 553 | ||||||||||||
| Income tax expense (benefit) | 137 | (45 | ) | (156 | ) | (206 | ) | 137 | ||||||||||||
| Net income (loss) | $ | 430 | $ | (144 | ) | $ | (421 | ) | $ | (642 | ) | $ | 416 | |||||||
| SUMMARIZED FINANCIAL INFORMATION (UNAUDITED) (CONTINUED): | Three Months Ended | |||||||||||||||||||
| Segmented Statements of Income Information | March 31, | December 31, | September 30, | June 30, | March 31, | |||||||||||||||
| (In thousands, except percentage data) | 2025 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | |||||||||||||||
| Net Income (Loss) Per Share by Segment | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Net income per share, basic – Core Banking | $ | 0.74 | $ | 0.93 | $ | 0.60 | $ | 0.69 | $ | 0.66 | ||||||||||
| Net income (loss) per share, basic – SBA Lending (Q2) | 0.06 | (0.02 | ) | (0.06 | ) | (0.09 | ) | 0.06 | ||||||||||||
| Total net income (loss) per share, basic | $ | 0.80 | $ | 0.91 | $ | 0.54 | $ | 0.60 | $ | 0.72 | ||||||||||
| Net Income (Loss) Per Diluted Share by Segment | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Net income per share, diluted – Core Banking | $ | 0.73 | $ | 0.91 | $ | 0.59 | $ | 0.69 | $ | 0.66 | ||||||||||
| Net income (loss) per share, diluted – SBA Lending (Q2) | 0.06 | (0.02 | ) | (0.06 | ) | (0.09 | ) | 0.06 | ||||||||||||
| Total net income (loss) per share, diluted | $ | 0.79 | $ | 0.89 | $ | 0.53 | $ | 0.60 | $ | 0.72 | ||||||||||
| Return on Average Assets by Segment (annualized) (3) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Core Banking | 0.90 | % | 1.09 | % | 0.71 | % | 0.83 | % | 0.80 | % | ||||||||||
| SBA Lending | 1.58 | % | (0.55 | %) | (1.71 | %) | (2.91 | %) | 1.81 | % | ||||||||||
| Efficiency Ratio by Segment (annualized) (3) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Core Banking | 69.61 | % | 66.15 | % | 64.50 | % | 63.45 | % | 63.06 | % | ||||||||||
| SBA Lending | 72.52 | % | 92.68 | % | 124.97 | % | 134.39 | % | 82.52 | % | ||||||||||
| Three Months Ended | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Noninterest Expense Detail by Segment | March 31, | December 31, | September 30, | June 30, | March 31, | |||||||||||||||
| (In thousands) | 2025 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | |||||||||||||||
| Core Banking Segment: | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Compensation | $ | 6,637 | $ | 7,245 | $ | 5,400 | $ | 5,587 | $ | 5,656 | ||||||||||
| Occupancy | 1,648 | 1,577 | 1,554 | 1,573 | 1,615 | |||||||||||||||
| Advertising | 429 | 338 | 399 | 253 | 205 | |||||||||||||||
| Other | 2,772 | 3,414 | 3,047 | 2,779 | 2,617 | |||||||||||||||
| Total Noninterest Expense | $ | 11,486 | $ | 12,574 | $ | 10,400 | $ | 10,192 | $ | 10,093 | ||||||||||
| SBA Lending Segment (Q2): | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Compensation | $ | 1,892 | $ | 1,931 | $ | 1,854 | $ | 1,893 | $ | 1,933 | ||||||||||
| Occupancy | 50 | 59 | 55 | 51 | 58 | |||||||||||||||
| Advertising | 10 | 14 | 17 | 12 | 7 | |||||||||||||||
| Other | 260 | 365 | 316 | 283 | (313 | ) | ||||||||||||||
| Total Noninterest Expense | $ | 2,212 | $ | 2,369 | $ | 2,242 | $ | 2,239 | $ | 1,685 | ||||||||||
| SUMMARIZED FINANCIAL INFORMATION (UNAUDITED) (CONTINUED): | Three Months Ended | |||||||||||||||||||
| SBA Lending (Q2) Data | March 31, | December 31, | September 30, | June 30, | March 31, | |||||||||||||||
| (In thousands, except percentage data) | 2025 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | |||||||||||||||
| Final funded loans guaranteed portion sold, SBA | $ | 15,716 | $ | 10,785 | $ | 10,880 | $ | 7,515 | $ | 15,144 | ||||||||||
| Gross gain on sales of loans, SBA | $ | 1,508 | $ | 1,141 | $ | 1,029 | $ | 811 | $ | 1,443 | ||||||||||
| Weighted average gross gain on sales of loans, SBA | 9.60 | % | 10.58 | % | 9.46 | % | 10.79 | % | 9.53 | % | ||||||||||
| Net gain on sales of loans, SBA (2) | $ | 1,078 | $ | 711 | $ | 647 | $ | 581 | $ | 951 | ||||||||||
| Weighted average net gain on sales of loans, SBA | 6.86 | % | 6.59 | % | 5.95 | % | 7.73 | % | 6.28 | % | ||||||||||
| (2) Inclusive of gains on servicing assets and net of commissions, referral fees, SBA repair fees and discounts on unguaranteed portions held-for-investment. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| SUMMARIZED FINANCIAL INFORMATION (UNAUDITED) (CONTINUED): | Three Months Ended | |||||||||||||||||||
| Summarized Consolidated Average Balance Sheets | March 31, | December 31, | September 30, | June 30, | March 31, | |||||||||||||||
| (In thousands) | 2025 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | |||||||||||||||
| Interest-earning assets | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Average balances: | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Interest-bearing deposits with banks | $ | 11,851 | $ | 21,102 | $ | 16,841 | $ | 26,100 | $ | 24,587 | ||||||||||
| Loans | 1,946,338 | 2,010,082 | 1,988,997 | 1,943,716 | 1,914,609 | |||||||||||||||
| Investment securities – taxable | 102,744 | 101,960 | 99,834 | 101,350 | 102,699 | |||||||||||||||
| Investment securities – nontaxable | 161,579 | 160,929 | 158,917 | 157,991 | 157,960 | |||||||||||||||
| FRB and FHLB stock | 24,986 | 24,986 | 24,986 | 24,986 | 24,986 | |||||||||||||||
| Total interest-earning assets | $ | 2,247,498 | $ | 2,319,059 | $ | 2,289,575 | $ | 2,254,143 | $ | 2,224,841 | ||||||||||
| Interest income (tax equivalent basis): | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Interest-bearing deposits with banks | $ | 168 | $ | 210 | $ | 209 | $ | 324 | $ | 261 | ||||||||||
| Loans | 27,998 | 29,617 | 29,450 | 28,155 | 27,133 | |||||||||||||||
| Investment securities – taxable | 921 | 914 | 910 | 918 | 923 | |||||||||||||||
| Investment securities – nontaxable | 1,719 | 1,715 | 1,685 | 1,665 | 1,662 | |||||||||||||||
| FRB and FHLB stock | 511 | 493 | 471 | 519 | 499 | |||||||||||||||
| Total interest income (tax equivalent basis) | $ | 31,317 | $ | 32,949 | $ | 32,725 | $ | 31,581 | $ | 30,478 | ||||||||||
| Weighted average yield (tax equivalent basis, annualized): | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Interest-bearing deposits with banks | 5.67 | % | 3.98 | % | 4.96 | % | 4.97 | % | 4.25 | % | ||||||||||
| Loans | 5.75 | % | 5.89 | % | 5.92 | % | 5.79 | % | 5.67 | % | ||||||||||
| Investment securities – taxable | 3.59 | % | 3.59 | % | 3.65 | % | 3.62 | % | 3.59 | % | ||||||||||
| Investment securities – nontaxable | 4.26 | % | 4.26 | % | 4.24 | % | 4.22 | % | 4.21 | % | ||||||||||
| FRB and FHLB stock | 8.18 | % | 7.89 | % | 7.54 | % | 8.31 | % | 7.99 | % | ||||||||||
| Total interest-earning assets | 5.57 | % | 5.68 | % | 5.72 | % | 5.60 | % | 5.48 | % | ||||||||||
| Interest-bearing liabilities | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Interest-bearing deposits | $ | 1,653,058 | $ | 1,671,156 | $ | 1,563,258 | $ | 1,572,871 | $ | 1,549,012 | ||||||||||
| Federal Home Loan Bank borrowings | 266,975 | 315,583 | 378,956 | 351,227 | 333,275 | |||||||||||||||
| Subordinated debt and other borrowings | 48,656 | 48,616 | 48,576 | 48,537 | 48,497 | |||||||||||||||
| Total interest-bearing liabilities | $ | 1,968,689 | $ | 2,035,355 | $ | 1,990,790 | $ | 1,972,635 | $ | 1,930,784 | ||||||||||
| Interest expense: | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Interest-bearing deposits | $ | 12,069 | $ | 13,606 | $ | 12,825 | $ | 12,740 | $ | 12,546 | ||||||||||
| Federal Home Loan Bank borrowings | 2,001 | 2,617 | 3,521 | 3,021 | 2,298 | |||||||||||||||
| Subordinated debt and other borrowings | 762 | 764 | 800 | 799 | 833 | |||||||||||||||
| Total interest expense | $ | 14,832 | $ | 16,987 | $ | 17,146 | $ | 16,560 | $ | 15,677 | ||||||||||
| Weighted average cost (annualized): | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Interest-bearing deposits | 2.92 | % | 3.26 | % | 3.28 | % | 3.24 | % | 3.24 | % | ||||||||||
| Federal Home Loan Bank borrowings | 3.00 | % | 3.32 | % | 3.72 | % | 3.44 | % | 2.76 | % | ||||||||||
| Subordinated debt and other borrowings | 6.26 | % | 6.29 | % | 6.59 | % | 6.58 | % | 6.87 | % | ||||||||||
| Total interest-bearing liabilities | 3.01 | % | 3.34 | % | 3.45 | % | 3.36 | % | 3.25 | % | ||||||||||
| Net interest income (taxable equivalent basis) | $ | 16,485 | $ | 15,962 | $ | 15,579 | $ | 15,021 | $ | 14,801 | ||||||||||
| Less: taxable equivalent adjustment | (494 | ) | (500 | ) | (502 | ) | (487 | ) | (463 | ) | ||||||||||
| Net interest income | $ | 15,991 | $ | 15,462 | $ | 15,077 | $ | 14,534 | $ | 14,338 | ||||||||||
| Interest rate spread (tax equivalent basis, annualized) | 2.56 | % | 2.34 | % | 2.27 | % | 2.24 | % | 2.23 | % | ||||||||||
| Net interest margin (tax equivalent basis, annualized) | 2.93 | % | 2.75 | % | 2.72 | % | 2.67 | % | 2.66 | % | ||||||||||
Source: US Congressman Don Davis (NC-01)
Washington, D.C. — Congressman Don Davis (NC-01) introduced H.R. 2929, the Haliwa Saponi Indian Tribe of North Carolina Act, legislation that extends the full measure of the federal government-to-government relationship between the United States and the Haliwa Saponi Indian Tribe. This bill represents a step forward in the recognition and support of the Haliwa Saponi Tribe, which has long been a vital part of North Carolina’s cultural heritage.
“The Haliwa Saponi Indian Tribe deserves federal recognition, and we must respect their deep-rooted heritage and vibrant traditions. We must validate the historical significance and pay tribute to their ongoing contributions,” said Congressman Don Davis. “Their rich legacy, intertwined with incredible ancestral stories, truly merits the honor of federal recognition.”
Congressman Davis introduced this legislation during the 60th Annual Haliwa Saponi Tribal Powwow, a vibrant celebration of the Tribe’s heritage, culture, and community spirit. Congressman Davis joined community leaders and members of the Tribe in celebrating this significant milestone.
“This is truly another historic moment for our Tribe, and we are so grateful,” said Dr. Brucie Ogletree Richardson, Chief of the Haliwa Saponi Indian Tribe. “We are thankful for the continued support of Congressman Don Davis and others who have helped our Tribe reach this milestone.”
The Tribe has over 4,000 members and resides in eastern North Carolina, where its strong relationship with its non-Indian neighbors stretches back countless generations. Halifax and Warren Counties strongly support full federal recognition for the Tribe.
“This is a historic moment for our Tribe, and we are so grateful to Congressman Don Davis and for the support of Halifax and Warren counties,” said Gideon Lee, Chairman of the Haliwa Saponi Indian Tribe. “Our forefathers have waited for this moment for a long, long time.”
Congressman Davis’ legislation ensures that the historic North Carolina American Indian Tribe will finally be treated equally under federal law with other federally recognized American Indian tribes in other parts of the country.
The Haliwa Saponi Indian Tribe of North Carolina Act seeks to:
Source: US Congressman Don Davis (NC-01)
ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. — Congressman Don Davis delivered the following remarks at his press conference on the first 100 days of the 119th Congress:
Hi, everybody! It is always great to be back home, in eastern North Carolina. I have worked to share the stories, concerns, and issues impacting eastern North Carolina families. Our district now spans 22 incredible counties, from the coastlines of Currituck and Camden counties through the farmland of Lenoir and Wayne counties to the heart of Oxford and everywhere between. My vision for NC-01 is: “We must meet our constituents where they are, ensuring they are seen and heard in Washington, D.C., to make life better for all families and provide hope and assurance they are not forgotten.” We work to achieve this daily.
We’ve opened three new offices: 1. Rocky Mount, 2. Goldsboro, and 3. Elizabeth City. We held listening sessions in Camden, Currituck, Granville, Wayne, and Lenoir counties. Due to an increased interest in town halls, we hosted a telephone town hall with nearly 13,000 participants. So far this year, we helped close more than 240 constituent cases and returned over $821,000 to eastern North Carolina families, cutting through bureaucracy to return money directly to our neighbors. Our District Outreach Team has made over 156 visits to meet with constituents across the district, showing up, listening, attending events and meetings, and responding to issues.
During the 119th Congress, 11,750 constituents have reached out to the office. In comparison, during the 118th Congress, 8,745 constituents reached out to the office through April 14. The top three campaigns during the 119th Congress have been: 1) Protect Social Security, 2) Oppose the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and Elon Musk, and 3) Support the Ensuring Pathways to Innovative Cures (EPIC) Act.
I have introduced 14 bills in the 119th Congress, including:
I am committed to:
Together, these efforts will contribute to a brighter future for our region. We’re not sitting on the sidelines. We are working hard every day on healthcare, agriculture, defense, and working families.
An early victory during the Trump Administration includes the decision by the Food and Drug Administration to formally withdraw and end the effort by the agency to consider a ban on menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars. As the Ranking Member of the Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development Subcommittee of the House Agriculture Committee, I am working on regulatory framework legislation for the crypto and digital assets industry that is a priority of the Administration.
I also know that people are currently nervous about the state of the country and the world.
Specific concerns include: 1. Helene and agriculture assistance, 2. education funding reductions, and 3. tariffs.
I voted in support of disaster assistance for Helene in the West and drought in the East. I am glad that economic assistance was included. But we are way short. We are a billion short for agricultural assistance alone.
I visited North Lenoir High School in Lenoir County just this morning, one of the four public school districts in North Carolina that no longer has access to COVID-19-related funding that they had been promised because the U.S. Department of Education terminated their ability to liquidate those federal dollars.
On Friday, I visited Halifax County Schools to discuss the same issue.
We are:
For tariffs, eastern North Carolina cannot afford to be collateral damage in a trade war. We need tough and targeted trade policies, but our policies must also protect jobs, lower input costs, and keep our communities strong.
Previously, I voted in support of the SAVE ACT. After speaking with North Carolina State Board of Election officials, I voted against it based on the concern that the bill cannot be implemented as drafted. While I support the intent of the SAVE Act that makes crystal clear only U.S. citizens should vote in elections, N.C. election officials have shared serious concerns about its implementation. The limited time for modernizing our information systems, uncertain taxpayer costs, and the need for clear standards to verify U.S. citizenship pose risks to administering federal elections. I remain committed to improving this bill and ensuring free and fair elections.
We are meeting residents where they are. We read “Pete the Cat and His Magic Sunglasses” at St. Stephens Daycare. Federal funds for early childhood education remain important. I visited International Paper at Manson, spoke with quilters in Warrenton, and held a meeting with the Global TransPark. This morning, I traveled to N. Lenoir High School to look at their roof.
I plan to visit Pine Gates Renewables, Freedom Industries, and the Boys and Girls Club of the Tar River Region later today. Over the course of the next week, I will attend the 60th Annual Haliwa Saponi Blooming of the Dogwood Powwow, visit Airbus and Collins Aerospace, Barton College, Davita Kidney Care in Wilson, and Wilson Community College.
I plan to meet with the Albemarle Area United Way, break ground at Elizabeth City State University for an aviation building, visit U.S. Coast Guard Elizabeth City, visit the Food Bank of Albemarle, and meet with the Perquimans County EMS director to discuss recovery efforts.
As this is Holy Week, I wish everyone a wonderful Easter. Meanwhile, we will keep looking for opportunities to work with the Administration. Tax filing deadline was extended to May 1 for federal and state for all NC residents due to Helene. I encourage residents to file their taxes or an extension. We will keep advocating for our families, our farmers, our veterans, our students, and the future we believe in. May God bless eastern North Carolina, and our nation.
US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for Washington State Patty Murray
Canada is Washington’s largest overall trading partner, accounting for nearly $20 billion in imports and $10 billion in exports
***AUDIO of full roundtable discussion HERE***
***PHOTOS and B-ROLL HERE***
Blaine, WA — Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, held a roundtable discussion on how Trump’s chaotic trade war and senseless tariffs are affecting Washington state’s border communities and local businesses. In the City of Blaine, which is located along the United States-Canada border, retail and service revenue has fallen 40 percent, and the City of Bellingham and other communities near the border are reporting a roughly 20 percent decrease in revenue due to Trump’s trade war and increasing anti-American sentiment from Canadian neighbors.
Canada is Washington’s largest overall trading partner, accounting for nearly $20 billion in imports and $10 billion in exports. Senator Murray was joined for the discussion by Blaine Mayor Mary Lou Steward; Surrey (Canada) Mayor Brenda Locke; Blaine City Manager Mike Harmon; Dr. Laurie Trautman, Director of the Border Policy Research Institute; and Ali Hayton, Owner of Point Roberts Marketplace.
On April 2nd, President Trump announced sweeping new tariffs on nearly every country, including a 10 percent baseline tariff on all imported goods, and country-specific so-called reciprocal tariffs. Just hours after the reciprocal tariff rates took effect last Wednesday, Trump abruptly changed his mind and put a 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs. But Trump is still taxing goods from every country, across the board, at 10 percent at least. Even with his “pause,” Trump’s new tariff rates are still the highest in decades, and are estimated to cost American families more than $4,000 per year—the largest tax increase since 1968.
“As everyone here knows, the folks just across the border in Canada are not just our neighbors—they are our friends, and some families even span the border. It’s not just personal connections that are strong here, but economic connections. Trade with Canada, and visitors and customers are a crucial part of the local economy,” said Senator Murray. “Yet, every week Trump seems to find a new way to drive a wedge between us and our Canadian allies, and a new way to drive business away from our communities. He’s whipping up a fact-free frenzy about drugs at the Canadian border. The fact is: less than 1 percent of fentanyl intercepted at the U.S. border is from Canada. He has created complete chaos and fear for every day travelers crossing our border. People coming here for work, or just for visits, have been detained. His border theatrics are scaring away tourists and scaring off business. And the pointless, painful trade war is in reality an enormous tax paid by our families.”
“Trump is pushing away some of our most important trade partners, raising prices for families at the grocery store, and pushing small businesses to the brink—some may even shutter. All of this is incredibly harmful to our communities—it’s not the way we should treat our neighbors, and it’s catastrophic for business too,” Senator Murray continued. “I’m glad to be here to shine a spotlight the real damage Trump is doing with his tariffs, his chaos, and his attempts to bully one of our closest allies for no reason—and to listen to your stories and take them back with me to the other Washington.”
Washington state has one of the most trade-dependent economies of any state in the country, with 40 percent of jobs tied to international commerce. Washington state is the top U.S. producer of apples, blueberries, hops, pears, spearmint oil, and sweet cherries—all of which risk losing vital export markets due to retaliatory tariffs from key trading partners including Canada. Additionally, more than 12,000 small and medium-sized companies in Washington state export goods and will struggle to absorb the impact of retaliatory tariffs. Trump’s tariffs during his first term were extremely costly for Washington state—for example, India imposed a 20 percent retaliatory tariff on U.S. apples, causing Washington apple shipments to India to fall by 99 percent and growers to lose hundreds of millions of dollars in exports.
“We really, really depend upon Canadians coming to shop in Blaine. And part of this just is our history… We do have small businesses in town that we like to support, and over the years, the Canadians have come down and supported these immensely, in particular the gas, dairy, and shopping—Amazon parcels that are mail orders. These are all suffering. People are being laid off, and this is hurting us because the Canadian southbound traffic has dropped off to 50 percent of a decrease in the amount of traffic, so this does affect our businesses,” said Mary Lou Steward, Mayor of Blaine. “Sales tax receipts eclipse property tax receipts nearly by two to one, so sales tax is really, really important. And it takes all of Blaine’s property tax plus sales tax receipts to fund our police department… Blaine and Bellingham receive nearly the same number of Canadian visitors, however, those going to Bellingham shop and spend four to one times as much money in Bellingham as they do coming to Blaine to buy gas and eat locally.”
“Much like during the pandemic, our border communities are being impacted disproportionately, only this time by the antagonistic approach of the Trump Administration towards Canada. These impacts are far reaching and go well beyond the immediate economic damage our communities face, affecting our social connections, and our ability to respond to natural disasters that know no borders,” said Dr. Laurie Trautman, Director of the Border Policy Research Institute. “Cross-border connections with our Canadian neighbors provide immeasurable benefits to our community- supporting our economy and our security. Travel by Canadians has dropped by over 50%, largely due to the antagonism of the Trump Administration, leaving our businesses more vulnerable and our community less secure.”
“Senator Murray has long stood with Point Roberts, championing our unique needs during the COVID-19 pandemic, when border closures devastated our local economy and isolated our community. Her tireless efforts helped bring much-needed attention to our situation during that crisis, and her commitment remains strong today as we face new challenges brought on by international tariff disputes. Businesses in Point Roberts are struggling to navigate the uncertainty created by these trade tensions. When I reached out to Senator Murray’s office for help, their response was immediate. While it’s unclear exactly what relief might come for Point Roberts and other border towns, today’s meeting — bringing together community leaders from both sides of the border — is a hopeful step forward in rebuilding the longstanding relationships we’ve shared with our Canadian neighbors,” said Ali Hayton, Owner of Point Roberts Marketplace. “We may not yet know what the future holds, but having Senator Murray in our corner makes all the difference. Her leadership, compassion, and steadfast commitment to the people of Point Roberts are deeply appreciated.”
Senator Murray has been a vocal opponent of Trump’s chaotic trade war and has been lifting up the voices of people in Washington state harmed by this administration’s approach to trade. Senator Murray continues to call on Republicans to end Trump’s trade war—which Congress has the power to do—and take back Congress’ Constitutionally-granted power to impose tariffs. Earlier this month, Senator Murray brought together leaders across Washington state who highlighted how Trump’s ongoing trade war is already a devastating hit to Washington state’s economy, businesses, and our agriculture sector. Senator Murray also took to the Senate floor to lay out how Trump’s chaotic trade war is seriously threatening our economy, American businesses, families’ retirement savings, and so much else. Earlier this week, Senator Murray joined her colleagues in pressing U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer on how the Trump administration’s tariffs are affecting farmers across the country. Last week, Senator Murray also held a roundtable discussion in Tacoma with local businesses and ports, toured local businesses in downtown Vancouver, and held a roundtable discussion in Vancouver with local businesses and ports, to highlight how Trump’s chaotic trade war and senseless tariffs are harming the overall economy in Washington state. Earlier this week, Senator Murray met with small business owners in Seattle’s University District to hear how Trump’s tariffs and trade war are harming them.
Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Ed Case (Hawai‘i – District 1)
(Honolulu, HI) — U.S. Representative Ed Case (Hawai‘i – First District) announced the winners of his 2025 Congressional Art Competition at Bishop Museum, where entries were on public display.
Twenty-three art pieces were entered this year from eight schools throughout his district.
“All of this year’s contestants earned our respect for participating in a contest that featured so many quality art pieces and made it so difficult for our judges to select the winners.”
“The quantity, quality and diversity of the artwork presented was inspiring and truly showcased the range of artistic talent across my district. I’ll be very proud to highlight the winners’ work in the U.S. Capitol and my congressional offices.
Each spring since 1982, the Congressional Institute sponsors a nationwide high school visual arts competition to recognize and encourage artistic talents in each Congressional district. Most Members of Congress participate in sponsoring the competitions.
The winners for Case’s event this year are:
1st Place
May Shiraishi
Grade 9
Hawai‘i Baptist Academy
Title: “Beauty Amidst the Debris”
Medium: soft pastel, plastic debris, acrylic paint
She and a guest will receive a round trip for two on Southwest Airlines to attend the National Awards Competition in Washington, D.C., among other prizes. Her image representing Hawai‘i’s 1st Congressional District will also be displayed in the U.S. Capitol for one year along with those of the winners in other districts.
2nd Place
Rai Angelo Santos
Grade 10
Farrington High School
Title: “Mother of Three”
Medium: photography
His image will be displayed in the Washington, D.C. Office of Congressman Case for one year, along with a certificate.
3rd Place
Deinalyn Theodore
Grade 11
Farrington High School
Title: “Woven in Me”
Medium: photography
Her image will be displayed in the District Office of Congressman Case in downtown Honolulu for one year, along with a certificate.
Honorable Mention
Janelle De Castro
Grade 12
Farrington High School
Title: “Wants and Needs”
Medium: photography
“I want to especially thank our panel of judges who reviewed the works and made some very tough decisions”, said Case.
The judges included:
– Meleanna Aluli Meyer
Meleanna Aluli Meyer is an acclaimed artist, educator, and cultural advocate known for her decades-long commitment to Hawaiian art, education, and social justice. Honored with awards like the MAMO Kumu Kukui Master Teaching Artist Award, she blends creative expression with healing and cultural preservation. Her work is deeply rooted in Hawaiian values and dedicated to empowering communities through art and culture.
– Zoe Liu
Zoe Liu is a Hong Kong-born artist based in Honolulu, Hawai‘i, known for her evocative works exploring education, identity, and spiritual growth. A graduate of the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa with top honors in Drawing and Digital Imaging, she is also the founder of Art Tent Studio and a dedicated teaching artist at institutions such as the Honolulu Museum of Art School and the Hawai‘i State Art Museum. Using ink, watercolor, and mixed media, her art delves into existential themes and reflects her meditative, teaching-informed practice.
– Kahi Ching
Kahi Ching was born in Honolulu, Hawai‘i. He is a lifelong creative known for his versatility across painting, sculpture, bonsai, and public art. A child prodigy, he sold his first painting at age 11 and earned national recognition as a teen. With over 30 years of experience, Kahi has continually explored diverse media, valuing authenticity over convention. He is the founder of Kahi Gallery, a space dedicated to sharing his vision and supporting other artists. Today, he continues to create while balancing his artistic practice with family life
Attachments:
· May Shiraishi with her 1st place entry alongside Rep. Case
· Rai Angelo Santos with his 2nd place entry alongside Rep. Case
· Deinalyn Theodore with her 3rd place entry alongside Rep. Case
· Janelle De Castro with her Honorable Mention entry alongside Rep. Case
· Group photo with Rep. Case, art entrants and judges
###
Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Kelley Lee, Professor and Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Global Health Governance; Scientific Co-Director, Bridge Research Consortium, Simon Fraser University
With the global resurgence of many vaccine-preventable diseases, World Immunization Week (April 24-30) provides a timely opportunity for Canadians to reflect on the goal of “Immunization for All.”
The World Health Organization (WHO) raises awareness each year of the importance of equitable access to lifesaving and health-protecting vaccines. More than 154 million lives worldwide over the past 50 years have been saved by vaccines, excluding vaccines for COVID-19, malaria, influenza, human papilloma virus, and other deadly diseases.
Immunization programs underpin 14 of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The global eradication of smallpox, 99 per cent reduction of wild polio cases since 1988, and 40 per cent reduction in infant mortality are why vaccines are celebrated among public health’s greatest achievements
Supported by a universal health-care system, strong public health infrastructure, and publicly funded programs, Canada has enjoyed a century of decline in diseases such as measles, diphtheria and pertussis thanks to vaccines.
Recent trends, however, are cause for concern. A decline in vaccine confidence, worsening since the COVID-19 pandemic, challenges of access and the inclusion of vaccines in partisan political rhetoric have led to reduced vaccine uptake.
In 2024, 17 per cent of Canadian parents were “really against” vaccinating their children, up from four per cent in 2019. The measles outbreak in Ontario, with more than 800 cases and 61 hospitalizations, are real consequences of these choices. The Council of Canadian Academies estimated that COVID-19 misinformation cost Canada more than 2,800 lives and $300 million in additional health-care and economic losses.
The spectre of a new pandemic looms with the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza (H5N1). In the United States, infections in dairy cattle and on poultry farms continue.
With vaccination likely playing a critical role in any public health response, the dismantling of parts of the American public health infrastructure, defunding of vaccine research and ramping up of political rhetoric against vaccines is highly concerning. The United States’s withdrawal from global health, including the termination of funding to GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance and WHO, is likely to profoundly harm global immunization programs and pandemic preparedness.
Canada must take stock of this changing landscape. Chief Public Health Officer Theresa Tam’s 2024 report, Realizing the Future of Vaccination for Public Health, sets out a clear framework for realizing the full potential of vaccination in Canada.
In addition to major investments in new vaccine development and biomanufacturing in Canada, this public health framework is designed to support a better co-ordinated national immunization system, concerted efforts to address public trust, and efforts to improve equitable access.
The lack of integration of Canada’s fragmented immunization data across provinces and territories makes it more challenging to plan vaccine rollouts, identify coverage gaps or rapidly track adverse events after immunization. The Canadian Public Health Association and others have long called for a comprehensive and harmonized immunization registry as essential for a modern and responsive system.
A national framework for vaccine data collection would allow policymakers and practitioners to make evidence-informed decisions in real time.
Sustaining high vaccination coverage begins with public trust in science, government and public health. While most people still trust science and scientists, what constitutes trustworthy sources of information has become a serious problem.
Insufficient transparency around vaccine development, regulation and monitoring of adverse reactions needs addressing. Concerns about the rapid pace of scientific advances, including the 100-days mission to produce an effective vaccine for a future pandemic, must be recognized.
With so many new vaccines expected to roll out in coming years, including new frontiers in neurodegenerative disorders and vaccines for certain cancers, a harmonized vaccine schedule would foster public trust. In this context, vaccine misinformation has become a serious problem.
The COVID-19 pandemic showed how structural inequalities reduced the ability to access vaccines.
Initiatives during the pandemic to support equitable access — such as mobile clinics, culturally appropriate information and community-led initiatives — increased uptake. These approaches need to be extended to routine vaccination.
Moreover, building supportive environments means incorporating an “equity by design” approach, which applies regulatory tools and systems design to support vaccine equity, from discovery to rollout means that the ability to keep vaccines refridgerated cold chains or needle delivery, for example, do not contribute to disparities of access.
The Bridge Research Consortium (BRC) is a multidisciplinary team of social scientists and humanities scholars established in 2024 to understand the social and behavioural factors that influence new vaccine uptake in Canada.
Bridging understandings across the “pipeline” for developing new vaccines and therapeutics, and the public health system, the BRC supports tailored and equity-informed strategies that enhance public trust and equitable access. We will hear directly from communities across the country, identify concerns in real-time, and co-develop approaches that reflect diverse perspectives. We plan to achieve this through demystifying how vaccines are developed and produced, holding deliberative dialogues that bring together diverse perspectives on challenging topics, and creating a travelling science exhibit. World Immunization Week is a timely reminder of the importance of this work to enable Canada to realize the potential benefits of vaccines.
Immunity and Society is a new series from The Conversation Canada that presents new vaccine discoveries and immune-based innovations that are changing how we understand and protect human health. Through a partnership with the Bridge Research Consortium, these articles — written by academics in Canada at the forefront of immunology and biomanufacturing — explore the latest developments and their social impacts.
Kelley Lee receives funding from the Canada’s Biomedical Research Fund, Canada Foundation for Innovation, and British Columbia Knowledge Development Fund to support the work of the Bridge Research Consortium. The BRC is one of 19 projects funded to support Canada’s Biomanufacturing and Life Sciences Strategy. She also receives funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and New Frontiers in Research Fund to conduct research on pandemic preparedness and response. She currently serves as a Commissioner on the National University of Singapore-The Lancet Pandemic Readiness, Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation (PRIME) Commission.
Ève Dubé receives funding from the Canada’s Biomedical Research Fund, Canada Foundation for Innovation, to support the work of the Bridge Research Consortium. The BRC is one of 19 projects funded to support Canada’s Biomanufacturing and Life Sciences Strategy. She also receives funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Fonds de recherche du Québec to conduct research on vaccine acceptance.
Janice E. Graham receives funding from CIHR and PHAC.
Noni MacDonald receives funding from CIHR, CIRN grants related to immunization as well as PHAC and CPHA consultation fees related to immunization. She is a member of the Canadian Paediatric Society and the International Pediatric Society, a donor to Canadian Public Health Association and WHO, and on board of the journal Vaccine.
– ref. It’s World Immunization Week. How prepared is Canada if vaccines are needed for a new pandemic? – https://theconversation.com/its-world-immunization-week-how-prepared-is-canada-if-vaccines-are-needed-for-a-new-pandemic-254186
Source: South Africa News Agency
Minister in the Presidency responsible for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, Sindisiwe Chikunga, is leading South Africa’s delegation to the BRICS Women Ministerial Meeting at the Itamaraty Palace in Brasília, Brazil.
The Ministerial meeting, taking place on Thursday, is one of several high-level engagements under the 2025 BRICS Presidency, led by Brazil, and is themed: “Strengthening Global South Cooperation for More Inclusive and Sustainable Governance”.
The meeting will bring together Ministers responsible for gender and women’s affairs across BRICS member states (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) to advance multilateral cooperation on women’s empowerment and gender-responsive governance.
The BRICS Women Ministerial Meeting was first conceptualised during South Africa’s BRICS Presidency in 2023, when South Africa proposed the institutionalisation of a platform for Ministers responsible for women’s affairs.
This initiative aimed to integrate gender equality and women’s empowerment more centrally into BRICS multilateralism. Since then, both Russia in 2024, and Brazil in 2025, have continued the momentum, hosting sessions that advance this collaborative agenda.
The 2025 Ministerial will focus on three priority areas:
• Women, Development and Entrepreneurship,
• Digital Governance, Misogyny and Disinformation, and
• Women’s Empowerment, Climate Action and Sustainable Development.
The Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities said Chikunga will participate in all three thematic debates scheduled for the Ministerial Meeting, where she will contribute to discussions on women’s economic empowerment, digital governance, and climate resilience.
“Her participation underscores South Africa’s commitment to ensuring that gender equality is mainstreamed across all areas of governance, policy, and development within the BRICS framework. These themes reflect shared challenges and ambitions across the BRICS countries, particularly in the context of inclusive economic development, digital rights, and sustainability.
“The meeting offers a strategic space for exchanging policy approaches, aligning efforts, and strengthening collective commitments to gender justice. South Africa’s participation is consistent with its broader commitment to women development, social inclusion, and multilateral solidarity,” the department said in a statement on Thursday. – SAnews.gov.za
Source: US Commodity Futures Trading Commission
It is a privilege to join you today to kick-off the Africa Fintech Summit of 2025. Twice a year this convening serves as one of the largest gatherings of Africa’s Fintech Community—connecting entrepreneurs, investors, and regulators during the International Monetary Fund/World Bank spring meeting week in Washington, DC. and in the fall in Africa. My tremendous thanks to the organizers and hosts.
As you arrived this morning, I am sure you were able to appreciate the perfect spring weather and blooming cherry blossoms that we ordered for you this week. There are few places in DC that are lovelier this time of year than where we sit, here in Georgetown.
In my career, I have learned about entrepreneurship from mentors and clients at the world’s largest investment banks, small start-ups, and family-founded businesses. My family’s history as entrepreneurs and informal investors in community small businesses dates to the mid-1800s here in the United States. Perhaps one day, I will have the opportunity to continue this tradition and help fund the businesses of innovative founders.
Today, I am a Commissioner at the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, nominated by former President Biden and unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate.[1] At the CFTC, we oversee U.S. markets and market participants for derivatives contracts that reference commodities. According to a Bank for International Settlements report, the notional value of the global derivatives market is over $730 trillion.[2] In recent years, courts and Congress have indicated intentions to expand the CFTC’s mandate to include oversight of emerging technologies, including distributed digital ledger technologies commonly referred to as blockchain technologies, digital assets, including cryptocurrencies, and certain platforms within the assemblage of technologies referred to as artificial intelligence.
African Fintech Firms Inspire a World of Innovation
African fintech firms demonstrate curiosity, creativity, and driven commitment to deliver first-rate fintech products and services to consumers and businesses on the continent and around the world.
During my time as a CFTC Commissioner, I have traveled to South Africa, Kenya, Zambia, and Ghana to meet with fintech entrepreneurs. I have witnessed first-hand the exceptional creativity and curiosity that drives African fintech entrepreneurs. As you well know from CNBC’s announcement last year, six African fintech firms are among the world’s top fintech companies PalmPay, Flutterwave, Kuda, MTN, Piggvest, and Yoco.[3] African fintech firms have emerged from every corner of the continent.
In various stages of development—from incubators to early stages (pre-seed) capital raising to joint ventures with Google, Microsoft, and AWS—African fintech firms enhance financial accessibility, inclusivity, and consumer empowerment. These businesses integrate the most advanced technologies available, reflect global thought leadership in the potential for emerging technologies to reshape access and opportunities for both consumer and commercial finance, and create pathways for inclusion that have inspired creative consumer finance solutions around the globe.
As you know well, the recipe for entrepreneurial success begins with a great idea. Yet, building opportunities in fast-moving, high-tech markets requires a number of critical inputs as well as conditions to facilitate growth and development. Entrepreneurs or innovators, funders or sources of capital, and, yes, regulators all have an important role to play in promoting responsible innovation and growth. It has been my pleasure to collaborate with regulators around the continent as they consider ways to spur innovation and growth. Last year, during my keynote remarks at the South African Reserve Bank Fintech Summit in Johannesburg[4] and at the beginning of this year in Ghana, I emphasized the opportunities for African fintech firms to innovate using AI in consumer finance.
The Rise of AI in Fintech
As I noted in my opening remarks at The South African Reserve Bank Fintech Summit last year,
While our markets have long relied upon AI for a variety of risk management and predictive pricing functions, we are witnessing rapid developments beyond reinforcement learning and neural networks in generative AI.
Increasingly, diverse industries and sectors of our economy identify opportunities to integrate aspects of the assemblage of technologies that we commonly describe as AI or AI technologies. AI enables doctors to diagnose and map diseases earlier, faster, and with greater accuracy than ever before in the history of medicine. Farmers who cultivate crops that feed [] nation[s] may integrate AI to better manage access to vital resources such as freshwater, enabling more efficient irrigation, fertilization, and crop rotation leading to more sustainable farming.
In our markets, AI offers similar efficiencies for faster trade execution and settlement, more accurate pricing prediction, and more precise risk management oversight. Markets have witnessed increasing adoption of AI including AI-driven investment advising, trade execution, risk management, and market surveillance.[5]
Financial services firms are fully embracing the powers of AI, making increasingly large investments in infrastructure to support AI and expanding the roster of use cases. One economist estimates that investments in AI may reach $97 billion by 2027.[6]
Notable Challenges for Inclusion
As AI adoption expands across markets, however, there are a number of notable challenges. For many, the costs of relying on large language models or agentic AI will place these technologies beyond the resources of their businesses.
Accessibility and Inclusivity Challenges for Global Competitors
The high cost of developing advanced AI technologies and the infrastructure to support their use poses significant accessibility and inclusivity barriers, particularly disadvantaging smaller competitors and institutions in emerging markets. These barriers limit the widespread adoption of AI-driven financial solutions, which can disproportionately affect underserved and economically disadvantaged populations who could most benefit from improved financial services. This can make it exceptionally hard for emerging companies to incorporate AI into their services if the infrastructure does not already exist. To that end, we are seeing private companies form partnerships to make necessary investments to scale up AI capabilities in Africa, like Cassava Technologies, a global technology leader, and their partnership with Nvidia to develop Africa’s first AI factory in South Africa.[7]
At the Commission, we have also explored regulatory frameworks addressing AI’s role in financial markets through an ongoing conversation with market participants.[8] The Commission has acknowledged the potential for AI-driven systems to impact consumer protection indirectly through enhanced market integrity and risk management protocols, but it has also acknowledged the dangers that consumers can face.[9]
I have repeatedly emphasized the need to establish robust principles-based regulatory frameworks at the Commission to combat consumer-facing issues like AI-enabled market manipulation and fraud, through my repeated emphasis on the need to promote the explainability of AI models, the implementation of data controls and measures to address bias, clear governance frameworks for accountability and testing, and the establishment of an interagency task force and an AI Fraud Task Force to tackle fraud full force.[10] In particular, firms implementing this technology in consumer-facing ways must adhere to existing laws on fairness, transparency, and privacy.
The Financial Stability Board (FSB) has highlighted the importance of international collaboration in setting standards for responsible AI use, advocating for coordinated frameworks that ensure consumer protection, fairness, and transparency in AI-powered financial services globally.[11] International collaboration amongst regulators can aid in streamlining the growing body of international standards which can be difficult to navigate and present a significant barrier to emerging companies. Meanwhile, countries like Singapore have also made significant strides in regulating and supporting consumer-facing AI applications through initiatives like the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s regulatory sandbox framework, allowing fintech startups to test AI-driven solutions in controlled environments, balancing innovation with consumer protection.[12]
Africa’s Embrace of AI to Promote Accessibility, Consumer Interaction, and Further Innovation
Through strategic partnerships between AI startups, larger corporations, and governmental agencies, increased access to advanced AI technologies and traditional financial services have been more readily obtainable. Sitoyo Lopokoiyit, CEO and founder of M-Pesa, and others demonstrate how strategic partnerships, cost-effective approaches, and mobile-first innovations can significantly reduce barriers, enabling broader AI adoption and the growth of consumer inclusive financial services. M-Pesa, a mobile money services platform, which hosts millions of customers and facilitates billions in transactions per year, may be used to deposit money into an account, “store it on … cell phones, send balances using PINs secured by SMS text messages, and enable buyers and sellers of goods to redeem and access purchases as well as deposits for regular money…. M-Pesa represents the potential to develop platforms that give customers access to banking services, reduce transaction costs, and otherwise overcome the endemic frictions that have challenged access to financial services for millions.”[13]
M-Pesa’s business model is particularly interesting because of how effectively it has created access for individuals who have historically lacked access to basic financial services. I previously traveled to Kenya to meet with the CEO and President of M-Pesa, as well as central bankers, the governor of the Central Bank of Kenya, and deputy governors and market regulators, to discuss the uptick in retail market participation and the considerations for consumer protection that come with the increased accessibility to financial markets.
Conclusion
Continued partnerships between African fintech innovators, African regulators, and U.S. regulators and institutions can help foster shared growth and technological advancement for both parties. Such collaborations offer significant opportunities, combining African innovation in financial inclusion and mobile technologies with U.S. strengths in regulatory frameworks, research, and infrastructure. These synergistic relationships can enhance global fintech capabilities, drive inclusive economic growth, and promote greater financial stability and consumer protection worldwide.
Conferences like the one we are participating in today are of vital importance to the notion of collaboration. The issues discussed, the connections made, and the lessons shared here today can help propel markets forward in a way that not only protects the consumer but also empowers the consumer.
Thank you again for allowing me to join you today. I look forward to hearing from each of the panels and speakers and continuing to develop great relationships with the leading voices in fintech in Africa.
[1] The thoughts and perspectives that I share with you today are my own; they are not the views and perspectives of my fellow Commissioners, the Commission, or the staff of the CFTC.