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Category: Commerce

  • MIL-OSI: Willis Lease Finance Corporation Completes Sale of Consultancy and Advisory Arm to Joint Venture with Mitsui & Co.

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    COCONUT CREEK, Fla., June 30, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Willis Lease Finance Corporation (NASDAQ: WLFC) (“WLFC” or the “Company”), a leading lessor of commercial aircraft engines and global provider of aviation services, announced today the successful close of its previously reported sale of Bridgend Asset Management Limited (“BAML”), its consultancy and advisory arm, to Willis Mitsui & Co. Engine Support Limited (“WMES”), the Company’s long-standing joint venture with Mitsui & Co., Ltd. (“Mitsui”).

    After the closing, BAML will be officially renamed Willis Mitsui & Co. Asset Management Limited (“WAML”), reflecting its new position within the joint venture structure and its expanded strategic role going forward.

    This transaction strengthens the WMES platform by integrating technical consultancy and records management services into its operations, enhancing its capabilities, reach, and efficiency across aviation asset management. WMES, established in 2011 and headquartered in Dublin, now manages assets totaling approximately $380 million, a figure expected to grow with its expanded service offerings.

    “This is a milestone for WLFC and our partnership with Mitsui,” said Austin C. Willis, Chief Executive Officer of WLFC. “It is the first step towards closer collaboration and significant growth in our joint venture, WMES.”

    “With this transaction, we deepen our collaboration with WLFC and expand the scope of WMES,” shared Yuichi Nagata, General Manager of the Aerospace Business Division at Mitsui. “This positions us to better serve the growing demands of the global aviation market and solidifies the joint venture’s role as a key platform for delivering comprehensive engine-related services.”

    WLFC remains a 50% owner of WMES and will continue to leverage its services to support its leasing operations while focusing on strategic initiatives to grow its aviation portfolio.

    Willis Lease Finance Corporation

    Willis Lease Finance Corporation (“WLFC”) leases large and regional spare commercial aircraft engines, auxiliary power units and aircraft to airlines, aircraft engine manufacturers and maintenance, repair, and overhaul providers worldwide. These leasing activities are integrated with engine and aircraft trading, engine lease pools and asset management services through Willis Asset Management Limited, as well as various end-of-life solutions for engines and aviation materials provided through Willis Aeronautical Services, Inc. Through Willis Engine Repair Center®, Jet Centre by Willis, and Willis Aviation Services Limited, the Company’s service offerings include Part 145 engine maintenance, aircraft line and base maintenance, aircraft disassembly, parking and storage, airport FBO and ground and cargo handling services. Willis Sustainable Fuels intends to develop, build and operate projects to help decarbonize aviation.

    Except for historical information, the matters discussed in this press release contain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Do not unduly rely on forward-looking statements, which give only expectations about the future and are not guarantees. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and we undertake no obligation to update them to reflect any change in the Company’s expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which the forward-looking statement is based, except as required by law. Our actual results may differ materially from the results discussed in forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such a difference include, but are not limited to: the effects on the airline industry and the global economy of events such as war, terrorist activity and the COVID-19 pandemic; changes in oil prices, rising inflation and other disruptions to world markets; trends in the airline industry and our ability to capitalize on those trends, including growth rates of markets and other economic factors; risks associated with owning and leasing jet engines and aircraft; our ability to successfully negotiate equipment purchases, sales and leases, to collect outstanding amounts due and to control costs and expenses; changes in interest rates and availability of capital, both to us and our customers; our ability to continue to meet changing customer demands; regulatory changes affecting airline operations, aircraft maintenance, accounting standards and taxes; the market value of engines and other assets in our portfolio; and risks detailed in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K and other continuing and current reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. It is advisable, however, to consult any further disclosures the Company makes on related subjects in such filings. These statements constitute the Company’s cautionary statements under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

    CONTACT: Lynn Mailliard Kohler
    Director, Global Corporate Communications
      415.328.4798

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Willis Lease Finance Corporation Completes Sale of Consultancy and Advisory Arm to Joint Venture with Mitsui & Co.

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    COCONUT CREEK, Fla., June 30, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Willis Lease Finance Corporation (NASDAQ: WLFC) (“WLFC” or the “Company”), a leading lessor of commercial aircraft engines and global provider of aviation services, announced today the successful close of its previously reported sale of Bridgend Asset Management Limited (“BAML”), its consultancy and advisory arm, to Willis Mitsui & Co. Engine Support Limited (“WMES”), the Company’s long-standing joint venture with Mitsui & Co., Ltd. (“Mitsui”).

    After the closing, BAML will be officially renamed Willis Mitsui & Co. Asset Management Limited (“WAML”), reflecting its new position within the joint venture structure and its expanded strategic role going forward.

    This transaction strengthens the WMES platform by integrating technical consultancy and records management services into its operations, enhancing its capabilities, reach, and efficiency across aviation asset management. WMES, established in 2011 and headquartered in Dublin, now manages assets totaling approximately $380 million, a figure expected to grow with its expanded service offerings.

    “This is a milestone for WLFC and our partnership with Mitsui,” said Austin C. Willis, Chief Executive Officer of WLFC. “It is the first step towards closer collaboration and significant growth in our joint venture, WMES.”

    “With this transaction, we deepen our collaboration with WLFC and expand the scope of WMES,” shared Yuichi Nagata, General Manager of the Aerospace Business Division at Mitsui. “This positions us to better serve the growing demands of the global aviation market and solidifies the joint venture’s role as a key platform for delivering comprehensive engine-related services.”

    WLFC remains a 50% owner of WMES and will continue to leverage its services to support its leasing operations while focusing on strategic initiatives to grow its aviation portfolio.

    Willis Lease Finance Corporation

    Willis Lease Finance Corporation (“WLFC”) leases large and regional spare commercial aircraft engines, auxiliary power units and aircraft to airlines, aircraft engine manufacturers and maintenance, repair, and overhaul providers worldwide. These leasing activities are integrated with engine and aircraft trading, engine lease pools and asset management services through Willis Asset Management Limited, as well as various end-of-life solutions for engines and aviation materials provided through Willis Aeronautical Services, Inc. Through Willis Engine Repair Center®, Jet Centre by Willis, and Willis Aviation Services Limited, the Company’s service offerings include Part 145 engine maintenance, aircraft line and base maintenance, aircraft disassembly, parking and storage, airport FBO and ground and cargo handling services. Willis Sustainable Fuels intends to develop, build and operate projects to help decarbonize aviation.

    Except for historical information, the matters discussed in this press release contain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Do not unduly rely on forward-looking statements, which give only expectations about the future and are not guarantees. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and we undertake no obligation to update them to reflect any change in the Company’s expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which the forward-looking statement is based, except as required by law. Our actual results may differ materially from the results discussed in forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such a difference include, but are not limited to: the effects on the airline industry and the global economy of events such as war, terrorist activity and the COVID-19 pandemic; changes in oil prices, rising inflation and other disruptions to world markets; trends in the airline industry and our ability to capitalize on those trends, including growth rates of markets and other economic factors; risks associated with owning and leasing jet engines and aircraft; our ability to successfully negotiate equipment purchases, sales and leases, to collect outstanding amounts due and to control costs and expenses; changes in interest rates and availability of capital, both to us and our customers; our ability to continue to meet changing customer demands; regulatory changes affecting airline operations, aircraft maintenance, accounting standards and taxes; the market value of engines and other assets in our portfolio; and risks detailed in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K and other continuing and current reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. It is advisable, however, to consult any further disclosures the Company makes on related subjects in such filings. These statements constitute the Company’s cautionary statements under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

    CONTACT: Lynn Mailliard Kohler
    Director, Global Corporate Communications
      415.328.4798

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: Secretary-General’s remarks at the International Business Forum at the Conference on Financing for Development [bilingual, as delivered; scroll down for all-English]

    Source: United Nations secretary general

    This Forum reflects a fundamental fact.
     
    Development is everyone’s business.
     
    And the private sector is an essential partner in helping countries climb the development ladder, and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.
     
    Businesses are not just engines of jobs and economic growth.
     
    They help propel the innovation, technology and investment that development demands.
     
    We are here to boost support for initiatives that benefit people and planet.
     
    We meet against the backdrop of an incredibly challenging global environment.
     
    As we gather in Sevilla, trade barriers and macroeconomic risks are rising. 
     
    Major aid cuts are making a bad situation even worse.
     
    Mistrust and geopolitical divisions are blocking effective global solutions.
     
    And the financing gap for the Sustainable Development Goals has ballooned to $4 trillion.
     
    When the world came together for this conference 10 years ago in Addis Ababa, countries recognized that achieving the Goals was impossible without mobilizing private capital at scale.
     
    One decade later, we continue to fall short.
     
    Last year, investment in infrastructure in developing countries dropped by 35 per cent — including in key sectors like renewable energy, water and sanitation.
     
    And foreign direct investment has declined two years in a row, with investment flows largely bypassing Least Developed Countries altogether.
     
    We need to create the conditions to change course.
     
    And that begins here in Spain.
     
    The Sevilla Commitment document includes important steps to get the engine of development revving again:
     
    Through new domestic and global commitments that can channel public and private finance to the areas of greatest need…
     
    By overhauling the world’s approach to debt to make borrowing work in service of sustainable development…
     
    And by reforming the global financial architecture to reflect today’s realities and the urgent needs of developing countries.
     
    The Sevilla Commitment also puts forward a number of specific actions to unlock private sector investment in sustainable development.
     
    This includes steps to strengthen the way we blend public and private capital together to maximize the use of public money in crowding-in private funds.
     
    It includes new approaches to manage currency risk that prevent otherwise promising investment opportunities from securing the capital required.
     
    And it includes a call to review financial regulations to ensure that risk weightings are well-designed, and help — not hinder — institutional investors from embracing projects in frontier markets.
     
    These are significant steps, informed by lessons learned over the past 10 years.
     
    When, one looks at today’s world, the crises in the ODA, the crises in the global funds available, it is absolutely evident that we need to be able to multiply the resources available for investments.

    And the main obligation, in my opinion, of public development banks, most national and international, should be today concentrated, not essentially, in their operations, and I understand the pressure of any bureaucracy to do their own things, but those public funds available in developing banks, should be more and more put to work to multiply resources through the risking private finances and private investments.

    Giving guaranties, stablishing coalitions, in which they are the first risk takers, and creating the conditions to massively increase the massive private finance and private investment in countries in which without the necessary derisking it is practically impossible to see enough development.
     
    This is a new mentally that we need to guaranty in the investment banks, the pubic investment banks, both national and international.
     
    Señoras y senõres,
                                                                            
    En todo momento, contamos con el liderazgo y la visión de todos ustedes para llevar adelante el espíritu de colaboración y adoptar soluciones audaces.
     
    Al reunir a los líderes de los sectores público y privado, a los reguladores y a los bancos de desarrollo, podemos garantizar que esta conferencia no es un final, sino un principio.
     
    El comienzo de una nueva era de acción y colaboración en algunos de los problemas más urgentes a los que se enfrenta hoy nuestro mundo.
     
    Y un nuevo amanecer para la manera en que se financia el progreso del desarrollo en todo el mundo.
     
    Gracias a todos ustedes por participar en este importante esfuerzo. Espero que la participación conjunta de los sectores público y privado pueda multiplicar los recursos que tenemos.

    Sabiendo que mucha más inversión es necesaria en el mundo de hoy, pero que hay mecanismos que permiten que los fondos públicos disponibles movilicen muchísimo más que hoy la financiación y la inversión privada. 

    *****
    [All-English]

    This Forum reflects a fundamental fact.

    Development is everyone’s business.

    And the private sector is an essential partner in helping countries climb the development ladder, and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

    Businesses are not just engines of jobs and economic growth.

    They help propel the innovation, technology and investment that development demands.

    We are here to boost support for initiatives that benefit people and planet.

    We meet against the backdrop of an incredibly challenging global environment.

    As we gather in Sevilla, trade barriers and macroeconomic risks are rising. 

    Major aid cuts are making a bad situation even worse.

    Mistrust and geopolitical divisions are blocking effective global solutions.

    And the financing gap for the Sustainable Development Goals has ballooned to $4 trillion.

    When the world came together for this conference 10 years ago in Addis Ababa, countries recognized that achieving the Goals was impossible without mobilizing private capital at scale.

    One decade later, we continue to fall short.

    Last year, investment in infrastructure in developing countries dropped by 35 per cent — including in key sectors like renewable energy, water and sanitation.

    And foreign direct investment has declined two years in a row, with investment flows largely bypassing Least Developed Countries altogether.

    We need to create the conditions to change course.

    And that begins here in Spain.

    The Sevilla Commitment document includes important steps to get the engine of development revving again:

    Through new domestic and global commitments that can channel public and private finance to the areas of greatest need…

    By overhauling the world’s approach to debt to make borrowing work in service of sustainable development…

    And by reforming the global financial architecture to reflect today’s realities and the urgent needs of developing countries.

    The Sevilla Commitment also puts forward a number of specific actions to unlock private sector investment in sustainable development.

    This includes steps to strengthen the way we blend public and private capital together to maximize the use of public money in crowding-in private funds.

    It includes new approaches to manage currency risk that prevent otherwise promising investment opportunities from securing the capital required.

    And it includes a call to review financial regulations to ensure that risk weightings are well-designed, and help — not hinder — institutional investors from embracing projects in frontier markets.

    These are significant steps, informed by lessons learned over the past 10 years.

    When, one looks at today’s world, the crises in the ODA, the crises in the global funds available, it is absolutely evident that we need to be able to multiply the resources available for investments.

    And the main obligation, in my opinion, of public development banks, most national and international, should be today concentrated, not essentially, in their operations, and I understand the pressure of any bureaucracy to do their own things, but those public funds available in developing banks, should be more and more put to work to multiply resources through the risking private finances and private investments.

    Giving guaranties, stablishing coalitions, in which they are the first risk takers, and creating the conditions to massively increase the massive private finance and private investment in countries in which without the necessary derisking it is practically impossible to see enough development.

    This is a new mentally that we need to guaranty in the investment banks, the pubic investment banks, both national and international.

    Ladies and gentleman,

    Throughout, we are counting on the leadership and vision of all of you to carry forward the spirit of collaboration and bold solutions.

    By uniting public and private sector leaders, regulators and development banks, we can ensure that this conference is not an end, but rather a beginning.

    The beginning of a new era of action and collaboration on some of the most urgent issues facing our world today.

    And a new dawn for how we finance development progress around the world.

    Thank you all for being part of this important effort. I hope that the joint participation of the public and private sectors can multiply the resources we have.

    Knowing that much more investment is needed in today’s world, but that there are mechanisms that allow available public funds to mobilize much more private financing and investment than today.
     
     

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Banana Boat and Hawaiian Tropic owner in Court over alleged greenwashing claims that its sunscreens were ‘reef friendly’

    Source: Australian Ministers for Regional Development

    The ACCC has launched Federal Court proceedings against Edgewell Personal Care Australia Pty Ltd and its US-based parent company, Edgewell Personal Care Company or Edgewell PCC, for allegedly false or misleading claims that its popular Hawaiian Tropic and Banana Boat branded sunscreens were ‘reef friendly’.

    The ACCC alleges Edgewell Australia breached the Australian Consumer Law when it made the claims about many Hawaiian Tropic and Banana Boat sunscreen products across its websites, social media, in retailer catalogues and in other publications. Several Hawaiian Tropic products also contained a logo on the packaging which included the words ‘reef friendly’ and an image of a piece of coral.

    The ACCC alleges Edgewell Australia made the ‘reef friendly’ claims between August 2020 and December 2024 based on advice, guidance and direction from Edgewell PCC.

    Edgewell claimed that the sunscreens were ‘reef friendly’, including because they did not contain ‘oxybenzone or octinoxate’. These chemicals have been banned in some jurisdictions, including the State of Hawaii, due to the damage they cause to  reefs.

    However, the sunscreens contained other ingredients which the ACCC alleges either cause harm to reefs, including coral and marine life, or risk causing harm to reefs. These ingredients are octocrylene, homosalate, 4-methylbenzylidene camphor (also known as 4-MBC or enzacamene), and butyl methoxydibenzoylmethane (also known as avobenzone). The ACCC’s case relates to more than 90 Edgewell sunscreen products, sold at various times over the four years, which contained one or more of these ingredients.

    The ACCC also alleges Edgewell PCC and/or Edgewell Australia were aware of scientific studies, literature or other reports that indicated the ingredients, or some of them, were known to adversely affect reefs or that there was a risk of such harm, and that neither company commissioned any testing in relation to the ingredients and their impact on reefs.

    Edgewell PCC removed ‘reef friendly’ claims from its sunscreen products in the US in around 2020, however we allege the claims continued to be made in Australia until December 2024.

    “We allege that Edgewell engaged in greenwashing by making claims about the environmental benefits of Hawaiian Tropic and Banana Boat sunscreens that it had no reasonable or scientific basis to make,” ACCC Deputy Chair Catriona Lowe said.

    “Many consumers consider environmental factors when purchasing products. By engaging in this alleged greenwashing, we say Edgewell deprived consumers of the ability to make an informed decision and may have prevented them from purchasing a different brand of sunscreen that did not contain chemicals which risked causing harm to reefs.”

    “We believe this conduct was widespread and risked potentially misleading a large number of consumers. The sunscreen products were supplied throughout Australia over a period of four years, including in large stores and online websites,” Ms Lowe said.

    “Businesses should not shy away from promoting the environmental credentials of their products, but they must be able to substantiate any claims, for example through reputable third-party certification or reliable scientific reports,” Ms Lowe said.

    In its case, the ACCC alleges that the Edgewell companies made a number of misleading representations, including that the products did not cause harm to reefs or give rise to a risk of harm to reefs. The ACCC also alleges that the Edgewell companies misleadingly represented that Edgewell had a reasonable basis for making these representations, or that there was a reliable scientific basis for making the representations.

    The ACCC is seeking penalties, declarations, injunctions, costs and other orders.

    Images of the Reef Friendly Logo on Hawaiian Tropic product packaging

    Close up image of the logo 

    Background

    Edgewell Personal Care Australia Pty Ltd (‘Edgewell Australia’) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Edgewell Personal Care Company (Edgewell PCC).

    Edgewell Australia supplies and promotes the Hawaiian Tropic and Banana Boat sunscreen products in Australia.

    Edgewell PCC is a New York Stock Exchange listed, multinational consumer products manufacturer company based in the United States. It is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of personal care products, supplying products in the wet shave, sun and skin care, and feminine care categories, including sunscreen products under the Hawaiian Tropic and Banana Boat brands.

    In December 2023, the ACCC published its guidance for businesses on making environmental and sustainability claims. It sets out what the ACCC considers to be misleading conduct and good practice when making such claims, to help businesses provide clear, accurate and trustworthy information to consumers about the current and future environmental performance of their business.

    Concise statement 

    This document contains the ACCC’s initiating court document in relation to this matter. We will not be uploading further documents in the event these initial documents are subsequently amended.

    ACCC v Edgewell – Concise Statement ( PDF 534.6 KB )

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Five years already! 

    Source: – Press Release/Statement:

    Headline: Five years already! 

    The Canadian Renewable Energy Association celebrates 5th anniversary.

    Ottawa, June 30, 2025—The Canadian Renewable Energy Association (CanREA) is proud to celebrate its fifth anniversary on July 1, 2025. CanREA launched on July 1, 2020, during the global pandemic, as the merger of Canada’s wind and solar industry associations (CanWEA and CanSIA), with the important addition of energy storage to the mandate. 

    Created to provide a unified voice for solar energy, wind energy, and energy storage in Canada, CanREA has since grown to a total of more than 330 members, with seven member Networks (federal, BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan & Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada) and three national Programs (Operators, BTM Solar & Storage, and Utility GRID Integration), as well as four successful annual Summits, nearly 30 staff members, 10 annual networking events, an ongoing series of industry webinars, and the second-largest social media community of all the Canadian trade associations in any sector. 

    “I want to thank our members for their support over the past five years, which has enabled our advocacy work and helped secure many key successes for the industry so far. This five-year milestone is an occasion to look back and see how far we have come, but more importantly, to look ahead. CanREA is committed to advancing the Canadian wind, solar and energy storage industries for the next five years, and for many more years to come,” said Vittoria Bellissimo, CanREA’s President and CEO.   

    CanREA is marking the anniversary by launching a new Awards Program, and other activities throughout the year.  

    Top 5 priorities for 2025-26  

    As we enter our new fiscal year on July 1, 2025, CanREA has defined five ambitious new strategic objectives to guide our priorities. These include: 

    Executing a comprehensive advocacy plan to effectively respond to evolving government mandates; 

    Optimizing outcomes for ongoing procurement processes in Ontario, BC and Quebec;  

    Executing on our new BTM strategy;  

    Building strategic alliances to enhance key messaging, collect information on project economics, and advocate for infrastructure and other support initiatives, including energy corridors opportunities; 

    All the while providing excellent membership value for all our members. 

    Top 10 accomplishments: Annual report card 2024-25 

    Looking back on the past year, there is a lot for CanREA—and the industry—to celebrate. Here is a recap of Top Ten accomplishments of 2024-5, starting with the most recent items: 

    Advocacy in Ontario: CanREA successfully worked to reduce barriers and improve clarity for access to agricultural land and Crown land, shaping the LT2 contracts and RFPs that were launched in late June. This is the first time in a decade the industry can bid on new wind and solar projects in Ontario!

    Advocacy in Manitoba: CanREA expanded the Saskatchewan Network to include Manitoba this year and devoted a Policy Director to this mandate. CanREA’s recommendations to Manitoba’s Minister of Finance were reflected in Manitoba Hydro’s 600 MW Call for Power for Indigenous Majority-Owned Wind, for which the Request for Expressions of Interest (REOI) was issued in June.  

    Indigenous engagement: This year, CanREA’s new Director of Indigenous Engagement led efforts to enhance Indigenous cultural awareness for the staff and Board of Directors, develop the outline for CanREA’s Indigenous Reconciliation Action Roadmap, expand the Indigenous Business Pavilion at ETC, and collaborate with Indigenous Clean Energy (ICE) to present CanREA’s Manitoba Wind Energy Indigenous Equity Summit in June.

    Advocacy in BC: CanREA expanded its presence to BC this year, with a new BC Director, a new BC Network, and a MOU with Clean Energy BC. CanREA is now working with BC Hydro to support the integration of renewables into the grid in its new Call for Power, announced in May, and its two new requests for expressions of interest relevant to energy storage, announced in June. 

    Advocacy in Quebec: CanREA successfully worked to optimize the ongoing procurement process in Quebec. One highlight: in May, Hydro-Québec launched a 300 MW solar energy tender. This milestone represents the first major solar procurement in Quebec, part of a broader objective to develop 3,000 MW of solar capacity by 2035.  

    Utilities: CanREA launched a new Utility GRID Integration program in May. Evolving from CanREA’s NRCan-funded Electricity Transition Hub, the program helps members integrate clean, affordable and reliable electricity into Canada’s power grids.    

    Go Solar Guide 2025: In March, CanREA’s new BTM Solar and Storage Program launched a new and improved edition of our annual Go Solar Guide, encouraging more Canadians to generate their own solar energy at home and work, and listing of all CanREA’s solar installer members. Now available as a web portal, the information is free and accessible to all.  

    Advocacy in Atlantic Canada: CanREA is building momentum in Atlantic Canada, enabled by a new, full-time Policy Manager based in New Brunswick. Our renewed advocacy efforts have led to policy wins across the region, including the Nova Scotia Green Choice Program RFP, which awarded 625 MW of wind in January, nearly double the original call for 350 MW. 

    ITCs: CanREA successfully advocated with the federal government to optimize and accelerate the Investment Tax Credits (ITCs) in Canada, as the Clean Tech ITC was implemented into law in the fall.

    Procurement calendar: In October, CanREA launched a new Clean Energy Procurement Calendar, which we continue to monitor and update as new procurements get announced or come online across the nation. 

    Quotes 

    “I want to thank our members for their support over the past five years, which has enabled our advocacy work and helped secure many key successes for the industry so far. This five-year milestone is an occasion to look back and see how far we have come, but more importantly, to look ahead. CanREA is committed to advancing the Canadian wind, solar and energy storage industries for the next five years, and for many more years to come.”  

    —Vittoria Bellissimo, President and CEO, Canadian Renewable Energy Association (CanREA) 

    For media inquiries or interview opportunities, please contact:  

    CommunicationsCanadian Renewable Energy Associationcommunications@renewablesassociation.ca

    About CanREA  

    The Canadian Renewable Energy Association (CanREA) is the voice for wind energy, solar energy and energy storage solutions that will power Canada’s energy future. We work to create the conditions for a modern energy system through stakeholder advocacy and public engagement. Our diverse members are uniquely positioned to deliver clean, low-cost, reliable, flexible and scalable solutions for Canada’s energy needs. For more information on how Canada can use wind energy, solar energy and energy storage to help achieve its net-zero commitments, consult “Powering Canada’s Journey to Net-Zero: CanREA’s 2050 Vision.” Follow us on Bluesky and LinkedIn here. Learn more at renewablesassociation.ca.   

    –30–   
    The post Five years already!  appeared first on Canadian Renewable Energy Association.

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: UN Secretary-General’s remarks at the International Business Forum at the Conference on Financing for Development [bilingual, as delivered; scroll down for all-English]

    Source: United Nations secretary general

    This Forum reflects a fundamental fact.
     
    Development is everyone’s business.
     
    And the private sector is an essential partner in helping countries climb the development ladder, and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.
     
    Businesses are not just engines of jobs and economic growth.
     
    They help propel the innovation, technology and investment that development demands.
     
    We are here to boost support for initiatives that benefit people and planet.
     
    We meet against the backdrop of an incredibly challenging global environment.
     
    As we gather in Sevilla, trade barriers and macroeconomic risks are rising. 
     
    Major aid cuts are making a bad situation even worse.
     
    Mistrust and geopolitical divisions are blocking effective global solutions.
     
    And the financing gap for the Sustainable Development Goals has ballooned to $4 trillion.
     
    When the world came together for this conference 10 years ago in Addis Ababa, countries recognized that achieving the Goals was impossible without mobilizing private capital at scale.
     
    One decade later, we continue to fall short.
     
    Last year, investment in infrastructure in developing countries dropped by 35 per cent — including in key sectors like renewable energy, water and sanitation.
     
    And foreign direct investment has declined two years in a row, with investment flows largely bypassing Least Developed Countries altogether.
     
    We need to create the conditions to change course.
     
    And that begins here in Spain.
     
    The Sevilla Commitment document includes important steps to get the engine of development revving again:
     
    Through new domestic and global commitments that can channel public and private finance to the areas of greatest need…
     
    By overhauling the world’s approach to debt to make borrowing work in service of sustainable development…
     
    And by reforming the global financial architecture to reflect today’s realities and the urgent needs of developing countries.
     
    The Sevilla Commitment also puts forward a number of specific actions to unlock private sector investment in sustainable development.
     
    This includes steps to strengthen the way we blend public and private capital together to maximize the use of public money in crowding-in private funds.
     
    It includes new approaches to manage currency risk that prevent otherwise promising investment opportunities from securing the capital required.
     
    And it includes a call to review financial regulations to ensure that risk weightings are well-designed, and help — not hinder — institutional investors from embracing projects in frontier markets.
     
    These are significant steps, informed by lessons learned over the past 10 years.
     
    When, one looks at today’s world, the crises in the ODA, the crises in the global funds available, it is absolutely evident that we need to be able to multiply the resources available for investments.

    And the main obligation, in my opinion, of public development banks, most national and international, should be today concentrated, not essentially, in their operations, and I understand the pressure of any bureaucracy to do their own things, but those public funds available in developing banks, should be more and more put to work to multiply resources through the risking private finances and private investments.

    Giving guaranties, stablishing coalitions, in which they are the first risk takers, and creating the conditions to massively increase the massive private finance and private investment in countries in which without the necessary derisking it is practically impossible to see enough development.
     
    This is a new mentally that we need to guaranty in the investment banks, the pubic investment banks, both national and international.
     
    Señoras y senõres,
                                                                            
    En todo momento, contamos con el liderazgo y la visión de todos ustedes para llevar adelante el espíritu de colaboración y adoptar soluciones audaces.
     
    Al reunir a los líderes de los sectores público y privado, a los reguladores y a los bancos de desarrollo, podemos garantizar que esta conferencia no es un final, sino un principio.
     
    El comienzo de una nueva era de acción y colaboración en algunos de los problemas más urgentes a los que se enfrenta hoy nuestro mundo.
     
    Y un nuevo amanecer para la manera en que se financia el progreso del desarrollo en todo el mundo.
     
    Gracias a todos ustedes por participar en este importante esfuerzo. Espero que la participación conjunta de los sectores público y privado pueda multiplicar los recursos que tenemos.

    Sabiendo que mucha más inversión es necesaria en el mundo de hoy, pero que hay mecanismos que permiten que los fondos públicos disponibles movilicen muchísimo más que hoy la financiación y la inversión privada. 

    *****
    [All-English]

    This Forum reflects a fundamental fact.

    Development is everyone’s business.

    And the private sector is an essential partner in helping countries climb the development ladder, and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

    Businesses are not just engines of jobs and economic growth.

    They help propel the innovation, technology and investment that development demands.

    We are here to boost support for initiatives that benefit people and planet.

    We meet against the backdrop of an incredibly challenging global environment.

    As we gather in Sevilla, trade barriers and macroeconomic risks are rising. 

    Major aid cuts are making a bad situation even worse.

    Mistrust and geopolitical divisions are blocking effective global solutions.

    And the financing gap for the Sustainable Development Goals has ballooned to $4 trillion.

    When the world came together for this conference 10 years ago in Addis Ababa, countries recognized that achieving the Goals was impossible without mobilizing private capital at scale.

    One decade later, we continue to fall short.

    Last year, investment in infrastructure in developing countries dropped by 35 per cent — including in key sectors like renewable energy, water and sanitation.

    And foreign direct investment has declined two years in a row, with investment flows largely bypassing Least Developed Countries altogether.

    We need to create the conditions to change course.

    And that begins here in Spain.

    The Sevilla Commitment document includes important steps to get the engine of development revving again:

    Through new domestic and global commitments that can channel public and private finance to the areas of greatest need…

    By overhauling the world’s approach to debt to make borrowing work in service of sustainable development…

    And by reforming the global financial architecture to reflect today’s realities and the urgent needs of developing countries.

    The Sevilla Commitment also puts forward a number of specific actions to unlock private sector investment in sustainable development.

    This includes steps to strengthen the way we blend public and private capital together to maximize the use of public money in crowding-in private funds.

    It includes new approaches to manage currency risk that prevent otherwise promising investment opportunities from securing the capital required.

    And it includes a call to review financial regulations to ensure that risk weightings are well-designed, and help — not hinder — institutional investors from embracing projects in frontier markets.

    These are significant steps, informed by lessons learned over the past 10 years.

    When, one looks at today’s world, the crises in the ODA, the crises in the global funds available, it is absolutely evident that we need to be able to multiply the resources available for investments.

    And the main obligation, in my opinion, of public development banks, most national and international, should be today concentrated, not essentially, in their operations, and I understand the pressure of any bureaucracy to do their own things, but those public funds available in developing banks, should be more and more put to work to multiply resources through the risking private finances and private investments.

    Giving guaranties, stablishing coalitions, in which they are the first risk takers, and creating the conditions to massively increase the massive private finance and private investment in countries in which without the necessary derisking it is practically impossible to see enough development.

    This is a new mentally that we need to guaranty in the investment banks, the pubic investment banks, both national and international.

    Ladies and gentleman,

    Throughout, we are counting on the leadership and vision of all of you to carry forward the spirit of collaboration and bold solutions.

    By uniting public and private sector leaders, regulators and development banks, we can ensure that this conference is not an end, but rather a beginning.

    The beginning of a new era of action and collaboration on some of the most urgent issues facing our world today.

    And a new dawn for how we finance development progress around the world.

    Thank you all for being part of this important effort. I hope that the joint participation of the public and private sectors can multiply the resources we have.

    Knowing that much more investment is needed in today’s world, but that there are mechanisms that allow available public funds to mobilize much more private financing and investment than today.
     
     

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI: DataGrail Report: Consumer Demand for Data Privacy Surges, Driving Up Business Costs as Data Deletion Requests Rise

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    SAN FRANCISCO, June 30, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Consumers are reclaiming control of their personal data—and businesses are feeling the impact. DataGrail’s newly released 2025 Data Privacy Trends Report shows a surge in data deletion and do not share requests, skyrocketing privacy expectations globally, and a failure by companies to honor consumer consent – driving up compliance costs across the board.

    DataGrail 2025 Privacy Trends Report Highlights:

    • Data deletion requests are surging, rising 82% year-over-year, surpassing access and do not sell requests for the fourth consecutive year.
    • Compliance costs are skyrocketing, largely due to the manual processing of Data Subject Requests (DSRs). Managing DSRs now costs businesses an estimated $1.26 million annually per 5 million unique website visitors—a 43% increase over 2023.
    • “Do Not Sell” (DNS) requests are gaining significant traction, with an increase of 37% over 2023. This increase is worth noting as organizations face heightened scrutiny from bodies like the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA), which has focused litigation on ensuring companies honor these opt-out requests.
    • New state laws are driving more action. Seven new U.S. state laws went into effect in 2024. As a result, 41% of DSRs in 2024 came from states with active privacy laws – an increase of 229% from the 12.5% of DSRs we received from states with active privacy laws in 2023.
    • 69% of businesses violate consumer consent. Despite consumers setting their opt-out preferences, businesses continue to deploy tracking cookies, risking fines, lawsuits, and damage to their brand.

    “Our 2025 report clearly shows that consumers are taking control over their data privacy rights and are actively exercising those rights by demanding deletion of their data,” said Daniel Barber, co-founder and CEO of DataGrail. “This surge in DSRs, particularly deletions, is making compliance more expensive for organizations. The privacy landscape, driven by stricter laws and heightened enforcement globally, means proactive data privacy management is no longer optional but mandatory for brands.”

    “The trends highlighted in DataGrail’s 2025 report underscore a critical shift in the data privacy landscape,” said Ryan O’Leary, Research Director, Privacy and Legal Technology, IDC. “The significant increase in data deletion requests, coupled with rising compliance costs and continued violations of consumer consent indicates that organizations need to prioritize robust data privacy management.”

    Consumers expect privacy regardless of location or legislation
    Around the world, consumer demand for control over personal data is seeing momentum. Globally, 31.5% of DSRs came from countries without privacy laws. In the U.S., 46.6% of requests were made by people in states that didn’t have privacy laws in effect.

    Majority of businesses not honoring do not sell preferences
    As consumers automate do not sell requests, a majority of organizations are not honoring those requests, putting their organizations at risk for regulatory scrutiny, potentially leading to costly fines, lawsuits, or reputational damage to their brand. An audit of 5,000 websites reveals that 69% of organizations fire 3 or more cookie trackers despite website visitors opting out. This means organizations have not correctly implemented consent mechanisms and are tracking consumer activities to retarget them with ads without their consent.

    Data brokerage industry tops list for most data privacy requests
    Privacy requests in 2024 among data brokers were the highest category of requests across industries. Driven by the California Delete Act, which put renewed pressure on data brokers to honor deletion requests, combined with an uptick in companies that delete data, heightened concern over data breaches, political uncertainty and AI’s expanding use of personal data. These factors are driving a surge in consumer privacy actions and reshaping the data landscape.

    Methodology
    DataGrail analyzed the Data Subject Requests (DSRs) it helped process on behalf of customers from January 1 to December 31, 2023. The customer set has more than 700 million records, where a “record” is defined as a single, individual record associated with a unique identifier within a customer’s database. To determine the cost of processing requests, DataGrail used Gartner’s manual processing estimate of $1,524 per DSR.

    To normalize the data across various company sizes, DataGrail calculated DSRs per one million identities. To account for variability, DataGrail used a “10% trim mean” calculation to determine benchmarks. The dataset includes DSRs submitted under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), along with DSRs received in the U.S. and globally that don’t fall under those regulatory umbrellas. As a United States-based company, with primarily U.S.-based customers, DataGrail’s dataset may skew toward DSRs from the U.S.

    About DataGrail
    DataGrail is the data privacy company for this era. We help brands minimize risk, stay a step ahead of consumer and employee expectations, and safeguard their reputation. Our complete, data privacy platform is powered by patented Risk Intelligence technology that detects shadow IT and makes vulnerable data visible so brands can proactively manage risk. Leveraging responsible automation at scale and the largest integration network in data privacy, DataGrail automates privacy workflows across systems to perform risk assessments, accelerate data subject request (DSR) fulfillment, and optimize resources.

    Headquartered in San Francisco, the world’s most trusted brands partner with DataGrail on their data privacy journey, including Salesforce, FanDuel, Dexcom, Databricks, among others.

    Media Contact
    press@datagrail.io

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI USA News: Providing for the Revocation of Syria Sanctions

    Source: US Whitehouse

    By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) (NEA), the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act of 2003 (Public Law 108-175) (Syria Accountability Act), the Chemical and Biological Weapons Control and Warfare Elimination Act of 1991 (Public Law 102-182, title III) (CBW Act), the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act of 2019, as amended (22 U.S.C. 8791 note) (Caesar Act), the Illicit Captagon Trafficking Suppression Act of 2023 (Public Law 118-50, div. P), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code, it is hereby ordered:

    Section 1.  Background.  The United States is committed to supporting a Syria that is stable, unified, and at peace with itself and its neighbors.  A united Syria that does not offer a safe haven for terrorist organizations and ensures the security of its religious and ethnic minorities will support regional security and prosperity.  The Secretary of State and the Secretary of the Treasury have taken initial steps towards this goal through the issuance on May 23, 2025, of General License 25 and a waiver of sanctions under the Caesar Act. 

    Sec. 2.  Policy.  It is the policy of the United States to recognize that circumstances that gave rise to the actions taken in the Executive Orders described in section 3(a) of this order, related to the policies and actions of the former regime of Bashar al-Assad, have been transformed by developments over the past 6 months, including the positive actions taken by the new Syrian government under President Ahmed al-Sharaa.  This order supports United States national security and foreign policy goals by directing additional actions, including the removal of sanctions on Syria, the issuance of waivers that permit the relaxation of export controls and other restrictions on Syria, and other actions to be taken by the Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Secretary of Commerce, as well as by other executive departments and agencies (agencies) of the United States, without providing relief to ISIS or other terrorist organizations, human rights abusers, those linked to chemical weapons or proliferation-related activities, or other persons that threaten the peace, security, or stability of the United States, Syria, and its neighbors. 

    Sec. 3.  Revocation of Syria Sanctions.  (a)  Effective July 1, 2025, I hereby terminate the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13338 of May 11, 2004 (Blocking Property of Certain Persons and Prohibiting the Export of Certain Goods to Syria), and revoke that order, as well as Executive Order 13399 of April 25, 2006 (Blocking Property of Additional Persons in Connection With the National Emergency With Respect to Syria), Executive Order 13460 of February 13, 2008 (Blocking Property of Additional Persons in Connection With the National Emergency With Respect to Syria), Executive Order 13572 of April 29, 2011 (Blocking Property of Certain Persons with Respect to Human Rights Abuses in Syria), Executive Order 13573 of May 18, 2011 (Blocking Property of Senior Officials of the Government of Syria), and Executive Order 13582 of August 17, 2011 (Blocking Property of the Government of Syria and Prohibiting Certain Transactions with Respect to Syria).
         (b)  Pursuant to section 202(a) of the NEA (50 U.S.C. 1622(a)), termination of the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13338, as modified in scope and relied upon for additional steps taken in Executive Order 13399, Executive Order 13460, Executive Order 13572, Executive Order 13573, and Executive Order 13582 shall not affect any action taken or pending proceeding not finally concluded or determined as of July 1, 2025, any action or proceeding based on any act committed prior to July 1, 2025, or any rights or duties that matured or penalties that were incurred prior to July 1, 2025.

    Sec. 4.  Accountability for the Former Regime of Bashar al‑Assad.  I find that additional steps must be taken to ensure meaningful accountability for perpetrators of war crimes, human rights violations and abuses, and the proliferation of narcotics trafficking networks in and in relation to Syria during the former regime of Bashar al-Assad and by those associated with it.  Perpetrators of such actions threaten to undermine peace, security, and stability in the region, and thereby constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States.
         (a)  I hereby expand the scope of the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13894 of October 14, 2019 (Blocking Property and Suspending Entry of Certain Persons Contributing to the Situation in Syria), as amended in and relied on for additional steps taken in Executive Order 14142 of January 15, 2025 (Taking Additional Steps With Respect to the Situation in Syria), to deal with that threat, and accordingly further amend Executive Order 13894 by:
            (i)   striking section 1(a) and inserting, in lieu thereof, the following:
         “Section 1.  (a)  All property and interests in property that are in the United States, that hereafter come within the United States, or that are or hereafter come within the possession or control of any United States person of the following persons are blocked and may not be transferred, paid, exported, withdrawn, or otherwise dealt in: 
            (i)  any person determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State:
              (A)  to be responsible for or complicit in, or to have directly or indirectly engaged in, or attempted to engage in, any of the following in or in relation to Syria:
                 (1)  actions or policies that further threaten the peace, security, stability, or territorial integrity of Syria; or
                 (2)  the commission of serious human rights abuse;
              (B)  to be a former government official of the former regime of Bashar al-Assad or a person who acted for or on behalf of such an official;
              (C)  to have engaged in, or attempted to engage in, activities or transactions that have materially contributed to, or pose a significant risk of materially contributing to, the illicit production and international illicit proliferation of captagon;
              (D)  to be responsible for or complicit in, to have directly or indirectly engaged in, or to be responsible for ordering, controlling, or otherwise directing, instances in which a United States national ((i) as defined in 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(22) or 8 U.S.C. 1408, or (ii) a lawful permanent resident with significant ties to the United States) went missing in Syria during the former regime of Bashar al-Assad; 
              (E)  to have materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of: 
                 (1)  the former regime of Bashar al-Assad; 
                 (2)  any activity described in subsections (a)(i)(A)–(a)(i)(D) of this section; or 
                 (3)  any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this order; 
              (F)  to be owned or controlled by, or to have acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this order; or
              (G)  to be an adult family member of a person designated under subsections (a)(i)(A)–(a)(i)(D) of this section.”; and
            (ii)  striking section 2(a) and inserting, in lieu thereof, the following:  
         “Sec. 2.  (a)  The Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and other officials of the United States Government as appropriate, is hereby authorized to impose on a foreign person any of the sanctions described in subsections (b) and (c) of this section, upon determining that the person, on or after the date of this order: 
            (i)    is responsible for or complicit in, has directly or indirectly engaged in, or attempted to engage in, or financed the obstruction, disruption, or prevention of efforts to promote a Syria that is stable, unified, and at peace with itself and its neighbors, including:
              (A)  the convening and conduct of a credible and inclusive Syrian-led constitutional process;
              (B)  the preparation for and conduct of supervised elections, pursuant to the new constitution, that are free and fair and to the highest international standards of transparency and accountability; or
              (C)  the development of a Syrian government that is representative and reflects the will of the Syrian people;
            (ii)   is an adult family member of a person designated under subsection (a)(i) of this section; or
            (iii)  is responsible for or complicit in, or has directly or indirectly engaged in, or attempted to engage in, the expropriation of property, including real property, for personal gain or political purposes in Syria.”
         (b)  I additionally amend Executive Order 13606 of April 22, 2012 (Blocking the Property and Suspending Entry into the United States of Certain Persons With Respect to Grave Human Rights Abuses by the Governments of Iran and Syria Via Information Technology), by removing the following text from the preamble:  “Executive Order 13338 of May 11, 2004, as modified in scope and relied upon for additional steps in subsequent Executive Orders” and replacing it with:  “Executive Order 13894 of October 14, 2019, and relied upon for additional steps and further amended in subsequent Executive Orders.”

    Sec. 5.  Caesar Act.  The Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, shall examine whether the criteria set forth in section 7431(a) of the Caesar Act have been met, and on the basis of that examination may, pursuant to the Presidential Memorandum of March 31, 2020 (Delegation of Certain Functions and Authorities Under the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020), suspend in whole or in part the imposition of sanctions otherwise required under the Caesar Act.  If the Secretary of State determines to suspend in whole or in part the imposition of such sanctions, the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, shall provide the briefing to the appropriate congressional committees required by section 7431(b) of the Caesar Act within 30 days of such determination.  Further, the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, shall continue to review the situation in Syria, and if the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, determines that the criteria set forth in section 7431(a) are no longer met, the Secretary of State shall reimpose sanctions. 

    Sec. 6.  Syria Accountability Act.  I hereby determine pursuant to section 5(b) of the Syria Accountability Act that it is in the national security interest of the United States to waive the application of subsection (a)(1), with respect to items on the Commerce Control List (supp. No. 1 to 15 C.F.R. part 774) only, and subsection (a)(2)(A) of the Syria Accountability Act only.  The Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees the report required under section 5(b) of that Act.

    Sec. 7.  CBW Act.  (a)  Pursuant to section 307(d)(1)(B) of the CBW Act, I hereby determine and certify that there has been a fundamental change in the leadership and policies of the Government of the Syrian Arab Republic.  Accordingly, I hereby waive the following sanctions imposed on Syria for the prior use of chemical weapons under the former regime of Bashar al-Assad:
            (i) the restriction on foreign assistance under section 307(a)(1) of the CBW Act;
            (ii)   the restriction on United States Government credit, credit guarantees, or other financial assistance under section 307(a)(4) of the CBW Act;
            (iii)  the restrictions on the export of national security-sensitive goods and technology under section 307(a)(5) of the CBW Act and on all other goods and technology under section 307(b)(2)(C) of the CBW Act; and
            (iv)   the restriction on United States banks from making any loan or providing any credit to the Government of Syria under section 307(b)(2)(B) of the CBW Act.
         (b)  The Secretary of State shall transmit this waiver determination and report as required by sections 307(d)(1)(B) and (d)(2) of the CBW Act to the appropriate congressional committees.  This waiver shall be effective 20 days after it has been so transmitted.

    Sec. 8.  Counterterrorism Designations.  (a)  The Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Attorney General, shall take all appropriate action with respect to the designation of al-Nusrah Front, also known as Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham and other aliases, as a Foreign Terrorist Organization under 8 U.S.C. 1189 and as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist under 50 U.S.C. 1702 and Executive Order 13224, as well as the designation of Abu Muhammad al Jawlani, commonly known as Ahmed al-Sharaa, as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist.
         (b)  The Secretary of State shall take all appropriate action to review the designation of Syria as a State Sponsor of Terrorism consistent with section 1754(c) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (Public Law 115-232; 50 U.S.C. 4813(c)), section 40 of the Arms Export Control Act (Public Law 90-629, as amended; 22 U.S.C. 2780), and section 620A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (Public Law 87-195, as amended; 22 U.S.C. 2371).

    Sec. 9.  United Nations.  The Secretary of State shall take appropriate steps to advance United States policy objectives at the United Nations to support a Syria that is stable and at peace and to support Syrian efforts to counter terrorism and comply with its responsibilities and obligations concerning weapons of mass destruction, including chemical and biological weapons.  The Secretary of State is further directed to explore avenues at the United Nations to provide sanctions relief in support of these objectives.

    Sec. 10.  Implementation.  The Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Secretary of Commerce, as appropriate, are hereby authorized to take such actions, including adopting rules and regulations, as may be necessary to implement this order.  The Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Secretary of Commerce may, consistent with applicable law, redelegate any of these functions within their respective agencies.  The Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Commerce, and the Secretary of Transportation, as appropriate, is authorized to exercise the functions and authorities conferred upon the President in section 5 of the Syria Accountability Act and to redelegate these functions and authorities consistent with applicable law.  All agencies of the United States shall take all appropriate measures within their authority to implement this order, consistent with applicable law.

    Sec. 11.  General Provisions.  (a)  Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:
            (i)   the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or
            (ii)  the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.
         (b)  This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.
         (c)  This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.
         (d)  The costs for publication of this order shall be borne by the Department of State.

                            DONALD J. TRUMP

    THE WHITE HOUSE,
    June 30, 2025.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA News: National Security Presidential Memorandum/NSPM-5

    Source: US Whitehouse

    MEMORANDUM FOR THE VICE PRESIDENT

    THE SECRETARY OF STATE

    THE SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY

    THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE

    THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

    THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR

    THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE

    THE SECRETARY OF COMMERCE

    THE SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

    THE SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION

    THE SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY

    THE DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE

    THE DIRECTOR OF THE CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE

        AGENCY

    THE CHAIRMAN OF THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF

    THE ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT AND CHIEF OF

       STAFF

    THE DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND

       BUDGET

    THE ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT FOR NATIONAL

       SECURITY AFFAIRS

    THE ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT AND HOMELAND

        SECURITY ADVISOR

    THE COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT

    THE ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT FOR ECONOMIC

        POLICY

    THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE

    THE DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF SCIENCE AND

       TECHNOLOGY POLICY

    THE REPRESENTATIVE OF THE UNITED STATES OF

       AMERICA TO THE UNITED NATIONS

    THE ADMINISTRATOR OF THE SMALL BUSINESS

       ADMINISTRATION

    THE ADMINISTRATOR OF THE UNITED STATES AGENCY FOR

       INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

    THE DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF PERSONNEL

       MANAGEMENT

    SUBJECT:       Reissuance of and Amendments to National Security Presidential Memorandum 5 on Strengthening the Policy of the United States Toward Cuba

    Section 1.  Purpose.  The United States recognizes the need for more freedom and democracy, improved respect for human rights, and increased free enterprise in Cuba.  The Cuban people have long suffered under a Communist regime that suppresses their legitimate aspirations for freedom and prosperity and fails to respect their essential human dignity.

    My Administration’s policy will be guided by the national security and foreign policy interests of the United States, as well as solidarity with the Cuban people.  I will seek to promote a stable, prosperous, and free country for the Cuban people.  To that end, we must channel funds toward the Cuban people and away from a regime that has failed to meet the most basic requirements of a free and just society.

    In Cuba, dissidents and peaceful protesters are arbitrarily detained and held in terrible prison conditions.  Violence and intimidation against dissidents occur with impunity.  Families of political prisoners are retaliated against for peacefully protesting the improper confinement of their loved ones.  Worshippers are harassed, and free association by civil society organizations is blocked.  The right to speak freely, including through access to the internet, is denied, and there is no free press.  The United States condemns these abuses.

    The initial actions set forth in this memorandum, including restricting certain financial transactions and travel, encourage the Cuban government to address these abuses.  My Administration will continue to evaluate its policies so as to improve human rights, encourage the rule of law, foster free markets and free enterprise, and promote democracy in Cuba.

    Sec. 2.  Policy.  It shall be the policy of the executive branch to:

    (a)  End economic practices that disproportionately benefit the Cuban government or its military, intelligence, or security agencies or personnel at the expense of the Cuban people.

    (b)  Ensure adherence to the statutory ban on tourism to Cuba.

    (c)  Support the economic embargo of Cuba described in section 4(7) of the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996 (the embargo), including by opposing measures that call for an end to the embargo at the United Nations and other international forums and through regular reporting on whether the conditions of a transition government exist in Cuba.

    (d)  Amplify efforts to support the Cuban people through the expansion of internet services, free press, free enterprise, free association, and lawful travel.

    (e)  Not reinstate the “Wet Foot, Dry Foot” policy, which encouraged untold thousands of Cuban nationals to risk their lives to travel unlawfully to the United States.

    (f)  Ensure that engagement between the United States and Cuba advances the interests of the United States and the Cuban people.  These interests include:  advancing Cuban human rights; encouraging the growth of a Cuban private sector independent of government control; enforcing final orders of removal against Cuban nationals in the United States; protecting the national security and public health and safety of the United States, including through proper engagement on criminal cases and working to ensure the return of fugitives from American justice living in Cuba or being harbored by the Cuban government; supporting United States agriculture and protecting plant and animal health; advancing the understanding of the United States regarding scientific and environmental challenges; and facilitating safe civil aviation.

    Sec. 3.  Implementation.  The heads of executive departments and agencies (agencies) shall begin to implement the policy set forth in section 2 of this memorandum as follows:

    (a)  Within 30 days of the date of this memorandum, the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of Commerce, as appropriate and in coordination with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Transportation, shall initiate a process to adjust current regulations regarding transactions with Cuba.

    (i)    As part of the regulatory changes described in this subsection, the Secretary of State shall identify any entities or subentities, as appropriate, that are under the control of, or act for or on behalf of, or for the benefit of, the Cuban military, intelligence, or security services or personnel (such as Grupo de Administracion Empresarial S.A. (GAESA), its affiliates, subsidiaries, and successors), and publish a list of those identified entities and subentities with which direct or indirect financial transactions would disproportionately benefit such services or personnel at the expense of the Cuban people or private enterprise in Cuba.

    (ii)   Except as provided in subsection (a)(iii) of this section, the regulatory changes described in this subsection shall prohibit direct or indirect financial transactions with those entities or subentities on the list published pursuant to subsection (a)(i) of this section.

    (iii)  The regulatory changes described in this subsection shall not prohibit transactions that the Secretary of the Treasury or the Secretary of Commerce, in coordination with the Secretary of State, determines are consistent with the policy set forth in section 2 of this memorandum and:

    (A)  concern Federal Government operations, including Naval Station Guantanamo Bay and the United States mission in Havana;

    (B)  support programs to build democracy in Cuba;

    (C)  concern air and sea operations that support permissible travel, cargo, or trade;

    (D)  support the acquisition of visas for permissible travel;

    (E)  support the expansion of direct telecommunications and internet access for the Cuban people;

    (F)  support the sale of agricultural commodities, medicines, and medical devices sold to Cuba consistent with the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7201 et seq.) and the Cuban Democracy Act of 2002 (22 U.S.C. 6001 et seq.);

    (G)  relate to sending, processing, or receiving authorized remittances;

    (H)  otherwise further the national security or foreign policy interests of the United States; or

    (I)  are required by law.

    (b)  Within 30 days of the date of this memorandum, the Secretary of the Treasury, in coordination with the Secretary of State, shall initiate a process to adjust current regulations to ensure adherence to the statutory ban on tourism to Cuba.

    (i)    The amended regulations shall require that educational travel be for legitimate educational purposes.  Except for educational travel that was permitted by regulation in effect on January 27, 2011, all educational travel shall be under the auspices of an organization subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, and all such travelers must be accompanied by a representative of the sponsoring organization.

    (ii)   The regulations shall further require that those traveling for the permissible purposes of non academic education or to provide support for the Cuban people:

    (A)  engage in a full-time schedule of activities that enhance contact with the Cuban people, support civil society in Cuba, or promote the Cuban people’s independence from Cuban authorities; and

    (B)  meaningfully interact with individuals in Cuba.

    (iii)  The regulations shall continue to provide that every person engaging in travel to Cuba shall keep full and accurate records of all transactions related to authorized travel, regardless of whether they were effected pursuant to license or otherwise, and such records shall be available for examination by the Department of the Treasury for at least 5 years after the date they occur.

    (iv)   The Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Commerce, and the Secretary of Transportation shall review their respective agencies’ enforcement of all categories of permissible travel within 90 days of the date the regulations described in this subsection are finalized to ensure such enforcement accords with the policies outlined in section 2 of this memorandum.

    (c)  The Secretary of the Treasury shall regularly audit travel to Cuba to ensure that travelers are complying with relevant statutes and regulations.  The Secretary of the Treasury shall request that the Inspector General of the Department of the Treasury inspect the actions taken by the Department of the Treasury to implement this audit requirement.  The Inspector General of the Department of the Treasury shall provide a report to the President, through the Secretary of the Treasury, summarizing the results of that inspection within 180 days of the adjustment of current regulations described in subsection (b) of this section and annually thereafter.

    (d)  The Secretary of the Treasury shall adjust the Department of the Treasury’s current regulation defining the term “prohibited officials of the Government of Cuba” so that, for purposes of title 31, part 515 of the Code of Federal Regulations, it includes Ministers and Vice-Ministers; members of the Council of State and the Council of Ministers; members and employees of the National Assembly of People’s Power; members of any provincial assembly; local sector chiefs of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution; Director Generals and sub-Director Generals and higher of all Cuban ministries and state agencies; employees of the Ministry of the Interior (MININT); employees of the Ministry of Defense (MINFAR); secretaries and first secretaries of the Confederation of Labor of Cuba (CTC) and its component unions; chief editors, editors, and deputy editors of Cuban state-run media organizations and programs, including newspapers, television, and radio; and members and employees of the Supreme Court (Tribuno Supremo Nacional).

    (e)  The Secretary of State and the Representative of the United States of America to the United Nations shall oppose efforts at the United Nations or (with respect to the Secretary of State) any other international forum to lift the embargo until a transition government in Cuba, as described in section 205 of the LIBERTAD Act, exists.

    (f)  The Secretary of State, in coordination with the Attorney General, shall provide a report to the President assessing whether and to what degree the Cuban government has satisfied the requirements of a transition government as described in section 205(a) of the LIBERTAD Act, taking into account the additional factors listed in section 205(b) of that Act.  This report shall include a review of human rights abuses committed against the Cuban people, such as unlawful detentions, arbitrary arrests, and inhumane treatment.

    (g)  The Attorney General shall, within 90 days of the date of this memorandum, issue a report to the President on issues related to fugitives from American justice living in Cuba or being harbored by the Cuban government.

    (h)  The Secretary of State and the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development shall review all democracy development programs of the Federal Government in Cuba to ensure that they align with the criteria set forth in section 109(a) of the LIBERTAD Act.

    (i)  The Secretary of State shall convene a task force, composed of relevant agencies, including the Office of Cuba Broadcasting, and appropriate non-governmental organizations and private-sector entities, to examine the technological challenges and opportunities for expanding internet access in Cuba, including through Federal Government support of programs and activities that encourage freedom of expression through independent media and internet freedom so that the Cuban people can enjoy the free and unregulated flow of information.

    (j)  The Secretary of State and the Secretary of Homeland Security shall continue to discourage dangerous, unlawful migration that puts Cuban and American lives at risk.  The Secretary of Defense shall continue to provide support, as necessary, to the Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security in carrying out duties regarding interdiction of migrants.

    (k)  The Secretary of State, in coordination with the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Defense, the Attorney General, the Secretary of Commerce, and the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall annually report to the President regarding the engagement of the United States with Cuba to ensure that engagement is advancing the interests of the United States.

    (l)  All activities conducted pursuant to subsections (a) through (k) of this section shall be carried out in a manner that furthers the interests of the United States, including by appropriately protecting sensitive sources, methods, and operations of the Federal Government.

    Sec. 4.  Earlier Presidential Actions.  (a)  This memorandum amends sections 1 and 3 of National Security Presidential Memorandum 5 of June 16, 2017 (Strengthening the Policy of the United States Toward Cuba) (NSPM-5), and reissues NSPM-5 in its entirety.  It does not otherwise amend the text or timelines reflected in the original NSPM-5 and is not intended to direct agencies to repeat actions already implemented under that NSPM.

    (b)  This memorandum supersedes and replaces both National Security Presidential Directive 52 of June 28, 2007 (U.S. Policy toward Cuba), and Presidential Policy Directive 43 of October 14, 2016 (United States-Cuba Normalization).

    (c)  This memorandum does not affect either Executive Order 12807 of May 24, 1992 (Interdiction of Illegal Aliens), or Executive Order 13276 of November 15, 2002 (Delegation of Responsibilities Concerning Undocumented Aliens Interdicted or Intercepted in the Caribbean Region).

    Sec. 5.  General Provisions.  (a)  Nothing in this memorandum shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

    (i)  the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or

    (ii)  the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

    (b)  This memorandum shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.

    (c)  This memorandum is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

    (d)  The Secretary of State is hereby authorized and directed to publish this memorandum in the Federal Register.

    DONALD J. TRUMP

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: Progress Software Announces Second Quarter 2025 Financial Results

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Annualized Recurring Revenue (“ARR”) of $838 million Grew 46% year-over-year
    Revenue of $237 million Grew 36% year-over-year
    Raises Full Year Guidance for Revenue, Operating Margin, Earnings Per Share, and Cash Flow
    Acquires Agentic RAG AI Company

    BURLINGTON, Mass., June 30, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Progress Software (Nasdaq: PRGS), the trusted provider of AI-powered digital experience and infrastructure software, today announced financial results for its fiscal second quarter ended May 31, 2025.

    Second Quarter 2025 Highlights:

    • Revenue of $237 million increased 36% year-over-year on an actual currency basis and 35% on a constant currency basis.
    • Annualized Recurring Revenue (“ARR”) of $838 million increased 46% year-over-year on a constant currency basis.
    • Operating margin was 16% and non-GAAP operating margin was 40%.
    • Diluted earnings per share was $0.39 compared to $0.37 in the same quarter last year, an increase of 5%. 
    • Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share was $1.40 compared to $1.09 in the same quarter last year, an increase of 28%.

    “We’re extremely pleased with our solid Q2 results” said Yogesh Gupta, CEO of Progress Software. “Revenue contributions were strong across all geographies resulting in ARR of $838 million or 46% year-over-year growth. Our Net Retention Rate was 100%, demonstrating the consistent strength of our product portfolio. Our confidence in the business is reflected in our raised guidance for FY25. Equally important, our integration of ShareFile is going extremely well as we have completed numerous major synergy milestones, and we remain confident in our ability to reach all our ShareFile targets by the end of the year.”

    Additional financial highlights included:

      Three Months Ended
      GAAP   Non-GAAP
    (in thousands, except percentages and per share amounts) May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024   % Change   May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024   % Change
    Revenue $ 237,355     $ 175,077     36 %   $ 237,355     $ 175,077     36 %
    Income from operations $ 38,616     $ 27,148     42 %   $ 95,461     $ 67,086     42 %
    Operating margin   16 %     16 %   0 bps     40 %     38 %   200 bps
    Net income $ 17,029     $ 16,188     5 %   $ 61,749     $ 47,899     29 %
    Diluted earnings per share $ 0.39     $ 0.37     5 %   $ 1.40     $ 1.09     28 %
    Cash from operations (GAAP) / Adjusted free cash flow (non-GAAP) / Unlevered free cash flow (non-GAAP) $ 29,996     $ 63,681     (53 )%   $ 37,068     $ 64,073     (42 )%
        $ 51,579   $ 69,679   (26 )%

    See Important Information Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures, Liquidity Measures, and Select Performance Metrics and a reconciliation of non-GAAP adjustments to Progress’ GAAP financial results at the end of this press release.

    Other fiscal second quarter 2025 metrics and recent results included:

    • Cash and cash equivalents were $102.0 million at the end of the quarter.
    • Days sales outstanding was 53 days compared to 41 days in the fiscal second quarter of 2024 and 48 days in the fiscal first quarter of 2025.

    “Our second quarter performance reflects the continued strong execution by our teams and this is further reflected in our increase to full year guidance across the board,” said Anthony Folger, CFO of Progress Software. “Our ShareFile business is progressing well and we are ahead of schedule with the integration and moving swiftly towards reaching our synergy targets. On the balance sheet, we again made significant progress on paying down our revolving credit facility, with another $40 million this quarter, putting us on a solid trajectory to hit our goal of $160 million debt paydown this year.”

    Acquisition of Nuclia

    In a separate press release, the Company also announced today its acquisition of Nuclia, an innovator in agentic Retrieval-Augmented Generation (“RAG”) AI solutions. Nuclia provides unique, easy-to-use agentic RAG-as-a-service technology enabling organizations to automatically leverage their own proprietary business information to retrieve verifiable, accurate answers using GenAI. Nuclia will extend the end-to-end value of the Progress Data Platform while creating new opportunities to reach a broader market of organizations looking to leverage agentic RAG technology.

    The acquisition was signed and closed today and is immaterial to Progress’ financials.

    To learn more about Nuclia, go to https://nuclia.com/. 

    2025 Business Outlook

    Progress provides the following guidance for the fiscal year ending November 30, 2025 and the fiscal third quarter ending August 31, 2025:

      Updated FY 2025 Guidance
    (June 30, 2025)    		   Prior FY 2025 Guidance
    (March 31, 2025)
    (in millions, except percentages and per share amounts) GAAP   Non-GAAP   GAAP   Non-GAAP
    Revenue $962 – $974   $962 – $974   $958 – $970   $958 – $970
    Diluted earnings per share $1.27 – $1.43   $5.28 – $5.40   $1.19 – $1.35   $5.25 – $5.37
    Operating margin 15%   38% – 39%   14% – 15%   38%
    Cash from operations (GAAP) /
    Adjusted free cash flow (non-GAAP) / Unlevered free cash flow (non-GAAP)    		 $218 – $230   $228 – $240   $216 – $228   $226 – $238
    $285 – $296     $283 – $294
    Effective tax rate 17%           20%           19%           20%
      Q3 2025 Guidance
    (in millions, except per share amounts) GAAP   Non-GAAP
    Revenue $237 – $243   $237 – $243
    Diluted earnings per share $0.29 – $0.35   $1.28 – $1.34

    Based on current exchange rates, the expected positive currency translation impact on our:

    • Fiscal year 2025 business outlook compared to 2024 exchange rates is approximately $2.4 million on revenue.
    • GAAP and non-GAAP diluted earnings per share for fiscal year 2025 is approximately $0.02.
    • Fiscal Q3 2025 business outlook compared to 2024 exchange rates is approximately $1.7 million on revenue.
    • GAAP and non-GAAP diluted earnings per share for fiscal Q3 2025 is approximately $0.01.

    To the extent that there are changes in exchange rates versus the current environment and/or our expectations, this may have an impact on Progress’ business outlook.

    Conference Call

    Progress will hold a conference call to review its financial results for the fiscal second quarter of 2025 at 5:00 p.m. ET on Monday, June 30, 2025. Participants must register for the conference call here: https://register-conf.media-server.com/register/BIc386d20e6fbd46acbadafca492a42b35. The webcast can be accessed at: https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/bujcypbf/. The conference call will include comments followed by questions and answers. Attendees must register for the webcast and an archived version of the conference call and supporting materials will be available on the Progress website within the investor relations section after the live conference call.

    About Progress

    Progress Software (Nasdaq: PRGS) empowers organizations to achieve transformational success in the face of disruptive change. Our software enables our customers to develop, deploy and manage responsible AI-powered applications and digital experiences with agility and ease. Customers get a trusted provider in Progress, with the products, expertise and vision they need to succeed. Over 4 million developers and technologists at hundreds of thousands of enterprises depend on Progress. Learn more at www.progress.com. 

    Progress and Progress Software are trademarks or registered trademarks of Progress Software Corporation and/or its subsidiaries or affiliates in the U.S. and other countries. Any other names contained herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.

    CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
    (Unaudited)

      Three Months Ended   Six Months Ended
    (in thousands, except per share data) May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024   % Change   May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024   % Change
    Revenue:                      
    Software licenses $ 50,795     $ 53,979     (6 )%   $ 109,240     $ 118,079     (7 )%
    Maintenance, SaaS, and professional services   186,560       121,098     54 %     366,130       241,683     51 %
    Total revenue   237,355       175,077     36 %     475,370       359,762     32 %
    Costs of revenue:                      
    Cost of software licenses   2,987       2,497     20 %     5,912       5,228     13 %
    Cost of maintenance, SaaS, and professional services   33,764       22,176     52 %     66,648       44,395     50 %
    Amortization of acquired intangibles   10,537       7,398     42 %     20,959       15,257     37 %
    Total costs of revenue   47,288       32,071     47 %     93,519       64,880     44 %
    Gross profit   190,067       143,006     33 %     381,851       294,882     29 %
    Operating expenses:                      
    Sales and marketing   49,677       37,889     31 %     100,973       77,000     31 %
    Product development   46,570       35,435     31 %     92,945       70,423     32 %
    General and administrative   25,637       21,983     17 %     51,260       43,327     18 %
    Amortization of acquired intangibles   26,063       16,316     60 %     51,871       33,705     54 %
    Cyber vulnerability response expenses, net   730       3,036     (76 )%     1,467       4,023     (64 )%
    Restructuring expenses   1,043       651     60 %     8,072       3,000     169 %
    Acquisition-related expenses   1,731       548     216 %     4,221       1,250     238 %
    Total operating expenses   151,451       115,858     31 %     310,809       232,728     34 %
    Income from operations           38,616               27,148             42 %     71,042       62,154     14 %
    Other expense, net           (18,752 )             (7,020 )           167 %     (37,876 )     (14,419 )   163 %
    Income before income taxes           19,864       20,128             (1 )%     33,166       47,735     (31 )%
    Provision for income taxes           2,835       3,940             (28 )%     5,191       8,908     (42 )%
    Net income $ 17,029     $ 16,188     5 %   $ 27,975     $ 38,827     (28 )%
                           
    Earnings per share:                      
    Basic $ 0.40     $ 0.37     8 %   $ 0.65     $ 0.89     (27 )%
    Diluted $ 0.39     $ 0.37     5 %   $ 0.63     $ 0.87     (28 )%
    Weighted average shares outstanding:                      
    Basic   43,053       43,213     — %     43,154       43,508     (1 )%
    Diluted   44,156       43,964     — %     44,522       44,395     — %
                           
    Cash dividends declared per common share $ —     $ 0.175     (100 )%   $ —     $ 0.350     (100 )%
    Stock-based compensation is included in the condensed consolidated statements of operations, as follows:            
    Cost of revenue $ 1,560   $ 912   71 %   $ 2,755   $ 1,898   45 %
    Sales and marketing   3,663     2,458   49 %     6,695     4,770   40 %
    Product development   4,984     3,391   47 %     9,394     7,056   33 %
    General and administrative   6,534     5,228   25 %     12,580     10,729   17 %
    Total $ 16,741   $ 11,989   40 %   $ 31,424   $ 24,453   29 %
     

    CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
    (Unaudited)

    (in thousands) May 31, 2025   November 30, 2024
    Assets      
    Current assets:      
    Cash and cash equivalents $ 102,006   $ 118,077
    Accounts receivable, net   140,122     163,575
    Unbilled receivables, current portion   34,136     34,672
    Other current assets   49,387     52,489
    Total current assets   325,651     368,813
    Property and equipment, net   12,474     13,746
    Goodwill and intangible assets, net   1,944,387     2,015,748
    Right-of-use lease assets   27,351     30,894
    Unbilled receivables, non-current portion   29,890     28,893
    Other assets   73,839     68,872
    Total assets $ 2,413,592   $ 2,526,966
    Liabilities and shareholders’ equity      
    Current liabilities:      
    Accounts payable and other current liabilities $ 75,610   $ 113,801
    Convertible senior notes, current portion, net   358,051     —
    Operating lease liabilities, current portion   8,250     9,202
    Deferred revenue, current portion, net   308,360     332,142
    Total current liabilities   750,271     455,145
    Long-term debt, net   660,000     730,000
    Convertible senior notes, non-current portion, net   440,244     796,267
    Operating lease liabilities, non-current portion   22,548     26,259
    Deferred revenue, non-current portion, net   80,219     72,270
    Other non-current liabilities   7,609     8,237
    Stockholders’ equity:      
    Common stock and additional paid-in capital   362,522     354,592
    Retained earnings   90,179     84,196
    Total stockholders’ equity   452,701     438,788
    Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity $ 2,413,592   $ 2,526,966
     

    CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
    (Unaudited)  

      Three Months Ended   Six Months Ended
    (in thousands) May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024   May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024
    Cash flows from operating activities:              
    Net income $ 17,029     $ 16,188     $ 27,975     $ 38,827  
    Depreciation and amortization   39,568       27,529       78,777       55,073  
    Stock-based compensation   16,741       11,989       31,424       24,453  
    Other non-cash adjustments   (1,332 )     (812 )     1,738       515  
    Changes in operating assets and liabilities   (42,010 )     8,787       (40,971 )     15,317  
    Net cash flows from operating activities   29,996       63,681       98,943       134,185  
    Capital expenditures   (495 )     (955 )     (1,785 )     (1,264 )
    Repurchases of common stock, net of issuances   (13,478 )     (44,636 )     (37,348 )     (59,553 )
    Dividend equivalent and dividend payments to stockholders   (295 )     (7,951 )     (654 )     (16,122 )
    Payments for acquisitions   —       —       (1,195 )     —  
    Proceeds from the issuance of debt, net of payment of issuance costs   —       431,929       —       431,929  
    Repayment of revolving line of credit and principal payment on term loan   (40,000 )     (337,813 )     (70,000 )     (371,250 )
    Purchase of capped calls   —       (42,210 )     —       (42,210 )
    Other   2,117       (4,847 )     (4,032 )     (12,253 )
    Net change in cash and cash equivalents   (22,155 )     57,198       (16,071 )     63,462  
    Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of period   124,161       133,222       118,077       126,958  
    Cash and cash equivalents, end of period $ 102,006     $ 190,420     $ 102,006     $ 190,420  
     

    RECONCILIATIONS OF GAAP TO NON-GAAP SELECTED FINANCIAL MEASURES
    (Unaudited)

      Three Months Ended   Six Months Ended
    (in thousands, except per share data) May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024   May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024
    Adjusted income from operations:              
    GAAP income from operations $ 38,616     $ 27,148     $ 71,042     $ 62,154  
    Amortization of acquired intangibles   36,600       23,714       72,830       48,962  
    Stock-based compensation   16,741       11,989       31,424       24,453  
    Restructuring expenses   1,043       651       8,072       3,000  
    Acquisition-related expenses   1,731       548       4,221       1,250  
    Cyber vulnerability response expenses, net   730       3,036       1,467       4,023  
    Non-GAAP income from operations $ 95,461     $ 67,086     $ 189,056     $ 143,842  
                   
    Adjusted net income:              
    GAAP net income $ 17,029     $ 16,188     $ 27,975     $ 38,827  
    Amortization of acquired intangibles   36,600       23,714       72,830       48,962  
    Stock-based compensation   16,741       11,989       31,424       24,453  
    Restructuring expenses   1,043       651       8,072       3,000  
    Acquisition-related expenses   1,731       548       4,221       1,250  
    Cyber vulnerability response expenses, net   730       3,036       1,467       4,023  
    Provision for income taxes   (12,125 )     (8,227 )     (25,245 )     (16,688 )
    Non-GAAP net income $ 61,749     $ 47,899     $ 120,744     $ 103,827  
                   
    Adjusted diluted earnings per share:              
    GAAP diluted earnings per share $ 0.39     $ 0.37     $ 0.63     $ 0.87  
    Amortization of acquired intangibles   0.83       0.54       1.64       1.10  
    Stock-based compensation   0.37       0.27       0.71       0.56  
    Restructuring expenses   0.02       0.02       0.18       0.07  
    Acquisition-related expenses   0.04       0.01       0.09       0.03  
    Cyber vulnerability response expenses, net   0.02       0.07       0.03       0.09  
    Provision for income taxes   (0.27 )     (0.19 )     (0.57 )     (0.38 )
    Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share $ 1.40     $ 1.09     $ 2.71     $ 2.34  
                   
    Non-GAAP weighted avg shares outstanding – diluted   44,156       43,964       44,522       44,395  
                   

    OTHER NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES
    (Unaudited)

    Adjusted Free Cash Flow and Unlevered Free Cash Flow                
                           
      Three Months Ended   Six Months Ended
    (in thousands) May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024   % Change   May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024   % Change
    Cash flows from operations $ 29,996     $ 63,681     (53 )%   $ 98,943     $ 134,185     (26 )%
    Purchases of property and equipment   (495 )     (955 )   (48 )%     (1,785 )     (1,264 )   41 %
    Free cash flow   29,501       62,726     (53 )%     97,158       132,921     (27 )%
    Add back: restructuring payments   7,567       1,347     462 %     13,121       3,356     291 %
    Adjusted free cash flow $ 37,068     $ 64,073     (42 )%   $ 110,279     $ 136,277     (19 )%
    Add back: tax-effected interest expense   14,511       5,606     159 %     29,253       11,481     155 %
    Unlevered free cash flow $ 51,579     $ 69,679     (26 )%   $ 139,532     $ 147,758     (6 )%
     

    RECONCILIATIONS OF GAAP TO NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES FOR FISCAL YEAR 2025 GUIDANCE
    (Unaudited)

    Fiscal Year 2025 Updated Non-GAAP Operating Margin Guidance
      Fiscal Year Ending November 30, 2025
    (in millions) Low   High
    GAAP income from operations $ 140.7     $ 149.2  
    GAAP operating margins   15 %     15 %
    Acquisition-related expense   6.0       6.0  
    Restructuring expense   9.2       9.2  
    Stock-based compensation   63.0       63.0  
    Amortization of acquired intangibles   145.7       145.7  
    Cyber vulnerability response expenses, net   4.2       4.2  
    Total adjustments(1)   228.1       228.1  
    Non-GAAP income from operations $ 368.8     $ 377.3  
    Non-GAAP operating margin   38 %     39 %
    (1) Total adjustments include preliminary estimates relating to the valuation of intangible assets acquired from ShareFile and restructuring expenses. The final amounts will not be available until the Company’s internal procedures and reviews are completed.
    Fiscal Year 2025 Updated Non-GAAP Earnings per Share and Effective Tax Rate Guidance
      Fiscal Year Ending November 30, 2025
    (in millions, except per share data) Low   High
    GAAP net income $ 56.9     $ 64.8  
    Adjustments (from previous table)   228.1       228.1  
    Income tax adjustment(2)   (47.7 )     (48.0 )
    Non-GAAP net income $ 237.3     $ 244.9  
           
    GAAP diluted earnings per share $ 1.27     $ 1.43  
    Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share $ 5.28     $ 5.40  
           
    Diluted weighted average shares outstanding   45.0       45.4  
             
             
    2 Tax adjustment is based on a non-GAAP effective tax rate of approximately 20%, calculated as follows:
        Fiscal Year Ending November 30, 2025
        Low   High
    Non-GAAP income from operations   $ 368.8     $ 377.3  
    Other (expense) income     (72.2 )     (71.2 )
    Non-GAAP income from continuing operations before income taxes     296.6       306.1  
    Non-GAAP net income     237.3       244.9  
    Tax provision   $ 59.3     $ 61.2  
    Non-GAAP tax rate     20 %     20 %
                     

    RECONCILIATIONS OF GAAP TO NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES FOR FISCAL YEAR 2025 GUIDANCE
    (Unaudited)

    Fiscal Year 2025 Adjusted Free Cash Flow and Unlevered Free Cash Flow Guidance
      Fiscal Year Ending November 30, 2025
    (in millions) Low   High
    Cash flows from operations (GAAP) $ 218     $ 230  
    Purchases of property and equipment   (7 )     (7 )
    Add back: restructuring payments   17       17  
    Adjusted free cash flow (non-GAAP)   228       240  
    Add back: tax-effected interest expense   57       56  
    Unlevered free cash flow (non-GAAP) $ 285     $ 296  

    RECONCILIATIONS OF GAAP TO NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES FOR Q3 2025 GUIDANCE
    (Unaudited)

    Q3 2025 Non-GAAP Earnings per Share Guidance
      Three Months Ending August 31, 2025
      Low   High
    GAAP diluted earnings per share $ 0.29     $ 0.35  
    Acquisition-related expense   0.02       0.02  
    Restructuring expense   0.01       0.01  
    Stock-based compensation   0.35       0.35  
    Amortization of acquired intangibles   0.83       0.83  
    Cyber vulnerability response expenses, net   0.03       0.03  
    Total adjustments(1)   1.24       1.24  
    Income tax adjustment   (0.25 )     (0.25 )
    Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share $ 1.28     $ 1.34  
    (1) Total adjustments include preliminary estimates relating to the valuation of intangible assets acquired from ShareFile and restructuring expenses. The final amounts will not be available until the Company’s internal procedures and reviews are completed.

    Important Information Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures, Liquidity Measures and Select Performance Metrics

    Progress furnishes certain non-GAAP supplemental information to our financial results. We use such non-GAAP financial measures to evaluate our period-over-period operating performance because our management team believes that excluding the effects of certain GAAP-related items helps to illustrate underlying trends in our business and provides us with a more comparable measure of our continuing business, as well as greater understanding of the results from the primary operations of our business. Management also uses such non-GAAP financial measures to establish budgets and operational goals, evaluate performance, and allocate resources. In addition, the compensation of our executives and non-executive employees is based in part on the performance of our business as evaluated by such non-GAAP financial measures. We believe these non-GAAP financial measures enhance investors’ overall understanding of our current financial performance and our prospects for the future by: (i) providing more transparency for certain financial measures, (ii) presenting disclosure that helps investors understand how we plan and measure the performance of our business, (iii) affording a view of our operating results that may be more easily compared to our peer companies, and (iv) enabling investors to consider our operating results on both a GAAP and non-GAAP basis (including following the integration period of our prior acquisitions). However, this non-GAAP information is not in accordance with, or an alternative to, generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“GAAP”) and should be considered in conjunction with our GAAP results as the items excluded from the non-GAAP information may have a material impact on Progress’ financial results. A reconciliation of non-GAAP adjustments to Progress’ GAAP financial results is included in the tables above.

    In the noted fiscal periods, we adjusted for the following items from our GAAP financial results to arrive at our non-GAAP financial measures:

    • Amortization of acquired intangibles – We exclude amortization of acquired intangibles because those expenses are unrelated to our core operating performance and the intangible assets acquired vary significantly based on the timing and magnitude of our acquisition transactions and the maturities of the businesses acquired. Adjustments include preliminary estimates relating to the valuation of intangible assets from ShareFile. The final amounts will not be available until the Company’s internal procedures and reviews are completed.
    • Stock-based compensation – We exclude stock-based compensation to be consistent with the way management and, in our view, the overall financial community evaluates our performance and the methods used by analysts to calculate consensus estimates. The expense related to stock-based awards is generally not controllable in the short-term and can vary significantly based on the timing, size and nature of awards granted. As such, we do not include these charges in operating plans.
    • Restructuring expenses – In all periods presented, we exclude restructuring expenses incurred because those expenses distort trends and are not part of our core operating results. Adjustments include preliminary estimates relating to restructuring expenses from ShareFile. The final amounts will not be available until the Company’s internal procedures and reviews are completed.
    • Acquisition-related expenses – We exclude acquisition-related expenses in order to provide a more meaningful comparison of the financial results to our historical operations and forward-looking guidance and the financial results of less acquisitive peer companies. We consider these types of costs and adjustments, to a great extent, to be unpredictable and dependent on a significant number of factors that are outside of our control. Furthermore, we do not consider these acquisition-related costs and adjustments to be related to the organic continuing operations of the acquired businesses and are generally not relevant to assessing or estimating the long-term performance of the acquired assets. In addition, the size, complexity and/or volume of past acquisitions, which often drives the magnitude of acquisition-related costs, may not be indicative of the size, complexity and/or volume of future acquisitions.
    • Cyber vulnerability response expenses, net – We exclude certain expenses resulting from the zero-day MOVEit Vulnerability, as more thoroughly described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission since June 5, 2023. Expenses include costs to investigate and remediate these cyber related matters, as well as legal and other professional services related thereto. Expenses related to such cyber matters are provided net of expected insurance recoveries, although the timing of recognizing insurance recoveries may differ from the timing of recognizing the associated expenses. Costs associated with the enhancement of our cybersecurity program are not included within this adjustment. We expect to continue to incur legal and other professional services expenses in future periods associated with the MOVEit Vulnerability. Expenses related to such cyber matters are expected to result in operating expenses that would not have otherwise been incurred in the normal course of business operations. We believe that excluding these costs facilitates a more meaningful evaluation of our operating performance and comparisons to our past operating performance.
    • Provision for income taxes – We adjust our income tax provision by excluding the tax impact of the non-GAAP adjustments discussed above.
    • Constant currency – Revenue from our international operations has historically represented a substantial portion of our total revenue. As a result, our revenue results have been impacted, and we expect will continue to be impacted, by fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates. As exchange rates are an important factor in understanding period-to-period comparisons, we present revenue growth rates on a constant currency basis, which helps improve the understanding of our revenue results and our performance in comparison to prior periods. The constant currency information presented is calculated by translating current period results using prior period weighted average foreign currency exchange rates.

    In the noted fiscal periods, we also present the following liquidity measures:

    • Adjusted free cash flow (“AFCF”) and unlevered free cash flow (“Unlevered FCF”) – AFCF is equal to cash flows from operating activities less purchases of property and equipment, plus restructuring payments. Unlevered FCF is AFCF plus tax-effected interest expense on outstanding debt.

    In the noted fiscal periods, we also present the following select performance metrics:

    • Annualized Recurring Revenue (“ARR”) – We disclose ARR as a performance metric to help investors better understand and assess the performance of our business because our mix of revenue generated from recurring sources currently represents the substantial majority of our revenues and is expected to continue in the future. We define ARR as the annualized revenue of all active and contractually binding term-based contracts from all customers at a point in time. ARR includes revenue from maintenance, software upgrade rights, public cloud, and on-premises subscription-based transactions and managed services. ARR mitigates fluctuations in revenue due to seasonality, contract term and the sales mix of subscriptions for term-based licenses and SaaS. We use ARR to understand customer trends and the overall health of our business, helping us to formulate strategic business decisions.

      We calculate the annualized value of annual and multi-year contracts, and contracts with terms less than one year, by dividing the total contract value of each contract by the number of months in the term and then multiplying by 12. Annualizing contracts with terms less than one-year results in amounts being included in our ARR that are in excess of the total contract value for those contracts at the end of the reporting period. We generally do not sell non-SaaS-based contracts with a term of less than one year unless a customer is purchasing additional licenses under an existing annual or multi-year contract. The expectation is that at the time of renewal, such contracts with a term less than one year will renew with the same term as the existing contracts being renewed, such that both contracts are co-termed. Historically, such contracts with a term of less than one year renew at rates equal to or better than annual or multi-year contracts.

      For SaaS-based contracts, there is a meaningful percentage of monthly auto-renewing contracts for which annualizing the contracts results in amounts being included in our ARR that are in excess of the total contract value for those contracts at the end of the reporting period.

      Revenue from term-based license and on-premises subscription arrangements include a portion of the arrangement consideration that is allocated to the software license that is recognized up-front at the point in time control is transferred under ASC 606 revenue recognition principles. ARR for these arrangements is calculated as described above. The expectation is that the total contract value, inclusive of revenue recognized as software license, will be renewed at the end of the contract term.

      The calculation is done at constant currency using the current year budgeted exchange rates for all periods presented.

      ARR is not defined in GAAP and is not derived from a GAAP measure. Rather, ARR generally aligns to billings (as opposed to GAAP revenue which aligns to the transfer of control of each performance obligation). ARR does not have any standardized meaning and is therefore unlikely to be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies. ARR should be viewed independently of revenue and deferred revenue and is not intended to be combined with or to replace either of those items. ARR is not a forecast and the active contracts at the end of a reporting period used in calculating ARR may or may not be extended or renewed by our customers.

    • Net Retention Rate (“NRR”) – We calculate net retention rate as of a period end by starting with the ARR from the cohort of all customers as of 12 months prior to such period end (“Prior Period ARR”). We then calculate the ARR from these same customers as of the current period end (“Current Period ARR”). Current Period ARR includes any expansion and is net of contraction or attrition over the last 12 months but excludes ARR from new customers in the current period. We then divide the total Current Period ARR by the total Prior Period ARR to arrive at the net retention rate. Net retention rate is not calculated in accordance with GAAP and is not derived from a GAAP measure.

    Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

    This press release contains statements that are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Progress has identified some of these forward-looking statements with words like “believe,” “may,” “could,” “would,” “might,” “should,” “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “target,” “anticipate” and “continue,” the negative of these words, other terms of similar meaning or the use of future dates. Forward-looking statements in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding Progress’ business outlook (including future acquisition activity) and financial guidance. There are a number of factors that could cause actual results or future events to differ materially from those anticipated by the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: (i) economic, geopolitical and market conditions can adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition, including our revenue growth and profitability, which in turn could adversely affect our stock price; (ii) our international sales and operations subject us to additional risks that can adversely affect our operating results, including risks relating to foreign currency gains and losses; (iii) we may fail to achieve our financial forecasts due to such factors as delays or size reductions in transactions, fewer large transactions in a particular quarter, fluctuations in currency exchange rates, or a decline in our renewal rates for contracts; (iv) if the security measures for our software, services, other offerings or our internal information technology infrastructure are compromised or subject to a successful cyber-attack, or if our software offerings contain significant coding or configuration errors or zero-day vulnerabilities, we may experience reputational harm, legal claims and financial exposure; and the results of inquiries, investigations and legal claims regarding the MOVEit Vulnerability remain uncertain, while the ultimate resolution of these matters could result in losses that may be material to our financial results for a particular period; (v) future acquisitions may not be successful or may involve unanticipated costs or other integration issues that could disrupt our existing operations; and (vi) expected synergies and benefits of the ShareFile acquisition may not be realized which could negatively impact our future results of operations and financial condition. For further information regarding risks and uncertainties associated with Progress’ business, please refer to our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended November 30, 2024. Progress undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Progress Software Announces Second Quarter 2025 Financial Results

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Annualized Recurring Revenue (“ARR”) of $838 million Grew 46% year-over-year
    Revenue of $237 million Grew 36% year-over-year
    Raises Full Year Guidance for Revenue, Operating Margin, Earnings Per Share, and Cash Flow
    Acquires Agentic RAG AI Company

    BURLINGTON, Mass., June 30, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Progress Software (Nasdaq: PRGS), the trusted provider of AI-powered digital experience and infrastructure software, today announced financial results for its fiscal second quarter ended May 31, 2025.

    Second Quarter 2025 Highlights:

    • Revenue of $237 million increased 36% year-over-year on an actual currency basis and 35% on a constant currency basis.
    • Annualized Recurring Revenue (“ARR”) of $838 million increased 46% year-over-year on a constant currency basis.
    • Operating margin was 16% and non-GAAP operating margin was 40%.
    • Diluted earnings per share was $0.39 compared to $0.37 in the same quarter last year, an increase of 5%. 
    • Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share was $1.40 compared to $1.09 in the same quarter last year, an increase of 28%.

    “We’re extremely pleased with our solid Q2 results” said Yogesh Gupta, CEO of Progress Software. “Revenue contributions were strong across all geographies resulting in ARR of $838 million or 46% year-over-year growth. Our Net Retention Rate was 100%, demonstrating the consistent strength of our product portfolio. Our confidence in the business is reflected in our raised guidance for FY25. Equally important, our integration of ShareFile is going extremely well as we have completed numerous major synergy milestones, and we remain confident in our ability to reach all our ShareFile targets by the end of the year.”

    Additional financial highlights included:

      Three Months Ended
      GAAP   Non-GAAP
    (in thousands, except percentages and per share amounts) May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024   % Change   May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024   % Change
    Revenue $ 237,355     $ 175,077     36 %   $ 237,355     $ 175,077     36 %
    Income from operations $ 38,616     $ 27,148     42 %   $ 95,461     $ 67,086     42 %
    Operating margin   16 %     16 %   0 bps     40 %     38 %   200 bps
    Net income $ 17,029     $ 16,188     5 %   $ 61,749     $ 47,899     29 %
    Diluted earnings per share $ 0.39     $ 0.37     5 %   $ 1.40     $ 1.09     28 %
    Cash from operations (GAAP) / Adjusted free cash flow (non-GAAP) / Unlevered free cash flow (non-GAAP) $ 29,996     $ 63,681     (53 )%   $ 37,068     $ 64,073     (42 )%
        $ 51,579   $ 69,679   (26 )%

    See Important Information Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures, Liquidity Measures, and Select Performance Metrics and a reconciliation of non-GAAP adjustments to Progress’ GAAP financial results at the end of this press release.

    Other fiscal second quarter 2025 metrics and recent results included:

    • Cash and cash equivalents were $102.0 million at the end of the quarter.
    • Days sales outstanding was 53 days compared to 41 days in the fiscal second quarter of 2024 and 48 days in the fiscal first quarter of 2025.

    “Our second quarter performance reflects the continued strong execution by our teams and this is further reflected in our increase to full year guidance across the board,” said Anthony Folger, CFO of Progress Software. “Our ShareFile business is progressing well and we are ahead of schedule with the integration and moving swiftly towards reaching our synergy targets. On the balance sheet, we again made significant progress on paying down our revolving credit facility, with another $40 million this quarter, putting us on a solid trajectory to hit our goal of $160 million debt paydown this year.”

    Acquisition of Nuclia

    In a separate press release, the Company also announced today its acquisition of Nuclia, an innovator in agentic Retrieval-Augmented Generation (“RAG”) AI solutions. Nuclia provides unique, easy-to-use agentic RAG-as-a-service technology enabling organizations to automatically leverage their own proprietary business information to retrieve verifiable, accurate answers using GenAI. Nuclia will extend the end-to-end value of the Progress Data Platform while creating new opportunities to reach a broader market of organizations looking to leverage agentic RAG technology.

    The acquisition was signed and closed today and is immaterial to Progress’ financials.

    To learn more about Nuclia, go to https://nuclia.com/. 

    2025 Business Outlook

    Progress provides the following guidance for the fiscal year ending November 30, 2025 and the fiscal third quarter ending August 31, 2025:

      Updated FY 2025 Guidance
    (June 30, 2025)    		   Prior FY 2025 Guidance
    (March 31, 2025)
    (in millions, except percentages and per share amounts) GAAP   Non-GAAP   GAAP   Non-GAAP
    Revenue $962 – $974   $962 – $974   $958 – $970   $958 – $970
    Diluted earnings per share $1.27 – $1.43   $5.28 – $5.40   $1.19 – $1.35   $5.25 – $5.37
    Operating margin 15%   38% – 39%   14% – 15%   38%
    Cash from operations (GAAP) /
    Adjusted free cash flow (non-GAAP) / Unlevered free cash flow (non-GAAP)    		 $218 – $230   $228 – $240   $216 – $228   $226 – $238
    $285 – $296     $283 – $294
    Effective tax rate 17%           20%           19%           20%
      Q3 2025 Guidance
    (in millions, except per share amounts) GAAP   Non-GAAP
    Revenue $237 – $243   $237 – $243
    Diluted earnings per share $0.29 – $0.35   $1.28 – $1.34

    Based on current exchange rates, the expected positive currency translation impact on our:

    • Fiscal year 2025 business outlook compared to 2024 exchange rates is approximately $2.4 million on revenue.
    • GAAP and non-GAAP diluted earnings per share for fiscal year 2025 is approximately $0.02.
    • Fiscal Q3 2025 business outlook compared to 2024 exchange rates is approximately $1.7 million on revenue.
    • GAAP and non-GAAP diluted earnings per share for fiscal Q3 2025 is approximately $0.01.

    To the extent that there are changes in exchange rates versus the current environment and/or our expectations, this may have an impact on Progress’ business outlook.

    Conference Call

    Progress will hold a conference call to review its financial results for the fiscal second quarter of 2025 at 5:00 p.m. ET on Monday, June 30, 2025. Participants must register for the conference call here: https://register-conf.media-server.com/register/BIc386d20e6fbd46acbadafca492a42b35. The webcast can be accessed at: https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/bujcypbf/. The conference call will include comments followed by questions and answers. Attendees must register for the webcast and an archived version of the conference call and supporting materials will be available on the Progress website within the investor relations section after the live conference call.

    About Progress

    Progress Software (Nasdaq: PRGS) empowers organizations to achieve transformational success in the face of disruptive change. Our software enables our customers to develop, deploy and manage responsible AI-powered applications and digital experiences with agility and ease. Customers get a trusted provider in Progress, with the products, expertise and vision they need to succeed. Over 4 million developers and technologists at hundreds of thousands of enterprises depend on Progress. Learn more at www.progress.com. 

    Progress and Progress Software are trademarks or registered trademarks of Progress Software Corporation and/or its subsidiaries or affiliates in the U.S. and other countries. Any other names contained herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.

    CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
    (Unaudited)

      Three Months Ended   Six Months Ended
    (in thousands, except per share data) May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024   % Change   May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024   % Change
    Revenue:                      
    Software licenses $ 50,795     $ 53,979     (6 )%   $ 109,240     $ 118,079     (7 )%
    Maintenance, SaaS, and professional services   186,560       121,098     54 %     366,130       241,683     51 %
    Total revenue   237,355       175,077     36 %     475,370       359,762     32 %
    Costs of revenue:                      
    Cost of software licenses   2,987       2,497     20 %     5,912       5,228     13 %
    Cost of maintenance, SaaS, and professional services   33,764       22,176     52 %     66,648       44,395     50 %
    Amortization of acquired intangibles   10,537       7,398     42 %     20,959       15,257     37 %
    Total costs of revenue   47,288       32,071     47 %     93,519       64,880     44 %
    Gross profit   190,067       143,006     33 %     381,851       294,882     29 %
    Operating expenses:                      
    Sales and marketing   49,677       37,889     31 %     100,973       77,000     31 %
    Product development   46,570       35,435     31 %     92,945       70,423     32 %
    General and administrative   25,637       21,983     17 %     51,260       43,327     18 %
    Amortization of acquired intangibles   26,063       16,316     60 %     51,871       33,705     54 %
    Cyber vulnerability response expenses, net   730       3,036     (76 )%     1,467       4,023     (64 )%
    Restructuring expenses   1,043       651     60 %     8,072       3,000     169 %
    Acquisition-related expenses   1,731       548     216 %     4,221       1,250     238 %
    Total operating expenses   151,451       115,858     31 %     310,809       232,728     34 %
    Income from operations           38,616               27,148             42 %     71,042       62,154     14 %
    Other expense, net           (18,752 )             (7,020 )           167 %     (37,876 )     (14,419 )   163 %
    Income before income taxes           19,864       20,128             (1 )%     33,166       47,735     (31 )%
    Provision for income taxes           2,835       3,940             (28 )%     5,191       8,908     (42 )%
    Net income $ 17,029     $ 16,188     5 %   $ 27,975     $ 38,827     (28 )%
                           
    Earnings per share:                      
    Basic $ 0.40     $ 0.37     8 %   $ 0.65     $ 0.89     (27 )%
    Diluted $ 0.39     $ 0.37     5 %   $ 0.63     $ 0.87     (28 )%
    Weighted average shares outstanding:                      
    Basic   43,053       43,213     — %     43,154       43,508     (1 )%
    Diluted   44,156       43,964     — %     44,522       44,395     — %
                           
    Cash dividends declared per common share $ —     $ 0.175     (100 )%   $ —     $ 0.350     (100 )%
    Stock-based compensation is included in the condensed consolidated statements of operations, as follows:            
    Cost of revenue $ 1,560   $ 912   71 %   $ 2,755   $ 1,898   45 %
    Sales and marketing   3,663     2,458   49 %     6,695     4,770   40 %
    Product development   4,984     3,391   47 %     9,394     7,056   33 %
    General and administrative   6,534     5,228   25 %     12,580     10,729   17 %
    Total $ 16,741   $ 11,989   40 %   $ 31,424   $ 24,453   29 %
     

    CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
    (Unaudited)

    (in thousands) May 31, 2025   November 30, 2024
    Assets      
    Current assets:      
    Cash and cash equivalents $ 102,006   $ 118,077
    Accounts receivable, net   140,122     163,575
    Unbilled receivables, current portion   34,136     34,672
    Other current assets   49,387     52,489
    Total current assets   325,651     368,813
    Property and equipment, net   12,474     13,746
    Goodwill and intangible assets, net   1,944,387     2,015,748
    Right-of-use lease assets   27,351     30,894
    Unbilled receivables, non-current portion   29,890     28,893
    Other assets   73,839     68,872
    Total assets $ 2,413,592   $ 2,526,966
    Liabilities and shareholders’ equity      
    Current liabilities:      
    Accounts payable and other current liabilities $ 75,610   $ 113,801
    Convertible senior notes, current portion, net   358,051     —
    Operating lease liabilities, current portion   8,250     9,202
    Deferred revenue, current portion, net   308,360     332,142
    Total current liabilities   750,271     455,145
    Long-term debt, net   660,000     730,000
    Convertible senior notes, non-current portion, net   440,244     796,267
    Operating lease liabilities, non-current portion   22,548     26,259
    Deferred revenue, non-current portion, net   80,219     72,270
    Other non-current liabilities   7,609     8,237
    Stockholders’ equity:      
    Common stock and additional paid-in capital   362,522     354,592
    Retained earnings   90,179     84,196
    Total stockholders’ equity   452,701     438,788
    Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity $ 2,413,592   $ 2,526,966
     

    CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
    (Unaudited)  

      Three Months Ended   Six Months Ended
    (in thousands) May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024   May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024
    Cash flows from operating activities:              
    Net income $ 17,029     $ 16,188     $ 27,975     $ 38,827  
    Depreciation and amortization   39,568       27,529       78,777       55,073  
    Stock-based compensation   16,741       11,989       31,424       24,453  
    Other non-cash adjustments   (1,332 )     (812 )     1,738       515  
    Changes in operating assets and liabilities   (42,010 )     8,787       (40,971 )     15,317  
    Net cash flows from operating activities   29,996       63,681       98,943       134,185  
    Capital expenditures   (495 )     (955 )     (1,785 )     (1,264 )
    Repurchases of common stock, net of issuances   (13,478 )     (44,636 )     (37,348 )     (59,553 )
    Dividend equivalent and dividend payments to stockholders   (295 )     (7,951 )     (654 )     (16,122 )
    Payments for acquisitions   —       —       (1,195 )     —  
    Proceeds from the issuance of debt, net of payment of issuance costs   —       431,929       —       431,929  
    Repayment of revolving line of credit and principal payment on term loan   (40,000 )     (337,813 )     (70,000 )     (371,250 )
    Purchase of capped calls   —       (42,210 )     —       (42,210 )
    Other   2,117       (4,847 )     (4,032 )     (12,253 )
    Net change in cash and cash equivalents   (22,155 )     57,198       (16,071 )     63,462  
    Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of period   124,161       133,222       118,077       126,958  
    Cash and cash equivalents, end of period $ 102,006     $ 190,420     $ 102,006     $ 190,420  
     

    RECONCILIATIONS OF GAAP TO NON-GAAP SELECTED FINANCIAL MEASURES
    (Unaudited)

      Three Months Ended   Six Months Ended
    (in thousands, except per share data) May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024   May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024
    Adjusted income from operations:              
    GAAP income from operations $ 38,616     $ 27,148     $ 71,042     $ 62,154  
    Amortization of acquired intangibles   36,600       23,714       72,830       48,962  
    Stock-based compensation   16,741       11,989       31,424       24,453  
    Restructuring expenses   1,043       651       8,072       3,000  
    Acquisition-related expenses   1,731       548       4,221       1,250  
    Cyber vulnerability response expenses, net   730       3,036       1,467       4,023  
    Non-GAAP income from operations $ 95,461     $ 67,086     $ 189,056     $ 143,842  
                   
    Adjusted net income:              
    GAAP net income $ 17,029     $ 16,188     $ 27,975     $ 38,827  
    Amortization of acquired intangibles   36,600       23,714       72,830       48,962  
    Stock-based compensation   16,741       11,989       31,424       24,453  
    Restructuring expenses   1,043       651       8,072       3,000  
    Acquisition-related expenses   1,731       548       4,221       1,250  
    Cyber vulnerability response expenses, net   730       3,036       1,467       4,023  
    Provision for income taxes   (12,125 )     (8,227 )     (25,245 )     (16,688 )
    Non-GAAP net income $ 61,749     $ 47,899     $ 120,744     $ 103,827  
                   
    Adjusted diluted earnings per share:              
    GAAP diluted earnings per share $ 0.39     $ 0.37     $ 0.63     $ 0.87  
    Amortization of acquired intangibles   0.83       0.54       1.64       1.10  
    Stock-based compensation   0.37       0.27       0.71       0.56  
    Restructuring expenses   0.02       0.02       0.18       0.07  
    Acquisition-related expenses   0.04       0.01       0.09       0.03  
    Cyber vulnerability response expenses, net   0.02       0.07       0.03       0.09  
    Provision for income taxes   (0.27 )     (0.19 )     (0.57 )     (0.38 )
    Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share $ 1.40     $ 1.09     $ 2.71     $ 2.34  
                   
    Non-GAAP weighted avg shares outstanding – diluted   44,156       43,964       44,522       44,395  
                   

    OTHER NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES
    (Unaudited)

    Adjusted Free Cash Flow and Unlevered Free Cash Flow                
                           
      Three Months Ended   Six Months Ended
    (in thousands) May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024   % Change   May 31, 2025   May 31, 2024   % Change
    Cash flows from operations $ 29,996     $ 63,681     (53 )%   $ 98,943     $ 134,185     (26 )%
    Purchases of property and equipment   (495 )     (955 )   (48 )%     (1,785 )     (1,264 )   41 %
    Free cash flow   29,501       62,726     (53 )%     97,158       132,921     (27 )%
    Add back: restructuring payments   7,567       1,347     462 %     13,121       3,356     291 %
    Adjusted free cash flow $ 37,068     $ 64,073     (42 )%   $ 110,279     $ 136,277     (19 )%
    Add back: tax-effected interest expense   14,511       5,606     159 %     29,253       11,481     155 %
    Unlevered free cash flow $ 51,579     $ 69,679     (26 )%   $ 139,532     $ 147,758     (6 )%
     

    RECONCILIATIONS OF GAAP TO NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES FOR FISCAL YEAR 2025 GUIDANCE
    (Unaudited)

    Fiscal Year 2025 Updated Non-GAAP Operating Margin Guidance
      Fiscal Year Ending November 30, 2025
    (in millions) Low   High
    GAAP income from operations $ 140.7     $ 149.2  
    GAAP operating margins   15 %     15 %
    Acquisition-related expense   6.0       6.0  
    Restructuring expense   9.2       9.2  
    Stock-based compensation   63.0       63.0  
    Amortization of acquired intangibles   145.7       145.7  
    Cyber vulnerability response expenses, net   4.2       4.2  
    Total adjustments(1)   228.1       228.1  
    Non-GAAP income from operations $ 368.8     $ 377.3  
    Non-GAAP operating margin   38 %     39 %
    (1) Total adjustments include preliminary estimates relating to the valuation of intangible assets acquired from ShareFile and restructuring expenses. The final amounts will not be available until the Company’s internal procedures and reviews are completed.
    Fiscal Year 2025 Updated Non-GAAP Earnings per Share and Effective Tax Rate Guidance
      Fiscal Year Ending November 30, 2025
    (in millions, except per share data) Low   High
    GAAP net income $ 56.9     $ 64.8  
    Adjustments (from previous table)   228.1       228.1  
    Income tax adjustment(2)   (47.7 )     (48.0 )
    Non-GAAP net income $ 237.3     $ 244.9  
           
    GAAP diluted earnings per share $ 1.27     $ 1.43  
    Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share $ 5.28     $ 5.40  
           
    Diluted weighted average shares outstanding   45.0       45.4  
             
             
    2 Tax adjustment is based on a non-GAAP effective tax rate of approximately 20%, calculated as follows:
        Fiscal Year Ending November 30, 2025
        Low   High
    Non-GAAP income from operations   $ 368.8     $ 377.3  
    Other (expense) income     (72.2 )     (71.2 )
    Non-GAAP income from continuing operations before income taxes     296.6       306.1  
    Non-GAAP net income     237.3       244.9  
    Tax provision   $ 59.3     $ 61.2  
    Non-GAAP tax rate     20 %     20 %
                     

    RECONCILIATIONS OF GAAP TO NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES FOR FISCAL YEAR 2025 GUIDANCE
    (Unaudited)

    Fiscal Year 2025 Adjusted Free Cash Flow and Unlevered Free Cash Flow Guidance
      Fiscal Year Ending November 30, 2025
    (in millions) Low   High
    Cash flows from operations (GAAP) $ 218     $ 230  
    Purchases of property and equipment   (7 )     (7 )
    Add back: restructuring payments   17       17  
    Adjusted free cash flow (non-GAAP)   228       240  
    Add back: tax-effected interest expense   57       56  
    Unlevered free cash flow (non-GAAP) $ 285     $ 296  

    RECONCILIATIONS OF GAAP TO NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES FOR Q3 2025 GUIDANCE
    (Unaudited)

    Q3 2025 Non-GAAP Earnings per Share Guidance
      Three Months Ending August 31, 2025
      Low   High
    GAAP diluted earnings per share $ 0.29     $ 0.35  
    Acquisition-related expense   0.02       0.02  
    Restructuring expense   0.01       0.01  
    Stock-based compensation   0.35       0.35  
    Amortization of acquired intangibles   0.83       0.83  
    Cyber vulnerability response expenses, net   0.03       0.03  
    Total adjustments(1)   1.24       1.24  
    Income tax adjustment   (0.25 )     (0.25 )
    Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share $ 1.28     $ 1.34  
    (1) Total adjustments include preliminary estimates relating to the valuation of intangible assets acquired from ShareFile and restructuring expenses. The final amounts will not be available until the Company’s internal procedures and reviews are completed.

    Important Information Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures, Liquidity Measures and Select Performance Metrics

    Progress furnishes certain non-GAAP supplemental information to our financial results. We use such non-GAAP financial measures to evaluate our period-over-period operating performance because our management team believes that excluding the effects of certain GAAP-related items helps to illustrate underlying trends in our business and provides us with a more comparable measure of our continuing business, as well as greater understanding of the results from the primary operations of our business. Management also uses such non-GAAP financial measures to establish budgets and operational goals, evaluate performance, and allocate resources. In addition, the compensation of our executives and non-executive employees is based in part on the performance of our business as evaluated by such non-GAAP financial measures. We believe these non-GAAP financial measures enhance investors’ overall understanding of our current financial performance and our prospects for the future by: (i) providing more transparency for certain financial measures, (ii) presenting disclosure that helps investors understand how we plan and measure the performance of our business, (iii) affording a view of our operating results that may be more easily compared to our peer companies, and (iv) enabling investors to consider our operating results on both a GAAP and non-GAAP basis (including following the integration period of our prior acquisitions). However, this non-GAAP information is not in accordance with, or an alternative to, generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“GAAP”) and should be considered in conjunction with our GAAP results as the items excluded from the non-GAAP information may have a material impact on Progress’ financial results. A reconciliation of non-GAAP adjustments to Progress’ GAAP financial results is included in the tables above.

    In the noted fiscal periods, we adjusted for the following items from our GAAP financial results to arrive at our non-GAAP financial measures:

    • Amortization of acquired intangibles – We exclude amortization of acquired intangibles because those expenses are unrelated to our core operating performance and the intangible assets acquired vary significantly based on the timing and magnitude of our acquisition transactions and the maturities of the businesses acquired. Adjustments include preliminary estimates relating to the valuation of intangible assets from ShareFile. The final amounts will not be available until the Company’s internal procedures and reviews are completed.
    • Stock-based compensation – We exclude stock-based compensation to be consistent with the way management and, in our view, the overall financial community evaluates our performance and the methods used by analysts to calculate consensus estimates. The expense related to stock-based awards is generally not controllable in the short-term and can vary significantly based on the timing, size and nature of awards granted. As such, we do not include these charges in operating plans.
    • Restructuring expenses – In all periods presented, we exclude restructuring expenses incurred because those expenses distort trends and are not part of our core operating results. Adjustments include preliminary estimates relating to restructuring expenses from ShareFile. The final amounts will not be available until the Company’s internal procedures and reviews are completed.
    • Acquisition-related expenses – We exclude acquisition-related expenses in order to provide a more meaningful comparison of the financial results to our historical operations and forward-looking guidance and the financial results of less acquisitive peer companies. We consider these types of costs and adjustments, to a great extent, to be unpredictable and dependent on a significant number of factors that are outside of our control. Furthermore, we do not consider these acquisition-related costs and adjustments to be related to the organic continuing operations of the acquired businesses and are generally not relevant to assessing or estimating the long-term performance of the acquired assets. In addition, the size, complexity and/or volume of past acquisitions, which often drives the magnitude of acquisition-related costs, may not be indicative of the size, complexity and/or volume of future acquisitions.
    • Cyber vulnerability response expenses, net – We exclude certain expenses resulting from the zero-day MOVEit Vulnerability, as more thoroughly described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission since June 5, 2023. Expenses include costs to investigate and remediate these cyber related matters, as well as legal and other professional services related thereto. Expenses related to such cyber matters are provided net of expected insurance recoveries, although the timing of recognizing insurance recoveries may differ from the timing of recognizing the associated expenses. Costs associated with the enhancement of our cybersecurity program are not included within this adjustment. We expect to continue to incur legal and other professional services expenses in future periods associated with the MOVEit Vulnerability. Expenses related to such cyber matters are expected to result in operating expenses that would not have otherwise been incurred in the normal course of business operations. We believe that excluding these costs facilitates a more meaningful evaluation of our operating performance and comparisons to our past operating performance.
    • Provision for income taxes – We adjust our income tax provision by excluding the tax impact of the non-GAAP adjustments discussed above.
    • Constant currency – Revenue from our international operations has historically represented a substantial portion of our total revenue. As a result, our revenue results have been impacted, and we expect will continue to be impacted, by fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates. As exchange rates are an important factor in understanding period-to-period comparisons, we present revenue growth rates on a constant currency basis, which helps improve the understanding of our revenue results and our performance in comparison to prior periods. The constant currency information presented is calculated by translating current period results using prior period weighted average foreign currency exchange rates.

    In the noted fiscal periods, we also present the following liquidity measures:

    • Adjusted free cash flow (“AFCF”) and unlevered free cash flow (“Unlevered FCF”) – AFCF is equal to cash flows from operating activities less purchases of property and equipment, plus restructuring payments. Unlevered FCF is AFCF plus tax-effected interest expense on outstanding debt.

    In the noted fiscal periods, we also present the following select performance metrics:

    • Annualized Recurring Revenue (“ARR”) – We disclose ARR as a performance metric to help investors better understand and assess the performance of our business because our mix of revenue generated from recurring sources currently represents the substantial majority of our revenues and is expected to continue in the future. We define ARR as the annualized revenue of all active and contractually binding term-based contracts from all customers at a point in time. ARR includes revenue from maintenance, software upgrade rights, public cloud, and on-premises subscription-based transactions and managed services. ARR mitigates fluctuations in revenue due to seasonality, contract term and the sales mix of subscriptions for term-based licenses and SaaS. We use ARR to understand customer trends and the overall health of our business, helping us to formulate strategic business decisions.

      We calculate the annualized value of annual and multi-year contracts, and contracts with terms less than one year, by dividing the total contract value of each contract by the number of months in the term and then multiplying by 12. Annualizing contracts with terms less than one-year results in amounts being included in our ARR that are in excess of the total contract value for those contracts at the end of the reporting period. We generally do not sell non-SaaS-based contracts with a term of less than one year unless a customer is purchasing additional licenses under an existing annual or multi-year contract. The expectation is that at the time of renewal, such contracts with a term less than one year will renew with the same term as the existing contracts being renewed, such that both contracts are co-termed. Historically, such contracts with a term of less than one year renew at rates equal to or better than annual or multi-year contracts.

      For SaaS-based contracts, there is a meaningful percentage of monthly auto-renewing contracts for which annualizing the contracts results in amounts being included in our ARR that are in excess of the total contract value for those contracts at the end of the reporting period.

      Revenue from term-based license and on-premises subscription arrangements include a portion of the arrangement consideration that is allocated to the software license that is recognized up-front at the point in time control is transferred under ASC 606 revenue recognition principles. ARR for these arrangements is calculated as described above. The expectation is that the total contract value, inclusive of revenue recognized as software license, will be renewed at the end of the contract term.

      The calculation is done at constant currency using the current year budgeted exchange rates for all periods presented.

      ARR is not defined in GAAP and is not derived from a GAAP measure. Rather, ARR generally aligns to billings (as opposed to GAAP revenue which aligns to the transfer of control of each performance obligation). ARR does not have any standardized meaning and is therefore unlikely to be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies. ARR should be viewed independently of revenue and deferred revenue and is not intended to be combined with or to replace either of those items. ARR is not a forecast and the active contracts at the end of a reporting period used in calculating ARR may or may not be extended or renewed by our customers.

    • Net Retention Rate (“NRR”) – We calculate net retention rate as of a period end by starting with the ARR from the cohort of all customers as of 12 months prior to such period end (“Prior Period ARR”). We then calculate the ARR from these same customers as of the current period end (“Current Period ARR”). Current Period ARR includes any expansion and is net of contraction or attrition over the last 12 months but excludes ARR from new customers in the current period. We then divide the total Current Period ARR by the total Prior Period ARR to arrive at the net retention rate. Net retention rate is not calculated in accordance with GAAP and is not derived from a GAAP measure.

    Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

    This press release contains statements that are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Progress has identified some of these forward-looking statements with words like “believe,” “may,” “could,” “would,” “might,” “should,” “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “target,” “anticipate” and “continue,” the negative of these words, other terms of similar meaning or the use of future dates. Forward-looking statements in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding Progress’ business outlook (including future acquisition activity) and financial guidance. There are a number of factors that could cause actual results or future events to differ materially from those anticipated by the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: (i) economic, geopolitical and market conditions can adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition, including our revenue growth and profitability, which in turn could adversely affect our stock price; (ii) our international sales and operations subject us to additional risks that can adversely affect our operating results, including risks relating to foreign currency gains and losses; (iii) we may fail to achieve our financial forecasts due to such factors as delays or size reductions in transactions, fewer large transactions in a particular quarter, fluctuations in currency exchange rates, or a decline in our renewal rates for contracts; (iv) if the security measures for our software, services, other offerings or our internal information technology infrastructure are compromised or subject to a successful cyber-attack, or if our software offerings contain significant coding or configuration errors or zero-day vulnerabilities, we may experience reputational harm, legal claims and financial exposure; and the results of inquiries, investigations and legal claims regarding the MOVEit Vulnerability remain uncertain, while the ultimate resolution of these matters could result in losses that may be material to our financial results for a particular period; (v) future acquisitions may not be successful or may involve unanticipated costs or other integration issues that could disrupt our existing operations; and (vi) expected synergies and benefits of the ShareFile acquisition may not be realized which could negatively impact our future results of operations and financial condition. For further information regarding risks and uncertainties associated with Progress’ business, please refer to our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended November 30, 2024. Progress undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Jabil Selects Rowan County for Nearly 1,200 New Jobs and $500 Million Multi-Year Investment

    Source: US State of North Carolina

    Headline: Jabil Selects Rowan County for Nearly 1,200 New Jobs and $500 Million Multi-Year Investment

    Jabil Selects Rowan County for Nearly 1,200 New Jobs and $500 Million Multi-Year Investment
    lsaito

    Raleigh, NC

    Today Governor Josh Stein announced Jabil Inc., a leader in engineering, supply chain, and manufacturing solutions, expects to create 1,181 new jobs in Rowan County. The company says it will invest approximately $500 million over several years to establish a manufacturing facility to support cloud and AI data center customers.

    “Companies that are already operating in North Carolina know the value of doing business in our state better than anyone,” said Governor Josh Stein. “We welcome Jabil’s expansion, and we are committed to further developing the largest manufacturing workforce in the southeast and the business-friendly climate they need for this next phase of growth.”

    Headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida, Jabil has a global footprint that spans more than 25 countries and 140,000 employees. The company has 30 locations across the United States, including three in North Carolina. Jabil supports customers across various industries, including AI data center infrastructure, healthcare, warehouse automation, and robotics.

    “The drive to build AI data centers is only accelerating in the United States,” said Matt Crowley, Executive Vice President, Global Business Units. “We are excited to help meet that demand, provide additional scale and capabilities for our data center customers, and empower the AI solutions of the future with Jabil’s new facility here in Rowan County.”

    “North Carolina has a proven track record of cultivating an environment where companies like Jabil can manufacture innovative solutions for the global economy,” said Commerce Secretary Lee Lilley. “Our ecosystem of workforce training partnerships, Tier 1 research, and growing supply chain is sure to ignite the advancement of this next generation technology and provide the company a great return on its investment.”

    Jabil plans to offer job opportunities to attract skilled manufacturing and engineering professionals. These new jobs could create a potential annual payroll impact of more than $73.2 million for the region. 

    Jabil’s expansion in North Carolina will be facilitated, in part, by a Job Development Investment Grant (JDIG) approved by the state’s Economic Investment Committee earlier today. Over the course of the 12-year term of this grant, the project is estimated to grow the state’s economy by $3.2 billion. Using a formula that takes into account $264 million of the company’s investment as well as the new tax revenues generated by the new jobs, the JDIG agreement authorizes the potential reimbursement to the company of up to $11,251,800, spread over 12 years. State payments only occur following performance verification by the departments of Commerce and Revenue that the company has met its incremental job creation and investment targets.

    The project’s projected return on investment of public dollars is 115 percent, meaning for every dollar of potential cost to the state, the state receives $2.15 in state revenue. JDIG projects result in positive net tax revenue to the state treasury, even after taking into consideration the grant’s reimbursement payments to a given company.

    Because Jabil chose to locate to Rowan County, classified by the state’s economic tier system as Tier 2, the company’s JDIG agreement also calls for moving $1,250,200 into the state’s Industrial Development Fund – Utility Account. The Utility Account helps rural communities finance necessary infrastructure upgrades to attract future business. Even when new jobs are created in a Tier 2 county such as Rowan, the new tax revenue generated through JDIG grants helps more economically challenged communities elsewhere in the state.

    “We welcome Jabil to Rowan County,” said Senator Carl Ford. “These new jobs are proof that our state and local investments to prepare for announcements like this are paying off for both our existing industry and local economy.”

    “This is outstanding news for our region,” said Representative Harry Warren. “Our community is centrally located along to East Coast, and thanks to the state’s well-connected transportation network, Jabil can easily access the global market.”

    In addition to the North Carolina Department of Commerce and the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina, other key partners in this project include the North Carolina General Assembly, N.C. Commerce’s Division of Workforce Solutions, the North Carolina Community College System, Rowan-Cabarrus Community College, Rowan County, and Rowan Economic Development Council.

    With this announcement, since January 1st, Governor Stein has announced business expansions or new projects that will make nearly $17 billion of new capital investment in North Carolina and create more than 19,000 new good-paying jobs.

    To learn more about job opportunities at Jabil, please visit the Jabil Careers site.

    Jun 30, 2025

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: The Herzfeld Caribbean Basin Fund, Inc. Pays Distribution

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    MIAMI BEACH, Fla., June 30, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The Herzfeld Caribbean Basin Fund, Inc. (NASDAQ: CUBA) (the “Fund”) today announced that the Fund has made the following distribution pursuant to the Fund’s Managed Distribution Policy (the “Policy”):

    Declaration
    Date    		 Ex-Date Record Date Payment Date Per Share
    05/09/2025 05/23/2025 05/23/2025 06/30/2025 $0.2325

    The distribution for stockholders has been paid in cash or shares of the Fund’s common stock at the election of stockholders. The total amount of cash distributed to all stockholders was limited to 20% of the total distribution to be paid, excluding any cash paid for fractional shares. The remainder of the distribution (approximately 80%) was paid in the form of shares of the Fund’s common stock. The exact distribution of cash and stock to any given stockholder was dependent upon his/her election as well as elections of other stockholders, subject to the pro-rata limitation.

    The price used to calculate the number of shares to be issued in lieu of cash is $2.4618, which was determined using the volume weighted average price per share of the Fund on June 12, 13 and 16, 2025. The total amount of cash and shares distributed under the Policy was as follows:

    Total Cash Total Shares
    $731,093.39 1,187,755.00

    Stockholders who elected to receive the distribution solely in shares of common stock and stockholders who did not make an election will receive approximately 0.0944 shares of common stock for each share of common stock they owned on the record date of May 9, 2025. Holders of approximately 50.62% of the Company’s common stock elected to receive only stock or did not make an election.

    Stockholders electing to receive the distribution in all cash will receive cash in the amount of $0.09418 per common share, or approximately 40.51% of the $0.2325 distribution, and 0.0562 shares of common stock, or approximately 59.49% of the total distribution for each share of common stock they owned on the record date of May 9, 2025. Cash in lieu of fractional shares will be issued, if applicable. Total outstanding shares of the Company’s common stock following the distribution will be approximately 16,908,652.

    The primary purpose of the Policy is to provide stockholders with a constant, but not guaranteed, fixed minimum rate of distribution (currently set at the annual rate of 15% of the Fund’s net asset value as determined on June 30, 2024). Under the Policy, distributions may be made at quarterly, semi-annual or annual periods of distribution and are reviewed by the Board each quarter. This allows the Fund to maintain its 15% annual distribution of NAV, but provides flexibility in determining the timing of those distributions in order to account for required year-end regulatory distributions of capital gains necessary to maintain the Fund’s tax-free status.

    The Fund cannot predict what effect, if any, the Policy will have on the market price of its shares or whether such market price will reflect a greater or lesser discount to net asset value as compared to prior to the adoption of the Policy

    Under the Policy, the Fund will distribute all available investment income to its stockholders, consistent with its investment objective and as required by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). The amount distributed per share is subject to change at the discretion of the Board.   If sufficient investment income is not available on a quarterly basis, the Fund will distribute long-term capital gains and/or return capital to its stockholders in order to maintain its managed distribution level. The Fund is currently not relying on any exemptive relief from Section 19(b) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”). The Fund may make additional distributions from time to time, including additional capital gain distributions at the end of the taxable year, if required to meet requirements imposed by the Code and/or the 1940 Act. Please note that for shareholders enrolled in the Fund’s Dividend Distribution Reinvestment Plan, the distribution will be reinvested in additional shares of the Fund as described in the Policy.

    The Fund expects that distributions under the Policy will exceed investment income and available capital gains and thus expects that distributions under the Policy will likely include returns of capital for the foreseeable future. A return of capital may occur, for example, when some or all of a stockholder’s investment is paid back to the stockholder. A return of capital distribution does not necessarily reflect the Fund’s investment performance and should not be confused with ‘yield’ or ‘income.’ Furthermore, a return of capital distribution is not a guarantee of future distributions or yield.’ Any such returns of capital will decrease the Fund’s total assets and, therefore, could have the effect of increasing the Fund’s expense ratio. In addition, in order to maintain the level of distributions called for under its Policy, the Fund may have to sell portfolio securities at a less than opportune time.

    The following table sets forth the estimated amounts of the current distribution and the cumulative distributions declared this fiscal year to date from the following sources: net investment income, net realized capital gains and return of capital. All amounts are expressed per common share.

      Current Distribution % Breakdown of the Current Distribution Total Cumulative Distributions for the Fiscal Year to Date % Breakdown of the Total Cumulative Distributions for the Fiscal Year to Date
    Net Investment Income $0.00 0%   $0.00 0%  
    Net Realized Short-Term Capital Gains $0.00 0%   $0.00 0%  
    Net Realized Long-Term Capital Gains $0.2122 91.25%   $0.2122 45.6%  
    Return of Capital $0.0203 8.75%   $0.2528 54.4%  
    Total (per common share) $0.2325 100%   $0.4650 100%  
    Average annual total return (in relation to NAV) for the 5-year period ending on May 30, 2025 2.52%  
    Annualized current distribution rate expressed as a percentage of NAV as of May 30, 2025 17.55%  
    Cumulative total return (in relation to NAV) for the fiscal year through May 30, 2025 0.09%  
    Cumulative fiscal year distributions as a percentage of NAV as of May 30, 2025 17.55%  


    No conclusions should be drawn about the Fund’s investment performance from the amount of the Fund’s distributions or from the terms of the Policy.

    The amount distributed per share is subject to change at the discretion of the Board. The Policy is subject to ongoing review by the Board to determine whether it should be continued, modified or terminated. The Board may amend the terms of the Policy, suspend the Policy, or terminate the Policy at any time without prior notice to the Fund’s stockholders if it deems such actions to be in the best interest of the Fund or its stockholders. The amendment or termination of the Policy could have an adverse effect on the market price of the Fund’s shares. On May 9, 2024, the Board approved certain modifications to the Policy and extended the Policy through June 30, 2025.

    With each distribution that does not consist solely of net investment income, the Fund will issue a notice to stockholders and an accompanying press release that will provide detailed information regarding the amount and composition of the distribution and other related information. The amounts and sources of distributions reported in the notice to stockholders are only estimates and are not being provided for tax reporting purposes. The actual amounts and sources of the amounts for tax reporting purposes will depend upon the Fund’s investment experience during its full fiscal year and may be subject to changes based on tax regulations. The Fund will send stockholders a Form 1099-DIV for the respective calendar year that will tell them how to report these distributions for federal income tax purposes. Stockholders should consult their tax advisor for proper tax treatment of the Fund’s distributions.

    About Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors, Inc.

    Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors, Inc., founded in 1984, is an SEC registered investment advisor, specializing in investment analysis and account management in closed-end funds. The Firm also specializes in investment in the Caribbean Basin. The HERZFELD/CUBA division of Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors, Inc. serves as the investment advisor to The Herzfeld Caribbean Basin Fund, Inc. a publicly traded closed-end fund (NASDAQ: CUBA).

    More information about the advisor can be found at www.herzfeld.com.

    Past performance is no guarantee of future performance. An investment in the Fund is subject to certain risks, including market risk. In general, shares of closed-end funds often trade at a discount from their net asset value and at the time of sale may be trading on the exchange at a price which is more or less than the original purchase price or the net asset value. An investor should carefully consider the Fund’s investment objective, risks, charges and expenses. Please read the Fund’s disclosure documents before investing.

    Forward-Looking Statements

    This press release, and other statements that TJHA or the Fund may make, may contain forward looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act, with respect to the Fund’s or TJHA’s future financial or business performance, strategies or expectations. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words or phrases such as “trend,” “potential,” “opportunity,” “pipeline,” “believe,” “comfortable,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “current,” “intention,” “estimate,” “position,” “assume,” “outlook,” “continue,” “remain,” “maintain,” “sustain,” “seek,” “achieve,” and similar expressions, or future or conditional verbs such as “will,” “would,” “should,” “could,” “may” or similar expressions. TJHA and the Fund caution that forward-looking statements are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties, which change over time. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and TJHA and the Fund assume no duty to and do not undertake to update forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in forward-looking statements and future results could differ materially from historical performance. With respect to the Fund, the following factors, among others, could cause actual events to differ materially from forward-looking statements or historical performance: (1) changes and volatility in political, economic or industry conditions, particularly with respect to Cuba and other Caribbean Basin countries, the interest rate environment, foreign exchange rates or financial and capital markets, which could result in changes in demand for the Fund or in the Fund’s net asset value; (2) the relative and absolute investment performance of the Fund and its investments; (3) the impact of increased competition; (4) the unfavorable resolution of any legal proceedings; (5) the extent and timing of any distributions or share repurchases; (6) the impact, extent and timing of technological changes; (7) the impact of legislative and regulatory actions and reforms, including the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, and regulatory, supervisory or enforcement actions of government agencies relating to the Fund or TJHA, as applicable; (8) terrorist activities, international hostilities and natural disasters, which may adversely affect the general economy, domestic and local financial and capital markets, specific industries or TJHA or the Fund; (9) TJHA’s and the Fund’s ability to attract and retain highly talented professionals; (10) the impact of TJHA electing to provide support to its products from time to time; (11) the impact of problems at other financial institutions or the failure or negative performance of products at other financial institutions; and (12) the effects of an epidemic, pandemic or public health emergency, including without limitation, COVID-19. Annual and Semi-Annual Reports and other regulatory filings of the Fund with the SEC are accessible on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov and on TJHA’s website at www.herzfeld.com/cuba, and may discuss these or other factors that affect the Fund. The information contained on TJHA’s website is not a part of this press release.

    Contact:
    Tom Morgan
    Chief Compliance Officer
    Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors, Inc.
    1-305-777-1660

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: SB Financial Group Joins Russell 3000 Index

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    DEFIANCE, Ohio, June 30, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — SB Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: SBFG) (“SB Financial”), a diversified financial services company providing full-service community banking, mortgage banking, wealth management, private client and title insurance services, today announced that it has been named to the Russell 3000® and Russell 2000® indices.

    The annual reconstitution of the Russell US indices captures the 4,000 largest US stocks as of April 30, ranking them by total market capitalization. Membership in the Russell 3000® Index, which remains in place for one year, means automatic inclusion in the large-cap Russell 1000® Index or small-cap Russell 2000® Index as well as the appropriate growth and value style indices. FTSE Russell determines membership for its Russell indices primarily by objective, market-capitalization rankings and style attributes.

    “We are honored to be included in the Russell 3000 Index, a milestone that reflects the market’s recognition of the strength of our financial performance, the resilience of our business model, and the trust placed in us by our clients and shareholders,” said Mark A. Klein, Chairman, President and CEO of SB Financial Group. “This inclusion broadens our visibility within the investment community and underscores our continued progress in delivering consistent financial results and long-term value. As we move forward, we remain focused on disciplined growth and serving the evolving needs of the communities and clients we support.”

    About SB Financial Group, Inc.

    Headquartered in Defiance, Ohio, SB Financial Group is a diversified financial services holding company for The State Bank and Trust Company (State Bank) and SBFG Title, LLC dba Peak Title (Peak Title). State Bank provides a full range of financial services for consumers and small businesses, including wealth management, private client services, mortgage banking and commercial and agricultural lending, operating through a total of 26 offices: 24 in ten Ohio counties and two in Northeast, Indiana, and 26 ATMs. State Bank has six loan production offices located throughout the Tri-State region of Ohio, Indiana and Michigan. Peak Title provides title insurance and title opinions throughout the Tri-State and Kentucky. SB Financial Group’s common stock is listed on the NASDAQ Capital Market with the ticker symbol “SBFG”.

    About FTSE Russell, an LSEG Business

    FTSE Russell is a global index leader that provides innovative benchmarking, analytics and data solutions for investors worldwide. FTSE Russell calculates thousands of indexes that measure and benchmark markets and asset classes in more than 70 countries, covering 98% of the investable market globally. FTSE Russell index expertise and products are used extensively by institutional and retail investors globally. Approximately $18.1 trillion is benchmarked to FTSE Russell indexes. Leading asset owners, asset managers, ETF providers and investment banks choose FTSE Russell indexes to benchmark their investment performance and create ETFs, structured products and index-based derivatives. A core set of universal principles guides FTSE Russell index design and management: a transparent rules-based methodology is informed by independent committees of leading market participants. FTSE Russell is focused on applying the highest industry standards in index design and governance and embraces the IOSCO Principles. FTSE Russell is also focused on index innovation and customer partnerships as it seeks to enhance the breadth, depth and reach of its offering. 

    FTSE Russell is wholly owned by London Stock Exchange Group. 

    For more information, visit FTSE Russell.

    Forward-Looking Statements

    Certain statements within this document, which are not statements of historical fact, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially from those predicted by the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, risks and uncertainties inherent in the national and regional banking industry, changes in economic conditions in the market areas in which SB Financial and its subsidiaries operate, changes in policies by regulatory agencies, changes in accounting standards and policies, changes in tax laws, fluctuations in interest rates, demand for loans in the market areas in SB Financial and its subsidiaries operate, increases in FDIC insurance premiums, changes in the competitive environment, losses of significant customers, geopolitical events, the loss of key personnel and other risks identified in SB Financial’s Annual Report on Form 10-K and documents subsequently filed by SB Financial with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and SB Financial undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which the statement is made, except as required by law. All subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements attributable to SB Financial or any person acting on its behalf are qualified by these cautionary statements.

    Investor Contact Information:

    Mark A. Klein
    Chairman, President and
    Chief Executive Officer
    Mark.Klein@YourStateBank.com

    Anthony V. Cosentino
    Executive Vice President and
    Chief Financial Officer
    Tony.Cosentino@YourStateBank.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Members spotlight transparency and development in discussions on standards and regulations

    Source: WTO

    Headline: Members spotlight transparency and development in discussions on standards and regulations

    Daniela García of Ecuador handed over the Committee Chairperson role to Beatriz Stevens of the United Kingdom.
    Transparency and notification practices
    The week opened with a special meeting on transparency, featuring speakers from various regions, complemented by interactive discussions in breakout groups among all members. Representatives from TBT Enquiry Points shared their experiences on domestic institutional arrangements related to transparency, on opportunities to comment on members’ notifications and on ensuring timely preparation and submission of TBT notifications. Speakers emphasized the importance of timely consultation of all stakeholders in the regulatory process to improve the quality of regulations.
    Representatives from the private sector shared how they use the ePing platform to track, in real time, the 4,000+ notifications on product requirements circulated annually. They shared examples of how members viewed technical comments positively in the development of regulations, helping to further align them with international standards and avoid unnecessary trade disruptions.
    Throughout the session, members highlighted the benefits of using ePing to track information and meet transparency obligations. They welcomed the launch of a new feature in ePing where users can quickly receive translations of notified texts from non-WTO official languages into English, French and Spanish.  They also made suggestions to further facilitate stakeholders’ access to ePing and keep track of developments in product regulations.
    Members noted the significant progress made by the TBT Committee in strengthening transparency practices since the last special meeting in 2023. This includes the adoption of updates and improvements to the notification templates and guidelines as well as the finalization of a good practice guide for commenting . These improvements build on the work of the Transparency Working Group, reflecting continued efforts to streamline procedures and enhance access to information.  The recording of the special meeting can be watched here.
    Thematic session: special and differential treatment 
    A dedicated thematic session held on 24 June examined how developing and least-developed country members can better use flexibilities under the TBT Agreement. In particular, the session explored members’ experiences in using special and differential treatment disciplines under the Agreement, members’ engagement in the Committee’s work and the need for targeted capacity-building activities, including for developing quality infrastructure.
    The session drew on the themes of the Thirteenth WTO Ministerial Conference Declaration on Special and Differential Treatment, with the participation of Ambassador Kadra Hassan of Djibouti, Chair of the Committee on Trade and Development in Special Session. The panel discussion featured speakers from Brazil, Cambodia, Ecuador, Kenya, Senegal, Uganda, Viet Nam and Zambia. The recording of the session can be watched here. 
    Specific trade concerns 
    A total of 78 trade concerns regarding members’ proposed and final TBT regulations were raised at the Committee’s regular meeting. Among these, 20 were raised for the first time. The full list is available here. 
    The new trade concerns addressed a wide variety of regulatory issues related to home appliances, cotton bales, industrial chemicals, energy and warehouse storage systems, electrical equipment safety, biodegradable plastic products, and vehicles, among others. 
    Japan reported that progress was made on the trade concerns it had raised on certain provisions of China’s standard for information security technology for office devices, noting that such provisions have now been deleted, and thanking China for its cooperation.
    Side events and training: practical tools and partnerships
    Two ePing training sessions, led by the WTO Secretariat, were held on 25 and 26 June. 
    In addition, three side events were organized. The United States hosted a workshop on international standards for food and agriculture traceability on 24 June, led by the standards organization ASTM. On 25 June, the International Trade Centre showcased how quality and sustainability standards support development, with a case study from Burundi and a demonstration of the Standards Map tool.  On 26 June, the United Kingdom and the International Chamber of Commerce UK led a session on market access challenges and how tools such as ePing can support private sector engagement in members’ work on TBT and on sanitary and phytosanitary measures.
    What is next?
    The next TBT Committee meetings will be held from 10 to 14 November. Thematic sessions will focus on international standards for critical and emerging technologies, including AI, semiconductors and positioning systems, as well as good regulatory practices and metrology. A cross-cutting discussion on non-tariff measures under the WTO Information Technology Agreement will also be scheduled.

    Share

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Verizon celebrates 25 years of powering how people live, work and play

    Source: Verizon

    Headline: Verizon celebrates 25 years of powering how people live, work and play

    NEW YORK, NY – For 25 years, Verizon has been leading with technology and innovation for our customers and helped shape the way Americans connect every day. What started as a bold vision in 2000 has grown into a company with the most wireless retail connections in the industry and a network of technological breakthroughs that empowers millions of people to live, work and play in new, connected ways. Today, Verizon is marking our 25th anniversary by celebrating our past and looking to the future: building smarter networks, supporting communities and equipping the next generation.

    “For 25 years, our purpose has been rooted in our name: Veritas, delivering the truth and reliability that our customers trust, and Horizon, always looking forward,” said Hans Vestberg, Chairman and CEO of Verizon. “This is why we’ve built the nation’s most reliable 5G network. But it’s the people behind it — our V Team — who give us our heart. As we celebrate our past, our focus is firmly on the future: extending our leadership with intelligent solutions to connect every home and business to the possibilities of tomorrow.”

    25 years of firsts

    Verizon’s story is one of constant innovation. From pay phones to flip phones to smartphones, to rolling out 4G LTE nationwide, to being one of the first major carriers to launch fiber to the home with Fios, to pioneering the first 5G mobile network, Verizon has kept America and its customers at the forefront of technology. Along the way, our “Can you hear me now?” campaign has become a cultural touchstone, reminding consumers that reliability matters.

    A commitment to communities

    Verizon’s legacy is more than technology. In moments of crisis, like 9/11 and Hurricanes Katrina, Sandy and countless other natural disasters, Verizon teams work around the clock to keep families and first responders connected when they need it most. Our disaster resiliency work has since expanded to work with communities at risk of natural disasters year-round to empower them to be prepared for and able to recover from these disasters with greater confidence and connectivity.

    Building on Verizon’s support of communities, our commitment to closing the digital divide has brought digital skills training to nearly 9 million students through Verizon Innovative Learning. And, we know that staying connected isn’t just about access — it’s about supporting the well-being of the communities we serve by encouraging healthy relationships with technology. Through free resources that help parents guide their children’s tech use, and partnerships with digital wellness organizations, Verizon is working to ensure that everyone can navigate the digital world safely and confidently.

    Investing in America’s small businesses

    Verizon’s Small Business Digital Ready program offers a free online platform — designed in partnership with small business owners, for small business owners — featuring 50+ free courses such as AI automation, social media marketing, financial planning, as well as peer networking, community events and one-on-one coaching. To date, the program has supported more than 500,000 businesses.

    In addition, Verizon is opening doors for small businesses with our new Small Business Supplier Accelerator program — a commitment to spend $5 billion with small business suppliers over the next five years to help small businesses grow and thrive by working with Verizon and other large corporations.

    The Next 25: An AI-powered, customer-first future and expanding America’s most-reliable 5G network

    As part of this vision, Verizon’s pending acquisition of Frontier Communications represents a landmark expansion of our fiber footprint, poised to bring premium fiber connectivity to millions of new households. For the enterprise, Verizon AI Connect puts us at the forefront of powering the emerging AI economy, combining our industry-leading intelligent network with our expansive data center assets to deliver AI workloads at scale.

    At the same time, Verizon is redefining the customer experience with a suite of AI-powered enhancements. Key features include a “Customer Champion” team, where a dedicated expert leverages Google’s Gemini AI models to resolve complex issues from start to finish. This is complemented by new 24/7 live chat support and a redesigned My Verizon app that uses AI to provide proactive solutions.

    This is the latest chapter in a 25-year story of innovation with Verizon setting a new standard of how to connect customers at home and on the go.

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI USA: US Department of Labor awards nearly $84M in grants to expand Registered Apprenticeships

    Source: US Department of Labor

    WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the award of nearly $84 million in grants to 50 states and territories to increase the capacity of Registered Apprenticeship programs, representing an important step toward meeting the Administration’s goal of expanding the program to 1 million active apprentices.

    Since the beginning of the Trump Administration, over 134,000 new apprentices have registered across the nation. Today’s awards represent the base formula funding and competitive funding to states to increase their ability to serve, improve, and expand Registered Apprenticeship programs. This represents the third round of State Apprenticeship Expansion Formula funding the department has awarded. 

    This investment will further accelerate Registered Apprenticeship programs, incentivize the creation and ongoing success of programs, reduce barriers to entry for new employers and industries, foster innovation, and enhance overall transparency among Registered Apprenticeship stakeholders. 

    “Registered Apprenticeships are a vital tool for skills development, national economic competitiveness, business growth, and individual opportunity. They will become even more important as President Trump continues to create jobs in critical sectors like manufacturing and construction,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer. “I am committed to providing states and territories with the resources needed to meet their unique economic demands. Together, we will achieve President Trump’s goal of 1 million new active apprentices.”

    State Apprenticeship Expansion Formula funding will support the implementation of several Presidential Executive Orders related to enhancing and expanding the National Apprenticeship system including, “Preparing Americans for High-Paying Skilled Trade Jobs of the Future,” “Advancing Artificial Intelligence Education for American Youth,” “Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance,” and “Reinvigorating the Nuclear Industrial Base.”

    The funding advances the expansion of Registered Apprenticeships in both traditional and emerging industries, including technology, Artificial Intelligence, advanced manufacturing, supply chain, transportation, building trades, and construction. 

    The department awarded the following funding through the State Apprenticeship Expansion Formula grants:

    Recipient City State

    Amount
    Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development Juneau AK

    $423,872 
    Arizona Department of Economic Security Phoenix AZ

    $920,467 
    Arkansas Department of Commerce  Little Rock AR

    $780,950 
    Colorado Department of Labor and Employment Denver CO

    $856,474 
    Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Department of Labor Workforce Investment Agency Division Saipan MP

    $75,000 
    Delaware Department of Labor Wilmington DE

    $418,450 
    Georgia Technical College System Atlanta GA

    $1,100,109 
    Guam Department of Administration Tamuning GU

    $330,482 
    Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations Honolulu HI

    $556,981 
    Idaho Department of Labor Boise ID

    $485,605 
    Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity Springfield IL

    $1,665,343 
    Indiana Department of Workforce Development Indianapolis IN

    $1,281,731 
    Iowa Workforce Development Des Moines IA

    $766,805 
    Kansas Department of Commerce Topeka KS

    $543,717 
    Kentucky Department of Workforce Development Frankfort KY

    $741,890 
    Louisiana Workforce Commission Baton Rouge LA

    $653,593 
    Maine Department of Labor Augusta ME

    $420,202 
    Maryland Department of Labor Baltimore MD

    $1,069,642 
    Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development Boston MA

    $1,008,964 
    Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity Lansing MI

    $1,475,943 
    Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry Saint Paul MN

    $979,062 
    Mississippi Department of Employment Security Jackson MS

    $532,030 
    Missouri Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development Jefferson City MO

    $1,337,414 
    Montana Department of Labor and Industry Helena MT

    $447,029 
    Nebraska Department of Labor Lincoln NE

    $492,392 
    Nevada Office of the Labor Commissioner Las Vegas NV

    $695,737 
    New Hampshire Community College System Concord NH

    $482,658 
    New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development Trenton NJ

    $1,118,059 
    New Mexico Workforce Solutions Department Albuquerque NM

    $506,824 
    New York Department of Labor Albany NY

    $1,920,269 
    North Carolina Community College System Office Raleigh NC

    $1,158,891 
    North Dakota Department of Public Instruction Bismarck ND

    $399,249 
    Ohio Department of Job and Family Services Columbus OH

    $1,640,376 
    Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education Stillwater OK

    $590,719 
    Oregon Higher Education Coordinating Commission Salem OR

    $864,103 
    Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry Harrisburg PA

    $1,417,575 
    Puerto Rico Department of Economic Development and Commerce San Juan PR

    $441,721 
    Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training Cranston RI

    $444,939 
    South Carolina Board for Technical and Comprehensive Education Columbia SC

    $771,633 
    South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation Pierre SD

    $397,630 
    Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development Nashville TN

    $939,312 
    Texas Workforce Commission Austin TX

    $2,817,802 
    Utah Department of Workforce Services Salt Lake City UT

    $629,467 
    Vermont Department of Labor Workforce Development Montpelier VT

    $395,708 
    Virgin Islands Department of Education St. Thomas VI

    $75,000 
    Virginia Department of Workforce Development and Advancement Richmond VA

    $1,129,005 
    Washington State Department of Labor and Industries Tumwater WA

    $1,355,532 
    West Virginia Department of Economic Development Charleston WV

    $515,521 
    Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development Madison WI

    $1,015,406 
    Wyoming Department of Workforce Services  Cheyenne WY

    $352,363 

    The department also awarded the following competitive State Apprenticeship Expansion Formula grants:

    Recipient

    		 City

    State

    Amount
    Georgia Technical College System Atlanta GA

    $5,000,000 
    Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity Springfield IL

    $5,000,000 
    Indiana Department of Workforce Development Indianapolis IN

    $4,970,242 
    Maine Department of Labor Augusta ME

    $5,000,000 
    Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development Boston MA

    $5,000,000 
    Montana Department of Labor and Industry Helena MT

    $4,000,000 
    Oregon Higher Education Coordinating Commission Salem OR

    $4,990,464 
    Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training Cranston RI

    $4,242,278 
    Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development Nashville TN

    $5,000,000 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Disaster Recovery Center in McCracken County to Close Permanently Friday, June 27; Help is Still Available

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: Disaster Recovery Center in McCracken County to Close Permanently Friday, June 27; Help is Still Available

    Disaster Recovery Center in McCracken County to Close Permanently Friday, June 27; Help is Still Available

    FRANKFORT, Ky

    –The Disaster Recovery Center in McCracken County is scheduled to close permanently Friday, June 27 at 7 p

    m

    However, Kentucky survivors who experienced loss as the result of the April severe storms, straight-line winds, flooding, landslides and mudslides can still apply for FEMA assistance

     The Disaster Recovery Center in McCracken County is located at:McCracken County EM Complex(training room)3700 Coleman Road Paducah, KY 42001Working hours for Wednesday, June 25, until closing on Friday are 9 a

    m

    to 7 p

    m

    CT

    Disaster Recovery Centers are one-stop shops where you can get information and advice on available assistance from state, federal and community organizations

     You can get help to apply for FEMA assistance, learn the status of your FEMA application, understand the letters you get from FEMA and get referrals to agencies that may offer other assistance

    The U

    S

    Small Business Administration representatives and resources from the Commonwealth are also available at the Disaster Recovery Centers to assist you

    FEMA is encouraging Kentuckians affected by the April storms to apply for federal disaster assistance as soon as possible

    The deadline to apply is July 25

    Although the McCracken County Disaster Recovery Center is closing, you can visit any Disaster Recovery Center to get in-person assistance

    No appointment is needed

    To find all other center locations, including those in other states, go to fema

    gov/drc or text “DRC” and a Zip Code to 43362

     You don’t have to visit a center to apply for FEMA assistance

    There are other ways to apply: online at DisasterAssistance

    gov, use the FEMA App for mobile devices or call 800-621-3362

    If you use a relay service, such as Video Relay Service (VRS), captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA the number for that service

    When you apply, you will need to provide:A current phone number where you can be contacted

    Your address at the time of the disaster and the address where you are now staying

    Your Social Security Number

    A general list of damage and losses

    Banking information if you choose direct deposit

    If insured, the policy number or the agent and/or the company name

    For more information about Kentucky flooding recovery, visit www

    fema

    gov/disaster/4864

    Follow the FEMA Region 4 X account at x

    com/femaregion4

     
    martyce

    allenjr
    Mon, 06/30/2025 – 13:17

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Disaster Recovery Centers and SBA Centers in South Texas Closed for Fourth of July Holiday

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: Disaster Recovery Centers and SBA Centers in South Texas Closed for Fourth of July Holiday

    Disaster Recovery Centers and SBA Centers in South Texas Closed for Fourth of July Holiday

    AUSTIN, Texas – FEMA and the U

    S

    Small Business Administration announced today that the Disaster Recovery Centers (DRCs) and Business Recovery Centers (BRCs) opened in South Texas communities impacted by severe storms and flooding that occurred March 26-28, 2025, will temporarily close this week

    DRCs will be closed on Friday, July 4, and Saturday, July 5, for the Fourth of July Holiday

    SBA BRCs will be closed Friday, July 4

    In coordination with the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM), FEMA and SBA have been staffing DRCs to offer face-to-face help to residents of the four South Texas counties affected by the March weather event

     Additionally, SBA representatives, in partnership with FEMA and TDEM, are providing one-on-one assistance to disaster loan applicants at SBA’s BRCs throughout the affected areas

    Homeowners and renters in Cameron, Hidalgo, Starr and Willacy counties may be eligible for FEMA assistance for losses not covered by insurance

    FEMA and SBA support state-led recovery efforts at the DRCs

    Staff can help survivors apply for federal assistance

    They can also identify potential needs and connect survivors with local, state and federal agencies, as well as nonprofits and community groups

     Disaster Recovery Centers Hours and Locations:Normal hours of operation resume on Monday, July 7:Monday – Friday: 8 a

    m

    to 7 p

    m

    Saturdays: Open 8 a

    m

    to 5 p

    m

    Sundays: Closed

     Cameron CountySan Benito Parks and Recreation Building705 N Bowie St

    San Benito, TX Harlingen Convention Center701 Harlingen HeightsHarlingen, TX 78552 Hidalgo CountyLas Palmas Community Center1921 N

    25th St

      McAllen, TX   Pharr Development & Research Center  850 W

    Dicker Rd  Pharr, TX Weslaco EDC275 S

    Kansas Ave

    Weslaco, TX 78596 Starr CountyStarr County Courthouse Annex100 N FM 3167Rio Grande City, TX 78582 Willacy CountySebastian Community Center434 West 8th St

    Sebastian, TX 78594 SBA Business Recovery Centers Locations and Hours:Cameron CountyBusiness Recovery CenterHarlingen Chamber of Commerce311 E

    Tyler Ave

    Harlingen, TX  78559Mondays – Thursdays, 8 a

    m

    – 5 p

    m

    After the July 4 Holiday, Fridays, 8 a

    m

    – 4 p

    m

     Hidalgo CountyBusiness Recovery CenterValley Metro Transit Center510 S

    Pleasantview Dr

    BoardroomWeslaco, TX 78596Monday – Friday 8 a

    m

    to 5 p

    m

    (Friday hours resume after July 4 holiday)For information and to apply online visit SBA

    gov/disaster

    Applicants may also call the SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955 or email disastercustomerservice@sba

    gov for more information on SBA disaster assistance

    For people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services

    Survivors can also apply to FEMA in several ways including going online to DisasterAssistance

    gov, downloading the FEMA App for mobile devices or calling the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362

    Calls are accepted every day from 6 a

    m

    to 10 p

    m

    CT

    Help is available in most languages

     If you use a relay service, such as video relay (VRS), captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA the number for that service

    To view an accessible video about how to apply visit: Three Ways to Register for FEMA Disaster Assistance – YouTube

    For more information, visit fema

    gov/disaster/4871

    Follow FEMA Region 6 on social media at x

    com/FEMARegion6 and at facebook

    com/FEMARegion6/
    toan

    nguyen
    Mon, 06/30/2025 – 15:16

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Disaster Recovery Center Opening in Clayton

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: Disaster Recovery Center Opening in Clayton

    Disaster Recovery Center Opening in Clayton

    A Disaster Recovery Center with FEMA Individual Assistance staff is opening  Tuesday, July 1 in Clayton to help people affected by the March 14-15 or May 16 disasters

    At all locations, FEMA and the U

    S

    Small Business Administration will help impacted residents with their disaster assistance applications, answer questions, and upload required documents

    Opening Tuesday, July 1LOCATIONHOURS OF OPERATIONMid-County Branch Library                                                                   7821 Maryland Ave

    Clayton, MO 63105Monday-Thursday: 8 a

    m

    -7 p

    m

         Friday-Saturday: 8 a

    m

    -5 p

    m

     Sunday: ClosedCurrently Open LocationsLOCATIONSHOURS OF OPERATIONSt

    Louis County Library – Prairie Commons Branch915 Utz Ln

    Hazelwood, MO 63042Monday-Thursday: 8 a

    m

    -7 p

    m

    Friday-Saturday: 8 a

    m

    -5 p

    m

     Sunday: ClosedUnion Tabernacle M

    B

    Church626 N

    Newstead Ave

    St

    Louis, MO 63108Monday-Saturday: 8 a

    m

    -8 p

    m

    Sunday: ClosedThis location will be closed July 6-13

     Urban League Entrepreneurship and Women’s Business Center 4401 Natural Bridge Ave

    St

    Louis, MO 63115Monday-Saturday: 8 a

    m

    -8 p

    m

    Sunday: 8 a

    m

    -6 p

    m

    Sumner High School — Parking Lot4248 Cottage Ave

    St

    Louis, MO 63113     Monday-Saturday: 8 a

    m

    -7 p

    m

    Sunday: 8 a

    m

    -6 p

    m

    You may visit any location, no matter where you are staying now

    All Disaster Recovery Centers will be closed on Friday, July 4 and reopen on Saturday, July 5

     To save time, please apply for FEMA assistance before coming to a Disaster Recovery Center

    Apply online at DisasterAssistance

    gov or by calling 800-621-3362

     If you are unable to apply online or by phone, someone at the Disaster Recovery Center can assist you

     The FEMA application deadline for the March 14-15 disaster is July 22, 2025

     The FEMA application deadline for the May 16 disaster is August 11, 2025

     If your home or personal property sustained damage not covered by insurance, FEMA may be able to provide money to help you pay for home repairs, a temporary place to live, and replace essential personal property that was destroyed

     
    sara

    zuckerman
    Mon, 06/30/2025 – 15:08

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Disaster Recovery Center in Carroll County To Close Permanently; Help is Still Available

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: Disaster Recovery Center in Carroll County To Close Permanently; Help is Still Available

    Disaster Recovery Center in Carroll County To Close Permanently; Help is Still Available

    FRANKFORT, Ky

    –The Disaster Recovery Center in Carroll County is scheduled to close permanently June 28 at 7 p

    m

    Kentucky survivors who experienced loss as the result of the April severe storms, straight-line winds, flooding, landslides and mudslides can still apply for FEMA assistance

    The Disaster Recovery Center in Carroll County is located at:   Carrollton Utilities Operations, 900 Clay St

    , Carrollton, KY 41008  Working hours for this center are 9 a

    m

    to 7 p

    m

    Eastern Time, June 28

    Disaster Recovery Centers are one-stop shops where you can get information and advice on available assistance from state, federal and community organizations

     You can get help to apply for FEMA assistance, learn the status of your FEMA application, understand the letters you get from FEMA and get referrals to agencies that may offer other assistance

    The U

    S

    Small Business Administration representatives and resources from the Commonwealth are also available at the Disaster Recovery Centers to assist you

    FEMA is encouraging Kentuckians affected by the April storms to apply for federal disaster assistance as soon as possible

    The deadline to apply is July 25

    Although the Carroll County DRC is closing, you can visit any Disaster Recovery Center to get in-person assistance

    No appointment is needed

    To find all other center locations, including those in other states, go to fema

    gov/drc or text “DRC” and a Zip Code to 43362

     You don’t have to visit a center to apply for FEMA assistance

    There are other ways to apply: online at DisasterAssistance

    gov, use the FEMA App for mobile devices or call 800-621-3362

    If you use a relay service, such as Video Relay Service (VRS), captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA the number for that service

    When you apply, you will need to provide:A current phone number where you can be contacted

    Your address at the time of the disaster and the address where you are now staying

    Your Social Security Number

    A general list of damage and losses

    Banking information if you choose direct deposit

    If insured, the policy number or the agent and/or the company name

    For more information about Kentucky flooding recovery, visit and www

    fema

    gov/disaster/4864

    Follow the FEMA Region 4 X account at x

    com/femaregion4

     
    martyce

    allenjr
    Mon, 06/30/2025 – 13:34

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Disaster Recovery Center in Breckinridge County To Close Permanently; Help is Still Available

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: Disaster Recovery Center in Breckinridge County To Close Permanently; Help is Still Available

    Disaster Recovery Center in Breckinridge County To Close Permanently; Help is Still Available

    FRANKFORT, Ky

    –The Disaster Recovery Center in Breckinridge County is scheduled to close permanently June 30 at 7 p

    m

    Kentucky survivors who experienced loss as the result of the April severe storms, straight-line winds, flooding, landslides and mudslides can still apply for FEMA assistance

    The Disaster Recovery Center in Breckinridge County is located at:   McDaniels Community Center, 10762 S

    Highway 259, McDaniels, KY 40152 Working hours for this center 9 a

    m

    to 7 p

    m

    Central Time June 30

    Disaster Recovery Centers are one-stop shops where you can get information and advice on available assistance from state, federal and community organizations

     You can get help to apply for FEMA assistance, learn the status of your FEMA application, understand the letters you get from FEMA and get referrals to agencies that may offer other assistance

    The U

    S

    Small Business Administration representatives and resources from the Commonwealth are also available at the Disaster Recovery Centers to assist you

    FEMA is encouraging Kentuckians affected by the April storms to apply for federal disaster assistance as soon as possible

    The deadline to apply is July 25

    Although the Breckinridge County DRC is closing, you can visit any Disaster Recovery Center to get in-person assistance

    No appointment is needed

    To find all other center locations, including those in other states, go to fema

    gov/drc or text “DRC” and a Zip Code to 43362

     You don’t have to visit a center to apply for FEMA assistance

    There are other ways to apply: online at DisasterAssistance

    gov, use the FEMA App for mobile devices or call 800-621-3362

    If you use a relay service, such as Video Relay Service (VRS), captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA the number for that service

    When you apply, you will need to provide:A current phone number where you can be contacted

    Your address at the time of the disaster and the address where you are now staying

    Your Social Security Number

    A general list of damage and losses

    Banking information if you choose direct deposit

    If insured, the policy number or the agent and/or the company name

    For more information about Kentucky flooding recovery, visit and www

    fema

    gov/disaster/4864

    Follow the FEMA Region 4 X account at x

    com/femaregion4

     
    martyce

    allenjr
    Mon, 06/30/2025 – 13:37

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Disaster Recovery Center in Calloway County To Close Permanently; Help is Still Available

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: Disaster Recovery Center in Calloway County To Close Permanently; Help is Still Available

    Disaster Recovery Center in Calloway County To Close Permanently; Help is Still Available

    FRANKFORT, Ky

    –The Disaster Recovery Center in Calloway County is scheduled to close permanently June 30 at 7 p

    m

    Kentucky survivors who experienced loss as the result of the April severe storms, straight-line winds, flooding, landslides and mudslides can still apply for FEMA assistance

    The Disaster Recovery Center in Calloway County is located at:  Calloway County Courthouse Annex, 201 S

    4th St

    , Murray, KY 42071 Working hours for this center are 9 a

    m

    to 7 p

    m

    Central Time, June 28 and 30

    Disaster Recovery Centers are one-stop shops where you can get information and advice on available assistance from state, federal and community organizations

     You can get help to apply for FEMA assistance, learn the status of your FEMA application, understand the letters you get from FEMA and get referrals to agencies that may offer other assistance

    The U

    S

    Small Business Administration representatives and resources from the Commonwealth are also available at the Disaster Recovery Centers to assist you

    FEMA is encouraging Kentuckians affected by the April storms to apply for federal disaster assistance as soon as possible

    The deadline to apply is July 25

    Although the Calloway County DRC is closing, you can visit any Disaster Recovery Center to get in-person assistance

    No appointment is needed

    To find all other center locations, including those in other states, go to fema

    gov/drc or text “DRC” and a Zip Code to 43362

     You don’t have to visit a center to apply for FEMA assistance

    There are other ways to apply: online at DisasterAssistance

    gov, use the FEMA App for mobile devices or call 800-621-3362

    If you use a relay service, such as Video Relay Service (VRS), captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA the number for that service

    When you apply, you will need to provide:A current phone number where you can be contacted

    Your address at the time of the disaster and the address where you are now staying

    Your Social Security Number

    A general list of damage and losses

    Banking information if you choose direct deposit

    If insured, the policy number or the agent and/or the company name

    For more information about Kentucky flooding recovery, visit and www

    fema

    gov/disaster/4864

    Follow the FEMA Region 4 X account at x

    com/femaregion4

     
    martyce

    allenjr
    Mon, 06/30/2025 – 13:41

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Disaster Recovery Centers in Russell, Trigg Counties to Close Permanently; Help is Still Available

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: Disaster Recovery Centers in Russell, Trigg Counties to Close Permanently; Help is Still Available

    Disaster Recovery Centers in Russell, Trigg Counties to Close Permanently; Help is Still Available

    FRANKFORT, Ky

    –The Disaster Recovery Centers in Russell and Trigg counties are scheduled to close permanently this weekend

    However, Kentucky survivors who experienced loss as the result of the tornadoes of May 16-17 can still apply for FEMA assistance

     The Disaster Recovery Center in Russell County will close permanently Friday, June 27, at 7 p

    m

    The center in Trigg County will close permanently Saturday, June 28

    Both centers will be open during their regular working hours, 9 a

    m

    To 7 p

    m

    , until their final closure

      The Disaster Recovery Center in Russell County is located at:Russell County Courthouse410 Monument SquareJamestown, KY 42629 The Disaster Recover in Trigg County is located at:Trigg Emergency Operation Center39 Jefferson St

    Cadiz, KY 42211Disaster Recovery Centers are one-stop shops where you can get information and advice on available assistance from state, federal and community organizations

     You can get help to apply for FEMA assistance, learn the status of your FEMA application, understand the letters you get from FEMA and get referrals to agencies that may offer other assistance

    The U

    S

    Small Business Administration representatives and resources from the Commonwealth are also available at the Disaster Recovery Centers to assist you

    FEMA is encouraging Kentuckians affected by the May tornadoes to apply for federal disaster assistance as soon as possible

    The deadline to apply is July 23

    Although the Russell and Trigg County DRCs are closing, you can visit any open Disaster Recovery Center to get in-person assistance

    No appointment is needed

    To find all other center locations, including those in other states, go to fema

    gov/drc or text “DRC” and a Zip Code to 43362

     You don’t have to visit a center to apply for FEMA assistance

    There are other ways to apply: online at DisasterAssistance

    gov, use the FEMA App for mobile devices or call 800-621-3362

    If you use a relay service, such as Video Relay Service (VRS), captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA the number for that service

    When you apply, you will need to provide:A current phone number where you can be contacted

    Your address at the time of the disaster and the address where you are now staying

    Your Social Security Number

    A general list of damage and losses

    Banking information if you choose direct deposit

    If insured, the policy number or the agent and/or the company name

    For more information about Kentucky tornado recovery, visit www

    fema

    gov/disaster/4875

    Follow the FEMA Region 4 X account at x

    com/femaregion4

     
    martyce

    allenjr
    Mon, 06/30/2025 – 13:22

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Disaster Recovery Centers in Laurel, Pulaski Counties Update Operational Schedule to Mondays-Saturdays

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: Disaster Recovery Centers in Laurel, Pulaski Counties Update Operational Schedule to Mondays-Saturdays

    Disaster Recovery Centers in Laurel, Pulaski Counties Update Operational Schedule to Mondays-Saturdays

    FRANKFORT, Ky

    –The Disaster Recovery Centers in Laurel and Pulaski counties are scheduled to close Sundays beginning June 29 and resume operations Mondays

    New working hours are Monday through Saturday, 9 a

    m

    to 7 p

    m

    ET and closed Sundays

    Their locations are as follow:Laurel County Somerset Community CollegeLaurel Campus Building #2- Room 206100 University Dr

    London, KY 40741 Pulaski CountyPulaski Center for Rural DevelopmentBallroom D & E2292 US-27 NSomerset, KY 42501 Disaster Recovery Centers are one-stop shops where you can get information and advice on available assistance from state, federal and community organizations

     You can get help to apply for FEMA assistance, learn the status of your FEMA application, understand the letters you get from FEMA and get referrals to agencies that may offer other assistance

    The U

    S

    Small Business Administration representatives and resources from the Commonwealth are also available at the Disaster Recovery Centers to assist you

    FEMA is encouraging Kentuckians affected by the May tornadoes to apply for federal disaster assistance as soon as possible

    The deadline to apply is July 23

    Although the Laurel and Pulaski County DRCs are closing, you can visit any Disaster Recovery Center to get in-person assistance

    No appointment is needed

    To find all other center locations, including those in other states, go to fema

    gov/drc or text “DRC” and a Zip Code to 43362

     You don’t have to visit a center to apply for FEMA assistance

    There are other ways to apply: online at DisasterAssistance

    gov, use the FEMA App for mobile devices or call 800-621-3362

    If you use a relay service, such as Video Relay Service (VRS), captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA the number for that service

    When you apply, you will need to provide:A current phone number where you can be contacted

    Your address at the time of the disaster and the address where you are now staying

    Your Social Security Number

    A general list of damage and losses

    Banking information if you choose direct deposit

    If insured, the policy number or the agent and/or the company name

    For more information about Kentucky tornado recovery, visit www

    fema

    gov/disaster/4875

    Follow the FEMA Region 4 X account at x

    com/femaregion4

     
    martyce

    allenjr
    Mon, 06/30/2025 – 13:29

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: IMF Executive Board Completes the Eighth Review of the Extended Arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility for Ukraine

    Source: IMF – News in Russian

    June 30, 2025

    • The IMF Board today completed the Eighth Review of the Extended Arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) for Ukraine, enabling a disbursement of about US$0.5 billion (SDR 0.37 billion) to Ukraine, which will be channeled for budget support.
    • Ukraine’s economy remains resilient, and the authorities met all end-March and continuous quantitative performance criteria, the prior action, and two structural benchmarks for the review.
    • Despite the challenges, progressing with domestic revenue mobilization, strengthening the investment climate, improving governance, and completing the debt restructuring strategy are necessary to restore fiscal and debt sustainability and support growth. The full and timely disbursement of external support during the program period remains indispensable for macroeconomic stability

    Washington, DC: The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today completed the Eighth Review of the EFF, enabling the authorities to draw US$0.5 billion (SDR 0.37 billion, which will be channeled for budget support. This will bring the total disbursements under the IMF-supported program to US$10.6 billion.

    Ukraine’s 48-month EFF, with access of SDR 11.6 billion (equivalent to about US$15.5 billion, or 577 percent of quota), was approved on March 31, 2023, and forms part of an international support package totaling US$152.9 billion in the program’s baseline scenario. Ukraine’s IMF-supported program helps anchor policies that sustain fiscal, external, and macro-financial stability at a time of exceptionally high uncertainty. The EFF aims to support Ukraine’s economic recovery, enhance governance, and strengthen institutions with the aim of promoting long-term growth and investment.

    For the Eighth Review, Ukraine met all end-March and continuous quantitative performance criteria as well as the prior action to submit to the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine a detailed reform plan for the State Customs Service (SCS). Two structural benchmarks on tax reporting for digital platform operators and publication of the external audit of NABU were also completed. Four new benchmarks were also established, including: measures to update the single project pipeline; preparation of a prioritized roadmap for financial market infrastructure; implementation of international valuation standards; and development of legislative proposals to align securitization and bonds with international standards. The timelines of some other structural benchmarks, including the appointment of the head of the SCS, have been reset by the IMF Executive Board to allow the authorities more time to complete these important reforms. The authorities also requested a rephasing of access to IMF financing over the remainder of 2025 to better align them with Ukraine’s updated balance of payments needs, while the overall size of the program remains unchanged.   

    The 2025 growth forecast has been maintained at 2–3 percent as a smaller electricity deficit is offset by lower gas production and weaker agricultural exports. Pressures from Russia’s war will require a supplementary budget for 2025, and the medium-term fiscal path has been revised to better reflect the authorities’ policy intentions on revenue mobilization and expenditure prioritization. The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) has maintained a tight monetary policy to respond to the still high inflation, while inflation expectations remain anchored. FX reserves remain adequate, sustained by continued sizeable external support. Overall, the outlook remains subject to exceptionally high uncertainty.

    Following the Executive Board discussion on Ukraine, Ms. Gita Gopinath, First Deputy Managing Director of the IMF, issued the following statement[1]:

    “Russia’s war continues to take a devastating social and economic toll on Ukraine. Nevertheless, macroeconomic stability has been preserved through skillful policymaking as well as substantial external support. The economy has remained resilient, but the war is weighing on the outlook, with growth tempered by labor market strains and damage to energy infrastructure. Risks to the outlook remain exceptionally high and contingency planning is key to enable appropriate policy action should risks materialize.

    “The Fund-supported program remains fully financed, with a cumulative external financing envelope of US$153 billion in the baseline scenario and US$165 billion in the downside scenario, over the 4-year program period. This includes the full utilization of the approximately US$50 billion from the G7’s Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration Loans for Ukraine (ERA) initiative. Full, timely, and predictable disbursement of external support—on terms consistent with debt sustainability—remains essential to achieving program objectives.

    “The continuing war has necessitated a Supplementary Budget for 2025. Restoring fiscal sustainability and meeting elevated priority expenditures over the medium term will require continued decisive efforts to implement the National Revenue Strategy. This includes modernization of the tax and customs services (including the timely appointment of the customs head), reduction in tax evasion, and harmonization of legislation with EU standards. These reforms, combined with improvements in public investment management frameworks, medium-term budget preparation, and fiscal risk management, are critical to underpinning growth and investment. 

    “The authorities continue working to complete their debt restructuring strategy in line with the program’s debt sustainability objectives, which is essential to create room for priority expenditures, reduce fiscal risks, and restore debt sustainability.

    “Given still elevated inflation, the tight monetary policy stance is appropriate, and the NBU should stand ready to tighten further should inflation expectations deteriorate. Greater exchange rate flexibility will help strengthen economic resilience while safeguarding reserves.

    “The financial sector remains stable, though vigilance is needed given heightened risks. Operational and governance weaknesses in the security markets regulator need to be tackled urgently. Closing gaps in Ukraine’s capital markets infrastructure will be key to attracting foreign private capital for post-war reconstruction.

    “Sustained progress in anticorruption and governance reforms remains crucial. The completed audit of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau is an important step; additional efforts are required, including amending the criminal procedures code, appointing the new head of the Economic Security Bureau, and strengthening AML/CFT frameworks.”

    Table 1. Ukraine: Selected Economic and Social Indicators, 2021–27

    2021

     

    2022

     

    2023

    2024

    2025

    2026

    2027

    Act.

    Act.

    Act.

    Proj.

    Proj.

    Proj.

    Proj.

    Real economy (percent change, unless otherwise indicated)

    Nominal GDP (billions of Ukrainian hryvnias) 1/

    5,451

    		  

    5,239

    		  

    6,628

    7,659

    8,866

    10,192

    11,322

    Real GDP 1/

    3.4

    		  

    -28.8

    		  

    5.5

    2.9

    2-3

    4.5

    4.8

    Contributions:

    		                  

    Domestic demand

    12.8

    		  

    -19.0

    		  

    11.9

    3.8

    5.2

    3.4

    2.7

    Private consumption

    4.5

    		  

    -19.0

    		  

    3.0

    4.6

    2.8

    3.4

    2.7

    Public consumption

    0.1

    		  

    5.6

    		  

    3.0

    -1.5

    0.3

    -2.5

    -2.0

    Investment

    8.1

    		  

    -5.5

    		  

    5.8

    0.6

    2.1

    2.5

    2.0

    Net exports

    -9.3

    		  

    -9.8

    		  

    -6.3

    -0.8

    -3.2

    1.1

    2.1

    GDP deflator

    24.8

    		  

    34.9

    		  

    19.9

    12.3

    13.5

    10.0

    6.0

    Unemployment rate (ILO definition; period average, percent)

    9.8

    		  

    24.5

    		  

    19.1

    13.1

    11.6

    10.2

    9.4

    Consumer prices (period average)

    9.4

    		  

    20.2

    		  

    12.9

    6.5

    12.6

    7.6

    5.3

    Consumer prices (end of period)

    10.0

    		  

    26.6

    		  

    5.1

    12.0

    9.0

    7.0

    5.0

    Nominal wages (average)

    20.8

    		  

    1.0

    		  

    20.1

    23.1

    17.4

    13.7

    10.8

    Real wages (average)

    10.5

    		  

    -16.0

    		  

    6.4

    15.6

    4.2

    5.7

    5.3

    Savings (percent of GDP)

    12.5

    		  

    17.0

    		  

    12.8

    11.4

    4.4

    10.0

    18.3

    Private

    12.7

    		  

    30.2

    		  

    27.4

    23.3

    21.4

    15.9

    18.0

    Public

    -0.2

    		  

    -13.1

    		  

    -14.6

    -11.8

    -17.1

    -5.9

    0.3

    Investment (percent of GDP)

    14.5

    		  

    12.1

    		  

    18.1

    18.6

    20.9

    22.6

    23.7

    Private

    10.7

    		  

    9.6

    		  

    13.4

    13.3

    16.6

    18.3

    18.9

    Public

    3.8

    		  

    2.5

    		  

    4.7

    5.4

    4.3

    4.3

    4.9
                     

    General Government (percent of GDP)

    		                  

    Fiscal balance 2/

    -4.0

    		  

    -15.6

    		  

    -19.3

    -17.2

    -21.3

    -10.1

    -4.6

    Fiscal balance, excl. grants 2/

    -4.0

    		  

    -24.8

    		  

    -25.8

    -23.1

    -22.1

    -10.4

    -5.6

    External financing (net)

    2.5

    		  

    10.7

    		  

    16.2

    15.0

    24.5

    8.9

    1.7

    Domestic financing (net), of which:

    1.5

    		  

    5.0

    		  

    3.1

    0.3

    -3.1

    1.3

    2.8

    NBU

    -0.3

    		  

    7.3

    		  

    -0.2

    -0.2

    -0.1

    -0.1

    -0.1

    Commercial banks

    1.4

    		  

    -1.5

    		  

    2.5

    2.9

    2.7

    0.8

    3.4

    Public and publicly-guaranteed debt

    48.9

    		  

    77.7

    		  

    81.2

    89.7

    108.6

    110.4

    106.4
                     

    Money and credit (end of period, percent change)

    		                  

    Base money

    11.2

    		  

    19.6

    		  

    23.3

    7.7

    21.7

    13.1

    10.4

    Broad money

    12.0

    		  

    20.8

    		  

    23.0

    13.4

    14.4

    13.2

    10.4

    Credit to nongovernment

    8.4

    		  

    -3.1

    		  

    -0.5

    13.5

    10.6

    17.7

    18.6
                     

    Balance of payments (percent of GDP)

    		                  

    Current account balance

    -1.9

    		  

    4.9

    		  

    -5.3

    -7.2

    -16.5

    -12.6

    -5.4

    Foreign direct investment

    3.8

    		  

    0.1

    		  

    2.5

    1.8

    2.2

    4.0

    5.0

    Gross reserves (end of period, billions of U.S. dollars)

    30.9

    		  

    28.5

    		  

    40.5

    43.8

    53.4

    52.8

    55.6

    Months of next year’s imports of goods and services

    4.5

    		  

    3.8

    		  

    5.3

    5.1

    6.3

    6.3

    6.5

    Percent of short-term debt (remaining maturity)

    74.4

    		  

    83.3

    		  

    100.3

    130.9

    178.9

    171.5

    172.1

    Percent of the IMF composite metric (float)

    105.5

    		  

    110.3

    		  

    130.2

    125.4

    125.5

    114.0

    115.7

    Goods exports (annual volume change in percent)

    39.0

    		  

    -37.5

    		  

    -8.5

    16.8

    3.0

    14.9

    14.3

    Goods imports (annual volume change in percent)

    15.1

    		  

    -29.7

    		  

    18.5

    6.0

    19.3

    4.7

    5.5

    Goods terms of trade (percent change)

    -8.4

    		  

    -11.6

    		  

    3.6

    0.5

    1.3

    1.0

    0.4
                     

    Exchange rate

    		                  

    Hryvnia per U.S. dollar (end of period)

    27.3

    		  

    36.6

    		  

    38.0

    42.0

    …

    …

    …

    Hryvnia per U.S. dollar (period average)

    27.3

    		  

    32.3

    		  

    36.6

    40.2

    …

    …

    …

    Real effective rate (CPI-based, percent change)

    2.6

    		  

    3.2

    		  

    -6.7

    -6.5

    …

    …

    …

    Memorandum items:

    Per capita GDP / Population (2017): US$2,640 / 44.8 million

    Literacy / Poverty rate (2022 est 3/): 100 percent / 25 percent perpercentpercent

    Sources: Ukrainian authorities; World Bank, World Development Indicators; and IMF staff estimates.

    1/ GDP is compiled as per SNA 2008 and excludes territories that are or were in direct combat zones and temporarily occupied by Russia (consistent with the TMU).

    2/ The general government includes the central and local governments and the social funds.

    3/ Based on World Bank estimates.

    [1] At the conclusion of the discussion, the Managing Director, as Chairman of the Board, summarizes the views of Executive Directors, and this summary is transmitted to the country’s authorities. An explanation of any qualifiers used in summing up can be found here: http://www.IMF.org/external/np/sec/misc/qualifiers.htm.

    IMF Communications Department
    MEDIA RELATIONS

    PRESS OFFICER: Camila Perez

    Phone: +1 202 623-7100Email: MEDIA@IMF.org

    https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2025/06/30/pr-25227-ukraine-imf-completes-8th-rev-of-ext-arrang-under-eff

    MIL OSI

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Commerce Actively Plans State Drone Replacement Program for Enhanced Security

    Source: US State of North Dakota

    The North Dakota Department of Commerce is actively planning the development of the State’s UAS (Uncrewed Aircraft Systems) Replacement Program, as authorized by Senate Bill No. 2018 during the 69th Legislative Assembly.

    While a public rollout timeline is pending, Commerce is collaborating with the Northern Plains UAS Test Site (NPUASTS) to plan logistics, technical requirements and training protocols. The program, supported by a $9 million appropriation from the Strategic Investment and Improvements Fund, will replace non-compliant drones currently in use by state agencies to align with national security standards.

    NPUASTS will help lead efforts around safe UAS disposal, shared agency access and secure operations. Commerce is required to submit a full report to Legislative Management by June 30, 2026, detailing program implementation, drone replacement numbers and training progress.

    “This program reflects North Dakota’s continued leadership in UAS innovation, while also ensuring we meet the standards outlined in the American Security Drone Act of 2023 and the National Defense Authorization Act of 2024,” said Commerce Commissioner Chris Schilken. “We’re laying a thoughtful, strategic foundation and look forward to sharing more details as plans advance.”

    For more information about the program, visit https://www.npuasts.com/drone-replacement-program. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Video: FfD4, Gender Equality, Gaza & other topics – Daily Press Briefing (30 June 2025)

    Source: United Nations (video statements)

    Noon Briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

    Highlights:
    Secretary-General/Conference on Financing for Development
    Deputy Secretary-General/FfD4
    Gender Equality
    Gaza
    Occupied Palestinian Territory
    Security Council
    An Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL)
    Syria
    Ukraine
    Sudan
    DRC/Rwanda
    Afghanistan Refugees
    International Days
    Financial Contribution
    UNGA80
    Programming Note

    SECRETARY-GENERAL/CONFERENCE ON FINANCING FOR DEVELOPMENT
    The Secretary-General is in Sevilla, Spain, where he is attending the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development. This morning, at the opening of the Conference, he said that financing is the engine of development, and right now, this engine is sputtering.
    “As we meet,” the Secretary-General pointed out, “the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, our global promise to transform our world for a better, fairer future, is in danger. He stressed that the conference is not about charity, it’s about restoring justice and lives of dignity.”
    The Secretary-General also added that the conference is not about money, it’s about investing in the future we want to build, together.
    In the afternoon, at the launch of the Sevilla Platform for Action, the Secretary-General highlighted that the Platform offers an ambitious, action-oriented response to the global financing challenge.
    Soon after, at the opening of the International Business Forum, the Secretary-General underscored that by uniting public and private sector leaders, regulators and development banks, we can ensure that the conference is not an end, but rather a beginning.
    The Secretary-General also addressed that media in a joint press encounter with the President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez. He stressed that with the adoption of the Sevilla Commitment document, countries are proving their dedication to getting the engine of development revving again.
    Today, the Secretary-General also held a bilateral meeting with the President of the Government of Spain, and yesterday, he met His Majesty Don Felipe VI, King of Spain, He is also having a number of bilateral meetings with other delegation leaders who will be at the conference. We will share readouts of some of those meetings shortly.

    DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL/FFD4
    Ms. Amina Mohammed, the Deputy Secretary-General, joined the Secretary-General for the opening ceremony of the conference and his meeting with the President of the Government of Spain.
    Later, she delivered remarks at side events focused on closing the SDG financing gap, including on the role of public-private cooperation, the centrality of gender equality in sustainable finance, and the leadership of African women in advancing the 2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063.
    She also held bilateral meetings with senior government officials and Heads of Government attending the conference.

    GENDER EQUALITY
    At the Fourth International Financing for Development conference in Spain, the adoption of the Compromiso de Sevilla reaffirmed the global commitment to inclusive sustainable development. However, UN Women is warning that chronic underfunding and unfair financial systems are hindering gender equality progress.
    Developing countries are falling short by an estimated $420 billion a year in the funding needed to achieve gender equality under the Sustainable Development Goals.
    UN Women is urging world leaders to match political commitments with the sustained, transparent, and accountable financing needed to deliver on promises to half the world’s population.

    Full Highlights:
    https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date%5Bvalue%5D%5Bdate%5D=30%20June%202025

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svTsTXC1aiw

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI Video: FfD4, Gender Equality, Gaza & other topics – Daily Press Briefing (30 June 2025)

    Source: United Nations (video statements)

    Noon Briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

    Highlights:
    Secretary-General/Conference on Financing for Development
    Deputy Secretary-General/FfD4
    Gender Equality
    Gaza
    Occupied Palestinian Territory
    Security Council
    An Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL)
    Syria
    Ukraine
    Sudan
    DRC/Rwanda
    Afghanistan Refugees
    International Days
    Financial Contribution
    UNGA80
    Programming Note

    SECRETARY-GENERAL/CONFERENCE ON FINANCING FOR DEVELOPMENT
    The Secretary-General is in Sevilla, Spain, where he is attending the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development. This morning, at the opening of the Conference, he said that financing is the engine of development, and right now, this engine is sputtering.
    “As we meet,” the Secretary-General pointed out, “the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, our global promise to transform our world for a better, fairer future, is in danger. He stressed that the conference is not about charity, it’s about restoring justice and lives of dignity.”
    The Secretary-General also added that the conference is not about money, it’s about investing in the future we want to build, together.
    In the afternoon, at the launch of the Sevilla Platform for Action, the Secretary-General highlighted that the Platform offers an ambitious, action-oriented response to the global financing challenge.
    Soon after, at the opening of the International Business Forum, the Secretary-General underscored that by uniting public and private sector leaders, regulators and development banks, we can ensure that the conference is not an end, but rather a beginning.
    The Secretary-General also addressed that media in a joint press encounter with the President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez. He stressed that with the adoption of the Sevilla Commitment document, countries are proving their dedication to getting the engine of development revving again.
    Today, the Secretary-General also held a bilateral meeting with the President of the Government of Spain, and yesterday, he met His Majesty Don Felipe VI, King of Spain, He is also having a number of bilateral meetings with other delegation leaders who will be at the conference. We will share readouts of some of those meetings shortly.

    DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL/FFD4
    Ms. Amina Mohammed, the Deputy Secretary-General, joined the Secretary-General for the opening ceremony of the conference and his meeting with the President of the Government of Spain.
    Later, she delivered remarks at side events focused on closing the SDG financing gap, including on the role of public-private cooperation, the centrality of gender equality in sustainable finance, and the leadership of African women in advancing the 2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063.
    She also held bilateral meetings with senior government officials and Heads of Government attending the conference.

    GENDER EQUALITY
    At the Fourth International Financing for Development conference in Spain, the adoption of the Compromiso de Sevilla reaffirmed the global commitment to inclusive sustainable development. However, UN Women is warning that chronic underfunding and unfair financial systems are hindering gender equality progress.
    Developing countries are falling short by an estimated $420 billion a year in the funding needed to achieve gender equality under the Sustainable Development Goals.
    UN Women is urging world leaders to match political commitments with the sustained, transparent, and accountable financing needed to deliver on promises to half the world’s population.

    Full Highlights:
    https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date%5Bvalue%5D%5Bdate%5D=30%20June%202025

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svTsTXC1aiw

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Rutherford Leads Bipartisan, Bicameral Florida Delegation Letter Urging State Management of South Atlantic Red Snapper

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman John Rutherford (4th District of Florida)

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Monday, U.S. Congressman John H. Rutherford (FL-05) led a bipartisan, bicameral group of Florida legislators in a letter to U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in support of Florida state management of red snapper and other reef fish in the South Atlantic.

    “Every local angler I talk to says there are more red snapper off the coast of Northeast Florida than ever before,” said Rutherford. “Yet, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) under President Biden only gave us one day to fish last summer. It’s time to hand over the South Atlantic fishery management to our Governors DeSantis, Kemp, and McMaster.”

    Rutherford was joined by Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) and Representatives Aaron Bean (FL-04), Gus Bilirakis (FL-), Vern Buchanan (FL-16), Kat Cammack (FL-03), Mario Diaz-Balart (FL-26), Bryon Donalds (FL-19), Neal Dunn (FL-02), Randy Fine (FL-06), Scott Franklin (FL-15), Carlos Gimenez (FL-26), Laurel Lee (FL-15), Anna Paulina Luna (FL-13), Brian Mast (FL-18), Cory Mills (FL-07), Jared Moskowitz (FL-23), Jimmy Patronis (FL-01), Maria Salazar (FL-27), Greg Steube (FL-17), and Daniel Webster (FL-11).

    Read the full letter below:

    Dear Secretary Lutnick,

    We, the undersigned members of Florida’s congressional delegation, write to share our support for the request of Governors DeSantis, Kemp, and McMaster to implement state management of red snapper and other reef fish in the South Atlantic.  For too long, Florida anglers in the South Atlantic have been largely shut out of red snapper harvest opportunities despite unprecedented growth and record abundance in this fishery.

    NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service recently determined that red snapper is no longer overfished and approved a final rule to end overfishing.  We thank you for rejecting the bottom closures that were in the Biden Administration’s proposed rule.  Closing bottom fishing from December to February for 55 species off the east coast of Florida would have been devastating to our state’s economy.  The drastic nature of the proposal highlights the need for significant changes to South Atlantic red snapper management to ensure reasonable harvest opportunities in this fishery, and we look forward to working with President Trump and his administration to achieve that goal.

    Florida has demonstrated its ability to use sound science to successfully manage red snapper in the Gulf. This success was made possible by President Trump during his first administration when he gave the five Gulf states a leading role in managing the red snapper fishery.  Since then, the health of Florida’s Gulf red snapper population has continued to improve, growing the season from 3 to 126 days.  We believe the current abundance of South Atlantic red snapper, combined with strong interest from states in the region to take on a greater role in data collection and management, presents an extraordinary opportunity to make state-led management in the South Atlantic a resounding success, much like the model seen in the Gulf.

    While the federal government has struggled to collect reliable data and timely estimates of recreational red snapper harvests, Florida and the South Atlantic states have the capability of collecting accurate data which will provide more quality fishing opportunities while promoting conservation.  We urge the Department of Commerce to work swiftly with Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina to grant the states the authority to manage red snapper and other reef fish in the South Atlantic. We look forward to advancing state management for the benefit of fishermen, conservation, and our coastal economy. 

    ###

     

    MIL OSI USA News –