Latest news with #ChristopherJohnson
IOL News
a day ago
- Business
- IOL News
BRICS+ Series: US intensifies Chinese Chip Development Regulation
This photo taken shows semiconductor chips under process at a factory in Binzhou, in eastern China's Shandong province. The administration of US President, Donald Trump, has directed American software firms responsible for semiconductor design tools to cease sales to Chinese clients, intensifying efforts to curb China's technological progress in advanced chip manufacturing. This policy shift, communicated through the Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), focuses on companies providing electronic design automation (EDA) software, including leading providers such as Synopsys, Cadence Design Systems, and Siemens EDA. Washington Targets EDA Exports to Curb China's Chip Ambitions According to insiders, BIS has issued official notices to these firms, though it remains unclear whether the guidance has reached all relevant entities. The move represents a strategic escalation in Washington's campaign to restrict China's capacity to produce cutting-edge artificial intelligence chips, following similar restrictions earlier this year on AI semiconductors designed specifically for the Chinese market by Nvidia. Tensions Resurface Amid Fragile US-China Trade Truce The timing of the announcement is particularly sensitive, coinciding with renewed attempts by Washington and Beijing to ease trade tensions, including a recent agreement in Geneva to suspend reciprocal tariffs for 90 days. Nonetheless, the latest export controls risk reigniting hostilities, as some US officials had previously advocated for a delay to safeguard the fragile truce. Industry analysts have flagged the potential instability of this diplomatic pause. Christopher Johnson, a former CIA China analyst and current head of China Strategies Group, noted that both sides are keen to showcase their leverage, with China utilising its control over rare earth supplies as a bargaining chip, prompting US policymakers to reassert their influence via export regulations. Financial and Industry Fallout for US Firms EDA tools, while representing a smaller niche of the semiconductor ecosystem, play a pivotal role in chip innovation by enabling design and testing processes. American companies dominate the global EDA landscape, collectively holding around 80% of the Chinese market share. In 2024, Synopsys reported nearly $1 billion in Chinese revenue—around 16% of its total—while Cadence's Chinese income stood at $550 million, or 12% of its earnings. The announcement immediately affected financial markets, with shares of Synopsys and Cadence dropping 9.6% and 10.7%, respectively. Siemens, which owns Siemens EDA, confirmed it had been notified of the new restrictions and pledged to support its global customers while adhering to export laws. During his first term, Trump had already banned Chinese telecom giant Huawei from accessing US EDA technology, a move aimed at undermining a potential rival to Nvidia, particularly through Huawei's AI chip line, 'Ascend.' Despite these actions, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang recently suggested that American efforts to isolate China's AI sector have largely fallen short. Meanwhile, Synopsys' planned $35 billion acquisition of Ansys, a US-based simulation software firm, remains under review by Chinese regulators. In a related development, the US Federal Trade Commission has required the divestiture of certain software tools as a condition for approving the merger. Ansys' shares dropped 5.3% following the news. China's Domestic EDA Sector Gains Ground China's response to these mounting restrictions has included strengthening its domestic EDA sector. Local players such as Empyrean Technology, Primarius, and Semitronix have seen rapid growth, with their shares climbing over 10% in early trading following the US directive. This latest export control decision is part of a broader strategy by Washington to protect its technological edge while navigating an increasingly competitive and adversarial relationship with Beijing. Written by: *Dr Iqbal Survé Past chairman of the BRICS Business Council and co-chairman of the BRICS Media Forum and the BRNN *Cole Jackson Lead Associate at BRICS+ Consulting Group Chinese & South American Specialist **The Views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of Independent Media or IOL. ** MORE ARTICLES ON OUR WEBSITE ** Follow @brics_daily on X/Twitter & @brics_daily on Instagram for daily BRICS+ updates
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Agawam community breaks ground on $230 million high school project
AGAWAM, Mass. (WWLP) – The town of Agawam is taking a major step into the future, officially beginning construction on its new high school. Life sciences sector growth slows in Mass. For alumni, this was an emotional farewell, but also an exciting glimpse of what's to come. A symbolic shovel of dirt marked the moment Agawam takes its next big step forward, breaking ground on its brand-new high school. 'Rooted in commitment, collaboration, and the shared belief that our students deserve nothing but the very best,' says Principal Jim Blain. Town officials, students, and alumni gathered at the high school on Cooper Street Tuesday evening, reflecting on the building that's stood there for nearly 7 decades and celebrating a vision that's been years in the making. Mayor Christopher Johnson remarked, 'I think, going to be one of the most beautiful high schools in the valley. We've been waiting a long time to do this, and the great part about this is all the children who will someday graduate from the new Agawam High School.' The $230 million project will feature a new 234,000 square-foot, two-story building that will serve grades 9 through 12. Construction will unfold in phases, wrapping up by 2028. Student Saege Holloman, Class of 2032, reflecting on the future, 'When you think of a school, you think of a foundation–That brings a bunch of students together with a lot of opportunities. And if you look around, that is exactly what we are trying to build.' A heartfelt goodbye to the building that shaped countless generations of students and a bold first step into a new chapter for Agawam. The town of Agawam has a website dedicated to providing updates on the high school project. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CBS News
4 days ago
- General
- CBS News
Two arrested for robbing Colorado postal workers at gunpoint
A man and woman were recently indicted and arrested for holding up mail carriers on the same day last year in Montbello. Christopher Johnson, 35, and Brisa Sierra-Silva, 25, are accused of attempting to rob one mail carrier at gunpoint and successfully robbing another less than 10 blocks away on March 4, 2024. The first incident happened near Bolling Drive and Duluth Court. The second occurred in the 4600 block of Eureka Court. In the days following the robberies, the United States Postal Service offered a $150,000 reward for information about the crimes. It also released video from a neighbor's doorbell camera showing two suspects running toward and entering a white Hyundai Sonata, the getaway car. In a still image taken from surveillance video, two suspects run toward a getaway car on March 4, 2024, after taking part in one of two robberies of mail carriers in Montbello. Brisa Sierra-Silva and Christopher Johnson have been arrested by federal authorities and charged in the case. United State Postal Service The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Colorado announced the arrests May 23, two days after taking Johnson into custody and the same day Sierra-Silva was re-arrested. Sierra-Silva was initially handcuffed April 25 but missed a court-mandated meeting with a probation officer, thus violating the terms of her release. Sierra-Silva is charged with robbery and attempted robbery. Johnson faces one count of attempted robbery. Both are scheduled for the same jury trial in federal court beginning July 21. There was no information provided by the USPS about any injuries to either USPS worker, or if the advertised reward was paid out. Nor did the federal DA's press release speak to the potential arrests of additional suspects; the doorbell camera video suggests more than two people were involved. In a related matter, a Denver man was sentenced last week for breaking into a Colorado post office three years ago. Zachary Jones, 36, of Denver, was sentenced to 41 months in federal prison on Thursday. Jones pleaded guilty to prying open a door at the Dacono Post Office on April 5, 2022. According to prosecutors, he stole a computer terminal, laptop, scanner, two printers, one postal service jacket, nine keys, two genuine postal service keys, seven employee personnel files, and one binder containing postal applications. USPS investigators found and confronted Jones a month later. He was in possession of several of the stolen items, plus a handgun. As a previously convicted felon, Jones was not legally permitted to carry a firearm. "Protecting the integrity of the U.S. mail and ensuring the safety and security of the U.S. Postal Service, its employees, and its customers is core to the mission of the United State Postal Inspection Service," USPS Denver Division Acting Inspector in Charge Steve Hodges stated in a press release. "This sentencing serves as a reminder that postal inspectors work tirelessly day in and day out to bring to justice those who seek to do harm to the U.S. Postal Service."
Bloomberg
28-05-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Bloomberg Expands Market-On-Close List Trading to Include US Treasuries
Expanded list trading tool from Bloomberg Electronic Trading optimizes US Treasury trading workflow New York, NY – Bloomberg today announced the expansion of its Market-On-Close list trading offering to include US Treasuries (UST). This follows the launch of Market-On-Close for European Government Bonds. BMO Capital Markets and Schwab Asset Management, who were instrumental in the development of the new tool, executed the first trade referencing Bloomberg's Evaluated Pricing Service (BVAL) as the closing price. The new workflow is currently supported by nine dealers, with additional liquidity providers expected to join the offering in 2025. Market on Close orders enable investors to automatically get into or out of a market at the closing price without having to manually place an order immediately when the market closes. Bloomberg Electronic Trading's UST Market on Close trading tool further helps to minimize tracking error and provides certainty of execution, referencing a specific close time, using Bloomberg's Evaluated Pricing Service (BVAL) as the closing price. The new solution provides clients the optionality of negotiating non-comp trades or sending in-comp trades to at least five dealers. Clients can identify the optimal liquidity provider using integrated axe data, powerful analytics and communication tools on Bloomberg. The expanded offering also utilizes Bloomberg's Portfolio Trading Basket Builder (PTBB) tool, part of Bloomberg's Portfolio Trading Solution, which allows participants to negotiate and transact electronically using an end of day snapshot. 'We're proud to have partnered with Bloomberg on the development of Market-on-Close list trading for UST, which will benefit the industry broadly,' said Christopher Johnson, Global Head of Trading, Schwab Asset Management. 'Now live, we leverage the tool to help lock in benchmark-relative pricing, scale our team, reduce risk and limit tracking error in our index portfolios.' 'Market on Close trading offers predictability and a range of advantages, supporting better risk transfer and facilitating end-of-day trading strategies,' said Joseph Leary, Head, Digital and Liquid Trading, BMO Capital Markets. 'We've expanded our Market on Close offering to include US Treasuries, which delivers seamless alignment with benchmark pricing using BVAL. The functionality helps to minimize market impact, reduce slippage and increases certainty of execution, which are especially important during volatile markets,' said Trevor Mallinson, Global Head of Rates Product at Bloomberg. 'This is an exciting enhancement for clients trading government bonds, as it helps ensure pricing certainty and access to liquidity and highlights our focus on continuing to invest in our electronic trading solutions.' Bloomberg's Electronic Trading solutions are used by leading financial institutions to trade efficiently in over 175 markets around the world. More than 9,000 client firms use Bloomberg Electronic Trading to access industry-leading depth and breadth of liquidity across asset classes from over 1,500 dealers globally. Bloomberg Electronic Trading provides market participants with comprehensive solutions across the trading lifecycle, including robust price transparency, analytics, automation and execution, powered by Bloomberg's high-quality, multi-asset class data and tools. About Bloomberg Bloomberg is a global leader in business and financial information, delivering trusted data, news, and insights that bring transparency, efficiency, and fairness to markets. The company helps connect influential communities across the global financial ecosystem via reliable technology solutions that enable our customers to make more informed decisions and foster better collaboration. For more information, visit or request a demo. Bloomberg media contact Gauri Andriks gandriks@ +1 212 617 6361
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Yahoo
2 charged with robbing mail carriers at gunpoint in Montbello
DENVER (KDVR) — The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Colorado announced Friday that two suspects have been indicted in connection with the attempted robbery and subsequent robbery of two postal carriers last year. Brisa Sierra-Silva, 25, and Christopher Johnson, 35, were indicted in connection with the March 4, 2024, attempted armed robbery of a postal carrier at about 5 p.m. near Bolling Drive and Duluth Court, and the armed robbery of a second postal carrier shortly thereafter in the 4600 block of Eureka Court. FOX31 Newsletters: Sign up to get breaking news sent to your inbox Sierra-Silva is charged with one count of robbery and one count of attempted robbery. She appeared in court initially on April 25. Johnson is charged with one count of attempted robbery and made his initial court appearance on May 21. U.S. Postal Inspector Melissa S. Atkin told FOX31 last year that there were three to four suspects seen on video in a white Hyundai Sonata, and that neither carrier was injured during the incidents. The Colorado State Association of Letter Carriers also told FOX31 last year that during 2020-2024, there was a 300% increase in attacks on letter carriers. Before the suspects were charged, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service was offering up to $150,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspects. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
