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The Student News Site of Northern Illinois University

Northern Star

The Student News Site of Northern Illinois University

Northern Star

‘Promises kept’ mantra doesn’t always match Trump’s reality

By KEVIN FREKING | February 23, 2020

WASHINGTON (AP) — “It's been three years of promises made and promises kept, but we’re just getting started, (insert state here)."That line from Vice President Mike Pence is a hallmark of how he introduces President Donald Trump to campaign rally...

Afghan truce worry: 1 militant could threaten peace process

By LOLITA C. BALDOR | February 22, 2020

WASHINGTON (AP) — Hopes for ending America's longest war hinge on maintaining a weeklong fragile truce in Afghanistan that U.S. officials and experts agree will be difficult to assess and fraught with pitfalls.What if one militant with a suicide vest...

Ex-US envoy to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch has book deal

By HILLEL ITALIE | February 22, 2020

NEW YORK (AP) — Marie Yovanovitch, the former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine and career diplomat who during the impeachment hearings of President Donald Trump offered a chilling account of alleged threats from Trump and his allies, has a book deal.Houghton...

Marchers support Assange ahead of London extradition hearing

By JILL LAWLESS | February 22, 2020

LONDON (AP) — Hundreds of supporters of Julian Assange marched through London on Saturday to pressure the U.K. government into refusing to extradite the WikiLeaks founder to the United States to face spying charges.Famous backers, including Pink Floyd’s...

India, US struggling to bridge trade dispute as Trump visits

By PAUL WISEMAN | February 22, 2020

WASHINGTON (AP) — American dairy farmers, distillers and drugmakers have been eager to break into India, the world’s seventh-biggest economy but a tough-to-penetrate colossus of 1.3 billion people.Looks like they’ll have to wait.Talks between the...

South Sudan’s rivals form unity government meant to end war

By MAURA AJAK | February 22, 2020

JUBA, South Sudan (AP) — South Sudan opened a new chapter in its fragile emergence from civil war Saturday as rival leaders formed a coalition government that many observers prayed would last this time around.A day after President Salva Kiir dissolved...

At Trump’s India rally, Modi bets on bolstering his image

By SHEIKH SAALIQ | February 22, 2020

AHMEDABAD, India (AP) — A festive mood has enveloped Ahmedabad in India’s northwestern state of Gujarat ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's meeting there on Monday with President Donald Trump, whom he's promised millions of adoring fans.The rally...

US leads training exercises in Africa amid focus on Sahel

By CARLEY PETESCH | February 22, 2020

THIES, Senegal (AP) — Crouching in the sparse brush, maneuvering into formations through a divide, and then shooting at a target, about 10 soldiers from Burkina Faso are among a select group of African soldiers being trained to battle West Africa's...

UN: 100,000 civilians casualties in Afghanistan in 10 years

By KATHY GANNON and RAHIM FAIEZ | February 21, 2020

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — A United Nations report says Afghanistan passed a grim milestone with more than 100,000 civilians killed or hurt in the last 10 years since the international body began documenting casualties in a war that has raged for 18...

Deere sees some stability on farms in bruising trade fight

By MICHELLE CHAPMAN | February 21, 2020

Deere had a surprisingly strong first quarter after an extended period in which it was bruised by the ongoing trade war between the United States and China.

“Farmer confidence, though still subdued, has improved due in part to hopes for a relaxation of trade tensions and higher agricultural exports,” CEO John May said in a prepared statement Friday.

China announced Friday that it suspended more punitive tariffs on imports of U.S. industrial goods in response to a truce in its trade war with Washington. Under their “Phase 1” agreement signed in January, Washington agreed to cancel additional tariff hikes and Beijing committed to buy more American farm exports.

China's retaliatory tariffs have clobbered exports of soybeans and other commodities, hurting farmers, and in turn, farming equipment manufacturers.

The Trump administration has provided $27 billion in aid to farmers to ease the pain of his trade war. And in a tweet Friday, he promised to expand the bailout if farmers need it as they await the economic benefits of his recent trade deals with Mexico, Canada and China. He said the aid would be financed by revenue from his tariffs on foreign goods — taxes that are paid by American importers.

Deere, based in Moline, Illinois, has posted three consecutive quarters of falling profits and slowing sales growth with trade tensions between the world's two largest economies ongoing.

For the three months ended Feb. 2, Deere & Co. earned $517 million, or $1.63 per share. The per-share earnings easily beat the $1.28 that industry analysts had expected, according to a survey by Zacks Investment Research, and it topped last year's quarterly profit of $498 million, or $1.54 per share.

Adjusted revenue —which excludes financial services revenue— was $6.53 billion, also beating Wall Street's estimate of $6.2 billion.

The quarterly performance is in contrast to a year ago, when Deere cautioned on anxious farmers and rising costs.

Looking ahead, the companystill foresees fiscal 2020 earnings of $2.7 billion to $3.1 billion,unchanged from its previous guidance.

Shares of Deere & Co. jumped more than 6% at the opening bell.

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Portions of this story were generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on DE at https://www.zacks.com/ap/DE

Trump signals he’s prepared to give farmers more federal aid

By KEVIN FREKING | February 21, 2020

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump signaled Friday that he’s prepared to tap federal coffers again to help farmers suffering from the tariff fights that he initiated.The Trump administration over the past two years has committed to providing...

Son of Mexican drug kingpin pleads not guilty to US charges

By ASHRAF KHALIL | February 21, 2020

WASHINGTON (AP) — The son of a fugitive Mexican drug kingpin pleaded not guilty Friday to federal drug charges during an appearance in U.S. District Court after his overnight extradition from Mexico.Ruben Oseguera faces charges of conspiracy to distribute...