Author: Consultant

  • Court Says Enbridge Pipeline Trespasses on Native Land

    Enbridge is rerouting a $1-billion, 41-mile-line pipeline off of tribal lands in Wisconsin while still operating a disputed pipeline on a reservation

    By Annemarie Mannion

    map showing the path of the existing and planned reroute of the Line 5 pipeline
    Image courtesy of EnbridgeThe dotted line shows where Enbridge is building a $1-billion, 41-mile pipeline to bypass land on land owned by the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa in northwestern Wisconsin.

    August 12, 2026

    A federal appeals court has upheld a lower court’s ruling that Canadian firm Enbridge is trespassing on land owned by the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa in northwestern Wisconsin and must remove its existing 12-mile-long oil and gas pipeline—part of the original Line 5 pipeline running from Canada to the U.S.—from reservation land.

    While it didn’t set a deadline, the three-judge panel for the 7th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals found on Aug. 6 that Enbridge should have a “reasonable opportunity” to finish re-routing the Line 5 pipeline, a $1-billion project that is already underway as the company continues to use its other pipeline on tribe-owned land. 

    It also said the lower court should revisit the $5.15-million in restitution that U.S. District Court Judge William Conley awarded to the tribe in 2023 when, at the same time, he gave Enbridge three years to complete the reroute, which has not happened.

    “Enbridge’s trespass cannot continue unchecked across the band’s sovereign land. To decide otherwise would be substantially in tension with the 1854 Treaty and the statutory scheme governing rights-of-way on tribal lands,” the court wrote in the most recent ruling.

    It added, however, that halting Line 5’s operation “without an alternative in place risks violating the Transit Treaty, sparking international fallout with Canada, and inflicting harmful effects on energy consumers.”

    The 1977 treaty is intended to ensure the uninterrupted, safe and efficient movement of hydrocarbons, such as crude oil and natural gas, across the U.S.-Canadian border.

    The easements for the pipeline that traverses 12 parcels of Bad River Band territory expired in 2013, and the tribe did not renew them. The tribe sued Enbridge in July 2019 seeking the removal of Line 5 from the reservation.

    In response to the newest decision, Enbridge spokesperson Juli Kellner said “it recognized the Line 5 Wisconsin Segment Relocation Project as the practical long-term solution to this dispute. Currently, Enbridge is safely operating Line 5 across the Bad River Reservation and construction of a new 41-mile segment of Line 5 around the Reservation is well underway.”

    In determining the restitution amount, the Seventh Circuit said the lower court “likely double-counted by giving Bad River a portion of Enbridge’s overall profits tied to Line 5’s trespass in addition to the company’s economic benefit from delaying the cost associated with rerouting Line 5.”

    Stefanie Tsosie, an attorney for Earthjustice, a nonprofit representing the tribe, said the recent court ruling is a win for the tribe.

    “It’s important that the court affirmed the band’s sovereign right to govern their own lands,” she said. “Each day, Enbridge operates Line 5 in illegal trespass and makes more than a million dollars in profit. We are hopeful that Enbridge will face meaningful consequences.” 

    Even though a new deadline has not been set, Timna Axel, an Earthjustice spokesperson, said meaningful consequences would be for Enbridge to “be required to remove its pipeline from the Bad River Reservation in the near future and relinquish the profits it has gained by trespassing on the band’s sovereign land for many years.”

    The current pipeline transports over 20 million gallons of crude oil and natural gas liquids each day from Superior, Wis., to Sarnia, Ontario. It is part of a larger network of pipelines carrying petroleum products from Western Canada to refineries in the Midwest, Ontario and Quebec. Line 5’s path through the Reservation is approximately 60 ft wide, and makes up less than 2% of the pipeline’s total length of 645 miles, according to Enbridge. 

  • Bob Iger, Joshua Kushner buy Los Angeles Lakers at a $12.5 billion valuation, source says

    • Mark Walter has sold his majority equity in the Los Angeles Lakers to Joshua Kushner and Bob Iger, according to a statement.
    • The deal values the team at $12.5 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the terms of the sale.
    • Walter has owned the Lakers for less than a year and also has stakes in MLB’s Los Angeles Dodgers, English Premier League soccer team Chelsea and the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks.

    https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/12/bob-iger-joshua-kushner-buy-los-angeles-lakers-from-mark-walter.html

  • U.S. consumer prices rise slightly in July, easing inflation concerns

    U.S. consumer prices barely increased in July as the cost of gasoline declined for a second straight month, while underlying inflation was benign, further reducing the odds of an interest rate hike from the Federal Reserve next month.

    The small rebound in the monthly Consumer Price Index reported by the Labor Department on Wednesday, which was in line with economists’ expectations, also reflected marginal gains in the prices of food and apparel as well as decreases in the costs of hotels and motel rooms, and prescription medication. The report followed on the heels of news last week of surprise job losses in July. Still, economists said a rate increase this year remained on the table as inflation was running well above the U.S. central bank’s 2 per cent target.

    “In-line inflation will keep the ’no need to hike rates’ narrative that took hold after last week’s jobs report intact,” said Ellen Zentner, chief economic strategist at Morgan Stanley Wealth Management. “There will be another round of inflation data before the September meeting, so the story line could still change.”

    Oil hits new one-week high as supply disruptions outweigh Strait of Hormuz talks

    The Consumer Price Index edged up 0.1 per cent last month after dropping 0.4 per cent in June, which was the first decline in six years, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said.

    A 0.1 per cent rise in the cost of shelter accounted for roughly two-thirds of the gain in the CPI. Shelter was restrained by a 3.3 per cent plunge in prices for hotel and motel rooms, likely linked to the end of the FIFA World Cup tournament. That offset a 0.3 per cent increase in owners’ equivalent rent. Gasoline prices fell 2.9 per cent after decreasing 9.7 per cent in June.

    In the 12 months through July, the CPI advanced 3.4 per cent after rising 3.5 per cent in June. July’s cooler inflation readings likely offer little comfort to consumers as prices are still higher than they were a year ago and wages are not keeping up. The high cost of living has soured many Americans’ views of U.S. President Donald Trump, and could weigh on the Republican party’s chances in the November midterm elections that will determine control of the U.S. Congress for the next two years. Trump won the 2024 presidential election in large part because of his promise to lower inflation.

    Monthly core inflation also tame

    Excluding the volatile food and energy components, the CPI gained 0.2 per cent last month after being unchanged in June. The so-called core CPI increased 2.5 per cent in the 12 months through July after climbing 2.6 per cent in June.

    The Fed tracks the Personal Consumption Expenditures price indexes for its 2 per cent inflation target. Financial markets were pricing in about a 40 per cent chance of a rate increase at the Fed’s Sept. 15-16 policy meeting after the CPI data was released, slightly less than earlier in the day.

    Policymakers will still get August’s CPI and employment reports before that meeting. Economists expect the pace of consumer price increases to pick up in August, reflecting the recent increase in oil prices. Job growth is also expected to rebound as seasonal distortions fade. The Fed last month left its benchmark overnight interest rate in the 3.50 per cent-3.75 per cent range. The dollar slipped against a basket of currencies in early trade on Wednesday. U.S. Treasury yields fell.

    The United States’ position as a net oil exporter and the drawing down of petroleum inventories had cushioned the hit on the economy from the oil price shock sparked by the Middle East conflict, but some economists said that could not persist indefinitely. They also added that the U.S. and other nations would at some point need to replenish petroleum inventories, which would keep oil prices elevated. Trump accused Iran of being “devious negotiators” in an interview released late on Monday and described some of his current options in the war – “just bop along” and let Tehran fail economically or hit them “really, really hard.

  • Earthquake on Colombia’s Pacific coast causes injuries and damage

    Published Mon, Aug 10 20269:10 AM EDTUpdated 50 Min Ago

    Reuters

    ShareShare Article via FacebookShare Article via TwitterShare Article via LinkedInShare Article via Email

    A USGS map showing a A 7.4M eathquake near San José del Palmar, Colombia on Aug. 10th, 2026.

    A USGS map showing a A 7.4M eathquake near San José del Palmar, Colombia on Aug. 10th, 2026.

    Source: USGS

    A morning earthquake caused injuries and significant damage in the Pacific Colombian province of Choco, the provincial governor said on X on Monday, after the tremor was felt in the capital Bogota and as far away as Venezuela.

    “We have just experienced a major earthquake in the department of Choco. We are concerned about aftershocks. Although the epicenter was near San Jose del Palmar, there are injuries and significant damage to buildings in the capital, Quibdo. We are already carrying out a damage assessment and will issue the first official report shortly,” Governor Nubia Carolina Cordoba-Curi said on X.

    The National Unit for Disaster Risk Management (UNGRD) said the 7:34 a.m. quake had a magnitude of 6.6 and a depth of 79 km, adding it was in contact with local authorities to verify potential damage.

    This story is developing. Please check back for updates.

  • World’s biggest chipmaker TSMC’s sales surge 45% amid buoyant AI demand

    • TSMC reported revenue for July of 467.58 billion New Taiwan dollars ($14.5 billion), up 44.7% year on year.
    • The group makes chips for Big Tech customers like Nvidia and Google, so the firm’s financial figures are closely watched as a sign of AI semiconductor demand.
    • European semiconductor stocks rose on Monday, with ASML up more than 2%, and Infineon and STMicro also trading higher.

    Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. on Monday reported a big sales jump for July, as demand for its artificial intelligence-related chips continued to strengthen.

    TSMC, the world’s biggest chip manufacturer, reported revenue for July of 467.58 billion New Taiwan dollars ($14.5 billion), up 44.7% year on year.

    Investors are closely scrutinizing Big Tech spending and return on investment, as the sector continues to funnel unprecedented amounts of capital into building out AI infrastructure, including designing and buying semiconductors.

    TSMC manufactures chips for a variety of customers, including Nvidia and Google’s own custom semiconductors, so the Taiwanese firm’s sales are a closely watched metric of tech sector demand.

    “TSMC is now guiding for 40% growth in revenues for this year, so July’s numbers put it ahead of that figure. This is no mean feat and highlights that for now demand is still there and takes the pressure off August and September somewhat in that these two months don’t have to be as aggressive,” Ben Barringer, head of technology research at Quilter Cheviot, told CNBC.

    “Demand in the semiconductor industry, however, can shift quickly so it is important that people do not read too much into the monthly numbers as they can jump around. The company is, however, continuing to expand with various additional investments, so you would hope this level of chip production can continue.”

    TSMC does not provide commentary on its monthly revenue figures. But the company’s second-quarter earnings reported last month showed that high-performance computing, which is where TSMC books AI chip sales, accounted for 66% of revenue.

    The company struck a bullish tone during its earnings report and said it expects 2026 revenue to increase by slightly above 40% in U.S. dollar terms. TSMC also raised its capital expenditure projection to between $60 billion and $64 billion for this year.

    “AI-related demand continues to be extremely robust,” said TSMC Chairman C.C. Wei. 

    European semiconductor stocks rose on Monday with ASML up more than 2%, and Infineon and STMicro also trading higher.

    Amid some of the market jitters around AI capex, semiconductor stocks have seen a recent sell-off. The PHLX Semiconductor index, which tracks a basket of chip stocks, is down around 15% from its June high. However, it is still around 72% higher for the year. TSMC’s shares are up 50% for the year.

  • Financials’ share of Toronto index hits eight-year high as bank valuations surge

    The Canadian financial sector’s share of the country’s benchmark stock index, the TSX, is at its highest level in eight years, underscoring investor enthusiasm for bank shares and nervousness about energy and materials.

    The financial sector now accounts ⁠for 37 per cent ​of the TSX, reducing the diversification benefits of owning a broad index and leaving investors exposed to an eventual drop in financial shares.

    The TSX has outperformed the S&P 500 in 2025 and so far this year in part because it offered an alternative to highly tech-concentrated U.S. indexes.

    Canada’s Big Six lenders – Royal Bank of Canada (RY-T +0.29%increase), Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD-T +0.12%increase), Bank of Montreal (BMO-T +0.34%increase), Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS-T -0.08%decrease), Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CM-T +0.28%increase) ​and National Bank of Canada (NA-T -0.19%decrease) – are among Canada’s biggest financial companies and control a ‌large chunk of the market.

    After several banks posted consecutive quarters of double-digit earnings growth, they are trading at near multidecade high valuation levels, prompting some investors to question whether future earnings growth can keep pace with lofty expectations.

    “That is an area of concern for me and it’s been for quite some time,” said Michael Dehal, a senior portfolio manager at Dehal Investment Partners at Raymond James. “If the earnings cannot live up to the multiple, you are going to see ‌the price decline and ​that’s going to weigh on the ‌TSX.”

    Financial stocks have outperformed energy and materials, which includes mining shares, since the U.S. attacked Iran in February, as gold prices fell and ​hopes of a peace deal arrested a spike in the price of oil.

    ⁠Since February, financials have climbed 22 per cent, compared with a 7-per-cent gain for energy and a 25-per-cent drop in materials, although ⁠miners have clawed back some losses in recent days. As recently as March, financials accounted for 31 per cent of the TSX, according to LSEG data.

    Investors remain largely positive ​about the country’s financial sector. The five largest Canadian bank stocks are trading at an average of 15 times forward earnings, an estimate of future profits for the next 12 months. The top five U.S. banks, in comparison, trade at 12 times their forward earnings.

    Canadian bank stocks are the most expensive they’ve been since 2010, when compared with the top five U.S. bank stocks. Even so, Veritas Investment Research analyst Shalabh Garg in July upgraded his view on Canadian banks, ⁠recommending that investors at least maintain a market-weight exposure to the Big Six banks, from an underweight position.

    “Although the macro backdrop remains uncertain, we believe the Big Six banks can sustain current premium valuations, as they are largely immune to potential disruption from AI tools, will continue to benefit from constructive financial markets, and are unlikely to face a systemic credit event in the near future,” he noted.

    The big banks, five of which are among the 10 largest Canadian companies, have bet on diversifying their revenue streams, with a large portion coming ⁠from capital markets and wealth management. Market uncertainty has boosted income from their trading business, ​while an uptick in investment banking activity has brought in more fee income.

    Retail clients have shown more resilience as savings rise and mortgages are paid ⁠on time, while the Canadian economy has shown signs of improvement despite uncertainty owing to U.S. tariffs. Strong underwriting practices have helped banks maintain strong loan books. At the same time, ‌investments in AI are expected to boost savings for the banks.

    Over the past few years, banks have built strong vaults to protect themselves against potential ​loan defaults, which could add to earnings growth if those loan losses do not materialize and the banks can release those provisions.

    “They’re proving their competitive advantages at every segment, and now you’re seeing the payback,” said Anthony Visano, managing director at Toronto-based investment management firm Kingwest & Co.

    Mr. Visano said that historically, when the sector has held a similar weighting, financial stocks have outperformed the broader index ​over the following 12 months, returning an average 20.5 per cent versus 14.5 per cent for the TSX.

    Canadian banks start reporting earnings the last week of August.

  • Algonquin Power moving headquarters to U.S. in bid to attract more investment

    Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. AQN-T -1.06%decrease said on Friday that it plans to move its corporate headquarters to the United States, putting executives closer to the bulk of its operations and exposing the company to a larger pool of investors.

    The redomicile of Algonquin, currently based in Oakville, Ont., would come after years of restructuring that has resulted in the majority of its revenue generated by electricity distributors it owns in several U.S. states.

    The company, a former market darling whose stock has languished in recent years, said it planned to relocate its head office to Chicago, but maintain a presence in Oakville. It will seek shareholder approval to do so in the first half of 2027.

    “Today, over 80 per cent of our operations are located in the United States with less than 5 per cent in Canada,” Algonquin chief executive officer Rod West said on a conference call. “Redomicile into the U.S. would better align our corporate structure with our assets and where we expect to grow.”

    In addition, Mr. West said, the shift would reduce cross-border tax costs and increase the potential for a wider range of investors as the stock gets included in more indexes and exchange-traded funds.

    Encana Corp., now known as Ovintiv Inc. OVV-T +4.75%increase, and Brookfield Asset Management BAM-T -0.18%decrease are among companies that have redomiciled in the U.S. in response to expansion of operations in that country and a desire for more passive investment in a much larger market for vehicles such as index funds.

    The move can be unpopular in Canada, though, especially in the current political and trade environment. A month after President Donald Trump began his second term as U.S. president in 2025, Montreal based trucking company TFI International Inc. TFII-T +0.50%increase said it would shift its headquarters south, but reversed the decision in response to fierce shareholder backlash.

    For Algonquin, the redomicile could lead to inclusion within Russell, S&P and CRSP benchmarks, but deletion from some Canadian indexes, said Robert Hope, analyst at Bank of Nova Scotia. Because U.S. indexes are larger, passive investment inflows would offset Canadian selling over time, Mr. Hope wrote in a note to clients.

    “The timing may be uneven, with near-term weakness possible as deletions precede additions, but the longer-term effect is a structural improvement in demand for AQN shares,” he said.

    Mr. Hope noted that shares in eight Canadian companies that have redomiciled since 2018 fell because of selling by Canadian institutions, then recovered as U.S. investors and indexers bought in. This effect could be muted with Algonquin, however, because of its already-large U.S. shareholder base, he wrote.

    Activist investors, led by New York-based Starboard Value LP, held 8.65 per cent of Algonquin stock as of March 31, according to S&P Capital IQ.

    Algonquin shares were off more than 1 per cent at $7.94 on the Toronto Stock Exchange Friday afternoon. The company announced the redomicile plan in conjunction with its second-quarter results, in which it reported that net earnings fell 67 per cent from the same quarter a year earlier.

    The shares are down more than 10 per cent in the past six months and are well below highs of more than $20 last hit in 2021.

    Investors had once benefited from Algonquin’s renewable power and utility assets, which allowed a steadily rising dividend. However, rapid expansion and a heavy debt load forced the company to cut the dividend twice and prompted the sale of its renewable business for US$2.5-billion in 2024.

    Since becoming CEO last year, Mr. West has rebranded Algonquin as a pure-play regulated generation, transmission and distribution utility business, with companies operating in 13 U.S. states, Bermuda, Chile and Canada.

    He declined on Friday to offer the company’s expected cost of the redomicile to the U.S. but said he believes the recurring benefit will outweigh the one-time cost.

    “Overall, we believe this positions us to more effectively execute on our strategic priorities and enhance long-term shareholder value,” he told analysts.

    In the second quarter, net income was US$4.9-million, or 1 U.S. cent a share, down from year-earlier US$14.8-million, or 2 U.S. cents.

    The company said higher regulated rates in some of its U.S. markets were offset by higher operating and interest expenses as well as unfavourable weather.

  • Canada’s British Columbia declares state of emergency as more than 20,000 flee wildfires

    • The blaze in Summerland has nearly doubled in size overnight.
    • British Columbia’s premier says the fire was like “a bomb going off”.
    • Residents fled around midnight as flames advanced west of Okanagan Lake.

    British Columbia declared a state of emergency on Saturday after thousands of people in the western Canadian province were ordered to flee a fast-moving wildfire that nearly doubled in size overnight.

    The Bald Range wildfire was burning out of control and grew rapidly to about 9,500 hectares (23,500 acres), prompting evacuation orders in Summerland, Peachland and other districts west of Okanagan Lake in the province’s southern interior. The region produces most of B.C.’s wine and is Canada’s second-largest wine-producing area.

    Premier David Eby told a news conference on Saturday that one fire official had likened the fire to “a bomb going off”.

    “He described flames on 100-foot tree, flames going 200 feet above that, and the fire creating its own weather system, which creates lightning, which then feeds on itself,” Eby said.

    “Homes have been lost, and properties have been destroyed. Some people became trapped as conditions changed very quickly, and needed to be rescued,” the premier said, adding it remained a very dynamic and threatening situation.

    Summerland has a population of about 12,000 people, according to the 2021 census, and Peachland is home to about 6,500 residents.

    A state of emergency grants the provincial government immediate access to special powers including travel restrictions and supply protections to prevent price gouging, and specific tools to coordinate rescue work.

    Officials said the Bald Range wildfire triggered the largest evacuation event so far this summer and more than 20,000 people across B.C. have been forced to evacuate their homes.

    “A lot of farms have been affected. We don’t know how many structures have been lost. They’re still busy fighting the fire,” Summerland Mayor Doug Holmes said in a phone interview from Penticton. “We have to brace ourselves for the worst.”

    Overnight evacuation

    Many residents left overnight, driving south to Penticton or north to Kelowna before highways began to close.

    Terry Fries of Summerland was watching a football game on Friday night when a neighbor advised him to get a bag ready as the fire grew.

    “At the time, it was still farther back, and you could see it behind the hills,” he said. When B.C. authorities issued the evacuation order around midnight, he and his family drove about 45 km (28 miles) north to the city of Kelowna.

    Residents recorded videos of fires by the highway and of structures burning as they evacuated. By Saturday afternoon, ashes began to settle on cars and houses in nearby areas as the fire painted the skies with orange hues.

    Summerland lost power on Saturday and issued a boil-water notice for residents. The municipality said untreated water had entered the system after it bypassed the water treatment plant due to the wildfire.

    Several Canadian provinces, including Ontario and Quebec, have battled blazes this year as hot, dry weather fueled wildfires in dense forest areas. Firefighters from Mexico, Australia, France and New Zealand have helped combat the fires.

    In B.C., where hot and dry conditions have increased the risk of more fires spreading, about 1,500 firefighting personnel were battling more than 100 fires. The province has issued 40 evacuation orders and 49 alerts.

    Fires have burned through 4 million hectares (9.9 million acres) in Canada this year, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre.

  • Typhoon Dolphin hits China’s east coast, over 1 million evacuated

    Typhoon Dolphin, the most powerful tropical cyclone to hit China this year, made landfall on the country’s eastern coast on Sunday, bringing torrential rain and strong winds and triggering warnings of flooding and landslides.

    The typhoon has already swept through Japan’s southern Okinawa prefecture, injuring six people and cutting power to more than 50,000 buildings.

    Typhoon Dolphin made landfall near Yuhuan in eastern Zhejiang province at about 5:30 p.m. (0930 GMT) on Sunday, China’s meteorological authorities said.

    The storm packed maximum sustained winds of 42 meters per second (151 km/h) near its center at landfall, equivalent to a Category 1 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale.

    Authorities had moved offshore workers to safety, ordered vessels back to port and increased checks at reservoirs, mountain streams, landslide-prone areas, construction sites and tourist locations.

    Torrential rain and flood risk

    Torrential rain is forecast through August 10 across Zhejiang, Shanghai, northern Fujian, northeastern Jiangxi, central and southern Anhui, and much of Jiangsu. Parts of central and eastern Zhejiang could receive 250-500 mm (9.8-19.7 inches) of rain, according to forecasters.

    After landfall, Dolphin is forecast to track westward before slowing over central and southwestern China and gradually losing strength, Wang Haiping, chief forecaster at the National Meteorological Centre, told state broadcaster CCTV.

    That could prolong heavy rain and raise the risk of flooding and landslides, especially in mountainous areas and along smaller rivers.

    Transport was widely disrupted across the east of the country, and more than 1 million people were evacuated from their homes.

    In addition to evacuating at least 30,300 people, Shanghai has canceled about 1,500 flights, according to flight-tracking data provider VariFlight.

    HANGZHOU, CHINA - AUGUST 09: Tape is applied in a cross pattern to windows at a temporary waiting room of Hangzhou Railway Station to prepare for Typhoon Dolphin on August 9, 2026 in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province of China. (Photo by Long Wei/VCG via Getty Images)

    Tape is applied in a cross pattern to windows at a temporary waiting room of Hangzhou Railway Station to prepare for Typhoon Dolphin on Aug. 9, 2026 in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province of China.

    Vcg | Visual China Group | Getty Images

    A 42-year-old tourist from Guangdong, surnamed Chen, said he was stranded in Shanghai after his family’s flight, scheduled to depart on Sunday, was canceled because of Typhoon Dolphin.

    He said the family had been rebooked on a flight at 10 p.m. on Monday, although they were unsure whether it would be able to take off.

    “To us Guangdong people, this typhoon is as ordinary as having a meal and feeling the wind. It’s just part of everyday life,” Chen said, adding that the storm did not appear particularly strong by the standards of China’s southern coast.

    In neighboring Zhejiang province, the city of Wenzhou relocated more than 900,000 residents and opened more than 1,000 emergency shelters.

    In Fujian province, authorities evacuated 98,900 people from high-risk areas after raising the typhoon emergency response to Level III, according to Xinhua. Zhejiang, Shanghai and Jiangsu have also activated Level III emergency responses.

    Fujian maritime authorities said 55 coastal passenger ferry routes had been suspended, all 115 offshore construction projects halted and 290 construction vessels moved to sheltered waters.

    The water resources ministry said the Qiantang, Yong, Jiao and Shuiyang rivers could see major flooding, while smaller rivers in the hardest-hit areas could rise above warning levels.

    Authorities warned of a high risk of geological disasters in parts of Zhejiang, while residents in areas covered by a red mountain-torrent warning were told to follow local evacuation orders.

    Shanghai’s Yangshan port cleared ships from its berths and moved more than 500 small and medium-sized vessels to shelter ahead of Dolphin, the city’s maritime safety administration said.

    Scientists say global warming has made extreme weather more likely, including stronger typhoons.