Which | Logistics Shipping

Trump’'s envoy Tokayev’e said a friend of ’ at the White House‘ during the US’'s mining raid was ’

12/06/2026 by the Logistics TransportIn the the General Assembly

U.S. ’ Special Representative for South and Central Asia Sergio Gor met with officials from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan for the first face-to-face meeting of the critical minerals dialogue under the C5+1 format, which brought together five Central Asian countries and the U.S. ’.

The meeting followed talks between US President Donald Trump and Central Asian leaders at last year's C5+1 summit in ’, Washington, where the parties agreed to deepen cooperation on critical mines and related investments.

Gor, “When President Trump hosted the C5’ at Washington’ last fall, Central Asia was clear that the ’ did not receive the attention it deserved from the USA’, and he was adamant that this situation would change.

In a separate meeting with Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Gor said that the Kazakh leader is “, a friend of ’ in the White House”.

Central Asia’'s mineral wealth is attracting growing interest from Western governments looking for alternative sources for critical raw materials. Kazakhstan has the largest and most diverse mineral base in the region, with more than 9,500 ’ defined deposits containing more than 100’ rare earths and other strategic minerals.

A challenge continues to be transportation. As landlocked states, Central Asian countries must rely on land and sea corridors to reach global markets.

One of the important routes is the Central Corridor, which connects the Central Asian ’ to the European ’ through the Caspian Sea, the South Caucasus and further transport links.

Azamat Panbayev, Chairman of the Industrial Committee of the Ministry of Industry and Construction of Kazakhstan, said that “Central Asian countries and the American side are working together to develop joint solutions for the exploration, extraction and delivery of these mines to Western markets.

“A route runs over the Caspian Sea via the rapidly developing Central Corridor, which is currently experiencing dynamic growth in cargo traffic.”

Beyond transportation, governments are looking for investment across the entire value chain, including geological exploration, mining, and mineral processing.

Many beds in the area were first explored during the Soviet period, and additional research is needed.

1990Kazakhstan, which attracted a large US investment in the oil and gas sector in the ’s, is now looking for ways to replicate this experience in mining and minerals.

Said Sultanov, founder of a geological research and mining services company based in Astana, “, said that from a geopolitical point of view, the arrival of American companies contributes to a greater balance.

“There is China, there is Europe, there is Russia, and now American companies are entering the market. This increases competition and creates a healthier market environment.”

Kazakhstan has proposed expanding cooperation with the United States through joint critical mining projects, processing facilities, technology transfer, research partnerships and workforce training.

Minister of Industry and Construction Yersayin Nagaspayev, “Kazakhstan is interested not only in the export of raw materials, but also in the development of joint production facilities, technology transfer, labor training and scientific cooperation.

Kazakh officials said the country signed agreements worth $17 billion at meetings in Washington ’ last year, including a memorandum of understanding on cooperation on uranium, tungsten and rare earth elements.

Authorities expect the agreements to support domestic processing capacity and facilitate technology transfers. Kazakhstan has reached agreements with Cove Capital on the development of Severniy Katpar and Verhniy Kairakty tungsten bearings.

The government has also introduced investment conditions that allow foreign investors to hold majority stakes in some projects. Authorities, US-backed Kaz Resources Inc.’in shares, Kazakhstan’'s %He's talking about a recent tungsten deal where he'll own 30 shares.

KazakhstanInvestment in geological research in ’ has more than tripled since 2018’, exceeding $1 billion. Companies such as Rio Tinto, Barrick Gold, First Quantum Minerals, Ivanhoe Mines and Fortescue entered the Kazakh market.

Agreements and agreements between the two countries amounted to more than $20 billion last year.

Critical mines cooperation is expected to be high on Washington’'s agenda and further negotiations between the C5+1 countries and the United States are expected by the end of this year.

Meo wants €82 million from state over exclusion of Huawei 5G’

25/05/2026 by the Logistics TransportIn the the General Assembly

Telecom operator Meo has decided to take legal action against the Portuguese state, claiming €81.7 million in compensation after Huawei equipment was removed from Portuguese ’'s 5G networks, the newspaper Público reported on Monday. (source in Portuguese).

The report includes information on the Citius portal, especially regarding the cases filed against the Attorney General's Office and the State Legal Center on April 24 this year in ’. With the Administrative Court of the District of Lisbon.

According to Público’, this step of Meo’, which is in the Altice Portugal’in brand portfolio, was taken on the grounds that ’'s “idari decisions were damaged due to ”, the Security Evaluation Commission within the framework of the High Council for Cyber Space Security. The company also said it was damaged. “Special and abnormal damage”as a result of these measures.

Firstly, the Lusa news agency reported, that in the first half of 2023’ is a state body that issued a decision emphasizing the “ high risk of using equipment from suppliers in non-EU, NATO or OECD member countries for ” national 5G networks and services security“. (source in Portuguese). It also included situations where the provider's “-dominated ” or the “-country's legal order allowed the ” government to exercise control, interference, or pressure on “'s activities in third countries.

The Portuguese news agency recalled that the decision does not directly refer to countries or companies in the sector. Although Huawei is the main target of the ban,This came after this assessment, both in the Portuguese ’ and in other European countries where similar exclusions were applied.

According to the ECO newspaper, (source in Portuguese), Huawei technology was widely used by Meo in the development of the 5G network.

Huawei filed an administrative lawsuit at the Lisbon District Administrative Court ’ against the decision in September 2023’te. After nine months, Lusa’ya, an official source at the Security Assessment Commission’, said: “ stated that ” followed the course of the case.

November 2023’te Vodafone Portugal’ general manager Luís Lopes in an interview with “Expresso” (source in Portuguese), ,The Security Assessment Commission noted that ’'s decision to exclude Huawei equipment is more “aggressive” than that implemented in other EU member states, and therefore “ is not particularly well evaluated.

NOS CEO Miguel Almeida took the same view. May 2024’te APDC’nin (Portuguese Communications Development Association) 33. Digital Business Congress’nde speaking, in comments quoted by “Dinheiro Vivo” (source in Portuguese)” said: It is worth emphasizing that the decision “ [which excludes Huawei ’ from 5G’] goes far beyond the practice common in Europe’ in terms of the diversity of network components covered by this measure.”

Netanyahu denies rumors of death in social media clip that Grok’ branded as artificial intelligence

21/04/2026 by the Logistics TransportIn the the General Assembly

Is Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dead? As the war between Israel, the United States and Iran continues, some people claim it on social media.

Prime Minister “ on social media on SundayWhat are they saying I am? Watch>>” denied the rumors by sharing a video titled. The answer to that question is no.

A voice in the clip confirming that verification experts are real Netanyahu’ya “Online people say you're dead” says.

He answers like this: I'm dying for “Coffee. I'm crazy about coffee. You know what? I'm angry with my people. How are they behaving? Oh, that's great. Do you want me to count my fingers?”

Since the US and Israel began military action against Iran ’ on February 28, Iranian state media and pro-regime accounts have published reports of Netanyahu ’'s and other senior Israeli political figures' deaths, as well as propaganda about their military power.

Conspiracy theorists, self-proclaimed journalists and Internet detectives also joined the caravan, spreading allegations about Netanyahu’'s death on social media.

Why did Netanyahu post the coffeehouse video?

Following a speech on March 12, ’, which led social media users to claim that the video was created by artificial intelligence, Netanyahu released the clip after rumors about ’'s death intensified, pointing to a frame that allegedly had six fingers instead of five.

In reality, the images are original, but low-quality versions of the broadcast have distorted the way light strikes the hand. Five fingers can be seen in high-quality versions of the speech.

In response, Netanyahu raised five fingers on camera in the café's proof-of-life video, in an attempt to refute false allegations.

Netanyahu’'s coffeehouse video was filmed on March 15 at the Sataf cafe in ’, Jerusalem Heights. The café helped prove the visit was real by posting videos and photos of Netanyahu’'s visit on social media.

In a post published on Instagram’ after his visit to Kahvehane, “We were delighted to welcome the Prime Minister and his team to Staf’ today! They know which bakery to visit.”

But despite this attempt to suppress the rumors, the clip had the opposite effect on social media; Many users have doubled down on the claim that the video is made with artificial intelligence, and others have argued that the video is outdated.

Jerusalem cafe claims video is fake

On March 16, the Tasnim News Agency, led by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran, published an article titled ’Netanyahu“'s New Video Proves It's Fake, listing a series of so-called narrative signs as evidence that the cafe video, aimed at refuting rumors of death, was created by artificial intelligence itself.

This piece included a screenshot of an X post, where the results of an AI detector were shared, listing that the video was created digitally.

The water became even more blurred when people turned to Grok’, the X’in artificial intelligence chatbot, to verify the authenticity of Netanyahu’'s images in the cafe.

Grok shared contradictory claims, pointing out that, in some cases, signs such as “static coffee levels, unnatural lip synchronization, and the day-to-day conversations of operations confirm that this is a fake by labeling the video as ”derin fake “.

Euronews’'s verification team, The Cube, contacted X and asked why these Grok posts were not removed at the time of publication, but received no response.

However, experts warned that artificial intelligence and deepfake detectors should be treated with caution, and in this case, they are not reliable.

Verification expert Tal Hagin told us: “Most of these softwares are looking for inconsistencies and are based on probability. If you hold your hand in an abnormal position, the detector can tell it's artificial intelligence unless it's statistically normal for someone to hold their hand like this.”

Hagin, “But in real life a person can keep himself this way and so we can't trust these platforms, ” said.

We base the evidence on reality, not what people want to believe, “ added. “If this video were AI, it would literally be the most advanced AI model that has ever existed. And you can't say on the internet that Netanyahu’'s team has access to a new model of hidden AI. You need proof. - ”

Is the video old?

Several social media accounts claimed that the sighting of security guards wearing face masks during footage of Netanyahu’'s coffeehouse visit was evidence that the footage was taken during the Covid-19 pandemic.

In reality, members of the Shin Bet VIP Protection Unit, responsible for the security of ’'s top government, including the prime minister of Israel, had previously worn face masks to hide their identities.

Social media users also claimed that the bill in the video was dated 2024.

Tal Hagin told us that such alleged clues could be easily refuted.

“Most of the types of errors people saw, such as the receipt they said was from 2024, were due to only viewing low-quality images, ” said. “When you look at better quality images, it clearly says the year 2026.”

Other leaders have also been the target of death rumors.

Netanyahu is just one of the top Israeli officials at the center of death rumors as the war in the Middle East’ continues.

X’te social media users shared images of the scene, alleging that David Barnea’, chief of ’'s Mossad in Israel, was killed.

However, there is no confirmed evidence to support the allegations about the death of Barnea’, who will be the director of Mossad’ until June 2026.

Also widely circulated on social media, the crime scene videos are actually related to the August 2024 ’te Tel Aviv’de Hamas’'s armed wing Al Qassam Brigades, the aftermath of the suicide attack ’ claimed responsibility for.

– Euronews contacted the Israeli prime minister for comment, but did not receive a response at the time of publication.

Did the euro cash currency succeed after 20 years?

20/04/2026 by the Logistics TransportIn the the General Assembly

In this section of the Real Economy ’, we ask: What has the single currency meant for European economies and businesses for two decades?

Euro banknotes and coins were first introduced on January 1, 2002 in ’, replacing national currencies in 12 European countries.

The euro existed three years ago, although only in electronic form. Twenty years later, 19 countries and more than 340 million Europeans use euro.

The aim of the euro was to make life easier by using the same currency for business and trade across the eurozone and for travel and living abroad. The euro's strong international role also aims to protect the EU economy and financial system from currency shocks, reduce dependence on other currencies and provide lower costs for EU businesses.

The Euro is currently the second most important currency in the world after the US dollar, and 60 countries and territories outside the EU also use Euro’ or link their currencies to Euro’.

Over the next few years, Croatia, Romania and Bulgaria are set to use the euro. Looking to the future, the idea of the digital euro is being discussed.

The Irish experience

Ireland was one of the first 12 countries to adopt the euro in 2002 and was replaced by the Irish pound, euro coins and banknotes.

The country's growth rate has since become one of the strongest in Europe’. University College Dublin’den economist Oana Peia says that the single currency plays an important role in this success story.

Transition to Euro’, IrelandImportant in consolidating ’'s place in the single market

Oana Peia

Economist, University College Dublin

Peia, the adoption of “Euro’, IrelandIt has been important in consolidating ’'s place in the single market, currently %It attracted a large number of foreign direct investments, which make up the 20’, and is currently exporting to Ireland. Intra-EU trade, which makes up ’, has increased, says ”.

Peia explains that the Irish example is also a cautionary story about eurozone membership, as access to cheaper credit and a poorly regulated market eventually led to the 2008 financial crisis.

The exit from this crisis has been painful, “ says. “Since then IrelandThe recovery of ’ is equally impressive; economy 2012’den average until just before the pandemic %It grew at a rate of 5.”

A built-in trading environment

Ireland's economy, Ireland's exports It has grown in technological sectors such as pharmaceuticals and medical products that make up ’ini.

Our currency, the pound, would have been a small currency in the European ’, and obviously the variability and exchange rates would have had a huge impact on Irish businesses, so the Euro balanced all of this.

The Power of John

CEO of Aerogen

Founded 20 years ago near Galway, Aerogen is a leader in the distribution of high-performance aerosol drugs. For CEO John Power, the move to Euro’ has been a positive benefit.

“Our currency is pounds, EuropeIt would be a small currency in ’, and obviously the variability and exchange rate would have a big impact on Irish businesses, ” says. So the Euro took care of all of this, “.

Today, the company employs 400 people and its products used in intensive care units are exported to more than 75’ countries.

Power, “Our domestic market is quite small, ” explains. Therefore, the European market is as attractive to us as it is to the United States. About five years ago our business ’u euro and %It was trading in $70’i, now in the last two years this rate has risen to 50-50’.

Brexit’e adapt

Aerogen, whose markets are international, was not affected in the same way by the effects of Brexit’.

For other sectors, such as agriculture, which depended heavily on the UK market, the story was different. Peia says she is optimistic that Irish businesses will need to adapt to the new situation.

Although “ has caused a major disruption to the Irish economy, ’ says. “This has created a lot of opportunities and I think there is still a lot of room to increase trade with the European Union.”

According to Eurobarometer’, Ireland has the second highest level of confidence in Europe’; This is a sign that the Irish continue to believe in the Union and its single currency.

Tests for durability

Eurogroup President and Irish Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe believes the euro has proven its resilience when tested first by the financial crisis and then by the economic consequences of the pandemic. The Eurogroup is the forum where the finance ministers of the eurozone countries meet.

Now if you look at the speed at which the Eurozone’ recovered from the COVID 19 crisis, you'll see that the recovery rate is about four times faster than the global financial crisis.

Easter in Donohoe

President of the Eurogroup

“You can't always claim that we did everything right immediately when responding to them, ” admits, but these are tests that show that the euro has passed, and now if you look at the speed at which the eurozone is recovering from the COVID 19 crisis, the pace of recovery is about four times faster than the global financial crisis.“

He adds that Euro’ has eliminated a layer of complications for both consumers and governments.

Donohoe, “, says ”, perhaps I think the most tangible are the daily practical benefits. “Disturbance, even difficulties during currency exchange. And it's easy to forget that now, but for a significant part of the history of the pre-euro part of the European Union, serious volatility in the exchange rate was a test faced by previous governments and previous businesses.’

What's going to happen now?

The next step could be the digital euro.

Donohoe, “, says the European Central Bank is currently moving forward with what I would describe as exploratory design work. “ My prediction is that if you and I were sitting here again in 20 years, we'd probably be thinking about the digital euro at that point.

Donohoe says the goal should now be to ensure that the euro's economic benefits have a positive social impact.

One thing that is challenging for the “ Eurozone, and therefore really important for the Euro, is how we can achieve a recovery that benefits young people, for example, that does more to ensure that this is an inclusive and fairer recovery as women return to the workforce and new working models begin to settle.”

The head of the Eurogroup sets out his vision for the future of the euro.

I want the “Euro’ to be a long-term signal and symbol of a European ’ that is important, resilient, always better than its recent past, and always drawing a better future.”

Ukraine EU financial support package for greener and safer reconstruction of ’

19/04/2026 by the Logistics TransportIn the the General Assembly

As Ukraine continues to fight for freedom, the country's economy is faltering and GDP is in ’de %With a decline of 30.4’, it is experiencing its sharpest decline in more than 30 years.

The European Union has provided financial and military assistance to Ukraine’ in the last 12 months, keeping Ukraine’ a symbol of European solidarity and security from Russia’, even paving the way for its future accession to AB’ after Ukraine’ granted candidate status in June 2022’.

On 2 February ’ in Kiev’de, together with 15 European Commission members, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said: “Europe has been with Ukraine since day one, because we know that the future of our continent is written here.’

This is after AB’ announced a new assistance package of 450 million Euro’ for 2023, bringing the total financial support provided to Ukraine’ from AB’den, Member States and European financial institutions to around 50 billion Euro’.

Where has the money gone so far?

The €50 billion provided by the EU, European financial institutions and Member States comes in different forms and is spent in various areas, including humanitarian aid, military aid, Macro-Financial Aid and loans.

Macro Financial Assistance is a form of assistance to EU partner countries experiencing a balance of payments crisis and is used to finance government spending such as pensions, salaries, education and infrastructure repair.

The EU also has 35 million LED bulbs and 5400 generators to help alleviate ’'s energy crisis, as well as ’ pledged to donate equipment to help repair the power grid destroyed by Russian missile strikes.

Cost of War

The World Bank estimates that the cost of Ukraine’ya in terms of economic recovery and reconstruction of infrastructure will be about 320 billion euros.

Much of this economic collapse has to do with the mobilization of workers, which has disrupted key industries such as agriculture and exports, to which the Ukrainian economy depends.

But according to Ukrainian analyst Olena Bilan’ from Dragon Capital’, the economy is surprisingly resilient given the challenges the country faces.

In the first weeks of the war, half of the economy was not working. But then we saw a fairly rapid recovery in economic activity. This lasted until October, when Russia’ began a terrorist attack on Ukraine’'s energy infrastructure.”

Despite this, Bilan added that with the acquisition of “generators, accumulators and starlinks by companies, ” Ukrainian people and businesses are able to adapt to the challenges posed by electricity shortages.

Aid and investment for 2023

In addition to aid, the European Union has committed to lending only €18 billion in 2023’te with favorable credit conditions.

The funds will be distributed in several installments and will depend on the terms set out in the Memorandum of Understanding between Brussels and Kiev, which sets out its commitment to the rule of law reforms, economic liberalisation and anti-corruption.

Olena Bilan, Euronews’e Ukraine’ needs to take more steps towards “reform to recover, and ” added that Ukrainian authorities need to show genuine willingness and willpower to reduce corruption.

News Kiev’de was well received; Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Olha Stefanishyna said that this latest “important ” EU aid package provided “netlik” to Ukrainian citizens.

The International Monetary Fund estimates that the Ukrainian government faces a financing deficit of $38 to $39 billion (over 35 billion euros), so the 18 billion-euro loan will partially cover that deficit.

Valdis Dombrovskis, Vice-President of the European Commission for Economy and Trade, told euronews’ that EU’ expects other international donors, such as the United States and other G7 countries, to provide the rest of “, such as the World Bank, from international financial institutions such as the IMF.

Changes in EU-Ukraine trade agreements

The EU and Ukraine’ have had a trade agreement since 2017’, but in June last year the European Commission unilaterally decided to liberalize access to EU markets with a change that would last until June of this year.

Under this agreement, Ukrainian goods and services will be able to enter AB’ without any tariffs or quotas.

Dombrovskis Euronews’e said AB’ is working to extend these measures until June, as the end of the war is a long shot.

RussiaThe role of ’?

Von der Leyen gave a clear message to the ’ of Russia during his visit to Kiev’e in February: "Russia must be held accountable in court for its heinous crimes." - “

The President of the European Commission said that the prosecutors of Ukraine and the European Union are already working together to collect evidence to be used in the war crimes trial, adding that AB’ will continue to increase pressure on the Kremlin with sanctions.

Dombrovskis Euronews’e said international institutions are investigating how Russia will be held accountable for the damage ’ has already caused and continues to inflict on Ukraine’.

“In international law, there is a principle of responsibility of the attacker to cover the damage. The problem is how we can implement this principle, RussiaIt is not yet clear whether ’ will be willing to voluntarily pay, as I said.”

“We are looking at the possibilities of how the seized Russian assets can be used in the reconstruction of Ukraine’. This is an ongoing legal assessment that concerns both private assets and central bank assets of ’, Russia.”

Diageo plc warns profits will fall by millions if U.S. tariffs continue

17/04/2026 by the Logistics TransportIn the the General Assembly

British beverage maker Diageo plc announced its mid-term sales forecast for fiscal year 2025, ending December 31, 2024’te, on Tuesday, and retracted its mid-term sales forecast due to rising U.S. tariff uncertainty.

The company said its profits could fall by nearly $200 million (€193.7 million) in the second half of 2025 if tariffs threatened by U.S. President Donald Trump ’ on Canada and Mexico ’ come into effect.

Diageo plc’'s share price Tuesday afternoon %It's down 1.3.

The company owns more than 200 ’ brands, including Guinness, Johnnie Walker, Bailey’s and Captain Morgan’, and sells in almost 180 countries.

Currently, Diageo exports whiskey from ’ to USA’ye Canada, one of its main markets, and tequila from Mexico’. The North American market is Diageo’'s largest net sales source, as well as the largest share of the alcoholic beverages market in terms of volume.

Therefore, any tariff that USA’ applies to Canada or Mexico’ may have far-reaching consequences for Diageo.

The 25 percent ’ tariffs on Canada and Mexico, which Trump’ is due to impose on Tuesday, have now been delayed by a month. This followed talks with Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum.

Previously, the company's medium-term organic sales growth target %From 5 to %It was between 7. This target was removed as fears of a global trade war increased, affecting recovery rates in many key markets.

Diageo also underlined that future developments make it difficult to provide updated guidance on this goal.

But he assured investors that he would share more regular trading updates and short-term guidance in the meantime.

Diageo reports weak results in fourth quarter

Reported net sales due to challenging foreign exchange market %It fell 0.6 percent to $10.9 billion (€10.6 billion). But organic net sales %It reached $101 million (97.8 million euros) with an increase of 1, but the drop in volumes limited gains somewhat.

Reported operating profit is also affected by adverse foreign exchange conditions %While 4.9 declined, organic operating profit also fell. %1.2 is down.

Earnings per share (EPS) exceptionally %It fell by 9.6 percent, mainly due to the poor performance of Moët Hennessy’.

Diageo faced a worldwide decline in demand for its premium brands after consumers turned to cheaper brands due to the ongoing cost-of-living crisis in various markets.

Debra Crew, CEO of Diageo plc’, said in a 25 Fiscal Year interim earnings press release on the company's website: “ Growth in four of our five regions was supported by market share gains. In particular, we have outperformed the market in North American ’ with high-quality share growth and positive organic net sales growth thanks to strong implementation and momentum in Don Julio and Crown Royal’.

“I'm also particularly proud of the performance of our iconic Guinness brand, backed by brand building expertise, innovation and growing global momentum, delivering double-digit growth in the eighth consecutive half. Although the pace of recovery is slower in several key markets, we maintain confidence in positive long-term industry fundamentals and, more importantly, in our ability to surpass the market.”

What do analysts think about Diageo’'s results?

Quilter Cheviot research head Chris Beckett said in an email note: “Diageo’'s results for today's semester are satisfactory and probably exceeded market expectations. We expected stability in performance and sales %1 increase and profit %With a reduction of 1, this was the stability we were looking for.

The “ market, %From 5 to %7 may react negatively to the removal of medium-term direction towards organic sales growth. This goal was set during the pandemic, when demand was extraordinarily high, and this does not make it realistic in the current environment. While we're not too worried about the removal of this guide, some are likely to take this goal badly.”

“We do not believe that there has been a significant decline in the demand for high-quality alcoholic beverage brands; Instead, there is a temporary soft period that will heal. - ”

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell’in, said in an email note: “Diageo’ has very little good news so far at 2025’. First there was the threat of having to add cancer warnings to beverage labels, and now the company has withdrawn its medium-term guidance.

“ is one of the first companies to go beyond vaguely discussing the threat posed by U.S. tariffs and actively talk about the impact and how to try to mitigate it. Diageo imports a significant portion of U.S. sales from Mexico and Canada, so we'll be relieved to see that tax enforcement for these two countries is postponed for now.’

“If tariffs are eventually implemented, reflecting these extra costs to consumers will be a test of Diageo’'s pricing power. Although the group's income was slightly above the estimates, the financial results were not extraordinary. Dividends were kept steady as a sign of uncertain outlook and that sales of major liquor brands such as Tanqueray, Gordon’s and Smirnoff were under pressure.”