MADRID — The hot, dry and windy conditions this summer that fueled the worst wildfires in Spain for at least three decades are 40 times more likely to recur due to human-caused climate change, according to an analysis by World Weather Attribution.

World Weather Attribution is an international collaboration that has conducted over 110 studies on the possible influence of climate change on extreme weather events.

Weather data analyzed by a group of 13 scientists found that the extreme conditions that drove last month’s fires in the northwest of the Iberian peninsula, including Portugal, were likely to recur every 15 years due to today’s climate.

The climate is 1.3 degrees Celsius (34.3 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer compared to pre-industrial levels when such events would be expected to occur every 500 years.

Forest fires ravaged more than 1 million hectares of land in the European Union this summer, with Spain and Portugal accounting for about two-thirds of that total.

The fires killed at least eight people, forced the evacuation of thousands and shut railway and motorway traffic in several areas. They coincided with a 16-day heatwave that was the most intense since records began.

“Extreme weather is becoming more frequent, but deaths and damage are preventable,” said Theodore Keeping, a researcher at the Centre for Environmental Policy Imperial College London.

“For wildfires, there’s an urgent need to control vegetation in rural areas, particularly land that has been abandoned by farmers and shepherds,” he added. “Ultimately, though, the world needs to stop burning oil, gas and coal.”

Heatwaves of similar intensity will occur every 13 years compared to every 2,500 years if there was no man-made climate change, the study found.

The scientists analyzed the “Daily Severity Rating” (DSR), a metric that considers temperature, humidity, wind speed and rain to estimate the potential intensity of a wildfire and how difficult it will be to extinguish.

The study focused on the 10 most intense days of the DSR each year and the 10 hottest days each summer in northwestern Spain and northern Portugal. — Reuters

NEW DELHI — Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday announced tax cuts on hundreds of consumer items ranging from soaps to small cars to spur domestic demand in the face of economic headwinds from punishing US tariffs.

The goods and services tax (GST) panel approved lowering taxes on everyday items and simplifying their structure, Mr. Sitharaman, who heads the panel that includes ministers from all states, told a late-night press conference.

The GST was criticized for its complicated structure and numerous tax categories. To simplify this, the panel approved the two-rate structure of 5% and 18%, instead of four rates currently.

Mr. Sitharaman said the panel approved cuts in consumer items such as toothpaste and shampoo to 5% from 18%, and on small cars, air conditioners, and televisions to 18% from 28%.

She said the GST will be removed from all individual life insurance policies and health insurance.

Federal and state governments are estimated to lose 480 billion Indian rupees ($5.49 billion) due to the cuts that will be implemented from Sept. 22, the first day of the Hindu festival of Navratri.

Coupled with cuts in personal tax unveiled in February, the GST reductions are expected to boost consumption in the South Asian nation, whose economy grew at an unexpectedly higher pace of 7.8% in the quarter to June.

“The consumption boost in lieu of the GST rate rationalization will more than neutralize any possible revenue impact,” said Soumya Kanti Ghosh, chief economist at SBI.

“The impact on fiscal deficit will be almost insignificant or even positive.”

The panel approved a tax of 40% on “super luxury” and “sin” goods such as cigarettes, cars with engine capacity exceeding 1,500 cubic centimeters, and carbonated beverages, the minister said.

The move is expected to boost sales of fast-moving consumer goods firms such as Hindustan Unilever and Godrej Industries, and consumer electronics companies such as Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, and Sony. Automakers such as Maruti, Toyota Motor, and Suzuki Motor are expected to be big winners.

The rush to cut the tax was triggered by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for greater self-reliance in India, vowing last month to lower the GST by October to counter the US tariffs of up to 50%.

After the tax cuts announced on Wednesday, Mr. Modi said, “The wide-ranging reforms will improve lives of our citizens and ensure ease of doing business for all, especially small traders and businesses.” — Reuters

Exchange operator Nasdaq proposed on Wednesday stricter listing standards, including a higher minimum public float for certain new listings and a faster process to suspend and delist thinly traded companies.

Nasdaq said in a statement that it would require companies primarily operating in China to raise a minimum of $25 million in public offering proceeds to qualify for listing, reviving a threshold it previously applied to issuers from “restrictive markets”.

The New York-headquartered exchange operator said it submitted the proposed rules to the US Securities and Exchange Commission for review, and if approved, plans to implement the changes promptly.

Wall Street’s top regulator in June singled out China as it sought to raise disclosure requirements for listing hopefuls.

The proposed changes come as a record number of Chinese companies are seeking to list in the US this year, driven by onerous domestic rules and the prospect of better valuations despite volatile Sino-US relations and regulatory scrutiny.

Under the proposal, new listings under Nasdaq’s net income standard would require a minimum $15 million market value of public float. The exchange also proposed a faster suspension and delisting process for companies with listing deficiencies and a market value of listed securities below $5 million.

“These enhancements reflect our ongoing commitment to evolve our standards in step with market realities,” John Zecca, Nasdaq’s executive vice president and global chief legal, risk and regulatory officer, said in the statement, adding that higher minimums are intended to improve liquidity for public investors.

Nasdaq said the changes follow a review of trading activity, including patterns associated with “potential pump-and-dump schemes in US cross-market trading environments,” and are intended to recalibrate minimum liquidity standards as company valuations and market dynamics shift.

The exchange added that it would continue to refer potentially manipulative trading to the SEC and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, and deepen cooperation with domestic and international regulators.

More than 100 Chinese firms, including technology leaders Alibaba, JD.com and Baidu, are listed in the United States, boasting a combined market value of about $1 trillion as of March, according to data from the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission.

The fall IPO window in the US is shaping up to be one of the busiest in years, as companies race to capitalize on resurgent investor demand ahead of the close of 2025.

In April, tearoom chain Chagee debuted on the Nasdaq, raising $411 million in one of the biggest US IPOs by a Chinese firm so far this year. — Reuters

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump said on Wednesday the US might have to “unwind” trade deals it reached with the European Union, Japan and South Korea, among others, if it loses a Supreme Court tariffs case, and warned that a loss would cause the US “to suffer so greatly.”

Trump, speaking to reporters at the White House, said his administration will ask the Supreme Court to reverse a US appeals court ruling last week that found many of his tariffs were illegal. Trump, however, said he thought his administration would prevail in the case.

“We made a deal with the European Union where they’re paying us almost a trillion dollars. And you know what? They’re happy. It’s done. These deals are all done,” he said. “I guess we’d have to unwind them.”

The comments were Trump’s first specifically suggesting the trade deals reached with major trading partners – which were negotiated separately, outside of the tariffs – could be invalidated if the Supreme Court lets Friday’s ruling stand.

Trump said rescinding the tariffs would be costly, although trade experts note that the duties are paid by importers in the United States, not companies in the countries of origin. Economists have warned that tariffs are likely to fuel inflation in the United States.

“Our country has a chance to be unbelievably rich again. It could also be unbelievably poor again. If we don’t win that case, our country is going to suffer so greatly, so greatly,” Trump said.

The appeals court ruling addressed the legality of what Trump calls “reciprocal” tariffs first imposed as part of a trade war in April, as well as a separate set of tariffs imposed in February against China, Canada and Mexico. The decision does not impact tariffs issued under other legal authority, such as those on steel and aluminum imports.

Trade experts said his comments on the cost of rescinding the tariffs were intended to convince the Supreme Court that removing the tariffs would unleash major economic chaos.

Ryan Majerus, a former senior US trade official who is now a partner with law firm King & Spalding, said it had been clear from the start that the trade deals with the EU and other trading partners were framework agreements that were subject to change, not fully fledged trade agreements.

“The president’s announcement today that the deals could be unwound reflects an effort to maximize leverage on the US side,” he said.

Legal and trade experts say the Supreme Court’s 6-3 majority of Republican-appointed justices may slightly improve Trump’s odds of keeping in place at least some of the tariffs after the appeals court ruled 7-4 last week that they are illegal.

But they say it is difficult to predict exactly what the court will do, given rulings in past cases and the unprecedented nature of the challenge.

Senator Ron Wyden, the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, said Trump’s comments sowed more confusion.

“The Trump administration can’t get its story straight about whether its trade deals will hold any water if the tariffs are struck down,” he said. — Reuters