News Headlines - 13 August 2019

▽Argentina's peso falls 15% after surprise election results spook investors - CNN

A surprise result in Argentina's primary election sent the country's currency and stocks plunging Monday, with investors fearing that populists could replace the country's current, business-friendly government.
The Argentina peso fell 15.3% against the dollar. Two exchange-traded funds that track Argentina's stocks fell more than 20%.
Alberto Fernández won more than 47% of the vote in Sunday's primary, a major upset that suggests he's highly likely to win the October 27th election against incumbent Mauricio Macri, who received less than 33%. Fernandez's running mate is his left-wing Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, who was Argentina's president before Macri.

▽China sets yuan mid-point at fresh 11-yr low, but remains firmer than expectations - Reuters

China’s central bank lowered its official yuan midpoint for the ninth straight day to a fresh 11-year low on Tuesday to reflect broad weakness in the local unit.
The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) set the midpoint rate at 7.0326 per dollar prior to market open, 115 pips, or 0.16%, weaker than the previous fix of 7.0211 and the weakest since March 25, 2008.

▽Rocket mystery: What weapon was Russia testing in Arctic? - BBC News

Five Russian nuclear engineers who died in a rocket engine explosion have been buried in Sarov, a closed town 373km (232 miles) east of Moscow, where nuclear warheads are made.
The Russian state nuclear agency, Rosatom, said the experts had been testing a nuclear-powered engine. But it gave no further technical details... Russia has previously tested a nuclear-powered cruise missile, "Burevestnik".
But officials did not specify the system involved in Thursday's disastrous test.

▽Appeal court orders retrial of HIV-positive Ottawa man convicted of attempted murder | CBC News

Ontario's Court of Appeal has quashed three convictions and ordered the retrial of an Ottawa man who was convicted of attempted murder in 2012 after failing to disclose his HIV-positive status to three sex partners.
Steven Boone was originally found guilty of three counts of attempted murder and three counts of aggravated sexual assault... In a ruling released on Monday, the appeal court found the trial judge did not adequately instruct the jury on what needed to be proven to find Boone guilty of attempted murder. It quashed the convictions and ordered a new trial.

AP: Women accuse opera legend Domingo of sexual harassment - The Mainichi

For decades, Placido Domingo, one of the most celebrated and powerful men in opera, has tried to pressure women into sexual relationships by dangling jobs and then sometimes punishing the women professionally when they refused his advances, numerous accusers told The Associated Press.
Regarded as one of the greatest opera singers of all time, Domingo also is a prolific conductor and the director of the Los Angeles Opera. The multiple Grammy winner is an immensely respected figure in his rarefied world, described by colleagues as a man of prodigious charm and energy who works tirelessly to promote his art form.