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Sunday, May 31, 2020

Pandemic Leads To Short-Term Rental Sell-Off - pymnts.com

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The coronavirus pandemic has many smaller property owners looking to unload their properties to save money, which could lead to big owners seeing a market ripe with purchasing opportunities, according to a CNBC report.

The companies on the defensive right now also include venture capital-backed rental companies and vacation rental apps like Airbnb.

The U.S. travel economy has taken a decisive $195 billion revenue shortfall since March when the pandemic began, according to CNBC, which cited a report from the U.S. Travel Association. Airbnb has had to lay off almost 2,000 employees and undergone other cost-cutting measures as it raised $2 billion in new debt funding at its $18 billion valuation.

Vacation rental companies, backed by venture capital funds, include names such as Washington state-based Stay Alfred, San Francisco-based Sonder, and Airbnb-backed companies like Zeus Living and Lyric. Stay Alfred announced that it would be shutting down soon, while the other companies all announced layoffs and new debt.

Those kinds of companies, CNBC reported, operate via master leases from apartment buildings, which they use to pay landlords set leases and then use the apartments for their own companies, capturing the difference from the customers who stay there. But the pandemic has eaten away at their business as people cancel vacation plans.

Individual landlords have not been left out of the devastation, either, with CNBC quoting two individuals who rent out properties and, due to the pandemic’s crunch, have plans to sell off those properties.

The companies coming out on top, CNBC reported, include those which shifted their business models ahead of the pandemic’s worst effects. Vector Travel, which furnishes properties, handles marketing and does guest communications for landlords looking at doing short-term rentals, has instead pivoted to mid-term rentals during the pandemic. The company used to allow bookings for up to 29 nights but is now offering up to 90 nights.

The issue also goes the other way, with some former Airbnb hosts jumping ship to market their rental properties by themselves.

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LIVE PYMNTS ROUNDTABLE: MODERNIZING & SCALING FOR THE NEW NORMAL

The pressure on banks to modernize their payments capabilities to support initiatives such as ISO 20022 and instant/real time payments has been exacerbated by the emergence of COVID-19 and the compelling need to quickly scale operations due to the rapid growth of contactless payments, and subsequent increase in digitization. Given this new normal, the need for agility and optimization across the payments processing value chain is imperative.

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Why one analyst believes Jimmy G is facing 'prove-it time' - NBCSports.com

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Are the 49ers married to quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo?

On the surface, his contract says "Yes."

But coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch had a bit of a wandering eye this offseason when they pondered the idea of pursuing Tom Brady in free agency.

The 49ers ultimately decided to stick with Garoppolo, but it doesn't necessarily mean Shanahan and Lynch won't move on if they feel someone better is available.

ESPN's Dan Graziano took a look at all 32 NFL teams and ranked them based on their level of commitment to their current starting quarterback, and he ranked the 49ers at No. 26.

[49ERS INSIDER PODCAST: Listen to the latest episode]

Despite the fact that Garoppolo is 21-5 as a starter in the NFL and just led the 49ers to the Super Bowl, Graziano says it is "prove-it time" for the quarterback.

Why are the 49ers and Garoppolo so low considering he's under contract for three more seasons?

"It sounds crazy to call it "prove-it time" for a quarterback who's [21-5] as an NFL starter and just played in the Super Bowl," Graziano wrote. "But the fact is the way the 49ers structure their contracts, everyone is always in prove-it time.

"Garoppolo has a $23.8 million salary in 2020, but just $15.7 million of that is guaranteed, and the Niners owe him no more guaranteed money after 2020. The dead-money cap hit for cutting Garoppolo next offseason would be just $2.8 million.

"There's no reason to think they don't like Garoppolo or that he won't play out his entire contract there. But San Francisco's policy on flexibility doesn't exempt its quarterback, and the organization will always have the financial freedom to make a change at the position if it feels it needs to."

Garoppolo has his detractors, but most of the criticism is unwarranted. The results speak for themselves. Yes, he didn't play particularly well against the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIV, but he's 28 years old and still has room to improve.

All that said, it shouldn't shock anyone if the 49ers were to part ways with Garoppolo in the next year or two. Lynch and Shanahan are in salary cap hell right now. Fitting a contract extension for All-Pro tight end George Kittle under the salary cap is proving to be difficult. DeForest Buckner, one of the leaders of the 49ers' stout defense, was traded because he had become too pricey.

So as committed as the 49ers might be to Garoppolo today, that could change as early as next offseason. They could let Garoppolo go and turn things over to Nick Mullens, who played well while Garoppolo recovered from a torn ACL in 2018. Or they could look to draft a quarterback next year.

Or Garoppolo could run it back in 2020, win the Super Bowl, and the 49ers could decide to keep him long-term while worrying about the salary cap gymnastics elsewhere.

[SPORTS UNCOVERED: Listen to the latest episode]

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Live George Floyd Protest Updates and Video - The New York Times

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Here’s what you need to know:

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The death of George Floyd at the hands of the police set off days of protests in Minneapolis. Demonstrators challenged a curfew on Saturday and took to the streets for the fifth day in a row. Here’s why.CreditCredit...Mike Shum for The New York Times

Demonstrations continued across the United States on Sunday as officials braced for another night of destruction after a weekend of protests met by aggressive law enforcement response.

The fear and fury that had seized Minneapolis, where the death of yet another black man at the hands of the police last week set off days of protracted unrest, have now swept well beyond Minnesota, with tumultuous demonstrations from New York City and Los Angeles and dozens of cities in between.

In Washington, thousands of protesters gathered again near the White House on Sunday, where a violent protest on Friday night so unnerved the Secret Service that agents abruptly rushed President Trump to the underground bunker used in the past during terrorist attacks. While in the end officials said the president and his family were never really in danger, the scene — described by a person with firsthand knowledge — was emblematic of the sense of unease gripping the country.

The city of Philadelphia announced a 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew after a day of protests and looting there, Washington’s mayor set one for 11 p.m. and Arizona’s governor declared a state of emergency and ordered a nightly 8 p.m. curfew that he said was “effective for one week.”

The actions came a day after hundreds of people were arrested across the country as clashes erupted between protesters and the police in dozens of states. In some cities, the authorities appeared to fire rubber bullets and other projectiles with little or no provocation. In New York City, two police vehicles surged forward into a crowd of demonstrators, some of whom were blocking the street and pelting the cars with debris.

At least 75 cities have seen protests in recent days, and the number mayors and governors imposing curfews — already more than two dozen — continued to grow. It is the first time so many local leaders have simultaneously issued such orders in the face of civic unrest since 1968, after the assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

National Guard soldiers were posted in Atlanta and Minneapolis, California moved troops into Los Angeles, and President Trump — out of public view but active on Twitter — urged governors, largely Democrats, to enact more and more forceful responses.

“Get tough Democrat Mayors and Governors,” Mr. Trump wrote on Twitter. “These people are ANARCHISTS. Call in our National Guard NOW. The World is watching and laughing at you and Sleepy Joe. Is this what America wants? NO!!!

Sunday’s protests marked the sixth day of outrage since George Floyd died while in police custody in Minneapolis on Monday. A cellphone video showed a white police officer — since fired and charged with third-degree murder — grinding his knee into Mr. Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes as he struggled to breathe.

Coming after months of restrictions to curb the coronavirus pandemic and the deep economic slowdown they have caused, with 40 million people out of work, the video of Mr. Floyd’s death brought a renewed outpouring of anguish over inequality and maltreatment that showed little sign of slowing.

In New York City, where chaotic confrontations between protesters and the police have resulted in dozens of injuries, hundreds of arrests, smashed storefronts and burned police vehicles, several groups of demonstrators were gathering again across the city on Sunday afternoon.

Hundreds of people had gathered at the Barclays Center arena in Brooklyn. Another large group marched south from Washington Square Park in Manhattan and crossed the Williamsburg Bridge into Brooklyn.

A demonstration at Bryant Park in Midtown Manhattan began with raised fists and a moment of silence. Many businesses had boarded up their windows in anticipation of trouble.

Target said it would temporarily close or shorten the hours of about 200 stores in the United States as protests continued to spread.

The Target store on Lake Street in Minneapolis, the location nearest to where Mr. Floyd died, was engulfed by unrest, badly damaged and looted last week. Images of the battered store have featured prominently in news coverage of the unrest in Minneapolis, where Target has its headquarters.

In a statement on its website Saturday night, Target said: “We are heartbroken by the death of George Floyd and the pain it is causing communities across the country. At this time, we have made the decision to close a number of our stores.”

Protests Over Racism and Police Violence

Protests have erupted in at least 75 cities across the United States in the days after George Floyd, a black man, died in police custody. Some of the demonstrations have turned violent, prompting the activation of the National Guard in at least 11 states.

Protests since Wednesday

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By Weiyi Cai, Juliette Love, Jugal K. Patel and Yuliya Parshina-Kottas

One day after video showed them using stun guns on two black college students and then dragging them out of their car, two Atlanta police officers were fired for what the city’s mayor said constituted “excessive force.”

The mayor, Keisha Lance Bottoms, announced the dismissal of the two officers, whom she did not name, during a news conference on Sunday.

Ms. Bottoms said that three other officers who were involved in the episode had been reassigned to desk duty while the department reviews their actions.

“It was disturbing on many levels, the least of not which was that there clearly was an excessive use of force,” Ms. Bottoms said. “We understand that our officers are working very long hours under an enormous amount of stress, but we also understand that the use of excessive force is never acceptable.”

Ms. Bottoms said she had reviewed police body camera footage of the confrontation and that it should be released immediately. The episode was broadcast live on local television on Saturday night, showing a group of officers stopping a man and woman in their car near downtown Atlanta roughly 45 minutes after a curfew went into effect at 9 p.m. It was unclear what prompted the police to stop the car.

The Georgia N.A.A.C.P. identified the students as Taniya Pilgrim, 20, and Messiah Young, 22. They attend Spelman College and Morehouse College, prestigious historically black institutions in Atlanta.

Chief Erika Shields of the Atlanta Police Department condemned the actions of the officers, saying that Ms. Pilgrim and Mr. Young had been “manhandled” and that the episode had only underscored the fear and wariness minorities have of the police.

“I know that we caused further fear to you in a space that’s already so fearful for so many African-Americans, and I am genuinely sorry,” Chief Shields said. “This is not who we are. This is not what we’re about.”

Mr. Young was initially arrested on charges of fleeing the scene and driving with an expired license, the Atlanta station WGCL-TV reported, but those charges were dropped.

The actions of the Atlanta officers came amid intensifying scrutiny of how law enforcement was responding to demonstrators.

In Philadelphia, police in riot gear and an armored vehicle used pepper spray to try to repel rioters and looters, who breached a Target store and a Foot Locker store, according to photos posted on social media.

A wall of police officers blocked an entrance ramp to Interstate 676 in the city, where the mass transit system SEPTA announced that it was suspending service starting at 6 p.m. Sunday as part of a curfew.

In Miami, Mayor Francis Suarez of Miami gave out his cellphone number in a television interview with the local CBS station, urging people to contact him regarding any police issues. He had given his number out earlier to young protesters who sought him out after an afternoon news conference.

But in Chicago, the police superintendent, David Brown, excoriated the looters on Sunday as the Illinois governor, J.B. Pritzker, activated the National Guard at the city’s request.

“Let me be clear, last night was not a protest,” Mr. Brown said. “The people that came downtown were not there to exercise their First Amendment rights. That will not be tolerated.”

Chicago’s top law enforcement officer said that the police had shown great restraint during protests.

“I want to commend our officers for maintaining their composure throughout this whole ordeal,” he said.

Credit...Eric Miller/Reuters

A tanker truck barreled through thousands of protesters in Minneapolis on Sunday afternoon, coming to a stop as the crowd parted to avoid getting hit.

The Minnesota Department of Public Safety said that no one had been struck by the truck, although some protesters told local media that they had seen people with injuries. The police said the driver was “inciting” the peaceful protesters, and that he had been arrested and treated at a hospital for non-life threatening injuries

Video player loading
The truck can be seen speeding toward protesters on a highway as demonstrations continued in Minneapolis for the sixth straight night.

As the tanker truck came to a stop, demonstrators who had just sprinted from its path swarmed back toward it and pulled the driver out of the cab, according to videos from the scene. As people ran toward the driver, several protesters shouted for them to not hurt him and tried to create a buffer zone.

The confrontation took place on Interstate 35, which had been partly closed to traffic because of the protest, and the police said they were working with transportation officials to determine how the truck had gotten onto the highway.

“I don’t know the motives of the driver at this time, but at this point in time, to not have tragedy and many deaths is simply an amazing thing,” Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota said at a news conference. He called video of the episode “horrifying.”

The protest had been peaceful and well-organized; the Department of Public Safety had tweeted updates about the group’s location and said its officers were working to keep the demonstrators safe.

Credit...Anna Moneymaker/The New York Times

President Trump said on Twitter on Sunday that the United States would designate a group of far-left anti-fascism activists as a terrorist organization, a declaration that lacked any clear legal authority, as his administration sought to blame the group for violent protests across the nation over the weekend.

“The United States of America will be designating ANTIFA as a Terrorist Organization,” Mr. Trump wrote.

The president has periodically criticized antifa, a contraction of the word “anti-fascist” that has come to be associated with a diffuse movement of left-wing protesters who engage in more aggressive techniques like vandalism.

But it was not clear that Mr. Trump’s declaration would have any real meaning beyond his characteristic attempts to stir a culture-war controversy, attract attention and please his conservative base.

“There is no authority under law to do that — and if such a statute were passed, it would face serious First Amendment challenges,” said Mary B. McCord, a former head of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “But right now, the only terrorist authority is for foreign terrorist organizations.”

Nevertheless, in a statement after Mr. Trump’s tweet, Attorney General William P. Barr said the F.B.I. would use its partnerships with state and local police to identify violent protesters, whom he also called domestic terrorists.

“The violence instigated and carried out by antifa and other similar groups in connection with the rioting is domestic terrorism and will be treated accordingly,” Mr. Barr said.

But the American Civil Liberties Union condemned Mr. Trump’s vow in a statement from Hina Shamsi, its national security project director.

“As this tweet demonstrates, terrorism is an inherently political label, easily abused and misused,” Ms. Shamsi said. “There is no legal authority for designating a domestic group. Any such designation would raise significant due process and First Amendment concerns.”

Former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr., the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, appeared in downtown Wilmington, Del., on Sunday, where he visited the site of Saturday’s protests and toured businesses damaged during the demonstrations.

In a photo posted to social media, Mr. Biden, wearing a mask, is kneeling down to speak with a man and a child.

“We are a nation in pain, but we must not allow this pain to destroy us,” he wrote on Instagram. “We are a nation enraged, but we cannot allow our rage to consume us. We are a nation exhausted, but we will not allow our exhaustion to defeat us. The only way to bear this pain is to turn all that anguish to purpose.”

Two days earlier, Mr. Biden had challenged white Americans to confront the country’s racial inequality, saying that “this is the norm black people in this country deal with.”

The former vice president, who has long carefully balanced appeals for racial justice with a tough-on-crime message, notably did not equivocate by warning protesters against violence.

In doing so, he struck a contrast with President Trump, who has largely chosen not to address the country’s racial strife and has instead fanned the flames on Twitter, calling protesters “ANARCHISTS” in a post on Sunday.

Credit...Bryan Denton for The New York Times

As President Trump painted the National Guard as key to restoring order and taunted Democratic governors and mayors for not calling out the troops, the generals in charge of troops in three states said on Sunday afternoon that they had been only in support roles and had not used any force to put down the civil unrest.

The leaders of the Minnesota, Georgia and Colorado National Guards made clear that while troops had probably had a deterrent effect, the bulk of the credit for containing the violence went to local police officers. National Guard forces have been used mostly to secure buildings, allowing more police officers to move to the front lines, they said.

“Our purpose is to allow our local law enforcement professionals to do their jobs,” said Gen. Jon Jensen, the leader of Minnesota’s National Guard. “We do that by relieving them of items like infrastructure security.”

The forces in Minnesota and Georgia are armed, while the Colorado troops have only nonlethal weaponry. The generals did not describe under what conditions they would use force, only that they would be proportional and used in self-defense.

General Jensen said he had requested additional military police battalions from the National Guard forces of neighboring states, but said he would not recommend the Minnesota governor request regular Army forces for that job, as Mr. Trump has offered.

Army Maj. Gen. Thomas Carden Jr., the adjutant general of the Georgia National Guard, expressed dismay that his forces had to be called out for a domestic civil unrest mission.

“We in America should not get used to or accept uniformed service members of any variety having to be put in a position where they are having to secure people inside the United States of America,” General Carden said. “While we are honored to do it, this is a sign of the times that we have to do better as a country.”

At a religious event on Sunday, the Houston police chief delivered an emotional, sermon-style speech after days of at-times violent protests in the city where George Floyd grew up, denouncing police brutality, evoking Houston’s recovery from Hurricane Harvey and saying those turning demonstrations destructive were doing “Satan’s work.”

The chief, Art Acevedo, who has marched with demonstrators and has called for charges to be filed against the four officers in Minneapolis, took off his mask at one point and pumped his arm as those assembled in their vehicles during the event honked their horns in support.

“We have a man, a son, a brother, an uncle, a cousin, a Houstonian, a child of God that was killed by servants that are supposed to be servants of God, and they showed no mercy when they put their knee on his neck,” he said of Mr. Floyd.

Chief Acevedo was the latest of several police chiefs in cities across the country to attend demonstrations this week, though the fact that he addressed protesters in a speech was notable.

“We don’t fear speaking the truth because we’re doing God’s work,” Chief Acevedo said. “We don’t fear speaking the truth because we’re covered by the holy spirit. We don’t fear walking up to people who are angry because we join them in their anger.”

Standing next to Representative Sheila Jackson Lee, Democrat of Texas, the chief said that he did not care what people thought of him speaking frankly. “I know my God put me in this position not to keep my job but to do my job,” he said.

Raising his voice into a shout, he said, “We will not let people come into our city and tear it up!” He added that “the fools” being destructive should not take their kindness for weakness, “because when you try to tear up our city, you ain’t going to have to face the police. You’re going to have to face the people of Houston that will not let the memory of George Floyd be hijacked by anarchists that are doing Satan’s work!”

Earlier in the day, the chief took his support for the protest movement over Mr. Floyd’s death even further, changing the profile picture on the police department’s official Twitter account to an image of Mr. Floyd.

Credit...Mark Makela/Getty Images

Videos posted on social media showed looting and vandalism to storefronts in parts of Philadelphia on Sunday afternoon, even as hundreds of people protested peacefully outside City Hall.

Mayor Jim Kenney of Philadelphia called the looters “anarchists” at a midday news conference, hours before all retail stores in Philadelphia were closed on Sunday afternoon. For a second night, a citywide curfew was imposed, set for 6 p.m.

The peaceful protesters’ message about racism and use of force by the police “in no way should be diminished by anarchists and others who tried to cause chaos in our city last night,” Mr. Kenney said at the news conference, adding that the instigators “did a great disservice to the many others who chose to speak out forcefully against institutional racism and violence at the hands of the police.”

Streets in the Center City business district were closed starting at noon to allow cleanup from the previous night’s protests. Mass transit service was curtailed.

Pennsylvania joined several states that moved to make it easier to activate the National Guard this weekend, and the city, along with suburban Montgomery County, asked for help from the Guard on Sunday, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

Credit...Chang W. Lee/The New York Times

Mass protests that have brought thousands of people out of their homes and onto the streets in cities across America are raising the specter of new coronavirus outbreaks, prompting political leaders, physicians and public health experts to warn that the crowds could cause a surge in cases.

More than 100,000 Americans have already died of Covid-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus. People of color have been particularly hard hit, with rates of hospitalizations and deaths among black Americans far exceeding those of whites.

While many political leaders affirmed the right of protesters to express themselves, they urged the demonstrators to wear face masks and maintain social distancing, both to protect themselves and to prevent further community spread of the virus.

The protests are occurring as many states have warily begun reopening after weeks of stay-at-home orders.

In Los Angeles, where demonstrations led to the closing of virus testing sites on Saturday, Mayor Eric Garcetti warned that the protests could become so-called “super-spreader events” that can lead to an explosion of secondary infections. And Gov. Larry Hogan of Maryland, a Republican, expressed concern that his state would see a spike in cases in about two weeks, which is about how long it takes for symptoms to emerge after someone is infected.

Some infectious disease experts were reassured by the fact that the protests were held outdoors, saying the open air settings could mitigate the risk of transmission. In addition, many of the demonstrators were wearing masks.

Melvin Carter, the mayor of St. Paul, Minn., said on Sunday that what his city needed to help restore order after days of protests was not military assistance, but rather assurances that someone would be held accountable for the death of George Floyd.

Speaking on the CNN program “State of the Union,” Mr. Carter called for “peace,” not “patience,” a phrase also used by Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms of Atlanta on the same program.

Referring to the video of Mr. Floyd’s death that sparked the protests, Mr. Carter said, “When all of humanity can look at this video and say, ‘That’s disgusting, that’s unacceptable,’ and yet somehow we have four officers in the video, who — three of whom sat there and either helped hold Mr. Floyd down or stood guard over the scene while it happened, that is an incredible insult to humanity.”

Mr. Carter, whose father is a retired St. Paul police officer, rejected the notion that Mr. Floyd’s death was an isolated incident or the work of one rogue officer. “When you have four officers in the video all responsible for the taking of George Floyd’s life, it points to a culture of normalized, a culture that’s accepted.”

At least 170 businesses had been damaged during protests in St. Paul, he said. He called on protesters to channel their frustration and anger into “destroying the laws, destroying the legal precedents, destroying the police union contracts,” instead of burning and looting.

Mayor Bottoms of Atlanta warned against allowing the clashes to obscure the reasons for the protests.

“Yesterday, we weren’t talking about George Floyd or Ahmaud Arbery or Breonna Taylor, we were talking about police cars burning in our street,” Ms. Bottoms said. “What happens when we have these violent protests and uprisings in our city, we get distracted from what the real issue is. And we need to get back to what the problem is, and that’s the killing of unarmed black people in America.”

Video player loading
Hundreds of protesters rallied in central London and marched to the United States Embassy in support of demonstrations across the U.S. that were set off by the death of George Floyd.CreditCredit...John Sibley/Reuters

Hundreds of protesters gathered in Trafalgar Square in central London on Sunday afternoon and marched toward the United States Embassy, the most visible sign so far of popular support overseas for the protests across the U.S. against police killings of black people.

Holding signs and clapping their hands, the protesters gathered in the square in defiance of stay-at-home restrictions in effect across Britain to fight the coronavirus pandemic. They chanted “I can’t breathe,” “Black lives matter,” and “No justice, no peace,” before crossing the Thames to march peacefully to the embassy.

The protest march on Sunday echoed one on Saturday in the Peckham district of South London. Another London march is planned for next Sunday.

Several hundred protesters rallied outside the U.S. Embassy in Berlin on Sunday, holding up signs saying “Justice for George Floyd” and “Stop killing us,” Reuters reported.

Credit...Cristobal Herrera/EPA, via Shutterstock

As cities and states brace for more demonstrations in the coming days, the authorities have responded by calling in more resources and readjusting previously held plans.

In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott declared a state of disaster on Sunday, an action that enables him to designate federal agents to serve as Texas peace officers. The Republican governor, who activated the Texas National Guard a day earlier, issued the disaster order after protests in the state’s major cities touched off confrontations between demonstrators and law enforcement.

“As protests have turned violent in various areas across the state, it is crucial that we maintain order, uphold public safety, and protect against property damage or loss,” Mr. Abbott said in announcing the disaster declaration. “Every Texan and every American has the right to protest and I encourage all Texans to exercise their First Amendment rights,” he said. “However, violence against others and the destruction of property is unacceptable and counterproductive.”

And in South Florida, Mayor Carlos Gimenez of Miami-Dade County postponed the planned reopening of beaches following the lockdown because of the pandemic. Miami-Dade beaches had been scheduled to open on Monday.

“The beaches will remain closed until the curfew order is lifted,” Mr. Gimenez said in a statement on Sunday. He cited an emergency order he signed on Saturday imposing a countywide curfew after a small group of protesters set police cars on fire outside the Miami Police Department’s downtown headquarters.

The beach reopenings would have involved a significant police presence. Condominium pools and hotels in the county will be allowed to reopen on Monday as planned.

Hundreds of protesters returned to the streets of downtown Austin on Sunday in what were described as largely peaceful demonstrations after sporadic looting and confrontations between police and protesters the previous day.

Sunday’s gatherings took place even after the Austin Justice Coalition canceled plans for an official demonstration. Organizers said they had halted the plans because they were worried about the safety of participants and because protests were being co-opted and made violent by people who were not black.

One woman who attended the gathering on Sunday said she had been pepper-sprayed by the police, and the authorities reported a possible looting incident in an outlying shopping center. But the demonstrations were relatively calm compared with Saturday, when protesters blocked traffic on I-35, set fire to several parked cars and looted businesses on Sixth Street.

Carrying placards with inscriptions such as “Black Futures Matter” and “End Racism,” the demonstrators started out at the State Capitol, marched to city hall several blocks to the south and later returned to the Capitol.

“It’s been peaceful so far,” said Sgt. Victor Taylor, a spokesman for the Texas Department of Public Safety.

Chas Moore, executive director of the Austin Justice Coalition, said in a Facebook video that on Saturday night, white people had been “burning stuff up in the name of Black Lives Matter” and that there were rumors that white provocateurs would try to hijack Sunday’s demonstration.

“You are using black pain, and you are using fake outrage in the name of Black Lives Matter to go deface and destroy property, which we would then get the blame for,” Mr. Moore said.

“To those people, to those agitators, we see you, we know who you are, and we’re not going to let you co-opt and colonize this movement like you’ve done everything else.”

Photos From the George Floyd Protests, City by City

Scenes from the protests over racism and police violence that have erupted across the country.

Reporting was contributed by Mike Baker, Peter Baker, Julian Barnes, Johanna Barr, Katie Benner, Alan Blinder, Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs, Chris Cameron, Johnny Diaz, Caitlin Dickerson, Nicholas Fandos, Tess Felder, Ben Fenwick, Manny Fernandez, Russell Goldman, Maggie Haberman, Rebecca Halleck, Zach Johnk, Steve Lohr, Patricia Mazzei, Christopher Mele, David Montgomery, Elian Peltier, Roni Caryn Rabin, Rick Rojas, Simon Romero, Marc Santora, Charlie Savage, Neil Vigdor, Mihir Zaveri and Karen Zraick.

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OPEC+ to Discuss Short Extension of Oil Output Cuts - Yahoo Finance

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(Bloomberg) -- OPEC+ is set to discuss a short extension of its current output cuts, according to a delegate, as the cartel considers bringing forward its next meeting a few days to June 4.

The cartel and its allies are considering extending the current cuts for one to three months, the delegate said. As the situation in the oil market is moving fast, the preference is to take short-term measures and not disrupt the rebalancing of the market, the delegate said.

The existing deal -- struck in April as energy demand and prices collapsed because of the coronavirus pandemic -- calls for output curbs to ease from July. But that’s up for discussion at the next meeting. Russia wants to start easing from July, people familiar with the situation said last week.

Oil prices have rallied as the output cuts coincided with a stronger-than-expected rebound in demand. But with lockdowns easing across the globe, fears that the pandemic could have a second wave make predictions of a recovery perilous. At about $35 a barrel, prices are below what most producers need for government spending.

The date of the meeting, which will be held by video conference, was still to be confirmed late on Sunday, after people familiar with the situation said OPEC members were close to an agreement to bring it forward to June 4.

An earlier date would give the oil cartel more flexibility to change its current production limits. OPEC members usually decide their plans for shipping oil to customers for July in the first week of June, so an earlier meeting would give them more time to react.

Algerian Energy Minister Mohamed Arkab, who holds the rotating presidency, proposed June 4, instead of June 9-10.

The 23-nation OPEC+ coalition led by Saudi Arabia and Russia is undertaking record oil-production cuts to prop up prices. At the meeting they will decide whether keep the existing agreement, or extend the current curbs.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its partners committed to lowering output by 9.7 million barrels a day, or about 10% of global supply, in May and June. In addition, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates made further voluntary cuts of about 1.2 million barrels a day for June, bringing the total OPEC+ curbs to almost 11 million barrels a day.

Production cuts are meant to be eased to about 7.7 million barrels a day in July.

Nigeria and the state oil company of Abu Dhabi, the UAE’s capital, have already announced plans to increase exports in July in line with the OPEC+ deal from April.

If the decision to move the meeting is confirmed, it would mean also shifting committee meetings that normally take place before a ministerial conference to later in the month.

OPEC has an Economic Commission Board meeting scheduled for June 2-3, and a Joint Technical Committee to assess implementation of the current supply cuts on June 5.

(Updates with latest moves.)

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