(Adds details on storm position, movement) MIAMI, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Tropical Storm Fred formed in the eastern Atlantic Ocean on Monday with top winds of 40 mph (65 kph), but did not immediately threaten any land, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. Fred was the sixth named tropical storm of the 2009 Atlantic-Caribbean hurricane season that runs from June through November. Forecasters said some strengthening was expected in the next couple of days. Tropical storms become hurricanes when their top sustained winds reach 74 mph (119 kph). At 11 p.m. (0300 GMT on Tuesday), Fred was centered about 245 miles (390 km) south-southwest of the southernmost Cape Verde Islands and was moving west at 15 mph (24 kph). A slight gradual turn to the west-northwest and northwest was forecast over the next two days, the center said. "Some additional strengthening is forecast during the next couple of days," it said. Fred's anticipated immediate track would keep it far from the Gulf of Mexico, where U.S. oil and gas operations are clustered. Energy traders keep a close eye on storms that could enter the Gulf of Mexico and disrupt offshore U.S. oil and natural gas production or refinery operations along the coast. Also, commodities traders watch storms that could damage agriculture crops such as citrus and cotton in Florida and other states along the coast to Texas. Pricing of insurance-linked securities, which transfer insurance risks associated with natural disasters to capital markets investors and can be used to hedge other weather risk exposures, can also be affected by the path of a storm. (For additional news on the insurance-linked securities market, go to http://communities.thomsonreuters.com/ILS) (Reporting by World Desk Americas; Editing by Chris Wilson)
Colombian Police officer Wilson Rojas, kidnapped by The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), is seen in a video presented to the media by Military Forces Commander Fredy Padilla (L) and ...
