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| SEC says companies can announce key information on social media Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 12:40 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Securities and Exchange Commission said on Tuesday that companies can use Twitter, Facebook and other social media to announce key information as long as they alert investors about which sites they plan to use for such disclosures. The SEC said it would apply its disclosure rules to social media and other emerging forms of communication in the same way that it applies those rules to the websites of public companies. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. deploys warship as tensions over North Korea rise Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 12:35 PM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Pentagon said on Tuesday that a second U.S. guided-missile destroyer had taken position in the western Pacific on a missile defense mission, as tensions rise over North Korea's threats of war against the United States and its ally, South Korea. The announcement is the latest confirmation of minor adjustments to the posture of the U.S. military, which is seeking to reassure allies in Seoul and Tokyo of American military capabilities to respond to any moves by Pyongyang. U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| N.Y. politicians arrested in mayoral race bribe scheme Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 12:30 PM PDT By Edith Honan and Jonathan Allen NEW YORK (Reuters) - A high-ranking Democratic New York State senator was arrested on Tuesday and charged with trying to buy a place on the Republican ticket in the city's next mayoral race, an effort that prosecutors said was part of a wide-ranging bribery scandal and reflected pervasive corruption in New York politics. Five other politicians, three Republicans and two Democrats, were also arrested and charged with collectively accepting more than $100,000 in bribes in meetings in parked cars, hotel rooms and state offices, according to court papers. ... Full Story | Top |
| Arkansas opens probe into Exxon oil spill; clean-up continues Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 12:20 PM PDT  By Suzi Parker and Kristen Hays LITTLE ROCK/HOUSTON (Reuters) - Arkansas on Tuesday launched an investigation into an Exxon Mobil pipeline rupture that spilled thousands of barrels of crude oil into a housing development last week, just as forecast rain was expected to complicate the clean-up. Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel asked Exxon to preserve all documents and information related to Friday's spill and ongoing recovery at the site in Mayflower, Arkansas, about 20 miles northeast of Little Rock. "This incident has damaged private property and Arkansas's natural resources. ... Full Story | Top |
| Two more Democrats enter race to succeed longtime Boston mayor Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 12:20 PM PDT  By Scott Malone BOSTON (Reuters) - Two Democrats jumped into the race to succeed Boston's longest-serving mayor on Tuesday, the first to declare their interest in succeeding Thomas Menino since he told the city last week that he would not run for an unprecedented sixth term. State Representative Martin Walsh and City Councilor Felix Arroyo said on Tuesday they were interested in the seat, joining Councilor John Connolly, a former school teacher who began his campaign in February, the one candidate to do so before Menino said he would leave office. ... Full Story | Top |
| TransCanada moves forward on West-East oil pipeline plan Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 12:14 PM PDT By Scott Haggett CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - TransCanada Corp on Tuesday pushed ahead with plans to take Western Canadian crude to eastern refineries and Canada's busiest oil port as it seeks new markets beyond those it wanted for its stalled Keystone XL pipeline project. TransCanada said it will give shippers two months to sign contracts to use its proposed 4,400 kilometer (2,700 mile) Energy East Pipeline project, Canada's longest oil pipeline, which could take as much as 850,000 barrels per day to Montreal, Quebec City and Saint John, New Brunswick. ... Full Story | Top |
| Syria shell lands in Israeli-occupied Golan Heights Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 12:05 PM PDT  JERUSALEM (Reuters) - A mortar shell fired during fighting between Syrian forces and rebels landed in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Tuesday, military sources said. Military sources said it was unclear if the shell, which landed near an Israeli settlement, was fired deliberately at territory held by Israel or was a stray. The U.N. Security Council voiced concern last week about the increasing spillover into the Golan Heights of the Syrian civil war being fought between forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad and rebels trying to topple him. ... Full Story | Top |
| Most young Pakistanis pessimistic as economy struggles: survey Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 12:04 PM PDT  By Michael Georgy ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Nearly 100 percent of young Pakistanis are pessimistic about the future and believe their country is headed in the wrong direction, a survey released on Wednesday found. A British Council study, entitled "Next Generation Goes to The Ballot Box", also showed that only one in five young adults expect their economic situation to improve over the next year. The findings make for disturbing reading for politicians who are trying to win over Pakistanis ahead of a May 11 general election. ... Full Story | Top |
| Only Cypriot president, parliament speaker can fly business class: MoU Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 12:04 PM PDT BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Only Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades and parliamentary speaker Yiannakis Omirou of all government officials will now be entitled to fly business class, as part of the austerity Cyprus agreed to with international lenders in exchange for a bailout. The ban on business class travel for government employees will not apply to transatlantic flights, said a memorandum of understanding between Cyprus and the euro zone, under which the Mediterranean island is to get 10 billion euros in loans. ... Full Story | Top |
| Russian officials have three months to ditch foreign bank accounts Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 11:59 AM PDT  By Maria Tsvetkova MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian officials have until July 1 to get rid of financial assets abroad as part of President Vladimir Putin's campaign to stem corruption and capital flight, his chief of staff said on Tuesday. Sergei Ivanov, held a rare Kremlin news conference to announce measures related to a drive to "de-offshore" the Russian economy - a term used by Putin in the first state of the nation speech of his new term last year. Russia ranked 133rd out of 174 states in Transparency International's 2012 Corruption Perception Index. ... Full Story | Top |
| French ex-minister admits secret bank account, inquiry begun Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 11:55 AM PDT  PARIS (Reuters) - France's erstwhile budget minister admitted on Tuesday to holding a secret 600,000-euro foreign bank account and he was placed under a fraud investigation in a grave blow to President Francois Hollande's 10-month-old government. Jerome Cahuzac's surprise reversal after months of denying allegations he held a Swiss account deeply embarrassed Hollande, who had promised an irreproachable team of ministers and is battling to uphold France's fiscal credibility in the eyes of foreign investors. ... Full Story | Top |
| Cyprus to have 4 percent/GDP primary surplus from 2017 onwards: MoU Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 11:51 AM PDT BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Cyprus should reach a primary surplus of four percent of GDP in its budget from 2017 onwards to ensure public debt falls, a memorandum of understanding between Nicosia and international lenders on a 10 billion euro bailout said. The document lists fiscal steps, as well as reforms of public administration, pensions, healthcare, labor market privatization and services that the Mediterranean island agreed to undertake in exchange for euro zone financial aid. ... Full Story | Top |
| NRA-funded proposal calls for armed personnel in schools Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 11:50 AM PDT  By Ian Simpson WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Every U.S. school would have armed, trained personnel under a study funded by the powerful National Rifle Association and unveiled on Tuesday in response to December's massacre at a Connecticut school. The proposal of the National School Shield Task Force also includes security accords between schools and law enforcement, an online safety assessment tool for schools, state safety standards and improved federal coordination for school safety. ... Full Story | Top |
| Bomb hits Somalia's biggest bank after militant threat Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 11:44 AM PDT By Abdi Sheikh MOGADISHU (Reuters) - A bomb exploded outside the headquarters of Somalia's biggest bank on Tuesday, wounding at least two people hours after al Qaeda-linked militants ordered the company cease operations in areas under their control. The blast outside Dahabshiil's office in Mogadishu shattered its doors and littered the area with debris, police said. "A remote-controlled bomb planted in front of Mogadishu's Dahabshiil bank and money transfer headquarters injured two guards," police captain Nur Hassan told Reuters. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.N. approves first-ever global arms trade treaty Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 11:43 AM PDT  By Louis Charbonneau UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The 193-nation U.N. General Assembly overwhelmingly approved on Tuesday the first-ever treaty on global arms trade that seeks to regulate the $70 billion international business in conventional arms ranging from light weapons to battle tanks and warships. There were 154 votes in favor, 3 against and 23 abstentions. Iran, Syria and North Korea last week prevented a treaty-drafting conference at U.N. headquarters from reaching the required consensus to adopt the treaty. ... Full Story | Top |
| Armed men attack Baghdad newspaper offices over story on cleric Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 11:25 AM PDT  By Ahmed Rasheed BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Men armed with pistols, knives and steel pipes stormed into three Baghdad newspaper offices, beating employees and smashing computers after publication of an article about a Shi'ite Muslim cleric, police and editors said on Tuesday. Monday's attacks illustrated the stubborn influence of hardline Islamist militias in Iraq, where Sunni and Shi'ite insurgents often imposed their own fundamentalist vision on the streets during the height of sectarian war a few years ago. ... Full Story | Top |
| North Korea to restart nuclear reactor in weapons bid Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 11:23 AM PDT By Jack Kim and Ju-min Park SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea said on Tuesday it would revive a mothballed nuclear reactor able to produce bomb-grade plutonium but stressed it was seeking a deterrent capacity and did not repeat recent threats to attack South Korea and the United States. United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the crisis over North Korea had gone too far and he appealed for dialogue and negotiation to resolve the situation. "Nuclear threats are not a game. ... Full Story | Top |
| Kirk becomes second Republican senator to back gay marriage Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 11:19 AM PDT  By Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senator Mark Kirk announced on Tuesday that he supports gay marriage, suggesting a brush with death had helped shift his attitude as he became the second Republican to join dozens of Democratic senators who back homosexuals' right to wed. "When I climbed the Capitol steps in January, I promised myself that I would return to the Senate with an open mind and greater respect for others," said Kirk, an Illinois senator who returned to the Senate in January almost a year after suffering a major stroke. ... Full Story | Top |
| Dolce and Gabbana fined $441 million for tax evasion Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 11:18 AM PDT  MILAN (Reuters) - Italy's Tax Commission has fined fashion designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana 343.4 million euros ($441 million) for tax evasion. The decision confirmed to Reuters by Italy's tax agency on Tuesday relates to payments the agency says should have been made when the designers sold their D&G and Dolce & Gabbana brands to their own Luxembourg-based holding company GADO in 2004. The authorities ruled that the designers engineered the transaction to avoid paying taxes in Italy, where corporate tax rates are among the world's highest. ... Full Story | Top |
| Russian, U.S. ambassadors call for action to mend strained ties Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 10:45 AM PDT By Gabriela Baczynska MOSCOW (Reuters) - Eight former U.S. and Russian ambassadors on Tuesday urged swift action to improve relations between Washington and Moscow, which are at odds over issues ranging from Syria to human rights. Ties between the Cold War foes have soured since Vladimir Putin returned to Russia's presidency in May, undermining U.S. President Barack Obama's attempt to "reset" relations. ... Full Story | Top |
| Six European states take aim at Google privacy policy Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 10:36 AM PDT  By Leila Abboud and Claire Davenport PARIS/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European regulators moved a step closer to penalizing Google for the way it handles user data after the search engine refused to change its privacy policy. France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Britain said on Tuesday they began a process to decide if Google's policy introduced in March 2012 broke national laws. Google consolidated 60 privacy policies into one last year and started combining data collected on individual users across its services, such as YouTube, Gmail and social network Google+. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. wants to support fight against al Qaeda in Mali: senator Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 10:27 AM PDT  By Tiemoko Diallo BAMAKO (Reuters) - The United States will seek ways it can help French and African forces in Mali combat al Qaeda-linked rebels, U.S. Senator John McCain said on Tuesday during a visit to the West African country. France launched a military offensive in Mali in January against Islamist militants threatening the capital. That drove the insurgents out of the towns they had seized, but they have since hit back with suicide attacks and guerrilla-style raids. ... Full Story | Top |
| Soccer-Di Canio becomes a political football at Sunderland Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 10:23 AM PDT By Alan Baldwin LONDON, April 2 (Reuters) - Paolo Di Canio's previous boss described the Italian's style as 'management by hand grenade' but his politics and self-professed fascist leanings have proved far more explosive on his arrival at Sunderland. David Miliband, the former Foreign Secretary who is soon to stand down as a Member of Parliament for the opposition Labour party in north-east England, resigned from the board of the Premier League soccer club at the weekend after Di Canio's appointment as manager. ... Full Story | Top |
| Trump withdraws "orangutan" lawsuit against comic Bill Maher Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 10:21 AM PDT  By Joseph Ax NEW YORK (Reuters) - Donald Trump is withdrawing his lawsuit against television host and comedian Bill Maher seeking $5 million that Maher said he would give to charity, in a seemingly facetious offer, if Trump could prove he was not the son of an orangutan. The lawsuit stems from comments Maher made during an appearance on NBC's "The Tonight Show" in January in which he said an orangutan's fur was the only thing in nature that matches the shade of Trump's trademark hair. ... Full Story | Top |
| Mandela's condition unchanged, no deterioration: presidency Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 10:17 AM PDT  JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Former South African president Nelson Mandela's condition has not changed after a weekend improvement, the government said on Tuesday, and it denied media reports suggesting the anti-apartheid hero had suffered a relapse in his pneumonia. "His condition is unchanged as reported yesterday," presidency spokesman Mac Maharaj told Reuters. ... Full Story | Top |
| Cyprus finance minister quits after bailout concludes, investigation begins Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 10:15 AM PDT  By Michele Kambas NICOSIA (Reuters) - Cyprus's finance minister resigned on Tuesday after concluding a 10 billion euro bailout deal with international lenders in which the country slashed its dominant banking sector and hit depositors with losses. Michael Sarris, a lead player in talks with International Monetary Fund and European Union lenders, said he had completed his task but also that he was likely to come under scrutiny in an investigation into the crisis. ... Full Story | Top |
| Parties carp as Italy's "wise men" seek end to political crisis Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 10:15 AM PDT  By Naomi O'Leary and Barry Moody ROME (Reuters) - Italian President Giorgio Napolitano expressed despair on Tuesday at fierce criticism of his latest plan to end a post-election deadlock that has raised fears of months of instability in the euro zone's third largest economy. Two groups of "wise men" appointed by Napolitano to try to forge a policy compromise between squabbling parties to end the impasse since the February 24-25 election started work on Tuesday. Napolitano said they would report back in 8-10 days. ... Full Story | Top |
| At Chavez's birthplace, Maduro swears to win Venezuela vote Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 10:11 AM PDT  By Brian Ellsworth and Mario Naranjo SABANETA, Venezuela (Reuters) - Venezuelan acting President Nicolas Maduro made a pilgrimage to late socialist leader Hugo Chavez's birthplace on Tuesday and pledged to win the April 14 election in his honor. "We regard Chavez as our father. He marked our life, that's why we came here to make an oath in the land of his birth that we will never let him down," Maduro, 50, said in the village of Sabaneta where his former boss was born. ... Full Story | Top |
| Health insurers rally after surprise Medicare decision Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 10:10 AM PDT (Reuters) - Shares in some of the largest health insurers surged on Tuesday following an announcement late Monday by the government that it would increase payment rates for Medicare Advantage in 2014. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced after the market closed on Monday that it would raise the reimbursement rate by 3.3 percent next year instead of cutting it by 2.3 percent, as it had proposed in February. Humana Inc said on Tuesday that the government's move is an improvement over earlier proposals, but it still faces challenges in certain parts of the country. ... Full Story | Top |
| Osborne tries to limit welfare overhaul fallout Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 10:09 AM PDT  By Andrew Osborn LONDON (Reuters) - Chancellor George Osborne tried to limit political fallout from the biggest overhaul of Britain's welfare state in decades on Tuesday, saying the country could no longer afford a system he said was "broken". In a rare political speech, given to supermarket workers in Sittingbourne in Kent, Osborne sought to justify changes including a cap on welfare benefits that church leaders and the Labour opposition have called callous and to defend his policies which have brought slower-than-expected economic recovery. ... Full Story | Top |
| Explosion hits Somalia's Dahabshiil bank headquarters Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 10:08 AM PDT MOGADISHU (Reuters) - A loud explosion hit the headquarters of Somali's leading money transfer agency in the capital Mogadishu on Tuesday, wounding at least two people hours after al Qaeda-linked Islamist militants warned the bank to cease operations in areas under its control. Police said they were still searching the rubble outside the Dahabshiil bank, whose doors were shattered by the blast. It was not immediately clear whether anyone had been killed by the explosion. (Reporting by Abdi Sheikh; Writing by James Macharia; Editing by Jon Hemming) Full Story | Top |
| Congo promises action on mass rapes in eastern town: U.N. Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 10:06 AM PDT By Louis Charbonneau UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The Democratic Republic of Congo has promised to bring a group of suspected mass rapists to justice after the United Nations last month threatened to halt support to two Congolese army battalions, the world body said on Tuesday. The United Nations said 126 women were raped in Minova in November after Congolese troops fled to the town as so-called M23 rebels briefly captured the nearby provincial capital of Goma. The U.N. ... Full Story | Top |
| Texas prosecutor and wife shot multiple times: investigation Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 10:01 AM PDT  By Chris Francescani KAUFMAN, Texas (Reuters) - The Texas prosecutor and his wife who were shot at their home on Saturday each suffered multiple gunshot wounds, and sheriff's deputies found cartridge casings next to their bodies, according to an affidavit reviewed by Reuters on Tuesday. District Attorney Mike McLelland, and his wife, Cynthia McLelland, were shot dead in their home two months after McLelland publicly vowed to track down the killer of Assistant District Attorney Mark Hasse, shot dead in public on January 31. ... Full Story | Top |
| BofA settles for $165 million with credit union regulator Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 09:48 AM PDT  By Aruna Viswanatha WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Bank of America Corp agreed to pay $165 million to settle charges by the U.S. credit union regulator involving sales of mortgage-backed securities to corporate credit unions that led them to fail, the regulator said on Tuesday. In February, the bank disclosed it had reached a preliminary agreement with the National Credit Union Administration, and said it would be covered by existing reserves, but did not disclose a value at the time. ... Full Story | Top |
| Canadians in Algeria attack were young, from middle class: CBC Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 09:45 AM PDT By David Ljunggren OTTAWA (Reuters) - Two Canadians who took part in an attack by militants on an Algerian gas plant in January were in their early twenties and from middle-class backgrounds, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. said on Tuesday. Around 70 people died when Algerian troops stormed the Tigantourine desert gas plant and ended the siege. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said last month they had identified two suspects but gave no details. CBC named the two men as former high school friends Xristos Katsiroubas, 22, and Ali Medlej, who it said was about 24. ... Full Story | Top |
| Palestinians protest after Israeli jail cancer death Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 09:32 AM PDT  JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli prison guards fired tear gas to quell disturbances by Palestinian inmates on Tuesday after a prisoner serving a life sentence over an attempt to bomb an Israeli cafe died of cancer. Maysara Abu Hamdeya's death threatened to raise tensions in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where Palestinians, who view jailed brethren as heroes in a fight for statehood, have held several protests in recent weeks in support of prisoners. ... Full Story | Top |
| World Bank chief calls for ending extreme poverty by 2030 Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 09:14 AM PDT  By Lesley Wroughton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - World Bank President Jim Yong Kim called for a commitment by the international community on Tuesday to end extreme poverty by 2030 and to improve the lives of the most vulnerable people living in developing countries. To reach that goal, Kim said the world need to reduce the number of people living below the poverty line of $1.25 per day to 3 percent globally by 2030, and raise the per capita incomes of the bottom 40 percent of every developing country. ... Full Story | Top |
| Islamists accuse U.S. of interference in Egyptian affairs Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 09:05 AM PDT  CAIRO (Reuters) - President Mohamed Mursi's Islamist allies accused the United States on Tuesday of blatant interference in its affairs after Washington said Cairo was muzzling freedom of speech. On Monday, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland criticized the questioning of the most popular Egyptian television satirist over allegations that he insulted Mursi and Islam. ... Full Story | Top |
| Russia's top Olympic investors complain over cost overruns Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 08:58 AM PDT  By Thomas Grove MOSCOW (Reuters) - Some of the biggest investors in Russia's 2014 Winter Olympics in the resort city of Sochi are requesting financial help from the government to help ease the burden from the Games' estimated $50 billion price tag. In a letter obtained by Reuters on Tuesday and addressed to Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak, who is responsible for the 2014 Games, four major companies listed measures they want adopted to help them "secure a minimum return on investment". ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama launches research initiative to study human brain Tuesday, Apr 02, 2013 08:56 AM PDT  By Jeff Mason WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House unveiled details on Tuesday of a new initiative to study the human brain with the goal of creating effective treatments for Alzheimer's disease and other disorders. Called the Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative, the program aims to help researchers see how brain cells and neural circuits interact through technology that produces "dynamic pictures" of the brain. It is to be funded with $100 million from President Barack Obama's fiscal 2014 budget. ... Full Story | Top |
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