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| NJ governor Christie says Port chair resigns, day after 'Bridgegate' report Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:41 PM PDT  By Daniel Kelley TRENTON, New Jersey (Reuters) - Governor Chris Christie on Friday said the chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey had resigned, a day after an internal investigation cleared Christie in the "Bridgegate" scandal embroiling the potential 2016 Republican presidential contender. David Samson, a lawyer and ally of the governor at the agency that oversees bridges and tunnels connecting the two states, had been discussing for a year his desire to step down, Christie told a news conference. "David tendered his resignation to me this afternoon, effective immediately," Christie told reporters, his first news conference since a two-hour-long question and answer session on January 9 after a scandal erupted over the closure of traffic lanes on the George Washington Bridge. Christie defended the report, which blamed former deputy chief of staff Bridget Anne Kelly and Port Authority official David Wildstein for closing bridge entrance lanes in an apparent bid to retaliate against the Democratic mayor of the town of Fort Lee who had not endorsed Christie's 2013 re-election campaign. Full Story | Top |
| Fed's George wants end to zero rates, does not say when Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:36 PM PDT  By Carey Gillam KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Reuters) - A top Federal Reserve official who has often warned of the risks of keeping U.S. interest rates too low for too long said on Friday she wants to see how winding down the Fed's massive bond-buying stimulus goes before setting out any path for rate hikes. "I don't think it would be fair to say I have a date in mind or a path in mind," for the appropriate timing of the Fed's first rate increase, Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank President Esther George told the Central Exchange, a group of women professionals. "We are in a place now where we have to be very careful and think about how we are beginning to withdraw stimulus." George's reticence on her preferred path for rate hikes sets her apart from her peers, who in recent days have shown an increased willingness to voice their views. St. Louis Fed President James Bullard, for instance, said he would want to see rate hikes begin in early 2015; Full Story | Top |
| Northwestern says its views on football players union 'overlooked' Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:35 PM PDT (Reuters) - Northwestern University said April 9 is the deadline for it to file an appeal opposing a U.S. National Labor Relations Board decision that declared Northwestern football players to be school employees and allowed them to hold a union election vote. "Northwestern believes the decision overlooked or completely ignored much of the critical testimony supporting the university's position that student-athletes are not employees of Northwestern," said school spokesman Alan Cubbage in a statement on Friday. (Reporting by Amanda Becker; Editing by Kevin Drawbaugh and James Dalgleish) Full Story | Top |
| Regulator to probe fairness of 'zombie' savings pots Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:34 PM PDT  The Financial Conduct Authority's (FCA) investigation unveiled on Friday relates to about 150 billion pounds ($249 billion) of savings policies sometimes described as "zombie funds", which are closed to new investors and typically owned by elderly people who might have forgotten about them. "These accounts have been closed for many years in some cases, but there are still valid issues to be looked at around the question of the service that consumers receive in relation to those accounts," the FCA said in a statement. The FCA was due to announce the probe in its annual business plan to be published on Monday. But an interview with a senior FCA supervisor in the press on Friday outlining the review sent shares in insurers tumbling. Full Story | Top |
| PwC is sued for $1 billion over MF Global collapse Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:33 PM PDT  (Reuters) - The administrator of MF Global Holdings Ltd's bankruptcy plan on Friday sued PricewaterhouseCoopers for at least $1 billion, accusing the auditor of professional malpractice in connection with the brokerage's investment in European sovereign debt. According to a complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Manhattan, PwC provided "flatly erroneous accounting advice" to MF Global and its then-chief executive Jon Corrine by recommending the use of off-balance sheet structures for the brokerage's $6.3 billion bet on the debt. Market worries about that exposure was among the factors that led to MF Global's quick collapse and October 31, 2011, bankruptcy. The lawsuit said it is the first case seeking to hold PwC liable for malpractice over its advice concerning, and approval of, the accounting treatment for the debt. Full Story | Top |
| At least three killed in Cairo clashes Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:32 PM PDT At least three people were killed in clashes in Cairo on Friday amid protests by the Muslim Brotherhood, days after hundreds of its Islamist supporters were sentenced to death, official sources said. Newspaper Al Dustour said on its website Mayada Ashraf, one of its journalists, had died covering fighting which security sources said had involved Brotherhood supporters, security forces and residents. Security sources said birdshot had been fired during the clashes. State-run news agency MENA quoted an unnamed interior ministry official as saying four citizens were killed in the clashes, blaming Brotherhood supporters for the deaths. Full Story | Top |
| California senate votes to suspend 3 lawmakers in criminal probes Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:32 PM PDT The California state Senate voted on Friday to suspend three Democratic lawmakers who have been the subject of criminal probes, including Leland Yee, who was arrested this week in an FBI sweep on corruption and gun trafficking charges. The Senate voted 28-1 to suspend the three, all of whom have been charged with or convicted of criminal wrongdoing in separate cases, in a move that further erodes what had once been a Democratic two-thirds super-majority in the Senate. "An affirmative suspension puts this house on formal record that we unequivocally distance ourselves and the senate from the unfathomable allegations contained in the Yee indictment as well as the other case," California Senate Democratic leader Darrell Steinberg said during the meeting. Yee, a former San Francisco supervisor and one-time mayoral candidate, was criminally charged in federal court in San Francisco on Wednesday with two felony counts of conspiring to import and traffic in firearms, and six corruption counts. Full Story | Top |
| Obama considers new climate regulations for oil, gas sector Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:31 PM PDT  By Roberta Rampton and Timothy Gardner WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House said on Friday it will take a hard look at whether new regulations are needed to cut emissions of methane from the oil and gas industry, part of President Barack Obama's plan to address climate change. The suggestion drew a sharp rebuke from the main oil and gas lobby group. The American Petroleum Institute said its members were already taking steps that will cut emissions and expressed concern that more regulations could put a damper on natural gas drilling by raising costs. But environmental groups said regulations are needed to make sure all players take action to reduce methane emissions. Full Story | Top |
| Kenyan president says tourism sector 'on its knees' after attacks Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:28 PM PDT  By James Macharia NAIROBI (Reuters) - Kenya's vital tourism sector is "on its knees" after attacks by al Qaeda-linked Islamist militants carried out in retaliation for its intervention in neighboring Somalia, President Uhuru Kenyatta said on Friday. Kenyatta met ethnic Somali leaders and asked for their help in identifying people they thought may be behind attacks that have dented the president's plans to boost the tourism sector in east Africa's biggest economy. Kenya has large Somali communities in parts of the country near the frontier with Somalia and in Eastleigh, a part of the capital Nairobi known as "Little Mogadishu" for its large Somali population. Tourist arrivals in Kenya in the first five months of 2013 were down 15 percent on the previous year as visitors stayed away, worried by attacks blamed on Somalia's al Shabaab rebel group and by fears of trouble around elections in March, which in the event passed off peacefully. Full Story | Top |
| Geopolitical games handicap Malaysia jet hunt Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:25 PM PDT The search for flight MH370, the Malaysian jetliner that vanished over the South China Sea on March 8, has involved more than two dozen countries and 60 aircraft and ships but been bedeviled by regional rivalries. While Malaysia has been accused of a muddled response and poor communications, China has showcased its growing military clout and reach, while some involved in the operation say other countries have dragged their feet on disclosing details that might give away sensitive defense data. That has highlighted growing tensions in a region where the rise of China is fuelling an arms race, and where several countries including China, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines are engaged in territorial disputes, with the control of shipping lanes, fishing and potential hydrocarbon reserves at stake. The Malaysian Airline jet, which disappeared en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, was last officially detected hundreds of miles off course on the wrong side of the Malaysian peninsula. Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive: Oil sector withholds information about rail cargoes - U.S. regulator Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:21 PM PDT By Patrick Rucker WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. transport regulators on Friday criticized the oil industry for not sharing important information about the kinds of rail shipments that were involved in a number of recent fiery derailments. In letters with regulators and testimony to lawmakers, leaders of trade groups like the American Petroleum Institute have said since January that they will share results of their tests on fuel from North Dakota's Bakken oil patch, where the derailed trains were loaded. But despite those assurances, the Department of Transportation said, the oil industry has largely declined to cooperate with regulators trying to understand why several recent fuel derailments led to explosions of uncommon force. "The overall and ongoing lack of cooperation is disappointing, slows progress, and certainly raises concerns." An oil industry representative on Friday said that examining North Dakota crude was an ongoing process. Full Story | Top |
| Angelina Jolie in Bosnia to campaign against war rape Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:19 PM PDT  By Maja Zuvela SREBRENICA, Bosnia (Reuters) - Actress Angelina Jolie was brought to tears while talking to rape victims of the Bosnian war during a visit on Friday to promote a campaign to end sexual violence against women in war. Jolie was accompanied by British Foreign Secretary William Hague, with whom she will co-host a global conference in London in June on preventing rape being used a tactic in war. Witnesses said Jolie cried while listening to victims in the town of Srebrenica. "Our tradition is not to talk about the rape," said Munira Subasic, the head of the association of Srebrenica mothers. Full Story | Top |
| Wall Street sharply cuts gains as biotechs plunge Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:18 PM PDT  By Angela Moon NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks sharply pared gains by late Friday afternoon on Friday, with the Nasdaq briefly turning negative, led by a decline in the biotechnology sector. Major U.S. stock indexes had been significantly higher in most of the morning and early afternoon trade following comments from a Chinese official indicating that the country's government was ready to take steps to support its slowing economy. But a 2.6 percent drop in the Nasdaq biotechnology index led the major indexes to session lows. If we see that pattern again today, that would be concerning," said Randy Frederick, managing director of trading and derivatives at the Schwab Center for Financial Research in Austin, Texas. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. FDA moves to offset shortage of common saline solution Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:17 PM PDT (Reuters) - Moving to offset shortages of a common saline used in hospitals and dialysis centers, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Friday that it will temporarily allow Fresenius Kabi USA LLC to distribute normal saline from its manufacturing facility in Norway. The FDA said the initial shipments would help but not resolve shortages of 0.9 percent sodium chloride injection, also known as normal saline. The FDA said it is continuing to work with Baxter Healthcare Corp, B.Braun Medical Inc. and Hospira Inc to restore their supplies to hospitals and health clinics. Full Story | Top |
| Obama underlines 'strong' Saudi ties in talks with king: US Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:16 PM PDT  By Jeff Mason RIYADH (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama underlined Washington's "strong" relationship with Saudi Arabia in talks with King Abdullah on Friday, the White House said, on a visit intended to allay the kingdom's concerns that the decades-old alliance is weakening. The elderly king, accompanied by a number of senior princes, had what appeared to be an oxygen tube connected to his nose at the start of the two-hour meeting at his desert farm at Rawdat Khuraim northeast of the capital Riyadh, witnesses said. Saudi state television showed Obama, accompanied by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and National Security Adviser Susan Rice, listening attentively while King Abdullah spoke, gesticulating with both hands as he made a point. Full Story | Top |
| Injunction eased so PA fracking foe can go to hospital, grocery Friday, Mar 28, 2014 11:57 AM PDT By David DeKok SUNBURY, Pennsylvania (Reuters) - A judge on Friday loosened an injunction restricting the movements of a Pennsylvania anti-fracking activist to allow her access to her local hospital, grocery and other places declared off-limits because they sat atop land leased for gas extraction. Until Judge Kenneth Seamans eased the terms of the injunction, Vera Scroggins, 63, of Brackney, Pennsylvania was banned from 40 percent of the land in Susquehanna County, where she lives and which is leased by Texas-based Cabot Oil & Gas Co for gas extraction. Seamans, the sole judge in Susquehanna County Court of Common Pleas in Montrose, Pennsylvania, issued a new injunction on Friday barring Scroggins from the active gas extraction operations of the company and the access roads that serve them. Full Story | Top |
| French minister in the soup over 'disgusting' food remark Friday, Mar 28, 2014 11:57 AM PDT  France's trade minister had to eat humble pie on Friday after she was caught on film saying that food served at a state dinner for China's President Xi Jinping was "disgusting". President Francois Hollande and Xi were all smiles at the dinner Wednesday at the Elysee presidential palace. But Foreign Trade Minister Nicole Bricq was unimpressed by the fare that included foie gras, roasted poultry with mushrooms, and a chocolate and caramel dessert. Television cameras caught her telling Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault that the food at the Elysee did not compare with that served at Matignon, the prime minister's office, where she had attended a lunch for Xi. Full Story | Top |
| SEC says shuts cloud computing scam targeting Asians, Hispanics Friday, Mar 28, 2014 11:56 AM PDT  The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday said it has shut down a worldwide pyramid scheme that falsely promised fast gains to tens of thousands of Asian-American, Hispanic and foreign investors from cloud computing services. A federal judge on Thursday granted the regulator's request for an asset freeze over entities operating as WCM and WCM777, which are based near Los Angeles and in Hong Kong and run by Ming Xu of Temple City, California. WCM and WCM777 allegedly raised more than $65 million since March 2013 by promising people they could double their money in 100 days by investing between $399 and $1,999 in cloud services such as website hosting, data storage and software support. Full Story | Top |
| EU antitrust chief seeks to insulate Gazprom probe from Crimea Friday, Mar 28, 2014 11:52 AM PDT  The European Union is seeking to insulate its probe of Russia's gas export monopoly, Gazprom, which is suspected of anti-competitive behavior, from larger concerns about Russia's seizure of Ukraine's Crimean peninsula, Europe's top antitrust enforcer said on Friday. Gazprom, the world's top gas producer and supplier of around 30 percent of Europe's gas needs, has been under EU investigation since September 2012 for suspected anti-competitive behavior, including overcharging customers and blocking rival suppliers. Full Story | Top |
| US Rep. Rogers, surveillance defender, to retire, host radio show Friday, Mar 28, 2014 11:45 AM PDT  By Susan Heavey and Thomas Ferraro WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Mike Rogers, chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives Intelligence Committee and an outspoken defender of embattled surveillance efforts, said on Friday he would leave Congress at year's end to host a radio talk show. Rogers will begin his new job with Atlanta-based Cumulus Media Inc, which operates about 525 radio stations, in January when his 14-year career in the House ends, spokeswoman Kelsey Knight said. Full Story | Top |
| NJ governor Christie says Port Authority chairman resigns after 'Bridgegate' report Friday, Mar 28, 2014 11:41 AM PDT  TRENTON, New Jersey (Reuters) - The chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, David Samson, has resigned his position, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said on Friday. "David tendered his resignation to me this afternoon, effective immediately," Christie told reporters a day after a law firm hired by his office released a report finding Christie faultless in the recent "Bridgegate" scandal. (Reporting by Daniel Kelley; Writing by Scott Malone) Full Story | Top |
| Chairman candidate says Telecom Italia must act as true public company Friday, Mar 28, 2014 11:38 AM PDT  By Lisa Jucca MILAN (Reuters) - Giuseppe Recchi, the frontrunner to become chairman of Telecom Italia, said Italy's largest telecoms group by market value must act as a true public company and as chairman he would represent all shareholders equally. In his first interview since he became a candidate for the post, Recchi, who will leave his job as chairman of oil major Eni if elected by Telecom Italia shareholders on April 16, said he would ensure good corporate governance practices. The board of Telecom Italia, which has competitor Telefonica and three Italian financial institutions as its core shareholders, has been accused by investors of not caring for the interest of smaller shareholders. Full Story | Top |
| BMW to invest $1 billion to expand U.S. production by 50 percent Friday, Mar 28, 2014 11:35 AM PDT  By Harriet McLeod SPARTANBURG, SOUTH CAROLINA (Reuters) - BMW will expand production capacity in the United States by 50 percent and introduce another new offroad model, the German luxury carmaker said on Friday, in what amounts to a $1 billion bet on sport utility vehicles (SUVs). BMW said that as well as the new X4 SUV, its factory in Spartanburg, South Carolina, would make a new X7 SUV, and it would ramp up production capacity to 450,000 cars by 2016. Full Story | Top |
| Turkish opposition struggles to close gap with scandal-hit Erdogan Friday, Mar 28, 2014 11:35 AM PDT By Ayla Jean Yackley DENIZLI, Turkey (Reuters) - Turkey's main opposition party has barely dented support for Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan despite months of anti-government protests, an investigation into government graft and hours of incriminating conversations leaked online. Kemal Kilicdaroglu, head of the Republican People's Party (CHP), at campaign rallies in more than 70 cities around Turkey, has emerged as Erdogan's most dogged public critic over the corruption scandal that has implicated the prime minister, his family and his closest ministers. Yet Erdogan's Islamist-rooted AK Party remains comfortably ahead of the centre-left, staunchly secularist CHP in the countdown to Sunday's municipal elections. Full Story | Top |
| Italy to seek pay cut for Eni, Enel, Finmeccanica managers Friday, Mar 28, 2014 11:30 AM PDT  Italy said on Friday it will back cuts of at least 25 percent to top managers' salaries at oil producer Eni , utility Enel and defense contractor Finmeccanica at coming shareholders' meetings. All three companies are controlled by the state but listed on the stock market, with government stakeholdings ranging from 30.2 percent in Finmeccanica and 31.2 percent in Enel to 44.3 percent in Eni. Separately, the government also announced compulsory 25 percent cuts in top management pay at rail operator Ferrovie dello Stato , Poste Italiane , the post office group which is due to be partially privatized, and state investment holding Cassa dei Depositi e Prestiti . Full Story | Top |
| Massachusetts bans sale of FDA-approved Zogenix painkiller Friday, Mar 28, 2014 11:25 AM PDT  By Susan Heavey WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Officials in Massachusetts have blocked sales of Zogenix's controversial but U.S.-approved painkiller Zohydro, prompting the drugmaker to criticize what it called an "unprecedented action." The state's ban "only serves to unfairly restrict patient access," the company said in a statement late Thursday. Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick announced the Zohydro ban in a speech on Thursday, formally declaring a public health emergency stemming from the abuse of opioids in the New England state. Bradley Galer, chief medical officer of Zogenix, said Massachusetts officials are misguided about Zohydro's potency and dosage, and noted that other painkillers without abuse-resistant technologies are already on the U.S. market. The drug has since come under further scrutiny from members of Congress, dozens of state attorney generals, medical groups and drug treatment experts seeking to block the drug even as the FDA's top official has defended its action. Full Story | Top |
| Former Vatican bank head's lawyers threaten to sue to clear name Friday, Mar 28, 2014 11:18 AM PDT  By Philip Pullella VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - In a new blow for the troubled Vatican bank, lawyers for its former head who was abruptly fired in 2012 threatened legal action on Friday to clear his name and show that he was unfairly dismissed. The surprise move by lawyers for Ettore Gotti Tedeschi came after months of relative calm for the Vatican bank under its new president, German Ernst Von Freyberg. Gotti Tedeschi was ousted after a no confidence vote by its lay board on May 24 at the height of the "Vatileaks" scandal, in which former Pope Benedict's butler leaked the pontiff's personal papers to the media. The board said Gotti Tedeschi was fired because he was an ineffective and divisive manager. Full Story | Top |
| Obama reiterates significance of Saudi ties in talks with king: US Friday, Mar 28, 2014 11:14 AM PDT U.S. President Barack Obama reiterated the significance the United States places on its "strong relationship" with Saudi Arabia in talks with King Abdullah on Friday, a White House statement said. It added that Washington and Riyadh were working together to address critical bilateral and regional issues, including "the crisis in Syria, preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, counterterrorism efforts to combat extremism, and supporting negotiations to achieve Middle East peace". Last year senior Saudi officials warned of a "major shift" away from Washington after bitter disagreements about its response to the "Arab Spring" uprisings, and policy towards Iran and Syria, where Riyadh wants more American support for rebels. "In his meetings with King Abdullah in Riyadh, President Obama reiterated the significance the United States places on its strong relationship with Saudi Arabia, which has endured for over 80 years," the statement said. Full Story | Top |
| Nerves grow over impact of fixing row, FX regulation Friday, Mar 28, 2014 11:05 AM PDT  By Patrick Graham BERLIN (Reuters) - A drop-off in major currency market volatility may be due as much to banking regulations and a row over alleged manipulation as to ultra-low interest rates in the developed world, industry figures said on Friday. Yet 10 days on, most of the main currency pairs are back in the tight ranges that have dominated in some cases since as far back as 2010. Full Story | Top |
| Russia criticizes U.N. resolution condemning Crimea's secession Friday, Mar 28, 2014 10:58 AM PDT  Russia said on Friday a U.N. resolution declaring invalid Crimea's Moscow-backed referendum on seceding from Ukraine was counterproductive and accused Western states of using blackmail and threats to drum up "yes" votes. The non-binding resolution passed with 100 votes in favor, 11 against and 58 abstentions in the 193-nation U.N. General Assembly on Thursday, in a vote that Western nations said highlighted Russia's isolation. "This counterproductive initiative only complicates efforts to resolve the domestic political crisis in Ukraine," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Several Western diplomats, however, have said Russia's U.N. envoy led an aggressive lobbying campaign against the resolution in what they said showed how seriously Moscow took the U.N. vote condemning a referendum that led to its annexation of Crimea. Full Story | Top |
| Lithuania to boost defense spending after Ukraine crisis Friday, Mar 28, 2014 10:58 AM PDT With the Ukraine crisis raising concerns in the Baltics, Lithuania will bring its military spending in line with NATO requirements of 2 percent of gross domestic product by 2020, up from 0.8 percent of GDP planned for this year. Lithuanian politicians from the ruling coalition and the opposition will sign a declaration to boost military spending on Saturday, as the country celebrates 10 years since it joined the alliance, the government said on Friday. The move is seen as largely symbolic, as the small Baltic nation contributes only about 0.4 percent of NATO's total military budget but relies on the alliance for its defense. "In the context of the Ukrainian events, Lithuania understands it can expect help from NATO if it is needed," Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevicius said in an emailed statement. Full Story | Top |
| Pennsylvania reporter won't have to testify in 'Craigslist killer' case Friday, Mar 28, 2014 10:57 AM PDT By David DeKok SUNBURY, Pennsylvania (Reuters) - A Pennsylvania journalist will not have to testify about his jailhouse interview with so-called Craigslist murder suspect Miranda Barbour, in which she reportedly claimed to be a serial killer. The subpoena seeking the newspaper reporter's testimony was withdrawn on Friday by Northumberland County District Attorney Anthony Rosini, who said he was able to get the information from another witness. Barbour, 19, was not present at Friday's hearing in Northumberland County Court of Common Pleas in central Pennsylvania but was expected to appear on April 2 for an evidentiary hearing in the murder case. She and her husband Elytte Barbour, 21, are charged in the November stabbing and strangulation of a Pennsylvania man they allegedly met via the website Craigslist, police said. Full Story | Top |
| China takes no sides on Ukraine crisis, Xi tells Europe Friday, Mar 28, 2014 10:56 AM PDT  By Stephen Brown and Annika Breidthardt BERLIN (Reuters) - President Xi Jinping said on Friday China would not take sides with the West or Russia over Ukraine, disappointing any hopes Beijing might add its weight to international pressure on Moscow for annexing Crimea. "China does not have any private interests in the Ukraine question," Xi told a news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel. "All parties involved should work for a political and diplomatic solution to the conflict." China has adopted a cautious response to the Ukraine crisis, not wanting to alienate its ally Russia or make comment directly on a referendum in which Crimea voted to join Russia, lest it set a precedent for restive regions of its own such as Tibet. Full Story | Top |
| Los Angeles couple get 3 years in jail in Qatar for death of adopted child Friday, Mar 28, 2014 10:52 AM PDT A Los Angeles couple was sentenced to three years in jail in Qatar on Thursday for causing the death of their adopted African-born daughter, who was found to have died of starvation, in a case that has raised concern in Washington. Matthew and Grace Huang were arrested in January last year after their 8-year-old daughter, Gloria, died unexpectedly. Full Story | Top |
| China's Xi says Japan's wartime atrocities 'fresh in our memory' Friday, Mar 28, 2014 10:50 AM PDT  Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Friday during a visit to Berlin that Japan's wartime atrocities were still "fresh in our memory". Japan occupied parts of China in the 1930s and 1940s. In December, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe angered China and South Korea by visiting Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine, which they see as a symbol of Japan's wartime aggression as it honors convicted war criminals as well as others who died in battle. "We Chinese have long held the belief that we should not do onto others as we do not wish they do onto us ... China needs peace like humans need air and plants need water," he said. Full Story | Top |
| Syria spillover taints Turkey poll in border province Friday, Mar 28, 2014 10:43 AM PDT By Humeyra Pamuk HATAY (Reuters) - It is already past lunchtime and souvenir shop owner Halil Santoglu has yet to make a sale - a frequent complaint these days in this once bustling bazaar as the war in nearby Syria wreaks havoc with the economy of Turkey's southern borderlands. Santoglu and other residents of Hatay say Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's ruling AK Party has mishandled the Syria crisis and exacerbated its impact on their province, and they plan to punish the party in Turkey's municipal elections on Sunday. "Even if I had the right to vote a thousand times, I would not use one for the AK Party," said Santoglu, 54, in his shop in the Long Bazaar by the Orontes river that divides Hatay, the ancient Antioch, administrative capital of Hatay province. Full Story | Top |
| Latin America likely to embark on needed reforms: IADB Friday, Mar 28, 2014 10:43 AM PDT By Alonso Soto COSTA DO SAUIPE, Brazil (Reuters) - The volatility in global markets buffeting emerging economies could push Latin American nations to move ahead with deep reforms needed to restore their dynamism, the head of Inter-American Development Bank, Luis Alberto Moreno, said on Friday. Moreno said most countries understand that reforms to improve productivity are crucial for the region to return to the annual growth rates of 5 percent over the last decade. "Historically Latin America has been better at dealing with crises than managing the good times," Moreno told Reuters on the sidelines of the IADB's annual meeting in Costa do Saiupe. Precisely because of the volatility, which will likely drag on for the next 18 months, reforms become even more important." Latin America's economy is expected to grow only 3 percent this year after expanding a staggering 6 percent four years ago, according to data from the International Monetary Fund. Full Story | Top |
| Zimbabwe's Mugabe says will boycott EU-Africa summit over wife's visa Friday, Mar 28, 2014 10:33 AM PDT  Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe will not attend a European Union-Africa summit next week if his wife is denied a visa to travel with him, his spokesman said on Friday. Mugabe, 90, and his wife Grace are subject to travel bans by the EU because of allegations about human rights abuses and election-rigging but the union allowed Zimbabwe's sole ruler to attend the meeting after pressure from the African Union. The president, and Zimbabwe will not be there if they continue to hold out on the visa," Mugabe's spokesman George Charamba said. Full Story | Top |
| Ukraine aid bill delayed a few more days in U.S. Congress Friday, Mar 28, 2014 10:27 AM PDT  By Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers overwhelmingly approved aid to Ukraine and sanctions on Russia, but the measure will not become law until at least next week, congressional aides said on Friday. The House of Representatives left for the weekend without approving a final version of the legislation. After weeks of partisan wrangling over what should be contained in the legislation, the Senate and House on Thursday quickly passed separate, and largely similar, bills to help stabilize Ukraine's weak economy and punish those involved for Russia's annexation of the Crimean Peninsula. As the measures passed, congressional leaders reached an agreement for the Republican-controlled House to approve the Democratic-led Senate bill and send it to President Barack Obama to sign into law before the end of the week. Full Story | Top |
| GM recall process will be under Congressional microscope Friday, Mar 28, 2014 10:19 AM PDT  By Ben Klayman and Richard Cowan DETROIT/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - When General Motors Co Chief Executive Mary Barra faces Congress next week she will have to explain how the top brass at the biggest U.S. automaker can say they knew nothing for more than a decade about a faulty ignition switch linked to crashes and at least 12 deaths. For lawmakers trying to find out who to blame for the lack of responsiveness by GM and its regulator to the tragedies, and in particular the multi-year delay in recalling potentially dangerous vehicles off the roads, it may turn out to be a frustrating couple of days. GM built a system to deliberately keep senior executives out of the recall process. Instead, two small groups of employees in the vast GM bureaucracy were tasked with making recall decisions, a system GM says was meant to bring objective decisions. Full Story | Top |
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