tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33601822865276038162024-03-07T20:13:07.177-08:00News UpdateNews Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comBlogger109125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-42223405729351051672012-04-17T17:08:00.001-07:002012-04-17T17:08:00.667-07:00Swedish minister denies claims of racism over black woman cake stuntSweden's minister of culture has been accused of racism after cutting a cake depicting a naked black woman. Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth was taking part in an event at the Moderna Museet in Stockholm, the capital's museum of modern art and home to works by Picasso and Dalí. She was invited to cut the cake, an art installation meant to highlight the issue of female genital mutilation. She began, as News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-4211262995109535592012-04-17T16:02:00.001-07:002012-04-17T16:02:14.651-07:00Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie: Engaged Since Christmas BRAD Pitt proposed to Angelina Jolie over Christmas, it has been revealed. According to America’s Life & Style magazine, Pitt went down on one knee over the festive period but the couple decided to keep their engagement a secret until the timing was just right. “Brad had the ring designed last year and made sure it was ready by Christmas because he wanted a romantic Christmas proposal — News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-61994781685349172072012-04-17T14:24:00.001-07:002012-04-17T14:24:01.702-07:00Gulf Leaders Discuss UAE-Iran Island Dispute Foreign ministers of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council held an emergency meeting in Doha Tuesday to discuss a territorial dispute between Iran and the United Arab Emirates, which some believe could pose a threat to international security. The talks followed a visit by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Abu Musa, a Persian Gulf island controlled by Iran, but also claimed by the UAE.News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-39467270735820271522012-04-17T08:30:00.001-07:002012-04-17T08:30:20.597-07:00Palestinian prisoners in mass hunger strike At least 1,200 Palestinian inmates of Israeli jails began an open-ended hunger strike on Tuesday, as rallies across the occupied territories marked "Prisoners' Day". As thousands gathered in towns and cities in both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, three-quarters of the 4,700 Palestinians held by Israel began refusing food, the Israel Prisons Service (IPS) said. "In the News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-28667589340874988952012-04-17T05:46:00.001-07:002012-04-17T05:46:33.229-07:00Argentina moves to seize control of Repsol's YPF Argentine President Cristina Fernandez unveiled plans on Monday to seize control of leading energy company YPF, drawing swift warnings from key trade partners and risking the country's further economic isolation. YPF (YPFD.BA), controlled by Spain's Repsol (REP.MC), has been under intense pressure from Fernandez's center-left government to boost production, and its share price has plunged due News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-22066510940910930392012-04-17T03:36:00.001-07:002012-04-17T03:36:15.828-07:00Halle Berry Breaks Silence Over Engagement to Olivier Martinez Halle Berry has finally acknowledged her engagement to Olivier Martinez. Making her first red carpet appearance since her "Dark Tide" co-star popped the question, the 45-year-old beauty admitted to Terri Seymour of "Extra" on Saturday, April 14 that she shocked herself with her decision to marry again. "Who knew? I swore it off, right?" said the actress playing News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-38334275326101452082012-04-15T20:18:00.001-07:002012-04-15T20:18:05.397-07:00South Korea central bank trims GDP, inflation forecasts South Korea's central bank on Monday trimmed its forecast for economic growth in Asia's fourth-largest economy this year due to a global downturn and weak domestic demand. The Bank of Korea said it expected gross domestic product to grow a real 3.5 percent, down from its previous forecast in December last year for 3.7 percent growth. The revision was attributed to a weaker contribution from News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-58663024072098395552012-04-15T14:03:00.001-07:002012-04-15T14:03:37.442-07:00Spain's King Juan Carlos under fire over elephant hunting trip While ordinary Spaniards cope with harsh austerity, recession and soaring unemployment, the country's royal family has been enjoying expensive hunting trips, one of which resulted in King Juan Carlos ending up in hospital. The 74-year-old monarch's fall in a park in Botswana provided an excuse for Spanish newspapers, who normally treat their royal family with kid gloves, to plaster their pagesNews Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-78650501182586171312012-04-15T03:37:00.001-07:002012-04-15T03:37:45.960-07:00Deadly tornadoes strike US MidwestTornadoes have struck the US states of Nebraska, Kansas and Oklahoma following a warning by forecasters to residents across the US Midwest about "life-threatening" weather. The National Weather Service said in an advisory on Saturday afternoon that severe storms were possible from Texas in the south to Iowa, South Dakota and Minnesota in the north. "Conditions will remain News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-51822444314161316702012-04-14T16:23:00.001-07:002012-04-14T16:23:17.792-07:00At least 11 militants killed in south Yemen clashes: government At least 11 al Qaeda-linked militants were killed in clashes and an air strike in southern Yemen on Saturday, the Defence Ministry said on the sixth day of a government offensive which has killed about 200 people. Yemeni air force planes destroyed a vehicle in the southern province of Bayda, killing three "leading al Qaeda terrorists", the ministry said on its website. Ansar News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-74470032849443844032012-04-14T15:26:00.001-07:002012-04-14T15:26:20.453-07:00China gives currency more freedom with new reform China took a milestone step in turning the yuan into a global currency on Saturday by doubling the size of its trading band against the dollar, pushing through a crucial reform that further liberalizes its nascent financial markets. The People's Bank of China said it would allow the yuan to rise or fall 1 percent from a mid-point every day, effective Monday, compared with its previous 0.5 News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-32519766774070850852012-04-13T23:21:00.001-07:002012-04-13T23:21:28.925-07:00Amanda Bynes Caught on Camera Texting While Driving a Week After DUI Arrest Despite having just been arrested on suspicion of drunk driving, Amanda Bynes might have not learned her lesson. On Thursday, April 12 night, the former Nickelodeon actress went out partying again and broke another law as she was photographed texting behind the wheels while trying to park her car outside a Los Angeles hotspot. Seemingly too focused on the screen of her white iPhone, Bynes News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-9979607866433960282012-04-13T17:44:00.001-07:002012-04-13T17:44:48.807-07:00US earnings season provides spring boost for Obama The spring chill some feared would once again sap the US's fragile economic recovery appears to have held off as American firms have reported better-than-expected first-quarter earnings. The earnings season started in earnest this week with Alcoa, Google and JP Morgan reporting better-than-expected results. The figures will be a boost to president Barack Obama who has put the economic recoveryNews Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-89285366799169470732012-04-13T15:13:00.001-07:002012-04-13T15:13:58.966-07:00British PM, Suu Kyi back suspension of Myanmar sanctions British Prime Minister David Cameron and Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi gave powerful backing on Friday for the suspension of sanctions on the country, a sharp change in stance that could trigger a flood of investment in the resource-rich state. Cameron, the first Western leader to visit Myanmar in decades, and Nobel laureate Suu Kyi said during a joint news conference in Yangon News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-46508089302362349692012-04-13T06:29:00.001-07:002012-04-13T06:29:04.117-07:00Is the Toyota Prius Plug-in a game changer? So, it’s finally here: the hybrid Toyota Prius that will now do what people have expected the Prius to do all along. Available to order now, the Prius Plug-in arrive in showrooms on 9 July, to give extended electric running of nearly 15 miles instead of 15 seconds without the whining petrol engine kicking in and spoiling the green dream. It is able to travel so much further on battery power News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-22578969638168374042012-04-13T05:53:00.001-07:002012-04-13T05:53:18.302-07:00Avio head: Europe risks becoming a 'half-baked cake' Europe risks being squeezed between "low-cost China" and "high-tech America" unless it can rediscover the knack for innovation, says the head of aerospace company Avio. Francesco Caio, the CEO of Turin-based Avio, told me that Europe's prospects were bleak unless it could find a "new frontier of innovation." "Europe runs the risk of (being) squeezed between News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-4892313443685464312012-04-12T17:45:00.001-07:002012-04-12T17:45:48.486-07:00Auto Bailout Losses Reduced to $21.7 Billion in Latest Treasury Estimate The U.S. government now stands to lose an estimated $21.7 billion for the auto bailout, a figure  $2 billion less than the forecast from January 2012. The improved outlook is due to an uptick in General Motors stock value, which closed at $24.03 on Wednesday, according to The Detroit News. GM’s stock is up about 19 percent this year, but that’s still not enough to compensate for the slip News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-31361542892112256522012-04-12T16:40:00.001-07:002012-04-12T16:40:03.791-07:00Restructuring firm AlixPartners for sale: sourcesPrivate equity firm Hellman & Friedman is exploring a sale of AlixPartners in a deal that could value the restructuring advisory firm at more than $1 billion, according to four people familiar with the matter. Efforts to sell AlixPartners are at an advanced stage and a deal is expected in the near future, the people said. Goldman Sachs Group and Bank of America Merrill Lynch are advising onNews Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-12124101131459002872012-04-12T13:45:00.001-07:002012-04-12T13:45:19.368-07:00Rome prosecutors link Vatican cleric to 29-year mystery of missing girl The Vatican is under pressure to help resolve one of the strangest of many enigmas lingering in Italy from the cold war years. For four years, prosecutors in Rome have been making a renewed attempt to get at the truth behind the disappearance in 1983 of Emanuela Orlandi, the 15-year-old daughter of a Vatican employee. They are seeking to ascertain whether she was seized by a notorious band News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-22252659239383632192012-04-12T13:01:00.001-07:002012-04-12T13:01:59.805-07:00Lower euro-zone yields, China GDP view lift Wall Street U.S. stocks rose more than 1 percent on Thursday as lower Italian bond yields eased some euro-zone concerns and rumors about China's strong GDP growth bolstered investors' appetite for risk. The S&P 500 popped above its 50-day moving average in a sign that traders may see the recent pullback of nearly 5 percent as an opportunity to catch up with the benchmark's performance. The index is upNews Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-24447139104639771752012-04-12T05:36:00.001-07:002012-04-12T05:36:32.645-07:00US government sues Apple in e-book scandalThe US Justice Department has sued Apple Inc and five publishing houses alleging a "conspiracy" to raise prices and limit competition for e-books, and immediately reached a partial settlement in the case. As the antitrust suit was announced, officials said three of the publishers agreed to end the scheme to force retailers such as Amazon to accept a new pricing plan that limited their News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-43443953648978143612012-04-11T20:18:00.001-07:002012-04-11T20:18:36.479-07:00Hey Bravo, Silicon Valley is too boring for TV The tech world has been up in arms this past week about "Silicon Valley," an upcoming Bravo reality show documenting the lives of five aspiring entrepreneurs making their way in the world of Bay Area startups. The TV show is co-produced by Randi Zuckerberg, former marketing director of Facebook and sister of its founder, Mark Zuckerberg. Its brief preview showcases the glamorous lifeNews Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-68453337869067633572012-04-11T14:58:00.001-07:002012-04-11T14:58:26.510-07:00Verizon Wireless to charge $30 fee for upgrades Verizon Wireless will start charging customers a $30 fee for cellphone upgrades, on top of the price they pay for the new device, as the company looks to supplement its income to cover costs. The change at the biggest U.S. mobile provider follows a fourth-quarter decline in its wireless profit margins, which came under pressure from hefty subsidies it had to pay Apple Inc (AAPL.O) for the News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-60886298920552193152012-04-11T13:29:00.001-07:002012-04-11T13:29:44.425-07:00Trapped Peruvian miners rescued Rescuers have freed nine copper miners who had been trapped underground for seven days after a cave-in in southern Peru. The miners exited the Cabeza de Negro mine one by one starting at around 7 am local time (12:00 GMT), wrapped in blankets and wearing dark glasses to protect their eyes against the bright light of day, reporters at the scene said. One of the miners had difficulty walking, News Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3360182286527603816.post-49815479538732082882012-04-11T12:36:00.001-07:002012-04-11T12:36:00.689-07:00Huge quakes off Indonesia stir panic, but no big tsunamiA powerful 8.6 magnitude earthquake and a series of strong aftershocks struck off Indonesia on Wednesday, sending people scurrying from buildings as far away as southern India, but there seemed little risk of a disastrous tsunami as in 2004. Indonesia said it was checking for damage and casualties but remarkably, no such reports had been received for several hours after the quakes, including inNews Updatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10161535362314734609noreply@blogger.com