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Friday, December 2, 2011 12:07 AM PST

Today's Reuters News Headlines - Yahoo! News: Insight: Did Conficker help sabotage Iran's nuke program? Myanmar's Suu Kyi praises U.S. engagement Egypt awaits poll results as Tahrir protest planned Senate defeats competing payroll tax cut bills Labor market seen improving, but pace glacial ECB opens door to action, Sarkozy seeks new treaty Senators blast CFTC, Gensler for MF Global mess Honda recalls 304,035 cars globally due to faulty air bag Smith replaces Glocer as Thomson Reuters CEO Insight: Apple vs Samsung lawsuit full of secret combat Auto sales rise to near two-year high November chilled retailers stuck in a rut Mass. AG hits big banks with foreclosure lawsuit Analysis: MF Global proves Enron-era accounting lives on Factories growing despite global slowdown Madoff trustee can appeal JPMorgan $19 billion loss Senate defeats Democratic payroll tax cut plan Al Qaeda says group kidnapped American in Pakistan ECB opens door to action, Sarkozy seeks new treaty NATO attack threatens war on militants: Pakistan Analysis: MF Global proves Enron-era accounting lives on Insight: Apple vs Samsung lawsuit full of secret combat Syria firms and VIPs sanctioned in "civil war" Thomson Reuters appoints new CEO AT&T says FCC "cherry-picks" facts in T-Mobile spat EU may study oil embargo on Iran; China urges calm Clinton offers Myanmar first rewards for reform Olympus ex-CEO campaigns to oust board Insight: Diabetes breakthrough stalled in safety debate Insight: In Russia, nationalists turn on Putin Syria on cusp of civil war, death toll 4,000: U.N. Obama raises U.S. goal on fighting AIDS Deal by deal, U.S. ambassador turns salesman in China More charges coming in insider trading probe: sources Blackstone, Bain plan Yahoo bid: source Egypt awaits poll results, Tahrir protest planned Greeks strike over government's "starvation" budget World stocks extend gains; caution supports bonds China factory sector shrinks first time in nearly 3 years Obama cites progress towards payroll tax cut Insight: Did Conficker help sabotage Iran's nuke program? Thu,1 Dec 2011 10:57 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - A cyber warfare expert claims he has linked the Stuxnet computer virus that attacked Iran's nuclear program in 2010 to Conficker, a mysterious "worm" that surfaced in late 2008 and infected millions of PCs. Conficker was used to open back doors into computers in Iran, then infect them with Stuxnet, according to research from John Bumgarner, a retired U.S. Army special-operations veteran and former intelligence officer. "Conficker was a door kicker," said Bumgarner, chief technology officer for the U.S. ... Full Story Top Myanmar's Suu Kyi praises U.S. engagement Thu,1 Dec 2011 11:01 PM PST Reuters - YANGON (Reuters) - Pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi welcomed on Friday U.S. engagement with Myanmar, saying she hoped it would set her long-isolated country on the road to democracy. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton held a final meeting with Suu Kyi as she wrapped up a landmark visit to Myanmar which saw the new civilian government pledge to forge ahead with political reforms and re-engage with the world community. ... Full Story Top Egypt awaits poll results as Tahrir protest planned Thu,1 Dec 2011 11:33 PM PST Reuters - CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt will hear the results of elections which Islamist parties look set to win on Friday, and protesters have called a rally to remember 42 people killed in clashes with police last month. Islamist success at the polls in the most populous Arab nation would reinforce a trend in North Africa. Moderate Islamists lead governments in Morocco and post-uprising Tunisia after election wins in the last two months. Egyptians voting freely for the first time since army officers ousted the king in 1952 seem willing to give Islamists a chance. ... Full Story Top Senate defeats competing payroll tax cut bills Thu,1 Dec 2011 06:43 PM PST Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Senate on Thursday defeated competing payroll tax cut extension plans by Democrats and Republicans, clearing the way for negotiations on compromise legislation that could boost the economy next year. In late-night votes, the Senate, as expected, defeated a Democratic plan that would have extended and expanded the payroll tax cut that is scheduled to expire on December 31. Republicans particularly objected to a new tax on the wealthy to cover the $110 billion in projected lost revenues from continuing the temporary tax cut. ... Full Story Top Labor market seen improving, but pace glacial Thu,1 Dec 2011 09:12 PM PST Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Employment growth likely picked up speed in November, but the pace is not expected to be quick enough to bring down the country's 9 percent jobless rate. Nonfarm payrolls likely increased by 122,000 last month, according to a Reuters survey of economists, which would outpace October's 80,000. The poll was conducted before a report on Wednesday that showed private companies hired the most workers in nearly a year in November. That report suggested Friday's broader gauge of nonfarm employment could rise by as much as 150,000, some analysts said. ... Full Story Top ECB opens door to action, Sarkozy seeks new treaty Thu,1 Dec 2011 11:54 PM PST Reuters - BRUSSELS/TOULON, France (Reuters) - The new head of the European Central Bank signaled on Thursday it stood ready to act more aggressively to fight Europe's debt crisis if political leaders agree next week on much tighter budget controls in the 17-nation euro zone. In France, President Nicolas Sarkozy called for a new treaty incorporating tougher budget discipline, a European Monetary Fund to support countries in difficulty and decisions in the euro area taken by majority vote instead of unanimity. ... Full Story Top Senators blast CFTC, Gensler for MF Global mess Thu,1 Dec 2011 07:41 PM PST Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican lawmakers blasted the chairman of the U.S. futures regulator on Thursday for his agency's role in the collapse of MF Global and called his recusal from the investigation a way to "avoid the heat." The Commodity Futures Trading Commission and its chairman, Gary Gensler, are under pressure because of the quick collapse of the futures brokerage and for allegedly not policing the firm's bookkeeping closely enough. Investigators are searching for as much as $1. ... Full Story Top Honda recalls 304,035 cars globally due to faulty air bag Thu,1 Dec 2011 11:26 PM PST Reuters - TOKYO (Reuters) - Honda Motor Co said on Friday that it is recalling 304,035 cars globally after finding the models were equipped with air bags that could burst due to faulty inflators. (Reporting by Mayumi Negishi; Editing by Joseph Radford) Full Story Top Smith replaces Glocer as Thomson Reuters CEO Thu,1 Dec 2011 06:08 PM PST Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters) - Thomson Reuters Corp Chief Executive Tom Glocer is stepping down at the end of the year following a slump in the share price in recent months. He will be replaced by Chief Operating Officer James Smith, a veteran Thomson executive who has run the company's most successful operations. The news and information company has undergone a series of structural changes and management shake-ups over the past six months to address the lackluster performance of its Markets business, which mainly serves financial institutions. ... Full Story Top Insight: Apple vs Samsung lawsuit full of secret combat Thu,1 Dec 2011 05:00 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - The biggest legal battle for the technology industry is playing out in a federal court in Silicon Valley, where Apple is trying to stop Samsung from selling Galaxy phones and tablets in the United States. In the lawsuit, filed in April, Apple accuses Samsung of "slavishly" ripping off its designs for the iPad and iPhone. Although there is worldwide interest in the case, the proceedings have largely been shrouded behind a veil of secrecy: most of the court papers are sealed, meaning they can't be viewed by the public. ... Full Story Top Auto sales rise to near two-year high Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:27 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - U.S. auto sales rose 14 percent in November, paced by gains at Chrysler Group LLC and Volkswagen AG, as consumers returned to showrooms even without the lure of a big year-end sale. Chrysler and VW posted the highest percentage gains at 45 percent and 41 percent, respectively. Others posting double-digit gains were Hyundai Motor Co at 22 percent, Nissan Motor Co at 19 percent, and Ford Motor Co at 13 percent. General Motors and Toyota Motor Co trailed with increases of 7 percent. ... Full Story Top November chilled retailers stuck in a rut Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:33 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - Earlier hours and bigger promotions were the keys to success for several U.S. retailers in November, while chains that held fast to their same old holiday season strategies were dealt a blow. Among retailers that reported monthly tallies there were clear winners, including Macy's Inc and Saks Inc, and clear losers, such as Kohl's Corp and J.C. Penney Co Inc. Overall, sales at stores open at least a year rose, as was expected, during a critical month for the industry. ... Full Story Top Mass. AG hits big banks with foreclosure lawsuit Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:37 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - The Massachusetts attorney general has filed a lawsuit against five large U.S. banks accusing them of deceptive foreclosure practices, a signal of ebbing confidence that a multi-state agreement can be worked out. Attorney General Martha Coakley said on Thursday she filed the lawsuit partly because it has been taking too long to hammer out a nationwide settlement. For more than a year, state and federal officials have been negotiating a deal in which banks would pay billions of dollars in fines - to go toward housing relief - in exchange for legal protection against future suits. ... Full Story Top Analysis: MF Global proves Enron-era accounting lives on Thu,1 Dec 2011 07:40 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - The off-balance-sheet accounting methods that Enron and Lehman Brothers made famous in their epic failures years ago have a modern-day poster child: MF Global. Like its predecessors, the bankrupt brokerage formerly run by Jon Corzine took advantage of an accounting maneuver to keep certain financial obligations off its books, making the firm look less indebted and thus less a risk than it really was. ... Full Story Top Factories growing despite global slowdown Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:40 PM PST Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. factories shrugged off weakness in the global economy in November as manufacturing activity rose to its highest level in five months, a fresh sign the domestic economy was accelerating. Recent data on consumer spending and private-sector job creation has also boosted optimism on the path of growth. "The economy seems finally to be developing real momentum," said Ian Shepherdson, an economist at High Frequency Economics in Valhalla, New York. Also pointing to growth, automakers reported U.S. sales rose 13.9 percent in November from a year earlier, Autodata Corp said. ... Full Story Top Madoff trustee can appeal JPMorgan $19 billion loss Thu,1 Dec 2011 04:18 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - The trustee seeking money for Bernard Madoff's victims won the right to immediately appeal a ruling that took away more than $19 billion of his claims against JPMorgan Chase & Co, Madoff's main bank for two decades. U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon in Manhattan last month took away all but $425 million of trustee Irving Picard's $19.9 billion lawsuit against the largest U.S. bank. McMahon found that Picard, as trustee for the estate of Bernard L. ... Full Story Top Senate defeats Democratic payroll tax cut plan Thu,1 Dec 2011 05:48 PM PST Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republicans in the Senate on Thursday blocked a one-year extension and expansion of the payroll tax cut that was coupled with a plan to impose a new tax on the wealthy. By a mostly partisan vote of 51-49, the Senate defeated the Democratic legislation and was preparing to vote on a Republican alternative that also was expected to fail. At least 60 votes were needed in the 100-member Senate to pass either measure. Under current law, the payroll tax cut for workers is scheduled to expire on December 31. ... Full Story Top Al Qaeda says group kidnapped American in Pakistan Thu,1 Dec 2011 05:08 PM PST Reuters - DUBAI (Reuters) - Al Qaeda has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of an American man in Pakistan and demanded the release of prisoners and an end to air strikes in Muslim countries in exchange for his freedom, according to an Internet statement. Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri also said in an audio recording issued on Islamist websites late on Thursday that a senior al Qaeda leader based in Pakistan known as Attiyatullah had been killed in a U.S. air strike in August. ... Full Story Top ECB opens door to action, Sarkozy seeks new treaty Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:25 PM PST Reuters - BRUSSELS/TOULON, France (Reuters) - The new head of the European Central Bank signaled on Thursday it stood ready to act more aggressively to fight Europe's debt crisis if political leaders agree next week on much tighter budget controls in the 17-nation euro zone. In France, President Nicolas Sarkozy called for a new treaty incorporating tougher budget discipline, a European Monetary Fund to support countries in difficulty and decisions in the euro area taken by majority vote instead of unanimity. ... Full Story Top NATO attack threatens war on militants: Pakistan Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:35 PM PST Reuters - ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan, enraged by a NATO cross-border attack that killed 24 soldiers, could end support for the U.S.-led war on militancy if its sovereignty is violated again, the foreign minister said, warning that "enough is enough." The South Asian nation has already shown its anger over the weekend strike by pulling out of an international conference in Germany next week on Afghanistan, depriving the talks of a central player in efforts to bring peace to its neighbor. "Enough is enough. ... Full Story Top Analysis: MF Global proves Enron-era accounting lives on Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:08 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - The off-balance-sheet accounting methods that Enron and Lehman Brothers made famous in their epic failures years ago have a modern-day poster child: MF Global. Like its predecessors, the bankrupt brokerage formerly run by Jon Corzine took advantage of an accounting maneuver to keep certain financial obligations off its books, making the firm look less indebted and thus less a risk than it really was. ... Full Story Top Insight: Apple vs Samsung lawsuit full of secret combat Thu,1 Dec 2011 03:58 PM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - The biggest legal battle for the technology industry is playing out in a federal court in Silicon Valley, where Apple is trying to stop Samsung from selling Galaxy phones and tablets in the United States. In the lawsuit, filed in April, Apple accuses Samsung of "slavishly" ripping off its designs for the iPad and iPhone. Although there is worldwide interest in the case, the proceedings have largely been shrouded behind a veil of secrecy: most of the court papers are sealed, meaning they can't be viewed by the public. ... Full Story Top Syria firms and VIPs sanctioned in "civil war" Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:25 PM PST Reuters - BEIRUT (Reuters) - The United States, European Union and Arab League blacklisted Syrian VIPs and companies on Thursday to force an end to the military crackdown on protesters challenging the rule of President Bashar al-Assad. Bloodshed continued in Syria in what one United Nations official said was now a "civil war" that has cost at least 4,000 lives since March. Six people were killed and five critically wounded during an army sweep into the restive town of al-Trimsa in Hama province, a hotbed of anti-Assad sentiment, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. ... Full Story Top Thomson Reuters appoints new CEO Thu,1 Dec 2011 03:44 PM PST Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters) - Thomson Reuters Corp said Chief Executive Tom Glocer is stepping down on January 1 and will be replaced by Chief Operating Officer James Smith. The news and information company has undergone a series of structural changes and management shake-ups over the past six months to address the disappointing performance of its Markets division, which mainly serves financial institutions. ... Full Story Top AT&T says FCC "cherry-picks" facts in T-Mobile spat Thu,1 Dec 2011 11:21 AM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - AT&T Inc accused the U.S. communications regulator of being one-sided and cherry-picking facts when it issued a stinging rebuke of the company's plan to buy T-Mobile USA from Deutsche Telekom. The scathing Federal Communications Commission staff report, released earlier this week, said AT&T's $39 billion proposal to purchase T-Mobile would lead to higher prices for customers and big job losses. "The report cherry-picks facts to support its views, and ignores facts that don't. ... Full Story Top EU may study oil embargo on Iran; China urges calm Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:25 PM PST Reuters - BRUSSELS/TEHRAN (Reuters) - The European Union tightened sanctions against Iran on Thursday and laid out plans for a possible embargo of its oil in response to mounting Western suspicions that Tehran plans to build nuclear weapons. China, the biggest buyer of Iranian crude, stepped in to warn against "emotionally charged actions" that might aggravate the row over the storming of Britain's embassy in Tehran. Top U.S. officials said they wanted to sanction Iran's central bank in a calibrated manner to avoid roiling oil markets or antagonizing allies. Their approach clashes with that of U.S. ... Full Story Top Clinton offers Myanmar first rewards for reform Thu,1 Dec 2011 12:56 PM PST Reuters - YANGON (Reuters) - The United States will support more aid for Myanmar and consider installing an ambassador after an absence of some two decades, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Thursday, offering the first rewards for reform. Clinton said she had "candid, productive" conversations with President Thein Sein and other Myanmar ministers and told them Washington stood ready to support further reforms and possibly lift sanctions. ... Full Story Top Olympus ex-CEO campaigns to oust board Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:11 AM PST Reuters - NEW YORK/TOKYO (Reuters) - The former chief executive of disgraced Olympus Corp, Michael Woodford, launched a campaign on Thursday to oust the board of directors, reclaim his old job and bring in his own team to save the Japanese firm from a big accounting scandal. Woodford, who blew the whistle on accounting tricks at Olympus after he was sacked in October, said he was putting together a team of candidates for a new board and talking to shareholders about replacing the current leadership, hopefully by February. ... Full Story Top Insight: Diabetes breakthrough stalled in safety debate Thu,1 Dec 2011 05:33 AM PST Reuters - CHICAGO (Reuters) - It's a dream of medical science that looks tantalizingly within reach: the artificial pancreas, a potential breakthrough treatment for the scourge of type 1 diabetes. Meant to mimic the function of a real pancreas, the artificial version is a complex device that combines a pager-sized continuous glucose monitor and sensor that tracks blood sugar with a pump that automatically delivers the correct dose of insulin at just the right time. ... Full Story Top Insight: In Russia, nationalists turn on Putin Thu,1 Dec 2011 08:24 AM PST Reuters - MOSCOW (Reuters) - Jonibek Kosimov had been missing for nearly a week when his cousin found his body in the morgue. Kosimov, 24, had been discovered in the early autumn sunlight of a forest clearing near the monastery city of Sergiev Posad outside Moscow. His throat had been slit, his face slashed by 21 knife wounds. Turning to relatives and friends -- migrant laborers, mostly -- the dead man's cousin Shaukatulloh Makhmudov collected the nearly 25,000 roubles ($810) he needed to pay the morgue and send his cousin home. ... Full Story Top Syria on cusp of civil war, death toll 4,000: U.N. Thu,1 Dec 2011 11:41 AM PST Reuters - GENEVA (Reuters) - Syria is on the cusp of civil war as rebel soldiers and others take up arms against the government of President Bashar al-Assad, the top U.N. human rights official said on Thursday. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay told a news conference 4,000 people were already known to have died in the unrest in Syria this year. "But really the reliable information coming to us is that it is much more than that," she added. ... Full Story Top Obama raises U.S. goal on fighting AIDS Thu,1 Dec 2011 03:21 PM PST Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama vowed to boost U.S. efforts to fight AIDS with a new target of providing treatment to 6 million people worldwide by 2013, up from an earlier goal of 4 million. At a celebrity-studded World AIDS Day event on Thursday, Obama also challenged other nations to boost their commitments to fund treatment and called on China to "step up" as a major donor in the effort to expand access to AIDS drugs. "We can beat this disease. We can win this fight. ... Full Story Top Deal by deal, U.S. ambassador turns salesman in China Thu,1 Dec 2011 05:23 AM PST Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - Businessmen in sober suits leapt to their feet, jostling with cameras and mobile phones to snap a quick shot as the new U.S. ambassador to China strode to the podium at a hotel ballroom in Jinan, in coastal Shandong province. Nine hours later, after a speech on energy cooperation, signing ceremonies for deals of a few million dollars each, and dinner with the governor, he was back on the train to Beijing. This is how Gary Locke, the first Chinese-American ambassador to Beijing and a local celebrity, is trying to raise U.S. ... Full Story Top More charges coming in insider trading probe: sources Thu,1 Dec 2011 05:10 AM PST Reuters - (Reuters) - A year after four hedge funds were raided as part of a sweeping probe into insider trading, agents are ready to arrest as many as three people who worked at the raided funds, sources familiar with the investigation said. These arrests are expected to take place in the coming weeks, and some of the people will plead guilty to charges of insider trading, the sources said. The sources declined to be named because the impending arrests have not yet been made public. ... Full Story Top Blackstone, Bain plan Yahoo bid: source Thu,1 Dec 2011 06:56 AM PST Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters) - Blackstone Group and Bain Capital are preparing a bid for all of Yahoo Inc with Asian partners in a deal that could value the Internet company at about $25 billion, a source familiar with the matter said on Wednesday. The potential bid by the consortium, which would include China's Alibaba Group and Japan's Softbank Corp, has not yet been finalized, the source and two other people familiar with the matter said. ... Full Story Top Egypt awaits poll results, Tahrir protest planned Thu,1 Dec 2011 03:15 PM PST Reuters - CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt will hear the results of elections which Islamist parties look set to win on Friday, and protesters have called a rally to remember 42 people killed in clashes with police last month. Islamist success at the polls in the most populous Arab nation would reinforce a trend in North Africa. Moderate Islamists lead governments in Morocco and post-uprising Tunisia after election wins in the last two months. Egyptians voting freely for the first time since army officers ousted the king in 1952 seem willing to give Islamists a chance. ... Full Story Top Greeks strike over government's "starvation" budget Thu,1 Dec 2011 07:45 AM PST Reuters - ATHENS (Reuters) - Emergency staff ran hospitals, schools closed and thousands of austerity-weary Greeks took to the streets on Thursday in a 24-hour general strike that tested the resolve of a national unity government. Chanting "Get out, take the budget and get out of here!," Greeks poured into the square in front of parliament to protest a new dose of austerity medicine prescribed by foreign lenders as the price for bailout loans. European leaders approved an 8 billion euro ($10. ... Full Story Top World stocks extend gains; caution supports bonds Thu,1 Dec 2011 05:24 AM PST Reuters - LONDON (Reuters) - World stocks and the euro started the final month of the year on a positive note on Thursday as a Spanish debt sale saw good demand and a liquidity move by major central banks raised hopes policymakers would take more steps to tackle the crisis. Spain's government bond yields fell following the auction, a day after the world's six major central banks said they would lower the cost of existing dollar swap lines, and arrange bilateral swaps to provide liquidity for other currencies. ... Full Story Top China factory sector shrinks first time in nearly 3 years Wed,30 Nov 2011 08:05 PM PST Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - China's factory sector shrank in November in the face of weakening demand both at home and abroad, two surveys showed on Thursday, underlining the central bank's move to cut bank reserve requirements to shore up the economy. The official and HSBC purchasing managers' indexes are likely to feed worries that the global economy is on a slippery slope as the euro zone is marred by its debt crisis, reinforcing expectations that China will ease policy further. ... Full Story Top Obama cites progress towards payroll tax cut Wed,30 Nov 2011 06:41 PM PST Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters) - President Barack Obama struck an optimistic note on Wednesday night that lawmakers in Congress could reach agreement to extend payroll tax cuts he said earlier were needed to avoid a "massive blow" to the economy. At a fundraiser at a New York restaurant, the Democrat said Republican congressional leaders John Boehner and Mitch McConnell had indicated in the past few days they were open to the one-year extension that Obama wants to bolster the economy. ... Full Story Top

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