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| African Minerals focused on increasing run rate in 2014 Sunday, Jan 26, 2014 11:43 PM PST Sierra Leone-focused African Minerals said on Monday it was aiming to increase its rate of production this year, with a second phase of expansion planned for the end of 2014. Chief Executive Bernie Pryor said in a statement he expected cash costs to fall to approximately $30 per tonne this year. Full Story | Top |
| Egypt's Sawiris interested in Telecom Italia: Bloomberg Sunday, Jan 26, 2014 11:43 PM PST Egyptian tycoon Naguib Sawiris would be prepared to invest in Telecom Italia as long as the group's biggest shareholder, Telefonica withdraws, but he is not in direct talks with either company, he told Bloomberg News. "I am still interested in Telecom Italia but only on two conditions: that Telefonica exits and that Telecom Italia does not sell Brazil," he was quoted as saying by the news agency in an interview published on Sunday. "I think it's not good for Telecom Italia to dispose its stake in TIM Brasil," Sawiris was quoted as saying. Full Story | Top |
| AT&T says does not intend to bid for Vodafone Sunday, Jan 26, 2014 11:36 PM PST  U.S. mobile operator AT&T said on Monday it was not planning to take over Britain's Vodafone, making its intentions clear after a request from the takeover panel following months of speculation. The statement to the London Stock Exchange rules out the second-largest mobile service provider in the United States from buying Vodafone for the next six months. However the group can still make an offer if Vodafone's board agrees to it, or if a third party enters the fray. "AT&T notes the recent speculation regarding a potential transaction involving Vodafone Group Plc," it said in a short statement. Full Story | Top |
| As 'African' Chinese park money in Hong Kong, Beijing targets 'naked' officials Sunday, Jan 26, 2014 11:31 PM PST By Yimou Lee HONG KONG (Reuters) - Step by step, Chinese authorities are making life tougher for officials looking to spirit assets and family members out of the country to avoid close scrutiny and strict currency controls. As part of President Xi Jinping's crackdown on pervasive corruption, China's so-called "naked officials", those who have moved their spouses, children and assets overseas while they remain at home, will not be considered for promotion, state media reported. Also, China's anti-graft body has asked newly promoted officials to disclose their assets and any foreign residency, while late last month, some 2,000 village chiefs in Guangzhou had to hand over their passports to stop corrupt officials from fleeing, Hong Kong's South China Morning Post reported. Many officials have been taking advantage of a Hong Kong investment scheme to squirrel away more than $1 million each, which includes buying 'residency' in faraway African nations, since the scheme is not open to mainland Chinese residents. Full Story | Top |
| Foxconn eyes factories in U.S., Indonesia as China's luster fades Sunday, Jan 26, 2014 11:29 PM PST  By Faith Hung TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan's Foxconn Technology Group, the major supplier of Apple Inc's iPhones and iPads, may build high-tech factories in the United States and low-cost plants in Indonesia as the appeal of 'made in China' fades into a burden. Beset by rising costs and labor unrest in China, Chairman Terry Gou told employees on Sunday that Foxconn is considering diversifying away from its manufacturing heartland. The world's largest contract maker of electronic goods has little choice if it's to protect margins and stay ahead of peers who have adapted the Foxconn playbook into their own success stories. Many customers and partners have asked Foxconn to open shop in the U.S., Gou said, with an eye on advanced manufacturing much closer to their home base. Full Story | Top |
| Pirates hijacked tanker off Angola, stole cargo: owners Sunday, Jan 26, 2014 11:28 PM PST LISBON/ATHENS (Reuters) - The Greek owners of an oil tanker that vanished off the Angolan coast on January 18 said on Sunday that pirates had hijacked the vessel and stolen a large quantity of cargo, contradicting the Angolan navy's denial that such an assault took place. Greece-based Dynacom, owners of the 75,000 deadweight tonne Liberian-flagged tanker MT Kerala, said it had managed to contact crew on the vessel who reported the pirates had left. "Pirates hijacked the vessel offshore Angola and stole a large quantity of cargo by ship-to-ship transfer. Dynacom's version of the events contradicted an account from the Angolan navy, which alleged the crew had turned off the ship's communications to fake a pirate attack. Full Story | Top |
| South Africa's rand starts week under pressure Sunday, Jan 26, 2014 11:26 PM PST  South Africa's rand was weaker against the dollar on Monday near a five-year low as the market looked ahead to a central bank interest rate decision and December trade figures later in the week. The Reserve Bank will announce its decision on interest rates at the end of a three-day monetary policy meeting on Wednesday. The South African Revenue Service will also release trade data for December on Friday. Full Story | Top |
| Ericsson says reaches deal with Samsung to end patent disputes Sunday, Jan 26, 2014 11:24 PM PST  Ericsson, the world's biggest telecom network equipment maker, and Samsung Electronics Co have reached a deal to end all patent-related legal disputes. Ericsson said on Monday the agreement included an initial payment and royalty payments from Samsung for the term of the multi-year license agreement and would affect Ericsson's operating cash flow at the beginning of 2014. Ericsson said the settlement would impact its fourth quarter sales by 4.2 billion Swedish crowns ($652 million) and net income by 3.3 billion Swedish crowns ($512 million). Full Story | Top |
| U.S. federal prosecutors target banks servicing payday lenders: NYT Sunday, Jan 26, 2014 11:21 PM PST  (Reuters) - The U.S. justice department is exploring civil and criminal actions against more than 50 big and small banks that conduct business with payday lenders, who are being increasingly scrutinized by regulators, the New York Times reported, citing government officials. Under a new program, "Operation Choke Point," the department is checking banks over whether they enabled payday lenders to illegally siphon billions of dollars from U.S. consumers' checking accounts, the newspaper said, citing state and federal officials briefed on the investigation. In the first action under the program, federal prosecutors have already brought a lawsuit against Four Oaks Bank for being "deliberately ignorant" about processing payments on behalf of merchants, the report said. About $2.4 billion was illegally withdrawn from checking accounts of U.S. customers by companies enabled by Four Oaks Bank, the New York Times said. Full Story | Top |
| Emerging market anxiety hits Asian shares Sunday, Jan 26, 2014 11:16 PM PST  By Lisa Twaronite TOKYO (Reuters) - Asian shares dived on Monday as emerging markets remained under pressure, with the U.S. Federal Reserve poised to continue tapering stimulus and tighter credit conditions in China raising fears of a sharper economic slowdown. "With the U.S. Federal Reserve looking increasingly likely it could announce a further $10 billion tapering of its asset purchase program this week, it seems quite likely that today's European market open could be a pretty volatile affair, with a sharply lower open expected," said Michael Hewson, chief strategist at CMC Markets, in a note to clients. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 1.5 percent to four-and-a-half month low, after losing more than 1.0 percent on Friday. Expectations of continued stimulus withdrawal by the U.S. Federal Reserve added to the market's gloom. Full Story | Top |
| China puts four more anti-graft activists on trial Sunday, Jan 26, 2014 11:14 PM PST By Sui-Lee Wee BEIJING (Reuters) - Four more Chinese activists went on trial on Monday, accused of disturbing public order after urging officials to reveal their assets, the latest in a string of closely watched prosecutions of anti-graft campaigners. The trials of members of the "New Citizens' Movement" have sparked criticism from the West and rights groups, as evidence of the ruling Chinese Communist Party's determination to crush any challenge to its rule. The government has waged a 10-month drive against the movement, founded by Xu Zhiyong, one of China's most prominent rights activists, who was jailed on Sunday for four years. The four activists put on trial on Monday -- Ding Jiaxi, Li Wei, Zhang Baocheng and Yuan Dong -- advocated working within the system to press for change, including urging officials to publish details of assets. Full Story | Top |
| Brompton Bicycle shows British manufacturing how to shift up a gear Sunday, Jan 26, 2014 11:08 PM PST  By Brenda Goh and Neil Maidment LONDON (Reuters) - Loan refusal letters and retailers' rejections frame the walls of the Brompton Bicycle factory, a reminder of the obstacles the firm has overcome to establish itself as the UK's top bike-maker, selling 45,000 a year around the world. Brompton's success lies partly in its cool - the company cashed in on a trendy 'Made in Britain' tag, and the fact that its bikes fold up lends the label a geeky chic as well as popular practicality. But beneath the image lies a carefully-constructed business strategy that reveals not only the level of innovation required for UK manufacturing firms to succeed, but also the number of bumps in the road many of them still face. Britain's 1.5 trillion pound ($2.5 trillion) economy is among the developed world's fastest-growing thanks to a recovery in consumer spending last year. Full Story | Top |
| At high-volume Grammys, a secret wedding was kept quiet Sunday, Jan 26, 2014 10:58 PM PST  By Eric Kelsey LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - It took an idea, a casting service and dozens of people keeping a secret for organizers of music's Grammy Awards to pull off one of Sunday's biggest surprises at the annual ceremony. Thirty-three couples, some of whom were same-sex partners, were married at once during the performance of Macklemore & Ryan Lewis' pro-gay rights song, "Same Love," giving the awards show a heavyweight emotional and political punch. The marriages were officiated by Queen Latifah, and Madonna - dressed in a white suit with a matching white cowboy hat and cane - made a surprise appearance to accompany the song's featured singer, Mary Lambert. Neil Portnow, president and CEO of Grammy organizer The Recording Academy, said he was proud of the ceremony, calling it "elegant, powerful and meaningful as we wanted it to be." "So many of our ideas come from the creative community, from our artists," Portnow told reporters after the Grammys. Full Story | Top |
| Tata Motors executive dies in Thailand; police suspect suicide Sunday, Jan 26, 2014 10:46 PM PST  By Amy Sawitta Lefevre and Aradhana Aravindan BANGKOK/MUMBAI (Reuters) - Karl Slym, managing director of India's Tata Motors Ltd , died after falling from a hotel room in Bangkok in what police said on Monday could be possible suicide. Slym, 51, had attended a board meeting of Tata's Thailand unit in the Thai capital and was staying with his wife in a room on the 22nd floor of the Shangri-La hotel. Full Story | Top |
| French DJ duo Daft Punk, teenage Lorde take top Grammys Sunday, Jan 26, 2014 10:40 PM PST  By Mary Milliken and Piya Sinha-Roy LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Two unconventional acts, French electronic music DJs Daft Punk and New Zealand teen Lorde, took home the top Grammy awards on Sunday in a night that rewarded robots and newcomers, and recognized marriage equality. In a first for the Grammys or any big U.S. awards show, thirty-three couples, both same-sex and straight, were married by singer Queen Latifah, to the Macklemore & Ryan Lewis gay rights anthem, "Same Love." Madonna emerged in a white suit and cowboy hat to conclude the singing ceremony with "Open Your Heart." The music industry's glamorous gathering also saw the two surviving Beatles, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, come together for a rare joint performance coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the British group's breakthrough on American television. Full Story | Top |
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