| | |
| Father of Hawaii teenage stowaway denied access to son: report Saturday, May 03, 2014 12:48 AM PDT  (Reuters) - The father of a 15-year-old Somali boy who survived a trip from California to Hawaii stowed away in the wheel well of a jet has been denied access to his son days after arriving in Honolulu in a bid to bring him home, a newspaper reported on Friday. The boy sneaked into the wheel compartment of a Boeing 767 that took off last month from San Jose International Airport. Hawaii's Department of Human Services did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the newspaper report on Saturday. A spokeswoman for the department has said the boy's father arrived in Honolulu, but on Friday said its child welfare agency would not release additional information. Full Story | Top |
| Implats says most miners want to end platinum strike Saturday, May 03, 2014 12:22 AM PDT  By Ed Stoddard JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Impala Platinum said on Friday that two thirds of its striking workers had indicated by text messages and phone calls that they want to accept the company's latest wage offer and end South Africa's longest and most costly mining strike. The 14-week strike by the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU), which has also hit Anglo American Platinum and Lonmin, has taken out 40 percent of global platinum production and cost the companies nearly 16 billion rand ($1.5 billion) in lost revenue. AMCU General Secretary Jeffrey Mphahlele declined to comment on the company's claim, but the union said it planned to hold a press conference in Johannesburg on Monday. Full Story | Top |
| Bombs, protests hit Egypt in run-up to presidential election Saturday, May 03, 2014 12:19 AM PDT  By Shadia Nasralla and Tom Perry CAIRO (Reuters) - Two suicide bombings in Egypt's South Sinai killed a soldier and wounded at least eight people and two other bombs killed two people in Cairo on Friday, less than four weeks before a presidential election is due to be held, official sources said. In other violence in the port city of Alexandria, two people were shot dead when supporters of deposed President Mohamed Mursi clashed with residents, the Interior Ministry said in a statement. Militant attacks and other political violence have spiralled since the army overthrew Mursi, a senior Muslim Brotherhood figure, last July after mass protests against his rule. Former army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who led the action, is expected to win the presidential election on May 26 and 27. Full Story | Top |
| 'F.B.I.' actor Efrem Zimbalist dies in California: reports Friday, May 02, 2014 11:52 PM PDT Efrem Zimbalist Jr., who portrayed the indefatigable Inspector Lewis Erskine on the long-running U.S. television series "The F.B.I.", died on Friday at the age of 95, according to media reports. Zimbalist died at his home in Solvang, California, his daughter, actress Stephanie Zimbalist, and his son Efrem Zimbalist III, said in a statement, Hollywood trade magazine Variety and other media reported. From the late 1950s to the mid-1970s, Zimbalist was one of the top stars on U.S. television, playing a private detective on the ABC series "77 Sunset Strip" from 1958 to 1964 before his stint on "The F.B.I." on the same network from 1965 to 1974. Zimbalist, the son of opera singer Alma Gluck and concert violinist Efrem Zimbalist Sr., also appeared in about 20 movies - usually in supporting roles but sometimes as the leading man. Full Story | Top |
| Carrefour looking to exit India wholesale ops: media reports Friday, May 02, 2014 11:12 PM PDT  French retail giant Carrefour SA has begun making plans to exit its India wholesale operations, the Times of India reported on Saturday. Carrefour operates five wholesale cash-and-carry outlets in India and, after foreign investment rules were eased in 2012, it had been widely expected to set up a chain of supermarkets. The company has seen senior-level exits from its India business recently and some employees may be asked to leave over the next few weeks, the newspaper said, citing unnamed sources. A report in the Business Standard newspaper on Saturday, also citing unnamed sources, said the company has been working on an exit plan for India for the past two weeks and is expected to cut staff positions in the coming weeks. Full Story | Top |
| Marijuana banking scheme passes first test in Colorado legislature Friday, May 02, 2014 10:11 PM PDT By Keith Coffman DENVER (Reuters) - Colorado lawmakers on Friday passed a bill that if enacted would lead to the first marijuana financial system in the United States, potentially granting legal cannabis businesses access to the Federal Reserve's money transaction system. Traditional banks have been wary to knowingly serve legal and medicinal marijuana businesses because the drug remains illegal under federal law, said the bill's sponsor, Representative Jonathan Singer. "This sets up a new type of financial structure to the gap we're seeing between banking and the marijuana industry," said Singer, a Democrat. The proposal calls for new "cannabis credit co-ops" - similar to credit unions without deposit insurance - to be governed by the state's financial services commissioner. Full Story | Top |
| Japan considers tax breaks to promote investment, help companies: report Friday, May 02, 2014 08:33 PM PDT  Japan is considering expanding tax breaks and loosening some rules to promote investment in start-ups as part of the second installment of the government's economic growth strategy, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Saturday. Japan is also likely to say next month that it will lower the effective corporate tax rate to 20 percent from around 35 percent currently, the Yomiuri newspaper said citing several government sources, which could encourage firms to boost much-needed capital expenditure in Japan. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government is set to announce the second part of its growth strategy next month. One proposal is to expand the value of an investment that a so-called angel investor can deduct from his or her taxable income from the current limit of 10 million yen ($97,800) to several times as much, the Nikkei reported without citing the source of its information. Full Story | Top |
| Nevada court rejects U.S. request on Okada probe, says Wynn suit can proceed Friday, May 02, 2014 08:23 PM PDT  By Alexia Shurmur LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - A Nevada state judge ruled on Friday that a civil lawsuit between Wynn Resorts and Japanese billionaire Kazuo Okada could proceed, rejecting the U.S. government's request to keep it on hold for another six months to protect the identity of witnesses in a criminal probe into Okada's business in the Philippines. In requesting a third, six-month "stay of discovery," Department of Justice attorney Laura Perkins told a hearing that allowing the civil case to proceed risked causing "irreparable harm if the witnesses' identities are revealed." Clark County District Judge Elizabeth Gonzales, who had already granted two previous motions suspending the civil proceedings for a total of 12 months, said the U.S. government had already been given enough time. It's been a year," Gonzales said, adding that she hoped her ruling would prompt the government to accelerate its criminal investigation. No representative for Universal Entertainment Corp , the Japanese gaming machine maker founded by Okada and the company at the heart of government's criminal investigation, could be reached for comment. Full Story | Top |
| China's April services growth quickens slightly: government survey Friday, May 02, 2014 08:02 PM PDT  Growth in China's services sector accelerated slightly in April as new orders held steady, an official survey showed, an encouraging sign of strength in an economy that otherwise faces a cloudy outlook. The purchasing manufacturing index (PMI) for the services industry edged up to 54.8 last month, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Saturday, up marginally from 54.5 in March. The mild improvement in the services sector, which mirrors a marginal gain in the official PMI survey of Chinese factories in April, should be welcomed by investors fretting about the health of the world's second-largest economy. But the pick-ups in the official PMI surveys for factories and services firms would not be enough to dispel concerns that China's slowing growth engine might cool at a sharper pace faster in coming months. Full Story | Top |
| Honda to double number of models in China: media Friday, May 02, 2014 07:07 PM PDT  Honda Motor Co will double the number of car models it sells in China over the next two years to try to capture market share from rivals such as General Motors Co , Japan's Nikkei newspaper reported on Saturday. Honda will expand its product range to about 20 models by sharing platforms and other major parts between its two joint ventures in China, the Nikkei said without citing the source of its information. Honda also plans to source more Chinese parts to keep costs low, the Nikkei said. Spokesmen for Honda were not available for comment. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. jury orders smartphone maker Samsung to pay Apple $120 million Friday, May 02, 2014 06:38 PM PDT  By Dan Levine SAN JOSE, California (Reuters) - A U.S. jury on Friday ordered Samsung Electronics Co Ltd to pay $119.6 million to Apple Inc, far less than Apple had sought and marking a big loss for the iPhone maker in the latest round of their globe-spanning mobile patent litigation. During the month-long trial in a San Jose, California, federal court, Apple accused Samsung of violating patents on smartphone features including universal search, while Samsung denied wrongdoing. On Friday, the jury found the South Korean smartphone maker had infringed two Apple patents. Apple and Samsung have been litigating around the world for three years. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. jury orders Apple to pay Samsung $158,400 in mobile patents trial Friday, May 02, 2014 05:56 PM PDT SAN JOSE, California (Reuters) - A U.S. jury on Friday ordered Apple Inc to pay $158,400 to Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, after it found the iPhone maker infringed on at least one of the Korean company's patents. During the month-long trial in a San Jose, California, federal court, Apple accused Samsung of violating patents on smartphone features including universal search, while Samsung denied wrongdoing. (Reporting by Dan Levine; Editing by Ken Wills) Full Story | Top |
| Nineteen hurt in New York subway derailment Friday, May 02, 2014 05:53 PM PDT  A New York City subway train carrying 1,000 riders derailed on Friday morning while traveling through a tunnel in the borough of Queens, injuring 19 people, city fire officials said. The incident, at 10:24 a.m., involved six cars in an eight-car Manhattan-bound 'F' line subway, they said. The cause of the derailment was not immediately known but MTA Chairman Thomas Prendergast said the mass-transit agency will begin a full inspection of signals and tracks. My car went dark," said Connie Wang, 24, a freelance photographer who was riding in a car in the middle of the train. Full Story | Top |
| Obama, Merkel still struggle over spying but agree on trade Friday, May 02, 2014 05:52 PM PDT  By Jeff Mason and Steve Holland WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel could not hide differences on Friday over U.S. surveillance practices despite Obama's offer of "cyber dialogue" with Berlin and a pledge to bridge gaps that have tarnished their relationship. The two leaders have been at odds over the U.S. National Security Agency's spying habits since revelations from former NSA contractor Edward Snowden last year showed the United States had listened in on many of its allies, including Merkel. Obama has since banned the practice of eavesdropping on allied political leaders, but the measure has not placated Germany. "We have a few difficulties yet to overcome," Merkel said in a joint news conference with Obama at the White House, referring to the conflict and pointedly declining to say, when asked, that trust between the two nations had been restored. Full Story | Top |
| Activists sue San Francisco over controversial tech bus program Friday, May 02, 2014 05:15 PM PDT  By Mary Papenfuss SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Activists have sued the city and county of San Francisco over a pilot program giving shuttles run by Google and other private companies access to municipal bus stops, claiming it favors higher-paid technology workers over low-income residents. The lawsuit, filed in San Francisco Superior Court on Thursday, marks the latest sign of tensions in the Bay Area over the growing income divide, which has been widened by the latest tech industry boom. Late last year, protesters began to block the commuter buses that ferry employees from San Francisco to the offices of tech companies, including Facebook, Google and Yahoo, south of the city, which they say symbolize the rift being created by abundant tech money. Under the 18-month pilot program the unmarked, WiFi-equipped buses use San Francisco Municipal transit system stops for a fee of $1 per stop per day and are viewed by many as a symbol of the industry's disconnect from a broader community left behind by the tech boom. Full Story | Top |
|
No comments:
Post a Comment