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| December 28, 2013 |
 Fighting rages in S.Sudan oil regions, 'progress' for peace mission Juba (AFP) Dec 26, 2013 - Heavy fighting raged in South Sudan's oil-producing north Thursday, officials said, although neighbours Kenya and Ethiopia claimed "good progress" in efforts to broker an end to the civil war there. Army spokesman Philip Aguer said troops loyal to President Salva Kiir were battling forces allied to former vice president Riek Machar inside the town of Malakal, capital of Upper Nile state. ... more |  |
 Obama signs defense, budget bills into law Kailua, United States (AFP) Dec 26, 2013 - President Barack Obama Thursday signed into law the compromise US budget bill recently negotiated by feuding lawmakers and a massive defense bill that takes a step toward ultimate closure of Guantanamo. After signing the legislation while vacationing in Hawaii with his family, Obama praised the National Defense Authorization Act for allowing accelerated repatriation of detainees from the US ... more |  |
 Historians, environmentalists oppose Calif. solar power plant Los Angeles (UPI) Dec 26, 2013 - A proposed solar power plant in California has come under fire over concerns it will mar historic elements of a World War II internment camp and harm wildlife. The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power says that despite the objections is it going ahead with plans to put 1 million photovoltaic panels on 1,200 acres it owns in the Owens Valley north of the city. The $680-millio ... more |  |
Two Libya army officers killed in Benghazi Benghazi, Libya (AFP) Dec 27, 2013 - Two Libyan army officers have been killed in the past 48 hours in the eastern city of Benghazi, cradle of the 2011 revolt against Moamer Kadhafi, officials and medics said. The restive east has seen frequent attacks on security forces as the weak government in Tripoli has struggled to exert control over former rebels who have refused to disarm or join the security forces. A security sour ... more |  |
 Mumbai's last generation of letter writers signs out Mumbai (AFP) Dec 27, 2013 - Letter writer Shakil Ahmed is a proud keeper of secrets. For decades he penned the missives of Mumbai's illiterate workers, whether lovers pledging devotion to faraway sweethearts or prostitutes sending home money while concealing their trade. Today, Ahmed is lucky if he gets to write an address. "Thousands of people used to come - we didn't have time to eat. But in the last seven y ... more |  |
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 GM, Ford to recall more than 1.5 mln cars in China Shanghai (AFP) Dec 27, 2013 - US auto giant General Motors (GM) and its counterpart Ford will recall more than 1.5 million vehicles in China over defective parts, the country's quality watchdog said Friday. Shanghai GM, a joint venture between GM and China's SAIC Motor, will recall more than 1.46 million Buick and Chevrolet cars due to defective fuel-pump brackets, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspe ... more |  |
 Cathay Pacific orders 4 more long-haul Boeing planes Hong Kong (AFP) Dec 27, 2013 - Hong Kong flag carrier Cathay Pacific ordered four additional long-haul planes from Boeing on Friday, a week after it ordered 21 Boeing 777-9X planes, in a move to modernise its fleet. The airline said it would purchase an additional three Boeing 777-300ER passenger planes along with a Boeing 747-8 freighter, with a total list price of HK$7.4 billion ($954.25 million). Cathay did not rev ... more |  |
Amazon to compensate customers for late gifts New York (AFP) Dec 26, 2013 - Amazon Thursday said it would give $20 gift cards and pay shipping costs for customers affected by problems at UPS and FedEx that delayed some Christmas package deliveries. The Amazon pledge came after UPS in particular came under fire for late packages despite vows from retailers to meet a December 25 deadline. Some customers took to Twitter to voice their displeasure, likening one or ... more |  |
More Americans shopped on their phones on Christmas Washington (AFP) Dec 27, 2013 - Most stores were closed but Americans still managed to shop on Christmas Day - increasingly on their smartphones. An IBM survey showed Christmas Day online sales were up 16.5 percent over last year, with a strong boost from smartphones and tablets. Mobile traffic was the highest IBM found over this holiday season, accounting for 48 percent of all online traffic. And mobile accounted for ... more |  |
Renewables Provides All New US Electrical Generating Capacity In November Washington DC (SPX) Dec 24, 2013 - According to the latest "Energy Infrastructure Update" report from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's Office of Energy Projects, solar, biomass, wind, geothermal, and hydropower "units" provided 394 MW - or 100% - of all new electrical generation placed in-service in November 2013. There was no new capacity during the month from natural gas, coal, oil, or nuclear power. Renewable e ... more |  |
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Japan OKs record budget, sees deflation threat recede Tokyo (AFP) Dec 24, 2013 - Japan approved its biggest ever budget Tuesday, as an improving economy and a sales tax hike made room for more defence spending and the first step towards achieving a balanced budget. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's cabinet rubber-stamped a plan that will see the government spend 95.88 trillion yen ($922 billion) in the year from April 2014, up from 92.61 trillion yen the previous year. The ... more |  |
 Fukushima operator readies new restructuring plan Tokyo (AFP) Dec 25, 2013 - Tokyo Electric Power Wednesday submitted a fresh restructuring plan to a Japanese government-backed fund that envisages the creation of a special unit to dismantle the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant. TEPCO president Naomi Hirose pledged thorough implementation of the plan, once approved by the government as expected next month. The utility's board Tuesday approved a draft plan that wou ... more |  |
 Rusal starts legal case against London Metal Exchange London (AFP) Dec 24, 2013 - Rusal, the world's largest aluminium producer, has triggered a judicial review of plans by the London Metal Exchange to reform how it stockpiles commodities, the LME's owner said on Tuesday. Russian company Rusal filed a claim in the English High Court on Monday, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange said in a statement. The Hong Kong bourse last year bought the LME, which is the world's biggest meta ... more |  |
Finland looks to old foe Russia for new investment Helsinki (AFP) Dec 24, 2013 - For generations, Finland has lived fearfully in the shadow of its giant Russian neighbour, but today Russia could be the answer to the Finnish economy's woes. As they creep deeper into recession, the Finns may turn east for investment, while trying to forget a century under the Tsar followed by two hot wars and a cold one against the Soviets. "There might be some prejudices," said Heli S ... more |  |
Russia files first WTO complaint against EU Moscow (AFP) Dec 24, 2013 - Russia has accused the European Union of violating global free trade measures in its first complaint before the World Trade Organisation, the economy ministry said Tuesday. The procedure has to do with "a violation by the EU of anti-dumping provisions of the WTO agreement," said spokeswoman Yulia Chkanikova. The complaint is the first Russia has filed since it joined the global trade bod ... more |  |
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Russia drops cases against Greenpeace activists Moscow (AFP) Dec 25, 2013 - Russia on Wednesday dropped all but one of the cases against 30 crew members of a Greenpeace protest ship following a Kremlin-backed amnesty. The move marks the end of a three-month criminal probe against the 26 foreign and four Russian activists and comes less than two months before Moscow hosts the Winter Olympic Games in Sochi. In what was widely seen as another in a series of attempt ... more |  |
Arab monarchies eye stronger ties with China Riyadh (AFP) Dec 25, 2013 - The six energy-rich Arab monarchies of the Gulf are seeking to strengthen ties with China, Gulf Cooperation Council chief Abdullatif al-Zayani said Wednesday after talks with the Chinese foreign minister. Zayani held talks in Saudi Arabia with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and expressed "GCC interest in bolstering friendship and cooperation ties with China," a GCC statement said. Wang ... more |  |
'Thousands' killed as South Sudan slides toward civil war Juba (AFP) Dec 25, 2013 - Thousands of South Sudanese have been killed in more than a week of violence, with reports of bodies piled in mass graves, the UN said as it moved to nearly double its peacekeepers there. Large areas of South Sudan remain out of the government's control amid fears the young nation was sliding toward civil war, though Juba said its forces had recaptured the strategically important town of Bor ... more |  |
DEK Solar Reaffirms PV Market Commitment London, UK (SPX) Dec 24, 2013 - On the heels of the recent announcement regarding ASM Pacific Technology's (ASMPT) intention to acquire the DEK and DEK Solar businesses, both companies are already working to expand opportunities and view the photovoltaic (PV) market as an area of unlimited potential. While there are obvious synergies between ASMPT's Assembly Systems (ASM AS) business and DEK's leading position in the SMT ... more |  |
Japanese automakers' sales in China surge in November Tokyo (AFP) Dec 25, 2013 - Leading Japanese automakers saw their best November sales ever last month, in stark contrast to a year ago when shipments plunged amid a deep territorial row between Tokyo and Beijing. Industry leader Toyota said its sales in China for the month reached 90,000 units, up 40.7 percent from a year ago, driven by popularity of its flagship models, including Camry, Corolla and Rav4. Rival Nis ... more |  |
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