Category: World

DHAKA, July 29, 2007 (AFP) – Former Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed on Sunday challenged extortion charges brought by the military-backed emergency government, her lawyer said, calling the case against her a sham. Sheikh Hasina, leader of the opposition Awami League party who served as premier from 1996 to 2001, was last week charged […]

NEW YORK, July 27, 2007 (AFP) – The bruised US stock market slid further Friday as investors retrenched amid fears of a housing slump and a potential credit crunch that led to a massive rout a day earlier. The Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 208.10 points (1.54 percent) to close at 13,265.47, a day after […]

SAN FRANCISCO, July 27, 2007 (AFP) – Toyota announced this week a partnership with the University of California to road test two plug-in hybrid cars, a step toward getting the fuel-efficient vehicles to consumers. The study to be launched this fall will be the first time a major automaker puts the experimental cars on US […]

NEW DELHI, July 28, 2007 (AFP) – Indian two-wheeler maker Bajaj Auto said Saturday it was in talks with French automaker Renault for a business partnership. The two companies issued a statement follows media reports they were close to concluding a deal for Renault’s proposed plans to manufacture a 3,000-dollar car. In it, they said […]

HANOI, July 27, 2007 (AFP) – A Taiwanese man and five Vietnamese have been jailed for between five and 12 years for trafficking more than 120 Vietnamese women to Malaysia, a court official said Friday in the communist country.Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung last month urged local authorities to raise awareness and make every […]

WASHINGTON, July 26, 2007 (AFP) – Sales of new homes in the United States dropped 6.6 percent in June to an annualized 834,000 units, in a further sign of the persistent slump in the housing sector, the Commerce Department said Thursday. The June number of new home sales, the lowest since March, was significantly below […]

WELLINGTON, July 26, 2007 (AFP) – New Zealand’s central bank raised interest rates Thursday for the fourth successive time this year due to sustained inflationary pressures.“But easing is going to be a considerable time away unless the economy softens very rapidly.” Reserve Bank of New Zealand Governor Alan Bollard raised the official cash rate (OCR) […]

LONDON, July 26, 2007 (AFP) – The three-month period from May to July has already become the wettest in history here, even before the end of the month, Britain’s Met Office said Thursday.Figures released by the weather forecasting agency showed that 387.6 millimetres (15.3 inches) of rain has fallen across England and Wales, the most […]

HONG KONG, July 26, 2007 (AFP) – International ratings agency Moody’s Investors Service said Thursday it has upgraded its currency ratings for China, Hong Kong and the gambling haven of Macau.It has raised China’s long-term foreign currency bond rating to “A1” from “A2” on the back of the exceptional strength of its external payments position, […]

JAKARTA, July 26, 2007 (AFP) – Indonesian authorities issued a tsunami warning Thursday for the province of North Maluku after a 6.6-magnitude quake hit the area, a meteorology official said.The earthquake was centered 57 kilometres (35 miles) under the seabed some 234 kilometres northwest of the town of Ternate, the capital of North Maluku, said […]

SYDNEY, July 25, 2007 (AFP) – A New Zealander was jailed for 24 years Wednesday after being convicted of the first murder in 150 years on the tiny South Pacific territory of Norfolk Island.He will be eligible for parole after a minimum of 18 years. Glenn McNeill, 29, murdered Australian Janelle Patton and dumped her […]