Category: World

HARARE, April 3, 2008 (AFP) – Zimbabweans waited anxiously on Thursday for an end to a deafening official silence over the outcome of their presidential election, after the opposition took control of parliament.The economy of Zimbabwe has been in meltdown since the start of the decade, with inflation now standing at over 100,000 percent and […]

WASHINGTON, April 2, 2008 (AFP) – The World Bank on Wednesday called on the international community to mount a wide-ranging fight against hunger as skyrocketing food prices critically threaten the world’s poor.“We need a New Deal for Global Food Policy,” World Bank president Robert Zoellick said in a speech to a Washington think tank ahead […]

OCANA, Spain, April 3, 2008 (AFP) – US aircraft maker Boeing flew a plane earlier this year that was powered by a hydrogen battery in a first for the aviation industry that could herald a greener future, senior company officials said in Spain on Thursday. But the company said that although hydrogen fuel cells could […]

MANILA, April 2, 2008 (AFP) – Asia is facing a serious skills shortage that could hamper the region’s economic growth and push for modernisation, the Asian Development Bank said in its annual outlook report released Wednesday. The Manila-based ADB said the shortage was widespread and had been partly driven by skilled workers leaving to take […]

SINGAPORE, April 2, 2008 (AFP) – The Government of Singapore Investment Corp (GIC) on Wednesday stood by its decision to invest in troubled Swiss bank UBS and did not rule out a further capital injection.UBS on Tuesday revealed an additional 19 billion US dollars in writedowns, making it the bank worst-hit by a global crisis […]

SINGAPORE, April 1, 2008 (AFP) – World oil prices traded below 102 dollars in Asian trade on Tuesday after falling more than four dollars in New York on concerns about slowing energy demand in the US, and a decline in Iraqi militia violence, dealers said. In morning trade, New York’s main oil contract, light sweet […]

BEIJING, April 1, 2008 (AFP) – China will be able to maintain adequate rice supplies to its 1.3 billion people despite recent sharp hikes in global prices for the grain, Premier Wen Jiabao said in comments reported Tuesday. “Please set your mind at rest because China has an abundant supply of rice,” the China Daily […]

FRANKFURT, April 1, 2008 (AFP) – Deutsche Bank unveiled huge asset writedowns linked to the international banking crisis on Tuesday, but the amount still managed to pale in comparison to those announced by Swiss bank UBS.Deutsche Bank, the biggest German bank, said it estimated first-quarter writedowns would reach roughly 2.5 billion euros (3.9 billion dollars) […]

PARIS, April 1, 2008 (AFP) – Sex, sex and more sex together with ever-popular game shows remain the big television draws in most countries, according to a new survey.. Sex and science, sex and spirituality and sex for the sake of sex — anything goes, according to International Medias Consultants Associes (IMCA) and Mediametrie, a […]

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, March 31, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene has assured Malinda Warnapura and Thilan Thusara that they can expect an extended run in the national team. Warnapura starred with scores of 120 and 62 in Sri Lanka’s opening Test win by 121 runs against West Indies last week at […]

LONDON, March 31, 2008 (AFP) – Britain and the US are finalising plans to create a working group that will put together proposals to better monitor and regulate the financial system, the Financial Times reported Monday. Citing unnamed senior British finance ministry officials, the business daily said the plans were agreed Wednesday by British Chancellor […]

TOKYO, March 31, 2008 (AFP) – Lehman Brothers on Monday sued Japan’s Marubeni Corp.for about 350 million dollars over a bogus investment scheme allegedly involving two employees of the trading giant. Lehman Brothers filed a lawsuit with the Tokyo District Court seeking compensation of 35.2 billion yen (352 million dollars) from Marubeni, said a spokeswoman […]