himself the best chance of maiden grand slam singles title in melbourne has
dropped just nine games in two singles matches here
unbeaten in four hopman cup matches two in mixed doubles and two in singles
murray said the tournament was perfect preparation for the australian open
murray had admitted being hampered by hip problem when he beat kazakhstan
andrey golubev in great britain win in the opening tie on monday but said
he was delighted with his form in disposing of kohlschreiber
served really well and didn really give him too many chances on my serve
murray said
think that was the main difference he didn make too many first serves and
was able to capitalise
kohlschreiber was similarly impressed by murray form
he getting hot for the australian open kohlschreiber said
he kicked my ass today
murray was ably assisted in the doubles by the year old robson the former
junior wimbledon champion confirming her talent with her impressive form in both
the singles and doubles
robson was beaten in straight sets by lisicki but made the emerging german work
overtime for the win
the young englishwoman actually served for the first set before the world
number steadied
in the doubles robson played almost faultless tennis volleying and serving
well and hitting number of brilliant passing shots
the precocious teenager said she played better than in the opening tie but added
that there was still plenty of room for improvement
still think can play better she said
asian automakers dethrone detroit in us sales
chicago jan afp
asian automakers dethroned detroit as the biggest sellers in the united states
in after general motors and chrysler succumbed to the economic crisis
industry data has shown
total industry sales fell percent to million vehicles in
according to autodata figures released tuesday
that is the lowest level since the recession and drastically below the
to million vehicle range posted each of the previous years
gm and chrysler saw their sales suffer more than most after seeking billions of
dollars in government aid and restructuring under bankruptcy protection
while ford managed to both stay afloat and increase its piece of the shrunken
market the detroit three overall share fell to percent of their home
market from percent in
asian brands captured percent share in up from percent in
autodata said it was the first time they gained bigger piece than gm
chrysler and ford combined which held percent share as recently as
and percent share decade ago
european automakers saw their piece of the pie rise to percent from
percent in
it was challenging and very volatile year said ken czubay ford vice
president for us marketing sales and service
we had to deal with near depression economy there were bankruptcies
bailouts discontinued brands distressed pricing government stimulus
program that resulted in huge shifts in demand from one month to the next
ford managed to increase its share to percent in from percent
year earlier the first time the second largest us automaker posted full
year share gain since
ford capped the year with percent gain in december sales even as the
year total fell percent to million vehicles
for leaving my seatbelt on because think that volatility is still
an element of the new norm czubay said in conference call discussing ford
december sales results
ford said it expects global vehicle sales to resume growth this year other
major automakers also predicted smoother roads ahead as total december sales
rose percent from year earlier
emerging from the rollercoaster of the industry has gained positive
momentum for gradual recovery said don esmond senior vice president of
automotive operations for toyota motor sales usa
toyota which managed to hold onto the number two spot in us sales posted
percent sales gain in december it also managed to increase its share of the
us market by points to percent although sales ended the year down
percent at million vehicles
despite tough market tms performed solidly reaching its goal to grow market
share esmond said
general motors posted six percent drop in december us sales and saw its share
shrink to percent in from percent in as annual sales fell
percent to million vehicles
we re looking forward to as year when the economy continues modest
recovery industry sales begin to improve and our outstanding new products build
additional sales momentum said susan docherty gm vice president of us sales
chrysler also expressed optimism even after its share fell to percent in
from percent in and its ranking slid to th place as annual sales
dropped percent to million vehicles
as we kick off the new year chrysler group continues to build momentum with
some of the best products in the marketplace and we are enthusiastic about the
new products coming this year chrysler top sales executive fred diaz said in
statement
korean automakers were among the big winners of with kia and hyundai the
only brands besides japan subaru to post both market share and net sales
gains
hyundai share rose to percent from in as sales grew percent
to while kia share rose points to percent as its sales grew
percent to vehicles
honda managed to beat chrysler to th place as its share rose points to
percent even as sales fell percent to million vehicles
nissan managed to increase its share by points to percent in while
sales fell percent to vehicles
marks and spencer says christmas trade boosts sales
london jan afp
british clothes to food retailer marks and spencer on wednesday said its sales
rose during the group third quarter due to brisk christmas trading period
amp sales rose by percent in the weeks to december last year the
group said in statement sales climbed by percent in britain by
percent in stores abroad and by percent over the internet
we had good christmas continuing the improvements seen throughout
amp chairman stuart rose said in the statement
in food we had our biggest ever christmas fortnight with record one day sales
of over million pounds on december
in general merchandise sales of knitwear sleepwear and footwear were
particularly strong over christmas customers bought more than million mince
pies million bottles of champagne and over eight million jumpers and
cardigans
however total sales at stores open at least year measure tracked by
financial markets increased by only percent during the company third
quarter analysts consensus forecast had been for an increase of percent
according to dow jones newswires
rose said that the company expected trading conditions over the coming year to
remain challenging as result of continuing economic uncertainty
britain is the last major economy officially in recession but data due later
this month is expected to show that the nation returned to growth in the fourth
quarter of
indonesia keeps overnight rate steady
jakarta jan afp
indonesia central bank wednesday left its benchmark overnight interest rate
unchanged at percent and indicated it would likely remain at that level at
least until june
bank indonesia predicts inflationary pressures to remain mild during the
first half of the year acting governor darmin nasution said after monthly
rate review meeting
bank indonesia maintained its forecast that inflation will likely rise to
between four and five percent this year
the central bank has held the rate steady since august to foster the domestic
economy recovery while inflation remains under control
inflation eased to percent last year the lowest in decade from
percent in
dow jones newswires contributed to this story
suicide bomber kills three pakistan soldiers in kashmir
muzaffarabad pakistan jan afp
suicide bomber killed three pakistani soldiers on wednesday near the
demarcation line with india in kashmir the latest in spike of attacks in the
pakistani administered zone
the bombing came day after president asif ali zardari visited the area
fault line that has sparked two wars with india and distracted pakistani
attention from an expanding taliban menace along the afghan border
the attacker detonated his explosives outside barracks in tarar khal
southeast of muzaffarabad the capital of pakistani administered kashmir
it was suicide attack the target was the army barracks we have collected
evidence and body parts of the attacker which proves that it was suicide
attack police official irfan masaood kishvi said
three security personnel have been martyred the injured have been taken to the
combined military hospital kishvi told afp from the town of palandri
kashmir was split into two in the bloody aftermath of independence from british
rule over the subcontinent in nuclear rivals india and pakistan each
control part of the mountainous land but both claim the region in full
wednesday attack was the fourth suicide bombing in pakistani kashmir since
june on december bomber killed seven people outside mosque in
muzaffarabad and analysts warn that the taliban are extending their reach
militants have killed more than people across pakistan since july
until recently concentrating attacks in the northwest the neighbouring tribal
belt and cities rather than the northern mountains and the east
the elected leader of pakistani kashmir raja farooq haider condemned the
attack in tarar khal and blamed taliban linked extremists
the terrorists have attacked the pakistan army and the entire kashmiri nation
condemns this attack he told afp confirming the death toll of three and
adding that soldiers were wounded
foreign hand is involved in all these incidents these people are not coming
across the line of control but from our western borders he said
islamists say their campaign which has become deadlier over the last year is
to avenge military offensives and pakistan unpopular alliance with the united
states in the eight war against the taliban in neighbouring afghanistan
on new year day one of pakistan worst bombings killed people at
volleyball match in key pro government area of the northwest
the attacks show militants are trying to maximise pressure on the authorities
after an october army operation dislocated the pakistani taliban from its
stronghold in the tribal district of south waziristan
if they are coming from let say these tribal areas then perhaps the
underlying assumption may be that they want to expand their activities to build
greater pressure said security analyst hasan askari
the united states is putting pressure on pakistan to do more to eliminate
taliban and al qaeda linked militants along its border with afghanistan but the
pakistani military still eyes india as the primary threat to the country
the whole focus of the world is on pakistan regional peace is linked with the
resolution of the kashmir dispute and peace can only come if the issue is
resolved zardari said tuesday
the bulk of pakistan armed forces are based in the east of the country
although tens of thousands of troops have been waging offensives against taliban
strongholds on the afghan border in recent years
relations between india and pakistan deteriorated drastically after the november
attacks on mumbai which new delhi blamed on pakistani militants and
accused official agencies of abetting
india has accused pakistan of arming and funding militants waging the insurgency
in kashmir although islamabad denies all charges
european stocks edge higher at open
london jan afp
europe main stock markets nudged higher at the start of trading on wednesday
with london benchmark ftse index rising by percent at
points
frankfurt dax gained percent to points and in paris the cac
won percent to
iraq cabinet approves oil deals with foreign energy firms
baghdad jan afp
iraq cabinet has approved all pending deals with foreign energy firms and
signing ceremony for the nine contracts will be held soon oil ministry
spokesman assem jihad told afp on wednesday
the deals will dramatically ramp up iraq oil output in the coming seven years
and could make it one of the world biggest crude producers providing much
needed revenue for country in dire need of rebuilding
all of the contracts have been agreed by the cabinet jihad said after iraq
introduced what he described as minor legal amendments to the contracts with the
companies
jihad declined to specify what specific changes had been made to the documents
he said that once the oil ministry receives official documents confirming the
changes have been approved by the various companies which include energy giants
shell petronas cnpc and lukoil we will set date to hold ceremony for all
the companies to put down their final signatures
it will be soon and the companies will start work immediately after signing
he added without giving specific date
the companies want to start work as quickly as possible they are very
enthusiastic
iraq awarded seven contracts in december auction of oil fields
including the rights to extract crude from the massive majnoon and west qurna
reservoirs
those were in addition to three contracts handed out at an earlier auction in
june two of those contracts have yet to be officially signed however
the deals could increase iraq projected oil output to million barrels of
oil per day bpd from current production of around million bpd providing
cash influx to country that relies on oil sales for percent of government
income
but security and dilapidated infrastructure remain key obstacles to baghdad
achieving that target
iraq has the world third largest oil reserves behind only saudi arabia and
iran with an estimated billion barrels
iran president opens new turkmenistan iran gas link
ashgabat jan afp
iranian president mahmoud ahmadinejad on wednesday inaugurated new gas
pipeline link to iran from its energy rich neighbour turkmenistan which he said
would take ties to new level
ahmadinejad on his first trip abroad since crackdown on opposition supporters
in tehran left at least eight dead launched the pipeline which will more than
double the supply of turkmen gas to iran to billion cubic metres annually
the gas pipeline that is being opened today will take our relations to new
level the iranian leader said at the launch also attended by his counterpart
gurbanguly berdymukhamedov
space age powerboat sliced in two by japanese whalers
sydney jan afp
space age powerboat sent to harass japanese whalers was rammed and sliced in
two in its very first clash on wednesday activists said dramatically
escalating hostilities in icy antarctic seas
the futuristic ady gil trimaran which holds the round the world record and was
enlisted by militant activists from the sea shepherd conservation society for
this whaling season received catastrophic damage and was sinking they said
all six crew who earlier hurled stink bombs at the whalers to disrupt their
annual hunt were rescued unharmed by sea shepherd bob barker ship activists
described the attack as unprovoked and said it was captured on film
the shonan maru no suddenly started up and deliberately rammed the ady gil
ripping eight feet metres of the bow of the vessel completely off sea
shepherd statement said
the ady gil is believed to be sinking and chances of salvage are very grim it
added
the whalers accused the ady gil five new zealand and one dutch crew of trying
to tangle the nisshin maru rudder and propeller with rope and aiming green
laser device at its sailors as well as launching stink bombs
the sea shepherd extremism is becoming more violent their actions are
nothing but felonious behaviour japan institute of cetacean research said in
statement
paul watson captain of sea shepherd steve irwin ship and spokesman for the
group said the annual pursuit had now turned into real whale war
the japanese whalers have now escalated this conflict very violently he said
if they think that our remaining two ships will retreat from the southern ocean
whale sanctuary in the face of their extremism they will be mistaken
we now have real whale war on our hands now and we have no intention of
retreating
australia said it had no plans to send vessel to monitor the escalating
situation some nautical miles south of the tasmanian capital hobart as it
urged both sides to show restraint
it critical for safety at sea to be the highest priority and for absolute and
utmost restraint to be exercised by all parties in this very remote and
inhospitable region environment minister peter garrett said
the wave piercing carbon and kevlar ady gil bankrolled by hollywood
businessman was one of the world most celebrated vessels in under its
former name earthrace it smashed the world circumnavigation record by two
weeks
this is substantial loss for our organisation said watson the ady gil
the former earthrace represents loss of almost two million dollars
however the loss of single whale is of more importance to us and we will not
lose the ady gil in vain this blow simply strengthens our resolve it does not
weaken our spirit
watson also accused the japanese of using surveillance flights to pinpoint the
anti whaling vessels and send pursuing ships setting back their campaign by
weeks
the activists who set off from australia month ago finally caught up with
the whalers before dawn near antarctica commonwealth bay
the sea shepherd conservation society is small but militant environmentalist
group which specialises in direct action to halt marine environmental
destruction
its activists have harassed the japanese fleet over the past six hunting
seasons including ramming whaling vessel and claim to have saved the lives
of hundreds of whales
when people call us pirates don really have problem with that we re
pirates of compassion in pursuit of pirates of profit watson told afp in
an international moratorium on commercial whaling was imposed in but japan
kills hundreds each year using loophole that allows lethal research on the
animals
afp gmt news advisory
paris jan afp
duty editor smith
tel
obama lashes out at intelligence screw up
yemen captures local al qaeda leader
brutal winter weather hits much of europe
attacks world newseries
washington
an angry president barack obama lectures us spy chiefs on an intelligence
screw up that left us airliner carrying people open to barely averted
al qaeda attack on christmas day
words gmt by stephen collinson picture video
attacks yemen lead wrap
sanaa
yemeni security forces under us pressure to produce results against al qaeda
capture key leader of the jihadist group two days after he escaped massive
police dragnet
words gmt by hammoud mounassar picture graphic
europe weather wrap
london
britain most brutal winter in decades causes chaos with heavy snow and
freezing temperatures shutting airports and schools as bitterly cold
temperatures hit wide swathe of europe
words gmt picture
us it company telecom internet google thlead
mountain view california
google unveils its new nexus one smartphone in direct challenge to heavyweight
apple iphone handsets
words moved by glenn chapman
afghanistan unrest us intelligence
washington
top military intelligence chief calls for revamp of us intelligence efforts
in afghanistan in scathing report that says the current focus on insurgent
networks is only marginally relevant to the conflict
words moved by daphne benoit
us auto sales lead wrap
chicago
asian automakers dethrone detroit as the biggest sellers in the united states in
after general motors and chrysler succumbed to the strain of the economic
crisis
words gmt by mira oberman
us it company books electronics internet amazon ces lead
san francisco
amazon com makes its premier kindle dx model electronic reader available in more
than countries
words gmt by glenn chapman
attacks aviation security us israel focus
tel aviv
as airports across the world tighten security after foiled christmas day
attack on us bound plane security experts claim israeli profiling methods
would have stopped the would be bomber on the ground
words gmt by ron bousso picture
pakistan unrest lead wrap
muzaffarabad pakistan
suicide bomber kills three pakistani soldiers near the demarcation line with
india in kashmir the latest in spike of attacks in the pakistani administered
zone over the past few months
words gmt by sajjad qayyum graphic
australia japan whaling ndlead wrap
sydney
space age powerboat sent to harass japanese whalers is rammed and sliced in
two in its very first clash activists say dramatically escalating hostilities
in icy antarctic seas
words gmt by amy coopes picture graphic video
japan politics economy lead wrap
tokyo
japan prime minister faces fresh test of his troubled leadership as his
elderly finance minister looks set to step down due to poor health after just
few months in the job
words gmt by hiroshi hiyama picture
turkmenistan iran diplomacy gas pipeline ndlead
ashgabat
iranian president mahmoud ahmadinejad opens gas link to iran from energy rich
neighbour turkmenistan part of his first trip abroad since crackdown on
opposition supporters in tehran
words gmt
afp
yemen police capture key qaeda chief
sanaa jan afp
yemeni police on wednesday arrested key al qaeda chief believed to be behind
threats that saw several foreign missions in the capital sanaa close their
doors security official said
mohammed al hanq had evaded arrest on monday during security force raid in
arhab kilometres miles north of sanaa in which two of his relatives
were killed and three other people wounded
mohammed al hanq and two others who were wounded were captured in hospital in
amran province north of sanaa the official told afp
they were found in hospital in reedah in amran he said
the us embassy which had closed for two days due to security concerns over an
al qaeda threat against foreign interests cited successful security
operations north of the capital as it reopened for business on tuesday
the british and french embassies which also closed their doors resumed
operations on wednesday
japan pm faces fresh blow over fujii health
tokyo jan afp
japan prime minister faced fresh test of his troubled leadership wednesday
as speculation grew he would have to replace his elderly finance minister one
of the few experienced hands in his cabinet
prime minister yukio hatoyama struggling to reverse slump in his popularity
reiterated that he hoped year old hirohisa fujii would stay at the helm of
the world number two economy
as fujii was behind the birth of the government budget plan strongly wish
that he will help it grow
but he added we must take into consideration the doctor judgement
kyodo news reported quoting unnamed ruling party lawmakers that the government
planned to eventually accept fujii offer to resign as he is adamant
fujii was hospitalised on december suffering from high blood pressure and
fatigue after months of wrangling over the national budget in the face of
growing worries about japan debt mountain
his illness is another setback for hatoyama who has been embroiled in
political funding scandal and has seen sharp drop in his public approval
ratings since he swept to power in september
the political blueblood is bracing for clashes with the opposition over the
budget in the next term of parliament due to begin in less than two weeks
if fujii were to resign criticism against mr hatoyama would grow for picking
year old minister said masamichi adachi senior economist at jpmorgan
chase
but he added don expect drastic policy changes
fujii was picked by hatoyama in september to steer asia biggest economy out of
its worst recession in decades returning to post he held briefly in the early
he is one of the few members of the current cabinet with previous government
experience and would be hard to replace
it preferable that people who know about budget drafting including minister
fujii take care of it said chief cabinet secretary hirofumi hirano the top
government spokesman
if doctors said he is up to it of course we would ask him to stay he said
but if they advise against it hatoyama will make final decision hirano
added
fujii successor would likely be an inexperienced person given the lack of
old hands in the ruling party said susumu kato chief economist for japan at
calyon credit agricole cib
hatoyama cabinet is expected to face some turmoil in the coming weeks but
his democratic party should still win the upper house election in july he
added
deputy prime minister naoto kan and senior vice finance minister yoshihiko noda
are seen as possible replacements for fujii
it is the latest in series of setbacks for hatoyama who took office in mid
september with vow to tackle wealth inequalities curb the power of japan
bureaucrats and pursue more equal relationship with washington
the stanford trained engineering scholar is battling to reverse perception
that he lacks leadership after he postponed decision on where to move key
us military base and backtracked on manifesto pledge to scrap petrol tax
tokyo stocks closed up percent on wednesday as investors reacted calmly to
the possibility of fujii stepping down
expect capable individual will be appointed and continue the same policies
do not expect any substantial impact on the japanese economy as whole said
yutaka harada chief economist at daiwa research institute
but the yen fell as traders speculated that fujii successor might not be so
tolerant of the currency recent strength
fujii has repeatedly said that in principle tokyo should refrain from market
intervention to weaken the yen and protect exporters
the market has taken fujii policies favourably said hideaki inoue chief
manager of forex trading at mitsubishi ufj and banking corp
singapore uob bank sells insurance unit to prudential
singapore jan afp
singapore united overseas bank uob said wednesday it will sell its insurance
business to british insurer prudential in cash deal worth million
singapore dollars million us
upon completion of the deal expected on january uob life assurance will
cease to be subsidiary of uob the singapore bank said in statement
uob will then enter into bancassurance agreement with prudential to distribute
various insurance products from the british insurer in singapore indonesia and
thailand for at least years it said
the tie up allows us to leverage our distribution strength and harness the
manufacturing expertise of leading life insurer to jointly accelerate the
growth of our bancassurance business regionally said uob chief executive wee
ee cheong
we are delighted to have prudential as our partner in this development and look
forward to working together to deliver greater value to our customers and our
stakeholders
tidjane thiam prudential plc group chief executive said the bancassurance
agreement with uob offers us significant new profitable growth opportunities in
singapore and indonesia
it also substantially increases our scale in thailand key market in the
region he said
thai court extends detention of alleged weapons traffickers
bangkok jan afp
thailand criminal court wednesday extended by days the detention of five
suspected arms traffickers as police continue to investigate their sanctions
busting cache from north korea
the belarussian pilot and four kazakh crew were arrested last month after their
ilyushin plane was impounded in bangkok with tonne cargo of weaponry
including missiles and rocket propelled grenades
they have been held since they were arrested at don mueang airport on december
and the third extension to their detention will last until january said
police investigator major mingmontri siripong
we told the court that police need more time to interrogate few more
witnesses and verify the suspects passports and the court agreed he said
he said the judges rejected bail for the five men who were not present at the
court
the suspects claim they believed the cargo was oil drilling equipment bound for
ukraine according to their lawyer somsak saithong
but flight plan obtained by researchers showed the plane was bound for iran
while us intelligence chief dennis blair said last month that it was headed for
an unspecified middle east destination
the united nations banned all north korean arms exports in tougher resolution
passed in june following its latest missile and nuclear tests
the bangkok case is believed to be the first airborne arms cargo from pyongyang
to have been seized since then
