strike in key producer chile which was later settled
copper struck dollars per tonne on thursday its highest level since
august
copper marked new month high despite the fact that the workers at
chuquicamata mine in chile agreed with codelco offer and ended the strike
said commerzbank analyst carsten fritsch
employees at two giant northern chile copper mines that produce over four
percent of the world copper returned to work wednesday with promises of higher
pay after two day strike officials said
the employees of the chuquicamata and mina sur mines owned by the world
biggest mining concern codelco went back to work after agreeing to
percent wage hike and bonus payment of dollars
since early last year copper prices have rocketed by more than percent
spurred upward by signs of global economic recovery and chinese demand
by friday on the london metal exchange copper for delivery in three months
jumped to dollars tonne from dollars on thursday of the previous
week
three month aluminium rose to dollars tonne from dollars
three month lead gained to dollars tonne from dollars
three month tin increased to dollars tonne from dollars
three month zinc eased to dollars tonne from dollars
three month nickel fell to dollars tonne from dollars
sugar sugar prices scaled year highs lifted by predictions of lower output
in emerging economic giant india
on thursday unrefined sugar hit us cents pound the highest level since
january
downgrades to forecasts of indian production after weak first three months of
the season are buoying prices signalling the need for higher imports
said barclays capital analysts
the commodity more than doubled in value last year owing to tight supplies and
keen demand
by friday on the new york board of trade nybot the price of unrefined sugar
for march rose to us cents pound from cents on thursday of the
previous week
on liffe london futures exchange the price of tonne of white sugar for
delivery in march climbed to pounds from pounds
cocoa prices rose towards their recent year high on production concerns in
leading producer ivory coast
cocoa is rising in value amid concerns that ivory coast production may start
tailing off said macquarie securities analyst kona haque
in london on december cocoa struck pounds tonne level last seen
in october
by friday on liffe the price of cocoa for delivery in march rose to
pounds tonne from pounds on thursday of the previous week
on the nybot the march cocoa contract rose to dollars tonne from
dollars
coffee coffee prices soared as investment funds returned to the market
funds made their mark across much of the commodities complex when trading
for the year got underway said sucden analyst ralph hawes
by friday on liffe robusta for delivery in march rallied to dollars
tonne from dollars on thursday of the previous week
on the nybot arabica for march rose to us cents pound from
cents
grains and soya grains and soya prices diverged in subdued trade
the funds have been buying but not as aggressively as expected noted us
commodities analyst jason roose
by friday on the chicago board of trade maize for delivery in march firmed to
dollars bushel from dollars on thursday of the previous week
march dated soyabean meal used in animal feed fell to dollars from
dollars
wheat for march rose to dollars bushel from dollars
us sheds jobs highlighting sluggish recovery
washington jan afp
the us economy lost jobs in december while the unemployment rate held at
percent the government said friday in report highlighting slow and
painful recovery from recession
the labor department report on nonfarm payrolls was disappointment to those
hoping for job growth which is critical to economic recovery
the figure was far worse than the consensus expectation for no change in overall
employment levels and came amid wide array of predictions ranging from steep
losses to modest gains
the unemployment rate meanwhile was in line with expectations remaining near
its highest level since the
in revising data for prior months the data showed net gain of jobs in
november instead of loss of previously reported the first positive
month after months of losses
but the agency also revised its october estimate to show loss of jobs
in october instead of
today jobs report is obviously disappointing said white house spokesman
robert gibbs
we are in very tough economic environment since this recession officially
began more than two years ago seven million jobs have been lost he added
christina romer head of president barack obama council of economic advisors
called the latest figures setback but said they were consistent with the
gradual labor market stabilization we have been seeing over the last several
months
as the president has said for year the road to recovery will not be
straight line romer added
the monthly employment and unemployment numbers are volatile and subject to
substantial revision therefore it is important not to read too much into any
one monthly report positive or negative
private economists said the news was disappointing but consistent with
gradually healing economy
we re getting steady but very slow improvement in the job market said
robert macintosh economist at eaton vance
we are going to have to get used to frustratingly high unemployment rate
on the surface this was disappointing report especially since we did finally
have positive number in november said joel naroff at naroff economic
advisors
but the seasonal adjustments are difficult in this type of cautious environment
and wouldn be surprised if in january there was another job increase
cary leahey senior economist at the research firm decision economics called
the data consistent with still sluggish economy
the labor market is struggling and is stuck in the water he said
you are seeing gains in output and manufacturing because of liquidation of
inventories but we haven seen decisive turn in the labor market
the world biggest economy expanded at percent pace in the third quarter
after four quarters of decline in the worst recession in decades
most analysts expect continued growth for the fourth quarter and but say
recovery could be held back by unemployment which hurts consumer spending and
confidence
it is starting to look like those in the shaped recovery camp are in better
shape than those in the shaped recovery camp said ian pollick economics
strategist at td securities
while the worst of the recession is likely over the fact that the duration of
unemployment remains rigid is concern though silver lining is that we are
likely to see net job creation assisted by census hiring in the first quarter of
the december report showed the goods producing sector shed jobs including
in manufacturing and in construction
the services sector lost modest jobs with loss of in retail
offset by gains in education health care and professional services government
sector employment fell by
average hours worked sometimes seen as proxy for economic activity was
unchanged in december average hourly earnings meanwhile rose percent
the civilian labor force fell by in the month suggesting that more
people are stopping their search for employment
the unchanged unemployment rate of percent understates labor market slack
since labor force participation fell sharply said sophia koropeckyj at moody
economy com
intuit app lets iphones prepare us tax returns
las vegas nevada jan afp
just in time for the dreaded us tax season financial software powerhouse intuit
is releasing an application that lets iphones prepare returns
snaptax program slated to hit the virtual shelves of apple online app store
on january will cost dollars far less than fees charged by professional
tax preparers
snaptax uses cameras built into iphones to scan people forms single page
annual pay summaries that us businesses are required to supply employees well
ahead of the april tax filing deadline
earnings information is then automatically entered into digital versions of
government forms used for simple state and federal personal tax returns without
itemized deductions
people are asked to confirm the scanned figures are accurate and then answer
few questions before electronically filing returns over the internet using
iphones
we are seeing people finish their tax returns in matter of minutes intuit
director of product manager rich preece said while demonstrating snaptax for afp
at consumer electronics show in las vegas
you can walk to your mailbox get your take photograph of it with your
iphone and by the time you get back to your house you can file your return
about percent of us tax payers file simple ez returns according to intuit
the company behind the turbotax computer software used annually by million
people in the united states
intuit is launching snaptax exclusively in california and plans to expand to
more states and more complex tax forms next year according to preece
snaptax will join free intuit taxcaster iphone application that lets people
intermittently gauge their tax situations so there are no surprises come april
we continue to look at foreign markets to see if we can apply what we do here
but thus far we are only in the united states preece said
football foot injury for bayern robben
dubai jan afp
bayern munich dutch midfielder arjen robben picked up foot injury in
training session in dubai his club revealed saying they would not know if the
problem was serious until tests saturday
robben million euro summer signing from real madrid hurt his right foot
in tussle with youngster diego contento on friday
he only recently returned from two months on the sidelines after knee injury
suffered in september against juventus in champions league encounter
tight security as nigerian bomb suspect due in us court
detroit michigan jan afp
young nigerian accused of trying to blow up us plane on christmas day
appears in court friday for the first time as police and marshals locked down
security around detroit courthouse
umar farouk abdulmutallab faces six charges following the botched al qaeda
plot in which device allegedly stitched into his underwear failed to detonate
on board northwest flight from amsterdam to detroit
the thwarted bombing has triggered us and global alarm leading the united
states to adopt stringent new screening and security measures at airports around
the world dozens of names have also been added to no fly lists
us president barack obama on thursday ordered sweeping overhaul of flawed
intelligence services but said ultimately the buck stops with me
he unveiled measures including strengthening us watchlists and boosting airport
screening as part of broad orders to close us security gaps
releasing two reports on the plane plot obama said spy agencies did not
properly connect and understand disparate data that could have detected the
plot earlier as it was planned by an al qaeda affiliate in yemen
he said the probes revealed that us analysts knew abdulmutallab was an extremist
and knew al qaeda in yemen was plotting an attack but could not connect the
two strands of intelligence
abdulmutallab who spent time in yemen in faces charges of attempted
murder of the people on board the plane and trying to use weapon of mass
destruction he faces life imprisonment if convicted
ahead of his pm gmt arraignment when he is expected to enter plea
us marshals were helping local police secure the area
our security measures have been ramped up to the highest level we don
anticipate any problem but we are taking this very seriously kevin pettit
spokesman for the us marshals service in detroit told afp
police blocked off the street in front of the majestic depression era theodore
levin courthouse as light dusting of snow covered the streets and stiff
wind chilled the news crews gathered outside
inside two bomb sniffing dogs were paced from room to room and as is now
standard for courtrooms every visitor to the building passed through metal
detector
in continued sign of the heightened vigilance two alleged associates of an
afghan immigrant accused of planning attacks in new york were arrested by the
fbi on friday
they are associates of najibullah zazi who is accused of links to al qaeda in
pakistan and of plotting bombing spree in new york last year around the
anniversary of the attacks law enforcement source said asking not to be
named
obama has repeatedly singled out the zazi investigation as proof that us
intelligence is in fact doing good job against an increasingly multi headed
foe
dismissing criticism that his administration has been too soft on terror the us
president said thursday the united states was at war with al qaeda
but he vowed americans would not be forced into adopting siege mentality
in detroit around demonstrators stood shivering outside the courthouse
holding american flags and signs declaring not in the name of islam and islam
is against terrorism
majed moughni who moved to the detroit area from lebanon said he was worried
that there would be backlash against muslims in the wake of the botched al
qaeda plot
we are here to let the world know we re going to stand in the cold against
terrorism and we hope americans don leave us out in the cold moughni said
we re trying to unite as muslims and we re going to eradicate all terrorism
from our homes and our mosques and we re going to send terrorists back to the
caves of afghanistan
obama said failure to spot the christmas plot was not the fault of single
individual or organization but rather systemic failure across organizations
and agencies
but he added am less interested in passing out blame than am in learning
from and correcting these mistakes to make us safer
ultimately the buck stops with me as president have solemn responsibility
to protect our nation and our people and when the system fails it is my
responsibility
eurostar limits weekend service amid freezing weather
london jan afp
eurostar will run only about two thirds of its trains between london and the
continent over the weekend spokesman said friday as the operator struggled to
cope with freezing temperatures
only half of trains from paris to london were running on friday the second day
of delays caused by heavy snow and ice while just two thirds of services
between london and the french capital and london and brussels ran
it going to be similarly restrictive timetable for saturday with two
thirds of trains in all directions the eurostar spokesman told afp in
london adding that it should be the same for sunday
for the past two days the operator of the high speed train service has urged
passengers to travel only if their trip was necessary
those who postponed could change their tickets free of charge or be reimbursed
while eurostar would do its best to ensure that those who turned up at stations
reached their destination spokeswoman in paris added
after delays both sides of the english channel thursday travellers arriving at
the eurostar terminal at paris gare du nord friday were forced to wait for
more than an hour as staff rebooked them on later services
the atmosphere at the station was calmer than last month chaos when eurostar
services were shut down for three days stranding tens of thousands of angry
passengers in paris brussels and london just before christmas
eurostar faced fresh embarrassment on thursday when brussels to london train
had to be towed out of the channel tunnel after being stuck there for more than
two hours france national railway sncf blamed signal failure
snow and freezing temperatures were blamed for the breakdown last month of
several eurostar trains in the undersea tunnel between britain and france
friday delays came as europe again found itself in the grip of snow and
freezing weather conditions causing widespread travel chaos
togo player fears one dead in shooting
paris jan afp
togo footballer told french sports channel friday that he feared one person
had been killed when the team bus was sprayed with bullets as it crossed into
angola for the african nations cup
richmond forson said he believed that the driver one of the buses in the togo
convoy had been killed but that none of the players lives were in danger
two players were hit and two other people wounded in the incident in angola
troubled cabinda province according to other players
forson who plays with french non league side thouars told the infosport
channel said that bus in front which was carrying the team baggage took the
worst of the gunfire from unknown attackers
it was the baggage bus which went in front of us which took the bullets because
they thought we were in there forson said
they shot the driver of this bus and think he did not come through the
windscreen was smashed the player added
forson said he did not think the lives of any of the wounded players were
threatened everything is going well for those in hospital he said
niger population soars percent in decade
niger jan afp
the population of niger one of the world poorest nations has ballooned
percent in decade to million the national statiscal agency ins said on
friday
this year the population is estimated at said ins director
abdoulaye beidou on the heels of report that put the annual population growth
rate at percent
ninety four percent of the people of niger vast west african nation on the
edge of the sahara desert are concentrated in third of the territory
notably in the south and in the west
with the population forecast to reach million in and million in
niger has launched campaign against early marriages and pregnancies common
in rural areas and to push for doubling of contraceptives use
us jobs numbers disappointing white house
washington jan afp
the white house on friday described news that the us economy lost jobs in
december as disappointing
today jobs report is obviously disappointing said spokesman robert gibbs
adding we are in very tough economic environment
since this recession officially began more than two years ago seven million
jobs have been lost
the labor department earlier announced us unemployment remained at percent
amid monthly losses that were worse than market expectations
the figures had dented slowly gathering confidence that the us economy was
getting back on its feet after the worst economic crisis since the great
depression of the
the white house said ordinary americans were still suffering but showed some
signs of optimism
we ve got long way to go said gibbs think if you look through and
analyze some of the numbers there are some bright spots
christina romer head of president barack obama council of economic advisors
called the latest figures setback but said they were consistent with the
gradual labor market stabilization we have been seeing over the last several
months
eu chiefs urge stepped up economic coordination
madrid jan afp
the european union three chief representatives appealed friday for greater
economic coordination among members countries to revive growth in the bloc
following the global crisis
only by working together very closely together at all levels will we be able to
deliver on the main challenges facing us said herman van rompuy the eu new
permanent president
and this will indeed be challenging six months for us all we face huge
budget deficits in each of our countries due to the economic crisis
in order to limit the deficits we need reforms but we also need economic
growth structural reforms
he said that if nothing were done economic growth would not be higher than
percent
van rompuy was speaking at news conference with eu commission president manuel
barroso and spanish prime minister jose luis rodriguez zapatero whose country
assumed the eu six month rotating presidency on january
our main objective during this time is united policies especially on the
economy zapatero said
if we can move the european economy forward then prosperity will be on the
horizon for all of us that is the main objective we have for this period and it
is an objective that we all share
barroso echoed those opinions
it is only if we work jointly with ambitious aims that we can find answers to
the concerns of the citizens of europe he said our first priority has to be
economic recovery and the creation of jobs
zapatero on thursday proposed form of european government on economic
issues with the promise of rewards for members that meet binding targets and
the threat of sanctions for those that do not
spain hopes the eu can agree on replacement for the bloc long term growth
strategy known as the lisbon agenda
the plan was supposed to make the eu the world most competitive economy by
but never achieved its aims with governments under no obligation to
conform
spain intends to launch new initiative at an eu summit in brussels on february
which will focus to ways to revive sluggish growth
without explicitly refering to the plan van rompuy and barroso indicated they
shared the idea
we now have window of opportunity for good strategy said van rompuy
the spanish prime minister was very ambitious think he was right to be very
ambitious but we are all three of us full of ambitions because we feel that
in lot of countries the sense of urgency is more than it was few years ago
friday meeting was also an opportunity for the eu three chief
representatives to show they are clear on the division of their roles after
reforms under which van rompuy become the eu first permanent president
in other countries even in democracies it is not one man or woman who
decides said van rompuy the former belgian prime minister
the treaty is very clear on the division of roles it is together that we take
decision in crisis
guinean opposition lays down its own terms for talks
dakar jan afp
guinea opposition on friday welcomed an offer from interim junta chief general
sekouba konate to end the west african country political crisis but laid down
terms of its own
one of guinea main opposition leaders cellou dalein diallo applauded the
speech of appeasement konate made on wednesday but pointed out that he had
taken no account of the major demands of the opposition
this is speech of appeasement that constitutes an opportunity to relaunch the
dialogue between the forces vives coalition of opposition groups trade
unions and civil society and the authorities said diallo the leader of the
union of democratic forces for guinea speaking by telephone from paris
nevertheless the major demands of the opposition have not been taken into
account in this speech diallo added after meeting in paris with five other
leaders of guinea opposition
we need first to agree on the length of the transition the non candidacy of
junta and government members in eventual elections we have to set up
framework for consultations on the institutions of the transition draw up
road map and timetable for the transition he said
in his speech konate invited the opposition to choose the next prime minister
ahead of the formation of transition government and called on opposition
leaders who fled to return saying he guaranteed their safety
konate who is also defence minister took charge after junta leader captain
moussa dadis camara was shot in the head and seriously wounded on december by
his aide de camp during an altercation camara has since been hospitalised in
morocco
konate proposals were welcomed by the united states and the regional economic
bloc ecowas on thursday and led one exiled opposition leader mouctar diallo
to say he would return
the bauxite rich west african country has been under military rule since
december and tensions peaked last september when troops massacred
at least people at an opposition rally
four of the leaders at the paris meeting left guinea after the massacre in
conakry stadium when hundreds of people were wounded and many women and young
girls raped in what the united nations has called crime against humanity
we wanted together to analyse and draw the lessons of the speech by general
sekouba konate diallo said
many people are focused on the nomination of prime minister but we first
need to define the institutional framework he added it matter of logic
it would be best to define his mandate and the institutional framework in which
he will act
in conakry the forces vives issued statement taking up the bulk of diallo
arguments and reaffirming his major concerns
the statement said it was indispensable in the shortest time to create
framework for consultations between the military and the opposition and the
text made no mention of the prime minister post
air of anticipation for underwear bomber hearing
detroit michigan jan afp
two bomb sniffing golden retrievers paced from room to room in detroit
courthouse friday as it prepared for the highly anticipated first hearing for
the alleged underwear bomber
security in the ornate marble floored theodore levin courthouse was at its
highest level ahead of the appearance of the fresh faced umar farouk
abdulmutallab charged with trying to blow up northwest plane in mid air
the year old nigerian was badly burned in the attack when device allegedly
stitched into his underwear failed to detonate properly sparking small fire
he has been under arrest since and us officials say he has provided valuable
information under interrogation
the botched plot sparked global panic triggering series of ramped up
security measures at airports around the world
amid freezing temperatures and light dusting of snow news and cameras crews
had already set up by early morning in parking lot across from the austere
building where bright splashes of red white and blue bunting hung from between
four towering columns
police blocked off the street outside with metal barricades and small group
of demonstrators stood shivering in the road holding bright american flag and
signs proclaiming islam is against terrorism and not in the name of islam
for the cameras
inside the two dogs and their handlers cautiously combed every corner of the
depression era courthouse in central detroit leaving nothing to chance
the city had narrow escape with the thwarted al qaeda plot as flight
with people on board had been expected to blow up as it approached
detroit after transatlantic flight from amsterdam
small sign declaring no loitering stood outside the courtroom of judge
bernard friedman and warned no one would be admitted to the hearing due to start
at pm gmt without obtaining pass from the marshals
some rows of seats inside the courtroom had been set aside for the public and
others were designated for the media there were reports that abdulmutallab
family were planning to attend from nigeria
an overflow room with video feed was set up across the hall in anticipation of
large crowd
as part of standard procedures in every us courthouse every visitor had to pass
through metal detectors to enter the building members of the public were not
allowed to bring laptops cameras recording devices or cell phones inside
some american muslims rallied outside the courthouse saying terror attacks were
not supported by most followers of islam
moad taleb stood shivering outside as his gloveless hands held green banner
proclaiming not in the name of islam
taleb marketing representative who moved to the detroit area in from
yemen said he was concerned by talk of potential us military strikes against
his homeland
if there are terrorists we need to get rid of them but have family back
home civilians just trying to live their lives said taleb
hopefully with god will our neighbors like saudi arabia will stand up with
us against terrorism
majed moughni who moved to the detroit area from lebanon said he was worried
there would be backlash against muslims in the wake of the botched al qaeda
plot
we are here to let the world know we re going to stand in the cold against
terrorism and we hope americans don leave us out in the cold moughni said
we re trying to unite as muslims and we re going to eradicate all terrorism
from our homes and our mosques and we re going to send terrorists back to the
caves of afghanistan
there was also small group of nigerians waving poster proclaiming
nigerians support obama war on terror
group of faith leaders was also expected to arrive after friday prayers
the collective goal of all of us as our president has spoken about is to
defeat the extremists and al qaeda said victor ghalib begg chair of the
council of islamic organizations of michigan
their actions really harm all of us begg told afp it gives bad name to
muslims and it important for religious leaders to speak out the things these
people do that ticket to hell not to paradise
gunmen wound four on togo bus at african championship
luanda jan afp
gunmen shot at bus carrying togo football squad to the african nations cup
in angola on friday wounding two players and two others and prompting call
for the tournament to be called off
goalkeeper kodjovi obilale of french amateur side gsi pontivy and defender serge
akakpo of romanian outfit vaslui were among the injured in the incident in the
oil rich cabinda province thomas dossevi of french second division side nantes
told afp
one of them akakpo took bullet in the back and the other obilale was hit
in the kidneys dossevi told afp
the other two wounded were the team goalkeeping coach and doctor
all were being treated in hospital in the provincial capital cabinda
alaixys romao who plays for the french top flight side grenoble said the team
was in shock and now did not want to take part in the tournament which is due to
begin on sunday
we ve got players wounded members of staff and we re all just waiting for
news he told french infosport television
if it is possible there should be boycott of the tournament why not cancel
all the matches we just want to go back home
clinton urges mideast talks to resume without preconditions
washington jan afp
