the standard two cylinder cc horsepower engine will be replaced by
cc engine and it will sport inch centimetre wheels the body will be
made of carbon to keep the weight low
we will be reworking the brakes and suspension systems to take on the load off
the engine the idea is to give the world feel of what india it and
automotive industries are capable when working in synergy
given the prohibitive price tag design intends to work on only two to five
cars year ordered by the wealthiest resident and overseas indians capable of
paying more than times the price tag for the basic car
the new delhi auto show is underway this week where international auto majors
are unveiling slew of affordable cars designed to lure customers in asia
third largest car market
the nano so christened to connote the combination of small size and low cost
is the showcase product of india diversified tata group which bought jaguar
and land rover from us ford motor for billion dollars two years ago
child soldiers leave maoist camps in nepal
sindhuli nepal jan afp
thousands of former child soldiers who fought for the maoists in nepal decade
long civil war will thursday begin leaving the un monitored camps where they
have spent the past three years
many face an uncertain future some were as young as when they joined the
rebels and most have had little formal education
my hands have only been trained to use guns said year old bhawana
chaudhary who joined the army when she was
ve been doing that since joined the war it will be hard to adjust to
normal life after living in the camp
more than young men and women will swap their blue people liberation army
pla uniforms for civilian clothes and begin their journey home thursday after
an official ceremony at the sindhuli camp in central nepal
they are the first of almost former maoist fighters living in camps
around the country to be formally discharged and their departure marks key
step forward in nepal faltering peace process
after lot of delays we are finally ready to discharge the disqualified maoist
combatants from the un monitored camps it is milestone for the country
peace process spokesman for the peace ministry told afp
we hope it will pave the way for the crucial step of rehabilitating and
reintegrating maoist combatants
the former fighters were confined to un supervised camps as part of the
accord that followed the end of the conflict between maoist guerrillas and the
state
in december the united nations mission in nepal unmin completed
verification process and found that were minors when the war ended and
another were not genuine combatants
they had been slated for release soon afterwards but the process was repeatedly
delayed by disagreements between the maoist party now in opposition and its
political rivals
all will leave the camps over the next month the men and women
leaving on thursday have been issued with set of civilian clothes and identity
papers and given rupees dollars to travel back to their villages
and begin setting up home
pla spokesman chandra prasad khanal said it would be sad to see former members
of the rebel army leaving the camps but the move would send message to the
world that we are committed to peace
we are taking this step in order to bring the peace process to logical
conclusion he told afp
the maoists want the remaining pla members to be integrated into the
regular army key tenet of the peace agreement
but no one is sure how many former fighters remain in the camps they are not
being kept there by force and several thousand are believed to have walked out
in the three years since the war ended
rights groups say the former rebels forcibly recruited child soldiers during the
conflict sometimes demanding one person from every home in areas under their
control although some signed up voluntarily
many became cooks or porters or did medical work but they also received
military training
tulasa poudel joined the pla at the age of and said she was proud of
having fought for the maoists
did not like the way women were treated in my community the men always
looked down on us she told afp
joined the pla to try to change that because felt the maoists were
committed to equality
those leaving the camps will be offered education and training for jobs such as
hairdressing bicycle repair and house painting
un observers will monitor their progress amid concerns they could be lured into
nepal growing number of criminal gangs many of which have political links
gillian mellsop nepal representative of the united nations children fund
unicef said their departure sends out symbolic message for the new year
not only can these young people now finally get on with their lives but this
also marks new beginning at the start of new decade for nepal so that it
can move forward to more stable peaceful future she said
german retail sales down percent in official estimate
frankfurt jan afp
german retail sales fell by around percent in from the previous year
an official estimation said thursday as consumption fared better than europe
biggest economy in general
private consumption has been an important cushion of the recession ing senior
economist carsten brzeski commented though he noted that retail sales figures
were often revised later
economists warned that consumption began to slump heavily in the second half of
the year and that germany could soon find itself in consumer recession
the federal statistics office provisional figure is based on data from the
first months of the year
at constant prices however the drop was expected to be between and
percent the destatis office said
that is nonetheless better than contraction of around five percent forecast
for the overall economy last year its worst slump since world war ii
key factor supporting consumption was the less than expected rise in
unemployment in large part the result of government subsidised short work
schemes from which around one million workers benefit at present
the retail sector federation hde and many economists are prudent regarding
meanwhile because unemployment is expected to climb despite pickup in exports
and industrial output
in november retail sales lost steep percent from their level the previous
month according to seasonally adjusted figures released by destatis
brzeski termed the november figure setback
unicredit counterpart alexander koch said the fourth quarter of last year would
show decline and added consumer recession in the second half of is in
the cards
the early christmas shopping period didn bring boost to retail sales
quite the contrary he noted
japan new finance minister spooks forex market
tokyo jan afp
japan new finance minister rattled financial markets thursday with call for
weaker yen sending the currency sharply lower on speculation that he might
order official intervention
my thinking is that it would be preferable if the correction continues toward
weaker yen naoto kan said at his first press conference since being named to
replace outgoing hirohisa fujii
kan former health minister with little experience in financial matters said
he would work with the central bank to steer the yen to an appropriate level in
break from his predecessor tolerance of stronger currency
many in the business community have voiced their views that the yen level in
the mid to the dollar would be appropriate kan said it is rare for
japanese finance minister to comment on desired yen level
will deal with it seriously and work hard to bring it to the appropriate
level considering the impact that foreign exchange has on the japanese economy
this includes working with the bank of japan he said
while japan has not intervened in the currency market since march allowing
the yen to find its own level against the dollar the finance minister
comments on currencies can have big impact on trading
the dollar rose to yen in the wake of the remarks from around yen
shortly before kan spoke
it strong message particularly for overseas players hideaki inoue chief
foreign exchange manager at mitsubishi ufj trust and banking corp told dow
jones newswires
speculation is growing that the government will be more likely to intervene in
the market if the yen rises sharply
in november the dollar fell to around yen its lowest level since the mid
raising fears that japanese exporters such as toyota and sony would lose
competitiveness in overseas markets
kan predecessor fujii who is stepping down for health reasons had repeatedly
said while in the job that in principle tokyo should refrain from market
intervention to weaken the yen and protect exporters
kan faces the daunting task of steering asia biggest economy out of its
worst post war downturn while also keeping the soaring national debt under
control in the face of growing global concerns about sovereign debt
he is seen as lacking in depth experience in financial issues although he has
been involved in drafting the national budget
unless kan shows strong leadership to organize growth strategies japan
economy will not be able to get out of the trap of deflation and mounting
government debt said jp morgan economist masaaki kanno
kan stressed the importance of the government record budget worth
trillion yen trillion dollars for the next financial year starting in
april and separate extra budget proposal to support the stalled economy
think in this economic situation it was natural to have budget with an
stimulative impact he said
kan has criticised the finance ministry as the symbol of old style politics led
by unelected but powerful bureaucrats
if make meaningful changes at the ministry it would be model for changing
kasumigaseki the centre of japan bureaucracy as whole he told reporters
outside his home earlier in the day
corrected the hollywood list behind militant anti whaling group
sydney jan afp
militant animal rights group locked in bitter high seas battle with japanese
whalers have the support and funding of hollywood list including sean penn
and french screen siren brigitte bardot
one of the world best known and more extreme marine activist outfits the not
for profit sea shepherd conservation society prides itself on innovative
direct action tactics to confront so called illegal activity on the high
seas
it was established in in canada by environmentalist paul watson who claims
in his biography to have co founded greenpeace but said he parted ways with the
the group over arguments about protest tactics
in its year history the group has used acoustic weapons water cannons and
stink bombs against whalers trailed seal hunters and fought campaigns for
sharks and dolphins as well as regularly patrolling the galapagos islands
longtime patron bardot sits on its board of advisers along with penn and fellow
us actors martin sheen and pierce brosnan
sheen darryl hannah and us soap star richard dean anderson have all accompanied
sea shepherd on protest actions
its diverse and high profile benefactors include rock legend mick jagger red
hot chili peppers frontman anthony kiedis surfing champion kelly slater and
actors christian bale and edward norton
former us television game show host bob barker donated five million us dollars
to help sea shepherd buy and fit out former harpoon ship for its pursuit
of japanese whalers in the southern ocean
hollywood businessman ady gil bankrolled second vessel for the season
two million dollar trimaran superboat originally known as earthrace which
claimed the world record for circumnavigating the globe
the new zealand flagged ady gil was badly damaged and part of it sunk after
colliding with japanese whaling boat wednesday
iraq and iran to meet from next week on borders mottaki
baghdad jan afp
iraq and iran will hold meetings from next week to formally mark their disputed
border iranian foreign minister manouchehr mottaki said thursday after
stand off between the two countries last month
there will be meeting within week between the two countries about the
borders mottaki told news conference in the foreign ministry in central
baghdad while on one day trip to iraq
he added that in the following weeks meetings would be held between technical
committees from the two countries to determine the land and maritime borders
separating the two countries
on december iraq state owned south oil co said about dozen iranian
troops and technicians had arrived at the fauqa oil field taken control of well
and raised the iranian flag they eventually withdrew days later
the takeover was one of the most serious incidents between the two neighbours
since the us led invasion of toppled now executed dictator saddam hussein
regime which fought devastating war against iran
iraqi foreign minister hoshyar zebari told lawmakers last month that iran has
been violating iraq borders since the two countries share
kilometre mile frontier
gaza smugglers defiant as anger grows over new wall
rafah gaza strip jan afp
gaza tunnellers have been watching the cranes burying the iron fence along the
border but few believe egypt will succeed in its latest bid to shut down the
territory economic lifeline
tensions along the fenced border boiled over on wednesday when palestinian
youths hurled rocks over the border and an egyptian policeman was killed and
five palestinians wounded in cross border gunbattles
the vast network of tunnels from gaza to egypt constructed in the sandy earth
to bypass crippling blockade has weathered israeli air strikes and egyptian
attempts to flood them with water and gas
egypt citing national security is now building an underground iron wall in
new bid to tighten its porous sinai border with the restive palestinian
territory
they think by building an iron wall they will break our will said hamas
interior minister fathi hamad member of the armed islamist group that
controls the gaza strip and is pledged to israel destruction
but we say to them that we are steadfast in our path and will not relent or
give in
cairo which states support for palestinians and has long mediated between
both israel and hamas and among palestinian factions has only implicitly
admitted constructing the iron barrier and has provided no details on its size
media reports however said it would be metres feet deep and
kilometres six miles long
egyptian construction crews are drilling iron beams with holes into the ground
to flood the area with water
they then install the iron fencing which locals say has shut down some tunnels
in sandier areas in recent weeks
hamas called wednesday demonstration to protest the construction of the
underground barrier leading egypt to deploy hundreds of officers along the
border as well as fire trucks and ambulances amid concerns palestinians might
try to breach the border
but few believe cairo will expand the barrier along the entire kilometre
mile frontier or succeed in blocking the tunnels
the collapse of tunnels in this sandy area isn enough for there to be siege
and closure says tunnel owner abu antar asking that his full name not be
published the wall is media affair because setting it up along the entire
border is impossible
othman another tunnel owner who also spoke on condition his full name not be
used agrees even if they turn the border into moat filled with water it
won stop the tunnels because that would be the death of gaza
we are already surmounting this wall he adds without providing details
the tunnels have largely replaced gaza once vibrant private sector since
israel and egypt sealed off its million residents from all but vital
humanitarian aid
the action was taken after hamas seized power in june in bloody fighting
that drove out its more moderate secular rival fatah which holds sway on
the west bank
though used mainly to bring in food fuel and other household goods the gaza
tunnels are also hamas conduit for importing weapons and sending fighters
abroad for training the smuggling routes are taxed and regulated by the hamas
run government
the palestinian resistance can surmount the siege and manufacture its weapons
by itself hamad the hamas interior minister said this wall will not be an
obstacle for the resistance the government or the people
already in january hundreds of thousands of gazans breached the border
pouring into egypt to stock up on basic goods after militants blew up sections
of the wall
though hamas has publicly slammed the wall construction its security forces
have not taken any actions against it and have created buffer zone to prevent
vehicles from approaching the site
this is an egyptian affair and we don interfere hamas police officer said
as he patrolled sand berm metres yards from the border we just carry
out orders from our leaders to protect the border
the israeli blockade has been widely criticised for creating humanitarian
crisis in gaza despite official defiance some gazans fear the egyptian wall
may add to hardship
most gazans would prefer to do away with the tunnels in which scores of workers
have been killed in cave ins or by israeli air strikes
if there were no tunnels it would force the israelis and the world to find
solution for us merchant says as he hawks potato chips and candy in nearby
market the cartons coated in dust from being shipped underground
az rb bpz
dutch prices rise percent in december
the hague jan afp
inflation in the netherlands rose to an annual rate of percent in december
from one percent in november the dutch central statistics office cbs said
thursday
prices in the eu countries including the netherlands which use the euro
currency climbed by percent according to an estimate released by the
european commission on wednesday
basketball nba results and standings
washington jan afp
results and standings after wednesday national basketball association games
wednesday january th results
atlanta new jersey
cleveland washington
toronto orlando
boston miami ot
golden state minnesota
new orleans oklahoma city
san antonio detroit
phoenix houston
utah memphis
la clippers la lakers
eastern conference
atlantic div pct gb
boston
toronto
new york
philadelphia
new jersey
central div pct gb
cleveland
milwaukee
chicago
detroit
indiana
southeast div pct gb
orlando
atlanta
miami
charlotte
washington
western conference
northwest div pct gb
denver
portland
oklahoma city
utah
minnesota
pacific div pct gb
la lakers
phoenix
la clippers
sacramento
golden state
southwest div pct gb
dallas
san antonio
houston
new orleans
memphis
thursday january th schedule
charlotte at new york pm
all times are eastern
afp
year smart card bug turns germans back to cash
berlin jan afp
german shoppers hit by year computer bug that has bitten million
bank cards fell back this week on proven means of payment cash
ines klem for instance said she has decided to withdraw between to
euros dollars on regular basis to be sure to have no more problems
day earlier klem had tried to buy food and found herself with full basket
and no way to pay for it after her bank card failed to work as normal
everyone was looking at me at the check out she said
the problem stems from computer chips in the cards being unable to cope with the
changeover to the year leaving millions of germans starting the new year
unable to withdraw cash or to pay with plastic in shops
the situation has since improved at cash distributors with bank staff working
overtime to reprogramme their software but payments in shops and supermarkets
are still subject to glitches
the german hde retail trade association said the flawed cards hit about
percent of one million retail point of sale terminals in the country
worst hit were holders of bank cards issued by germany dominant public sector
savings banks and cooperative banks but clients at private lenders postbank and
commerzbank clients also had problems
sometimes cashiers get cards to work by wrapping them in plastic film before
inserting them into the payment terminal klem noted
the problem was reminder of the feared bug of decade ago that had
governments businesses and individuals expecting the worst at the turn of the
millennium in the end everything went smoothly
this time around german banks believed they will be able to reprogramme the
defective bank cards via automated teller machines so as to avoid the cost of
replacing them estimated at million euros
lawyers will probably have to decide whether it is the banks or the card makers
who foot the final bill
the french firm gemalto major supplier of bank cards said it and banks were
mounting joint effort to develop corrective process that avoids the
replacement of the affected cards
around one third of all german credit and direct debit cards known as
electronic cash or ec cards are believed to have been hit by the bug
germans trying to make purchases abroad have also experienced difficulties and
the german association of savings and regional banks dgsv has said it might take
until monday to fully resolve the problem
europe is working towards harmonised electronic payment system with the single
euro payments area sepa direct debit network that covers countries
back in berlin the situation is not extreme said kerstin haertel at the
thalia bookstore chain before adding there are always problems with cards
dow jones newswires contributed to this report
former french minister philippe seguin dies at
paris jan afp
the former french government minister philippe seguin died overnight at the age
of officials said on thursday
seguin was employment minister in former president jacques chirac government
and later speaker of parliament he also served as president of france public
audit office
gaullist politician in the patriotic tradition of wartime leader charles de
gaulle seguin was fierce critic of european integration
police and relatives said seguin died of heart attack at his home in paris
his death was also confirmed by his political party the ump
his friend former interior minister charles pasqua said on rtl radio that
seguin was passionate man who loved his country and his death was great
loss for france
former prime minister jean pierre raffarin told radio classique that seguin was
an exceptional character he was afraid of nobody
british supermarket sainsbury reports sales rise
london jan afp
british supermarket group sainsbury on thursday said sales rose by better
than expected percent during its third quarter thanks to record christmas
performance
the sales increase at sainsbury for the weeks up to january compared with
market expectations for rise of percent according to dow jones newswires
sainsbury is the third biggest supermarket chain in britain after wal mart owned
asda and the country largest retailer tesco
sainbury chief executive justin king said the group had enjoyed record
christmas performance completing strong third quarter
he added in company statement the business continues to perform well in what
remains challenging consumer environment our universal customer appeal
together with our accelerated growth plans means we are well placed to make
continued good progress in
sainsbury share price jumped percent to pence soon after the start of
trading on london benchmark ftse index which was down percent at
points
tv rage at consumer electronics show
las vegas nevada jan afp
breathtaking wave of televisions has hit the consumer electronics show
ces where the technology is being touted as the next big thing in home
theater
when it comes to home entertainment there really is no experience like
sony chief executive howard stringer said while unveiling the innovations
wednesday on the eve of the official start of ces in las vegas
we intend to take the lead in we want to provide the most compelling
content possible
the japanese electronics giant plans range from being part of television
network in the united states to streaming live performances in the format
country music star taylor swift performed during the press conference in sony
demonstration of live broadcasting and said she will document her coming
asia tour in the format
sony has teamed with discovery and imax in tv network and with espn to
broadcast soccer matches and golf in
while the depth perception technology has been around for years it is finally
ready for prime time as proven by box office successes of recent films
avatar and cloudy with chance of meatballs according to imax
sony will release line of ready televisions this year capable of synching
with sensing units and active shutter glasses worn by viewers to create the
illusion of three dimensional image
on the ces show floor massive tv screens linked to wireless versions of the
glasses for effect were displayed by south korea lg electronics
is going to be the next big buzz lg randy overton told afp everyone
is going to want it then the gaming systems will jump on
forrester research analyst james mcquivey said that while offerings are
visually stunning it is unlikely consumers will rush to buy the premium priced
television sets
many consumers upgraded to high definition sets in the past three years and an
infrastructure to deliver content to homes isn in place according to
mcquivey
know we are all excited about how well avatar did but it is very hard to
jump on this bandwagon when you don see path for bringing it into anyone
home mcquivey told afp
growth of has been slow because of lack of programming the need for the
special glasses and the higher prices of sets but last month release of
science fiction blockbuster avatar film by titanic director james
cameron has renewed interest in the medium
the likelihood that adoption of tv may take years as did the blu ray dvd
format has not deterred manufacturers
toshiba unveiled flat panel cell tv that converts digital video into
panasonic went with live in it campaign for its electronics
is not about guys jumping off the screen but really more immersive and
more engaging experience for the consumer said avatar producer jon landau at
panasonic event here
it heightens the senses think you ll see become ubiquitous
south korea samsung teamed up wednesday with dreamworks animation maker of
shrek and other hit movies and technicolor in push to bring more
entertainment into the home
the three firms announced they have formed an alliance to accelerate the
worldwide deployment of in home to mainstream consumers
samsung will be marketing complete entertainment offering for the home
featuring television set blu ray player and stylish active shutter
glasses
technicolor chief executive frederic rose hopes to capitalize on the current
excitement over the format saying in theaters is gateway into the home
nigerian charged in plane plot faces life term
washington jan afp
young nigerian has been charged with attempted murder and trying to use
weapon of mass destruction aboard us plane as under fire security chiefs vow
to revamp intelligence services
umar farouk abdulmutallab was indicted wednesday by grand jury on six
counts arising from botched christmas day plot to blow up an airliner packed
with passengers and crew as it approached detroit michigan
michigan district court documents accused him of carrying concealed bomb
inside his clothing on board northwest airlines flight from amsterdam
the bomb consisted of device containing pentaerythritol tetranitrate petn
triacetone triperoxide tatp and other ingredients the charge sheet said
adding that both substances were highly explosive
the bomb was designed to allow defendant umar farouk abdulmutallab to detonate
it at time of his choosing and to thereby cause an explosion aboard flight
the documents added
if convicted of trying to use weapon of mass destruction abdulmutallab faces
