for the moment the recovery is very much based on policy decisions and policy
actions the question is when does private demand come and take over said imf
chief economist olivier blanchard
dominique strauss kahn the imf managing director has repeatedly warned
countries against premature exits from anti crisis measures saying they risk
return to recession
the united states the world largest economy was expected to post gdp growth
of percent in sharp percent increase from the prior forecast
china the emerging market leader and massive engine of the global recovery
will see growth accelerate to percent this year full percent higher
than previously estimated
the imf held unchanged its growth forecast for japan saying the second largest
economy would expand at percent
the nation eurozone gdp was set to expand percent up from the prior
percent estimate
advanced economies overall would grow by percent much slower than the
percent pace seen for the emerging and developing economies
global production and trade bounced back in the second half of and
confidence rebounded strongly on both the financial and real fronts as
extraordinary policy support forestalled another great depression the
washington based institution said
an extraordinary amount of policy stimulus was driving the global recovery
the imf said noting there were still few signs that private demand not
stimulated by governments was taking hold at least in advanced economies
big risks remain to the recovery including high unemployment the member
institution said
key risk is that premature and incoherent exit from supportive policies may
undermine global growth and its rebalancing it said
the imf also cited risks to economic stability from high public deficits and
debt as countries eventually exit from emergency support programs
high fiscal deficits and debt are raising concerns about sustainability and
sovereign risk which is the primary consideration in many countries
among the other considerations authorities should take into account are low
interest rates that might be contributing to asset price bubbles
crucially there remains pressing need to continue repairing the financial
sector in advanced and the hardest hit emerging economies
the imf called for gradual unwinding of financial sector support measures and
for policymakers to move boldly to reform the financial sector that is at the
heart of the global downturn
policymakers should work toward the objectives of reducing the risks of future
instability and rethinking how the potential fallout of financial crises would
be borne in the future while at the same time making the sector more effective
and resilient
in separate update of its global financial stability report the imf said
the repair of the financial system is far from complete
even though some bank capital has been raised substantial additional capital
may be needed to support the recovery of credit and sustain economic growth
under expected new basel capital adequacy standards it said
despite improvements financial stability remains fragile in many advanced
countries and some hard hit emerging market countries
rare kenya rhinos de horned to frustrate poachers
nairobi jan afp
four extremely rare northern white rhinos recently transferred to kenya from
czech zoo have been dehorned to protect them from poachers conservation group
said tuesday
with the increase of poaching in kenya we are simply not taking any chances
elodie sampere from the ol pejeta conservancy which is overseeing the animals
acclimatisation told afp
without horn these rhinos are of no value to poachers she said
the rhinos two males and two females are among only eight members of very
rare sub species of white rhinos known to be alive worldwide and were
transferred back to kenya with the hope they would reproduce
kenyan wildlife rangers earlier this month arrested men from an illicit game
trade syndicate suspected of killing year old white rhino and hacking off
its horns
the east african country which has the world third largest rhino population
around black and white rhinos suffered its worst year for rhino
poaching in when black and six white rhinos were killed
the illegal trade is driven by asian and middle eastern demand for ivory used in
traditional medicines for fevers convulsions and as an aphrodisiac
sampere said that sawing off the four northern white rhinos horns would also
allow them to grow back straight
all the rhinos had horns that didn grow upright this is result of them
being in the zoo and not having trees to rub against she said
the conservationist also said that radio transmitter the size of matchbox
was screwed into the base of the hacked off horn to enable the tracking of the
animals as they are released back into the wild
urgent gm seals deal with spyker to sell saab report
new york jan afp
us automaker gm has agreed to sell its saab brand to dutch luxury sports car
manufacturer spyker us television channel cnbc said tuesday
us police arrest heavily armed man with military map
new york jan afp
authorities in the us state of new jersey announced the arrest of heavily
armed man who stockpiled military grade weapons in motel room and possessed
the map of us military facility
the man was wearing bullet proof vest and carrying concealed assault rifle
as well as large quantities of ammunition when he was arrested following
chase in branchburg new jersey the prosecutor office said
however the incident was not believed to be terrorism related the federal
bureau of investigation told abcnews com
the suspect lloyd woodson was confronted by police patrolman in the
early hours of monday at quick chek discount convenience store
he was extremely nervous and had large bulge in the front of his military
style jacket prosecutor wayne forrest and local police chief brian fitzgerald
said in statement
after foot chase to trailer park police used pepper spray to subdue woodson
and found he was carrying inside his coat loaded bushmaster semi automatic
assault rifle altered to fire heavy caliber ammunition
he also carried four additional magazines containing ball type and hollow point
ammunition the rifle serial number had been erased
later detectives searched woodson motel room and found an arsenal of military
grade weapons the authorities said
these included another assault rifle mm cobray grenade launcher another
bullet proof vest night vision scope police radio scanner and hundreds of
rounds of ammunition
detectives also found map of us military installation and map of an out
of state civilian community middle eastern red and white colored traditional
headdress
woodson was charged with multiple weapons offenses
prosecutors did not reveal any possible motives
however fbi spokesman brian travers told abcnews com we determined it wasn
terrorism thing
the incident came as security services in the united states are on heightened
alert for islamist militant attacks in addition to the constant threat of gun
massacres committed periodically in public places
british invasion of iraq was illegal ex govt lawyer
london jan afp
the invasion of iraq in was illegal former top british government lawyer
told public inquiry into the war tuesday three days before ex prime minister
tony blair appears
considered that the use of force against iraq in march was contrary to
international law michael wood chief legal advisor to the foreign office
between and told the chilcot inquiry in london
in my opinion that use of force had not been authorised by the security
council and had no other legal basis in international law
wood said he told ministers of his concerns but was brushed aside and in the
end the government top lawyer attorney general peter goldsmith gave the
green light for military action
the focus of the chilcot inquiry which began in november has turned to the
legality of the war ahead of the appearance of blair who took britain into the
conflict alongside then us president george bush despite strong opposition
blair partly justified the march invasion by citing iraqi leader saddam
hussein continued defiance of united nations security council resolutions on
weapons of mass destruction wmd
goldsmith gave his approval just days before war saying un resolution
passed in november provided legal base for military action
some critics charge that he was pressured into this view that the conflict was
in fact illegal and blair should be prosecuted accordingly
two weeks before the invasion goldsmith said case could be made for war under
but it would be safest to get second un resolution explicitly
authorising force
when attempts to achieve this collapsed he gave the go ahead
but wood said that made clear it was up to the un security council to
decide whether saddam had complied with their demands not individual states
and no such decision had been made
wood said he challenged the government view in january after then foreign
secretary jack straw told the us vice president dick cheney that it would be
ok if no second un resolution were obtained
he wrote to straw saying there was no doubt that without further security
council action or any major developments the uk cannot lawfully use force
against iraq
wood said the minister brushed his concerns aside
he straw took the view that was being very dogmatic and that international
law was pretty vague and that he wasn used to people taking such firm
position he said
wood testimony supports that of his former deputy elizabeth wilmshurst who
resigned before the invasion because she believed it was illegal
at the inquiry tuesday wilmshurst said all the foreign office lawyers had been
entirely of one view and she believed goldsmith was with them until he
delivered his legal opinion on march
his decision to leave open the option of war without second resolution
prompted her resignation but she suggested he had had little choice
the formal advice wasn asked until the very last moment when really it would
have been very very difficult for him to give different view without giving
major public relations advantage to iraq she said
goldsmith is due to appear before the inquiry on wednesday
critics of the invasion say blair who gives evidence friday should be
prosecuted for violating international law although experts say this is
unlikely
philippe sands professor of law at university college london told afp he may
be vulnerable under the international crime of aggression although this is not
enforceable in english courts or the international criminal court
it is bit of stretch but the possibility cannot be excluded he said
adding at the very least mr blair may wish to exercise some care in making his
international travel arrangements
fonseka ineligible for sri lanka president vote government
colombo jan afp
sri lanka government said tuesday that it would challenge the legitimacy of
leading opposition candidate sarath fonseka who contested the country first
post war presidential election
we are seeking court order on the suitability of this candidate because he is
not eligible to be declared as candidate foreign minister rohitha
bogollagama told reporters
he said they would seek court action to have fonseka ruled out of the race after
the former four star general was unable to vote in tuesday election because
his name was not on the electoral list
responding to suggestions from ruling party lawmakers that fonseka could be
disqualified the country independent election commissioner gave the
opposition figurehead resounding backing in statement earlier tuesday
not having one name on the electoral list is not disqualification
dayananda dissanayake said
bogollagama said the government would challenge this assessment
what the election commissioner has expressed is merely an opinion but the
courts have the ultimate authority to interpret the law bogollagama said
asked if it was premature for the government to press legal action even before
the results of tuesday vote were declared bogollagama said they were acting
within their rights
we can challenge the candidacy of even defeated candidate bogollagama said
we are not saying that he will emerge the winner we are confident we will win
but we want the court to rule on his candidacy
he said fonseka deceived the million electorate he asked the electorate
to vote for him and did not disclose that he himself did not have vote
bogollagama said this is deception
another candidate had in december wrongly challenged fonseka candidacy on the
basis that he was us citizen the objection was rejected by the elections
chief
fonseka has said he holds us green card which gives him the right to live in
the us
there was no immediate comment from the opposition but opposition leader ranil
wickremesinghe said on monday that the government may try to hold onto to power
if president mahinda rajapakse was defeated in his re election bid
the opposition has also warned that the government may use the military to stage
coup and deprive fonseka of victory charge denied by the government
fiat calls two week production halt in italy
milan jan afp
italian automaker fiat on tuesday called two week production halt in italy
from february temporarily laying off some workers because of fall
off in orders
we announced today that all factories will stop from february to march
fiat spokesman told afp
dubai property drag prompts imf to downgrade uae growth
dubai jan afp
the international monetary fund said tuesday it was downgrading its economic
growth forecast for the united arab emirates due to the drag of the dubai real
estate sector
overall gross domestic product in would be about flat between zero
percent and one percent masood ahmed the imf director of the middle east
and central asia told reporters in dubai
he added the debt problem of state firm dubai world which is negotiating the
restructuring of some billion dollars in debt would have some effect on the
uae economy for this year and also for next year
we expect continued contraction in dubai and positive growth in abu
dhabi the oil rich leading uae partner he added
as far as dubai is concerned the delay in recovery will result in the year
as whole in small contraction this will be compensated by abu dhabi
growth he said
ahmed said non oil economic growth in the uae will be near flat due to
continued drag from real estate in dubai which saw property prices drop by
half since the global financial crisis hit the once booming emirate in autumn
he said last year gdp of the uae contracted by percent after the fund had
projected it to shrink by percent
the imf was forecasting the uae economy to grow by percent in
according to the fund world economic outlook in october
in november dubai sent jitters throughout global markets when it said it wanted
to request freeze on debt repayments by its largest conglomerate dubai world
the group paid up islamic bonds worth billion dollars which were due on
december narrowly escaping default thanks to last minute five billion
dollar lifeline from abu dhabi
fiat calls two week production halt in italy
milan jan afp
italian automaker fiat on tuesday called two week production halt in italy
from february temporarily laying off some workers because of fall
off in orders
we announced today that all factories will stop from february to march
fiat spokesman told afp
no respite for haiti amid fresh aftershocks
port au prince jan afp
two new aftershocks rattled weary haitians tuesday as top us officials defended
the huge american military led aid operation from criticisms of being too heavy
handed
we just can get used to these quakes each aftershock is terrifying and
everyone is afraid trader edison constant said after the aftershocks struck in
quick succession around dawn two weeks after the quake
hid under my bed added iron merchant julien louis exhausted by stream of
some aftershocks since the devastating magnitude quake on january
the us geological survey which warned the caribbean nation could be feeling
aftershocks for the next days measured the second tremor at
but for the traumatized people left homeless hungry and destitute each new
quake is fresh reminder of the terrifying minute two weeks ago when the earth
shook destroying their lives
haitian leaders say the earthquake killed people and left million
homeless with hundreds of thousands now dependent on handouts from massive aid
relief operation and living in makeshift camps
us secretary of state hillary clinton defended the us operation in haiti from
criticisms that it lacked leadership and had been too heavy handed in the
immediate chaotic aftermath of the quake
deeply resent those who attack our country the generosity of our people and
the leadership of our president in trying to respond to historically disastrous
conditions after the earthquake clinton said
some us troops have been sent to haiti to help distribute food and water
they took over control of the damaged airport but many have remained stationed
on offshore ships including floating hospital which has been treating scores
of injured
the united states needed to send both troops and civilians to deliver aid to
the haitians who desperately needed it clinton said we re scrambling as
quick as we could to do everything we needed in the past two weeks
leftist latin american allies venezuela bolivia and cuba have criticized the
united states for its response accusing us forces of occupying the country
rather than helping its people
senior italian official separately deplored lack of coordinated
international aid effort in haiti saying the united states had too many
officers there and could not find capable leader
the international relief effort has indeed struggled to get enough aid into the
capital port au prince and out towards flattened towns near the quake
epicenter stoking security fears
looters were out early tuesday in the capital commercial center and appeared
to be more organized than in past days sharing out the tasks of digging through
the rubble equipped with wagons and sledgehammers
donor nations and aid organizations have warned rebuilding the impoverished
country will take at least decade
right now the needs of the people are survival and immediate recovery said
pierre kraehenbuehl director of operations at the international committee of
the red cross
next comes the phase of long term reconstruction he told foreign media in
tokyo this is going to be more than years of efforts
and haitians who lived with decades of political upheaval and bloodshed remain
fearful that the new found international interest in their plight could soon
fade
the west has come to help us it is extraordinary but it will not last said
andre muscadin an evangelical pastor rather than give us fish teach us to
catch fish
haitian prime minister jean max bellerive said the world must hammer out long
term strategy after meeting the caribbean country immediate needs for food
water shelter and health care
donor countries have agreed to hold full conference on aid to haiti at the un
headquarters in new york in march
haiti president rene preval urged the world to urgently airlift more
tents and million ready to eat packs before the rainy season starts in may
aid organizations fear disease could spread like wildfire if thousands are still
living in tent cities when the rains come
alert
us automaker gm agrees to sell saab to dutch firm spyker
zambia ex leader chiluba supports banda for polls
lusaka jan afp
zambia former leader frederick chiluba has endorsed president rupiah banda for
re election next year state media said tuesday in the latest sign of his
renewed embrace of the party he once led
let give president banda chance by voting for him chiluba told rally in
ndola the main city in the country copperbelt according to the zambia daily
mail
chiluba led zambia from to with his hand picked successor levy
mwanawasa then taking the helm of their movement for multiparty democracy mmd
and succeeding him in office
but mwanawasa quickly turned against chiluba bringing him up on charges of
embezzling dollars in state funds in case that was dismissed last
year
mwanawasa died before the conclusion of the case since year old banda took
office he has quashed the state efforts to appeal chiluba acquittal and
dismantled the team that led the prosecution
chiluba still faces separate graft case in lusaka stemming from
conviction in britain where court found him and former aides guilty of
stealing nearly million dollars of state funds
chiluba insisted there was nothing wrong with him again switching his political
allegiances
in the same manner that supported michael sata in am now supporting
the candidature of president banda the paper quotes chiluba as saying
he said banda main challengers in the polls opposition patriot front
president michael sata and hakainde hichilema leader of the smaller united
party for national development would destroy the nation because they don
have the heart for the country
transparency international zambia accused chiluba of throwing his weight behind
banda in order to safeguard his freedom saying that this went against the
constitution which bars former leaders from taking part in politics
he is supporting president banda so that he can be guaranteed his freedom
reuben lifuka the group president in luanda
he knows he is violating the constitution but apart from political patronage
he wants to be assured of his continued freedom
sata told afp he planned to file court challenge around the constitutional
clause which was put in place during chiluba rule
if found guilty chiluba could lose his post presidential benefits
banda engineered the acquittal and so chiluba will do anything possible to
ensure that his friend remains in power but we are undaunted said sata
football portsmouth transfer ban lifted
london jan afp
portsmouth transfer embargo was lifted by the english premier league epl on
tuesday
the embargo had been in place since october with bottom of the league
portsmouth owing money to several clubs
but the epl latest decision does give manager avram grant the chance to
bringing players to the south coast side in what remains of the january transfer
window
however the club have been restricted to signing players only on loan or on
free transfers meaning they can spend money on permanent deals
an epl statement said tuesday the board of the premier league has today lifted
the player registration embargo on portsmouth football club under the conditions
that they are restricted to signing players on loan or who are available on
free transfer
the board has taken this action as portsmouth fc has no outstanding debts to
football clubs as of this date
portsmouth chief executive peter storrie told the club official website we
are delighted that the transfer embargo for player registrations has been lifted
by the premier league
the club and the premier league have worked together to allow us to be able to
do some business in the last week of the transfer window
avram grant will now be trying to bring in players to strengthen the squad in
loan and free deals
last remaining stumbling block to portsmouth signing players in january was
over paymentsowed to italian side udinese for bringing sulley muntari who has
since returned to serie with inter milan to fratton park
however an agreement between the clubs is understood to have been reached
portsmouth face winding up order from the british tax authorities regarding an
alleged unpaid bill of million pounds million dollars while their
former owner alexandre gaydamak has said the club still owe him million
pounds
pompey have been confronting off field problems since before the start of the
season
the protracted sale of the club from gaydamak to sulaiman al fahim hampered
their ability of portsmouth the fa cup winners to sign new players while
several first team regulars left the club
glen johnson was sold to liverpool for million pounds before the campaign
started in july
but the england full back departure along with the exits of peter crouch
sold to tottenham for nine million pounds niko kranjcar who also joined spurs
and sylvain distin sold to everton appear in retrospect to have done little
to ease pompey financial plight
al fahim was only in charge for matter of weeks before selling on to saudi
businessman ali al faraj who has struggled to cope with the club debts
portsmouth have three times this season failed to pay their players on time and
the premier league diverted seven million pounds in television revenues to other
clubs owed transfer fees by the club
meanwhile storrie former manager harry redknapp now at tottenham and former
chairman milan mandaric now at leicester all face individual tax evasion
charges resulting from their time at fratton park
portsmouth four points adrift at the foot of the table go into tuesday
premier league match at home to west ham buoyed by last weekend fa cup fourth
round win over top flight rivals sunderland which set up south coast derby tie
against southampton
sri lanka heads for contested election result
colombo jan afp
sri lanka government said it would contest the legitimacy of the main
opposition candidate in tuesday presidential vote setting up clash that
threatens new instability on the war torn island
sarath fonseka former four star general took on his former boss incumbent
mahinda rajapakse in the vote after bitter and personal campaign that saw
both sides accuse the other of planning foul play
just before polls closed fonseka announced he had been unable to vote because he
was not registered on the electoral list
the government said this made him ineligible to be president despite strong
statement from the independent election commissioner saying the issue did not
prevent the year old military man from taking office if he won
we are seeking court order on the suitability of this candidate because he is
not eligible to be declared as candidate foreign minister rohitha
bogollagama told reporters
he said the statement from election commissioner dayananda dissanayake was
mere opinion that would be challenged in the supreme court
the election commissioner has merely expressed an opinion but the courts have
the ultimate authority to interpret the law bogollagama said
announcing his inability to vote late in the day fonseka said he had sent
papers to be registered at the time the last electoral roll was made in june
and could not explain his omission
my name is not on the register and therefore cannot vote at this
election fonseka told afp the government is trying to use this to mislead
the public at the last minute
rajapakse as commander in chief and fonseka his army commander defeated sri
lanka tamil tiger rebels in may last year ending their year fight for
independence that left dead
the military campaign which has since been mired in war crimes allegations
made both men national heroes in the eyes of the sinhalese majority electorate
who had lived in fear of suicide blasts and bombings for decades
but from close allies on the battlefield they became irreconcilable enemies
after fonseka political novice decided to challenge his former boss at the
ballot box on an anti corruption platform
the vitriolic nature of the campaign coupled with the personal animosity
between the two candidates had raised fears that the loser might reject the
result triggering fresh unrest
ahead of the election fonseka alleged the government would intimidate voters
and was preparing coup if it lost he has been accused in turn of working with
militia of army deserters to disrupt the ballot
shortly before the government made its announcement opposition leader ranil
wickremesinghe gave an upbeat press conference at which he expressed confidence
that fonseka would win comfortably after high turnout
the election has been by and large peaceful despite some violent incidents in
the tamil majority north he said
there was high poll turnout and that will ensure that sarath fonseka will
be president he told reporters
the opposition had said before the election it was prepared to mount
demonstrations if the government attempted to ignore the will of the people
if there is war we will face it fonseka said on monday referring to the
opposition willingness to resist with street protests and non violent action
rajapakse cast his ballot in his home constituency of mulkirigala early tuesday
and told reporters he was confident of securing second term
we must be ready to face the challenges of reaching new heights after this
vote said the year old who called the election only four years into his
six year term
formal announcement of the result of the vote is expected wednesday
in the run up to the poll four people were killed and there were nearly
election related incidents of violence
on tuesday the independent centre for monitoring election violence cmev
reported at least violent incidents during polling including bomb
targeting ruling party candidate in pre dawn attack
british envoy named nato civilian rep in afghanistan
brussels jan afp
nato chief anders fogh rasmussen appointed tuesday british envoy as civilian
representative to afghanistan and tasked him with streamlining coordination of
military and civilian reconstruction
ambassador mark sedwill will be faced with very important challenges in the
coming time rasmussen told reporters after naming the current british envoy to
kabul as next representative
we need reinforced interaction between our military efforts and our civilian
reconstruction and development and that will be core function for my civilian
representative in afghanistan he said
the appointment came two days before major conference on afghanistan in london
aimed at adding impetus to efforts to rebuild the strife torn country and seize
back the initiative from taliban and al qaeda linked insurgents
rasmussen said sedwill would have three main tasks
we would very much like to improve our engagement with the international
community and that will be the most important role he said
secondly he would have to help the afghan government with capacity building
not least of course in the transition process in the direction of transition of
