spokesperson said
the treasury will consult with colleagues in iceland to understand why this
bill has not been passed and will work with them the netherlands and within the
eu to resolve this issue as soon as possible the spokesperson added
the icesave bill narrowly approved by the icelandic parliament on december
calls for the payout to the british and dutch governments for having compensated
more than british and dutch savers who lost money in the collapse of the
icelandic bank
icesave an online subsidiary of the landsbanki bank which had to be rescued
in october attracted foreign savers because of its high interest rates
but they lost their savings when accounts were frozen during the devastating
credit crunch the british and dutch savers were partially compensated by their
own governments which then turned to reykjavik looking for the money paid out
volcano eruption in costa rica
san jose jan afp
costa rica turrialba volcano erupted tuesday spewing ash and rocks and
forcing people in its vicinity to evacuate their homes the volcano and
seismology observatory said
in the afternoon we had small eruption of the volcano with pyroclastic
material chiefly ash blown by the wind observatory director juan segura told
afp
the last time the meter foot volcano erupted was in he
added
authorities issued an alert for the area surrounding the volcano located
kilometers miles east of san jose and said people were evacuated
segura said that team of vulcanologists would climb to the top of the volcano
early wednesday to make an on site assessment of the volcano
the last major eruption of the turrialba volcano was in it has had at
least five major explosive eruptions in the last years
fj fgf jm
britain warns iceland of isolation over icesave
london jan afp
britain has warned iceland it risks international financial isolation if it
votes against bill to compensate britain and the netherlands over the failure
of icesave bank
financial services minister paul myners also said controversy over the
billion euro billion dollar compensation deal could impact on britain
support for iceland bid to join the european union
iceland president olafur ragnar grimsson said tuesday he would not sign
controversial bill to compensate the british and dutch governments for
reimbursing icesave investors triggering anger in london and the hague
grimsson said he would put the bill to referendum instead
the icelandic people if they were to reach that conclusion would effectively
be saying that iceland doesn want to be part of the international financial
system that iceland doesn want to have access to multinational national and
bilateral funding and doesn want to be regarded as safe country with whom to
do business myners told the bbc on tuesday
he also said this development would need to be factored into decision as
to whether we would be supportive of iceland application to join the eu
but that early days yet he added
the warning came after britain treasury said it expected iceland to meet its
obligations while the netherlands said it was unacceptable
the uk government expects iceland to live up to its obligations treasury
spokesperson said
the treasury will consult with colleagues in iceland to understand why this
bill has not been passed and will work with them the netherlands and within the
eu to resolve this issue as soon as possible the spokesperson added
the icesave bill narrowly approved by the icelandic parliament on december
calls for the payout to the british and dutch governments for having compensated
more than british and dutch savers who lost money in the collapse of the
icelandic bank
icesave an online subsidiary of the landsbanki bank which had to be rescued
in october attracted foreign savers because of its high interest rates
but they lost their savings when accounts were frozen during the devastating
credit crunch the british and dutch savers were partially compensated by their
own governments which then turned to reykjavik looking for the money paid out
blockbuster avatar to accelerate revolution
los angeles jan afp
the runaway success of science fiction blockbuster avatar will accelerate the
movie revolution which has already powered hollywood to record year at the
box office analysts say
james cameron futuristic fantasy is on course to become the highest grossing
movie of all time after smashing the one billion dollar barrier in only three
weeks over the weekend
the film which has reported budget of between and million dollars
has been hailed as landmark in movie history and its impact will be felt
across the industry experts say
the ramifications of avatar performance are huge said jeff bock chief
analyst with box office tracking firm exhibitor relations ripple effects are
going to occur fast and furiously
bock said the stellar success of avatar which is already the fourth highest
grossing movie in history would persuade other studios that big budget films
represented an attractive investment
the gains far outweigh the risks right now and if you can have someone like
james cameron helming your film then you re okay to spend to million
dollars on your film because you re going to get your money back and then some
he added
right now is going to be all the rage and studios are going to jump on
big bunch of films
according to organizers of recent film festival in belgium more than
films are currently in various stages of production
among them is the long awaited movie adaptation of comic book hero tintin
directed by oscar winner steven spielberg and tentatively scheduled for release
in
cameron meanwhile is reportedly mulling version of his mega
blockbuster titanic which remains the top earning film in history with
billion dollars
the boom has been made possible by technological advances according to movie
industry insiders
there has been real resurgence in because the technology of digital cinema
has allowed to be sharper and brighter on screen and much better audience
experience mark zoradi former president of walt disney motion pictures group
said in recent interview
it gives movie goers just another reason to actually continue to go to the
cinema it something you can experience at home it here to stay and on
many movies it has to be experienced
jason constantine president of acquisitions and co productions at lionsgate
whose properties include the saw horror films said was more than just
passing fad
think the experience of is going to last for more than just few years
constantine told afp don think it just moment in time
action adventure science fiction and suspense films were all prime genres for
to exploit constantine said provided there was something intrinsic about
the story that will enhance
lionsgate plan to unveil the seventh film in its saw franchise this year with
the movie designed from day one as experience constantine said
obama halts yemen transfers but vows guantanamo closure
washington jan afp
us president barack obama said tuesday he has suspended transfers of freed
guantanamo bay inmates to yemen following the christmas day airliner attack but
renewed his vow to close the notorious prison
the administration is under intense pressure from domestic critics not to send
more detainees back to yemen because of fears they will slip back into
extremism in the arab nation where obama says the thwarted bombing was planned
his decision whipped up further uncertainty over his drive to close the
detention center in cuba obama had demanded the closure of the facility within
year of taking office but the deadline will slip later this month
given the unsettled situation ve spoken to the attorney general and we ve
agreed that we will not be transferring additional detainees back to yemen at
this time obama said in televised statement
but the president sent an immediate message to critics who oppose his decision
to close guantanamo and many people abroad who support it saying he was
determined to follow through on his promise
make no mistake we will close guantanamo prison which has damaged our
national security interests and become tremendous recruiting tool for al
qaeda obama said
in fact that was an explicit rationale for the formation of al qaeda in the
arabian peninsula obama said naming the yemen based group that he has blamed
for training and alleged bomber umar farouk abdulmutallab
it was not clear how long the suspension of transfers mentioned by gibbs would
last
but white house spokesman robert gibbs said the decision will increase the
number of prisoners from the camp that could be moved to the thomson
correctional center in illinois that has been selected by the administration to
hold guantanamo bay inmates
the american civil liberties union said obama decision was unwise unjust
and will prolong shameful chapter in american history without making
americans any safer
human rights watch said the move raised serious concerns about the prisoners
rights and added continuing to hold yemenis without charge only increases
resentment against the united states and hands al qaeda recruiting tool
as recently as sunday obama top anti terrorism official john brennan said
that the united states would continue to repatriate guantanamo bay detainees to
yemen at the right time and the right pace and in the right way
mitch mcconnell the republican leader in the senate has consistently argued
that obama is wrong to attempt to close guantanamo bay and said the christmas
day attack exposed contradictions in his decision
given the determined nature of the threat from al qaeda it made little sense
to transfer detainees from the secure facility at guantanamo back to yemen
mcconnell said
guantanamo remains the proper place for holding terrorists especially those
who may not be able to be detained as securely in third country
the president should revisit the reasoning behind his decision made on his
first day in office particularly now that the administration has recognized
that it has no choice but to detain some foreign fighters indefinitely
close to half of the detainees left at guantanamo bay are from yemen
seven yemeni detainees have already been sent home by the obama administration
including six in december several others were repatriated during george
bush administration
high level obama administration task force is working to determine the fate of
the remaining prisoners at guantanamo including some of the most wanted terror
suspects
some inmates will face trial before military or civilian courts and others will
be detained indefinitely because they are considered too dangerous to release
but cannot be tried because evidence against them is scant or tainted
three us senators warned last week of possible security disaster if washington
transferred detainees back to yemen without guarantees from sanaa that they will
not return to the battlefield
the senators including republican john mccain defeated by obama in the
presidential election said said ali al shihri whom they described as aqap
longstanding deputy was held in guantanamo but released in
hong kong gold opens lower
hong kong jan afp
hong kong gold opened lower on wednesday at us dollars an
ounce down from tuesday close of dollars
bank of england to keep interest rate at record low analysts
london jan afp
the bank of england is expected to hold its key interest rate at record low
percent at meeting on thursday analysts said amid hopes that britain
will soon exit deep and long lasting recession
the boe is also forecast to announce that it will continue to pump out new money
totalling up to billion pounds billion euros billion dollars as
it seeks to boost lending by commercial banks
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
in bid to lift britain out of recession the boe monetary policy committee
mpc decided in march to slash borrowing costs to their current record low
level
at the same time the central bank launched programme of quantitative easing
qe whereby it creates money by purchasing bonds from commercial institutions
the programme is due to finish at the end of january
this week mpc announcement is unlikely to be the source of much controversy
said investec securities economist philip shaw
the committee will almost certainly keep the interest rate at percent and
the qe target at billion pounds
february meeting becomes the next flashpoint given that it will coincide
with the boe next quarterly inflation report
the boe main task is to use monetary policy to keep annual inflation close to
government set target of percent
twelve month inflation jumped to percent in november owing to rising fuel
prices recent official data showed it is expected to rise further in the
coming months before falling back to about percent in late according
to the latest boe estimates
british gross domestic product gdp contracted percent during july
september compared with the previous three month period recent official data
showed
britain begins as the only top economy in recession after the eurozone
france germany japan and the united states last year all emerged from the deep
downturn that was sparked by the global financial crisis
although the british economy is showing some sign of revival we would still
like to know what the mpc plan is in case its expected strong recovery does
not materialise said economist colin ellis at daiwa capital markets europe
ahead of the boe two day meeting that begins on wednesday
analysts have said the boe may decide to continue pumping out new money beyond
february when the qe programme is due to have been completed
the economy which is struggling with high unemployment and massive public debt
caused by the financial crisis has contracted for six quarters in row its
longest recession since official records began in
finance minister alistair darling recently admitted that britain recession
would be deeper than thought with the economy predicted to have shrunk by
percent in compared to previous estimate of percent
the economy is expected to grow percent in according to darling
management of the economy is the key issue in general election due no later
that june with the opposition conservatives widely expected to oust the
incumbent labour government
espn to kick off first tv channel in us with world cup
las vegas nevada jan afp
television entered new dimension on tuesday as us sports broadcaster espn said
it will show some world cup soccer matches live from south africa in and
japan sony teamed up with discovery and imax to launch tv network in the
united states
the new espn service plans at least live sporting events during its
first year starting with the opening fifa world cup match between south africa
and mexico on june espn and abc sports president george bodenheimer said
up to world cup matches will be shown on what espn called the industry
first television network along with college basketball college football
and other us domestic sports events
electronics giant sony discovery communications and imax corp announced
meanwhile that they were creating joint venture to develop the first
dedicated television network in the united states
they said the new network which is expected to launch next year will
feature high quality premium content from genres that are most appealing in
including natural history space exploration adventure engineering
science and technology motion pictures and children programming
sony discovery and imax said they will be equal partners in the venture aimed
at bringing high quality three dimensional viewing experience to home
television audiences
the dueling announcements came as representatives of leading electronics firms
from around the world gathered in las vegas for the annual international
consumer electronics show ces
japanese and south korean television manufacturers have been pushing tv in
the home for some time now but its growth has been stunted by lack of
programming the need to wear special glasses and the high price of sets
last month release of science fiction blockbuster avatar film by
titanic director james cameron has renewed interest in however and some
industry leaders believe the time has come for tv in the home
this will be meaningful step to drive adoption of television sets said
espn executive vice president of sales and marketing sean bratches
this is turning point for consumer electronics association cea chief
executive gary shapiro told usa today newspaper
in as with all other technologies there slow uptick and then it goes
very quickly said shawn dubravac cea chief economist and director of
research
according to cea estimates nearly million tvs will be sold in and
by more than percent of all tvs sold will be
espn bodenheimer said espn puts the walt disney owned company at the
forefront of the next big advance for tv viewing
for the moment espn will just broadcast special live sports events in while
the sony discovery imax deal calls for the creation of dedicated
channel
by partnering with sony and imax on discovery will lead the way in
revolutionizing the next generation home viewing experience in the us and around
the world discovery president and chief executive david zaslav said
sony president and chief executive sir howard stringer called it
groundbreaking new venture
it is clear to us that consumers will always migrate to better and richer
entertainment experience and together we are determined to be the leader in
providing that around the world stringer said in statement
discovery sony and imax said the network would launch first in the united
states and they would eventually explore international distribution
opportunities in selected markets
sony announced last month that up to world cup matches would be filmed in
for the first time using sony professional cameras and shown to fans at
official public viewing events in cities around the world
google unveils new smartphone
mountain view california jan afp
google unveiled its new nexus one smartphone tuesday in direct challenge to
heavyweight apple iphone handsets
the internet giant billed the touch screen device the culmination of
collaboration with taiwanese electronics titan htc superphone that marked
the next step in the evolution of its android software
think you will see it pushes the limits of what possible on smart phone
htc chief executive peter chou said as the smartphone debuted at google
headquarters in mountain view california
it is very thin and feels good in your hand
nexus one handsets are no thicker than pencils and no heavier than keychain
swiss army knives google engineer erick tseng said while demonstrating one of
the smartphones
it is great marriage of form and function tseng said
nexus one smartphones are built on the same android software that runs droid
smartphones that recently hit the market with innovations like graphics
according to tseng
the handsets feature new speech command capabilities that allow users to speak
emails text messages or internet search queries
nexus one devices can provide turn by turn spoken driving directions from
google mapping program
google launched its own online store at google com phone where the nexus one
will be sold
this is really google phone said interpret analyst michael gartenberg
lot of the android phones that came to market are kind of lackluster one of
the ways to avoid mediocrity is to kick things up couple of notches yourself
nexus one smartphones will be sold at the google hosted web store for
dollars unlocked without ties to telecom carrier
nexus one handsets will be offered starting at dollars if paired with
mobile service contracts in the united states
google has made strategic partnerships with telecom firm verizon in the united
states and vodafone in europe
nexus one devices linked to service from verizon in the us and vodafone in
europe should be available by mid year according to google
google said it will ship nexus one devices to buyers in singapore hong kong
britain and the united states
the smartphones are designed to work with variety of telecom carrier networks
you can take out your sim card from any provider and put it in the phone said
google vice president of product management mario queiroz
the internet search and advertising giant has foothold in the market with its
android mobile operating system featured in more than phones since starting
with mobile in october
google made it very clear that all android devices are created equal but some
devices are created more equally than others gartenberg said
they ve raised the bar for their partners and they ve tried to raise the bar
for the ecosystem they ve clearly shown how they want to be player
analysts have expressed concern that google move could irk partners backing
handsets based on the internet firm open source android software
don see it as threat said sanjay jha chief of mobile devices at
handset titan motorola which recently brought to market droid smartphone
based on android software
think the nexus one is good phone think we will upgrade droid to the
software available on nexus one
chou and jha said they support gooble new phone and web store as healthy
expansion of the mobile phone ecosystem
google executives sidestepped questions about whether the nexus one is intended
as an iphone killer but acknowledged it should prove powerful competitor
like iphones nexus one devices feature accelerometer capabilities allowing
images or games on handsets to be controlled with twists or turns
the message isn to the iphone specifically it is to consumers said google
vice president of engineering andy rubin choice is good thing
google has an online android marketplace stocked with about functional or
hip applications for smartphones running the software
with far greater stockpile of applications apple online app store is
considered among the reasons iphones have become globally coveted devices
apple meanwhile announced that more than three billion mini applications for
iphone and ipod touch devices have been downloaded from the app store in less
than months
we see no signs of the competition catching up any time soon apple chief
executive steve jobs said in statement
elvis fans love him tender on king th birthday
memphis jan afp
unconfirmed sightings aside elvis lives on for millions of his fans worldwide
and in cities across the globe many are getting ready to celebrate the king
th birthday on friday
the biggest party will be here in memphis where january has already
been proclaimed elvis presley day and events including live music and exhibits
are planned
but celebrations are also happening globally with elvis fan clubs organizing
events in tokyo london paris and elsewhere
elvis is one of those rare people who came along who resonated across cultural
lines said howard kramer who curated the elvis exhibit at the rock and roll
hall of fame in cleveland ohio
even years after his death the man born aaron elvis presley retains fan
base that is almost unrivalled in numbers and geographic reach he added
elvis is still out there as an important cultural figure says erika doss
professor at the university of notre dame american studies department
for doss the author of elvis culture fans faith and image the king
popularity endures because he offers something different to each fan
for some he will always be the rockabilly rebel from the for others
he very much the las vegas superstar for some he is the patriotic american
who went into the military in the late and for others he sort of good
old boy gospel singer she added
but elvis also remains relevant because he was so far ahead of the cultural
curve doss says
he was an incredibly good looking guy who deliberately violated all sorts of
sex and gender norms in the and was attractive to both men and women at
the time
and you know you watch him today you still see it he is shockingly good
looking and dynamic
however fans remember him the most hardcore will be flocking to memphis where
his ex wife priscilla and daughter lisa marie presley will take part in
birthday cake cutting on the sprawling front lawn of the king former home
graceland
elvis continues to be popular all over the world and fans tend to come on the
five year anniversaries said graceland spokesman kevin kern
opened to the public in and declared national monument in graceland
draws nearly visitors year making it one of america most visited
homes
in honor of the king birthday the estate will unveil new exhibit entitled
from tupelo to memphis chronicling elvis early life from his birth in small
town mississippi to his high school graduation in memphis up to just before he
stepped into the international spotlight
in downtown memphis pastry chefs at the historic peabody hotel will serve up
chocolate birthday cake layered with rich peanut butter and sliced bananas
mimicking the fried peanut butter and banana sandwich said to have been one of
elvis favorites
born on january the man who would become known as the king of rock and
roll grew up surrounded by the influences of popular country music and the
gospel songs he heard at the pentecostal church where his family worshipped
the way he combined those influences to create new sound had lasting effect
on music according to jeff melnick an associate professor of american studies
at babson college in massachusetts
it so central to our musical vocabulary the idea of borrowing from other
genres or literally creating remixes or mashups that really in our musical
dna now
elvis early death at did not create his iconic image according to
melnick
he didn die young enough he said he didn die so young that we remember
him as this always fresh faced wonderfully energetic guy
he doesn die young and leave beautiful corpse far from it he much more
the image of what happens through excess he added
but his image as an ultimate entertainer persists nonetheless in large part
because of the many recordings of the young elvis melnick said
there preserved this unbelievable footage of this young incredibly athletic
incredibly sexy guy who was just doing stuff that no one had done before he
said he was just really good
millions of fans agree and elvis continues to influence musicians today from
award winning stars to memphis based rockabilly trio the dempseys
from his music movies clothes and moves no one will ever be as influential
as him he was an original said brad birkedahl one of the band members
for curator kramer the key to the king long reign is quite simple
truth be told greatness is what endures and the reason we re still talking
about elvis presley long after he died is because his music is great
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 strain of the
economic crisis industry data showed tuesday
total industry sales fell percent to million vehicles in
according to autodata
that is the lowest level since the recession and drastically below the
to million vehicle range posted in 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 after two
consecutive years of decline forecast us sales will increase to around to
million units in
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 by
points to percent of the us market although its sales ended the year down
percent at million vehicles
despite tough market tms performed solidly reaching its goal to grow market
share esmond said
with toyota continuing as the best selling overall brand and lexus as the
bestselling luxury brand in america we re looking forward to bright
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
