oil down in asian trade
singapore jan afp
oil prices were down in asia on thursday after freezing winter across the
northern hemisphere helped them hit month highs overnight analysts said
new york main futures contract light sweet crude for february delivery shed
cents to dollars barrel in the afternoon
the us benchmark oil rose to an intraday peak of dollars wednesday its
highest price since october
brent north sea crude for february delivery fell cents to dollars
the cold spell sweeping across the northern hemisphere has helped the surge in
crude prices but investors on thursday were evaluating signs of weakening energy
demand in the us the world biggest oil user analysts said
weekly report by the us department of energy doe wednesday showed that crude
oil reserves rose by million barrels in the week ending january instead
of the expected drop of some barrels
stockpiles of distillates including heating fuel and diesel fell by
barrels in the week sharply below the average analyst forecast of
drop of million barrels amid cold weather across sections of the us
the inventory statistics were very bearish said tony nunan tokyo based
risk manager for mitsubishi corp
much bigger draw was expected but it got lot colder after that report so
we could see much bigger draws in inventories next week
nunan added that geopolitical factors including terrorism concerns in yemen
following the attempted christmas day bombing of northwest airlines flight and
tensions between us and iran would also impact oil prices
think that lot of people realise that there is still big threat in yemen
which is right next to saudi arabia so that could be big geopolitical risk
issue
korea samsung sees billion dollar profit in
seoul jan afp
south korea samsung electronics the world largest memory chip and flat
screen tv maker on thursday estimated it would post billion dollar profit
for the three months to december
the predicted consolidated operating profit would be trillion won
billion dollars on sales of trillion won during the september december
period
the earnings guidance estimates came ahead of an official quarterly earnings
report due later this month the company said
samsung said it expects an operating profit of trillion won on record
revenue of trillion won for the full year
the firm projected profit compared with an operating loss of billion won
year earlier and trillion won the previous quarter
despite the upbeat earnings guidance samsung electronics shares fell
percent to won as investors took profits from recent gains
the market is taking breather while some investors are turning cautious
about any possible adverse effects of the korean won rapid appreciation
against the us dollar to exporters in particular car makers lee jin woo of
mirae asset securities told dow jones newswires
greg roh at hmc investment securities said he expects samsung to post an
operating profit of four trillion won in the first quarter and trillion for
the whole of on solid demand for memory chips handsets and flat screen
televisions
alert
indian troops kill militants end hotel siege in kashmir reports
kfc pulls australian cricket ad after racism furore
sydney jan afp
us fast food giant kentucky fried chicken said thursday it would pull cricket
themed tv advert running in australia after furious online debate claiming it
was racist
the ad which features white australian cricket fan appeasing west indies
supporters with an offer of fried chicken sparked controversy in the united
states after being posted on the internet
some bloggers and journalists accused kfc australia of playing on racist
stereotype that african americans eat lot of fried chicken
one viral media site buzzfeed posted the video under the subtitle what
white guy to do when he awkwardly finds himself in crowd full of black folks
kfc has the answer
kfc australia issued statement thursday saying it would immediately remove the
advertisement to avoid the possibility of any further offence
we apologise for any misinterpretation of the ad as it was not meant to offend
anyone the restaurant chain said
prior to pulling the ad kfc had defended it as light hearted reference to the
west indian cricket team and said it was unaware culturally based
stereotype existed in the us relating to fried chicken
australia deputy prime minister julia gillard declined to comment on the ad
but said her general world outlook is to take things on the lighter side
the incident comes after an australian tv station apologised in october for
jackson five parody featuring performers in black face paint which incensed us
celebrity guest harry connick jr
new zealand australia to probe whaling protest collision
wellington jan afp
new zealand and australia said thursday they would investigate japanese
whaling ship alleged ramming of protest boat in antarctic waters as
activists claimed only luck prevented someone being killed
the two countries opponents of japan whaling programme also urged protesters
from the militant sea shepherd anti whaling organisation and the whalers to stop
risking human lives in the isolated southern ocean
the whalers and sea shepherd protesters blame each other for wednesday
collision which ended with the six crew members on the ady gil being rescued by
another protest vessel
new zealand foreign minister murray mccully said the country maritime
authorities had responsibility for the new zealand registered ady gil hi tech
trimaran which had its bow demolished in the collision with the shonan maru
no
separately australian deputy prime minister julia gillard ordered the
australian maritime safety authority to probe the incident which occurred in
australia area of responsibility for search and rescue
it clear that emotions are running high and that lives are at risk in fact
it seems miraculous to me having seen the video that lives were not lost
during this incident gillard told reporters
mccully joined gillard in urging the protesters and whalers not to put lives at
risk
the new zealand government is totally opposed to japanese whaling taking place
in the southern ocean but we re also opposed to killing human beings down there
as well
japan has complained to wellington about the collision involving the new
zealand registered protest boat top government spokesman chief cabinet
secretary hirofumi hirano said in tokyo
we have lodged strong protests with the new zealand government hirano said in
regular press conference
we have strongly demanded that similar incidents are not be repeated
but sea shepherd chief paul watson said his organisation would continue
harassing the japanese whaling fleet despite the setback
it handicaps us it two million dollar hit on our organisation plus it
takes away our fast interceptor vessel but this is war he told afp by
satellite phone from the southern ocean
as far as concerned these whales are worth far more than our ships
ady gil skipper pete bethune said the blame for the collision lay squarely with
the japanese ship and he said it was lucky there were no fatalities although
one crew member suffered broken ribs
we were lucky there was no one in the sleeping quarters or someone would have
died bethune told radio new zealand
think what was demonstrated yesterday was the japanese whalers are just
bunch of thugs
but glenn inwood new zealand based spokesman for the japanese institute of
cetacean research which conducts the whaling said the protesters were to
blame
referring to calls by australia and new zealand for an easing of the
confrontation inwood said the whaling vessels were already acting with
restraint
the japanese vessels are protecting themselves from campaign of violent
harassment he told afp
asked if the whalers would cooperate fully with the investigations inwood said
that would be an issue between the japanese and new zealand governments
watson said sea shepherd would cooperate with the inquiries but did not expect
them to achieve much
an international moratorium on commercial whaling was imposed in but japan
kills hundreds of the animals each year using loophole that allows lethal
research on whales
yen steady with eyes on new finance minister
tokyo jan afp
the yen took breather in asian trade thursday as traders waited anxiously to
see whether japan new finance minister would signal he is less tolerant of
stronger currency than his predecessor
the dollar was at yen in tokyo afternoon trade almost unchanged from its
level of in new york late on wednesday the euro edged down to
dollars after and to yen against
market players were closely watching what new finance minister naoto kan would
say about his views on foreign exchange policy
outgoing hirohisa fujii who is stepping down for health reasons has repeatedly
said that in principle tokyo should refrain from market intervention to weaken
the yen and protect exporters remarks that boosted the currency
compared to his predecessor who had tolerated higher yen kan has said that
he wanted to avoid strong currency said hideaki inoue chief forex manager
at mitsubishi ufj trust and banking corp
his appointment has weighed on the yen so far 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
mr kan is bit of contrast to fujii who had in our view adopted benign
neglect stance toward yen strength until december barclays capital analysts
wrote in research note
by contrast mr kan has been expressing his preference for weaker yen thus
the government stance to prevent renewed yen strength has become clearer
the dollar gains however were limited after the release of minutes from last
month meeting of the federal open market committee dampened expectations for
higher us interest rates
investors now believe that the fed will maintain the low rate policy for the
time being inoue said
traders were turning their focus to friday key monthly jobs data which are
likely to set the tone for the greenback
strong jobs report could bolster the dollar because it would increase
speculation that the fed might hike interest rates sooner than expected from
their current record lows dealers said
but it might also spur demand for higher yielding currencies seen as well placed
to benefit from global economic recovery they added
against asian currencies the dollar fell to thai baht from on
wednesday to singapore dollars from and to philippine
pesos from
the greenback fell to south korean won from and to
indonesian rupiah from but gained to taiwan dollars from
afp graphics advisory
hong kong jan afp
we shall move the following graphics
us foiled plot
updated graphic on the thwarted christmas day terror attack on northwest
airlines flight to detroit nigerian umar farouk abdulmutallab was wednesday
charged with attempted murder and trying to use weapon of mass destruction
text slug attacks us nigeria
mm
available by gmt
afghanistan cia deaths
resending map showing khost in afghanistan where seven cia agents were killed in
suicide attack
text slug gt afghanistan unrest us cia qaeda
mm
available now
japan new finance chief
fact file on japan new finance minister naoto kan
text slug japan politics economy
mm wide
available by gmt
kashmir siege
map showing srinagar in indian kashmir where standoff between troops and two
armed militants has run into second day thursday
text slug india unrest kashmir
mm
available by gmt
afghan child casualties
graphic on child victims of the war in afghanistan
text slug afghanistan unrest casualties children
mm
available now
nepal maoist camps
map of nepal locating the un monitored camps for former maoist combatants
thousands of former child soldiers leave the camps thursday
text slug nepal maoists un conflict children
mm
available by gmt
vietnam religion
map of vietnam locating bat nha monastery and phuoc hue pagoda where
orchestrated mobs including police dispersed about devotees of influential
buddhist monk thich nhat hanh in september and december
text slug vietnam religion buddhist rights
mm
available now
hillary clinton tour
graphic showing the pacific countries to be visited by us secretary of state
hillary clinton from january
text slug us diplomacy australia nzealand png
mm wide
available by gmt
alzheimer disease
fact file on alzheimer disease for two afp health stories on the degenerative
brain disease
text slug health us alzheimers
mm
available by gmt
asia pacific markets
closings for key asia pacific markets
text slug stocks
mm
available by gmt
moved earlier
ady gil powerboat factfile
fact file on the ady gil powerboat reportedly destroyed by japanese fishing
boat when it tried to disrupt whaling in antarctic waters
text slug australia japan whaling boat
mm
egypt gaza unrest mm
yemen qaeda arrest map mm
pakistan kashmir attack map mm
china hunan fire map mm
japan fujii profile mm
us car sales mm
google phone factfile mm
google nexus vs apple iphone mm
angola cabinda football mm
jetstar airasia factfile mm
paris hong kong
tel
microsoft ceo unveils hp slate computer
las vegas nevada jan afp
microsoft chief executive steve ballmer unveiled new tablet computer from
hewlett packard on wednesday and announced closer integration with the world
top computer manufacturer
ballmer in the opening keynote speech at the annual consumer electronics show
ces here said the new device which he described as slate computer will
feature microsoft latest windows computer operating system
it beautiful little product ballmer said displaying what he called
prototype of coming hp slate pc
slate pcs that will be rolling into the marketplace this year are perfect
for reading for surfing the web and for taking entertainment on the go he
said
ballmer said the hp device and others in what he called an emerging category
of personal computers would be available later this year
ballmer unveiling of the hp slate came as microsoft rival apple is reported
to be poised to unveil tablet computer of its own perhaps later this month
in his speech ballmer also announced closer cooperation with hp on other fronts
with the number one computer maker adopting microsoft new bing search engine
and msn homepage
microsoft and hp will team up on the search and web portal experiences
ballmer said
bing will become the default search engine and msn the default home page on hp
machines in countries around the world which is certainly very very
exciting from our perspective he said
tokyo shares end mixed
tokyo jan afp
japanese stocks ended mixed on thursday as investors took profit after three
straight daily gains waiting for fresh clues on the new finance minister
plans for the economy
the tokyo stock exchange benchmark nikkei index fell points or
percent to the broader topix index of all first section shares added
points or percent to
am not surprised investors are taking profits from three days of gains
fund manager at japanese asset management firm told dow jones newswires
adding that investors were cautious ahead of us jobs data due friday
the choice of deputy prime minister naoto kan as the new finance minister
replacing year old hirohisa fujii has not had major impact on the stock
market dealers said
lot of investors are looking at the situation calmly now said yutaka miura
senior technical analyst at mizuho securities
shares in japan airlines fell sharply despite reports that the ailing carrier is
set to get an injection of public funds because investors fear they will lose
out if the company goes through bankruptcy proceedings
football mozambique star manuel bucuane
maputo jan afp
manuel bucuane better known as tico tico by the fans is one of two survivors
of the mozambique team to the african nations cup in burkina faso
tricky striker he is regarded as the best player ever to come out of
mozambique as well as being his country most experienced player
he is major source of inspiration for the upcoming players from mozambique
and even though he has struggled to get enough playing time at his south african
club jomo cosmos this season he has remained an integral part of the national
team setup
he has been playing in the south african premier soccer league psl for the
past years and he is among the leading all time top scorers in the psl with
goals for jomo cosmos orlando pirates maritzburg united and supersport
united
football mozambique african nations cup factfile
luanda jan afp
factfile for african nations cup group contenders mozambique
fixtures
benguela unless noted times gmt
jan
benin
jan
egypt
jan
at lubango
nigeria
squad
goalkeepers albino bino cossa liga muculmana joao kapango tersana egy
lama muculmana
defenders samuel campira chapanga and zainadine junior desportivo maputo
dario khan al kharitiyah qat fanuel muculmana almiro miro lobo
platinum stars rsa martinho paito mukana sion sui simao mate
panathinaikos gre francisco whiskey massinga ferroviario maputo edson
mexer sitoe sporting lisbon por
midfielders momed hagy and danito parraque ferroviario maputo elias
dominques pelembe mamelodi sundowns rsa eugenio genito bila nea
salamina cyp goncalves fumo olympiakos gre josimar machaisse costa do
sol nasser nelinho carimo desportivo maputo ze luis al mahalla egy
strikers helder pelembe maxaquene dario monteiro supersport utd rsa
manuel tico tico bucuane jomo cosmos rsa
captain
manuel bucuane
coach
mart nooij ned
nickname
mambas snakes
fifa rankings
africa
world
qualifying results
first round
bye
second round
group
ivory coast home away
botswana
madagascar
third round
group
nigeria
tunisia
kenya
scorers
manuel bucuane almiro lobo dario monteiro elias pelembe
carlitos chimomole eugenio bila
previous appearances
tournament record
record losses
ivory coast morocco
beijing warns hong kong to protest peacefully report
hong kong jan afp
china top official in hong kong made rare appeal for pro democracy protests
to remain peaceful as politician close to the central government warned it
will send in troops if the demonstrations get out of hand report said
thursday
the remarks were made after thousands of people took to the streets on new
year day to call for universal suffrage and for the release of jailed chinese
dissident liu xiaobo
the march was largely peaceful until scuffles broke out as around activists
were confronted by scores of police outside the central government liaison
office the body responsible for the city ties with beijing
the group chanted slogans banged drums and tried to break through police
barricade
peng qinghua director of the office warned that radical demonstrations would
not be tolerated the south china morning post said
while we respect citizens expression of various views and demands we hope
these expressions can take place in rational and peaceful atmosphere peng
who rarely comments in public was quoted as saying in the report
if some actions which are too radical arise in the process this is against the
expectation of citizens he said
we hope in the future rational discussion can be conducted on major political
economic and livelihood issues in hong kong
beijing loyalist and hong kong executive council member cheng yiu tong said the
scuffle had shocked the central government
if the majority of people are like that beijing will have to send troops
here cheng said according to the paper
the status of the central government liaison office in hong kong is like an
embassy of the foreign ministry you clashed with the office in this manner
this was very shocking to beijing
hong kong pro democracy politicians have campaigned for universal suffrage to
be introduced in beijing has insisted that vote may be implemented for
the chief executive in and the legislative council in
hong kong with population of seven million was returned to china from
british rule in it has separate constitution guaranteeing freedoms not
available to chinese on the mainland including the right to protest
football mozambique coach mart nooij
maputo jan afp
mozambique owe their recent resurgence to dutch coach mart nooij who has
infused self belief in this determined and athletic side since he took charge
three years ago
before his arrival in maputo he worked with burkina faso
the mambas have been almost invincible at their home ground estadio de machava
maputo in outings as nooij has assembled close knit side willing to work
for each other
the players understand me very well so they execute my game plans accordingly
technically tactically physically and even mentally nooij said of his
success in mozambique
technically we play positional and possessive kind of play which is from
holland distribution of the ball when we have possession and added to
mozambican traditional style
they are born mozambicans but speak portuguese so they like the brazilian
style of play so infuse the samba style to the orange machine style in
holland which is my home country right now the people are calling us the red
machine of mozambique
that is what have done in the last three years it takes time to do these
things but some countries are not always patient for the result in football
you need time to get you team playing in particular way
football mozambique aim to prove point after long absence
maputo jan afp
the mambas of mozambique are one of the dark horses at angola after solid
showing in the qualifying series for the tournament
this african nations cup will be mozambique fourth appearance at the finals
having also featured in the and editions of the competition in
all three appearances they failed to advance past the group stage
the southern africans held their own against the likes of tunisia and nigeria to
finish in third place with seven points and stage return to the nations cup
years after their last appearance in burkina faso
the mambas have been together for long time and the longevity of the squad has
continued to rub off on the perfect understanding and cohesion on the pitch the
squad is also made up of determined young players who are ready to lay down
their lives for the country cause
save for handful of players including skipper manuel bucuane aka tico tico
and striker dario monteiro mozambique are largely an inexperienced squad and
short of exposure as most of the players ply their trade back home and in south
africa with just few based in europe
south africa based monteiro is the team leading scorer netting the all
important match winner at home to tunisia on the final day of action in the
qualifiers his experience spans stints in several clubs in portugal cyprus
uae and south africa he and tico tico are the only survivors from burkina
faso
another south africa based forward pelembe holds the future of the mambas
pelembe is regarded as the brightest young talent in mozambique groomed to take
the centre stage after the exit of tico tico and monteiro
he is often played on the right wing and uses his speed and athleticism to great
effect he won two psl championships with supersport united before he moved to
big spending mamelodi sundowns also in the south african top flight in the
off season
mozambique are drawn against egypt and nigeria in group in benguela but have
insisted they will not be intimidated by the credentials of their first round
opponents
we ll just have to compete and see what happens egypt are the champions of
africa so that won be easy but if we believe in ourselves maybe we can spring
some surprises nigeria and egypt would seem the obvious teams to qualify but
anything can happen said tico tico
football nigeria star osaze odemwingie
lagos jan afp
the african nations cup is coming at the right time for peter osaze
odemwingie this will be his fourth nations cup and it comes at time when the
year old nigeria striker is playing his best football at this level
born of nigerian father and russian mother osas made his full
international debut friendly against kenya in may but it was at the
nations cup in tunisia that he really announced his arrival on the international
scene with two well taken strikes against south africa
for several years he had to play second fiddle to the likes of julius aghahowa
yakubu aiyegbeni obafemi martins and john utaka
but it now appears he has finally established himself in the team after some
solid showings this year as the super eagles booked their flight to the
world cup in south africa
in after narrowly missing the cut for that year world cup he moved to
belgian club la louviere in belgium and thereafter to modest french club lille
where he began to feature in the uefa champions league against top teams like
manchester united
however when everything pointed to him making transfer to either the english
premier league or the italian top flight odemwingie chose to join locomotiv
moscow
am happy playing in russia it great place to work and live my club are
one of the best in the russian league he offered
the english league is really great and would surely consider an offer from
there even though am happy where am now
he has the right attitude and is always willing to learn it is huge
advantage to have player like him in any team praised coach christian
chukwu who gave the player his first breakthrough at the nations cup in tunisia
six years ago
football benin african nations cup factfile
luanda jan afp
