san francisco jan afp
nearly million computers were shipped in the united states in the final
three months of setting new record and heralding economic revival
according to industry tracker idc
abundant deals on low priced netbooks and demand that built up during the
economic crisis boosted shipments of computers percent in the final quarter
of as compared to the same period year earlier idc reported
the market has weathered storm which looks to be behind us said idc
worldwide quarterly pc tracker research analyst jay chou
but salvaging decreasing margins will soon become even more pertinent as one
considers the long term effects of holding market share at the cost of
profitability
if computer makers lock into competing on price to sell low cost machines such
as bare bones netbooks the market will continue down the slippery slope of
good enough computing sold to the lowest bidder chou said
the us computer market exploded thanks to bargain offerings such as mini
notebooks being rife just as budgets were loosening on the crest of an economic
recovery according to tracker research manager david daoud
first is the rubber band effect and recovery from the year ago quarter which
suffered from buyer contraction when the economic crisis was confirmed daoud
said
the vendors responded with new low price points to stimulate demand and face
competition
consumer purchases overcame weak commercial sector to save the quarter he
added
computer sales seemed to be rebounding around the world with the asia pacific
excluding japan leading the way with percent growth thanks to blazing
china market according to idc
oil rebounds in asian trade but stays below dollars
singapore jan afp
oil prices rebounded in asian trade thursday but remained below dollars
barrel following an overnight plunge on signs of weakening energy demand in the
united states
new york main futures contract light sweet crude for delivery in february
rose cents to dollars per barrel
the contract sank dollars in new york on wednesday to close at
dollars per barrel after plumbing an intraday low of dollars
london brent north sea crude for february gained cents to dollars per
barrel
analysts said the sharp fall in oil prices on wednesday was triggered by the us
department of energy doe report that showed crude oil reserves surged by
million barrels in the week ending january
that was far more than most analyst expectations of gain of million
barrels
distillates including heating fuel and diesel rose by million barrels
the doe said confounding forecasts of million barrel drop
distillates are in the market focus amid an ongoing cold snap in the united
states forecasters have predicted milder weather for the weeks ahead
the united states is the world biggest energy consuming nation and its usage
can influence oil prices
however the doe report was not all that pessimistic said serene lim an oil
analyst with anz bank in melbourne adding that it indicated demand could soon
pick up
the refinery inputs were up for most of the areas and the refineries were
operating at slightly higher rate than the past month lim said
tennis sydney international results
sydney jan afp
results from the fifth day of the sydney international wta atp tennis tournament
on thursday denotes seed
women
semi finals
serena williams usa bt aravane rezai fra
men
quarter finals
richard gasquet fra bt potito starace ita
australia pledges million us dollars for haiti quake fm
sydney jan afp
australia has pledged million dollars million us in emergency aid for
the haiti earthquake with further funds to follow for reconstruction foreign
minister stephen smith said on thursday
we re making significant contribution but given the scale of the disaster
and our strength of relations with the caribbean region we believe it
entirely appropriate he told sky news
earnings optimism boosts asia markets
hong kong jan afp
optimism over corporate earnings and an improving global economic picture helped
asian shares gain ground thursday following stronger lead from wall street
after broad sell off in the previous session sparked by china move to
tighten liquidity hong kong gained percent and shanghai percent as
banking stocks rebounded on bargain buying
sydney was percent higher with sentiment buoyed by rallying commodity
prices and better than expected fall in australia unemployment rate to
percent in december down from november revised figure of percent
tokyo rose percent as shares in troubled carrier japan airlines jal
pulled out of their tailspin after several days of heavy losses
jal shares rose three yen to yen following plunge of almost percent
over the previous two days sparked by signs that the debt ridden carrier is
close to filing for bankruptcy protection and delisting its stock
singapore rose percent in morning trade
asia followed wall street lead after the dow jones industrial average rose
percent to close at
the rebound indicated that investors think the possibility that china
tightening would lead to other countries tightening or rate hikes to come
earlier than expected is low lee jin woo at mirae asset securities in seoul
told dow jones newswires
the us market shook off disappointment over weak earnings report from
aluminium giant alcoa earlier this week
the federal reserve beige book report which said the us economy is seeing
broader improvement in activity also boosted sentiment
the euro was higher in asian trade as investors anticipated upbeat factory data
from the eurozone ahead of monetary policy meeting by the european central
bank
the euro firmed to dollars in tokyo morning trade from in new york
late wednesday it also gained to yen from the dollar edged up to
yen from
oil prices plunged overnight on rising us crude stockpiles which indicated weak
demand in the world biggest energy consuming nation
new york main futures contract light sweet crude for delivery in february
sank dollars to close at dollars per barrel
london brent north sea crude for february shed cents to settle at
dollars
hong kong gold opened higher at us dollars an ounce up from
wednesday close of dollars
three charged in us over illegal iran shipments
los angeles jan afp
three men have been charged in the united states with illegally shipping
sensitive technology to iran in violation of federal trade laws justice
officials said wednesday
federal court has accused two men jiraiir avanessian of los angeles and
iranian national farhoud masoumian of conspiracy which includes
allegations of smuggling money laundering and other crimes
avanessian was arrested on monday at his home in the los angeles suburb of
glendale while an arrest warrant has been issued for masoumian
third man amirhossein sairafi was arrested earlier this week in frankfurt
germany by law enforcement authorities acting on provisional arrest warrant
from the united states
according to federal indictment and criminal complaint iran born avanessian
is the owner and operator of california based xvac
avanessian allegedly corresponded with masoumian and sairafi via mail for at
least two years to arrange the export of high value vacuum pumps and related
equipment to iran through trade zone located in the united arab emirates
according to us law individuals are prohibited from exporting such technology
to iran without license
law enforcement officials told the los angeles times the technology in the case
could possibly be used for development of nuclear capabilities
if convicted on all counts avanessian and masoumian face statutory maximum
sentences of years and in federal prison respectively according to the
us justice department
korea internet firm not to blame for hacker attack court
seoul jan afp
south korean internet auction site was not to blame for the leakage of
personal information on millions of users after hackers breached its system
court ruled thursday
internet auction subsidiary of us firm ebay was hacked in february
leading to the theft of private information on more than million users
including web ids home addresses and phone numbers
some users filed series of collective suits against the firm for
emotional distress citing fears the leaks would lead to problems such as
credit card fraud and identity theft
although it is regrettable that internet auction was not able to prevent the
hacking it is hard to say that the company made mistake the seoul central
district court said in ruling quoted by yonhap news agency
holding an internet based company responsible for stolen personal information
from hacking should be limited to cases when the company failed to uphold its
duties
south korea is one of the world most wired nations with more than percent
of homes connected to the internet
urgent australia pledges million us dollars for haiti quake fm
sydney jan afp
australia has pledged million dollars million us in emergency aid for
the haiti earthquake with further funds to follow for reconstruction foreign
minister stephen smith said on thursday
fiat ceo says decision to shutter sicily plant irreversible
detroit jan afp
fiat and chrysler ceo sergio marchionne said wednesday that decision to shut
down the company plant in sicily was irreversible
speaking in detroit marchionne said plans to shutter the plant which employs
around people although great controversy would go ahead
his speech was interrupted by cries of protest from those opposing the move
shame on you fiat and chrysler for killing jobs one angry protester shouted
earlier wednesday hundreds of fiat workers in southern italy went on strike
wednesday in protest at the company decision to shut it down by the end of
marchionne had first announced the closure last june as move to cut costs
alert
australia pledges million us dollars for haiti quake fm
fiat ceo says decision to shutter sicily plant irreversible
detroit jan afp
fiat and chrysler ceo sergio marchionne said wednesday that decision to shut
down the company plant in sicily was irreversible
speaking in detroit marchionne said plans to shutter the plant which employs
around people although controversial would go ahead
ved arb sah
feared dead in horrific haiti quake
port au prince jan afp
more than people were feared dead in haiti wednesday after an earthquake
decimated the capital port au prince where survivors faced second night on
streets still littered with the dead
schools hotels hospitals and the presidential palace lay in ruins and people
pleaded for help as they lay trapped beneath mountains of concrete and the
capital was mostly destroyed an afp correspondent said
mournful songs and prayers rose above the dust and debris cloaked city of two
million people as darkness descended
dusk saw horrific scenes of the injured laying in the back of pick up trucks
which normally ferry residents through the city thronged streets
dead victim was pinned between the fallen roof of her home and her bed and
rescuers tore at the wreckage of children hospital with their bare hands
jeanwell antoine held trapped baby arm and sought to comfort it as he clawed
through the rubble
it is not me who is pushing back this earth it is the hand of god who loves
life and is guiding me so can save this baby he said
with every hour crucial for those trapped global aid operation swung into
action with rescue teams bringing heavy lifting gear and desperately needed
medicines and food
casualty figures were impossible to calculate but prime minister jean max
bellerive told cnn the final death toll from the quake could be well over
president rene preval told the network could be dead
us secretary of state hillary clinton compared the tragedy to the asian tsunami
which killed more than people five years ago
the indian ocean tsunami was such terrible tragedy and with such high loss of
life this will be very high loss of life as well she said
preval unsure of where he would sleep after his home and the presidential
palace were destroyed painted scene of utter devastation
parliament has collapsed the tax office has collapsed schools have collapsed
hospitals have collapsed he told the miami herald
with thousands of people missing dazed survivors in torn clothes wandered
through the rubble as more than aftershocks rocked the ramshackle and
impoverished capital
dust filled the air scattered fires broke out and injured people slumped on
the blood soaked floor of one clinic waiting for treatment elsewhere outside
field hospital mothers huddled with shell shocked children
some injured survivors wore makeshift slings and blood soaked bandages others
were carried on pieces of debris used as stretchers past piles of smashed
concrete from which crushed bodies protruded
fanning safety fears in the crime hit capital the united nations said the main
prison had collapsed allowing some inmates to flee into city where basic
services and communications were shut down
the earthquake was the latest tragedy to hammer haiti which has been scarred by
years of unrest crime and political tumult
they have had long and tortured history but they are good people they are
survivors said former us president bill clinton the un envoy to haiti
these people deserve chance to bury their dead to heal their wounded to
eat to sleep to begin to recover and they can do it with just government
help alone clinton said appealing on cnn for cash to buy food aid
the quake late tuesday struck just below the earth surface on notorious
fault line meaning the shock was intense and damage severe scientists said
un officials said at least of its staffers were dead were injured and
further were missing the head of the un mission to haiti hedi annabi was
thought to be among the dead
us president barack obama vowed swift and aggressive effort to save lives and
spoke with an array of regional leaders to coordinate the aid operation
this tragedy seems especially cruel and incomprehensible he said
officials said the first us search and rescue teams workers were already
deploying from the airport in port au prince
the us military also mobilized ships and aircraft and an aircraft carrier the
uss carl vinson was due to arrive thursday
officials said the naval base in guantanamo bay cuba home to controversial
camp for terror detainees may also be used to house refugees
secretary of state hillary clinton and defense secretary robert gates cut short
foreign trips to return to washington as the scale of the crisis became clearer
plane loads of rescue teams and relief supplies were quickly dispatched from
nations including britain canada russia spain france germany the
netherlands and russia
the world bank said it planned to extend an additional million dollars in
emergency aid to haiti to help recovery and reconstruction
the massive quake toppled the cupola on the country gleaming white
presidential palace major hotel where tourists were missing and the
headquarters of the un mission in haiti
jordan reported that three of its peacekeepers were killed and wounded in the
quake brazil said of its peacekeepers were killed while eight chinese
soldiers were buried in rubble and were missing state media said
the haitian resort town of jacmel was also devastated
was driving back to jacmel in the mountains when the entire mountain seemed
to fall down all around me said emmet murphy local head of the us non
governmental organization adci voca
two hundred foreigners were missing at the hotel montana french secretary of
state for cooperation alain joyandet said
urgent fiat ceo says decision to shutter sicily plant irreversible
detroit jan afp
fiat and chrysler ceo sergio marchionne said wednesday that decision to shut
down the company plant in sicily was irreversible
ved arb sah
malaysian catholics lawyers offices targeted in allah row
kuala lumpur jan afp
malaysia catholic church said thursday the offices of its lawyers have been
burgled and ransacked in the latest of spate of attacks triggered by row
over the use of the word allah
in the past week nine churches have been fire bombed or vandalised escalating
tensions in the multicultural nation where the muslim malay majority lives
alongside ethnic chinese and indian communities
the conflict broke out after the high court decided on december to lift
government ban on non muslims using allah as translation for god
our lawyer offices were broken into and burgled sometime between wednesday
evening and thursday morning and the office was ransacked said father lawrence
andrew editor of the catholic herald newspaper
we believe the break in is linked to the ongoing situation over the use of the
word allah and we are very concerned he told afp
the law firm does not have any money or many valuables so we believe this is
purely aimed at intimidation
the church lawyer derek fernandez said laptop was stolen in the attack on
his firm offices in kuala lumpur southwest and he was investigating whether
any documents had been taken
this was very professional job as there were very strong grilles protecting
the office that were cut and the locks carefully replaced after the break in
he told afp
district police chief arjunaidi mohamed confirmed the break in and said his
officers were probing the incident
the high court ruling in favour of the herald which argued for the right to use
allah in its malay language section was suspended last week pending an
appeal after the government argued the decision could cause racial conflict
since then churches have been hit with molotov cocktails splashed with black
paint and had windows smashed with stones triggering tighter security at places
of worship nationwide
about nine percent of malaysia million people are christians including
catholics more than half of malaysia catholics are from indigenous
groups mostly from borneo and who mostly speak the national language malay
korea confirms second foot and mouth outbreak
seoul jan afp
south korea confirmed second outbreak of foot and mouth disease on thursday
and said hundreds of cattle and pigs would be culled to stop the highly
contagious disease spreading
the agriculture ministry said two out of cows tested positive for the disease
at farm at pocheon kilometres miles northeast of seoul where the
first outbreak was reported week ago
the ministry said total of cattle or pigs and two deer would be
slaughtered as precaution it said it was investigating whether veterinarian
who checked cattle in the area may have spread the disease
january outbreak led to the culling of cattle and goats before that
the disease was reported in south korea in and
the slaughter after the previous outbreaks cost about billion won
million dollars
us to take over main role in southern afghanistan report
london jan afp
united states forces are to take over the main role in southern afghanistan from
the british in shake up of the region command structure newspaper
reported thursday
the arrangement for the vast area known as regional command south is to change
following the arrival of some us troops in the area last year said the
times which cited an unnamed source
thousands more american servicemen are due to arrive in the south of the war
torn country in as part of buildup in forces to battle fierce taliban
insurgency
the command currently switches every year between britain the netherlands and
canada with permanent american deputy commander the paper said
this structure will be replaced by two division sized commands of about
servicemen each in the southeast and southwest according to the times
the new structure will be in place in the second half of this year the paper
said
britain ministry of defence is considering whether to push for rotating
command in the southwest section that will include its forces in helmand
province the report added
referring to this source told the paper that the overall structure is
work in progress
euro firms in asia ahead of data ecb meeting
tokyo jan afp
the euro was higher in asian trade thursday as investors anticipated upbeat
factory data from the eurozone while trying to gauge the strength of the
region recovery
traders were also waiting for monetary policy decision meeting by the european
central bank and press conference by bank governor jean claude trichet for
clues on prospects for interest rates in europe
the euro firmed to dollars in tokyo morning trade from in new york
late wednesday it also gained to yen from the dollar edged up to
yen from
barclays capital analysts said investors were waiting for europe november
industrial production index which may surprise to the upside with some
expecting strong bounce after october decline
market forecasts are for factory output to have jumped percent in november
after percent fall the previous month
but the stronger than expected data may do little to nudge the ecb when it meets
later in the day to decide on interest rates dealers said
markets expect the ecb to hold its key lending rate steady at percent and
see little prospect of revisions to the bank assessment of the economy or when
it will halt its policy tool of flooding markets with cash
the ecb will likely continue with cautiously optimistic outlook for growth
particularly with the deterioration in the greek fiscal situation and recent
weakness in retail sales barclays analysts wrote in note
the dollar was weaker after lacklustre beige book survey on economic
conditions in the united states that dampened speculation that the federal
reserve might hike interest rates earlier than expected this year
the report said data from the federal reserve districts showed modest
improvement in key areas such as consumer spending manufacturing and housing
meanwhile the yen was sold after data showed japan core machinery orders
slumped worse than expected percent in november from the previous month
underscoring moves by companies to slash capital spending
alert
fiat ceo says decision to shutter sicily plant irreversible
ved arb sah
poll finds most taiwan ceos want china trade pact
taipei jan afp
nine out of ten taiwanese corporate executives support planned trade pact with
china but some are concerned about their government ability to deliver the
best possible deal poll showed thursday
nearly percent of chief executive officers interviewed by the
authoritative common wealth magazine last month approved of the trade agreement
known as the economic cooperation framework agreement ecfa
however percent said they had no faith in the government ability to
protect taiwan interests while negotiating with china and the same number said
they themselves felt ill prepared for the potential impact of the agreement
taiwan beijing friendly government will begin negotiating with china next week
and hopes to sign the deal in may saying it could lift growth and boost
employment
but the opposition democratic progressive party which favours independence from
china fears it would increase taiwan reliance on china and imperil the
island de facto separate status
taiwan and china have been governed independently since the end of civil war
in but beijing considers the island part of its territory and has vowed to
get it back by force if necessary
relations have improved since taiwan current administration assumed power in
may pursuing programme of stepping up economic ties
kooyong classic results
melbourne jan afp
results from the second day of the kooyong classic here thursday
relegation round
fernando gonzalez chi bt tommy haas ger
semi finals
fernando verdasco esp bt novak djokovic srb
tennis rivals wary of del potro after us open breakthrough
melbourne jan afp
juan martin del potro will have the respect of his rivals in next week
australian open his signature us open triumph last year has ensured that
the man mountain was sports hero of his native argentina when he became
the first south american to win us open since compatriot guillermo vilas in
his accomplishment was all the greater for ending roger federer five year us
open title run after eclipsing rafael nadal in the semi final
winning tough grand slam like the us open at only years of age against
federer and nadal proves you are one of kind vilas said at the time
it has given the year old argentine immense self belief for his next grand
slam assignment going into the melbourne tournament as the reigning us
champion
in argentina one of the world most football obsessed nations del potro was
given the ultimate accolade when last month he was voted the national sports
personality of the year ahead of fifa footballer of the year lionel messi
only two men novak djokovic the other have won grand slam from the last
played in an era dominated by the two top ranked stars federer and nadal
feel good with my tennis feel confident del potro said this week
of course to beat roger in the us open final gave to me lot of motivation
and confidence to keep trying keep working
when go to the court with roger rafa nadal don feel too much
different
that important for the career for the future and of course if want to
fight for the number one ranking
have good preparation and am looking for another grand slam in
melbourne
the argentine giant known as the tower of tandil after his home town south of
buenos aires will be looking to improve on modest australian open record
in three trips to melbourne he has been knocked out twice in the second round
and last year was trounced by federer in the quarter finals
have been practising hard maybe don feel percent but here can play
good tennis and will try to play like normal or maybe like in new york he
said
del potro gained further impetus in the opening weeks of when he nudged
briton andy murray out of the fourth ranking spot his highest yet in just his
fifth year on the atp circuit
he is renowned for his heavy forehand from the baseline and despite his height
he is considered one of the best movers on the atp tour
tennis clijsters looks for australian fairytale
melbourne jan afp
it could well be case of the fairytale continuing for kim clijsters at next
week australian open
the always popular belgian produced the tennis story of the year in when
she came out of retirement to win the us open
an already emotional crowd had their heartstrings tugged even further when
clijsters baby daughter jada came onto the court after the final to greet her
mother
the year old has always been one of the most popular players on the wta tour
adored by fans and well liked by her peers
many thought she retired too young when she walked away from the sport in may
but after marrying us basketballer bryan lynch and starting family
clijsters decided last year to give the tour another go
she played only four tournaments in but captured her second grand slam
when she beat denmark caroline wozniaki at flushing meadow becoming the first
mum since evonne goolagong at wimbledon in to win one of the big four
the powerful clijsters is returning to the tour full time this year and showed
she is well and truly capable of matching it with the best when she powered
through last week brisbane international
she ended up beating another comeback queen justine henin in the final
helping produce one one of the best women matches in recent times
the level of tennis the two belgians produced was staggering with men
champion andy roddick later calling it the best women match he has ever seen
when asked after the match whether she and henin can rekindle the rivalry that
saw them both reach world number one she was unequivical in her response
think with the level that we both played today think we are both capable
of getting back into the top and think it won take long for justine to
have crack at that clijsters said
the level was so high
it fun to play in big match when you are both playing good tennis and
that what it all about
clijsters also noted that this time around it would be three pronged attack
from belgium with the two old stagers joined by fresh faced newcomer yanina
wickmayer
clijsters may have won two grand slams the us opens of and but she
has long been in the shadow of henin one year her senior and winner of seven
majors
however the nature of her victories at both the us open and last week
brisbane international showed that it is tougher more mature clijsters this
time around
she has given herself every chance to win the australian open coming to the
country earlier than usual and bringing her family and large entourage with to
help her acclimatise
really happy here because think it makes the transition to melbourne
easier she said
you get feel for the humidity and you are not coming from snow to extreme
heat
clijsters will go into the australian open as one of the lesser seeds but no
one will be surprised if it is her name on the trophy come the end of the
tournament
tennis safina shrugs off injury with fighting talk
melbourne jan afp
the thrashing dinara safina received in last year australian open final could
have shattered her confidence but the russian has bounced back and is
