All posts published in February 2014
MIAMI (Reuters) – A mural created on the side of a building by the elusive British street artist known as “Banksy” sold for $575,000 on Tuesday, along with dozens of other graffiti-style works at a Miami auction being closely watched due to the soaring value o... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei share average fell on Wednesday morning, retreating from a 2 1/2-week high hit the previous day, as investors took profits on banks and exporters when the weak yen trend paused. The Nikkei .N225 shed 0.7 percent to 14,738.69 in... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Models Nina Agdal, Lily Aldridge and Chrissy Teigen were already at the top of their game, but the trio say anything is possible after gracing the cover of the Sports Illustrated 50th Anniversary Swimsuit Edition that hit newsstands on Tue... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – Shares in Canon Inc advanced 2.4 percent to a three-week high of 3,154 yen on Wednesday after it said it will buy back up to 50 billion yen ($488.5 million) worth of its own shares, or 1.6 percent of its outstanding shares. Canon shares are d... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States will boost its network of trade advisers to give a stronger voice to public health, development and consumer safety experts, Trade Representative Michael Froman said on Tuesday. In a speech aimed at combating domestic o... More »
TORONTO (Reuters) – BlackBerry Ltd Chief Executive John Chen fired a salvo at T-Mobile US Inc on Tuesday, calling ill-conceived a promotion run by the company that encourages customers using BlackBerry smartphones to upgrade to iPhones. T-Mobile US, which is m... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Actors George Clooney, Matt Damon and Bill Murray will attend a screening of their new movie “The Monuments Men” at the White House on Tuesday night hosted by President Barack Obama. The film, directed by Clooney, is based on the true st... More »
SYDNEY (Reuters) – The euro was holding broad-based gains on Wednesday, having darted higher against the yen and sterling, while the dollar took a hit from soft economic data and news that foreign investors had been heavy sellers of U.S. assets. The euro was u... More »
MIAMI (Reuters) – Three murals created on the sides of buildings by an elusive British street artist known as “Banksy” will be sold on Tuesday along with millions of dollars in other works at a Miami auction being closely watched due to the soaring value of st... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Bob Casale, the guitarist and original member of the U.S. New Wave band Devo best known for the 1980 hit “Whip It,” died on Monday from heart failure at the age of 61, his brother and bandmate said. “His sudden death from conditions that l... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Bans on smoking in public parks are still fairly rare in the United States, despite more than half of states having indoor smoking restrictions, researchers say. Just 355 counties out of 3,143 across the nation have smoke-free park ... More »
BOSTON (Reuters) – Hedge fund industry assets are expected to reach a record $3 trillion by year’s end as investors plan to add fresh money, saying they were generally happy with last year’s returns and don’t expect bigger gains this year, a new survey shows. ... More »
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Jimmy Fallon’s debut as the host of NBC’s “Tonight Show” drew 11.3 million viewers, network NBC said on Tuesday, making it the second most-watched episode of the late-night talk show in the past five years. Fallon’s premiere on NBC’s fl... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Oversized coats, sheer blouses and slinky cocktail dresses heralded the return of grown-up glamour on the catwalk on Tuesday at London Fashion Week, where the city is looking to cement its reputation as a global showcase for emerging talent.... More »
(Reuters) – Pimco’s Bill Gross, manager of the world’s largest bond fund, on Tuesday sought to reassure the firm’s clients about the new leadership structure he has put in place since his heir apparent stunned the investment community last month by announcing ... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – In an unusual move, Bernard Madoff’s former back-office director took the witness stand in his own defense on Tuesday, telling a federal jury that he had no idea his boss was operating a Ponzi scheme until the day Madoff was arrested in De... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – A divided federal appeals court on Tuesday strengthened the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s ability to recover insider trading profit from people who do not personally benefit directly from their alleged illegal trades. By a 2-1 ... More »
PARIS (Reuters) – A patient with terminal heart failure is in “satisfactory condition” two months after becoming the first person to be fitted with Carmat’s artificial heart which is designed to beat for several years, his hospital said. The 76-year-old man is... More »
KABUL/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Obama administration is taking steps it hopes could lead to a resumption of peace talks to end the Afghan conflict, including reviving a proposed swap of Taliban detainees held at Guantanamo Bay in return for a U.S. prisoner of... More »
TUNIS (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Tuesday praised democratic progress in Tunisia, where the “Arab Spring” began, and offered to help the North African country’s fight against Islamist militants. During a brief visit to Tunis, Kerry said T... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama will continue to press for legislation needed to conclude trade agreements because those accords are beneficial to the economy even if they are controversial politically, White House spokesman Jay Carney said on Tu... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Luxury fashion group Mulberry has unveiled a new collection of bags in collaboration with British model Cara Delevingne, hoping to improve its fortunes after a profit warning and problems overseas. The made-in-England Cara Delevingne Collect... More »
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Italy’s economy minister said on Tuesday that measures to stop Swiss banks from selling financial products to Italian retail clients have been in place for some time and are in response to tax evasion rather the Alpine country’s stance on ... More »
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – For the aspiring actor and actress who sits at home during awards season fantasizing that they too could be feted as an Oscar nominee or Golden Globe winner there is a simple recipe: get cast in a film by David O. Russell. The director ... More »
LISBON (Reuters) – The European Central Bank has played a key role in stabilizing the euro zone but governments must now keep up economic reforms to allow growth in the bloc to “surprise on the upside”, a top ECB policymaker said on Tuesday. Speaking in Lisbon... More »
MIAMI (Reuters) – Miami police have arrested a local artist who they say destroyed a $1 million vase by Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei to protest that the city’s newly opened museum is only displaying international art. Dominican-born Maximo Caminero, 51, ... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Jimmy Fallon took the reins of the long-running “Tonight Show” on Monday, bringing NBC’s late night talk show flagship back to Manhattan after an absence of more than 40 years, being welcomed on set by a host of top stars, including Robert... More »
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – A mission of international lenders will return to Greece later this week to review progress made in delivering on the country’s reforms that are key for further loans, the chairman of euro zone finance ministers Jeroen Dijsselbloem said on... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s Court of Appeal on Monday ruled that a lower court should look again at how pay-TV group BSkyB sells its sports channels to rivals, in the latest twist in a near four-year battle. Market regulator Ofcom ruled in March 2010 that Rup... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – The dollar hit 6-week lows on Monday as recent weak U.S. data cast doubt on the pace of monetary tightening, while prospects for a new reforming government in Italy and better euro zone growth boosted the bloc’s periphery. World stocks .MIWD... More »
SOCHI, Russia (Reuters) – The women’s figure skating competition at the Winter Olympics has a special place in the hearts of viewers and the television executives who spend hundreds of millions of dollars buying the rights to the Games. Underlining the importa... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Germany and France will lead a face-saving bid this week to revive a flagging project to tax financial transactions in 11 euro zone countries and allay fears it could hamper economic recovery. The tax is expected to be scaled back from an or... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Rebekah Brooks, the former boss of Rupert Murdoch’s British newspapers, is due to begin her defense on Wednesday against allegations she was complicit in widespread phone-hacking at the now defunct News of the World weekly. Brooks, who was s... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Before attorney David Wasinger decided to take on two of the biggest global banks in federal court in New York, he had visited the city just twice: once when he was 6, and the second time on a tour bus with his children. As the sole part... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Like most Americans of a certain age, President Barack Obama is starting to complain about the aches and pains of getting older. Obama told retired National Basketball Association star Charles Barkley in an interview that aired on Sunday... More »
BERLIN (Reuters) – The head of the euro zone’s bailout funds, Klaus Regling, said that he believes banks in Spain, Portugal, Cyprus, Greece and Ireland are in good shape and that there will not be any surprises in European Central Bank stress tests due later i... More »
ROME (Reuters) – Italian President Giorgio Napolitano summoned Matteo Renzi to a meeting on Monday at which he is expected to ask the center-left leader to form a government that must overhaul one of the most troubled economies in the euro zone. Napolitano is ... More »
ROME (Reuters) – Center-left leader Matteo Renzi, expected to form Italy’s next government this week, must overhaul one of the euro zone’s most troubled economies without an electoral mandate and while awkwardly sharing power with a center-right rival. Enrico ... More »
ROME (Reuters) – Center-left leader Matteo Renzi was set to be nominated as Italy’s youngest prime minister in a matter of days after a party coup forced Enrico Letta to resign as premier of the euro zone state struggling to pull out of recession. Letta bowed ... More »
(Reuters) – Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc eliminated its stake in Dish Network Corp in the fourth quarter and added a stake in financial giant Goldman Sachs, according to a regulatory filing on Friday. Berkshire had taken the Dish position in the sec... More »
(Reuters) – Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc eliminated its stake in Dish Network Corp in the fourth quarter and added a stake in financial giant Goldman Sachs, according to a regulatory filing on Friday. Berkshire had taken the Dish position in the sec... More »
ORLANDO (Reuters) – Most people entering crocodile territory keep a wary eye out on water and land, but research suggests they need to look up. Though the reptiles lack obvious physical features to suggest this is possible, crocodiles in fact climb trees all t... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – World stocks climbed for an eighth straight session on Friday on signs of a gradual improvement in euro zone growth and the euro rose to its highest level in almost three weeks, while gold climbed above $1,300 an ounce. On Wall Street, sto... More »
CONSTANTA, Romania (Reuters) – Armed with an iPad and a letter of support from an Oscar-winning film director, Remus Cernea is pushing a cause that he acknowledges few of his fellow Romanian lawmakers care about: giving dolphins the same rights as humans. The ... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Talks between Comcast Corp and Charter Communications Inc over how they could together buy Time Warner Cable Inc quickly soured as the two bickered over price and the feasibility of engineering a split of the No. 2 U.S. cable operator. Cha... More »
(Reuters) – Comcast Corp’s proposed $45.2 billion takeover of Time Warner Cable Inc could face close scrutiny from U.S. antitrust regulators because of the deal’s potential to reshape the country’s pay TV and broadband markets. The company resulting from the m... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Paintings by Andy Warhol, Cy Twombly and Gerhard Richter led the pack at Sotheby’s evening sale of contemporary art in London, only a week after the auction house beat all records for a sale series in the British capital. The contemporary ar... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Let’s face it. It’s easy to take for granted that mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish – vertebrates just like people – have a face. But it has not always been the case. The first creatures with a backbone – jawless fish from hu... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – The dollar lost almost half a percent against the safe haven yen and Swiss franc and fell back from overnight gains to the euro as a rally in global shares halted on Thursday. The Australian dollar, looking in better shape this month after a... More »
MOSCOW/UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – Russia denounced on Wednesday a Western-Arab draft U.N. Security Council resolution on humanitarian aid access in Syria as a bid to lay the groundwork for military strikes against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government.... More »
ROME (Reuters) – Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta faces a showdown with his own center-left party on Thursday that could lead to his resignation and the appointment of Democratic Party leader Matteo Renzi as head of a new government within days. Letta, head... More »
(Reuters) – Comcast Corp CMSCA.O is buying Time Warner Cable Inc (TWC.N ) for $45.2 billion in an all-stock deal, combining the nation’s two largest cable operators, according to people familiar with the matter. The friendly takeover comes as a surprise after ... More »
(Reuters) – Private cloud storage company Dropbox Inc plans to name Google Inc GOOG.O executive Dennis Woodside, CEO of Motorola Mobility, as its first Chief Operating Officer. Jonathan Rosenberg, the former head of product management at Google, will be appoin... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s economic growth is expected to have quickened at the end of last year as consumers ramped up spending ahead of a planned sales tax hike, but analysts say that Tokyo may have to inject fresh stimulus to brighten the outlook. Lukewarm e... More »
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – An explosion targeting a bus full of Pakistani policemen killed 11 and injured 33 near the southern port city of Karachi on Thursday, officials said, in the latest incident of violence while the government and the Taliban are engaged in p... More »
SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia’s competition regulator said on Thursday it was taking legal action against the local division of Pfizer Inc over the way it marketed its cholesterol-lowering drug Lipitor to pharmacies. The Australian Competition and Consumer Comm... More »
SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea has rejected a demand by its northern neighbor to postpone this month’s military drills with the United States to avoid overlap with planned reunions of families separated during the Korean War, an official said on Thursday. The d... More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – The explosive growth of smartphone sales in China, the world’s biggest smartphone market, has come to a halt as unit shipments declined for the first time in more than two years, data firm IDC said on Thursday. Shipments of smartphones in C... More »
KABUL (Reuters) – The Afghan government released 65 detainees on Thursday who the United States has warned pose a serious security threat, a move that further strains already tense U.S.-Afghan ties as the international mission in Afghanistan winds down. Afghan... More »
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – A confidential U.N. monitors’ report warns of “systematic abuses” by Somalia’s government, which the monitors say has allowed the diversion of weapons that Somali authorities purchased after the U.N. Security Council eased an arms em... More »
HONG KONG (Reuters) – Thomas and Raymond Kwok, the billionaire co-chairmen of Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd (0016.HK ), had additional charges filed against them on Thursday in a bribery investigation surrounding Asia’s largest developer, the company said on Thu... More »
GANDHINAGAR, India (Reuters) – With flowers, smiles and handshakes, the U.S. ambassador to India met the Hindu nationalist leader who could be India’s next prime minister on Thursday – a big step towards ending Washington’s shunning of him over sectarian viole... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – Asian shares stepped back from three-week highs on Thursday, snapping a five-session winning streak that was underpinned by receding concerns about global growth prospects and reassurance over U.S. monetary policy. There was also an element o... More »
SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea’s LG Electronics unveiled a revamped version of its large-screen smartphone G Pro on Thursday, hoping it will help propel the company to the No. 3 spot in global smartphone sales this year. LG Electronics, currently ranked No. 4, ... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – The Bank of Japan, unfazed by the latest emerging market rout, is set to stand pat on monetary policy next week and stick to its rosy economic assessment, signaling that any additional monetary stimulus may be some time away. With markets cal... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Congress just wants the U.S. budget wars to be over. If any more evidence was needed, 12 Republican senators swallowed their principles and voted to propel a “clean” one-year debt limit increase toward passage on Wednesday. As a result, ... More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s Lenovo Group Ltd said third-quarter profit jumped nearly a third, beating estimates, as the world’s biggest maker of personal computers hoisted sales of smartphones in its drive to diversify out of the shrinking PC market. Lenovo on... More »
CHATTANOOGA, Tennessee (Reuters) – U.S. Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee said on Wednesday he has been “assured” that if workers at the Volkswagen AG plant in his hometown of Chattanooga reject United Auto Worker representation, the company will reward the plan... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Congress approved an increase in the country’s debt limit through March 2015, bowing to President Barack Obama’s demands to extend federal borrowing authority without conditions, but only after a dramatic Senate vote on Wednesda... More »
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Thai low-cost carrier Nok Airlines Pcl NOK.BK confirmed on Thursday options for two Q4 100 aircraft from Bombardier Inc (BBDb.TO ) and is looking to confirm two more. The aircraft will help Nok Air to expand into smaller Thai and regional... More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s Jade Rabbit moon rover has endured a long lunar night but is still malfunctioning, state media said on Thursday, after technical problems last month cast uncertainty over the country’s first moon landing. Jade Rabbit, named after a ... More »
PARIS (Reuters) – PSA Peugeot Citroen (PEUP.PA ) has reached an outline deal with Dongfeng (0489.HK ) and France to raise up to 4 billion euros ($5.5 billion) in fresh capital and deepen cooperation with the Chinese carmaker, sources familiar with the matter s... More »
(Reuters) – American Airlines Group (AAL.O ) has gained control of 24 takeoff and landing rights at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport – a major gateway for international flights – in a swap with JetBlue Airways (JBLU.O ), the carriers said on We... More »
NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) – Former New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin was found guilty by a federal jury on Wednesday of accepting bribes and trading on the public trust during the critical years of rebuilding after Hurricane Katrina devastated the city in 2005. A jur... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A second senior member of U.S. President Barack Obama’s party spoke out on Wednesday against a proposal to give the White House power to fast-track trade deals, delivering another blow to the chances of getting the bill through Congress ... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – For Mitch McConnell, the top Senate Republican, a vote to end debate over raising the U.S. debt ceiling on Wednesday was much more than a vote to leave Washington before a snowstorm arrived. It earned him the wrath of his party’s vocal a... More »
SOCHI, Russia (Reuters) – Hosts Russia, Canada and the United States rumble into action in what promises to be a spectacular men’s Olympic ice hockey tournament in Sochi, where six gold medals are up for grabs in other sports on Thursday. Canada open the defen... More »
(Reuters) – Berkshire Hathaway Inc said it was in talks with Graham Holdings Co, formerly The Washington Post Co, to trade the shares it owns in the education and media company for control of a yet-to-be-formed unit of Graham. Berkshire Hathaway owns about 1.7... More »
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Sid Caesar, who pioneered TV sketch comedy during the 1950s as the star and creative force of “Your Show of Shows,” a launch pad for the likes of Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner and Woody Allen and an inspiration to generations of comedians, di... More »
PACIFIC PALISADES, California (Reuters) – Fred Couples will add another chapter to his long love affair with Riviera Country Club when he extends his record number of Northern Trust Open starts to 32 at the fabled venue this week. Couples eclipsed the previous... More »
EDINBURGH (Reuters) – Britain will warn Scotland on Thursday it can’t keep the pound if it votes for independence, its boldest attempt yet to scuttle a nationalist bid to break the 307-year-old union with England. In the latest salvo of a choreographed campaig... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter said on Wednesday he would retire from Major League Baseball at the end of the 2014 season, a decision the 19-year veteran said he made after being hobbled by injuries last year. In a post on his Face... More »
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The latest edition of the “Now That’s What I Call Music!” franchise featuring chart hits by Lorde and Katy Perry debuted at the top of the weekly Billboard 200 album chart on Wednesday, pushing the “Frozen” film soundtrack off its pedes... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – The S&P 500 closed flat on Wednesday, with a four-day rally in the index just barely coming to an end after Procter & Gamble cut its outlook, though some positive earnings limited the decline and eased concerns that valuations had become s... More »
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – When writing a song that imagined a conversation between two ancient ashen corpses, British electro-pop band Bastille never imagined it would become the track that led them into the American mainstream music scene. “Pompeii,” a haunting... More »
SYDNEY (Reuters) – The euro nursed losses early on Thursday, having suffered a setback on dovish comments from a top European Central Bank official, while a surprisingly upbeat economic outlook from the Bank of England gave sterling a shot in the arm. ECB Exec... More »
(Reuters) – Veteran pitcher A.J. Burnett has signed a lucrative one-year deal with the Philadelphia Phillies, according to mlb.com. The Major League Baseball website on Wednesday cited a source saying that Burnett would receive $16 million, a figure that is pr... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – World stock markets edged up for a sixth straight session on Wednesday after upbeat trade data from China soothed worries about slower global growth, while the British pound rose to a two-week high against the dollar. The Dow and S&P 500 c... More »
PACIFIC PALISADES, California (Reuters) – While U.S. Open champion Justin Rose is champing at the bit to play his first competitive golf of the year, Jimmy Walker will look to maintain his sizzling form at this week’s Northern Trust Open. English world number ... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – A massive cyber attack from unknown sources that has been spamming bitcoin exchanges is highlighting some of the dangers people can encounter when they exchange cash for digital currencies like the bitcoin, experts said on Wednesday. The a... More »
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Comic showman Sid Caesar, a pioneer of American television sketch comedy as the star and creative force of “Your Show of Shows” during the 1950s, died on Wednesday at age 91, according to his friend and former collaborator Carl Reiner. ... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Authorities should stop the dramatic growth of non-bank mortgage servicers to make sure the companies can handle the business and not put homeowners at risk, New York’s financial regulator said on Wednesday. Some of the servicers may not b... More »
ROSA KHUTOR, Russia (Reuters) – The only thing more surprising than American Kaitlyn Farrington winning halfpipe gold at the Sochi Olympics on Wednesday is the story of how her early career was funded – by selling the family’s livestock. Snowboarders like Shau... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Jeffrey Gundlach, chief executive and chief investment officer of DoubleLine Capital, said on Wednesday that his firm had sold some Apple Inc. shares and that the U.S. Federal Reserve may not end its bond buying this year. Gundlach also to... More »
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – John Oliver, the British comedian whose career took off as the nonchalant news correspondent on “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart,” will debut his new HBO series “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” on April 27, the network said on Wedne... More »
(Reuters) – LeBron James says he has no doubt he will be regarded as one of the top four all-time greats in basketball by the time his career is over. “I’ll be one of the top four that has ever played this game, for sure,” the Miami Heat forward told nba.com a... More »
ROSA KHUTOR, Russia (Reuters) – American cowgirl Kaitlyn Farrington stunned three former champions to win gold in the women’s snowboarding halfpipe by the narrowest of margins at the Sochi Olympics on Wednesday. The 24-year-old nailed her second run under the ... More »
SOCHI, Russia (Reuters) – In a finish even a Hollywood scriptwriter would struggle to match, the women’s downhill at Russia’s Winter Olympics produced a tie for gold for the first time on Wednesday, on a thrilling fifth full day of competition. The host nation... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. government on Wednesday released the final version of standards meant to help companies in nationally critical industries better defend against cyber attacks, and officials now face the challenge of getting the private sector to... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – The Bank of England’s view that Britain’s main interest rate will have risen to about 2 percent in three years is roughly in line with that held by a majority of economists who took part in a Reuters poll on Wednesday. But 32 of 38 disagreed... More »
