All posts published in October 2015
SHANGHAI Ford Motor Co (F.N) said on Monday it will invest 11.4 billion yuan ($1.8 billion) over the next five years to expand research and development in China, the latest effort by the U.S. carmaker to secure a larger slice of the world’s biggest auto market... More »
BEIJING China’s quality watchdog said on Monday it was “highly concerned” about the mechanism in Volkswagen AG’s (VOWG_p.DE) diesel cars designed to trick emissions tests and would take appropriate follow-up measures. The General Administration of Quality Supe... More »
NEW YORK Two former Rabobank [RABO.UL] traders from Britain are set to become the first defendants to face trial in the United States on charges stemming from a global investigation into whether various banks sought to manipulate the interest rate known as Lib... More »
NEW YORK Welcome to the oil market’s new vicious cycle. This past week, as oil prices barreled over 9 percent higher to break out of a weeks-long trading range, U.S. shale producers jumped at the chance to lock in $50-plus crude for the first time in months, m... More »
SINGAPORE Oil prices rose on Monday as the number of U.S. rigs fell for a sixth straight week, while investors waited for Chinese trade data to be published later this week for clues on demand at the world’s top energy consumer. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (W... More »
Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Troy Tulowitzki snapped out of a postseason slump with a three-run home run to keep his team alive with a 5-1 win against the Texas Rangers on Sunday. Tulowitzki had gone 0-for-11 with a walk before his home run to left field busted... More »
(The Sports Xchange) – Center Tomas Plekanec led the Canadiens with two goals, while Torrey Mitchell had the other as Montreal spoiled the Ottawa Senators home opener with a 3-1 victory on Sunday Both teams rested their first choice goalies, with rookie Mike C... More »
(The Sports Xchange) – Troy Tulowitzki snapped out of his post-season funk with a home run and four RBIs as the Toronto Blue Jays stayed alive in the American League Division Series with a 5-1 victory over the Texas Rangers on Sunday. The Rangers still lead th... More »
SINGAPORE The dollar hovered near a three-week low versus a basket of major currencies on Monday, anchored by doubts that the U.S. Federal Reserve will raise interest rates by year-end. The dollar index, which measures the greenback’s value against a basket of... More »
Los Angeles Dodgers infielder Chase Utley has been suspended for two games for taking out New York Mets shortstop Ruben Tejada with an illegal slide in a playoff game on Saturday, though he will appeal the decision. Major League Baseball chief baseball officer... More »
EMC Corp, the data storage company that is preparing to unveil an agreement to be acquired by personal computer maker Dell Inc [DI.UL] as early as Monday, is also planning to seek out other suitors, according to people familiar with the matter. EMC has asked f... More »
(The Sports Xchange) – Dallas Keuchel, the ace Astros left-hander, treated his first career postseason home start as he did others throughout the regular season, throwing seven strong innings in Houston’s 4-2 win over the Kansas City Royals on Sunday at Minute... More »
SHANGHAI Now is not the right time for the United States to raise interest rates, given the global economic situation, China’s Finance Minister Lou Jiwei said in an interview published in the China Business News on Monday. Speaking on the sidelines of the annu... More »
SHANGHAI China’s stock market correction is “almost over”, the official China Securities Journal quoted a senior central banker as saying. Yi Gang, deputy governor of the People’s Bank of China told an annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund and Worl... More »
Tom Brady was sacked five times in the first half, but the New England Patriots quarterback still managed to lead the defending Super Bowl champions to a 30-6 rout against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. Brady had not been sacked five times in a half since late ... More »
LIMA, Peru A senior International Monetary Fund official has urged Japan to go ahead with a sales tax hike scheduled for April 2017 to maintain its long-term fiscal credibility. Mitsuhiro Furusawa, the IMF’s deputy managing director, warned on Sunday that flex... More »
WASHINGTON A group of hard-line conservative Republicans would “look favorably” on Paul Ryan if he ran to be speaker of the House of Representatives, the group’s leader said on Sunday. The approximately 40-member House Freedom Caucus is at the center of turmoi... More »
WASHINGTON President Barack Obama said Donald Trump was “the classic reality TV character” who had tapped into something real in the Republican Party but was unlikely to end up as president. “He is a great publicity-seeker – and at a time when the Republican P... More »
SACRAMENTO, Calif. California will ban public schools from naming their sports teams “Redskins,” a name seen as a slur against Native Americans, but will not stop municipalities from naming parks and buildings for Confederate heroes, Governor Jerry Brown said ... More »
(The Sports Xchange) – Despite trailing the Seattle Seahawks by 17 points in the fourth quarter on Sunday, the Cincinnati Bengals didn’t flinch. “In our minds, as bad as it looked and as good as Seattle is, we never stopped playing” said tight end Tyler Eifert... More »
Southwest Airlines Co said hundreds of its flights were delayed because of problems on its website, phone lines and airports on Sunday. In a statement on its website, Southwest said intermittent technical issues “are impacting website performance in creating n... More »
NEW YORK The financial sector, recently a weak performer in the stock market, will garner the majority of investor attention this week as a number of big banks post their quarterly results. Goldman Sachs Group Inc, Bank of America Corp, Wells Fargo & Co, Citig... More »
MEXICO CITY Mexican telecoms regulator IFT said on Sunday that it will force Telmex to offer competitors better terms as it seeks to open up its local network, part of an effort to increase competition in a sector dominated by billionaire Carlos Slim. The move... More »
WASHINGTON A former investigator for the Republican-led U.S. House committee on Benghazi – who accused it of targeting Hillary Clinton – never expressed unhappiness about Clinton’s treatment in discussions leading up to his firing, the panel’s head said on Sun... More »
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – “Pan” walked the plank over the Columbus Day Weekend. Warner Bros. spent $150 million to bring the Neverland adventure to screens and millions more in marketing, but the big-budget fantasy mustered a puny $15.5 million opening. That... More »
BOSTON Bill Cosby testified under oath for about seven hours on Friday in response to a civil suit brought by a woman who accuses the veteran comedian of sexually abusing her when she was 15, a lawyer for the plaintiff said on Saturday. It was the first time C... More »
SAN FRANCISCO President Barack Obama poked a litte fun at rapper Kanye West on Saturday for saying he planned to run for the White House and offered some tongue-in-cheek advice on how to achieve a successful political career. “First of all, you’ve got to spend... More »
LOS ANGELES California Governor Jerry Brown on Saturday signed into law a bill that will automatically enroll citizens in the most populous U.S. state on voter rolls when they obtain or renew driver’s licenses, his office said. Lorena Gonzalez, a Democratic as... More »
POLK CITY, Fla. At a Florida retirement home for former circus elephants, residents enjoy a steady diet of high-quality hay and local fruits and vegetables, as well as baths and occasional walks. For these majestic beasts, this life of relative leisure at the ... More »
WASHINGTON A former investigator for the House of Representatives Select Committee on Benghazi is accusing the Republican-led panel of targeting Democrat Hillary Clinton to scupper her presidential bid, the New York Times and CNN reported on Saturday. They sai... More »
TOKYO A Japanese government-backed fund is considering a range of options to help turn around Sharp Corp including a direct investment, a person familiar with the matter said. A direct investment would mark a shift in thinking at the Innovation Network Corpora... More »
LOS ANGELES California Governor Jerry Brown on Saturday signed a bill that sets the strictest government standards in the United States for the use of antibiotics in livestock production. The move from California, known for its leadership on public health and ... More »
NEW YORK The governor of New York and mayor of New York City unveiled an agreement on Saturday to close a gap in funding a $26.1 billion capital plan for the region’s deteriorating mass transit system, settling their differences over how to split the cost. For... More »
Actor Randy Quaid and his wife Evi were arrested on outstanding felony warrants while attempting to cross the Canadian border into the U.S. state of Vermont, police said on Saturday. The two are being held after their arrest at the crossing along Interstate 89... More »
President Barack Obama’s administration has backed away from seeking legislation that would give U.S. law enforcement agencies access to individuals’ encrypted messages, the White House said on Saturday. “We are actively engaged with private companies to ensur... More »
The U.S. administration hopes to release the full text of a Pacific trade deal within the next 30 days, U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman said in an interview with CNN. The United States sealed the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) with 11 trading partner... More »
AUSTIN, Texas Actor Shia LaBeouf has been arrested for public intoxication in Austin, police in the Texas capital said on Saturday, the latest in a series of embarrassing incidents for the star of several “Transformers” movies. LaBeouf, 29, was taken into cust... More »
MANILA American chemist and Nobel laureate Richard Heck died in Manila on Saturday after years of illnesses that left him almost penniless, relatives of his Filipina wife said on Saturday. Heck, 84, along with Japanese Ei-ichi Negishi and Akira Suzuki, won the... More »
SHANGHAI China on Saturday published draft rules to regulate online car hailing businesses, a booming sector where U.S. firm Uber Technologies Inc [UBER.UL] and Chinese rival Didi Kuaidi have been aggressively competing for market share. The draft rules, publi... More »
LOS ANGELES The attorney representing a woman suing Bill Cosby for sexually abusing her when she was 15, will deliver an update on a deposition the comedian was scheduled to give Friday. Attorney Gloria Allred, representing accuser Judy Huth, said she will giv... More »
LOS ANGELES In a week that saw Meryl Streep speak out about equal pay and other actresses of the film “Suffragette” applaud the domestic violence protesters who invaded their premiere, the topic took center stage at a Los Angeles event on Friday. The “Power of... More »
Dell Inc is planning to use equity in cloud software company VMware Inc (VMW.N) to help pay for its acquisition of EMC Corp (EMC.N) in a deal valuing the data storage company at more than $55 billion, according to people familiar with the matter. While the bul... More »
BOSTON People who want to see New England’s colorful fall foliage no longer need to travel for the experience. A Boston-area man is offering to ship bundles of the dried up, multi-colored vegetation straight to your door for $19.99. Kyle Waring, of Somerville,... More »
NEW YORK The financial sector is expected to be a bright spot for U.S. earnings growth in the third quarter, but options traders are playing it safe by snapping up protection against any surprises. Market volatility tends to rise during earnings season, and wi... More »
ZURICH Nestle’s health science division is investing $70 million in a product technology center that will become the unit’s new U.S. headquarters and research hub, the division said on Friday. The Bridgewater, New Jersey center will further Nestle’s healthcare... More »
BEIRUT A stone’s throw from dramatic street protests shaking central Beirut, art lovers gathered to celebrate the reopening of a museum of modern art which they hailed as a symbol of the Lebanese capital’s resilience through conflict and turmoil. The Sursock M... More »
DoubleLine Capital, the investment firm with $80 billion in assets overseen by widely followed co-founder Jeffrey Gundlach, is planning two new exchange-traded funds (ETF), following the fast growth of its first such product. State Street Global Advisors, Doub... More »
The U.S. Supreme Court’s June decision to legalize same-sex marriage did not eliminate the unique financial planning needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) clients. For years, same-sex couples in domestic partnerships needed financial advisers ... More »
NEW YORK/WASHINGTON U.S. Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton on Thursday called for the breakup of large banks that take excessive risks as part of a sweeping plan to curb what she says are Wall Street abuses. Under the proposal, large financial fi... More »
WASHINGTON Space Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, has slammed a bid by United Launch Alliance, a joint venture of Lockheed Martin Corp and Boeing Co, to get a waiver from a U.S. ban on Russian rocket engines for military use. Elon Musk, the billionaire fou... More »
WASHINGTON DNA extracted from the skull of a man buried 4,500 years ago in an Ethiopian cave is providing new clarity on the ancestry of modern Africans as well as shedding light on an influx of people from the ancient Middle East into the Horn of Africa. The ... More »
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. Three years after landing in a giant Martian crater, NASA’s Curiosity rover has found what scientists call proof that the basin had repeatedly filled with water, bolstering chances for life on Mars, a study published on Thursday showed. Th... More »
Netflix Inc said on Thursday it has increased the subscription rate for some new members by $1.00 a month to $9.99 in the United States, Canada and Latin America. The price increase only affects new customers to the company’s “standard” plan, which allows two ... More »
STOCKHOLM/MINSK Belarussian author Svetlana Alexievich won the Nobel Prize for Literature on Thursday for her portrayal of the harshness of life in the Soviet Union and in her first public response denounced Russia’s intervention in Ukraine as an “invasion”. T... More »
ZURICH Swiss bank Credit Suisse plans to tap investors for a “substantial” capital raising to fund a restructuring of the bank under new Chief Executive Tidjane Thiam, the Financial Times said on Thursday. Since taking charge of Credit Suisse in July, Thiam ha... More »
MINSK The Belarussian recipient of the Nobel prize for literature charged Russia on Thursday with carrying out an “invasion” of Ukraine by backing separatists in its eastern regions. Author Svetlana Alexievich, who was awarded the prize for her portrayal of li... More »
TOKYO It’s a plot that could almost have come from Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami, the wildly popular author known for writing about disillusionment, who has been a top pick for the Nobel Literature prize for nearly a decade – in vain. To the bitter disappo... More »
Sony Corp (6758.T) is proceeding with a plan to sell its half of Sony/ATV Music Publishing, the world’s largest music publisher, the Wall Street Journal reported. Sony, which owns the unit with Michael Jackson’s estate, recently triggered a clause in its contr... More »
Gannett Co Inc, publisher of USA Today, said on Wednesday it will buy Journal Media Group for $280 million. The price of $12 a share represents an almost 45 percent premium to Journal Media’s closing share price of $8.29 Tysons Corner, Virginia-based Gannett s... More »
CHICAGO Cancer researchers are just beginning to understand the ramifications of the fundamental discoveries behind the 2015 Nobel Prizes in Chemistry, which were awarded on Wednesday to three scientists for explaining how cells repair mistakes in DNA that occ... More »
Amazon.com Inc is considering the creation of a live online TV service and has reached out to networks such as CBS Corp and Comcast’s NBCUniversal to express interest in carrying their channels, Bloomberg reported. The e-commerce giant’s talks with the network... More »
NEW YORK U.S. fund managers, hoping that a bit of Hollywood magic goes a long way in China, have been rushing to invest in IMAX Corp, best known for enormous movie screens. Prospects for growth in China, alongside upcoming releases of expected blockbusters tha... More »
The New York Times Co said it aimed to double its annual digital revenue to $800 million by 2020 with a concentrated effort to win over more readers on smartphones. The company has crossed 1 million digital subscribers and it needed to create the same “must-re... More »
LONDON Spanish artist Francisco Goya, best known now for depicting the horrors of war, was celebrated in his own time as a great portrait painter for royalty and aristocrats, generals and despots, politicians and friends. An exhibition at London’s National Gal... More »
LISBON Portugal’s president said on Tuesday he had asked Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho to begin consultations on forming a government that can ensure political stability in the euro zone nation. Passos Coelho’s center-right coalition won the most votes in... More »
London’s Savile Row, home to Britain’s top tailors, was turned into a grazing meadow on Monday, with a flock of sheep filling the street to help raise awareness of the wool industry. Traffic was halted, turf was laid out and Bowmont Merino and Exmoor Horn shee... More »
LUXEMBOURG Greece must complete the first review of agreed reforms, including the governance of its financial sector, before European creditors can pump in more money to recapitalize Greek banks, the chairman of euro zone finance ministers said. Jeroen Dijssel... More »
SYDNEY Australia, where Uber is popular but mostly illegal, offers a microcosm of the company’s global challenges. Three years after launch, the service has failed to gain government approvals in most jurisdictions, and two criminal cases that are heading to c... More »
PARIS/SINGAPORE Uber Inc’s aggressive global expansion is looking costlier and riskier than ever as the company struggles with regulatory and competitive obstacles in major markets. Just last week, the company faced a police raid on its European headquarters i... More »
LONDON The dollar nursed losses on Monday, falling around 0.4 percent against the euro and easing against a basket of currencies, after a weak U.S. jobs report drove traders to push back expectations of a Federal Reserve rate hike to early 2016. The euro’s bou... More »
KABUL Police and residents said Afghan government forces had regained control of most of the besieged city of Kunduz on Monday, and some shops in the center of the provincial capital opened for the first time since it fell to Taliban fighters a week ago.Reside... More »
BEIJING A typhoon bringing heavy rain churned inland through southern China on Monday, a day after making landfall, killing at least six people, injuring hundreds, knocking out power and overturning cars. The storm made landfall in the southern province of Gua... More »
Nelson Peltz’s Trian Fund Management has accumulated $2.5 billion in General Electric (GE.N) shares since May — a roughly 1 percent stake — making it one of the company’s top 10 shareholders, the Wall Street Journal reported. In a white paper Trian plans to di... More »
PARIS Four people were still missing on Monday after flash floods on the French Riviera killed at least 17 people over the weekend, prompting the government to declare a natural disaster in the southeastern tourist region. Some 5,000 homes were still without e... More »
HONG KONG Hong Kong’s former leader, Donald Tsang, was charged on Monday with two counts of misconduct in public office, the latest in a string of scandals that have ensnared senior business and former political figures in the financial hub. Tsang, 70, retired... More »
SEOUL Crude oil futures rose on Monday after Russia said it was ready to meet other producers to discuss the situation in the global oil market, where prices have more than halved from last year’s highs due to a persistent supply glut. A report showing a fifth... More »
BANGKOK Thailand’s military government, which took power in May last year, appointed a committee to draft the country’s 20th constitution on Monday after a previous draft was rejected, delaying promised elections until at least 2017. The junta-appointed legisl... More »
(The Sports Exchange) – According to local lore, the Mercedes-Benz Superdome is built over an old voodoo pit, and for the first 60 minutes against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday night, it looked as though the New Orleans Saints were sticking pins all over their ... More »
Troubled teen apparel retailer American Apparel Inc (APP.A) filed for voluntary chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Monday and said it had reached a restructuring support agreement with most of its secured lenders. American Apparel said it would continue to op... More »
The Seattle Sounders pulled out a final-minute 1-1 tie with the Los Angeles Galaxy on Sunday as they kept pace in Major League Soccer’s Western Conference playoff race. Chad Barrett scored in the third minute of stoppage time to snatch away a win from the Gala... More »
The task of a kicker in the National Football League (NFL) has become considerably more challenging this season, and the floundering early results have affected game outcomes and job security. When the NFL implemented a rule change in advance of this season th... More »
TOKYO Asian stocks rose on Monday as expectations for a U.S. interest rate hike this year faded after weaker-than-expected employment data. Spreadbetters forecast a higher open for Britain’s FTSE .FTSE, Germany’s DAX .GDAXI and France’s CAC .FCHI as investors ... More »
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – “The Martian” blasted off with a massive $55 million this weekend, nearly surpassing another space-based adventure, “Gravity,” as the highest-grossing October debut in history. The Ridley Scott release was bolstered by rapturous rev... More »
Ichiro Suzuki got a chance to experience life atop the mound on Sunday when the Miami Marlins let the veteran outfielder pitch the eighth inning of their season finale against Philadelphia. Ichiro, who has more than 4,000 combined hits in Japan and the major l... More »
BOSTON Eric Rosengren still expects the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates this year despite what the head of the Boston Fed called a “weak” September jobs report, which could signal a more significant economic slowdown that delays the policy tightening. ... More »
MANCHESTER, New Hampshire U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton will outline specific steps she would take to curb gun violence if elected during scheduled campaign stops in New Hampshire on Monday. Clinton spoke out forcefully in favor of new... More »
ATLANTA A dozen Pacific nations closed in on a sweeping free-trade pact on Sunday in Atlanta but failed to finalize terms on the fifth day of round-the-clock talks, dashing hopes raised by an earlier breakthrough on protections for new biotech drugs. U.S. offi... More »
NEW YORK Carly Fiorina has emerged as the Republican candidate of the moment in conservative fundraising circles, drawing the notice of the billionaire Koch brothers and other wealthy donors who could instantly remake her shoestring presidential campaign. Fior... More »
SEOUL South Korea’s central bank chief said on Monday economic growth this year will be near the 2.8 percent level the bank had forecast in July. The central bank will revise its forecasts later this month. “Domestic consumption is considered to be in recovery... More »
(The Sports Xchange) – Houston lost to Arizona 5-3 on Sunday when Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt hit a two-run homer in the seventh inning, but the Astros still managed to clinch their first playoffs berth since 2005. Houston (86-76) qualified whe... More »
TOKYO, Oct 5 – Japan’s services sector expanded in September at a much slower pace compared with the previous month as new business slackened in a sign that domestic demand ended the third quarter on a soft note. The Markit/Nikkei Japan Services Purchasing Man... More »
ATHENS Greece will unveil a painful 2016 draft budget on Monday meant to satisfy international creditors, projecting the economy will stay in recession next year before returning to growth in 2017, in line with the estimates by the country’s lenders. After sev... More »
An investigation by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) has revealed that more than 80 calls were made to ambulances by Sports Direct employees at its headquarters in Derbyshire for “life-threatening illnesses”. The figures, which came from a Freedom of... More »
Los Angeles Dodgers starter Clayton Kershaw became only the third pitcher since 2000 to post a 300-strikeout season in their 6-3 win over the San Diego Padres on Sunday. On a pitch count to prepare for the playoffs, the left-hander entered the game needing six... More »
(The Sports Xchange) – The Texas Rangers put their personal victory cigar on the mound in the biggest game of the season Sunday at Globe Life Park. Cole Hamels did not disappoint. The veteran left-hander pitched a complete-game three-hitter, and Texas clinched... More »
(The Sports Xchange) – They were already starting to think it was the “same old Jay” on Sunday at Soldier Field when he threw a fourth-quarter interception that the Oakland Raiders turned into a go-ahead field goal against Cutler’s Chicago Bears. But, despite ... More »
LONDON The world’s nine biggest insurance companies will have to hold more capital under new rules just finalised by global regulators that aim to prevent taxpayer bailouts of the industry in a crisis. Regulators decided to look at the multi-trillion dollar in... More »
WASHINGTON Former Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said in a newspaper interview published on Sunday that more corporate executives should have been prosecuted for their actions leading up to the 2008 financial crisis. Bernanke told USA Today that the U.S... More »
Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC (RR.L) may announce a reduction of 400 management jobs in its marine division this week, the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Chief Executive Warren East’s aim with the marine restructuring will be to s... More »
WASHINGTON Jason Chaffetz, a rising star among congressional Republicans, on Sunday declared a bid to become speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, complicating further an internal party struggle to replace John Boehner when he steps down. In a challeng... More »
