All posts published in November 2015
ROMEWater coursed back into Rome’s Trevi Fountain for the first time in over a year on Tuesday as the city showed off the latest privately-funded restoration of its prized landmarks. The stone rendering of Tritons guiding the shell chariot of water god Oceanus... More »
CAIRO Iraq’s parliament voted on Monday to bar the government from passing key reforms without its approval in an effort to restrict Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, parliamentarians said. The chamber took the step after Abadi unilaterally passed reforms in Aug... More »
HONG KONG MSCI (MSCI.N) will begin to add overseas-listed Chinese shares to its emerging market indexes this month, drawing billions of dollars into such stocks, which could eventually lead to mainland-listed companies finding their way into global equity port... More »
ST PETERSBURG The first bodies from a plane crash in Egypt in which all 224 passengers, most of them Russians, died over the weekend arrived in St Petersburg early on Monday morning aboard a Russian government plane. The crashed Airbus A321 plane, operated by ... More »
SEOUL Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told South Korea’s president on Monday he wanted cooperation between the two countries and the United States in maintaining an open and peaceful South China Sea, a Japanese government spokesman said. Abe has in the past... More »
SEOUL South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed on Monday to try to resolve as soon as possible a row over “comfort women” forced into prostitution in Japanese wartime military brothels, a feud that has been a major obs... More »
SEOUL The U.S. and South Korean defense chiefs urged North Korea on Monday to immediately cease all activities related to its nuclear program and said they will have no tolerance for any military provocation by Pyongyang. U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter and ... More »
ANKARA Turkey’s Islamist-rooted AK Party swept to an unexpected victory in elections on Sunday, returning the country to single-party rule in an outcome that will boost the power of President Tayyip Erdogan but may sharpen deep social divisions. With almost al... More »
ASTANA U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will visit London this week to discuss the situation in Syria and other matters, his spokesman said on Monday. “While in London, he will meet with British Foreign Secretary Hammond to discuss a range of bilateral and g... More »
LONDON The U.S. dollar fell on Monday, as appetite for risk waned amid downbeat Chinese factory surveys, which also lent support to the low-yielding euro and the safe-haven yen. Demand for both currencies has risen in recent times when worry about a sharp Chin... More »
NEW YORK Kansas City ended a 30-year wait for a World Series title as the Royals reigned over Major League Baseball with a 7-2, 12-inning victory over the New York Mets on Sunday. A pinch-hit single by utility infielder Christian Colon scored the go-ahead run ... More »
NEW YORK Royals starter Edinson Volquez did not figure in the decision in Sunday’s World Series-clinching victory over the New York Mets but his Kansas City team mates were moved by his performance. Volquez gave up two runs, one earned, on two hits in six inni... More »
SYDNEY Activity in China’s colossal factory sector shrank in October as global demand stuttered, reinforcing the case for more stimulus and questioning whether the Federal Reserve can be confident enough to raise U.S. interest rates this year. A crop of indust... More »
LONDON Turkish Airlines Open champion Victor Dubuisson is less than pleased that he will be left twiddling his thumbs when the European Tour’s money-spinning Final Series continues in China on Thursday. The Frenchman sobbed like a child on Sunday after winning... More »
SINGAPORE Oil prices dropped in Asian trading hours on Monday as analysts expected weaker demand from China in upcoming months, but firming Japanese economic data offered some support. Benchmark U.S. crude futures CLc1 had fallen 15 cents from their last settl... More »
NEW YORK New York Mets manager Terry Collins let his emotions get the best of him on Sunday, and the team gave up another lead late as they lost the World Series to the Kansas City Royals. “I let my heart get in the way of my gut. I love my players,” Collins s... More »
KANSAS CITY, Mo. Jubilant Kansas City Royals fans poured onto the streets of Missouri’s largest city on Sunday to celebrate a World Series triumph that marked a first Major League Baseball championship in 30 years. The Game Five 7-2 road win in 12 innings over... More »
NEW YORK Kansas City catcher Salvador Perez was named the most valuable player of the World Series after the Royals clinched Major League Baseball’s Fall Classic with a 7-2 win over the New York Mets on Sunday. The 25-year-old Venezuelan delivered rock solid d... More »
TOKYO Asian stocks slid to their lowest level in nearly three weeks on Monday, as profit taking set in after soft Chinese factory surveys and U.S. consumer spending data raised concerns over the global economic outlook. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific sh... More »
While standout quarterback Peyton Manning has remained the focal point for the Broncos, Denver’s league-best defense has quietly been the pillar of their growing status as Super Bowl contenders. Denver’s defensive unit was on full display on Sunday when they d... More »
(The Sports Xchange) – Forward Dirk Nowitzki scored 25 points and grabbed nine rebounds, and the Dallas Mavericks defeated the Los Angeles Lakers for the eighth consecutive time, rolling to a 103-93 victory Sunday night at Staples Center. Center Zaza Pachulia ... More »
WASHINGTON Battered by weeks of negative headlines, Republican Jeb Bush launches a campaign reboot on Monday with a “Jeb Can Fix It” tour and release of an e-book that reveals a more personal side to a 2016 candidate who has struggled on the public stage. Bush... More »
(The Sports Xchange) – Hassan Whiteside scored 25 points to lead the Miami Heat to a 109-89 comeback victory over the Houston Rockets on Sunday. Guard Dwyane Wade finished with 20 points for the Heat, who trailed by as many as 21 points early in the third peri... More »
NASHVILLE, Tenn. Fred Thompson, a former Republican U.S. senator from Tennessee who briefly ran for president and straddled the world of politics and entertainment with a prolific television and film acting career, died of cancer on Sunday at age 73. Thompson,... More »
NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc said on Sunday it had closed all its restaurants in two West Coast markets due to a reported outbreak of E. coli bacteria that is being investigated by the company and health authorities. “After being notified by... More »
BEIJING China’s factory activity fell for an eighth straight month in October but at a slower pace as export orders flickered into life, a private survey showed on Monday, pointing to continued sluggishness in the world’s second-largest economy. The Caixin/Mar... More »
BEIJING Activity in China’s manufacturing sector unexpectedly contracted in October for a third straight month, an official survey showed on Sunday, fuelling fears the economy may still be losing momentum in the fourth quarter despite a raft of stimulus measur... More »
BEIJING Growth in Chinese new home prices quickened in October from a year ago, two private surveys showed, adding to signs of stabilization in the housing market after a raft of government support measures. Prices of new homes in 288 cities rose an average 1.... More »
WASHINGTON Representatives from Republican presidential campaigns on Sunday demanded a more active role in negotiations with TV networks over how presidential debates are conducted and sought a more limited role for the Republican National Committee. Officials... More »
Wireless carrier Sprint Corp S.N. said on Sunday it aims to slash fiscal 2016 expenses by as much as $2.5 billion, through layoffs and a wide array of cost controls, as an essential part of its ongoing turnaround efforts. “We are leaving no stone unturned and ... More »
TOKYO Nov 2 Japanese manufacturing activity in October expanded at the fastest pace in a year as new domestic and export orders increased, a private business survey showed on Monday. The Markit/Nikkei Japan Final Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) r... More »
FRANKFURT Greece’s banks need to raise more than 14 billion euros (10 billion pounds) of extra capital to cover mounting unpaid loans, the European Central Bank said on Saturday as it announced the results of stress tests intended to rehabilitate Greek lenders... More »
WASHINGTON Wisconsin Republican Paul Ryan can add one more burning issue to his agenda as the new speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives: how to get rid of the stench of cigarette smoke. Ryan said on Sunday he has been trying to come up with ways to remo... More »
WASHINGTON House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan on Sunday ruled out working with President Barack Obama on overhauling U.S. immigration policy, saying it would be “a ridiculous notion” to pursue legislation because Obama cannot be trusted on the issue. R... More »
WASHINGTON Republican presidential candidates accused President Barack Obama on Sunday of showing weakness in U.S. policy in Syria, doubting that his small deployment of special operations troops will make much difference without a coherent broader strategy. “... More »
WASHINGTON Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush pressed his attack on rival Marco Rubio’s record of missed Senate votes, saying it showed Rubio had “given up” on breaking through the political gridlock in Washington. Bush questioned whether Rubio, a U.S.... More »
NEW YORK The former leaders of New York’s two legislative chambers face simultaneous public corruption trials this month in a Manhattan federal courthouse, shining a spotlight on the sordid side of state politics. Former New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon... More »
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Illustrating the limits of star power, “Our Brand is Crisis” and “Burnt” were both roundly rejected by audiences despite the presence of Sandra Bullock and Bradley Cooper. “Our Brand is Crisis,” a political satire about a spin-docto... More »
WASHINGTON Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush said he is conflicted about the death penalty and wants to see reforms in how it is implemented. Bush, in an interview taped for broadcast on Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” said executions can provide cl... More »
LONDON Three of Europe’s top drugmakers – GlaxoSmithKline, Roche and Sanofi – face health checks this week at high-profile presentations designed to show they can overcome looming market threats. The unusual confluence of investor days comes at a testing time ... More »
LOS ANGELES Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Lawrence said on Saturday that her recent critique of the gender pay gap in Hollywood raised as many questions about herself, and her willingness to be assertive, as it did about bias in the U.S. film industry. “It wa... More »
