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| U.S. watchdog raps Pentagon for buying aircraft for Afghan unit Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 09:06 PM PDT By David Alexander WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A government watchdog criticized the Pentagon on Friday for forging ahead with controversial helicopter purchases from a Russian arms dealer despite warnings the Afghan special forces unit due to receive the aircraft could not fly or maintain them. The watchdog - the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction - urged the Pentagon to suspend the $553 million Russian arms deal as well as a $218 million contract for 18 planes from a U.S. firm until plans were in place to fully recruit and train the Afghan special forces unit. ... Full Story | Top |
| Sony says Dubai dealers sold Iran $12.8 million in equipment Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 08:55 PM PDT  (Reuters) - Sony Corp said some dealers in Dubai resold about $12.8 million worth of its video equipment and medical instruments to Iranian ministries, in a move that could possibly attract U.S. penalties. The dealers resold some equipment to Iran's broadcasting unit and health ministry, and some also planned to sell equipment to the information technology department of the country's police, the firm said in a filing with the U.S. regulator. ... Full Story | Top |
| Japan business mood seen turning positive: BOJ tankan Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 08:44 PM PDT  By Leika Kihara TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese manufacturers' sentiment turned positive in the three months to June for the first time in nearly two years, a closely-watched central bank survey is likely to show on Monday in a sign recent market turbulence has yet to hurt the feel-good mood created by the government's reflationary policies. The Bank of Japan's "tankan" survey will likely show the headline index for big manufacturers' sentiment improved 11 points from three months ago to plus 3, according to a Reuters poll. ... Full Story | Top |
| UK consumer morale hits two-year high in June - GfK Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 08:39 PM PDT  LONDON (Reuters) - British consumer morale has risen to its highest level in just over two years this month, boosted by increasing optimism about the economy and a greater willingness among households to splash out on big purchases. Market research company GfK said on Friday that its monthly consumer confidence index rose to -21 in June from -22 in May. That was its highest level since May 2011 and matched expectations in a Reuters poll. The data adds to signs from industry surveys that Britain's still-weak economy is gaining steam. The Bank of England forecasts 0. ... Full Story | Top |
| San Diego protester faces vandalism charges for sidewalk chalk drawings Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 08:27 PM PDT By Marty Graham SAN DIEGO (Reuters) - A protester is standing trial on criminal vandalism charges in San Diego, and faces a sentence of up to 13 years in prison if convicted, for a scribbling a series of anti-bank slogans in chalk on a city sidewalk. Mayor Bob Filner has denounced the prosecution of Jeff Olson, 40, a man with no previous criminal record, as a waste of taxpayer money and an abuse of power that infringes on First Amendment free speech protections in the U.S. Constitution. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama has short list of potential Bernanke successors: source Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 08:22 PM PDT  By Steve Holland WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House has assembled a short list of candidates to succeed Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, a source familiar with the process said on Thursday, and U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew is running the search. Bernanke is expected to leave when his second term as head of the central bank ends on January 31, after an eventful eight years in helping the U.S. economy recover from the worst recession since the Great Depression. ... Full Story | Top |
| Massachusetts police seek man in murder probe of ex-NFL star Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 08:08 PM PDT  BOSTON (Reuters) - Massachusetts State Police are seeking a man named Ernest Wallace in connection with a murder case against ex-NFL star Aaron Hernandez, the Bristol County District Attorney's Office said in a release late on Thursday. Wallace, 44, is believed to be an "accessory after the fact" in the killing of Odin Lloyd, 27, a semi-pro football player whose body was found June 17 near Hernandez's house in North Attleborough, about 40 miles south of Boston, the release said. Hernandez was charged with Lloyd's murder and fired by the New England Patriots football team on Wednesday. ... Full Story | Top |
| Japan prices stop falling but BOJ inflation goal seen a tall order Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 08:02 PM PDT  By Tetsushi Kajimoto and Kaori Kaneko TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's consumer prices stopped falling in May and labor demand reached its strongest level in five years, but the Bank of Japan's time frame for achieving a 2 percent inflation target still appears unlikely. Industrial output rose at its fastest pace since 2011, in a sign of strength in the corporate sector, but an unexpected fall in household spending may raise some concerns about activity. ... Full Story | Top |
| Colorado theater gunman to be tethered to courtroom floor for trial Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 07:58 PM PDT  By Keith Coffman DENVER (Reuters) - A Colorado judge ruled on Thursday that accused theater gunman James Holmes will tethered to the courtroom floor by a cable for security reasons during his murder trial, but denied a defense request to sequester the jury. Holmes is charged with multiple counts of first-degree murder and attempted murder stemming from a shooting rampage last July that killed 12 moviegoers during a midnight screening of the Batman film "The Dark Knight Rises" at a suburban Denver cinema. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama heads to South Africa with Mandela on his mind Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 07:06 PM PDT  By Jeff Mason and Mark Felsenthal DAKAR (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama heads to South Africa on Friday hoping to see ailing icon Nelson Mandela, after wrapping up a visit to Senegal that focused on improving food security and promoting democratic institutions. Obama is in the middle of a three-country tour of Africa that the White House hopes will compensate for what some view as years of neglect by the administration of America's first black president. ... Full Story | Top |
| Leader of leftist party in Mexico's Oaxaca state found dead Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 06:31 PM PDT MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - The dead body of a top leader of Mexico's Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD) for southern Oaxaca state was found on Thursday and police are investigating his death as a homicide, the state attorney general's office said. Nicolas Estrada, president of the PRD's state council in Oaxaca, one of the leftist party's strongholds, likely died several days before his body was found, officials said. ... Full Story | Top |
| Former senior U.S. general targeted over leak investigation: report Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 06:20 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Retired U.S. General James Cartwright is the target of a Justice Department investigation into the leaking of secret information about the Stuxnet virus attack on Iranian nuclear facilities in 2010, NBC News reported on Thursday, citing unidentified legal sources. NBC said Cartwright, once the second highest ranking officer in the U.S. military, is being probed over the leaked information about the computer virus, which temporarily disabled 1,000 centrifuges used by Iran to enrich uranium, setting back its nuclear program. ... Full Story | Top |
| Michael Jackson's nephew says singer happy in final days Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 06:20 PM PDT  By Dana Feldman LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Michael Jackson's nephew and co-guardian to his three children testified on Thursday in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the late pop star's family that the "Thriller" singer appeared happy at a family party about month before his death in 2009. "He was in a good mood, he was happy, making jokes," T.J. Jackson, 34, the son of Jackson 5 member Tito Jackson, told jurors in a Los Angeles courtroom about the last time he saw the self-styled "King of Pop." "We talked primarily about the children," T.J. said. "I wanted to have more kids, so did he. ... Full Story | Top |
| Europe clinches deals on banks, budget, youth jobless Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 06:08 PM PDT  By Luke Baker and Paul Taylor BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European leaders agreed on new steps to fight youth unemployment and promote lending to credit-starved small business on Thursday after deals on banking resolution and the long-term EU budget gave their summit a much needed lift. The 27 leaders resolved to spend 6 billion euros over the next two years to support job creation, training and apprenticeships for young people, and to raid unspent EU budget funds to keep the effort going thereafter. ... Full Story | Top |
| British rebate fears allayed to seal budget deal Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 05:48 PM PDT  By Charlie Dunmore and Luke Baker BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European leaders unanimously backed a deal on the EU's long-term budget at a late-night summit, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy said on Friday, after British concerns over its long-cherished budget rebate were soothed. "When it comes to the EU budget, there is full agreement in the European Council," Van Rompuy told a news conference, allaying concerns that the nearly 1 trillion euro package of spending measures could be derailed by a last-minute hitch. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama's environmental nominee in jeopardy from Senate Republicans Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 05:38 PM PDT  By Valerie Volcovici WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama made a plea this week for the U.S. Senate to confirm his choice to head the agency that will oversee the core of his new climate change plan, but nominee Gina McCarthy's prospects seem increasingly in doubt. McCarthy was nominated by Obama in March to lead the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency where she is currently the top air quality official. She has yet to receive a vote in the full U.S. Senate after narrowly being approved by the Senate Committee for the Environment and Public Works on a party-line vote. ... Full Story | Top |
| Senate immigration bill stirs hope for Arizona migrants Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 05:35 PM PDT By Tim Gaynor PHOENIX (Reuters) - For undocumented immigrants who fear arrest each day they go to work in Arizona, the passage on Thursday of a landmark U.S. Senate immigration bill has renewed hope they may one day emerge from the shadows - but that dream might be short lived given the bill's slim chances of passing the House of Representatives. "It's incredible ... ... Full Story | Top |
| Costa Rica probes soapy money-laundering link to Venezuela Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 05:12 PM PDT By Isabella Cota SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (Reuters) - Costa Rica said on Thursday it was investigating two men suspected of laundering money for Venezuelan government firms after detecting a shady scheme to buy millions of bars of soap. Investigators in the Central American nation said they had frozen at least $15.5 million in bank accounts belonging to a Costa Rican lawyer and a Venezuelan who had made suspicious transactions for a company owned by Venezuela's government. ... Full Story | Top |
| Wall Street watchdog scraps controversial supervision plan Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 05:04 PM PDT By Suzanne Barlyn (Reuters) - Wall Street's industry-funded watchdog has scrapped a controversial plan that would have required brokerages to supervise business lines that are not related to the securities industry, according to a recent regulatory filing. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, in a long-awaited proposal that would streamline rules for how brokerages should supervise themselves, dropped the idea it had initially proposed to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in 2011. ... Full Story | Top |
| Senate passes sweeping immigration legislation Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 04:59 PM PDT  By Richard Cowan and Thomas Ferraro WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate approved a landmark immigration bill on Thursday that would provide millions of undocumented immigrants a chance to become citizens, but the leader of the House of Representatives said the measure was dead on arrival in the House. In a rare show of bipartisanship, the Democratic-controlled Senate passed the bill by a vote of 68-32, with 14 of the Senate's 46 Republicans joining all 52 Democrats and two independents in support of the bill. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. charges Chinese wind company with stealing trade secrets Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 04:59 PM PDT Msc.oLOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Chinese wind turbine maker Sinovel Wind Group Co and two of its employees were charged with stealing trade secrets from U.S.-based AMSC by the Department of Justice (DoJ) on Thursday. A federal grand jury in the Western District of Wisconsin returned an indictment leveling theft charges on Sinovel, two of its employees and a former employee of AMSC, a Devens, Massachusetts-based company that provided wind turbine design, engineering services and power electronics and controls to Sinovel. Authorities said the theft allegedly cost AMSC $800 million. ... Full Story | Top |
| One dead as Egypt simmers ahead of rallies Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 04:50 PM PDT  By Alastair Macdonald and Yasmine Saleh CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's ruling Muslim Brotherhood said one man was shot dead and four wounded in an attack on a provincial party office, stoking factional rivalries ahead of mass rallies starting on Friday. It blamed activists who are campaigning to force President Mohamed Mursi to resign as he marks his first year in office. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama has short list to succeed Federal Reserve chairman Bernanke Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 04:47 PM PDT By Steve Holland WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House has assembled a short list of candidates to succeed Federal Reserve Bank chairman Ben Bernanke, a source familiar with the process said, and U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew is running the search. Bernanke is expected to leave when his second term ends on January 31, after an eventful eight years in helping the U.S. economy recover from the worst recession since the Great Depression. ... Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive: Justice Department probing American, US Airways merger Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 04:40 PM PDT  By Diane Bartz and Karen Jacobs WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department is taking depositions as part of a probe into a planned merger of American Airlines Inc and US Airways Group Inc that would create the world's largest airline, three sources close to the discussions told Reuters. The sticking point in talks between the Justice Department and the companies is whether the airlines will agree to sell slots, take off and landing rights, to reduce their dominance at Reagan National Airport outside Washington, D.C., according to one source. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama jabs Russia, China on failure to extradite Snowden Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 04:33 PM PDT  By Jeff Mason and Mark Felsenthal DAKAR (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama said on Thursday he would not start "wheeling and dealing" with China and Russia over a U.S. request to extradite former American spy agency contractor Edward Snowden. Obama, who appeared concerned that the case would overshadow his three-country tour of Africa begun in Senegal, also dismissed suggestions that the United States might try to intercept Snowden if he were allowed to leave Moscow by air. ... Full Story | Top |
| Defense challenges testimony of woman on phone with Trayvon Martin Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 04:32 PM PDT  By Barbara Liston SANFORD, Florida (Reuters) - A woman who was on the phone with unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin moments before he was shot by a neighborhood watchman rejected attempts by a lawyer in a Florida court to depict Martin as the aggressor in a struggle that ended in his death. A former resident of the gated community where Martin was killed also testified on Thursday that she saw the watch volunteer, George Zimmerman, on top of Martin during the fatal encounter. ... Full Story | Top |
| CFTC charges Corzine in MF Global collapse Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 04:23 PM PDT  By Douwe Miedema WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A top U.S. regulator charged former MF Global chief Jon Corzine over the collapse of the futures brokerage, blaming the former Goldman Sachs co-chief executive with being a key actor in one of the country's 10 biggest bankruptcies. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission said on Thursday it will seek in a civil case to ban Corzine and former Assistant Treasurer Edith O'Brien from the industry, and also seek penalties against the two. "Mr. ... Full Story | Top |
| Iowa mass murderer commits suicide in prison Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 04:20 PM PDT By Kay Henderson DES MOINES (Reuters) - An Iowa man who killed seven people in what Sioux City police described as the worst mass murder spree in city history has hanged himself in his cell at a state prison, state corrections department officials said on Thursday. Adam Matthew Moss, 35, was found on Wednesday evening hanging with one end of a bed sheet around his neck and the other end tied to a wall vent in his cell at a clinical care unit, the department said. The death was being ruled a suicide, said Fred Scaletta, assistant director of the Iowa Department of Corrections. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama taps Ron Binz to lead energy regulatory body Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 04:17 PM PDT By Ros Krasny WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama has tapped renewable energy advocate Ron Binz as chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the agency that has made headlines in the past year with tough enforcement actions against Wall Street banks. Binz, a Democrat, was named as a commissioner of the regulator and if confirmed by the U.S. Senate would be designated as chairman, the White House said. He would succeed Jon Wellinghoff, who announced his resignation in May. ... Full Story | Top |
| Jurors may hear dying woman's words at Fort Hood trial Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 04:10 PM PDT  By Jim Forsyth SAN ANTONIO (Reuters) - Jurors in the trial of accused Fort Hood gunman Major Nidal Hasan will be allowed to hear the dying words of Private First Class Francheska Velez, who was six weeks pregnant when she was shot dead in the rampage, a military judge ruled on Thursday. Velez, who was 21 and expecting her first child, screamed, "My baby, My baby" when she was shot during the November 2009 attack that killed 13 and wounded 32. Her words may be read to jurors, Colonel Tara Osborn ruled. ... Full Story | Top |
| Britain plans world's first go-ahead for '3-parent' IVF babies Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 04:04 PM PDT By Kate Kelland, Health and Science Correspondent LONDON (Reuters) - Britain is planning to become the first country in the world to offer controversial "three-parent" fertility treatments to families who want to avoid passing on incurable diseases to their children. The methods, currently only at the research stage in laboratories in Britain and the United States, would for the first time involve implanting genetically modified embryos into women, and raise serious ethical questions. ... Full Story | Top |
| What an NSA charm offensive looks like Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 04:02 PM PDT  By Jack Shafer (Reuters) - Banged and bruised in the press over the NSA secrets liberated by Edward Snowden and serialized in the Guardian and the Washington Post, the national security establishment resorted to a little media offense earlier this week with a series of conversations with major news outlets. As media blitzes go, it was sedate and vague. The "natsec" establishment made its first landing in the Washington Post's June 25 print edition, where two unnamed senior intelligence officials speculated about the damage done to U.S. national security by the leaks ("U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| Factbox: Snowden: a tale of security lapses and other U.S. errors Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 03:53 PM PDT (Reuters) - Edward Snowden's disclosure of U.S. surveillance programs and the ease with which he slipped out of the country have raised questions about the U.S. government's handling of his case at crucial moments, some stretching back years. Here are some key areas of concern that have emerged following the leaks by Snowden, who most recently worked as a contractor for the U.S. National Security Agency: 2011 BACKGROUND CHECK Snowden's 2011 background investigation, to renew his security clearance when he was working as a private U.S. government contractor, is under scrutiny. ... Full Story | Top |
| Detroit emergency manager steps up pace in city restructuring Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 03:38 PM PDT  By Nick Carey (Reuters) - Detroit's emergency manager issued a flurry of announcements on Thursday addressing union contracts, power distribution and an errant council president as he steps up the pace of efforts to tackle the city's massive $18.5 billion debt problem. Kevyn Orr stripped City Council President Charles Pugh of his authority and pay, terminated two union contracts that were about to expire so as to allow room to renegotiate them and announced an agreement with power company DTE Energy Co. to take over power distribution to local institutions, including the public school system. ... Full Story | Top |
| Some big cities at risk of another housing bubble:Shiller Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 03:35 PM PDT  By Tim Reid (Reuters) - Dramatic home price gains in some of America's largest cities point to a potentially new housing bubble in those areas, according to Robert Shiller, who helped create a closely watched gauge of U.S. housing prices. Shiller said big price gains in Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Miami and Phoenix, fueled in part by a large influx of outside investor money, are a possible sign of trouble ahead. "There is a risk of bubbles in these cities," Shiller, a co-founder of the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index, told Reuters on Wednesday. ... Full Story | Top |
| Canada's BCE wins regulatory approval for C$3 billion Astral bid Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 03:21 PM PDT By Louise Egan and Alastair Sharp OTTAWA/TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's broadcast regulator on Thursday approved a C$3 billion ($2.86 billion) bid by BCE Inc , the country's biggest telecoms company, to take over Astral Media Inc , a deal that will give BCE more control over content it distributes to television, computer and mobile screens. The deal, expected to help BCE better compete with rival Quebecor Inc in their home province of Quebec, adds premium movie channels and French-language content to BCE's existing media assets. ... Full Story | Top |
| Accused mobster Bulger swears at ex-FBI agent in court Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 03:19 PM PDT  By Daniel Lovering BOSTON (Reuters) - Accused mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger cursed at a former FBI supervisor in court on Thursday and called him a liar as the prosecution witness described how Bulger got special treatment for being a government snitch. Retired Agent John Morris detailed a cozy relationship between a corrupted FBI and Bulger's gangsters during the 1980s that included dinner parties, envelopes of cash and favors that kept Winter Hill Gang members out of jail and agents flush. "You're a fucking liar," Bulger said, as Morris testified. ... Full Story | Top |
| NSA chief says agency eavesdropping helped foil 54 plots Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 03:16 PM PDT By Deborah Charles and Mark Hosenball BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The director of the U.S. National Security Agency on Thursday offered a more detailed breakdown of 54 schemes by militants that he said were disrupted by phone and internet surveillance, even as a British newspaper offered evidence of more extensive spying. In a speech in Baltimore, NSA chief General Keith Alexander said the list of cases turned over recently to Congress included 42 that involved disrupted plots and 12 in which surveillance targets provided material support to terrorism. ... Full Story | Top |
| At least 22 killed as bombs tear through coffee shops in Iraq Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 03:15 PM PDT  BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Bombs exploded in busy coffee shops and at other targets across Iraq late on Thursday, killing at least 22 people, police and medics said. In north and south Baghdad, two blasts tore through cafes where scores of young men had gathered to watch a televised football match, killing eight people, police and medical sources said. Two other explosions killed 10 people in coffee shops in the city of Baquba, about 50 km (30 miles) northeast of Baghdad, police said. ... Full Story | Top |
| Ecuador offers U.S. rights aid, waives trade benefits Thursday, Jun 27, 2013 03:12 PM PDT By Alexandra Valencia and Brian Ellsworth QUITO (Reuters) - Ecuador's leftist government thumbed its nose at Washington on Thursday by renouncing U.S. trade benefits and offering to pay for human rights training in America in response to pressure over asylum for former intelligence contractor Edward Snowden. The angry response threatens a showdown between the two nations over Snowden, and may burnish President Rafael Correa's credentials to be the continent's principal challenger of U.S. power after the death of Venezuelan socialist leader Hugo Chavez. ... Full Story | Top |
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