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| U.S. accuses Russia after Putin warning on gas supplies to Europe Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 07:21 PM PDT  By Alexei Anishchuk and Bill Trott MOSCOW/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin warned on Thursday that Russian gas supplies to Europe could be disrupted if Moscow cuts the flow to Ukraine over unpaid bills, drawing a U.S. accusation that it is using energy "as a tool of coercion". In a letter to the leaders of 18 European countries, Putin made clear that his patience would run out over Kiev's $2.2 billion gas debt to Russia unless a solution could be brokered urgently. Russia has nearly doubled the gas price it charges Ukraine, whose economy is in crisis, since pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovich was overthrown two months ago. Full Story | Top |
| Health secretary resigns after Obamacare launch woes Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 08:07 PM PDT  By Roberta Rampton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius is resigning after overseeing the botched rollout of President Barack Obama's signature healthcare law, a White House official said on Thursday. Her departure removes one lightning rod for critics as Obama and nervous Democrats try to retain control of the U.S. Senate in November midterm elections, but Republicans continue to see problems with the Affordable Care Act as a winning issue. I think it's just going to embolden Republicans," said David Yepsen, director of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University. The October 1 launch of new Obamacare health insurance marketplaces, which was plagued by computer problems that stymied access for millions of people, has been condemned by Republicans as a step toward socialized medicine. Full Story | Top |
| Malaysia Airlines search zeroing in after latest pings Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 07:35 PM PDT  By Matt Siegel and Swati Pandey SYDNEY/PERTH, Australia (Reuters) - The international effort to find a missing Malaysian jetliner was zeroing on a small patch of the Indian Ocean on Friday that officials now believe offers the best hope of solving the mystery of Flight MH370. The Australian agency overseeing the search said it would use some of the most sophisticated resources at its disposal on the small search area after a new acoustic signal, that could be from the plane's black box recorders, was detected on Thursday. The latest signal, which was captured by a listening device buoy, seems to lend credence to four previous "pings" detected by a U.S. Navy "Towed Pinger Locator" (TPL) towed by Australia's Ocean Shield vessel. "The acoustic data will require further analysis overnight but shows potential of being from a man-made source," Angus Houston, head of the Australian agency co-ordinating the search, said in a statement. Full Story | Top |
| Hillary Clinton dodges shoe during Las Vegas speech Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 06:08 PM PDT  A woman hurled a shoe at Hillary Clinton on Thursday as the former secretary of state was delivering a speech at a Las Vegas hotel, but Clinton dodged it and continued with her remarks, a U.S. Secret Service spokesman said. Secret Service spokesman George Ogilvie said the protester was not a ticketed guest for Clinton's speech at the Mandalay Bay hotel and had been spotted by Secret Service agents and hotel security guards before the incident. Full Story | Top |
| Democrats relish chance to attack Republicans over austere budget Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 06:04 PM PDT  By David Lawder WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrats in the U.S. Congress can hardly contain their glee over the latest Republican budget plan, even though they loathe the details of the blueprint that would cut programs for the poor and funding of medical research. Democrats view the document as a potent weapon in the November congressional elections and are betting that its emphasis on austerity and cuts to popular programs such as Medicare will provoke a backlash against Republicans. Crafted by Representative Paul Ryan, the leading Republican voice on fiscal policy, the budget proposes to eliminate annual deficits within 10 years. It won approval on Thursday in the Republican-dominated House of Representatives. Full Story | Top |
| GM places two engineers on leave in deadly ignition switch probe Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 05:27 PM PDT  Reuters has confirmed that the engineers are Ray DeGiorgio and Gary Altman. Also on Thursday, GM said it will take a higher-than-expected charge of $1.3 billion in the first quarter, primarily to cover the cost of recall-related repairs and courtesy transportation, compared with the previously announced $750-million charge. The automaker said U.S. dealers, in addition to replacing ignition switches on the recalled cars, will replace ignition lock cylinders because ignition keys can be removed while the engine is running. GM said it is aware of "several hundred complaints" of keys coming out of ignitions on the recalled cars, and at least one rollaway incident and crash that caused one injury, but no reported fatalities. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. judge accepts SAC guilty plea, approves $1.2 billion deal Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 07:12 PM PDT  By Nate Raymond and Emily Flitter NEW YORK (Reuters) - SAC Capital Advisors' $1.2 billion criminal settlement for insider trading received final court approval on Thursday, as a U.S. judge accepted a guilty plea from the hedge fund firm run by billionaire Steven A. Cohen. At a hearing in Manhattan federal court, U.S. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain accepted SAC Capital's guilty plea to fraud charges and payment of a $900 million fine. In total, SAC Capital has agreed to pay $1.8 billion to resolve criminal and civil probes into insider trading. Full Story | Top |
| Google to sell Glass to public next week Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 02:03 PM PDT  Google Inc will take online orders for its Glass wearable gadget on April 15, in its biggest push to get the $1,500 wraparound Web-ready glasses out to the U.S. public. For a limited time starting Tuesday, Google will make the wearable device available to more than just the select group of users such as apps developers in its Glass Explorer program. In a blogpost, Google did not say how many pairs it would sell, just that the quantity would be limited. Google has run campaigns in the past to drum up public involvement, including inviting people to tweet under the hashtag #ifihadglass for a chance to buy a pair of the glasses. Full Story | Top |
| Special Report: Flaws found in Thailand's human-trafficking crackdown Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 03:02 PM PDT  By Andrew R.C. Marshall and Amy Sawitta Lefevre SATUN, Thailand (Reuters) - After a two-hour trek through swamp and jungle, Police Major General Thatchai Pitaneelaboot halts in a trash-strewn clearing near Thailand's remote border with Malaysia. Just weeks before, says Thatchai, hundreds of Rohingya Muslim refugees from Myanmar were held captive here by one of the shadowy gangs who have turned southern Thailand into a human-trafficking superhighway. With Thatchai's help, Thailand is scrambling to show it is combating the problem. It aims to avoid a downgrade in an influential U.S. State Department annual report that ranks countries on their anti-trafficking efforts. Full Story | Top |
| Icahn backs down from demand that eBay spin off PayPal Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 01:17 PM PDT  By Deepa Seetharaman, Phil Wahba and Nadia Damouni SAN FRANCISCO/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Carl Icahn backed off calls for eBay Inc to spin out its fast-growing PayPal payments unit on Thursday, after the billionaire investor failed to drum up support from the e-commerce company's major shareholders. Icahn withdrew his two nominees to eBay's board ahead of the company's annual meeting in May. But in a concession to the famously pugnacious activist investor, eBay added David Dorman, a founding partner of investment firm Centerview Capital Technology, as a 10th independent director. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama wraps himself in civil rights legacy of President Lyndon Johnson Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 01:00 PM PDT  By Steve Holland and Karen Brooks AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - Barack Obama wrapped himself on Thursday in the civil rights legacy of Lyndon B. Johnson, the 1960s president who helped clear the way for an African-American to one day become U.S. president. Obama was joined by three former presidents this week in commemorating the 50th anniversary of the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the landmark legislation that tested Johnson's vaunted negotiating skills and took a step toward ending America's segregationist past. Speaking to a crowd at the Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library, Obama lauded the 36th U.S. president's civil rights push as "one giant man's remarkable efforts to make real the promise of our founding: 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.'" Obama, who has so far spent much of his second term as president tussling with Republican opponents, said Johnson's "Great Society" programs aimed at providing a social safety net for low-income Americans are as vital as ever and that politicians who want to dismantle them are cynical. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. judge accepts SAC guilty plea, OK's $1.2 billion deal Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 02:55 PM PDT By Nate Raymond NEW YORK (Reuters) - SAC Capital Advisors' $1.2 billion criminal settlement for insider trading received final court approval on Thursday, as a U.S. judge accepted a guilty plea from the hedge fund firm run by billionaire Steven A. Cohen. At a hearing in Manhattan federal court, U.S. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain accepted SAC Capital's guilty plea to fraud charges and payment of a $900 million fine. In total, SAC Capital has agreed to pay $1.8 billion to resolve criminal and civil probes into insider trading. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. says 'gaps narrowing' in talks between Israelis and Palestinians Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 12:37 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The State Department said on Thursday that progress was being made in U.S.-mediated negotiations between the Israelis and Palestinians meant to keep peace talks going, but denied reports from the region that there had been an agreement. "Our negotiating team and both parties remain in intensive negotiation. They had another meeting today. The gaps are narrowing but any speculations about an agreement are premature at this time," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told a regular briefing. ... Full Story | Top |
| Venezuela's Maduro, opposition to talk, unrest death toll hits 40 Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 02:12 PM PDT  By Andrew Cawthorne and Eyanir Chinea CARACAS (Reuters) - President Nicolas Maduro was due to host Venezuelan opposition leaders on Thursday at the start of mediated talks intended to stem two months of political unrest that has killed dozens in the OPEC nation. Some hardline opposition groups, including the party of jailed protest leader Leopoldo Lopez, are boycotting Thursday's scheduled talks while dozens of demonstrators remain in jail. The meeting, brokered by foreign ministers from the Unasur bloc of South American governments, was due to start at 5 p.m. at the Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas and be broadcast live on state TV. "Miraflores will tremble," said opposition leader Henrique Capriles, who narrowly lost to Maduro in last year's election to replace late socialist leader Hugo Chavez. Full Story | Top |
| GM places two engineers on leave in deadly ignition switch probe Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 01:23 PM PDT  Reuters has confirmed that the engineers are Ray DeGiorgio and Gary Altman. Also on Thursday, GM said it will take a higher-than-expected charge of $1.3 billion in the first quarter, primarily to cover the cost of recall-related repairs and courtesy transportation, compared with the previously announced $750-million charge. The automaker said U.S. dealers, in addition to replacing ignition switches on the recalled cars, will replace ignition lock cylinders because ignition keys can be removed while the engine is running. GM said it is aware of "several hundred complaints" of keys coming out of ignitions on the recalled cars, and at least one rollaway incident and crash that caused one injury, but no reported fatalities. Full Story | Top |
| Obama's health secretary resigns after Obamacare launch woes Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 04:26 PM PDT By Roberta Rampton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Kathleen Sebelius, the U.S. health secretary who oversaw the botched rollout of President Barack Obama's signature healthcare reforms, has resigned, a senior administration official said on Thursday. Obama has chosen Sylvia Mathews Burwell, his budget director, to replace Sebelius, a second official said. Obama was due to announce the change with Sebelius and Burwell at his side at a White House event at 10:45 ET on Friday. Sebelius, 65, became the public face for the problem-plagued start to the enrollment period for Obamacare, which was meant to reduce the number of Americans without health insurance and cut into massive U.S. healthcare costs. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. accuses Russia after Putin warning on gas supplies to Europe Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 01:49 PM PDT By Alexei Anishchuk and Bill Trott MOSCOW/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin warned on Thursday that Russian gas supplies to Europe could be disrupted if Moscow cuts the flow to Ukraine over unpaid bills, drawing a U.S. accusation that it is using energy "as a tool of coercion". In a letter to the leaders of 18 European countries, Putin made clear that his patience would run out over Kiev's $2.2 billion gas debt to Russia unless a solution could be brokered urgently. Russia has nearly doubled the gas price it charges Ukraine, whose economy is in crisis, since pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovich was overthrown two months ago. Russia then annexed the Ukrainian region of Crimea, provoking the biggest confrontation with the West since the Cold War. Full Story | Top |
| Jobless claims at seven-year low, signal firming economy Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 08:19 AM PDT  By Lucia Mutikani WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits tumbled last week to the lowest level in nearly seven years, strengthening views of faster job growth. Thursday's report was the latest sign of momentum in the economy after activity was hobbled by an unusually cold winter. "The return of warmer temperatures has brought with it better data. ... Full Story | Top |
| French tycoon Dassault investigated for vote-rigging Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 12:49 PM PDT  French tycoon and politician Serge Dassault was placed under formal investigation on Thursday over his alleged role in a vote-rigging scandal in the Paris suburb where he formerly served as the center-right mayor for 14 years. Dassault is the head of family-owned Groupe Dassault Holding, which controls assets ranging from aeronautics group Dassault Aviation to the right-leaning Le Figaro newspaper, as well as stakes in several major defense firms. An investigating magistrate in Paris placed the 88-year-old, also a senator for the center-right UMP party, under formal investigation over suspicions he played a role in vote-rigging, corruption, money-laundering and misuse of public funds from 2008 to 2010 in the suburb of Corbeil-Essonnes where he served as mayor from 1995 to 2009. Paris prosecutors opened an initial inquiry in March to follow up on findings from a 2010 investigation following the discovery of 2 million euros ($2.75 million) in suspicious money transfers made while Dassault was mayor. Full Story | Top |
| Facebook says WhatsApp deal cleared by FTC Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 01:12 PM PDT  By Alexei Oreskovic SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Facebook Inc said U.S. regulators have cleared its $19 billion acquisition of mobile messaging service WhatsApp, even as the Federal Trade Commission warned the two Internet companies on Thursday that they must not backtrack on commitments to user privacy. The FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, in a letter to the two companies on Thursday, said WhatsApp must adhere to its current privacy practices after the merger, including a promise not to use WhatsApp users' personal data for targeted ads. "If the acquisition is completed and WhatsApp fails to honor these promises, both companies could be in violation of Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act and, potentially, the FTC's order against Facebook," the letter from Jessica Rich, director of the consumer bureau, read. FTC spokesman Jay Mayfield said the agency does not comment on investigations. Full Story | Top |
| Russia warns Europe of gas supply cuts over Ukraine debt Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 10:05 AM PDT By Alexei Anishchuk MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin warned European leaders on Thursday Russia would cut natural gas supplies to Ukraine if it did not pay its bills and said this could lead to a reduction of onward deliveries to Europe. In a letter to the leaders of 18 countries, he demanded urgent talks with Europe on pulling Ukraine's economy out of crisis but made clear his patience was running out over Kiev's $2.2 billion gas debt to its former Soviet master. His comments were Russia's most explicit threat to cut off gas to Ukraine, a move that could worsen a dispute over Moscow's annexation of Crimea that has resulted in the worst East-West crisis since the end of the Cold war in 1991. "...Gazprom is compelled to switch over to advance payment for gas deliveries and, in the event of further violation of the conditions of payment, will completely or partially cease gas deliveries," Putin said in the letter, sent to European leaders including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose country is the largest consumer of Russian gas in the 28-nation EU. Full Story | Top |
| New 'pings' stoke optimism for Malaysia plane hunt Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 04:31 AM PDT  By Matt Siegel and Swati Pandey SYDNEY/PERTH, Australia (Reuters) - A new acoustic signal was detected in the hunt for Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 on Thursday, further boosting confidence that officials are zeroing in on the missing plane after weeks of searching. The signal, which could be from the plane's black box recorders, brings to five the number of "pings" detected in recent days within the search area in the Indian Ocean. The first four signals were detected by a U.S. Navy "Towed Pinger Locator" (TPL) aboard Australia's Ocean Shield vessel, while the latest was reported by an aircraft picking up transmissions from a listening device buoy laid near the ship on Wednesday. "Whilst conducting an acoustic search this afternoon a RAAF AP-3C Orion aircraft has detected a possible signal in the vicinity of the Australian Defence Vessel Ocean Shield," Angus Houston, head of the Australian agency co-ordinating the search, said in a statement. Full Story | Top |
| Cash-strapped France to sell $48 million New York apartment of its U.N. envoy Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 10:30 AM PDT By Curtis Skinner NEW YORK (Reuters) - The French government, which earlier this week unveiled sweeping spending cuts, is selling the luxurious New York residence of its envoy to the United Nations, an 18-room duplex apartment featuring five fireplaces and a view of Park Avenue. The French Foreign Affairs Ministry is looking for $48 million for the apartment, located in a ritzy Manhattan building that has been home to famous and wealthy Americans, among whom were the late Jackie Kennedy and American financier John D. Rockefeller Jr. The six-bedroom apartment has a private elevator and curved staircase linking its two floors. "It contributes to the ministry's efforts towards more efficient management of property," Dana Purcarescu, spokesperson for the French Embassy in the United States, said in an email. France's new prime minister, Manuel Valls, earlier this week unveiled a broad program of tax and spending cuts intended to bring the nation's deficit down. Full Story | Top |
| Congress turns GM probe focus to engineers, considers legislation Thursday, Apr 10, 2014 08:29 AM PDT  By Richard Cowan WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers investigating General Motors' slow recall of 2.6 million cars are zeroing in on engineers and others who may have been aware of problems with ignition switches linked to at least 13 deaths. One month after congressional committees launched formal probes into why it took GM more than a decade to respond to ignition switch safety defects with the recall, lawmakers still do not know exactly how company engineers initially reacted to the problem or whether senior executives were made aware of it. ... Full Story | Top |
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