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| U.S. Navy mulls options to help drones avoid other planes Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 07:02 PM PDT  The U.S. Navy said on Tuesday it continued to examine options for a system to help Northrop Grumman Corp's new MQ-4 Triton high-altitude unmanned spy plane detect and avoid other aircraft, and expected to decide on a new approach in less than a year. The Navy last year halted work on a complex "sense and avoid" radar being developed by Exelis Inc after the company ran into technical challenges in trying to develop a system small enough to fit on the nose of the drone. Sean Burke, deputy program manager for the Triton program, told reporters at an annual Navy League conference that the Triton was making good progress in flight testing and development, but it had proven technically challenging to scale down the complex, 360-degree radar needed for the new sensor. Full Story | Top |
| Kazakhstan nervous of tougher Russia/Ukraine oil sanctions Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 06:23 PM PDT By Raushan Nurshayeva and Alla Afanasyeva ASTANA/MOSCOW (Reuters) - Kazakhstan, which has backed close ally Russia's actions in Ukraine, is seeking alternative routes for its oil exports which may fall if the West decides to toughen sanctions against Russia, a major transit route of Kazakh crude to world markets. A vast steppe nation of 17 million, Kazakhstan is Central Asia's largest economy and the second-largest post-Soviet oil producer after Russia, with which it participates in a customs union and plans to form the Eurasian Economic Union this year. Russia's annexation of Crimea in neighboring Ukraine has so far only elicited targeted sanctions against certain Russian and Ukrainian individuals and many believe major crude producer Russia's key position in world energy markets makes heavier sanctions very unlikely. Full Story | Top |
| Ukraine to get help from new EU support group Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 06:23 PM PDT The European Union plans to set up a special support group to help Ukraine stabilize its precarious economy and political situation, an EU diplomat said on Tuesday. Concern is growing that Moscow could be preparing for further military action in Ukraine and on Tuesday U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry accused Russian agents and special forces of stirring separatist unrest in eastern Ukraine. The support group, whose creation is expected to be announced on Wednesday, would bring together "several dozen people" to work out priorities for Ukraine, an EU diplomat said, asking not to be named. Full Story | Top |
| GM is late delivering ignition switch fix to dealers Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 04:19 PM PDT  General Motors Co is running two days behind Chief Executive Mary Barra's plan to begin shipping replacement ignition switches in its massive recall, dealerships and the company said on Tuesday. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also said on Tuesday that GM had missed an April 3 deadline to respond to the agency's request for information about the recall. GM said it was cooperating fully. The automaker, which recalled 2.6 million vehicles including the Chevrolet Cobalt, Saturn Ion and other models, said no parts to dealerships had been shipped as of late Tuesday afternoon. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. fines GM for not answering recall questions Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 03:48 PM PDT  General Motors is being fined $7,000 a day for missing an April 3 deadline to provide information about its recall of 2.6 million cars for defective ignition switches, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said on Tuesday. In a letter to GM, NHTSA said the automaker had been fined $28,000 so far and would be subject to daily fines until it answers all 107 questions the agency asked in its investigation. GM said in a statement it had "fully cooperated" with NHTSA. The automaker said it had sent more than 271,000 pages of documents to the agency and would provide additional documents "as soon as they become available." The NHTSA said the automaker had not responded to over a third of its questions by the April 3 deadline. Full Story | Top |
| Libya not in full control of re-opened eastern port Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 02:56 PM PDT By Julia Payne TRIPOLI (Reuters) - Libya's oil protection force is not in full control of the Zueitina port as some militiamen are still at the facility following a deal to end their blockade of eastern oil terminals, a Petroleum Facilities Guard spokesman said late on Tuesday. The port, along with the country's two largest, Es Sider and Ras Lanuf, has been under the control of an eastern federalist group led by former guard member Ibrahim al-Jathran, who recruited men from within his ranks. A deal was brokered over the weekend to reopen two of the small blocked ports, and while workers have been allowed entry, the former Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG) members that followed Jathran are still there, hoping to rejoin the force that they deserted. Full Story | Top |
| U.S., Russia, Ukraine and EU to meet on Ukraine crisis Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 02:35 PM PDT By Barbara Lewis BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The United States, the European Union, Russia and Ukraine will meet at ministerial level next week to discuss the Ukraine crisis, the EU said on Tuesday, offering a glimpse of possible diplomatic progress in the conflict. The meeting will involve U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andriy Deshchytsia, the EU said. Full Story | Top |
| As Japan weighs energy options, costs mount for idled reactors Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 02:29 PM PDT  By Aaron Sheldrick and Osamu Tsukimori TOKYO (Reuters) - Since March 2011, Japan's government has focused on the cost of cleaning up after Fukushima, the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl. Now, the bill is coming due for another unbudgeted consequence of that disaster - shutting down the nation's 48 remaining nuclear reactors for costly safety reviews that could see many of them mothballed. While their reactors have been idled, Japan's nuclear plant operators have had to spend around $87 billion to burn replacement fossil fuels. Last week, Kyushu Electric Power Co was confirmed to be seeking a near $1 billion bailout in the form of equity financing from the government-affiliated Development Bank of Japan because of the cost of idling its reactors, joining Hokkaido Electric Power Co which has also asked the bank for financial backing. Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive: GM planning lower-priced version of 2016 Chevy Volt - sources Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 02:11 PM PDT  By Paul Lienert and Bernie Woodall DETROIT (Reuters) - Hoping to boost demand for its slow-selling Volt hybrid, Chevrolet is planning to sell two versions of the redesigned 2016 Volt, including a lower-priced model with a smaller battery pack and shorter driving range, supplier sources told Reuters on Tuesday. The second-generation Volt is slated to go into production in about 16 months at General Motors Co's Detroit Hamtramck plant, the sources said. Chevrolet spokesman Mike Albano declined to comment on the brand's future plans but said: "Volt customers are the happiest customers in the world. We found a formula that works for them, and we're not going to deviate from that formula." Chevrolet has sold just 58,158 Volts since the car went on sale 39 months ago, despite price cuts and heavy discounting. Full Story | Top |
| TSX climbs as rise in oil, gold prices spurs rebound Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 02:06 PM PDT  By John Tilak TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index rebounded on Tuesday after a surge in gold and oil prices drove up shares of natural resource companies and helped boost investor sentiment after three straight sessions of declines. Also weighing on stocks have been concerns about the U.S. Federal Reserve's efforts to roll back its monetary stimulus program and uncertainty about when the Fed might raise interest rates. "The markets are without a catalyst at the moment, and where the catalyst comes from will probably set the direction," said Youssef Zohny, portfolio manager at Stenner Investment Partners, a subsidiary of Richardson GMP. "As we look to the whole year, we expect the Canadian market to hold up pretty well, relative to the global equity markets," he added. Full Story | Top |
| Wall Street snaps three-day losing streak as tech rebounds Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 01:58 PM PDT  By Angela Moon NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday, snapping a three-day losing streak as investors bought beaten-down social media and Internet shares. The day's biggest gainers included Amazon.com Inc , up 2.9 percent at $327.07; But gains in the blue-chip Dow Jones industrial average were capped by a decline in bank stocks. Goldman Sachs Group fell 1.3 percent to end at $156.56. Full Story | Top |
| Helicopter operator CHC Group eyes U.S. Gulf skies Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 01:47 PM PDT  Newly listed CHC Group Ltd , which provides helicopter services to offshore oil and gas sites, intends to enter the Gulf of Mexico as drillers venture further into deep and ultra-deep waters, its chief executive told Reuters. The company, which operates about 240 aircraft in roughly 30 countries around the world, will enter the U.S. Gulf by either applying for an air operator certificate or through an acquisition, William Amelio said in an interview on Tuesday. "It is clear that the Gulf of Mexico is a great opportunity and we will be there shortly," he said. Recent technological advances and new discoveries are spurring renewed interest in the Gulf of Mexico, where activity tapered off following the Macondo oil spill in 2010. Full Story | Top |
| Kerry says Iran nuclear 'breakout' window now seen as two months Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 01:46 PM PDT By Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Iran can produce fissile material for an atomic weapon in two months, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Tuesday told a Senate hearing in which he faced tough questions from lawmakers about negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program. "I think it's public knowledge today that we're operating with a time period for a so-called breakout of about two months. That's been in the public domain," Kerry testified at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing. "So six months to 12 months is - I'm not saying that's what we'd settle for, but even that is significantly more," Kerry said in response to a question about whether a "breakout" window of up to a year was the negotiators' goal. Full Story | Top |
| Britain warns Scots that independence would hurt energy industry Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 01:13 PM PDT Britain on Tuesday warned Scots that voting for independence would put jobs and investment in the Scottish energy industry at risk, threatening the commercial viability of North Sea oil and gas fields and renewable energy projects. The latest paper, due to be released on Wednesday, will say that independence would deter investment in low-carbon renewable energy and make it unprofitable for firms to extract increasingly hard-to-reach oil and gas in the seas off Scotland. "I fear the economic and energy progress will be seriously affected by the uncertainty and disruption of independence, as investors will hold onto their cash rather than risk it," Energy Secretary Ed Davey said ahead of the report's release. Full Story | Top |
| Alkermes to seek schizophrenia drug approval after trial success Tuesday, Apr 08, 2014 12:38 PM PDT Alkermes Plc said it planned to seek U.S. marketing approval for its experimental drug to treat the symptoms of schizophrenia after it succeeded in a late-stage study, sending the company's shares up as much as 11 percent. The company said it would apply for marketing approval for a monthly dose of the injectable drug, aripiprazole lauroxil, in the third quarter of 2014. "Once monthly or even less frequent dosing is key, since it increases compliance rates in schizophrenia, reduces relapse rates and hospitalization costs and provides costs savings to the healthcare system," Leerink Partners analyst Michael Schmidt said in an e-mail. Data from the late-stage study supported dosing of the drug once every two months, Chief Executive Richard Pops said on a conference call with analysts. Full Story | Top |
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