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Analysis: MF Global proves Enron-era accounting lives on
Thu,1 Dec 2011 07:40 PM PST
Reuters -  (Reuters) - The off-balance-sheet accounting methods that Enron and Lehman Brothers made famous in their epic failures years ago have a modern-day poster child: MF Global. Like its predecessors, the bankrupt brokerage formerly run by Jon Corzine took advantage of an accounting maneuver to keep certain financial obligations off its books, making the firm look less indebted and thus less a risk than it really was. ...
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Clinton highlights democracy on last day of Myanmar trip
Thu,1 Dec 2011 07:15 PM PST
Reuters -  YANGON (Reuters) - Secretary of State Hillary Clinton held a final meeting with pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Friday as she wrapped up a landmark visit to Myanmar which saw the new civilian government pledge to forge ahead with political reforms and re-engage with the world community. Clinton and Suu Kyi - the Nobel laureate who has come to symbolize the pro-democracy aspirations of Myanmar's people - held a private dinner on Thursday and met again on Friday at Suu Kyi's lakeside home, effectively her prison until she was released last November after years in detention. ...
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Senate OK's sanctions on Iran central bank
Thu,1 Dec 2011 07:00 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Senate unanimously approved tougher sanctions against Iran on Thursday, voting to penalize foreign financial institutions that do business with Iran's central bank, the main conduit for its oil revenues. The Senate acted despite warnings from Obama administration officials who said threatening U.S. allies might not be the best way to get their cooperation in action against Iran. Administration officials said they were indeed looking to sanction Iran's central bank, but in a calibrated manner, to avoid roiling oil markets or antagonizing allies. ... Full Story | Top |
Senate defeats competing payroll tax cut bills
Thu,1 Dec 2011 06:43 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Senate on Thursday defeated competing payroll tax cut extension plans by Democrats and Republicans, clearing the way for negotiations on compromise legislation that could boost the economy next year. In late-night votes, the Senate, as expected, defeated a Democratic plan that would have extended and expanded the payroll tax cut that is scheduled to expire on December 31. Republicans particularly objected to a new tax on the wealthy to cover the $110 billion in projected lost revenues from continuing the temporary tax cut. ...
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Senate backs military custody for terror suspects
Thu,1 Dec 2011 06:30 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Senate voted on Thursday to broaden the armed forces' powers over suspected militants, requiring that foreigners allied with al Qaeda be held in military custody even if they are captured in the United States. The White House has threatened to veto the provisions. Members of President Barack Obama's national security team argued that U.S. officials should keep the option of prosecuting suspected militants in civilian as well as military courts -- and deciding this case by case. ... Full Story | Top |
Republican payroll tax cut plan fails in Senate
Thu,1 Dec 2011 06:25 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Senate on Thursday blocked a Republican plan to extend the payroll tax cut for workers for one year. By a vote of 78-20, the Senate defeated the Republican legislation. Earlier, the Senate killed a Democratic version of the payroll tax cut extension. Senate leaders are expected to begin negotiating a compromise. Under current law, the payroll tax cut for workers is scheduled to expire on December 31. ...
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Republican payroll tax cut plan fails in Senate
Thu,1 Dec 2011 06:24 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Senate on Thursday blocked a Republican plan to extend the payroll tax cut for workers for one year. By a vote of 78-20, the Senate defeated the Republican legislation. Earlier, the Senate killed a Democratic version of the payroll tax cut extension. Senate leaders are expected to begin negotiating a compromise. Under current law, the payroll tax cut for workers is scheduled to expire on December 31. ... Full Story | Top |
Judge dismisses non-U.S. claims against Toyota
Thu,1 Dec 2011 05:53 PM PST
Reuters -  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp has won the dismissal of a U.S. lawsuit brought by vehicle owners in 14 other countries who said their Toyotas lost value because of the Japanese automaker's mishandling of alleged unintended acceleration problems. U.S. District Judge James Selna said the plaintiffs could not bring their claims in a U.S. court, saying they "have not shown that their alleged economic loss is fairly traceable to Toyota Motor Corp's U.S.-based marketing actions." The plaintiffs included people who bought or leased 27 different Toyota models outside the United States. ...
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Senate defeats Democratic payroll tax cut plan
Thu,1 Dec 2011 05:48 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republicans in the Senate on Thursday blocked a one-year extension and expansion of the payroll tax cut that was coupled with a plan to impose a new tax on the wealthy. By a mostly partisan vote of 51-49, the Senate defeated the Democratic legislation and was preparing to vote on a Republican alternative that also was expected to fail. At least 60 votes were needed in the 100-member Senate to pass either measure. Under current law, the payroll tax cut for workers is scheduled to expire on December 31. ... Full Story | Top |
Congressional leaders seek end to rail impasse
Thu,1 Dec 2011 05:37 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Leaders in the House of Representatives and Senate introduced measures on Thursday that would prevent a possible work stoppage by railroad freight engineers and other workers next week. The proposals were different in scope but sought to head off an impasse on December 6 involving rail unions representing close to 50,000 workers and negotiators for four major railroads. A resolution proposed by Senate Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, would extend the negotiating deadline for two months, until February 8. ...
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Sarkozy says governments must keep control of EU
Thu,1 Dec 2011 05:34 PM PST
Reuters - TOULON, France (Reuters) - President Nicolas Sarkozy, under pressure from a spiraling euro zone debt crisis five months before a presidential election, told France on Thursday the euro bloc needs closer and stricter coordination of national budgets to survive. Seeking to reassure the public ahead of a Franco-German push to redraw the European Union's founding treaty, Sarkozy promised that reforming Europe would mean closer inter-governmental cooperation, not handing control to a supra-national body. ... Full Story | Top |
Solyndra saw staff "mutiny" before Obama visit
Thu,1 Dec 2011 05:18 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - In the weeks leading up to a visit by President Barack Obama to Solyndra on May 25, 2010, the California solar-panel maker was in crisis. Prices for solar panels were in free-fall and the company's chief executive officer was bickering with customers unhappy with the amount of electricity produced by the cylindrical panels he invented, according to new e-mails released by Republicans investigating the now-bankrupt company. ...
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Al Qaeda says group kidnapped American in Pakistan
Thu,1 Dec 2011 05:08 PM PST
Reuters - DUBAI (Reuters) - Al Qaeda has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of an American man in Pakistan and demanded the release of prisoners and an end to air strikes in Muslim countries in exchange for his freedom, according to an Internet statement. Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri also said in an audio recording issued on Islamist websites late on Thursday that a senior al Qaeda leader based in Pakistan known as Attiyatullah had been killed in a U.S. air strike in August. ... Full Story | Top |
Senators introduce bill to ease path to IPOs
Thu,1 Dec 2011 04:44 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two senators introduced legislation on Thursday that would reduce the costs of going public for small and medium-sized companies by exempting them from certain regulatory requirements. Democrat Charles Schumer and Republican Pat Toomey said the exemptions would end either after five years, when the company reached annual revenues of a $1 billion, or had acquired $700 million in publicly traded shares. ...
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Cybersecurity bill approved by House panel
Thu,1 Dec 2011 04:03 PM PST
Reuters - (Reuters) - A bill to let U.S. spy agencies share intelligence on cyber threats with private companies was backed by a House of Representatives intelligence panel on Thursday. In a 17-1 vote, the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence approved the legislation that would expand a pilot Pentagon program for sharing classified and sensitive threat information with defense contractors and their Internet service providers. Under the measure, a longer list of companies would be eligible for access to classified data from the National Security Agency and other agencies. ... Full Story | Top |
Americans not immune if they act against U.S: CIA
Thu,1 Dec 2011 03:52 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - American citizens are not immune from being treated like an enemy if they take up arms against the United States, the CIA general counsel said on Thursday. CIA General Counsel Stephen Preston was responding to a question at an American Bar Association national security conference about the killing of Americans overseas without presenting evidence of wrongdoing. A CIA drone strike killed Anwar al-Awlaki, an American-born cleric linked to Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, earlier this year. He was linked to failed plots to blow up a U.S. ...
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As recession took hold, families sought cash help
Thu,1 Dec 2011 03:48 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of families collecting cash welfare benefits rose during the longest and deepest economic downturn in the United States since the Great Depression, the U.S. Census said on Thursday. Caseloads in the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) program had fallen in the 1990s and leveled off in the early part of the 2000s. Then the recession hit in 2007 and officially ended in 2009. The participation rate in the program rose to 4.8 percent of families with children under the age of 18 in 2009 from 3.8 percent in 2006. The number of benefit recipients rose to ...
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Boehner says payroll tax cut good for economy
Thu,1 Dec 2011 03:28 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The top Republican in Congress said on Thursday that extending a payroll tax cut for workers would boost the U.S. economy, putting himself at odds with members of his party who are skeptical of its benefits. Minutes after declaring "I'm not an economist. I don't know what kind of impact it's going to have," Speaker of the House of Representatives John Boehner said renewal of the tax cut would be economically beneficial. "I don't think there is any question that the payroll tax relief, in fact, helps the economy, in allowing more Americans ... ...
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Boehner says payroll tax cut good for economy
Thu,1 Dec 2011 03:26 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The top Republican in Congress said on Thursday that extending a payroll tax cut for workers would boost the U.S. economy, putting himself at odds with members of his party who are skeptical of its benefits. Minutes after declaring "I'm not an economist. I don't know what kind of impact it's going to have," Speaker of the House of Representatives John Boehner said renewal of the tax cut would be economically beneficial. "I don't think there is any question that the payroll tax relief, in fact, helps the economy, in allowing more Americans ... ...
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Jackson Browne occupies Wall Street with song
Thu,1 Dec 2011 03:26 PM PST
Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters) - Musicians Jackson Browne and Third Eye Blind serenaded a small group of tourists, police, fans and Occupy Wall Street activists on Thursday in a stark contrast to the noisy encampment that police evicted two weeks ago. The small, festive crowd of several dozen stood in the center of New York City's Zuccotti Park, leaning in to hear the acoustic set. Few expressed affiliation with Occupy Wall Street, the group that drew international attention to the park in Lower Manhattan with protests against inequities in the U.S. economic system. ... Full Story | Top |
Army official sees Egypt's foreign reserves plunging
Thu,1 Dec 2011 03:21 PM PST
Reuters - CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's foreign reserves will plunge by a third to $15 billion by the end of January and the budget deficit will grow, possibly leading to a review of sensitive subsidies, an army official said on Thursday. Reserves have tumbled since the uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak as foreigners have fled and tourists packed their bags, hurting two of Egypt's main sources of hard currency. The central bank put reserves at $22 billion at the end of October, down $2 billion from a month earlier and showing a faster fall than in previous months. ... Full Story | Top |
High court urged to allow Texas election maps
Thu,1 Dec 2011 03:20 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Texas Democratic Party and representatives of minority groups urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday to allow the use of an interim Texas map for congressional and legislative districts drawn by a panel of federal judges for the 2012 elections. Attorneys for the state Democratic Party and for groups representing Hispanics and blacks said stopping use of the court-drawn maps would disrupt election preparations, result in voter confusion and cause turmoil. ... Full Story | Top |
Egypt awaits poll results, Tahrir protest planned
Thu,1 Dec 2011 03:15 PM PST
Reuters -  CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt will hear the results of elections which Islamist parties look set to win on Friday, and protesters have called a rally to remember 42 people killed in clashes with police last month. Islamist success at the polls in the most populous Arab nation would reinforce a trend in North Africa. Moderate Islamists lead governments in Morocco and post-uprising Tunisia after election wins in the last two months. Egyptians voting freely for the first time since army officers ousted the king in 1952 seem willing to give Islamists a chance. ...
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Jackson Browne occupies Wall Street with song
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:56 PM PST
Reuters -  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Musicians Jackson Browne and Third Eye Blind serenaded a small group of tourists, police, fans and Occupy Wall Street activists on Thursday in a stark contrast to the cacophonous encampment that police evicted two weeks ago. The small, festive crowd of several dozen stood in the center of New York City's Zuccotti Park, leaning in to hear the acoustic set. Few expressed affiliation with Occupy Wall Street, the group that drew international attention to the square-block park in Lower Manhattan with protests against alleged inequities in the U.S. economic system. ...
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Qaeda's Zawahri says group kidnapped American in Pakistan
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:50 PM PST
Reuters - DUBAI (Reuters) - Al Qaeda has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of an American man in Pakistan and demanded the release of prisoners and an end to air strikes in Muslim countries in exchange for his freedom, according to an Internet statement. Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri also said in an audio recording issued on Islamist websites late on Thursday that a senior al Qaeda leader based in Pakistan known as Attiyatullah had been killed in a U.S. air strike in August. ... Full Story | Top |
Analysis: Confusion not progress expected at Afghan meet
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:48 PM PST
Reuters - KABUL/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Next week's Bonn conference on Afghanistan was supposed to offer a chance to renew Western commitment to stabilize the Asian nation as foreign troops head home after a decade battling the Taliban. Instead it looks set to be a high-profile reminder of the West's tortuous ties with a country where they have sunk billions of dollars, and of Afghanistan's uncertain future as NATO nations facing economic crisis at home try to pull loose from a costly war some believe can no longer be won outright. ... Full Story | Top |
Streep, tipped for glory, says Oscars still matter
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:41 PM PST
Reuters -  LONDON (Reuters) - She has been nominated for an Academy Award 16 times, a record for any performer, and won twice, but to Meryl Streep, the golden statuette still matters. The 62-year-old first attended the annual awards ceremony as a contender more than 30 years ago, when she was up for a supporting role honor in "The Deer Hunter". The following year she won that honor for "Kramer vs. Kramer" and scooped the best actress prize with the 1982 Holocaust film "Sophie's Choice". Since then Streep has been back as a nominee 12 times, each time leaving empty-handed. ...
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Factories growing despite global slowdown
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:40 PM PST
Reuters -  NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. factories shrugged off weakness in the global economy in November as manufacturing activity rose to its highest level in five months, a fresh sign the domestic economy was accelerating. Recent data on consumer spending and private-sector job creation has also boosted optimism on the path of growth. "The economy seems finally to be developing real momentum," said Ian Shepherdson, an economist at High Frequency Economics in Valhalla, New York. Also pointing to growth, automakers reported U.S. sales rose 13.9 percent in November from a year earlier, Autodata Corp said. ...
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NATO attack threatens war on militants: Pakistan
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:35 PM PST
Reuters -  ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan, enraged by a NATO cross-border attack that killed 24 soldiers, could end support for the U.S.-led war on militancy if its sovereignty is violated again, the foreign minister said, warning that "enough is enough." The South Asian nation has already shown its anger over the weekend strike by pulling out of an international conference in Germany next week on Afghanistan, depriving the talks of a central player in efforts to bring peace to its neighbor. "Enough is enough. ...
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Biden: No indication Iran orchestrated embassy attack
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:25 PM PST
Reuters - ARBIL, Iraq (Reuters) - Vice President Joe Biden said Thursday he had no evidence the attack on the British embassy in Tehran was orchestrated by Iranian authorities, but it was another example of why the country was a "pariah." Biden, wrapping up a three-day visit to mark the end of the American war in Iraq, played down the risk of Iran exploiting the departure of U.S. troops by the end of the year. He also said the threat of instability in Syria spilling across its borders was not grounds for President Bashar al-Assad to stay in power. ... Full Story | Top |
Witnesses see "devastation" in UK's Tehran embassy
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:25 PM PST
Reuters - TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iranians who stormed the British embassy in Tehran this week left a trail of destruction that witnesses said looked to have been well organized and not the result of a spontaneous eruption of anger, as portrayed by state authorities. Western diplomats who visited the embassy in central Tehran on Wednesday, a day after it was sacked, told Reuters of "devastating" damage to buildings smashed up and burned and of the ordeal of diplomatic staff who have since left the country. ... Full Story | Top |
EU may study oil embargo on Iran; China urges calm
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:25 PM PST
Reuters -  BRUSSELS/TEHRAN (Reuters) - The European Union tightened sanctions against Iran on Thursday and laid out plans for a possible embargo of its oil in response to mounting Western suspicions that Tehran plans to build nuclear weapons. China, the biggest buyer of Iranian crude, stepped in to warn against "emotionally charged actions" that might aggravate the row over the storming of Britain's embassy in Tehran. Top U.S. officials said they wanted to sanction Iran's central bank in a calibrated manner to avoid roiling oil markets or antagonizing allies. Their approach clashes with that of U.S. ...
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Analysis: British embassy storming bares rift in Iran elite
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:25 PM PST
Reuters - TEHRAN (Reuters) - The storming of the British Embassy in Tehran has bared a rift in Iran's ruling elite with conservative hardliners pushing Iran towards global isolation as they maneuver for the upper hand over President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ahead of elections in 2012. Britain closed its embassy after Tuesday's incursion by hardline youth and expelled all Iranian diplomats from London. The fallout for Tehran spread when several other countries recalled their envoys, including France and Germany. ... Full Story | Top |
Analysis: Iran faces tightening web of sanctions
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:25 PM PST
Reuters - LONDON (Reuters) - A tightening web of sanctions is squeezing Iran's economy and placing a new burden on foreign firms wary of incurring hefty fines for violating the complex regulations. The European Union added 180 people and entities to its Iran sanctions list on Thursday and laid out plans for a possible embargo of Iranian oil in response to mounting concerns over the OPEC producer's nuclear program. Sanctions have had an impact on Iran's economy, experts say, but they have not achieved their aim of stopping work that the West suspects is aimed at developing nuclear weapons. ... Full Story | Top |
Sanctions blowback crippling Iran's shipping trade
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:25 PM PST
Reuters - LONDON (Reuters) - Iran's vital seaborne trade is suffering from escalating sanctions pressure as shipping companies scale down activities or pull out, with the Islamic Republic facing more hurdles in transporting its oil, trade and shipping sources say. The European Union tightened its sanctions against Tehran on Thursday and laid out plans for a possible embargo on Iranian oil in response to mounting concerns in the West over the OPEC producer's nuclear work. Last week the United States, Canada and Britain announced measures against Iran's energy and financial sectors. ... Full Story | Top |
Syria firms and VIPs sanctioned in "civil war"
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:25 PM PST
Reuters -  BEIRUT (Reuters) - The United States, European Union and Arab League blacklisted Syrian VIPs and companies on Thursday to force an end to the military crackdown on protesters challenging the rule of President Bashar al-Assad. Bloodshed continued in Syria in what one United Nations official said was now a "civil war" that has cost at least 4,000 lives since March. Six people were killed and five critically wounded during an army sweep into the restive town of al-Trimsa in Hama province, a hotbed of anti-Assad sentiment, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. ...
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Russia delivers anti-ship missiles to Syria: report
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:25 PM PST
Reuters - MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia has delivered anti-ship cruise missiles to Syria, the Interfax news agency cited an unnamed military source as saying on Thursday, days after a United Nations commission of inquiry called for an arms embargo on Damascus. Economic and diplomatic pressure has isolated Syrian President Bashar al-Assad following a nine-month government crackdown against protesters in unrest the United Nations says has killed more than 4,000 people. ... Full Story | Top |
Lawmakers may be shielded from trading laws: Khuzami
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:23 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. prosecutors face obstacles that could keep them from ever pursuing an insider-trading case against a member of Congress, even if prosecutors decide the activity is illegal, a top securities regulator said on Thursday. Robert Khuzami, director of enforcement for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, said courts have yet to consider the duty a lawmaker might have after coming into contact with nonpublic, material information. Members have an additional protection from investigation in a provision of the U.S. ...
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Solyndra saw staff "mutiny" before Obama visit
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:21 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In the weeks leading up to a visit by President Barack Obama to Solyndra on May 25, 2010, the California solar-panel maker was in crisis. Prices for solar panels were in free-fall and the company's chief executive officer was bickering with customers unhappy with the amount of electricity produced by the cylindrical panels he invented, according to new e-mails released by Republicans investigating the now-bankrupt company. ...
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Analysis: MF Global proves Enron-era accounting lives on
Thu,1 Dec 2011 02:08 PM PST
Reuters - (Reuters) - The off-balance-sheet accounting methods that Enron and Lehman Brothers made famous in their epic failures years ago have a modern-day poster child: MF Global. Like its predecessors, the bankrupt brokerage formerly run by Jon Corzine took advantage of an accounting maneuver to keep certain financial obligations off its books, making the firm look less indebted and thus less a risk than it really was. ...
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