U.S. targets petrochemical industry in Iran

WASHINGTON (AFP) ― The United States on Friday imposed sanctions on Iran’s petrochemical industry, vowing to target more of the Islamic regime’s sources of revenue after curbing its vital oil exports.Washington also announced action against companies based in Cyprus, Kyrgyzstan, Ukraine and the United Arab Emirates for support to Iranian entities accused of involvement in the country’s controversial nuclear program.U.S. officials said they were taking action against Iran’s petrochemical industry

June 2, 2013

HK Starbucks in hot water for using ‘toilet water’: report

A Starbucks in Hong Kong’s financial district allegedly has used water from a bathroom sink to brew its coffee for the last two years, according to a local newspaper report.The reports said the store had been using tap water from the nearby bathroom five times a day since it opened in October 2011.A photograph taken by the Hong Kong-based newspaper shows a sign reading “Starbucks Only” attached to the tap near a urinal in the men’s restroom.The news shocked many customers in Hong Kong and they v

May 31, 2013

Japan suspends imports after modified wheat found

Japan has suspended some imports of U.S. wheat after a genetically engineered version of the grain was found on a U.S. farm.The Agriculture Department announced the discovery of the modified wheat on Wednesday. No genetically engineered wheat has been approved for U.S. farming.Japan is one of the largest export markets for U.S. wheat growers. Katsuhiro Saka, a counselor at the Japanese Embassy in Washington, said Thursday that Japan had canceled orders of western white wheat from the Pacific Nor

May 31, 2013

U.S. economy grew at modest 2.4 pct. rate in Q1

The U.S. economy grew at a modest 2.4 percent annual rate from January through March, slightly slower than initially estimated. Consumer spending was stronger than first thought, but businesses restocked more slowly and state and local government spending cuts were deeper.The Commerce Department said Thursday that economic growth in the first quarter was only marginally below the 2.5 percent annual rate the government had estimated last month. That's still much faster than the 0.4 percent growth

May 31, 2013

Japan factory output up 1.7% in April

Japan's industrial production picked up in April with a 1.7 percent rise over a month earlier, official data showed Friday, as Tokyo works to stoke growth in the world's third-largest economy.In a statement, the economy ministry said the month-on-month rise was evidence that "industrial production shows signs of picking up at a moderate pace".However a survey of manufacturers released with the data showed producers were cautious, predicting that factory output for May would be flat and then fall

May 31, 2013

EU eases pace of austerity to help economy

BRUSSELS (AP) ― The European Union softened its demands for austerity Wednesday when it gave France, Spain and four other member states more time to bring their deficit levels under control so that they can support their ailing economies.The EU Commission, the 27-nation bloc’s executive arm, said the countries must instead overhaul their labor markets and implement fundamental reforms to make their economies more competitive.Issuing a series of country-specific policy recommendations in Brussels

May 30, 2013

Apple chief sees computers on wrists - not in glasses

Apple chief Tim Cook on Tuesday said he sees promise in computers shrunk down and worn like watches or other accessories, but drew the line at Internet-linked eyewear such as Google Glass.Google Glass is "not likely to be a mass market item" but Apple is "incredibly interested" in the broader area of wearable computing, Cook said in an on-stage interview at an AllThingsD conference in California.He predicted there will be "tons of companies playing" in the wearable computing sector but sidestepp

May 29, 2013

IMF cuts 2013 China growth forecast to 'around 7.75%'

The International Monetary Fund on Wednesday cut its growth forecast for China in 2013 to "around 7.75 percent", down from its earlier forecast of 8.0 percent, citing a sluggish global recovery which hurt exports."The Chinese economy is expected to grow at around 7.75% this year and at about the same pace next year," David Lipton, IMF first deputy managing director, told reporters in Beijing.China is the world's second-largest economy and seen as a potential driver of global recovery in the face

May 29, 2013

Germany: Merkel vows to avoid trade war with China

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Sunday she would use her country's economic clout to prevent the European Union from imposing punitive tariffs on some Chinese products to avoid a trade war.Germany will push for “very intense talks” between the EU and China to seek a negotiated solution as swiftly as possible, the leader of Europe's biggest economy told visiting Chinese Premier Li Keqiang.The EU Commission, the 27-nation bloc's executive arm, accuses China of pricing its solar panels and som

May 27, 2013

Abe pledges new assistance package for Myanmar

NAYPYIDAW, Myanmar (AFP) ― Japan’s premier met Myanmar’s President Thein Sein on Sunday for talks at which he is expected to unveil huge aid and investment deals as he promotes trade with the fast-changing nation.Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who has pledged “all possible assistance” to kick-start Myanmar’s long-neglected economy, went into talks with Thein Sein after touching down in Naypyidaw earlier on Sunday, according to a Myanmar government official.The meeting with Thein Sein, a former gener

May 26, 2013

Japan's ANA resumes Dreamliner flights

Japan's All Nippon Airways (ANA), the single biggest operator of Boeing's flagship 787, said it put its Dreamliner fleet back into service Sunday following a four-month suspension due to battery problems.One of ANA's high-tech planes arrived safely at Haneda in Tokyo on time from Sapporo in Hokkaido as a relief service with some 220 passengers aboard, the firm and airoprt officials said.It was ANA's first commercial flight of Dreamliners since the planes were grounded worldwide after two separat

May 26, 2013

Obama picks two U.S. Senate aides as next SEC commissioners

Kara M. Stein and Michael S. Piwowar, both senior U.S. Senate aides, were nominated today by President Barack Obama to join the Securities and Exchange Commission. Stein would replace Elisse B. Walter as a Democratic commissioner and Piwowar would succeed Troy A. Paredes as a Republican appointee on the five-member commission that oversees the country’s capital markets, according to a news release issued by the White House. Stein has served as a top aide to Senator Jack Reed, a Rhode Island Demo

May 25, 2013

Apple e-books judge: U.S. can show pricing conspiracy

The U.S. has evidence that Apple Inc. participated in a conspiracy to raise the prices of electronic books, the federal judge overseeing the government’s civil antitrust case against the company said. “I believe that the government will be able to show at trial direct evidence that Apple knowingly participated in and facilitated a conspiracy to raise prices of e-books, and that the circumstantial evidence in this case, including the terms of the agreements, will confirm that,” U.S. District Judg

May 24, 2013