Google’s privacy policy challenged in Europe

PARIS (AP) ― Google’s new privacy policy is under legal attack from regulators in its largest European markets, who want the company to overhaul practices they say let it create a data goldmine at the expense of unwitting users. Led by the French, organizations in Britain, the Netherlands, Germany, Spain and Italy agreed Tuesday on the joint action, with the ultimate possibility of imposing fines or restrictions on operations across the entire 27-country European Union. Last year, the company me

April 3, 2013

Bank of Japan holds first policy meeting

TOKYO (AP) ― Japan’s central bank is holding its first policy meeting under a new governor amid expectations of fresh moves to ease monetary policy and spur a recovery in the world’s third-largest economy.Haruhiko Kuroda took the helm at the Bank of Japan on March 19, vowing to do whatever it takes to break Japan’s economy out of deflation and attain a 2 percent inflation target. It is unclear whether the central bank meeting Wednesday and Thursday will yield fresh policy moves or if they might

April 3, 2013

Asia’s soaring wages stoke inflation

Koda Ltd. Executive Director Ernie Koh has a message for clients in 50 countries who complain about the Singapore-based furniture maker’s first price increase in two years: Take it or leave it. Koda’s factories in China, Malaysia and Vietnam are battling rising costs as governments in Asia increase minimum wages to curb discontent over a widening wealth gap. While weak global growth and increased competition limited the ability of producers to raise prices during the past five years, Koh says th

April 3, 2013

Camry battles spruced-up rivals in midsize market

DETROIT (AP) ― For nearly two decades, the Toyota Camry and the Honda Accord have ruled the mid-sized car market. Nobody accused them of being stylish or fast. But the cars rarely broke down, and they held their value better than competitors. For drivers who wanted a family car, Camry and Accord got the job done and were good enough to become two of the best-selling cars of all time. But now the dominance is starting to slip. Cars like the Hyundai Sonata, Ford Fusion, Nissan Altima and Kia Optim

April 2, 2013

Indian minister says BRICS bank to complement, not compete with ADB

TOKYO (AFP) ― The mooted BRICS bank of emerging powers is intended to complement, rather than compete with Western-dominated institutions on the world stage, the Indian Finance Minister said on Monday.Finance Minister P. Chidambaram also said India supports Japan’s nomination of a senior finance ministry official for the top job at the Asian Development Bank, as Tokyo looks to keep hold of a role it has held for almost 50 years.The BRICS bank is seen as a way of challenging the rules set by exis

April 2, 2013

‘Beat-keeping sea lion’ Ronan picks up YouTube hits

A video of a sea lion bobbing her head to music is garnering a lot of attention on YouTube.In the two-minute video posted on Sunday, Ronan the sea lion appeared on camera and started to bounce her head to the song “Boogie Wonderland” and “Everybody.” “When we first trained Ronan, we used simple repeating sound, something like a metronome. When she learned without further training, she was able to find and keep the beat in complex stimuli including music,” Peter Cook, a researcher at the Universi

April 2, 2013

Tech firms bumping up perks to recruit, retain

CUPERTINO, California (AP) ― Apple’s ring-shaped, gleaming “Spaceship Headquarters” will include a world class auditorium and an orchard for engineers to wander. Google’s new Bay View campus will feature walkways angled to force accidental encounters. Facebook, while putting final touches on a Disney-inspired campus including a Main Street with a BBQ shack, sushi house and bike shop, is already planning an even larger, more exciting new campus.More than ever before, Silicon Valley firms want the

April 1, 2013

Dell said to consider Blackstone LBO only with CEO guarantee

Dell Inc. founder Michael Dell will only consider backing a buyout by Blackstone Group LP if the private-equity firm guarantees he can remain as chief executive officer, according to a person familiar with the discussions. In several recent meetings in Austin, Texas, with Chinh Chu and David Johnson ― the Blackstone executives overseeing the firm’s bid ― Michael Dell said he would be more likely to support their proposal if he retained an influential role, a second person familiar with the talks

April 1, 2013

China manufacturing index hits nearly one-year high

BEIJING (AFP) ― Manufacturing activity in China expanded at its fastest pace in almost a year last month, official data showed Monday, indicating conditions in the world’s number two economy continued to improve.The official purchasing managers’ index hit 50.9 in March, the highest since April 2012 when the figure stood at 53.3, according to the National Bureau of Statistics and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing.PMI is a widely watched barometer of the health of China’s economy, w

April 1, 2013

‘Japan business sentiment improving’

TOKYO (AP) ― Japanese manufacturers are more upbeat about business conditions than they were late last year, but less so than expected, a central bank survey found. The Bank of Japan’s “tankan” index for the March quarter rose to minus 8 from minus 12 for large manufacturers, a smaller improvement than analysts had anticipated before Monday’s release. A reading below zero means pessimists outnumber optimists, and the tankan forecast for large manufacturers for the June survey was minus 1. Large

April 1, 2013

Big savers in Cyprus may lose 60%

NICOSIA (AP) ― Big depositors at Cyprus’ largest bank may be forced to accept losses of up to 60 percent, far more than initially estimated under the European rescue package to save the country from bankruptcy, officials said Saturday. Deposits of more than 100,000 euros ($128,000) at the Bank of Cyprus will lose 37.5 percent in money that will be converted into bank shares, according to a central bank statement. In a second raid on these accounts, depositors also could lose up to 22.5 percent m

March 31, 2013

Cyprus capital controls could be lifted in a month

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) ― There were long lines of anxious people but no sign of trouble as banks in Cyprus opened Thursday for the first time in nearly two weeks, following an international bailout that sought to prevent the country from financial ruin.The government has imposed a daily limit on how much people can withdraw to stop a run on its banks ― the first such action in the 14-year history of the euro currency. Cypriots took the measure in their stride, aware that with their economy teeteri

March 29, 2013