The Korea Herald

EU budget talks collapse

BRUSSELS (AFP) -- The first round in two weeks of tough talks on the European Union budget collapsed Friday after austerity-minded states refused to plug a 2012 budget shortfall in funds destined for Europe's needy.Friday’s talks had been scheduled to approve a budget for 2013 but instead snagged straight off on an 8.9-billion-euro ($11.3-billion) hole in this year's spending, according to figures provided by the European Commission.Approval for the massive EU budget must be agreed between the 2

Nov. 11, 2012

Greece should get more time, aid: Asmussen

BRUSSELS (AFP) ― Debt-laden Greece should get more time and more aid if necessary to put its financial house in order and remain in the eurozone, a member of the European Central Bank said in an interview published on Saturday.“It is preferable that Greece remains in the eurozone,” Jorg Asmussen, a German ECB board member, told the Belgian economic daily l’Echo.“If that means additional aid for one or two years more, that will be significantly less expensive than it leaving (the eurozone) or a d

Nov. 11, 2012

Official: China can meet 7.5% growth target

BEIJING (AP) ― China’s sharp economic downturn has ended after trade and consumer spending improved in October but the world’s second-largest economy is not ready for a recovery and exporters face tough conditions, officials said Saturday.The economy should be able to meet the government’s 7.5 percent growth target this year, the chairman of the country’s planning agency told a news conference during a congress of the ruling Communist Party.The comments echoed private sector analysts who say eco

Nov. 11, 2012

Official: China can meet 7.5% growth target

Denmark government to scrap world’s first fat tax

COPENHAGEN (AFP) ― Denmark said Saturday it would scrap a fat tax it introduced a little over a year ago in a world first, saying the measure was costly and failed to change Danes’ eating habits.“The fat tax and the extension of the chocolate tax ― the so-called sugar tax ― has been criticized for increasing prices for consumers, increasing companies’ administrative costs and putting Danish jobs at risk,” the Danish tax ministry said in a statement.“At the same time it is believed that the fat t

Nov. 11, 2012

Chief resigns, BBC in crisis

LONDON (AP) ― The BBC’s top executive resigned Saturday night after the prestigious broadcaster’s marquee news magazine wrongly implicated a British politician in a child sex-abuse scandal, deepening the crisis that exploded after it decided not to air similar allegations against one of its own stars who police now say was one of the nation’s worst pedophiles. In a brief statement outside BBC headquarters, George Entwistle said he decided to do the “honorable thing” and step down after just eigh

Nov. 11, 2012

China's trade surplus widens in Oct.

HONG KONG (Yonhap News) -- China's trade surplus widened in October from the previous month as exports grew faster than imports, the Chinese customs office said Saturday. The world's second-largest economy posted a trade surplus of US $32 billion last month, compared with $27.7 billion in September, according to the General Administration of Customs. Exports went up 11.6 percent on-year to $175.6 billion in October, while imports rose 2.4 percent to $143.6 billion.The expansion both in exports a

Nov. 10, 2012

IMF warns of political limits to austerity

WASHINGTON (AFP) ― The International Monetary Fund has warned that austerity programs in Europe’s most troubled economies could have political limits, as resistance grows in Greece and Portugal over their bailout terms.In a briefing made for the Nov. 4-5 meeting of G20 leading economies in Mexico and released Thursday in Washington, the IMF said that financial conditions in the eurozone “remain fragile” and there are risks that countries asking for support will be unable to fulfill adjustment de

Nov. 9, 2012

ECB warns on economic growth

FRANKFURT (AP) ― European Central Bank President Mario Draghi has warned that the economy of the 17 countries that use the euro remains weak and will struggle to grow even with “visibly improved” confidence among the currency union’s financial markets. After the ECB’s governing council left its key interest rate unchanged at the record low of 0.75 percent, Draghi insisted the bank has done its part to haul the eurozone out of its financial crisis. Markets have rallied since the ECB offered in Se

Nov. 9, 2012

Australia to sign up for Kyoto 2 - minister

Key greenhouse gas emitter Australia on Friday announced it was ready to sign up for a second round of the Kyoto Protocol environmental protection treaty."Today I can announce that Australia is ready to join a second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol," Climate Minister Greg Combet said in a speech.Australia is among the world's worst per capita polluters, with a heavy reliance on coal mining and exports. Most of its electricity comes from coal-fired power stations.Combet's announcement com

Nov. 9, 2012

Greece passes austerity bill

ATHENS (AP) ― Greece’s Parliament passed a crucial austerity bill early Thursday in vote so close that it left the coalition government reeling from dissent.The bill, which will further slash pensions and salaries, passed 153-128 in the 300-member Parliament. It came hours after rioters rampaged outside Parliament during an 80,000-strong anti-austerity demonstration, clashing with police who responded with tear gas, stun grenades and water cannons.Approval of the cuts and tax increases worth 13.

Nov. 8, 2012

China helps BMW offset European weakness

FRANKFURT (AP) ― Strong sales of its luxury cars in China helped Germany’s BMW AG overcome weak markets in crisis-ridden Europe. Net profit rose 16 percent in the third quarter to 1.29 billion euros ($1.65 billion) on a 13.7 percent jump in sales to a record 18.82 billion euros. The Munich-based carmaker said Tuesday it was sticking to its forecasts for 2012 sales and earnings to be up on the previous year despite “an increasingly uncertain market environment.” CEO Norbert Reithofer called it a

Nov. 7, 2012

China helps BMW offset European weakness

Measure of U.S. home prices rises by most in 6 years

WASHINGTON (AP) ― A measure of U.S. home prices jumped 4.6 percent in August compared with a year ago, the largest year-over-year increase in more than six years.CoreLogic, a private real estate data provider, also said Tuesday that prices rose 0.3 percent in August from July, the sixth straight monthly gain.Steady price increases, combined with greater home sales and rising builder confidence, suggest the housing recovery may be sustainable.Other measures of home prices have also increased. The

Nov. 7, 2012

Measure of U.S. home prices rises by most in 6 years

Rich-poor divide tops Chinese concerns for future

BEIJING (AFP) ― Most Chinese see the widening income gap as the country’s main problem over the next decade, according to a survey published Tuesday which highlighted a key challenge confronting the incoming leadership.Some 75 percent of respondents polled by the official China Youth Daily cited “serious rich-poor divide” as the issue most likely to hinder the country’s development over the next 10 years, the paper said.The online nationwide survey covered more than 11,400 people born between 19

Nov. 7, 2012

France to give businesses $25b tax break

PARIS (AP) ― France’s government has promised 20 billion euros ($25 billion) in tax credits to businesses as part of a “competitiveness pact” that it hopes will spark innovation and lower unemployment ― but falls short of calls in a recent report for a “shock” to the economy.The announcement of the plan Tuesday came a day after a government-commissioned report ― by Louis Gallois, former head of Airbus parent EADS ― said the country’s ailing economy needed a big kick to stay globally competitive.

Nov. 7, 2012

France to give businesses $25b tax break

Merkel government approves voter ‘gifts’

After more than seven hours of negotiations between Merkel’s conservatives and the pro-business Free Democrats stretching into the early morning hours, the parties agreed to ax an unpopular doctor’s office fee from January.In exchange for winning that concession, the FDP agreed to back a benefit from August for parents who care for their children at home.The online service of news weekly Der Spiegel called it a “Summit of Gifts” ahead of the general election next September or October, intended t

Nov. 6, 2012

Merkel government approves voter ‘gifts’

G20 fears U.S. fiscal tightening

MEXICO CITY (AP) ― Finance officials from the world’s largest economies on Monday called on countries to reject protectionism and currency manipulation despite a raft of economic problems that include the U.S. deficit. Meeting in Mexico City one day before the U.S. elections, the G20 finance ministers issued a statement saying the United States faces “a potential sharp fiscal tightening.” “The United States will carefully calibrate the pace of fiscal tightening to ensure that public finances are

Nov. 6, 2012

Apple paid only 1.9% tax on non-U.S. earnings

Apple Inc. paid an income tax rate of only 1.9 percent on its earnings outside the U.S. in its latest fiscal year, a regulatory filing by the company shows.The world’s most valuable company paid $713 million in tax on foreign earnings of $36.8 billion in the fiscal year ended Sept. 29, according to the financial statement filed on Oct. 31. The foreign earnings were up 53 percent from fiscal 2011, when Apple earned $24 billion outside the U.S. and paid income tax of 2.5 percent on it.The tech gia

Nov. 5, 2012

Apple paid only 1.9% tax on non-U.S. earnings

Toyota to boost profit forecast: report

TOKYO (AFP) ― Toyota Motor will hike its operating profit forecast for the year by 5 percent to 1.05 trillion yen ($13 billion) when it releases it earnings later Monday, Japan’s public broadcaster NHK reported.The country’s biggest automaker saw brisk sales in North America and Southeast Asia offsetting a drop in China revenue stemming from a territorial spat between Tokyo and Beijing, which rival Honda blamed for a 20 percent cut to its net profit forecast for the fiscal year to March, NHK sai

Nov. 5, 2012

Greek P.M. warns of euro exit

ATHENS (AFP) ― Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras warned again Sunday that the debt-crippled country could be forced out of the euro if parliament fails to approve a new round of austerity measures needed for a lifeline from creditors.“We must save the country from catastrophe ... if we fail to stay in the euro nothing will make sense,” he told lawmakers from his conservative party.Parliament is due to vote Wednesday on a bill outlining 18 billion euros ($23 billion) of cuts and other reforms,

Nov. 5, 2012

European leaders seek Asian support on debt crisis

VIENTIANE (AFP) ― Dozens of European and Asian leaders gathered in impoverished Laos on Monday for a major summit dominated by the eurozone debt crisis and growing territorial tensions in the region.Top European officials including French President Francois Hollande and Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti were due to spearhead efforts to reassure Asia that the long-running eurozone crisis is finally coming under control.The diplomatic offensive is seen as a sign of the growing importance that deb

Nov. 5, 2012