Fixing Airbus A380 wing cracks to cost $132m: report

BERLIN (AFP) ― Tiny cracks detected in January in the wings of some Airbus A380s will cost around 100 million euros ($132 million) to fix, the German weekly Der Spiegel reports in its edition to appear Monday.Experts and internal sources at Airbus estimate that repairs and inspections on the super jumbos, ordered by the European Aviation Safety Agency, would cost about one million euros ($1.3 million) per aircraft, for a total of 100 million euros, Der Spiegel said.An Airbus spokesman said in Ja

Feb. 13, 2012

Vietnam battles gold fever as price soars

HANOI (AFP) ― Stashing gold at home rather than having cash in the bank is a generations-old habit in communist Vietnam, but a recent surge in prices has sparked government attempts to bring the yellow metal to heel. Last year the country bought more gold per capita than India or China, according to the World Gold Council, and domestic prices soared by 18 percent ― far outstripping the global market’s 11 percent increase.And old habits are dying hard, according to 60-year-old retiree Truong Van

Feb. 13, 2012

ANZ bank to slash 1,000 jobs this year

Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd., the third-largest bank in Australia, plans to eliminate about 1,000 jobs by Sept. 30 as it combats a slump in lending growth and higher funding costs. The cuts will be in the Australian businesses and will primarily involve middle-management, back-office and support staff, the Melbourne-based bank said in an e-mailed statement Monday. ANZ Bank currently employs 49,000 people globally, including about 24,000 in Australia, it said. ANZ Bank joins larger

Feb. 13, 2012

Indonesia’s car market takes the fast lane

JAKARTA (AFP) ― Automakers from Japan to India are eyeing a bonanza in Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s largest economy where a newly wealthy middle class are splashing out on cars like never before.With the economy growing at a brisk 6.5 percent a year, more Indonesians are climbing into the middle class, hungry for cars and other status symbols their newfound wealth affords.It is welcome news for automakers who, starved of sales in the ailing economies of Europe and the United States, are now circl

Feb. 13, 2012

U.S. retail sales probably rose on automobiles

Sales at U.S. retailers probably increased in January by the most in four months, spurred by the biggest gain in auto purchases since 2009, economists said before a report this week. The projected 0.8 percent gain in retail receipts would follow a 0.1 percent advance in December, according to the median forecast of 65 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News before Commerce Department figures on Feb. 14. Industrial production jumped and the cost of living increased in January, other data may show.

Feb. 13, 2012

S&P downgrades ratings of 34 Italian banks

UniCredit SpA, Intesa Sanpaolo SpA and Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA were among 34 Italian financial firms downgraded by Standard & Poor’s, after the credit-ratings company reduced the nation’s grade last month. UniCredit, Italy’s biggest bank, and No. 2 Intesa had their long-term ratings lowered to “BBB+” from “A,” S&P said Friday in a statement. Monte dei Paschi, the No. 3 bank, was reduced to “BBB” from “BBB+.” All three have a negative outlook, S&P said. Italy’s credit rating was cut t

Feb. 12, 2012

Greek bailout won’t rid Europe of ‘danger’

Billionaire investor George Soros predicted weak growth and lingering political tension that could shatter Europe’s economic union even if Greece agrees to austerity measures. “Right now the European Union and particularly the heavily indebted countries face a lost decade,” Soros said. “It might actually be longer than a decade because Japan that had a similar situation with the real estate boom and the banking crisis has had now 25 years of no growth,” Soros said. “That will create tensions wit

Feb. 12, 2012

Greek premier says default would lead to 'chaos'

ATHENS, Greece (AP) _ Greece's future in the eurozone came under renewed threat as popular protests again turned violent and dissent grew among its lawmakers after European leaders demanded deeper spending cuts.The country's beleaguered coalition government promised to push through the tough new aus

Feb. 11, 2012

China’s inflation rebounds to 4.5 percent in January

BEIJING (AP) ― China’s inflation rebounded in January as food prices soared, renewing pressure on Beijing to control surging living costs as it tries to boost slowing growth in the world’s second-largest economy amid warnings of a global downturn.Consumer prices rose by an unexpectedly strong 4.5 percent over a year earlier, up from December’s 4.1 percent, data showed Thursday. Food prices jumped 10.5 percent, accelerating from the previous month’s 9.1 percent.“It makes us more concerned that th

Feb. 9, 2012

Chairman, 3 others out in Yahoo board shake-up

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) ― Yahoo Chairman Roy Bostock and three longtime board members are stepping down, submitting to the demands of many frustrated shareholders who blame them for contributing to the follies that have dragged down the Internet company’s revenue and stock price. The shake-up announced Tuesday continues a drastic makeover of Yahoo’s leadership during the past month as the company negotiates to sell its Asian assets in a complex deal that could help ignite a long-promised turnaround.

Feb. 8, 2012

Bernanke says job market remains weak despite gains

WASHINGTON (AP) ― Ben Bernanke says the job market isn’t as strong as the steadily declining unemployment rate might suggest.Responding to questions at a Senate hearing Tuesday, he noted that the unemployment rate doesn’t capture the plight of millions of people who have stopped looking for work or part-timers who can’t find full-time jobs.His cautious view helps explain why the Federal Reserve plans to hold interest rates at record lows until late 2014. Many economists were looking to see if Be

Feb. 8, 2012

Greek talks drag on, banks signal progress

ATHENS (AP) ― Greece’s private creditors signaled progress late Tuesday on a debt-relief deal but crucial talks between Greek coalition leaders about forcing more austerity upon a hostile public were again postponed.Anger flared on the streets of Athens as more than 20,000 protesters marched through the Greek capital and unions called a general strike Tuesday against the new cuts in jobs and spending. The strike halted trains and ferries, closed down schools and banks and put state hospitals on

Feb. 8, 2012