Thursday, June 7, 2012

US consumer cut back on credit card use in April

US consumer cut back on credit card use in April

US consumer cut back on credit card use in April

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:49 PM PDT

FILE- In this April 17, 2012 file photo, Gavin Rivera watches his mother purchase ice cream in Belmar N.J. Americans cut back sharply on their credit card purchases in April, a sign that some may be worried about the slowdown in hiring. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry, File)Americans cut back sharply on their credit card purchases in April, a sign that some may be worried about the slowdown in hiring.

Rangers put Holland on DL, recall Scheppers

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:49 PM PDT

Texas Rangers' Derek Holland works against the Oakland Athletics in the first inning of a baseball game, Tuesday, June 5, 2012, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)The Texas Rangers placed left-hander Derek Holland on the 15-day disabled list Thursday because of a fatigued left shoulder.

Germany: Magnotta extradition decision within days

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:48 PM PDT

Barbed wire secures the prison Moabit where Canadian Luka Magnotta is kept in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, June 6, 2012. Luka Magnotta, 29, a Canadian porn actor suspected of murdering and dismembering a Chinese was arrested on Monday at an Internet cafe. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)German prosecutors said Thursday a decision on the extradition of the Canadian porn actor suspected of the grisly killing and dismemberment of a Chinese student could be made within days.

Huge algae blooms discovered beneath Arctic ice

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:48 PM PDT

This NASA Aqua satellite image from 2003 shows clouds of phytoplankton off of Greenland's eastern coastA NASA mission to study the tiny algae vital to the ocean's food chain has turned up a massive amount of phytoplankton where scientists least expected it -- under the Arctic ice.

Corporations boost agricultural research funding

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:46 PM PDT

FILE - This Oct. 3, 2007, file photo shows honeycrisp apples, developed with public money at the University of Minnesota, at an orchard in Burlington, Wis. The gap between federal funding for agricultural research at large public universities and private investment is growing, and critics fear it will jeopardize schools' independence. (AP Photo/Morry Gash, File)The gap between federal support for agricultural research at large public universities and private investment continues to grow — and the divide comes with increased threats to academic freedom and more instances of meddling in the lab, a new research report suggests.

Bangladesh Internet down after submarine cable cut

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:40 PM PDT

A Bangladeshi woman logs onto social networking website Facebook on her laptop in Dhaka in MayMillions of Bangladeshis have been unable to use the Internet or suffered slow connections after a submarine cable was cut off the coast of Singapore, an official said Thursday.

Fed's Fisher welcomes China FX moves but caution needed

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:39 PM PDT

SAN DIEGO (Reuters) - China's efforts to open its currency market will benefit the country and the world economy, but policymakers must be wary of risks from volatile international capital flows, a top Federal Reserve official said. Richard Fisher, president of the Dallas Fed, told an event at the University of San Diego that he did not believe the U.S. dollar's role as the key global reserve currency would be challenged any time soon. But he said the euro - despite the currency bloc's current difficulties - and the yuan could eventually rival the U.S. dollar. ...

Jobless claims fall for first time since April

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:36 PM PDT

A "Help Wanted" sign in the window advertises a job opening at a dry cleaners in BostonWASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of Americans lining up for new jobless benefits fell last week for the first time since April, a hint that a slowdown in hiring last month may only be temporary. The data on state unemployment claims, released by the Labor Department on Thursday, takes some of the edge off a report by the government last week that showed job creation slowed sharply in May. Many economists believe mild weather in the winter led employers to hire more workers then at the expense of spring, but the weather effect should be temporary. ...

U.N. monitors shot at on way to Syria "massacre" site

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:36 PM PDT

World diplomats attend a "Friends of Syria" meeting at the Dolmabahce Palace in IstanbulBEIRUT/UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - U.N. monitors came under fire on Thursday and were prevented from reaching a village where forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad were reported to have massacred at least 78 civilians, U.N. officials said. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon described the reported events in Mazraat al-Qubeir as "unspeakable barbarity," while the White House condemned the "outrageous targeted killings of civilians" and again called on other countries to halt support for Assad. ...

Best Buy founder resigns, puts large stake in play

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:34 PM PDT

A Best Buy store in Westminster(Reuters) - Best Buy Co Inc founder and chairman Richard Schulze resigned from the company's board on Thursday and said he was exploring options for his 20.1 percent ownership stake, a move seen as a possible precursor of a Schulze-led private takeover. Schulze's announcement came just two months after CEO Brian Dunn abruptly left the chain, and adds to management distractions as Best Buy struggles to compete with online and discount retailers. Shares of Best Buy pared losses on Thursday afternoon to trade down 1.4 percent, after falling as much as 8.5 percent in the morning. ...

Ex-Greek PM says euro exit would be "catastrophic"

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:33 PM PDT

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (Reuters) - A Greek exit from the euro zone would be "catastrophic" for the troubled country's economy, former Greek prime minister Lucas Papademos said in a speech on Thursday, urging voters to "stay the course" of a reform plan. "The overall economic consequences of a Greek euro exit would be disastrous, or to use a Greek word, catastrophic," Papademos, a former vice president of the European Central Bank, said in a speech at an Institute of International Finance (IIF) conference in Copenhagen on Thursday night. ...

Cape Cod bear captures residents' imaginations

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:28 PM PDT

The biggest sensation on Cape Cod right now isn't the lobster, the historic lighthouses or its rolling sand dunes. It's not even a Kennedy.

Tweaking U.S. tax code could spur green energy: senator

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:27 PM PDT

An old style windmill is pictured at a wind farm near MilfordWASHINGTON (Reuters) - A freshman U.S. Democratic senator thinks he may have found a way to encourage investment in wind, solar and biofuel projects without sapping too many taxpayer dollars or injecting new venom into a bitter partisan battle over energy incentives. Chris Coons introduced legislation on Thursday that would allow a broad range of renewable power generation and transmission projects to qualify for a tax structure used widely by pipeline and other energy-related companies. ...

AP Source: Horowitz hired as baseball arbitrator

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:27 PM PDT

A person familiar with the selection tells The Associated Press that Fredric Horowitz has been hired to replace Shyam Das as the arbitrator for Major League Baseball and its players' association.

News organizations appeal Idaho execution case

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:26 PM PDT

FILE - This Oct. 20, 2011 file photo shows the execution chamber at the Idaho Maximum Security Institution as Warden Randy Blades, right, stands in the observation room, in Boise, Idaho. A legal challenge seeking full viewing access to Idaho executions will go before a federal appeals court Thursday, June 7, 2012, with The Associated Press and 16 other news organizations saying the process is unconstitutionally restrictive. (AP Photo/Jessie L. Bonner, File)A federal appeals court in California has asked Idaho prosecutors to inquire whether a prison warden would allow full viewing access to an upcoming execution in a case filed by The Associated Press and 16 other news organizations.

Accusers to be unmasked at Penn State trial

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:26 PM PDT

FILE - In this June 6, 2012 file photo, former Penn State University assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky arrives for the second day of jury selection for his child sexual abuse trial at the Centre County Courthouse in Bellefonte, Pa. The young men who accuse Sandusky of molesting them have been allowed to remain anonymous through months of heavy media coverage. But that will change when they take the witness stand as early as Monday, June 11, 2012, where they will be forced to state their names for the record. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)The young men who accuse former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky of molesting them have been allowed to remain anonymous through months of intense news coverage and water-cooler conversation about the scandal.

China cuts interest rates as economy slows

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:26 PM PDT

An employee works at a cotton thread factory in HuaibeiChina on Thursday cut interest rates for the first time in over three years and moved to allow rates to float more freely, in a bid to boost a slowing economy and advance financial reform.

Fed proposes stricter capital rules for banks

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:22 PM PDT

The Federal Reserve wants U.S. banks to set aside more money to cushion against unexpected losses, a key step in preventing another financial crisis.

France plans Friends of Syria meet, rejects Iran

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:20 PM PDT

PARIS (Reuters) - France will host a meeting on July 6 of countries that back the departure of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad but said on Thursday it would not include Iran in attempts to resolve the worsening crisis. Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said that, with world powers seeking a way to stop the bloodshed in the uprising against Assad, Paris would host a third "Friends of Syria" meeting with the aim of supporting the opposition and preventing the conflict spreading to neighboring countries. ...

Euro crisis, 'fiscal cliff' menace US economy: Fed

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:20 PM PDT

Bernanke says US economic growth is likely to continue at "a moderate pace"The European crisis and mandated budget cuts and tax hikes pose big risks for the US economy, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress on Thursday.

Ouster of Vatican bank chief takes strange twist

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:18 PM PDT

Italian authorities seized a private document meant for Pope Benedict XVI when they raided the home of the Vatican's recently ousted bank chief, a potentially problematic legal twist in an already bizarre case.

US military suicides rising, even as combat eases

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:17 PM PDT

Suicides among active-duty U.S. troops are surging, averaging nearly one per day this year.

Powerbroker tied to Nevada Sen. Reid goes to court

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:16 PM PDT

A former developer and lobbyist with long ties to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Nevada's political elite has turned himself in to federal authorities after being indicted on criminal charges involving federal campaign contributions.

Hazing crisis: FAMU head gets no-confidence vote

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:15 PM PDT

The president of Florida A&M University received a no-confidence vote Thursday from school trustees for his handling of the hazing death of a drum major in its famed Marching 100 band, but he said afterward that he won't resign.

Romney and GOP raise more than Obama and Democrats

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:15 PM PDT

FILE - In this June 6, 2012 file photo, Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaks, in San Antonio, Texas. Mitt Romney out raised President Barack Obama in May, the first time the Republican presidential challenger has jumped ahead of Obama and his prodigious fundraising apparatus. The numbers illustrate how Romney and the Republican Party have jelled as a force after a protracted GOP primary. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)Mitt Romney outraised President Barack Obama in May, the first time the Republican presidential challenger has jumped ahead of Obama and his prodigious fundraising apparatus. The numbers illustrate how Romney and the Republican Party have jelled as a force after a protracted GOP primary.

Argentina would ID 'unknown' soldiers in Falklands

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:13 PM PDT

In this May 31, 2012 photo, Nelida Montoya, mother of Horacio Echave, a soldier who died during the Falklands war between Argentina and Great Britain, holds a picture of her son at her home in Lobos, Argentina. Horacio Echave was only 19 when he died on June 14, 1982, the day Argentines surrendered to British forces and ended their 74-day occupation of the archipelago they still claim as their "Islas Malvinas." His body is one of 123 that could not be identified and were reburied as Nelida Montoya is tormented by the image of a faraway tomb on a lonely hillside in the South Atlantic, where instead of the name of her son, a gravestone reads "Argentine soldier known only to God."

Bhupathi, Mirza win French Open mixed doubles title

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:12 PM PDT

India's Sania Mirza and Mahesh Bhupathi (L) celebrate a pointIndia's Mahesh Bhupathi and Sania Mirza won the mixed doubles title at the French Open on Thursday, defeating Santiago Gonzalez of Mexico and Klaudia Jans-Ignacik of Poland 7-6 (7/3), 6-1 in the final.

Banks offered minicamp tryout with Seahawks

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:09 PM PDT

Brian Banks' NFL dream is alive for one more week, if he chooses to accept Pete Carroll's offer.

Now clean, 'Door of Paradise' goes to Italy museum

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:08 PM PDT

In this undated photo provided by the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore, a woman restores the original panel of the "Door of Paradise" in Florence, Italy. The original gilded bronze door, so splendid it was dubbed the "Door of Paradise" by Michelangelo, will be seen again in Florence after 27 years of restoration to remove damage by pollution, vandalism and the wear and tear of centuries. But Lorenzo Ghiberti's 15th-century door won't be going back in its place on the baptistry of Florence's duomo, or cathedral. Starting in September, it will go on display in a Florence museum, Museo dell'Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore, to preserve it from renewed damage. (AP Photo/Nicolò Orsi Battaglini, Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore)An eight-ton gilded bronze door so splendid Michelangelo dubbed it the "Door of Paradise" will be unveiled to the public again after 27 years of restoration work.

NASA kills X-ray telescope, blames project's cost

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:07 PM PDT

NASA killed a new X-ray telescope mission on Thursday, two years before its planned launch.

Nigeria plane crash hit all social classes

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:05 PM PDT

People gather at the site of a plane crash in Lagos, Nigeria, Sunday, June 3, 2012. A passenger plane carrying more than 150 people crashed in Nigeria's largest city on Sunday, government officials said. Firefighters pulled at least one body from a building that was damaged by the crash and searched for survivors as several charred corpses could be seen in the rubble.(AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)Engines out, the pilot of the doomed Nigerian commercial airliner looked for somewhere to put down the aircraft, desperate for open space but finding only a sea of tin roofs and narrow dirt roads. Down below, people quietly rejoiced in their homes that erratic state-run electrical service had returned to their crowded neighborhood on the edge of the megacity of Lagos on a hot Sunday afternoon.

Pacemen shape Pakistan win in Sri Lanka ODI

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 12:01 PM PDT

Pakistan cricket captain Misbah-ul-Haq (C) and teammate Mohammad Hafeez (R)Pacemen Umar Gul and Mohammad Sami each took three wickets as Pakistan posted a comfortable six-wicket win over Sri Lanka in the first one-day international in Pallekele on Thursday.

Republicans clash with AG on Fast and Furious

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 11:58 AM PDT

Attorney General Eric Holder testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, June 7, 2012, before the House Judiciary Committee oversight hearing on the Justice Department. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)Attorney General Eric Holder is clashing with congressional Republicans seeking more information about a flawed gun-trafficking investigation in Arizona.

African leaders to ask for UN intervention on Mali

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 11:57 AM PDT

A leading African diplomat says a military intervention in the troubled nation of Mali is becoming more likely and called on the U.N. Security Council to support regional powers in such an operation.

Merkel says EU ready to act as Spain downgraded

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 11:56 AM PDT

A Spanish flag flies over the Bank of Spain in MadridMADRID/BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel said Europe was ready to act to ensure stability in the euro zone as Spain's credit rating was cut by three notches on Thursday amid expectations it may soon seek EU help for banks beset by bad debts. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said he would wait for the results of independent audits of the banking system before talking with Europe about how to recapitalize troubled lenders. ...

Turkey sticks to boycott of Cyprus EU presidency

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 11:56 AM PDT

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkey will carry out its threat to cease contact with the EU Presidency when Cyprus assumes the role on July 1, but will maintain ties with the European Commission, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said after meeting EU officials on Thursday. EU candidate Turkey served notice last year that it would break off relations with the EU presidency during Cyprus's six-month term unless there was progress in reunification talks between the Turkish Cypriots, living in a northern enclave, and Greek Cypriots who govern Cyprus. ...

Eminent South African anthropologist Tobias dies

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 11:54 AM PDT

In this photo taken Wednesday July 26, 1995, leading South African palaeo-anthropologist, Phillip Tobias, displays his latest archeological discovery in his lab in Johannesburg. Tobias died Thursday June 7, 2012 aged 86, after a three-month illness. (AP Photo/Adil Bradlow-file)Anthropologist Phillip Tobias, internationally renowned as an authority on human evolution and remembered for his love of humanity, died Thursday, South Africa's University of the Witwatersrand said. He was 86.

Planned mine threatens quiet of ND Roosevelt ranch

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 11:51 AM PDT

This May 4, 2012, photo provided by the National Park Service shows the Elkhorn Ranch site in the badlands of North Dakota, where Theodore Roosevelt retreated to raise cattle following the deaths of his wife and mother in 1884. The former president's great-grandson, Tweed Roosevelt, is asking President Barack Obama to designate the area as a national monument, which would block development on an adjacent plot of land, including a plan to mine gravel that would bring heavy machinery, roads, noise and dust to the site. The pristine park is visited by more than half-a-million people each year. (AP Photo/National Park Service, Valerie J. Naylor)The site of the Elkhorn Ranch in the badlands of North Dakota looks and feels much as it did when Theodore Roosevelt retreated there to raise cattle following the deaths of his wife and mother in 1884.

Olympic flame braves stormy seas, departs Ireland

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 11:49 AM PDT

This image issued by LOCOG shows torchbearer 052 Eorann Oneill carrying the Olympic Flame via boat across Lough Neagh, a large freshwater lake in Northern Ireland, during Day 20 of the London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay Thursday June 7, 2012. (AP Photo/Danny Lawson, LOCOG, HO)The Olympic flame braved stormy seas and heavy rain Thursday on its final day in Ireland, a visit that highlighted the growing unity between British Protestants and Irish Catholics.

Singer Lauryn Hill faces federal tax charges in NJ

Posted: 07 Jun 2012 11:48 AM PDT

FILE - This April 15, 2011 file photo shows singer Lauryn Hill performing during the 12th Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Federal prosecutors have charged five-time Grammy winner Lauryn Hill with willfully failing to file income tax returns with the IRS. Authorities say Hill earned more than $1.6 million during the three years that she failed to file returns. Prosecutors say her primary source of income is royalties from the recording and film industries. The 37-year-old South Orange, N.J., resident is scheduled to appear before a federal magistrate on June 29. (AP Photo/Spencer Weiner, file)Eight-time Grammy winner Lauryn Hill has been charged with failing to file income tax returns for several years with the Internal Revenue Service, the U.S. attorney's office in New Jersey announced Thursday.
Posted by Harshad at 1:03 PM

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