Thursday, July 5, 2012

Weak retail sales figures push stocks lower

Weak retail sales figures push stocks lower

Weak retail sales figures push stocks lower

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:50 PM PDT

FILE - In this July 3, 2012 file photo, a trader studies his screen as he works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. U.S. stock futures fluctuated in volatile trading Thursday, July 5, 2012, as banks in China and Europe took action to bolster flagging economies and poor retail sales for June offset some promising job numbers from the Labor Department. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)Stocks were mostly lower on Wall Street Thursday after signs emerged that Americans are spending at a slower pace and that China's economy may be in worse shape than previously thought.

Mexicans await definitive presidential election result

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:48 PM PDT

Federal Electoral Institute (IFE) personnel fill the electoral certificates at the end of the vote recountEnrique Pena Nieto hoped definitive election results expected Thursday will confirm his victory in Mexico's presidential election, while challenger Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador held out for a shock reversal.

First NATO supply trucks cross Pakistan border

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:45 PM PDT

Pakistani border guards stand alert at the Pakistan-Afghanistan border in Chaman, Pakistan, Thursday, July 5, 2012. The first truck carrying supplies to American and NATO troops in Afghanistan has crossed the Pakistani border after a seven-month long closure of the supply routes by Pakistan ended earlier this week. (AP Photo/Matiullah Achakzai)Trucks carrying NATO supplies rolled into Afghanistan for the first time in more than seven months Thursday, ending a painful chapter in U.S.-Pakistan relations that saw the border closed until Washington apologized for an airstrike that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.

Midwest can't get any relief from oppressive heat

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:42 PM PDT

John Rohlfing, 38, takes a drink as he works on the construction of his new home Thursday, July 5, 2012, in North Aurora, Ill. He started at 6:00 a.m. and quit at 11:00 a.m. because of triple digit temperatures and the safety in those conditions. Oppressive heat is slamming the middle of the country with record temperatures that aren't going away after the sun goes down. (AP Photo/Robert Ray)The temperatures in Casimir Brandon's basement bedroom were so stifling that the exhausted 56-year-old Madison man began riding city buses in the morning, from one end of the line to the other, so he could grab a few hours of air-conditioned sleep.

Muhammad Ali named 2012 Liberty Medal recipient

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:35 PM PDT

FILE - In this Sept. 19, 2009, file photo, boxing great Muhammad Ali looks to the field prior to an NCAA college football game between Louisville and Kentucky in Lexington, Ky. Ali is scheduled to receive the 2012 Liberty Medal in a ceremony on Sept. 13 in Philadelphia at the National Constitution Center on Independence Mall. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke, File)Boxing great Muhammad Ali, known for his unabashed self-confidence inside and outside the ring as well as his outspokenness on social and humanitarian causes, is the recipient of the 2012 Liberty Medal.

WikiLeaks has data from 2.4 million Syrian emails

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:34 PM PDT

Placards and messages placed by supporters of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, are seen outside the Ecuador Embassy, London, Friday, June 29, 2012. Assange had entered the embassy in an attempt to gain political asylum to prevent him from being extradited to Sweden to face allegations of sex crimes, which he denies. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)The secret-spilling group WikiLeaks said Thursday it was in the process of publishing material from 2.4 million Syrian emails — many of which it said came from official government accounts.

NY joining revival of short-line rail industry

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:32 PM PDT

In this July 3, 2012 photo, a rock pile is seen at the Tahawus mine in Newcomb, N.Y. A railroad company is renovating rusty, overgrown tracks to get at millions of tons of waste rock at the abandoned iron and titanium mine near the source of the Hudson River and the highest peaks of the Adirondacks. The federal Surface Transportation Board on June 14, 2012, cleared the way for the New York freight line to be operated by the Saratoga and North Creek Railway. The planned reopening of a 30-mile rail link is part of a widespread resurgence of short line and regional railroads driven by high oil prices that make rail shipping more economical than trucking. (AP Photo/Mike Groll)A railroad company is renovating rusty, overgrown tracks to get at millions of tons of waste rock at an abandoned iron and titanium mine near the source of New York's Hudson River and the highest peaks of the Adirondacks, part of a widespread resurgence of short line and regional freight lines.

Predicted rain could douse some wildfires in West

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:31 PM PDT

A tanker filled with fire retardant makes a drop on the north end of the fire in Alpine, Utah in Wednesday, July 4, 2012. Firefighters lifted some evacuation orders and called in two hot-shot crews to help battle a still-uncontrolled Utah County wildfire Wednesday. 350 homes remained under mandatory evacuation orders as firefighters fought the nearly 2,900-acre blaze, aided by winds blowing the blaze back up the ridge, away from houses. (AP Photo/The Salt Lake Tribune, Leah Hogsten)Firefighters battling enormous wildfires up and down the Rocky Mountain region were hopeful that predicted severe thunderstorms might drop buckets of rain and help their hard work of scraping lines of defense across rugged landscapes.

Finmeccanica says Syrian technology sale was for civil use

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:30 PM PDT

ROME (Reuters) - Italian defense contractor Finmeccanica said on Thursday that it supplied Syria with technology that was designed for civil use after a news report earlier alleged the company had provided sophisticated communications gear that could be used during the ongoing military crackdown. The technology "was designed for use by emergency responders," the company said in a statement. The so-called Tetra technology "was conceived for this function," it said. ...

Three central banks take action in sign of alarm

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:29 PM PDT

Arrangement of various world currencies including Chinese Yuan, Japanese Yen, US Dollar, Euro, British Pound, Swiss Franc pictured in WarsawBEIJING/FRANKFURT (Reuters) - China, the euro zone and Britain loosened monetary policy in the space of less than an hour on Thursday, signaling a growing level of alarm about the world economy, although suggestions of coordinated action were played down. Of the three, the surprise move was from Beijing which lowered its lending rate by 31 basis points to 6 percent following an interest rate cut just a month ago that also came out of the blue. The European Central Bank cut rates to a record low 0.75 percent following a dire run of economic data. ...

Oil prices lower after disappointing economic data

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:27 PM PDT

A slew of disappointing economic news spooked investors Thursday and pushed down the price of oil.

As US economy steadies, bank closings become rarer

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:27 PM PDT

In this Monday, Feb. 2, 2009, file photo, FDIC, bank personnel and a sheriff deputy work inside the corporate office of MagnetBank in Salt Lake City. The banking industry has come a long way since the financial crisis struck in 2008. A sturdier economy, healthier loan portfolios, low interest rates, higher fees on bank accounts and a wave of mergers have combined to reduce the number of bank failures. (AP Photo/Douglas C. Pizac, File)Fewer U.S. banks are failing than at any time since the financial crisis erupted in 2008. The healthier banking industry is helping sustain an economy slowed by lackluster hiring, weak manufacturing and Europe's debt crisis.

Faulty data misled pilot in Brazil-France crash

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:27 PM PDT

FILE - In this Sunday, June 14, 2009 file photo shows workers unloading debris, belonging to crashed Air France flight AF447, from the Brazilian Navy's Constitution Frigate in the port of Recife, northeast of Brazil. The French air accident investigation agency BEA is releasing its final report Thursday July, 5, 2012 into the crash of the Airbus A330 jet en route from Rio de Janeiro to Paris that killed 228 victims. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres, File)A pilot facing faulty data and deafening alarms in an oversea thunderstorm pitched his plane sharply up instead of down as it stalled, then lost control, sending the Air France jet and all 228 people aboard to their deaths in the Atlantic Ocean in 2009.

UN appoints human rights investigator on Belarus

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:23 PM PDT

The United Nations' top human rights body on Thursday appointed an investigator to focus on Belarus based on what it called "grave concern" over allegations of torture, poor treatment of prisoners and other abuses.

European Central Bank cuts rates to new low

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:22 PM PDT

President of European Central Bank Mario Draghi adjusts his glasses during a press conference in Frankfurt, Germany, Thursday, July 5, 2012. The European Central Bank has cut its key interest rate by a quarter percentage point to a record low of 0.75 percent to boost a eurozone economy weighed down by the continent's crisis over too much government debt. The move followed a rate cut by China's central bank and new stimulus measures by the Bank of England as global financial authorities seek to shore up a slowing global economy. European leaders last week agreed on new steps to strengthen market confidence in their shared euro currency bloc. They agreed to set up a single banking supervisor to keep bank bailouts from bankrupting countries and made it easier for troubled countries to get bailout help. Those steps helped calm financial markets, which have expected the ECB to follow up with more help in the form of a rate cut. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)The European Central Bank cut its benchmark interest rate to a record low Thursday to spark economic growth but gave little sign it would take further action soon to ease Europe's financial crisis.

Frank Ocean lauded for revealing same-sex love

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:17 PM PDT

FILE - In this Nov. 17, 2011 file photo, Frank Ocean arrives at the 16th annual GQ "Men of the Year" party in Los Angeles. On Wednesday, July 4, 2012, Ocean, the rising and highly acclaimed singer revealed on his website that his first love was a man. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles, File)The music industry is showing support to R&B singer Frank Ocean after he revealed that his first love was a man.

Greece admits veering from bailout obligations

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:14 PM PDT

IMF's Thomsen, ECB's Masuch and European Commission director Morse leave Greek PM's Samaras office in AthensATHENS (Reuters) - Greece conceded on Thursday it had slipped "in some respects" in implementing the cuts and reforms demanded by lenders in exchange for saving Athens from bankruptcy, and tried to persuade them to cut the country some slack. Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras made the admission after meeting senior officials from Greece's "troika" of lenders from the EU, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund, whose inspectors have begun picking through the country's books after weeks of political paralysis. ...

Anti-Syrian politician said targeted in Beirut

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:14 PM PDT

Colleagues of an anti-Syrian politician in Beirut said he was the target of a failed assassination attempt Thursday, after police found detonators in a Beirut building where he has an office.

Solar, wind energy a missed opportunity for Cuba

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:13 PM PDT

In this June 18, 2012 photo, Yusmaikel Portales cleans the solar panel on the roof of his grandfather's home in Pinar del Rio, Cuba. The Caribbean island is proud of its success in using alternative energy to bring electricity to isolated hamlets. But scientists say the island, blessed with year-around sunshine and sea breezes but plagued with chronic energy shortages, could be doing much more on the national level, and that its government is missing a golden opportunity to reduce its dependence on subsidized oil from Venezuela. (AP Photo/Franklin Reyes) (AP Photo/Franklin Reyes)The sleepy country setting that farmer Juan Alonso calls home hasn't changed much since he was born 74 years ago, with the two rustic wooden houses nestled among palm trees against a backdrop of green hills and clear skies.

NFLPA sues, calls Goodell 'biased' in bounty case

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:10 PM PDT

FILE - New Orleans Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma arrives at the National Football League's headquarters, in this June 18, 2012 file photo taken in New York. Vilma is suing the NFL in federal court, claiming Commissioner Roger Goodell failed to make a timely appeal ruling regarding Vilma's season-long suspension in connection with the league's bounty investigation. The lawsuit filed Saturday night June 30, 2012 in U.S. District Court in New Orleans also asks for a temporary restraining order to allow Vilma to continue working if Goodell upholds the suspension. It is the second lawsuit Vilma has filed in the matter. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)The NFL Players Association filed a lawsuit against the NFL on behalf of three players suspended in connection with the bounty investigation, calling Commissioner Roger Goodell "incurably and evidently biased."

Report: Countrywide won influence with discounts

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:06 PM PDT

FILE - This June 25, 2008, file photo, shows the Countrywide Financial Corp. office in Beverly Hills, Calif. The former corporation, whose subprime loans helped start the nation's foreclosure crisis, made hundreds of discount loans to buy influence with members of Congress, congressional staff, top government officials and executives of troubled mortgage giant Fannie Mae, according to a Congressional House report. (AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian, File)The former Countrywide Financial Corp., whose subprime loans helped start the nation's foreclosure crisis, made hundreds of discount loans to buy influence with members of Congress, congressional staff, top government officials and executives of troubled mortgage giant Fannie Mae, according to a House report.

New Caravaggio art works discovered in Italy

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:03 PM PDT

Visitors look at a painting by Italian artist Michelangelo Merisi known as Caravaggio in June 2012Italian art experts have reportedly discovered around 100 drawings and a number of paintings by the young Renaissance master Caravaggio in a find that could be worth up to 700 million euros.

Egypt police deny Islamists behind student murder

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:01 PM PDT

Egyptian boys hold posters of Ahmed Hussein Eid who was fatally stabbed by three bearded men during his funeral procession in the city of Suez, Egypt, Wednesday, July 4, 2012. The murder of a university student by suspected militants as his girlfriend looked on is fueling fears in Egypt that vigilante groups seeking to enforce a strict interpretation of Islam's teachings may be feeling confident with an Islamist president in office to take over the streets. (AP Photo)Egypt's Interior Minister on Thursday tried to downplay the backgrounds of three men suspected of fatally stabbing a university student sitting with his fiance, saying they are not affiliated with Islamist parties or ideology.

Rihanna sues ex-accountants for millions in losses

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 12:00 PM PDT

Rihanna has sued her former accountants in New York, blaming them for tens of millions of dollars in losses from the singer's tours.

Malware may knock thousands off Internet on Monday

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 11:58 AM PDT

FILE - This undated handout image provided by The DNS Changer Working Group (DCWG) shows the webpage resulting from not having the DNS malware. It will only take a few clicks of the mouse. But for hundreds of thousands of computer users, those clicks could mean the difference between staying online and losing their connections. Tens of thousands of Americans may still lose their Internet service Monday July 9, 2012 unless they do a quick check of their computers for malware that could have taken over their machines more than a year ago. (AP Photo/DNC Changer Working Group, FILE )Despite repeated alerts, tens of thousands of Americans may still lose their Internet service Monday unless they do a quick check of their computers for malware that could have taken over their machines more than a year ago.

London unveils Europe's tallest building _ for now

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 11:57 AM PDT

This July 2, 2012 aerial photo made available by Newscast shows The Shard, center, a newly-constructed high-rise building in London, that is western Europe's tallest, ahead of the official inauguration on Thursday, July 5. The Shard is 309.6 meters tall (1,016 feet) and features high quality offices, a 5-star hotel with more than 200 rooms and suites and 3 floors of restaurants. It will also feature exclusive super prime residential apartments and the top levels will consist of the capital's highest public viewing gallery offering 360° views of London. (AP Photo/Newscast, Ben Fitzpatrick) EDITORIAL PURPOSES ONLYEurope's tallest building has been officially unveiled in London, but its tenure as the continent's highest skyscraper will be brief.

Bond set at $1 million for Trayvon Martin's killer

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 11:55 AM PDT

Undated handout photo of George ZimmermanSANFORD, Florida (Reuters) - A Florida judge said George Zimmerman was a flight risk and set bond at $1 million on Thursday for the neighborhood watch volunteer who shot and killed unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman had been released on $150,000 bond but was sent back to jail in June after prosecutors alleged he misled the court about his finances and failed to surrender a valid passport. ...

Iraq warns al-Qaida flowing into Syria

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 11:52 AM PDT

Iraqi Foreign Affairs Minister Hoshyar Zebari speaks at a press conference in Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, July 5, 2012. Zebari says the government has "solid information and intelligence" about al-Qaida militants infiltrating Syria from Iraq to carry out attacks. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim)Iraq asserted Thursday that al-Qaida insurgents are streaming out of the country to carry out attacks in Syria, an ominous development as the Syrian conflict enflames an already hostile region.

Questions and answers on the European Central Bank

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 11:50 AM PDT

The European Central Bank is the monetary authority for the 17 countries that use the euro currency. The eurozone has the world's second largest economy after the United States, with annual output of €9.41 trillion, or $11.75 trillion, and a population of 331 million.

Walgreen plans new acquisition, June sales fall

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 11:46 AM PDT

People walk from a USA Drug store in North Little Rock, Ark., Thursday, July 5, 2012. Walgreen Co., said Thursday it will spend about $438 million to buy a 144-store chain focused on the mid-South based in Little Rock, Ark. Stores in the chain include USA Drug, Super D Drug and May's Drug, located in Arkansas, Kansas, Mississippi and Missouri, among other states. (AP Photo/Danny Johnston)Walgreen Co. took another step Thursday in its push to grow through acquisitions when it announced the $438 million purchase of a regional chain that operates USA Drug, Super D and May's drugstores.

FIFA panel approves Islamic headscarves for women

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 11:46 AM PDT

Soccer's rules-making panel approved headscarves for female Muslim players on Thursday, reversing a ban on the Islamic hijab that's been enforced in FIFA competitions since 2007.

Finmeccanica sold radio equipment to Syria: report

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 11:45 AM PDT

ROME (Reuters) - A unit of Italian defense technology group Finmeccanica sold sophisticated communications equipment to Syrian police as recently as February, l'Espresso reported on Thursday, quoting emails published by Wikileaks. According to the Italian weekly, Finmeccanica's Selex Elsag unit sold Syrian authorities its Tetra mobile communications equipment, a system used by military, police and emergency services as well as companies and other organizations. ...

UK army to lose 17 major units amid austerity push

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 11:45 AM PDT

British Defense Secretary Philip Hammond said Thursday the country's army will lose 17 major units in a sweeping restructuring to handle the loss of 20,000 soldiers under the government's austerity drive.

24 aces help Serena Williams reach Wimbledon final

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 11:44 AM PDT

Serena Williams of the United States reacts after winning the first set against Victoria Azarenka of Belarus during a semifinals match at the All England Lawn Tennis Championships at Wimbledon, England, Thursday, July 5, 2012. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)Serena Williams wins with so much more than serving, of course.

Rep. Jackson treated for 'more serious' ailments

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 11:43 AM PDT

FILE - In this March 20, 2012 file photo, U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., D-Ill., thanks supporters at his election night party in Chicago after his Democratic primary in the Illinois' 2nd District. A statement from Jackson's office Thursday, July 5, 2012, said that Jackson's medical condition is more serious than initially believed and he's undergoing evaluation and treatment at an in-patient medical facility. The congressman's office announced last week that he had been on medical leave for two weeks and was being treated for exhaustion. (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green, File)U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. is being treated at an inpatient medical facility for "physical and emotional ailments" that are "more serious" than previously believed and will require extended treatment, according to a statement released by his office Thursday.

Weak retail sales figures leave stocks mixed

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 11:43 AM PDT

FILE - In this July 3, 2012 file photo, a trader studies his screen as he works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. U.S. stock futures fluctuated in volatile trading Thursday, July 5, 2012, as banks in China and Europe took action to bolster flagging economies and poor retail sales for June offset some promising job numbers from the Labor Department. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)Stocks turned mixed in midday trading on Wall Street Thursday after signs emerged that Americans are spending at a slower pace and that China's economy is in worse shape than previously thought.

Singh's 7 under tops early finishers at Greenbrier

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 11:42 AM PDT

Tiger Woods watches his tee shot on the 15th hole during the first round of the Greenbrier Classic PGA Golf tournament at the Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, W. Va., Thursday, July 5, 2012. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)On a day that Tiger Woods struggled with his putting stroke, a pair of older guys stood out in the morning round at the Greenbrier Classic.

US men's Olympic team set for camp, roster picks

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 11:41 AM PDT

LeBron James won a championship. Deron Williams became nearly $100 million richer. Kobe Bryant got Steve Nash as his backcourt partner.

Human, technical errors caused Rio-Paris crash: final report

Posted: 05 Jul 2012 11:30 AM PDT

The Brazilian Navy recovers a huge part of the rudder of the Air France A330 aircraft in 2009Technical faults that led an ill-prepared crew to lose control sent an Air France airliner plunging into the Atlantic in 2009, killing all 228 people aboard, French accident investigators said on Thursday.
Posted by Harshad at 1:01 PM

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