Category: Other

DHAKA, June 30, 2008 (AFP) – Impoverished Bangladesh became the latest victim of surging global crude costs Monday with the government announcing it has been forced to hike state-set fuel prices by between 34 and 66 percent. Authorities said they had no alternative to the sharp increases because the country could no longer afford to […]

NEW YORK, July 1, 2008 (AFP) – General Motors’s stock price fell on Monday to levels last seen in 1954, as investors fretted over its falling sales and as some analysts wondered if the iconic US automaker’s glory days are in the rearview mirror.Analysts are questioning if GM will be able to remain a component […]

SYDNEY, July 1, 2008 (AFP) – As Sydney prepares for a visit by Pope Benedict XVI and hundreds of thousands of Catholics, the city’s brothels are readying themselves for an expected surge in demand for sex. Any time Australia’s biggest city hosts a major event — from the 2003 Rugby World Cup to the Asia […]

MUMBAI, July 1, 2008 (AFP) – Indian shares plunged 3.71 percent on Tuesday, closing below the 13,000-point mark, hit by worries about early general elections, inflation and oil prices, dealers said. The benchmark Mumbai 30-share Sensex index fell 499.92 points to 12,961.68, a 14-month low. “Political uncertainty and rising inflation are dragging the markets down.We […]

FRANKFURT, June 29, 2008 (AFP) – Eurozone borrowing costs are set to rise when the European Central Bank convenes Thursday, seeking to tame a fledgling inflation monster before turning its attention to slumping growth. Interest rate cuts “will not be on the agenda until the all-clear is given on the inflation front,” Commerzbank economist Ralph […]

NAIROBI, June 30, 2008 (AFP) – Kenya needs 72 billion shillings (1.1 billion dollars or 708 million euros) in emergency funding to counter a food crisis that has helped drive inflation to over 30 percent, an official said.“We urgently need the funds in the next three months to address immediate needs and mitigate the current […]

BASEL, June 30, 2008 (AFP) – Emerging markets, which economists say are able to withstand the current financial crisis, could still be hurt by an economic slowdown in the United States, the world’s top forum of central bankers warned Monday.The Bank for International Settlements said in its annual report that the United States remained a […]

LONDON, June 30, 2008 (AFP) – The euro rose against the dollar on Monday as oil prices rocketed past 143 dollars per barrel for the first time, while traders awaited this week’s expected rate rise from the European Central Bank. The European single currency rose to 1.5823 dollars in morning London trading from 1.5775 dollars […]

PARIS, June 29, 2008 (AFP) – Industrialised countries should seize the opportunity of high world food prices to cut subsidies for farm production, the OECD advises in a review of agriculture policies.Published as the World Trade Organization gears up for an attempt to break through agriculture, subsidies and other issues blocking a world trade deal, […]

WASHINGTON, June 29, 2008 (AFP) – One woman outsourced the breaking off a relationship.A man sought bidders to clean his ears, and found someone highly qualified. Both turned to a new breed of US company that harnesses the worldwide web to get someone else to take on the difficult and tedious tasks in life or […]

MUMBAI, June 28, 2008 (AFP) – Indian shares are set to run into rough weather again next week, as global crude prices and domestic inflation continue to surge, raising fears of further monetary tightening, dealers said.Investors are also wary of rising political uncertainty with media reports suggesting Friday that India’s ruling Congress party may decide […]

MOSCOW, June 28, 2008 (AFP) – The chief executive of Russian energy giant Gazprom has proposed setting up a European network of service stations for cars fuelled by natural gas, as an alternative to petrol.“We are proposing to our European partners the creation of a network of natural gas stations in Europe with the participation […]