(Reuters) – Asian shares rallied for a fourth straight session on Wednesday, as upbeat trade data from China and an optimistic economic outlook from Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen whetted investors’ appetite for risk. Investors took heart from the strong performance on Wall Street and lifted MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan about 0.8 percent. Chinese exports handily beat expectations in January, rising 10.6 percent from a year earlier, while imports jumped 10 […]
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U.S. House approves ‘clean’ debt limit after Republicans drop demands
(Reuters) – The U.S. House of Representatives narrowly approved a one-year extension of federal borrowing authority on Tuesday after Republicans caved into President Barack Obama’s demands to allow a debt limit increase without any conditions. The 221-201 vote, carried mainly by Democrats, marked a dramatic shift from the confrontational fiscal tactics House Republicans have used over the past three years, culminating in last October’s 16-day government shutdown. It came after House Republicans repudiated House Speaker […]
Exclusive: Various Sites Around the World Gear Up for INC World Wide Walk
It is just three days away and the excitement is already palpable as the various sites gear up for the upcoming “INC World Wide Walk For Those Affected by Typhoon Haiyan”. The international effort promises to set a world record, as hundreds of thousands are expected to participate in the momentous event. “INC World Wide Walk” will be held in major cities around the globe: 6 in Europe, 7 in Australia, 8 in Asia and […]
Low Pressure Area and Northeast Monsoon Brings Rains
Eastern Visayas, Davao and CARAGA Region will experience rains brought by the tail-end of cold front and low pressure area. The rest of the country will experience fair weather with cloudy skies and isolated rain.
Barclays to cut 12,000 jobs, pays bigger bonuses
(Reuters) – Barclays said it would axe up to 12,000 jobs this year even as it raised bonuses for investment bankers, prompting fury among politicians and unions who said it had not learned the lessons of the financial crisis. Britain’s third-biggest bank said up to 9 percent of employees could go, including 7,000 in Britain, as it tries to lower costs. The cuts are not concentrated in any one business area. It said it paid […]
China, Taiwan agree to open offices after historic talks
(Reuters) – China and Taiwan, at odds for more than six decades, agreed at historic talks on Tuesday to set up representative offices as early as possible, though sensitive political issues like a formal peace treaty were not up for discussion. The talks between Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Minister Wang Yu-chi and China’s Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Zhijun, who heads the Taiwan Affairs Office, were the first since the 1949 creation of the People’s Republic of […]
Italy, U.S. police crack big mafia drug ring
(Reuters) – Police in Italy and New York broke up a major trans-Atlantic mafia ring on Tuesday, arresting 24 people accused of plotting to move hundreds of millions of dollars in drugs between South America, Italy and the United States. The sting operation involving undercover agents and wire taps offered more evidence the Calabria-based ‘Ndrangheta had overtaken its Sicilian cousin, the Cosa Nostra, and was trying to make inroads in the United States by forging ties with […]
Yellen says Fed on track to keep trimming stimulus
(Reuters) – Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said on Tuesday the U.S. central bank was on track to keep reducing its policy stimulus, even as she acknowledged the labor market recovery was “far from complete.” In her first public comments as Fed chief, Yellen said the central bank would need to keep its eye on a broad range of labor market indicators, not just the unemployment rate, as it continued to assess the health of […]
Shirley Temple, former Hollywood child star, dies at 85
(Reuters) – Shirley Temple Black, who lifted America’s spirits as a bright-eyed, dimpled child movie star during the Great Depression and later became a U.S. diplomat, died late on Monday evening at the age of 85, her family said in a statement. Temple Black, who lured millions to the movies in the 1930s, “peacefully passed away” at her Woodside, Calif., home from natural causes at 10:57 p.m. local time (0157 ET), surrounded by her family […]
Military plane crashes in eastern Algeria, 103 dead: TV
(Reuters) – A military transport plane carrying relatives of members of the armed forces crashed in eastern Algeria on Tuesday, killing 103 people, the private Ennahar TV station reported, citing “informed sources”. The plane crashed in a mountainous area in the Oum El Bouaghi province, about 500 km (300 miles) from the capital Algiers, the report said. A senior military official told the official APS news agency that 99 passengers and four crew members had […]
Stolen 300-Year-Old Stradivarius Violin Recovered And Played In Wisconsin
(Reuters) — A Stradivarius violin worth millions of dollars, which was stolen from a concert violinist in an armed robbery in January and recovered by the police less than a week ago was back being used during a performance of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra on Monday (February 10). Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra concertmaster Frank Almond played his famous Stradivarius violin at the concert in the Brookfield auditorium where he was received by the public with a standing ovation, NBC News reported. The 300-year-old […]
DSWD to build new houses for the homeless in Bohol
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Social Welfare and Development said it will build more than 8,000 disaster-resilient houses in Bohol for families who were affected by the 7.2 magnitude quake. DSWD Secretary Corazon Soliman said the project will be undertaken in partnership with the Habitat for Humanity under the Core Shelter Assistance Project (CSAP). The project aims to build a total of 8,083 disaster- resilient homes which will be environment-friendly. The houses will be […]