WSJ891102-0033
 = 891102
 891102-0033.
 Reupke Quits Post
@  As General Manager
@  Of Reuters Holdings
 11/02/89
 WALL STREET JOURNAL (J)
 RTRSY WNEWS
 LONDON

   Reuters Holdings PLC said Michael Reupke resigned as general manager  to pursue unspecified interests, a move the news organization termed an "amicable separation."

   Mr. Reupke, 52 years old and a 27-year Reuters veteran, had been the information-services company's general manager for only six months.
His appointment to that post, which has senior administrative, staff and policy responsibilities, followed a several-year tenure as Reuters's editor in chief.
No successor  was named, and Mr. Reupke's duties will be split among three other senior Reuters executives, the company said.

   In a telephone interview, Mr. Reupke said his departure was for "personal reasons," which he declined  to specify.
"There is no business reason for my departure," nor any disagreement over policy, he added.
He also rejected reports that his departure stemmed from disappointment the general manager's post had n't  also led to a board directorship at the London-based news organization.

   Mr. Reupke was one of three executives on Reuters's eight-person executive committee who did n't  also serve on the company's board of directors.
"If I  were choosing the people of tomorrow, I would  have chosen the people who are now on the board," he said.

   A Reuters spokesman said the departure reflects "no change in strategy or profits."
Mark Shepperd, an analyst at UBS Phillips amp Drew in London, said, "I suspect (the departure) will be fairly irrelevant for the company.
I would  be very surprised if his departure signals any change in strategy or change in profit expectations."
On London's Stock Exchange, Reuters shares rose five pence to 913 pence ($14.43).
In the U.S. over-the-counter market, American depositary shares for Reuters, each representing three shares in the London market, closed unchanged at $43.875.

   The senior of the three executives who  will assume Mr. Reupke's duties is Nigel Judah, 58, finance director and a Reuters board director.
Peter Holland, 45, deputy general manager, becomes director of corporate affairs.
And Patrick Mannix, 46, international technical manager, becomes director of group quality programs.

six months

several-year

now


XIN_ENG_20051101.0021

HANOI, Nov. 1 , 2005 (Xinhua)

Hu says Sino-Vietnamese friendship enters new stage

The traditional friendship between China and Vietnam has entered a new stage of all-round friendly cooperation, Chinese President Hu Jintao said on Tuesday.

Hu made the comment in a speech at the National Assembly of Vietnam on Tuesday. The Chinese president, also general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), arrived here earlier Monday for a three-day official goodwill visit.

"China and Vietnam linked by mountains and rivers share common ideals and have related culture and interests. The peoples of the two countries had profound feelings for each other in history, " Hu said

Mutual respect, understanding, support, trust and cooperation remain the driving force of the development of the Sino-Vietnamese ties and the friendship between the two peoples, he said.

With concerted efforts made by the peoples for generations, the Sino-Vietnamese traditional friendship has entered a new stage of overall friendly cooperation, the president said.

Hu said the development is manifested in the guidelines set by the two countries' leaders for long-term stability, orientation toward future, good-neighborliness and friendship and all-round cooperation.

"It is indicated by the common call of the two sides to be good neighbors, friends, comrades and partners for ever, " Hu said.

He added the development is also displayed by the in-depth exchanges about governing experiences between the two countries, and the CPC and the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), and by the two nations' friendly exchanges and cooperation for mutual benefits in various fields.

"China has turned into Vietnam's largest trade partner. The two countries' trade volume is expected to reach the goal of 10 billion US dollars before 2010, " Hu said.

The two sides have carried out close coordination and cooperation within multilateral frameworks like the United Nations, the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation and Asia-Europe Meeting, Hu said.

He noted, "The Sino-Vietnamese friendly cooperation has brought real benefits for the two countries and their people.".

Hu added he talked with Nong Duc Manh, general secretary of the CPV Central Committee, and Vietnamese President Tran Duc Luong on Monday afternoon.

"Leaders of both sides agree it is in the basic interests of China and Vietnam and their people to promote friendly mutual trust, cooperation for mutual benefits and common development between the two countries and the CPC and the CPV, " Hu said.

The leaders vowed to adopt more effective measures to intensify bilateral exchanges and cooperation in the fields like politics, economy, foreign affairs, defense, culture and education. Exchanges on governing experience, and socialist theory and practice will also be boosted.

"China is ready to work with Vietnam to continue exploration in building socialism and make continuous efforts for new prospects of bilateral all-round friendly relations and cooperation and for a harmonious world of lasting peace and common prosperity, " Hu said.

Nov. 1 , 2005

Tuesday

Tuesday

Monday

Monday afternoon


XIN_ENG_20061109.0144

NAIROBI, Nov. 9 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Climate change threatens pastoral communities: Oxfam

International relief agency Oxfam warned Thursday that unchecked climate change could deal a crippling blow to a way of life that has existed for centuries because more frequent and intense droughts are threatening the livelihoods of pastoral communities.

In a statement issued here Thursday, Oxfam appealed to the delegates attending the ongoing United Nations conference on climate change to save the lives of pastoral communities such as the Turkana of northern Kenya.

"Governments meeting at the UN climate change conference in Nairobi only have to look to a few hundred miles north to see how climate change is having an immediate and devastating effect on people's lives," said Antonio Hill, senior policy adviser of Oxfam.

"Under threat is the way of life of pastoral communities. People such as the Turkana are on the front line of the injustice of man-made climate change. They are least responsible for climate change but are amongst the worst affected," said Hill.

Oxfam called on governments at the UN climate change conference to significantly increase funds to help the poorest and most vulnerable adapt to climate change and to agree on an accelerated timetable for binding commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The latest report from the Kenyan meteorological office, released at the Nairobi climate change conference, shows that the northern regions have seen a steady decline in mean annual rainfall over the last 50 years.

Pastoral communities, which rely heavily on natural resources and their livestock, have over centuries developed a way of life that has coped with the vagaries of the climate, even severe droughts.

However Oxfam says more frequent extreme weather means it is more difficult for them to recover after each incidence of drought.

According to the Kenyan government, pastoral communities have suffered most due to recent climate extremes in the country.

The east African nation is used to extreme weather patterns but they are becoming more frequent and intense. The 1999 to 2000 drought was the worst in living memory and was followed by a severe drought in 2004 to 2005.

Nov. 9 , 2006

Thursday

centuries

Thursday

the last 50 years


XIN_ENG_20051108.0024

HANOI, Nov. 8 , 2005 (Xinhua)

Vietnam likely to launch remote sensing satellite in late 2007

Vietnam could have its first remote sensing satellite in late 2007 or early 2008, if the government approved the space industry development strategy and a project on launching it in the next few months, an official said Tuesday.

Vietnam plans to launch a small remote sensing satellite to provide aerial images mainly used to better manage natural resources and transport systems, prevent natural disasters and forest fires, put forth weather forecasts, and draw maps, local newspaper Youth on Tuesday quoted Tran Cong Due, deputy director of the Science and Technology Department under the Ministry of Science and Technology, as saying.

The production and launch of a small satellite weighing 10-100 kg costs some 6 million US dollars, while those of a bigger satellite weighing 100-500 kg up to 20-40 million dollars, Due stated, noting that some foreign companies want to cooperate with Vietnam on the issue.

A small remote sensing satellite will be put on a pole-to-pole orbit at a distance of 300-1,500 km from the Earth, he said.

Now, Vietnam has to annually spend millions of US dollars buying aerial images from foreign countries, he said.

Recently, the Vietnamese government decided to invest 2,885 billion Vietnamese dong (nearly 182.6 million dollars) in manufacturing and launching a medium-sized communication satellite, which will span its coverage over Vietnam, other Southeast Asian countries, Japan, the Korean peninsula, part of China, eastern Oceanean and the South China Sea.

Vietnam plans to put its first communication satellite named Vinasat into operation in the second quarter of 2008. It will open a tender for Vinasat production and relevant activities with bidders coming from the United States, France, Japan and Russia in the coming time.

Nov. 8 , 2005

late 2007 or early 2008

the next few months

Tuesday

Tuesday

the second quarter of 2008


XIN_ENG_20061116.0247

BEIJING, Nov. 16 , 2006 (Xinhua)

nation

The work safety committee under the State Council, China's cabinet, on Thursday urged relevant authorities to take urgent actions to curb the spate of accidents that have rocked China in recent weeks.

The committee said in a circular that thorough investigations must be carried out to find the causes of the accidents. It said that those people guilty of corruption and neglect of duty must be held to account.

Investigations must be finished into at least some of the major accidents and the results must be made public, the circular says.

China has seen a spate of major accidents in the last few weeks.

On October 28, 13 workers were killed in northwest China's Xinjiang region when the oil tank they were painting exploded.

On Nov. 5, a gas explosion in the Jiaojiazhai colliery in Datong city of north China's Shanxi Province killed 47 miners.

On Nov. 12, 34 miners were killed in Nanshan colliery of Lingshi County, also in Shanxi, when a fire broke out in the pit.

Figures from the State Administration of Work Safety show that China recorded 532,101 accidents between January and October, killing 92,437 people.

The committee called for solid measures to be taken to improve safety measures in vulnerable industries.

It said, with immediate effect, that authorities must stop approving new collieries with a capacity of less than 300,000 tons a year.

Nov. 16 , 2006

Thursday

recent weeks

the last few weeks

October 28

Nov. 5

Nov. 12

January

October

a year


XIN_ENG_20051124.0156

MELBOURNE, Australia, Nov. 24 , 2005 (Xinhua)

Japanese Tomita wins men's all-around

Japanese veteran Hiroyuki Tomita won the men's all-around title after a lop-sided competition at the Gymnastics World Championships here on Thursday.

The 2003 world championships bronze medallist posted a highest 56.698 points after all the six rotations.

His compatriot Hisashi Mizutori ended up a far second in 55.349 to complete a Japanese one-two on the scoreboard.

The bronze medal went to Denis Selariu of Belarus in 55.112. And Spaniard Rafael Martinez, third in qualification, just missed his first-ever podium finish in a world championships by 0.264 behind.

Nov. 24 , 2005

Thursday


XIN_ENG_20051118.0318

MADRID, Nov. 18 , 2005 (Xinhua)

Souness warns of Chelsea backlash

LONDON, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) - Newcastle United manager Graeme Souness has warned his players that Chelsea would recover from the previous loss in the English premier league to become a "dangerous animal".

Chelsea are still leading the Premier League table despite their 1-0 loss to Manchester United following a Champions League defeat by Real Betis.

"Chelsea lost the last game they played and for me when this happens to any team it makes them a dangerous animal," Souness told reporters on Friday.

"We are playing against a team that is successful and used to winning, a team that has had a bit of criticism of late and all those things make them dangerous,"added the manager, whose side will visit Chelsea on Saturday.

Newcastle will be without skipper Alan Shearer following a hernia operation, leaving striker Michael Owen to spearhead the Newcastle attack.

"What we are hoping for is that they have a hangover of some sort and we are resilient and one of our special players can do something on the day," said Souness.

Following a poor start in the season, Newcastle stand 10th on the league table, 13 points behind Chelsea.

Nov. 18 , 2005

Nov. 19

Friday

Saturday


WSJ891102-0124
 = 891102
 891102-0124.
 Dividend News:
@  Goody Products Inc.
 11/02/89
 WALL STREET JOURNAL (J)
 GOOD
 DIVIDENDS (DIV)

   GOODY PRODUCTS Inc. cut its quarterly dividend to five cents a share from 11.5 cents a share.
The reduced dividend is payable Jan. 2 to stock of record Dec. 15.
The Kearny, N.J.-based maker of hair accessories and other cosmetic products said it cut the dividend due to its third-quarter loss of $992,000, or 15 cents a share.
In the year-ago quarter, the company reported net income of $1.9 million, or 29 cents a share.
The company also adopted an anti-takeover plan.

Jan. 2

Dec. 15

third-quarter

the year-ago quarter


XIN_ENG_20061104.0276

WASHINGTON, Nov. 4 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Four U.S. military newspapers to ask for Rumsfeld's resignation

Four U.S. military newspapers will publish an editorial on Monday, asking President George W. Bush to fire Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

The editorial, posted on the Website of the Army Times on Saturday, said Rumsfeld "has lost credibility with the uniformed leadership, with the troops, with Congress and with the public at large."

"His strategy has failed, and his ability to lead is compromised. And although the blame for our failures in Iraq rests with the secretary, it will be the troops who bear its brunt," it said.

The article, first reported by CNN, said Bush, Vice President Cheney and Rumsfeld have made "one rosy reassurance after another, " such as "mission accomplished," the insurgency is "in its last throes," and "back off."

American military leaders generally "toed the line," but a few retired generals eventually spoke out from the safety of the sidelines. "Now, however, a new chorus of criticism is beginning to resonate. Active-duty military leaders are starting to voice misgivings about the war's planning, execution and dimming prospects for success," said the editorial.

The article said the call for Rumsfeld's resignation at this moment "is not about the midterm elections."

The editorial would appear Monday in the four weekly publications - Army Times, Navy Times, Air Force Times and the Marine Corps Times - that serve the four main branches of the U.S. military, CNN reported.

The timing of the editorial's publishing was not prompted by the Nov. 7 midterm elections, but was inspired by Bush's statement this week that he wanted Rumsfeld and Cheney in their posts through the end of his term, Robert Hodierne, the senior managing editor for Army Times Publications, the papers' parent company, was quoted as saying.

Army Times Publications was owned by the Gannett Company, publisher of USA Today and many local U.S. newspapers, according to the CNN report.

Nov. 4 , 2006

Monday

Saturday

Monday

Nov. 7

this week


XIN_ENG_20061101.0421

HANOI, Nov. 2 , 2006 (Xinhua)

3.6 pct of Vietnam population have diabetes

More than three million Vietnamese people, or over 3.6 percent of the country's population, suffer from diabetes, according to local newspaper Pioneer on Thursday.

Millions of other local people face the risk of contracting the disease, the paper quoted reports at a seminar held by the Vietnam Diabetes and Endocrine Association as saying on Wednesday.

The situation results from low awareness of local people on the disease, weak grassroots health networks, and changes in residents' lifestyle such as unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and obesity, said the reports.

Vietnam is focusing on raising public awareness about the danger of diabetes and ways of preventing it such as using appropriate diet, increasing physical activities and reducing weight, and improving diabetes diagnosis and treatment systems nationwide.

The country currently has one hospital, five centers and five hospital faculties specializing in endocrinology, said the report.

Nov. 2 , 2006

Thursday

Wednesday

currently


AFP_ENG_19970402.0207

MOSCOW, April 2 , 1997 (AFP)

IMF pledges support for Russia

The IMF is to continue providing financial support to Russia despite disappointment with the country's economic performance in 1996, IMF director general Michel Camdessus said here on Wednesday.

Supporting Russia financially "is our raison d'etre (reason for existing) -- we must do it and it will be done," Camdessus told students at the State Institute for International Relations (MGIMO) here.

But he also warned that failure to improve tax collection might open the way to anarchy or dicatorship.

And the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said that no decision had yet been taken on the release of three pending monthly instalments of a 10-billion-dollar loan to Russia, spread over three years.

"If the decision had already been made I would already have left," he said. He was due to leave late Thursday.

The January-March instalments are worth about one billion dollars. Last year the IMF delayed several instalments because the government had fallen far behind its targets for tax collection.

Camdessus arrived here Monday to finalise discussions with the government on its 1997 reform programme.

He held talks with Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin and newly- appointed first deputy prime ministers Anatoly Chubais and Boris Nemtsov, whom President Boris Yeltsin brought into the cabinet to give new impetus to Russia's sluggish economic reforms.

Camdessus said he was convinced that the new government had the necessary determination to tackle the main problems bedevilling Russia, especially inadequate tax collection, the delayed resumption of economic growth and corruption.

"I talk of determination because I know these people, I know of their personal determination to do it."

"At times (Russia's) progress has been so slow that the support of the IMF has been interpreted by some as reflecting a kind of political complacency, or sheer misjudgement from the IMF. It is time to show that this pessimism is misplaced," he said.

He warned that if the government failed to solve the problem of tax collection, it "risks encouraging anarchy or dictatorship, or both."

Last year the government managed to collect only about 60 percent of projected tax revenue.

The new government has announced that it will target monopolies over natural resources, such as United Energy Systems (UES) and Gazprom, in its drive to boost tax revenue.

The monopolies owe the government billions of dollars in taxes, but argue that in turn their customers, including government ministries, are heavily indebted to them.

April 2 , 1997

Wednesday

three years

late Thursday

Last year

Monday

Last year


AFP_ENG_20061211.0353

ABBOTABAD, Pakistan, Dec 11 , 2006, 2006

ATTENTION - ADDS details ///

More than 200 Chinese troops headed to Pakistan's mountainous northern region on Monday at the start of the first ever joint military exercise held here by the two allies.

The People's Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers and their Pakistani counterparts raised flags and played their national anthems at a special ceremony in the hill station of Abbotabad, an AFP photographer said.

Two guns boomed to herald the start of the exercise and paragliders showered fresh rose petals over the parade ground, before soldiers took part in a folk dancing display.

The Chinese contingent flew in to the garrison city of Rawalpindi near the capital Islamabad on Sunday to take part in the 10-day exercise dubbed "Friendship 2006".

PLA Major General Liu Minjiang said at the ceremony that the exercises would foster "a joint strategy and tactics to fight terrorism." Pakistani Major General Mohsin Kamal said the manoeuvres would strengthen cooperation.

The exercise comes around two weeks after Chinese President Hu Jintao pledged to take strategic ties with Pakistan to a "new level" during his first ever visit to the South Asian country.

"This is the first time that a PLA contingent has arrived in Pakistan" on an exercise, a senior Pakistani military official said, adding that Pakistani troops visited China for joint exercises in 2004.

"The exercise is a display of the mutual commitment and resolve to fight terrorism, besides bolstering time-tested friendship between the two countries," the official said on condition of anonymity.

After the ceremony in Abbotabad the soldiers were due to head to the mountains further north for the exercises, the official said.

Beijing remains Islamabad's largest arms supplier and the two are jointly developing the JF-17 Thunder fighter jet. China is also providing major industrial and economic assistance.

Islamabad meanwhile is helping Beijing deal with the perceived threat of Muslim separatists in China's western Xinjiang region, which borders Kazakhstan and Pakistan.

In late 2003 Pakistan said it had killed Hasan Mahsum, identified by China as its "top terrorist", in a raid in Pakistan's South Waziristan tribal region.

Dec 11 , 2006

Monday

Sunday

around two weeks


AFP_ENG_20061203.0391

SANTIAGO, Dec 3 , 2006, 2006

ATTENTION - INCORPORATES Chile-politics-health-Pinochet ///

Chile's former strongman Augusto Pinochet was reported to be gravely ill Sunday, after a massive heart attack.

"His fate is in the hands of God and his doctors," said the former dictator's youngest son, Marco Antonio Pinochet Hiriart.

Juan Ignacio Vergara, a doctor treating the retired general, said Pinochet's life is "in danger."

A family spokesman, Guillermo Garin, said Sunday that a Catholic priest had given Pinochet the last rites administered when a gravely ill person is in imminent danger of death, adding that Pinochet remains conscious and in stable condition.

Pinochet, 91, was brought to Santiago Military Hospital shortly after 2:00 am (0600 GMT) on Sunday, and immediately underwent angioplasty -- a procedure desiged to widen a narrowed or obstructed blood vessel.

The elderly ex-dictator, who has been under house arrest off and on for the past few years, was again placed under house arrest last week by a judge investigating the disappearance of two of the thousands of people who went missing under his regime.

Pinochet ruled Chile for 17 years after seizing power in a 1973 military coup. Accused of fraud and human rights abuses during his 1973-1990 regime, Pinochet was first ordered under house arrest in late October on other charges only to be released on parole a few days later in deference to his advanced age and ill health.

The latest arrest warrant by judge Victor Montiglio is linked to the disappearance of two security guards of socialist president Salvador Allende, who committed suicide during the September 1973 military coup.

The guards disappeared during the notorious "Caravan of Death," an effort by a band of Chilean soldiers to purge the country of regime opponents shortly after the coup, killing 75 people.

Montiglio's arrest warrant was issued two days after Pinochet's 91st birthday celebrations, at which his wife read a message saying that the former dictator held "no grudge against anyone," despite all the "persecutions and injustices" against him.

During his birthday celebration, the ailing ex-dictator sat in a wheelchair outside his home, managed a faint smile and lifted his hand to wave to scores of followers gathered outside his house in La Dahesa, one of Santiago's poshest neighborhoods.

"I will gladly withstand all the humiliation, persecution and injustices my family and I have suffered in the name of peace and harmony, which should reign among Chileans," said the message.

But Pinochet was unapologetic for toppling the elected Socialist government of Salvador Allende, saying that thanks to the courage and decisiveness of the armed forces, "Chile avoided the totalitarian threat and found true democracy, which we re-established, and which all our countrymen enjoy."

Dozens of Pinochet's men are behind bars in Chile for killing and torturing some 3,000 persons, by official count, under his rule

But Pinochet has yet to face trial for any crime. His lawyers have so far persuaded the Supreme Court in each case that the retired general was unable to defend himself because he suffered a "mild dementia," the only condition available to him that Chilean courts accept to avoid trial.

Last month, Pinochet was charged with alleged crimes at Villa Grimaldi, a secret jail where Michelle Bachelet, now president of Chile, was once tortured, along with her mother, for a month in 1975.

Pinochet has also been charged in connection with Operation Colombo, an international effort to murder 119 regime opponents and spirit the bodies to other South American countries ruled by military regimes in July 1975.

His eldest daughter, Lucia Pinochet Hiriart, 67, said on November 16 that Pinochet "feels the pain" of victims under his regime, but was not ready to ask for their pardon publicly.

She and her mother are not allowed to leave Chile because of investigations of a hundred bank accounts that members of the Pinochet family opened in the United States and other countries, prosecutors say, to avoid taxes.

The accounts came to light after a US Senate investigation of Riggs Bank in Washington.

Chileans remain deeply divided over the dictatorship, which ended when Pinochet lost a 1988 referendum on his continued rule and handed over power in 1990 to a transitional government.

Dec 3 , 2006

Sunday

Sunday

Sunday

the past few years

last week

17 years

late October

a few days

September 1973

two days

Last month

now

a month

July 1975

November 16


XIN_ENG_20061112.0016

HANOI, Nov. 12 , 2006 (Xinhua)

APEC meetings seek to unlock stalled WTO negotiations

World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations will continue to be of great importance for the APEC meetings which start here on Sunday as the APEC member economies seek to find a way forward, Vietnam's deputy foreign minister said Sunday morning.

Speaking at the beginning of the two-day Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Concluding Senior Official's Meeting (CSOM), which is to be followed by the APEC Joint Ministerial Meeting on Nov. 15-16 and APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting on Nov. 18-19, Le Cong Phung, also chair of the CSOM, said APEC can lead the way for all members of the WTO to reignite negotiations and conclude the Doha Development Agenda next year.

During the CSOM, senior officials from member economies will discuss the adoption of APEC Model Measures for Free Trade Agreements and guidelines to secure supply chains against counterfeit and pirated goods to unlock the stalled WTO negotiations.

"APEC members provide an accurate gauge of global economic views and ideas, so if APEC can identify a way forward this path will most likely be suitable to the broader WTO membership," he said, adding that representatives of APEC member economies based in Geneva have been working on a solution and senior officials will be updated on this progress.

Phung said APEC senior officials will also consider the adoption of model measures that can be used by member economies in the negotiation of Free Trade Agreements and Regional Trade Arrangements (FTAs/RTAs).

"There are more than 20 FTAs and RTAs in force in the APEC region and more under negotiation," he noted.

Phung said the member economies are working to ensure that a " spaghetti bowl" effect of having so many differing agreements does not undermine regional business environment and unduly increase transaction costs. "APEC model measures will increase transparency of new FTAs and RTAs and will be of particular benefit to member economies while negotiating their FTAs/RTAs."

Ministers of the member economies will also consider model measures that cover areas such as rules of origin, transparency, cooperation and others in the 18th APEC Joint Ministerial Meeting slated for Nov. 15-16.

Advancing multilateral trade and high quality FTAs/RTAs are important components of one of the main objectives for the 18th meeting and the 14th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting slated for Nov. 18-19 in Hanoi: the release of the Hanoi Action Plan which provides the detail required to implement last year's Busan roadmap to achieve the APEC Bogor goals.

"The plan will have core components that include support for the multilateral trading system, strengthening of Individual Action Plans and Collective Action plans (CAPs/IAPs), high quality FTAs/RTAs, and strengthening of business activities in the region and capacity building," Phung said.

For business to thrive in the region, APEC members have an obligation to ensure the business environment is conducive to growth, he said, noting that the Hanoi Action Plan will provide clear direction on a range of areas that include trade facilitation, private sector development, the digital economy and intellectual property rights, investment facilitation, transparency and anti-corruption, secure trade, structural reform and pathfinder initiatives.

Nov. 12 , 2006

Sunday

Sunday morning

Nov. 15-16

Nov. 18-19

next year

the 18th

Nov. 15-16

Nov. 18-19

last year


AFP_ENG_20051216.0208

VIENNA, Dec 16 , 2005

background ///

World demand for oil will increase 1.9 percent in 2006, to 84.9 million barrels a day, OPEC said in a December report released in Vienna on Friday.

The forecast is a "slight increase" over its outlook issued in November, due to stronger-than-expected predictions for world economic growth next year, OPEC said.

Oil demand will increase in all major regions, with China accounting for more than one fifth of the increase of 1.6 million bpd.

For this year, the oil cartel lowered its estimate for demand to 83.3 million bpd, which represents an increase of 1.5 percent compared with demand in 2004.

This forecast was in line with estimates by the International Energy Agency, which had said in its monthly report published on Tuesday that oil demand would grow by 1.4 percent this year.

However, the IEA said that it expected oil demand to grow by 2.2 percent next year to 85.2 million bpd, higher than the forecast by OPEC.

On Monday, the 11 members of OPEC had met in Kuwait City and decided to leave their production levels unchanged at 30 million bpd, declaring themselves happy with current market conditions and vowing to take action in the event of a fall in prices during winter.

OPEC members are currently benefiting from high prices of oil, but are also producing at near full-capacity with output at levels unseen for 25 years.

On Friday, oil prices fell amid forecasts of warmer-than-expected weather in the United States, the world's largest consumer of energy.

New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in January, slipped 29 cents to 59.70 dollars per barrel in electronic trading.

In London, the price of Brent North Sea crude for February delivery shed 36 cents to 59.04 dollars per barrel. The January contract had closed on Thursday up 25 cents at 59.85 dollars.

Dec 16 , 2005

December

Friday

November

next year

this year

Tuesday

this year

next year

Monday

25 years

Friday

January

February

January

Thursday


XIN_ENG_20051127.0133

KABUL, Nov. 27 , 2005 (Xinhua)

News analysis: Abuse of detainees creates chance for Taliban

The ongoing reported abuse of detainees by US military in Afghanistan would facilitate Taliban- linked militants to exploit the situation for their own propaganda to mobilize local support, local observers said Sunday.

At least two suspected Afghan terrorists have died at the US military detention center in Bagram, 50 km north of capital city, the headquarters of over 20,000 strong US-led coalition forces in the post-Taliban nation.

In addition to the reported activity of detainees' maltreatment at the US holding facilities, the US military, according to media reports, has burned the bodies of Taliban militias, which are forbidden in Islam, the ruling religion in Afghanistan and the region.

A footage broadcast by SBS, an Australian television network last month indicated the US troops burned two corpses of Taliban fighters in a village in southern Kandahar province, the former stronghold of Taliban, and taunt other militias. The act sparked outrage in the conservative Afghanistan.

Afghan leaders including President Hamid Karzai strongly denounced the act and called for investigation into the subject.

"Abusing detainees' rights, or torturing prisoners, would bring opposing effect and definitely facilitate Taliban and terrorism to exploit the situation for their own propaganda in order to mobilize local support," renown political observer Qasim Akhgar maintained.

He noted that Afghans did not expect human rights violation from the US military in Afghanistan as they had helped Afghans to get rid of the Taliban and terrorists' clutches.

"Violating human rights and torturing people is the emblem of Taliban and terrorists, but not the emblem of soldiers of US army," Akhgar pointed out.

The US military, he said, had come here to root out the Taliban and terrorism.

"The trend, if goes unchecked, would also affect Afghan law enforcing personnel to follow the same policy in tackling law breakers," the analyst opined referring to the training by US instructors to Afghan law enforcing agencies particularly the police.

Piling complaints over the reported detainees abuse forced the US military to initiate a thorough investigation early last year, and the outcome of the probe, carried out by General Jacoby has yet to be made public.

Some 400 suspected Taliban and al-Qaida Afghans reportedly have been languishing in the 23 holding facilities run by the US military in Afghanistan.

"Tactic of highhandedness and torture of prisoners adopted by the US military would cause distrust between Afghan people and government and finally benefit Taliban and al-Qaida terrorists to boost their ranks," eminent journalist Syed Najibullah Hashimi observed.

Taliban's recent violent attacks, Hashimi went on to say, was the counter productive result of the treatment applied by US military to poor Afghan detainees at the detention centers.

Usually the US army denies the reported detainees abuse in Afghanistan. It has refused the Afghan rights to visit the holding facilities by saying the International Committee of Red Cross ( ICRC) regularly visits the detention centers.

The US military has denied that its soldiers committed any crimes by burning two bodies of Taliban fighters in Kandahar last month.

"Our investigation found there was no intent to desecrate the remains, but only to dispose of them for hygienic reasons," operational commander of the US forces General Jason Kamiya told newsmen in Kandahar city on Saturday.

However, he added that disciplinary action would be taken against four soldiers involved in the case.

"Continued violation of human rights by US military in Afghanistan would change the minds of Afghans in favor of Taliban as they did not expect rights violation from the US military when they respect them as their liberators," Hashimi added.

The reported rights violation by the US servicemen is also a matter of concern among the official circles in the Afghan government.

"Burning human body or maltreating prisoners is an offence, and the offenders should be punished," deputy speaker of Presidential Palace Siamak Herawi told Xinhua.

"US troops present in Afghanistan should respect Afghan culture and those who violate the culture should be punished, and this is the stance of the government of Afghanistan," Herawi emphasized.

Nov. 27 , 2005

Sunday

last month

early last year

last month

Saturday


XIN_ENG_20051128.0205

NANCHANG, Nov. 28 , 2005 (Xinhua)

areas

More than 10,000 soldiers have been mobilized and at least one million yuan (about 123,000 US dollars) will be allocated in the disaster relief in central China's quake-hit areas, said the sources with the provincial governments of Jiangxi and Hubei on Monday.

The Jiangxi provincial government said it was launching its emergency plan shortly after the quake struck and mobilized more than 10,000 soldiers and militia members to help restore the normal order of life and production in Jiujiang.

As of Monday evening, the rescuers have found and saved more than 200 people who were trapped in the collapsed buildings.

Meanwhile, more than 50,000 people who were affected by the disaster have been relocated by the local government.

In the nearby Hubei Province, which was also partially hit by the earthquake, the provincial government decides to allocate at least one million yuan (about 123,000 US dollars) to give free medical treatment to people who were injured in the quake.

The provincial government held a special conference on Monday to strengthen the disaster relief work, adding that an earthquake prevention and disaster relief responsibility system will immediately take effect in Hubei.

The majority of the schools in the quake-hit areas resumed class Monday, which unanimously gave the students lessons concerning earthquake and the survival skills.

To further monitor the Jiujiang earthquake, the China Seismological Bureau organized a panel composed of more than 50 seismologists, to head toward the two provinces.

The experts will carry out field inspections and set up 11 seismographs in both Jiangxi and Hubei for earthquake prevention and study.

An earthquake measuring 5.7 on the Richter scale jolted the city of Jiujiang, Jiangxi Province, on Saturday, leaving at least 14 dead.

Nov. 28 , 2005

Monday

Monday evening

Monday

Monday

Saturday


AFP_ENG_20061222.0395

DUBAI, Dec 22 , 2006, 2006

URGENT  Al-Qaeda offers US troops safe passage out of Iraq

The head of an Al-Qaeda-dominated organization in Iraq offered to give US troops a month to pull out free of attack in an audiotape posted on the internet Friday and demanded an answer within two weeks.

Dec 22 , 2006

a month

Friday

two weeks


XIN_ENG_20061114.0078

HANOI, Nov. 14 , 2006 (Xinhua)

APEC Business Advisory Council convenes meeting

The APEC Business Advisory Council ( ABAC) opened its three-day meeting in Vietnam's capital Hanoi Tuesday afternoon to discuss trade and investment liberalization, finance, capacity building and other related issues.

Attended by 196 delegates and chaired by Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) Vice Chairman Hoang Van Dung, the meeting has "Driving forward a prosperous and harmonized APEC community" as its theme in 2006.

Addressing the opening plenary session, Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet said ABAC has made great contribution to speeding up trade and investment facilitation and liberalization, and strengthening cooperation among economies in the region.

He called on the APEC member economies to strengthen cooperation in such fields as improving business environment, more effectively tapping natural resources, encouraging technology transfer, and coping with the regional aging population with decreasing number of people in the working age.

Founded by APEC economic leaders in November 1995 to provide important business advice to the leaders, ABAC comprises of up to three representatives from the private economic sector of each of 21 APEC member economies.

ABAC has had three meetings previously in 2006 in Singapore, Canada and the Philippines respectively, all under the chairmanship of VCCI.

Nov. 14 , 2006

Tuesday afternoon

November 1995


XIN_ENG_20051118.0338

ROME, Nov. 18 , 2005 (Xinhua)

International health ministers commit cooperation against bird flu

Health ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) industrialized countries and Mexico on Friday signed an agreement here on reinforcing cooperation against the threat of bird flu and to keep it from spreading to human beings.

The ministers, as well as representatives of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Union (EU) health commissioners also agreed to boost the capacity of producing pandemic flu vaccines.

The agreement called for coordination between national preventive plans and recognizes the need to build greater stockpiles of vaccines and anti-flu medicines.

They also decided to set up a store of three million doses of anti-flu vaccines to be used at the sign of any outbreak of the human variation of avian flu in the eight countries.

Besides, a website for global health security will be created, which will release all scientific data related to the H5N1 virus and other pertinent information.

According to the agreement, the eight countries will work together to prepare for the Beijing Donor Conference in January 2006, and Germany will host a workshop in June 2006 for information sharing on comparative approaches to develop vaccines.

On a proposal from Italy, the world's richest countries have agreed to support the developing countries to help them deal with any possible pandemic.

Bird flu has ravaged poultry farms across Southeast Asia since 2003, and at least 64 people have been dead from the virus there thus far. On Friday, Vietnam reported that they found outbreaks of the deadly strain in three more provinces.

Nov. 18 , 2005

Friday

January 2006

June 2006

Friday


XIN_ENG_20061112.0211

LONDON, Nov. 12 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Classy Arsenal beat Liverpool 3-0 in English Premiership

Arsenal put on a scintillating performance to thrash Liverpool 3-0 at home on Sunday and keep in touch with the Premiership pace-setters.

Mathieu Flamini put Arsenal ahead from close range five minutes before the end of an evenly contested first half.

But Arsenal moved into top gear after the interval, Kolo Toure racing on to Robin van Persie's clever pass to slide home a cool finish after 56 minutes.

William Gallas was then left completely unmarked to head in Van Persie's corner to seal the win with 10 minutes left.

Liverpool's title hopes were slim before kick-off but they are now surely non-existent as they remain without an away win in the Premiership this season.

Arsenal goalkeeper Jens Lehmann had a throat infection, which allowed Manuel Almunia to make a rare start.

Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez persisted with Steven Gerrard in a right-wing role, despite the absence of injured Momo Sissoko, so Bolo Zenden played in central midfield alongside Xabi Alonso.

It was to prove a questionable decision, with Gerrard very much a peripheral figure as Arsenal ran out comfortable winners.

Nov. 12 , 2006

Sunday

56 minutes


CNN19980222.1130.0084
 NEWS STORY

 CNN headline news, I'm Sachi Koto.
 Diplomacy appears  to  be making headway in resolving the united nation's
 standoff with Iraq.
 A UN spokesman says UN secretary general Kofi Annan is on the verge of
 a breakthrough, but added it's not done yet.
 Annan wrapped up a three hour meeting with Iraqi president Saddam Hussein
 in Baghdad today.
 He's expected  to meet with Iraqi deputy prime minister Tariq Aziz later
 this afternoon. One major sticking point has been Iraq's proposal  to open it's presidential sites for no more than sixty days.
 The UN security council insists any deal must allow UN inspectors unrestricted access to all suspected weapons sites.

three hour

today

later
 this afternoon

no more than sixty days


XIN_ENG_20061129.0549

BANGKOK, Nov. 30 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Thai top female weightlifter "half confident" for Doha Asiad gold

Thailand's World champion and Athens Olympics weightlifting gold medallist Pawina Thongsuk, who is recuperating from a knee injury, said her chances of helping Thailand break a 40-year gold-medal drought in the sport at Asiad were 50-50.

Pawina was among the 139 athletes, including shooters, sepaktakraw players and weightlifters, travelling to Doha, Qatar for the 15th Asian Games Wednesday.

The 27-year-old Thai is a gold-medal hopeful in Doha. Chaiya Sukjinda was the last Thai weightlifter to win an Asiad gold in the 1966 Asian Games in Bangkok. Since then, no Thai lifter has made it that far, according to Thursday's Bangkok-based English daily The Nation.

Four years ago in Busan, South Korea, Thai weightlifters returned with three silver medals, including one from Pawina in the women's 69kg category.

"It's hard to say that the gold medal is a lock. I have picked up this knee injury during training and it has hampered my preparations," Pawina was quoted by The Nation as saying on Wednesday.

"The team doctor says I must spray the pain-killer on the competition day, on December 4," she said.

Pawina admitted that the Chinese team would be hard to beat. She cited Ouyang Xiaofang, who captured three gold medals for the 63kg category at the recent World Championships in the Dominican Republic and is expected to contest the 63kg category at the Doha Asiad, will come out as a strong competitor.

"I have to be judicious in calling the weights and put pressure on the Chinese team. I must say that it will be very difficult to break my world records in snatch and Olympic total events."

Pawina, who landed the Best Female Athlete of the Year 2005 honour from the International Weightlifting Federation, has won in all the major competitions. Only the Asian Games gold is missing from her cupboard.

It was still a mystery as regards which category the Thai top female weighlifter, the first woman in a century to break world records in three different categories -- 63kg, 69kg and 75kg, would choose to contest in Doha.

The news of Pawina suffering an injury during training early this week was a big blow to her domestic fans, who have held high expectation for her winning a gold in Doha.

Nov. 30 , 2006

Wednesday

Thursday

Four years ago

Wednesday

December 4

early this week


XIN_ENG_20061102.0408

BEIJING, Nov. 3 , 2006 (Xinhua)

African reporters expecting more "China voices"

Stepping on the turf of Beijing is exciting for Axmed Saggar. Like many of his country folks, the reporter of Puntland TV from Somali had only sciolistic knowledge of China, mostly from the roads and hospitals built with assistance from Chinese expatriates.

"Somalians don't know much about China. We have very limited access to information of the modern country, " said Saggar who came to Beijing to cover a historical summit to be attended by President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed of Somali.

Leaders of more than 40 African countries have been invited to participate in the Beijing Summit of Forum on Sino-Africa Cooperation scheduled for Nov. 4-5, which is described as the grandest diplomatic event in China since 1950s.

Recalling a photo show featuring Chairman Mao Zedong staged in Somali while he was young, Saggar said in the eyes of most Somalians, "China has always been a friend."

The relationship between China and Africa is time-cemented. Six hundred years ago, famous mariner Zheng He (1371-1435) of the Ming Dynasty led the then largest fleet in the world and made voyages to Africa. He brought there tea, chinaware, silk and technology, and took back spice and local specialties. Not an inch of land was ever occupied.

"Zheng He and Jackie Chan (a contemporary Hong Kong movie star) are both quite well-known in Somali," said Saggar.

Over the past 50 years, China has offered economic aid to 53 African countries and canceled 10.9 billion yuan (1.36 billion U.S. dollars) worth of debt. By the end of 2005, China had over 800 enterprises in Africa, involving a total investment of 6 billion dollars, official data revealed.

"Somalians and Chinese expatriates have got along well. A raft of infrastructure facilities including roads and hospitals were built with aid from China," said Saggar.

He hoped President Yusuf's visit to Beijing would "bring more trips between Somali and China".

"Somalians would like to have more cooperation and exchanges with the Chinese in a variety of sectors, especially education, science, technology and economy," he said.

As so much is going on in the world's fourth largest economy, Saggar said Somalians were not only interested in China's history but also appealed by its robust development.

Saggar's view was shared by many African reporters. Kato Jacob from President Press of Uganda said, "We wish to hear more voices from China, especially stories about China told by the Chinese."

Nearly 300 African reporters were expected to cover the two- day summit highlighting "friendship, peace, cooperation and development".

Nov. 3 , 2006

Nov. 4-5

Six hundred years ago

the past 50 years

the end of 2005


XIN_ENG_20051128.0247

LUSAKA, Nov. 28 , 2005 (Xinhua)

Zambian police gun down four suspected plunderers

Zambian police Monday morning shot dead four suspects after an exchange of gun fire in the capital city of Lusaka. Among the dead are two locals, one Congolese and one Tanzanian.

Lusaka police commanding officer Chendela Musonda told Xinhua that police were tipped off about the four who were trailing a businessman from a bank with large sum of money.

He said the police successfully pined down the men who were driving a Toyota Corolla sedan near a shopping center and exchanged fire with them. Three were shot dead on the spot and the other one escaped with a taxi but was outpaced and gunned down.

No policemen were killed or injured in the incident, said Musonda.

Musonda also said the police recovered a pistol and a rifle used by the bandits together with identification cards which indicated that two are foreigners.

He further said the bandits were suspected to be related with another robbery which occurred last month.

The peaceful southern African country saw mushrooming robbery cases recently with most criminals armed with fire arms. Rumors say some of the criminals are from neighboring countries.

Last Thursday, a Chinese businessman, Chen Xingtao, who was on his way home after closing his store was trailed and robbed of seven million kwacha (about 1,800 US dollars) by a group of armed bandits who were also driving a Corolla car.

The Zambian police stepped up fight with robberies accordingly and Musonda said about 50 suspected criminals of robbery were arrested in the last two months.

He further said criminals who rob with guns, no matter if they have killed victims or not, would be "sentenced to death" according to Zambian laws.

Nov. 28 , 2005

Monday morning

last month

Last Thursday

the last two months


AFP_ENG_19970415.0516

ISLAMABAD, April 15 , 1997 (AFP)

Pakistan leaders voice grief over Mecca fire

Pakistani leaders on Tuesday expressed their sorrow over the loss of lives in a fire that destroyed the camps of Moslem pilgrims near Mecca in Saudi Arabia.

President Farooq Ahmed Leghari said in a statement he was "deeply anguished" by the tragic incident, in which 30 Pakistani pilgrims died, according to reports the country's consulate in Jeddah.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, sympathising with the families of Pakistani and victims of other nationalities, said he was shocked to learn of the tragedy.

April 15 , 1997

Tuesday


AFP_ENG_20051209.0133

MADRID, Dec 10 , 2005

Put faith in me or we could sink, says new Real coach

New Real Madrid coach Juan Ramon Lopez Caro told his star-studded squad Friday they must put their trust in him as he takes the helm for the first time in La Liga since succeeding sacked Wanderley Lucemburgo in Malaga on Sunday.

"If the players do not have confidence in me the ship could sink," said Caro as he looked forward to his first test since taking the reins as Real's fifth coach in the last two and a half years.

The Champions League loss to Olympiakos in midweek was academic for his first match of any description in charge with qualification for the last 16 assured but Caro said that with six points to make up on leaders Barcelona everyone has to pull hard in the same direction.

"I am surprised, happy and proud as the players are working exceptionally well," Caro said of his players, adding that "hard work on a daily basis is the recipe for success.

"I have told them there is no doubt they are the best team in the world and that, given time, work and unity we will be a great team."

Caro had Thursday called on Real's fans to get behind the team is they seek to shrug off the mediocre form which saw Luxemburgo shown the door after less than 12 months in one of the hottest seats in the game.

Dec 10 , 2005

Friday

Sunday

daily

Thursday

less than 12 months


XIN_ENG_20061122.0058

TOKYO, Nov. 22 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Dollar falls to lower 117 yen level in Tokyo

The U.S. dollar fell to the lower 117 yen level Wednesday in Tokyo as investors reduced their dollar holdings ahead of holidays in Japan and the United States.

At 5 p.m., the dollar was quoted at 117.46-49 yen against Tuesday's 5 p.m. quotes of 117.87-97 yen in New York and 118.12-14 yen in Tokyo.

It moved between 117.38 yen and 117.94 yen during the day, trading most frequently at 117.85 yen.

The euro was quoted at 1.2866-2869 dollars and 151.15-19 yen compared with Tuesday's 5 p.m. quotes of 1.2839-2849 dollars and 151.39-49 yen in New York and 1.2825-2827 dollars and 151.49-53 yen in Tokyo.

Nov. 22 , 2006

Wednesday

Tuesday

the day

Tuesday


XIN_ENG_20051112.0170

KHARTOUM, Nov. 12 , 2005 (Xinhua)

Sudanese FM vows to wipe out Ugandan rebels from southern soil

Southern Sudan's autonomous government vowed on Saturday that it would try all means to wipe out Ugandan rebel forces, the Lord Resistance Army (LRA), from the soil.

Sudanese Foreign Minister Lam Akol made the statement at a press conference here, while talking about a recent visit to Washington by Salva Kiir Mayardit, Sudanese First-Vice President and President of the autonomous government in the south.

Akol noted that Kiir had discussed the LRA issue with the US administration and the two sides were identical on the issue.

The US administration did not show any proposals on the matter of the LRA, but it insisted that the problem should be solved quickly and the existence of the Ugandan rebels in the Sudanese lands is undesired as it is a foreign force that functions on the Sudanese territories and would bring damage to the country, said Akol.

Akol, meanwhile, pointed out that Kiir's US visit succeeded to convince the US administration to promise an exclusive decision to lift its economic sanctions it imposed on Sudan.

The US should deal only with the Sudanese national government and the sanctions imposed on Sudan could not be divided, he stressed.

On western Sudan's Darfur issue, Akol revealed that the Sudanese government delegation would head for the Nigerian capital Abuja on Nov. 20 to resume the peace talks with Darfur rebel groups, renewing the government's vows to shore up the crisis.

He said the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) led by Kiir and its main ruling partner in the national government, the National Congress, as well as other political parties would endeavor to crystallize the government's unified view for the next round of Abuja peace talks.

Nov. 12 , 2005

Saturday

Nov. 20


WSJ891101-0102
 = 891101
 891101-0102.
 Dividend News:
@  Unifirst Corp.
 11/01/89
 WALL STREET JOURNAL (J)
 UNF
 DIVIDENDS (DIV)
EARNINGS (ERN)

   UNIFIRST Corp. declared a 2-for-1 stock split.
The Wilmington, Mass., garment service company also boosted its quarterly dividend 20% to three cents a share adjusted for the split.
The dividend had been five cents a share.
The split and quarterly dividend will be payable Jan. 3 to stock of record Nov. 16, the company said.
The split  will raise the number of shares outstanding to about 10.2 million.
Separately, UniFirst reported that net income rose 21% to $3 million, or 29 cents a share adjusted for the split, for the fourth quarter ended Aug. 26.
A year earlier UniFirst earned $2.4 million, or 24 cents a share adjusted for the split.
Sales rose to $52.4 million from $50.1 million.

Jan. 3

Nov. 16

the fourth quarter

Aug. 26

A year earlier


XIN_ENG_20061102.0311

GAZA, Nov. 2 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Fresh airstrikes on northern Gaza kill four militants

Four Palestinian militants were killed and five others wounded on Thursday night in two separate airstrikes carried out by Israeli army aircraft in northern Gaza Strip, medics and eyewitnesses reported.

Eyewitnesses said that an Israeli reconnaissance drone fired one missile at a group of Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) militants east of Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza Strip, killing one militant and wounded three others.

Half an hour later, another drone missile was fired at another group of militants in the same area, killing three Palestinian militants and wounded two others, they added.

The latest deaths brought the total number of the Palestinians killed on Thursday to at least nine.

Earlier on Thursday evening, a senior female security officer was killed in the town of Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza Strip by Israeli soldiers' gunfire, said Palestinian security sources.

Mes'eda Hweihi, 40, an officer in the secret intelligence and also a Fatah movement activist, was shot dead as she was trying to help militants who were surrounded by Israeli soldiers into one of the mosques in the town.

On Thursday morning, four Palestinians were killed, three were shot dead by Israeli army snipers, and one 75-year-old man died of fear due to a severe heart attack, said Palestinian medics.

The Israeli army forces stormed early on Wednesday morning the town of Beit Hanoun in a large-scale military operation, the Israeli army had called "the clouds of autumn".

Palestinian security sources said that the Israeli army forces backed by dozens of tanks, bulldozers and armored vehicles covered by helicopters and fighting drones had occupied the whole town.

Palestinian medics said that seven Palestinians were killed on Wednesday, most of them were militants, adding that the death toll since the beginning of the operation hit to 15 killed and more than 100 wounded.

Resident said the Israeli army imposed a curfew on the whole town and ordered every male aged between 16 and 45 to gather into one of the schools in the town.

They added that many of them were interrogated and beaten by the soldiers, while at least 100 people were arrested. "The school turned into a detention camp," said the residents.

The Israeli army said the aim of the operation into northern Gaza Strip is aiming at reining on Palestinian militant groups who are firing homemade rockets round the clock on Israeli communities in southern Israel.

Different militant groups claimed responsibility on Thursday afternoon for launching several homemade rockets at Israel. Three Israelis were injured earlier Thursday by the shrapnel of a homemade rocket fired from Gaza.

Nov. 2 , 2006

Thursday

Thursday

Thursday evening

Thursday morning

Wednesday morning

Wednesday

Thursday afternoon

Thursday


AFP_ENG_20061202.0081

DOHA, Dec 2 , 2006, 2006

=(PICTURE)=

China and Japan went head to head Saturday in the Asian Games pool with the Japanese taking an early edge in the hunt for six opening day gold medals.

Maki Mita of Japan set the trend in the women's 200m freestyle with the fastest qualifying time of 2:00.44 ahead of Pan Jiaying of China, the Olympic relay silver medallist.

China's defending champion Yang Yu held off Lee Ji-Eun of South Korea in her heat to win in 2:02.75sec and tipped herself to retain her title.

"In tonight's final I will try to better my time from the morning," she said. "My biggest rival is myself."

Yang collected three gold medals in the Aian Games four years ago and qualified with the third fastest time of 2:02.75, ahead of Japan's Norie Urae, who claimed a place in the final on her 20th birthday.

In the women's 100m butterfy, Zhou Yafei of China won her head-to-head in the heats with Japan's Ayako Doi and both go forward to the evening's final along with Yuko Nakanishi, who came second to Tao Li of Singapore in a tactical first heat.

Nakanishi, the Olympic bronze medallist over 200m, is the butterfly racer Chinese swimmers fear most, but she said she needs to swim faster to conquer here.

"I was surpised that my qualifying time was so slow," she said.

Rising star Wang Qun, only 13, claimed her heat with ease in the 50m breastroke and will be up against team-mate Ji Liping, the Asian champion, in the final.

Ji was the only Chinese to post the fastest qualifying time and goes into the final ahead of Japan's Asami Kitagawa and Yoshimi Miwa, who said that the team's goal was to put an end to Chinese dominance in the swimming pool.

China won 20 swimming titles to Japan's 11 in the last Asian Games in Busan, South Korea, four years ago, with the women taking 13 to only three for the Japanese women.

"The aim of the Japanese team is to beat China," said Miwa.

In men's events Japan domminated qualifying with Hidemasa Sano posting the fastest time in the 400m individual medley.

In the 200m butterfly Japan's top two, Ryuichi Shinata and Takeshita Matsuda led qualifying ahead of Wu Peng and Chen Yin of China.

Dec 2 , 2006

four years ago

20th birthday

the final

four years ago


AFP_ENG_20061220.0701

WASHINGTON, Dec 20 , 2006, 2006

=(PICTURE)=

It's that time of year again. Jostling throngs of bargain-hunting shoppers, office parties and the age-old debate over holiday exhibits and use of the "C word" -- that is, Christmas.

From flaps over children singing Christmas carols to a row about Christmas trees at an airport or a traditional nativity play scrapped in favor of reggae-style carols, the Christian world is awash with examples of political correctness this season.

Even Pope Benedict XVI has waded into the controversy, speaking out in support of Christmas creches threatened with banishment from public view in predominantly Catholic Italy.

In Britain, the popular press is spreading plenty of Christmas jeer against politically correct do good-ers who, they say, are spoiling the fun for everyone.

One school has banned Christmas cards in class, a court has restricted the number of lights one homeowner can have on his property and a school is offering halal turkey and chicken for its Christmas meal following pressure from many Muslim parents.

In the United States, where nativity scenes and displays with religious themes in public places are pretty much a thing of the past, what critics call "the war on Christmas" has subsided this year although several incidents have made headlines.

One involved the removal of 14 plastic Christmas trees at Seattle-Tacoma airport, in the western state of Washington, following a complaint from a local rabbi who said the holiday decorations should include a menorah to mark Hanukkah.

The airport restored the trees after the rabbi said he would not file a threatened lawsuit and a public outcry.

Another incident concerned a high school choir ordered to abruptly stop singing Christmas carols at a holiday ice skating show featuring Olympic medalist Sasha Cohen, out of concern she would be offended because she is half Jewish.

Officials at the rink in California approached the Rubidoux High School Madrigals just as they launched into "God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman" and requested the troupe immediately stop singing. Cohen later said she was stunned by the flap and never made a request to silence the singers.

Newspapers have also carried stories about children at a school being told not to use the word Christmas when writing to US troops in Iraq; the American Civil Liberties Union filing suit over some Tennessee school children singing "Away in a Manger" and "Joy to the World" at a Christmas event; attempts to change Christmas school vacations into winter breaks; and an overzealous employee at a retirement home clipping the wings of an angel on a Christmas tree so as to remove any religious connotations.

Major stores meanwhile appear in a quandary over proper etiquette.

The world's largest retailer Wal-Mart last year required its employees to say "happy holidays", fearing the traditional "Merry Christmas" might offend customers.

This year, following criticism by some Christian groups that called for boycotts, it has reversed course and is going with Christmas in a big way.

Stores that have chosen to remain politically correct are exposing themselves to the wrath of Christian groups like the Liberty Counsel, which is advertising a "naughty and nice" list featuring retailers that use the "C word" and others that are sticking with "holiday".

Several groups have also launched crusades to "Save Merry Christmas" and are selling buttons and bumper stickers defending the religious holiday.

"It's ridiculous that Americans have to think twice about whether it's OK to say Merry Christmas," noted Joe Infranco, senior counsel at the Alliance Defense Fund, a Christian legal aid group.

Those sickened by the war of words and eager to see the bah-humbug season over have launched tongue-in-cheek campaigns calling for the holiday to simply be scrapped.

EndChristmas.com if offering free copies of the documentary film "The God Who Wasn't There", which questions Christian doctrine, and said its aim this year is to save children affected by the myths surrounding Christmas.

Satellite radio owners for their part can tune in to a special Christmas Channel that unabashedly delivers wholly unsentimental holiday songs.

Their pickings include, "Santa Is a Psycho", "Santa's in a Wheelchair," and "Elvis Won't Be Here for Christmas."

Dec 20 , 2006

Christmas

this season

Christmas

Christmas

Christmas

this year

Christmas

Christmas

Christmas

last year

This year

Christmas

the holiday

this year

Christmas


XIN_ENG_20061107.0160

HONG KONG, Nov. 7 , 2006 (Xinhua)

China Enterprises Index closes higher -- Nov. 7

Hang Seng China Enterprises Index went up 37.94 points, or 0.49 percent, to close at 7,753.67 on Tuesday.

The index, initiated in August 1994 and readjusted on Sept. 11, 2006, tracks the overall performance of 37 Chinese mainland state-owned enterprises listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

Hang Seng China-Affiliated Corporations Index went down 34.08 points, or 1.11 percent, to close at 3,049.14.

The index tracks the performance of 31 locally listed companies with a significant equity interest held by entities in the Chinese mainland.

Hang Seng Mainland Composite Index went down 10.06 points, or 0.37 percent, to close at 2,732.35.

Introduced on Oct. 3, 2001 and readjusted on Sept. 11, 2006, Hang Seng Mainland Composite Index gauges the performance of 103 Hong Kong-listed companies with principal places of business in Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland.

Nov. 7 , 2006

Tuesday

August 1994

Sept. 11, 2006

Oct. 3, 2001

Sept. 11, 2006


XIN_ENG_20061116.0060

KATHMANDU, Nov. 16 , 2006 (Xinhua)

U.S. to continue assistance to Nepal after guerrilla joins gov't: official

The United States (U.S.) Thursday said that it will be continuing its assistance to Nepal even after the guerrilla joins the interim government.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Richard A. Boucher, who arrived in Kathmandu Wednesday on a three-day visit, made the assurance during a meeting with Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala and Speaker of the House of Representatives Subash Chandra Nemwang.

The senior U.S. official made the comments in a bid to quell all misapprehensions regarding the continuation of U.S. assistance after the guerrillas -- which the U.S. had previously terrorist- tagged -- join the Nepal government.

Making a brief statement to media persons after the meeting with Koirala, Boucher said, "The U.S. is ready to continue its assistance to Nepal for the welfare of the Nepali people."

The senior U.S. official discussed the on-going peace process and the overall Nepalese political situation besides issues of U.S. assistance with Koirala.

Nov. 16 , 2006

Wednesday


AFP_ENG_19970413.0153

NEW DELHI, April 13 , 1997 (AFP)

India's reform budget faces fresh crisis by Jay Shankar

India's tax-cutting reform budget faced fresh trouble Sunday when a communist partner in the ousted coalition challenged the caretaker government's right to pass it in parliament.

The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) said the United Front, which was voted out Friday and holds office in a caretaker capacity, had no constitutional authority to pass the budget for the year to March 1998.

"Once the government is ousted, then its budget proposals become defunct," said Ashok Mitra, a senior CPI-M member.

"President Shankar Dayal Sharma should ask the government to instead approve a vote-on-account.

"This is my party's view," he added.

A vote-on-account is a constitutional alternative to a fully-fledged budget and will help parliament to approve the government's expenditure.

Indian officials said on Saturday parliament would ratify the budget later this month despite the dramatic fall of the country's coalition government.

They said major political parties had agreed to set aside their differences and pass the budget during a special three-day parliamentary session beginning April 21. India's financial year begins April 1.

But Mitra insisted a vote-on-account was the only solution.

"The caretaker government cannot oppose or amend the budget proposals," said Mitra, a former finance minister in the communist- ruled state of West Bengal.

The CPI-M is a key constituent of the centre-left United Front and has been a constant critic of New Delhi's free-market economic reforms.

Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram's widely-acclaimed pro-reform budget, unveiled in parliament on February 28, slashed taxes and promised to reduce the fiscal deficit.

The personal tax rate was slashed from 40 to 30 percent, to the cheers of the rich, while corporate tax for domestic firms was reduced from 40 to 35 percent.

Chidambaram's proposals delighted Indian stock markets, with the barometer 30-share index on the Bombay Stock Exchange shooting up 6.3 percent on the same day.

The index has been on a rollercoaster ride since March 30 when the Congress (I) party withdrew support for the government, sparking the chain of events which culminated with the fall of Deve Gowda's United Front coalition Friday.

Deve Gowda has been asked by the president to continue as caretaker prime minister until further notice.

The speaker of the Indian lower house of parliament has warned the country would be plunged into a financial crisis if the budget was not passed before the deadline of May 14.

Under Indian law, the budget has to be ratified in parliament within 75 days of being unveiled. If that does not happen, the provisions of the previous budget remain in force.

Meanwhile, the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP, Indian People's Party) said it would form a three-member panel to suggest amendments to Chidambaram's tax proposals in the budget.

"We cannot support the budget blindly," BJP treasurer V.P. Goel said.

A BJP ideologue, Jay Dubashi, said: "The panel will meet next week to thrash out an agenda to suggest changes in the finance bill. And we will ask the caretaker government to comply.

"We will not mind being voted down on these suggestions. The idea is to present our viewpoint," Dubashi said.

April 13 , 1997

Sunday

Friday

the year

March 1998

Saturday

this month

April 21

April 1

February 28

the same day

March 30

Friday

May 14

75 days

next week


XIN_ENG_20061127.0274

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov. 27 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Trans-Asia rail link completed by 2015: ASEAN official

The proposed Trans-Asia Rail Link will be completed by 2015, Malaysian Transport Minister Chan Kong Choy said Monday.

Also known as Singapore-Kunming Rail Link (SKRL), the rail link will start from Singapore and run through countries such as Malaysia, Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar and Laos before ending at Kunming in China.

"For the missing link between Poipet and Sisophon (Cambodia), the construction of the railway will start early next year, using the rail tracks donated by Malaysia while the ADB (Asian Development Bank) would be financing the construction work," Chan told reporters after officiating the 28th ASEAN Railways CEO's conference here.

Chan said once construction of the missing link is completed, it will enable the movement of trains from Singapore to Phnom Penh (Cambodia).

In addition, Cambodia will also start its rail rehabilitation project on its existing rail system, partially funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), said Chan.

Meanwhile, Royal Railways of Cambodia Director-General Sokhom Pheakavanmony said construction of the rail link between Poipet and Sisophon is expected to be completed by the end of next year or early 2008.

For the 225-kilometer missing link between Phnom Penh and Loc Ninh, a border town between Cambodia and Vietnam, Pheakavanmony said a feasibility study on the missing link, funded and conducted by China, has been completed.

Construction of the missing rail link is expected to start next year with the completion by 2010, Pheakavanmony was quoted by the Bernama news agency as saying.

Vietnam Railways Deputy Director-General Nguyen Dat Tuong said Vietnam and Cambodia are currently working to finalize the connecting rail point near Loc Ninh.

Once the two countries have decided on the exact connecting point, Vietnam will immediately start construction of the 145- kilometer missing link between Loc Ninh and Ho Chi Minh City, said Tuong

Tuong added there was already an existing rail link connecting Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi and China in the north, through two connecting points.

The three-day conference has attracted nearly 200 delegates and observers, comprising mostly high-ranking railway officials from seven ASEAN countries.

ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Nov. 27 , 2006

Monday

early next year

next year or early 2008

next year


XIN_ENG_20051102.0105

GENEVA, Nov. 2 , 2005 (Xinhua)

Credit Suisse reports good third-quarter results

Switzerland's second largest bank, Credit Suisse, reported on Wednesday a better-than-expected rise in its third-quarter figures, with net profit up 42 percent to 1.9 billion Swiss francs (1.48 billion US dollars).

Business for both its investment and its private bank sectors had boomed due to continued strong growth and confidence in global financial markets, according to Credit Suisse.

The surprisingly good result follows a drop in net profits in the second quarter to 919 million Swiss francs (716 million dollars).

"Our group benefited from increased levels of client activity and the active market environment," said Credit Suisse CEO, Oswald Grubel, commenting on the third quarter results.

Like its larger rival, UBS, Credit Suisse has large private banks and substantial investment banking operations, with retail banking limited to Switzerland.

Credit Suisse, which is based in Zurich, Switzerland, and has total assets under management of 1.405 trillion Swiss francs (1.1 trillion dollars), is active in about 50 countries and employs more than 60,000 people, with 26,000 of them in Switzerland.

Nov. 2 , 2005

Wednesday

third-quarter

the second quarter

the third quarter


AFP_ENG_20061214.0148

LONDON, Dec 14 , 2006, 2006

British retail sales rise in November

British retail sales rose by 0.3 percent in November compared with the previous month, official data showed on Thursday.

Retail sales were 3.2 percent higher than in November 2005, the Office for National Statistics said.

Dec 14 , 2006

November

the previous month

Thursday

November 2005


AFP_ENG_19970429.0439

BARCELONA, Spain, April 29 , 1997 (AFP)

Spanish "Romeo" sentenced to 16 years in jail for killing fiancee

A 23-year-old Spaniard was sentenced on Tuesday to 16 years in prison for killing his fiancee in a plot he tried to pass off as a "remake" of the tragic ending of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliette.

Jose Maria Gomez Lopez, nicknamed Romeo of Terrassa since the killing in 1996, tried to pass off as a suicide the killing of his fiancee Gema Aguda, 17, who at the time was threatening to leave him.

Gomez Lopez sent the woman's parents a letter on February, 6, 1996, imitating her writing and announcing that the couple planned to commit suicide.

The following night he suffocated Aguda with a pillow and then called police to alert them to a double suicide after scattering some pills on the floor and feigning a deep sleep.

The plot, however, did not fool investigators.

April 29 , 1997

Tuesday

February, 6, 1996

The following night


XIN_ENG_20061125.0004

MADRID, Nov. 24 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Mexican defender Marquez becomes Spanish citizen

Mexican defender Rafael Marquez, who plays for Spanish league soccer team Barcelona, became a Spanish citizen on Friday, with a public ceremony where he swore an oath to Spain's constitution, and freed a place on his team for another player from outside the European Union.

Marquez joined Barcelona in 2003, leaving French league team Monaco. He took the oath, which is the last part of the Spanish nationalization process, first thing in the morning in Gava, the Barcelona neighborhood where he lives.

With Marquez's nationalization Barcelona now has only two officially foreign players - Cameroon's Samuel Eto'o and Brazil's Ronaldo de Assis, better known as Ronaldinho.

If the club decided to make use of the winter transfer market, it will now have a much larger choice of players.

Nov. 24 , 2006

Friday

the morning

now

now


WSJ891102-0188
 = 891102
 891102-0188.
 Pacific First Financial Corp.
 11/02/89
 WALL STREET JOURNAL (J)
 PFFS T.RYL
 TENDER OFFERS, MERGERS, ACQUISITIONS (TNM)
SAVINGS AND LOANS, THRIFTS, CREDIT UNIONS (SAL)
 SEATTLE

   Pacific First Financial Corp. said shareholders approved its acquisition by Royal Trustco Ltd. of Toronto for $27 a share, or $212 million.

   The thrift holding company said it expects  to obtain regulatory approval and complete the transaction by year-end.

year-end


AFP_ENG_20061219.0284

AMMAN, Dec 19 , 2006, 2006

URGENT  Olmert on surprise visit to Jordan

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert paid a surprise visit to Jordan Tuesday for talks with King Abdullah II on ways of reactivating peace talks with the Palestinians, the royal court said.

Dec 19 , 2006

Tuesday


AFP_ENG_20061226.0190

NEW DELHI, Dec 26 , 2006, 2006

Indian widow's head shaved for stealing bananas

An impoverished widow in eastern India had her head forcibly shaved after a wealthy farmer accused her of stealing his bananas, a report said Tuesday.

Desri Devi was allegedly caught stealing bananas from a field in Balua-Basant village in poverty-ridden Bihar state last week, the Press Trust of India reported,

Village officials fined her 2,500 rupees (56 dollars) but when she could not pay they summoned a barber who shaved her head, the news agency said.

"Some people wanted me to be stripped and then paraded on the streets, but others stopped them from doing that. Still, I was paraded in the lanes of the village for no fault of mine," Devi said in a complaint lodged with police.

District magistrate Lallan Singh said the woman, who was a beggar, had "sleepwalked" to the field where the nightwatchman caught her taking bananas, according to the news agency.

Earlier this week, the Times of India reported that a landowner in the same state had chopped off the fingers of a 10-year-old girl's right hand to punish her for stealing spinach leaves to eat.

Despite India's fast-growing economy, hunger remains a major problem in the country. Some 42 percent of Biharis live under India's official poverty line compared with a nationwide average of 26 percent.

Dec 26 , 2006

Tuesday

last week

Earlier this week


AFP_ENG_20061215.0065

YANGON, Dec 15 , 2006, 2006

Red Cross to reopen offices in military-run Myanmar

The Red Cross will reopen its field offices in Myanmar after the country's military-run government agreed to reconsider an earlier decision to close them, an official said Friday.

"The government wants to reconsider the decision and we are waiting for more details from authorities," said Thierry Ribaux, the deputy head of the Red Cross in Yangon. He declined to give further details.

The agreement came from a meeting last week between junta officials and the representative of the Red Cross in Myanmar, Ribaux said.

The aid agency also sought the junta's permission to resume its prison visits during the meeting, but military officials rejected the appeal, he said. The prison visits have been suspended since late 2005.

The United Nations estimates there are some 1,100 political prisoners in Myanmar, which has been ruled by the military since 1962.

They include democracy icon and Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, 61, who has been under house arrest for most of the past 17 years in Yangon.

In October, the military regime ordered the Red Cross to close the five offices in Mandalay, Mawlamyine, Hpa-an, Taunggyi and Kyaing Tong.

Apart from central Mandalay, the remaining four areas were located along the Thai-Myanmar border.

Between 1999 and late 2005, the Red Cross made 453 visits to prisons and labor camps across Myanmar, one of the world's poorest and most isolated nations and with a dismal human rights record.

The Red Cross said it had 332 staff in Myanmar, including 54 expatriates, last year. But due to the ongoing obstacles, their numbers have since dwindled to 220 including 20 expatriates.

Dec 15 , 2006

Friday

last week

late 2005

past 17 years

October

1999 and late 2005

last year


XIN_ENG_20051128.0265

RAMALLAH, Nov. 28 , 2005 (Xinhua)

Sao Tome wants strengthened ties with Angola

LUANDA, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) - Sao Tome and Principe's Prime Minister Maria do Carmo Silveira said Monday here at the start of a three-day visit to Luanda that the Archipelago wanted strengthened ties with Angola, above all in its emerging oil sector.

After a meeting with Angolan President Jose Eduardo dos Santos, Silveira said that "We would like this visit to represent a qualitative step in re-enforcing our cooperative relations, giving them a strategic orientation and concentrating them in areas considered priorities by the two countries."

Noting that Angola had "a long experience" in the oil sector, Silveira said Luanda's aid in this area was of "extreme importance " to its Gulf of Guinea archipelago.

Silveira said she had also discussed Sao Tome's 20 million US dollars debt to Angola with dos Santos, adding that she had asked the president to view the case in the framework of her government' s hopes of getting a debt pardon from the World Bank and International Monetary Fund early next year.

"We asked (dos Santos) for our debt to Angola to be analyzed in this context," Silveira said, noting that the issue would be dealt with in an upcoming meeting of the two countries' bilateral commission.

Later Monday, delegations led by Silveira and her Angolan counterpart, Fernando Dias dos Santos, are scheduled to begin discussions on business cooperation and air and sea links, among other matters, officials said.

Earlier this year, Sao Tome invited Angola, Brazil and Portugal to join it in setting up a four-way consortium for oil exploration in its territorial waters and in the Joint Development Zone shared with Nigeria.

While Sao Tome's three partners responded positively to that idea, there has been no recent word of any concrete move towards creating a consortium.

Nov. 28 , 2005

Nov. 28

Monday

early next year

Monday

Earlier this year


AFP_ENG_19970416.0392

DAKAR, April 16 , 1997 (AFP)

Building collapses in Senegal, killing two

A four-storey building under construction in the Senegalese capital Dakar collapsed, killing two workers and injuring three others, hospital sources said Wednesday.

Tuesday's accident came just a week after two old buildings tumbled down in Dakar and the northern town of Saint-Louis, killing two other people.

Technicians at the ministry of planning said that the building had collapsed on Tuesday because workers had failed to observe construction regulations.

After the previous accidents, the local press blamed greedy proprietors for erecting buildings with the sole aim of cutting costs at the expense of safety.

April 16 , 1997

Wednesday

Tuesday

a week

Tuesday


AFP_ENG_19970405.0003

MOSCOW, April 5 , 1997 (AFP)

Nemtsov orders auctioning of Russian officials' cars

First Deputy Prime Minister Boris Nemtsov has ordered the auctioning off of Western-made cars used by Russian government officials, ITAR- TASS news agency reported.

On Friday, Nemtsov instructed Economics Minister Yakov Urinson to draft regulations on selling the cars at auction. He said that the bidding is to be open and covered by the media.

Urinson, who is a deputy prime minister, will also deliver by April 10 guidelines for Russian auto manufactures to submit bids on providing cars for officials.

The order falls in line with a plan forwarded two weeks ago by Nemtsov after he was appointed by President Boris Yeltsin.

On April 1, Yeltsin signed a decree which stops allocations from the federal budget for the buying or leasing of foreign-made cars for government officials.

While the move has enjoyed popular support, Russian press reports say that the plan could backfire as taxpayers are likely to end up paying out more than ever because the only vehicles wanted by top officials will be those customized to their tastes.

The main Russian car, popularly known as the Volga, costs just a third of the price of even a relatively modest German Audi to manufacture.

Add extras, however, such as a foreign air-conditioning system and so on and the car could cost up to 57,000 dollars compared to 22,000 to 28,000 for the typical models favoured by the government.

Press reports also say that Russian-made cars will cost more to maintain because their quality is significantly lower than those made in the West.

Nemtsov, though, has said that the opposite is true and that the exploitation of Russian vehicles is actually lower as they use less fuel and have lower maintenance costs.

April 5 , 1997

Friday

April 10

two weeks ago

April 1


AFP_ENG_19970409.0021

SINGAPORE, April 9 , 1997 (AFP)

Noon rubber prices

Wednesday's noon rubber prices in Singapore cents per kilo provided by the Singapore Commodity Exchange:

Buyers   Sellers

Int 2 RSS May        169.00    170.00 Nominal (N)

Int 3 RSS May        169.00    170.00 N
Int 4 RSS May        163.75    164.75 N
Int 5 RSS May        160.00    161.00 N
No. 1 Air Dried Sheet    189.00    191.00 N

Int 1X Thin Pale Crepe    234.50    238.50 N

Int 1 Thin Pale Crepe    228.50    232.50 N

Int 2 Thin Pale Crepe    220.50    222.50 N

Int 3 Thin Pale Crepe    215.50    217.50 N

Int 2 Thin Brown Crepe    132.00    134.00 N

Int 3 Thin Brown Crepe    130.00    132.00 N

Int 4 Thin Brown Crepe    128.00    130.00 N

SSR/SMR 20 May        163.00    165.00 N

June       164.00    166.00 N SSR 50   May 161.00    163.00 N
June       162.00    164.00 N

April 9 , 1997

Wednesday

May        169.00    170.00 N

Int 4 RSS May        163.75    164.75 N

Int 5 RSS May        160.00    161.00 N

No. 1

June       162.00    164.00 N


WSJ891026-0023
 = 891026
 891026-0023.
 Business Brief -- Esselte AB:
@  Bid to Buy Remaining 22%
@  Of Unit Is Made by Firm
 10/26/89
 WALL STREET JOURNAL (J)
 S.ESL ESB
 TENDER OFFERS, MERGERS, ACQUISITIONS (TNM)
EARNINGS (ERN)

   Esselte AB, the Stockholm office supplies company, as expected, proposed to acquire the 22% it doesn't own of its U.S. unit, Esselte Business Systems Inc.

   The price in the proposal is $43.50 for each of the 4.9 million shares the parent doesn't own, or $213.2 million.

   In New York Stock Exchange composite trading, Esselte closed yesterday at $43.50 a share, up $1.

   A committee of outside directors for the Garden City, N.Y., unit is evaluating the proposal; the parent asked it to respond by Oct. 31.
The unit said it can provide no assurance a transaction will occur.

   Esselte AB sold the minority stake five years ago in a $40 million international share offering.
The unit, which is the holding company for Esselte's non-Swedish units, accounted for 58% of sales and 71% of operating profit last year.

   Separately, Esselte Business Systems reported third-quarter net income fell 5.9% to $9.5 million, or 46 cents a share, from $10.1 million, or 49 cents a share, in the year-ago period.
Sales rose 2.9% to $329.2 million from $320 million.

yesterday

Oct. 31

five years ago

last year

third-quarter

the year-ago period


XIN_ENG_20051126.0110

BEIJING, Nov. 26 , 2005 (Xinhau)

China supports development of energy efficient autos: vice-premier

China will adopt encouraging policies to promote the development, research and consumption of energy efficient and environment-friendly vehicles, said Vice-Premier Zeng Peiyan, of the State Council, here Friday.

"China highly stresses the development of such vehicles," said Zeng when visiting an ongoing exhibition of international clear auto technologies in Beijing.

China must make adequate efforts to develop such vehicles given that China is currently in the process of build a society which hails energy saving and environment friendly practices, he said.

China encourages its auto industry to carry out international cooperation and introduce advanced technologies from other countries and regions, said Zeng, who looked quite happy when model operations of China's self-developed electricity-powered and mix-powered auto is already under way.

"The government supports Chinese enterprises to increase investment to develop core and critical technologies, foster home-grown brand names and enhance independent innovation capabilities," he said.

Thanks to the rapid growth of its auto industry in recent years, China has become the third largest auto sale country and fourth auto producer of the world.

To date, Chinese auto makers have developed more than 100 types of gas-fuelled vehicles, which has been promoted in 19 Chinese cities and prefectures.

Nov. 26 , 2005

Friday

recent years


XIN_ENG_20061107.0300

LUSAKA, Nov. 7 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Zambian president highly speaks of China-Africa summit

Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa said the just ended Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation held on Nov. 4-5 is highly beneficial to the economic success and development of Zambia.

Mwanawasa told a news briefing Tuesday at Beijing Hotel that his country will benefit from the summit through the financial resources China has pledged to pour into Africa, Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation reported.

Mwanawasa hailed the government of China for initiating an aid package to enhance Africa's economic development. Under the package, china has written off a substantial amount of Zambia's debt.

Mwanawasa said the Tanzania-Zambia railway debt to china has automatically fallen off as a result of the Chinese gesture.

He said Zambia as a highly indebted poor country is also eligible to benefit from the 5 billion U.S. dollars in preferential loans and credits to Africa which china will provide.

The president said that China's continued support to Zambia is a true reflection of the warm existing relationship between the two countries.

Nov. 7 , 2006

Nov. 4-5

Tuesday


AFP_ENG_20051216.0271

BRUSSELS, Dec 16 , 2005

ATTENTION - ADDS quotes, background ///

Britain was to present new proposals Friday aimed at breaking the EU's budget deadlock, a spokesman for Prime Minister Tony Blair said, reporting "progress" in talks at a crunch Brussels summit.

"At some stage this afternoon we will put down a negotiating box," said spokesman Tom Kelly, using EU-speak for a package of complex proposals seeking to resolve differences over the 2007-13 budget.

"There has been progress this morning," he said, with Blair reporting back to a lunchtime session of all 25 EU leaders on the progress made in a series of bilateral talks during the morning.

More bilateral talks were likely after the round-table session, he added, after which the new proposals -- the third in two weeks -- will be put to the member states.

Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn also sounded an upbeat note. "I feel, everyone feels in the building that the English ... are taking steps in the right direction, but they need to be concrete," he said.

The budget, worth nearly 850 billion euros (1.01 trillion dollars), is vital to releasing much-needed funds to the relatively poorer ex-communist states from central and eastern Europe which joined the bloc last year.

Holding up a deal, however, are two issues: Britain's refusal to part with its budget rebate, secured by Margaret Thatcher in 1984, and French resistance to reforming farm subsidies which eat up 42 percent of EU spending.

Blair, chairing the final summit of Britain's turn at the EU presidency, huddled with several fellow leaders earlier Friday, following up on a working dinner the night before where blunt talking was on the menu.

His final meeting before lunch Friday saw him with French President Jacques Chirac, who wants the rebate to go, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose nation is the biggest contributor to EU coffers.

"The important thing this morning was that serious efforts are being made all around to try and find a way forward," the prime minister's spokesman told reporters.

"That doesn't guarantee success, but it underlines that people are serious about trying to get a deal at this summit."

Dec 16 , 2005

Friday

this afternoon

the morning

two weeks

last year

Friday

Friday

this morning


XIN_ENG_20061123.0116

WARSAW, Nov. 23 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Poland announces national mourning for mine blast victims

Polish President Lech Kaczynski announced three days of national mourning for the victims in a mine blast in southern Poland, the official PAP news agency reported on Thursday.

The mourning period, starting on Thursday, came after all 23 miners trapped in the Halemba coal mine in the southern Polish city of Ruda Slaskain were confirmed dead, the report said.

The accident occurred on Tuesday night when a methane gas explosion 1,030 meters underground shook the Halemba coal mine. There were 31 miners working in the area at that time, and eight of them managed to escape.

The mine accident is the country's deadliest so far this year, bringing the number of miners killed in 2006 in Poland to 43.

Nov. 23 , 2006

three days

Thursday

Thursday

Tuesday night

this year