Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Today on the presidential campaign trail
By The Associated Press IN THE HEADLINES
Clinton, Obama go on attack in last-minute scramble for Pennsylvania votes ... Michael Moore announces his endorsement of Obama in Web post ... North Carolina Democrats ditch effort to host debate
Clinton, Obama on attack in Pa.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Democrats Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama questioned each other's character and readiness to be commander in chief in last-minute television ads as the six-week Pennsylvania primary campaign steamed toward an uncertain conclusion Tuesday.
The two Democratic hopefuls barnstormed the state in a final pitch for votes in the most populous and delegate-rich state remaining in the nominating contest. Some 4 million Democrats were eligible to cast ballots, with 158 delegates at stake........read more
Linden Lab Recruits New CEO
By DON CLARK
SAN FRANCISCO -- Linden Lab, developer of the animated environment Second Life, said it recruited Mark Kingdon to serve as the closely held company's chief executive officer.
Mr. Kingdon, 45 years old, will succeed founder Philip Rosedale, 39, who announced plans in March to give up the CEO post at the San Francisco-based company. He remains chairman.
Mr. Kingdon since 2001 had served as chief executive of Organic Inc., a communications agency focusing on Web design and marketing. Second Life is one of the best-known "virtual worlds," a name given to services that allow characters to roam simulated three-dimensional spaces without the rules or goals of traditional computer games..........read more
Yahoo's Q1 does not change value for Microsoft -sources
SAN FRANCISCO, April 22 (Reuters) - Yahoo Inc's (YHOO.O: Quote, Profile, Research) first-quarter results have not changed Microsoft Corp's (MSFT.O: Quote, Profile, Research) view of the Internet company's value, people familiar with Microsoft's thinking said on Tuesday.
Microsoft sees Yahoo's decision not to raise its full-year revenue forecast as a reflection that the company's value has not changed since January, when it provided the same 2008 revenue estimates, pushing its shares down to a four-year low, these people said.
That point of view reiterates Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer's comments from Morocco earlier on Tuesday.
"I wish Yahoo all the success with its results, but it doesn't affect the value of Yahoo to Microsoft," Ballmer said. (Reporting by Anupreeta Das and Daisuke Wakabayashi).......read more
McCain camp hopes for long Dem race
By David Jackson, USA TODAY
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — John McCain and his aides wouldn't say Tuesday whether they wanted Hillary Rodham Clinton to win the Pennsylvania Democratic primary, though some clearly relished the prospect of an ongoing stand-off between her and Barack Obama.
"We're for anything that keeps it going," said McCain senior adviser Mark McKinnon.
Senior McCain adviser Mark Salter smiled while saying, "we don't want to intrude on their process. We want them to carefully deliberate their choices."
McCain rejected the notion that a Clinton victory Tuesday would benefit his candidacy, saying he is "absolutely neutral" about who his Democratic opponent should be this fall..........read more
Bill Clinton denies 'race card' comment
PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania (CNN) -- Former President Bill Clinton denied Tuesday he had accused Sen. Barack Obama's campaign of "playing the race card" during an interview Monday.A recording of the former president making the comment is posted on the WHYY Web site.
It says he made the comment in a telephone interview with the Philadelphia public radio station Monday night.
Clinton was asked whether his remarks comparing Obama's strong showing in South Carolina to that of Jesse Jackson in 1988 had been a mistake given their impact on his wife Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign.
"No, I think that they played the race card on me," said Clinton, "and we now know from memos from the campaign and everything that they planned to do it all along." Listen to the full interview.........read more
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Infosys Expects Sales Growth to Accelerate, Joining Accenture
By Harichandan ArakaliApril 15 (Bloomberg) -- Infosys Technologies Ltd., India's second-largest software-services provider, forecast sales growth will accelerate this year, joining Accenture Ltd. in predicting the U.S. slowdown will spur clients to send more work overseas.
Revenue may rise as much as 21 percent to a record 202.1 billion rupees ($5.1 billion) in the 12 months ending March 31 from 166.9 billion rupees, Infosys said today. Shares rose after the Bangalore-based company's forecasts beat estimates by analysts including Citigroup Inc. and Macquarie Research.
New orders for managing computer networks and call centers from the U.S., the company's largest market, and the rupee's first drop against the dollar in seven quarters helped Infosys alleviate concerns that a global economic slowdown will curb earnings growth. Accenture last month raised its outlook as clients awarded more contracts to pare costs........read more
Democrats sue over John McCain campaign financing
The Democratic National Committee wants a ruling on whether it was legal for him to reject public financing in his primary effort after indicating he'd take the money.
By Dan Morain
The Democratic National Committee filed suit Monday to force the Federal Election Commission to rule on the legality of John McCain's decision to reject public financing for the presidential primary campaign after initially considering taking the federal money.
Mired in conflict between Democrats and Republicans over a nominee to fill one of four empty commission seats, the six-member Federal Election Commission lacks a quorum.........read more
By Dan Morain
The Democratic National Committee filed suit Monday to force the Federal Election Commission to rule on the legality of John McCain's decision to reject public financing for the presidential primary campaign after initially considering taking the federal money.
Mired in conflict between Democrats and Republicans over a nominee to fill one of four empty commission seats, the six-member Federal Election Commission lacks a quorum.........read more
Pro-China demonstration at Dalai Lama event in Seattle By MANUEL VALDES
SEATTLE - In a show of pro-Chinese support, several hundred demonstrators protested Monday outside the college basketball arena where the Dalai Lama spoke.
Thousands of people have flocked to see the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader since he arrived last week for a five-day conference on compassion, but Seattle's large Chinese community had remained largely silent until Monday.
Inside the arena, the Dalai Lama received an honorary degree from the University of Washington and spoke to students on using dialogue to solve problems. He thanked the UW for giving him a degree without any studying.
While his visit to the United States has been billed as nonpolitical, he is expected to meet with a senior U.S. official next week.
The State Department said Undersecretary of State Paula Dobriansky and the Dalai Lama will talk next Monday in Michigan. Dobriansky serves as special envoy for Tibet.
Recent demonstrations against five decades of Chinese rule are the largest and most sustained among Tibetans in almost two decades. The unrest has led to loud protests that have been following the Olympic torch's passage to Beijing.
The Dalai Lama addressed the Tibetan situation Sunday, telling reporters at a news conference that Tibet cannot make any more concessions to China. He renewed his calls for the Chinese government to withdraw troops from his homeland.
He denied Chinese claims that he has called for Tibet to be split from China and that he is behind recent turmoil, saying instead that he is committed to pursuing Tibet's right to autonomy.
Outside the arena on Monday, pro-Chinese demonstrators held signs criticizing what they called media bias, and protesting the violence from rioting Tibetan monks.
Signs called the Dalai Lama a liar and a "CIA-funded militant." Many waved large Chinese flags. It was, however, a peaceful demonstration............read more
Thousands of people have flocked to see the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader since he arrived last week for a five-day conference on compassion, but Seattle's large Chinese community had remained largely silent until Monday.
Inside the arena, the Dalai Lama received an honorary degree from the University of Washington and spoke to students on using dialogue to solve problems. He thanked the UW for giving him a degree without any studying.
While his visit to the United States has been billed as nonpolitical, he is expected to meet with a senior U.S. official next week.
The State Department said Undersecretary of State Paula Dobriansky and the Dalai Lama will talk next Monday in Michigan. Dobriansky serves as special envoy for Tibet.
Recent demonstrations against five decades of Chinese rule are the largest and most sustained among Tibetans in almost two decades. The unrest has led to loud protests that have been following the Olympic torch's passage to Beijing.
The Dalai Lama addressed the Tibetan situation Sunday, telling reporters at a news conference that Tibet cannot make any more concessions to China. He renewed his calls for the Chinese government to withdraw troops from his homeland.
He denied Chinese claims that he has called for Tibet to be split from China and that he is behind recent turmoil, saying instead that he is committed to pursuing Tibet's right to autonomy.
Outside the arena on Monday, pro-Chinese demonstrators held signs criticizing what they called media bias, and protesting the violence from rioting Tibetan monks.
Signs called the Dalai Lama a liar and a "CIA-funded militant." Many waved large Chinese flags. It was, however, a peaceful demonstration............read more
Nissan, Chrysler agree to share products Companies downplay talk of alliance, but analysts say it's possible
BY TIM HIGGINS and BRENT SNAVELY
Chrysler LLC and Nissan Motor Co. announced a blockbuster partnership Monday to assemble cars and pickups for each other in a deal that draws on each automaker's expertise and perhaps sets up the companies for a much deeper relationship down the road.
Nissan will build small cars for Chrysler to sell and Chrysler will make pickups for Nissan under a deal announced by both companies late Monday afternoon.
Analysts saw the moves as a potential big step toward adding Chrysler to the Renault-Nissan alliance, but the companies downplayed that scenario. Carlos Ghosn, the chief executive of both Renault and Nissan, has long said he wants a North American partner.
Two years ago, he came up short in a bid to merge with General Motors Corp.
"This is definitely deepening the relationship considerably, which I think is good for both parties," said Erich Merkle, director of forecasting for Grand Rapids-based consulting firm IRN Inc. "Chrysler needs a small car. In terms of the time and resources it would take to develop a legitimate small car offering, Chrysler doesn't have it."..........read more
Chrysler LLC and Nissan Motor Co. announced a blockbuster partnership Monday to assemble cars and pickups for each other in a deal that draws on each automaker's expertise and perhaps sets up the companies for a much deeper relationship down the road.
Nissan will build small cars for Chrysler to sell and Chrysler will make pickups for Nissan under a deal announced by both companies late Monday afternoon.
Analysts saw the moves as a potential big step toward adding Chrysler to the Renault-Nissan alliance, but the companies downplayed that scenario. Carlos Ghosn, the chief executive of both Renault and Nissan, has long said he wants a North American partner.
Two years ago, he came up short in a bid to merge with General Motors Corp.
"This is definitely deepening the relationship considerably, which I think is good for both parties," said Erich Merkle, director of forecasting for Grand Rapids-based consulting firm IRN Inc. "Chrysler needs a small car. In terms of the time and resources it would take to develop a legitimate small car offering, Chrysler doesn't have it."..........read more
Monday, April 14, 2008
Food Inflation, Riots Spark Worries for World Leaders
by BOB DAVIS and DOUGLAS BELKINWASHINGTON -- Finance ministers gathered this weekend to grapple with the global financial crisis also struggled with a problem that has plagued the world periodically since before the time of the Pharaohs: food shortages.
Surging commodity prices have pushed up global food prices 83% in the past three years, according to the World Bank -- putting huge stress on some of the world's poorest nations. Even as the ministers met, Haiti's Prime Minister Jacques Edouard Alexis was resigning after a week in which that tiny country's capital was racked by rioting over higher prices for staples like rice and beans.
Rioting in response to soaring food prices recently has broken out in Egypt, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Senegal and Ethiopia. In Pakistan and Thailand, army troops have been deployed to deter food theft from fields and warehouses. World Bank President Robert Zoellick warned in a recent speech that 33 countries are at risk of social upheaval because of rising food prices. Those could include Indonesia, Yemen, Ghana, Uzbekistan and the Philippines. In countries where buying food requires half to three-quarters of a poor person's income, "there is no margin for survival," he said..........read more
On the Defensive, Obama Calls His Words Ill-Chosen
By KATHARINE Q. SEELYE and JEFF ZELENYSenator Barack Obama fought back Saturday against accusations from his rivals that he had displayed a profound misunderstanding of small-town values, in a flare-up that left him on the defensive before a series of primaries that could test his ability to win over white voters in economically distressed communities.
For a second day, Mr. Obama sought to explain his remarks at a recent San Francisco fund-raiser that small-town Pennsylvania voters, bitter over their economic circumstances, “cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren’t like them” as a way to explain their frustrations.
Acknowledging Saturday that “I didn’t say it as well as I should have,” he explained his remarks by focusing on his characterization of those voters’ economic woes. He meant, he said, that voters in places that had been losing jobs for years expressed their anxiety at the polls by focusing on cultural and social issues like gun laws and immigration.
Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton activated her entire campaign apparatus to portray Mr. Obama’s remarks as reflective of an elitist view of faith and community. His comments, she said, were “not reflective of the values and beliefs of Americans.”
Mrs. Clinton suggested that Mr. Obama saw religious commitment, hunting and concern about immigration as emotional responses to economic strain rather than as deeply embedded values.......read more
Dollar Rises After G-7 Officials Signal Alarm at Pace of Slump
By Stanley White and Kosuke GotoApril 14 (Bloomberg) -- The dollar rose against the euro after the Group of Seven nations signaled increased unease with the currency's 14 percent slump over the past year.
The G-7 changed its statement on currencies for the first time in four years, expressing concern about ``sharp fluctuations'' after the meeting in Washington on April 11. French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde said in an interview with Bloomberg Television that she hoped the ``concerted wording'' would help temper the dollar's decline.
`In the short-term the G-7 communiqué will be quite significant,'' said Sue Trinh, a currency strategist in Sydney at RBC Capital Markets, the global investment banking unit of Royal Bank of Canada. ``We don't think intervention is imminent but certainly a step-up in rhetoric is to be expected. I expect to see this underpinning the U.S. dollar in coming weeks.''
The dollar rose to $1.5718 per euro at 12:57 p.m. in Tokyo, from $1.5808 late in New York on April 11. It reached $1.56, the strongest level since April 3. The currency strengthened to 101.12 yen from 100.95 yen. The yen traded at 158.92 per euro from 159.55. The U.S. currency may advance beyond $1.55 this week, Trinh said.
The yen pared losses against the dollar as a drop in Asian stocks reduced investor appetite for so-called carry trades, in which they borrow funds in a country with low borrowing costs and buy assets where returns are higher..........read more
Delta-Northwest Merger Talks Pick Up Pace Again
By ANDREW ROSS SORKIN and JEFF BAILEY
Merger talks between Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines picked up pace again on Sunday, and people briefed on the negotiations said an announcement of a deal could come as soon as Tuesday.
The two companies have seemed on the verge of announcing a deal several times in recent months — raising hopes among some investors and worrying those concerned about loss of competition among airlines — only to back away from a merger.
During that period, the airline business has deteriorated sharply. Record-high fuel prices have sent a handful of smaller carriers into bankruptcy in recent weeks. The latest was Frontier Airlines on Friday.
Some analysts now expect the industry to lose money this year after two years that were mostly profitable. And the slowing economy is making it hard for airlines to raise fares to cover fuel costs.
A representative at Delta could not be reached and a Northwest spokesman declined to comment.......read more
Merger talks between Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines picked up pace again on Sunday, and people briefed on the negotiations said an announcement of a deal could come as soon as Tuesday.
The two companies have seemed on the verge of announcing a deal several times in recent months — raising hopes among some investors and worrying those concerned about loss of competition among airlines — only to back away from a merger.
During that period, the airline business has deteriorated sharply. Record-high fuel prices have sent a handful of smaller carriers into bankruptcy in recent weeks. The latest was Frontier Airlines on Friday.
Some analysts now expect the industry to lose money this year after two years that were mostly profitable. And the slowing economy is making it hard for airlines to raise fares to cover fuel costs.
A representative at Delta could not be reached and a Northwest spokesman declined to comment.......read more
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