Most Popular
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Iran’s president found dead at helicopter crash site
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Seoul rolls out W250b package in bid to lure foreign talent
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N. Korea slams US subcritical nuclear test, vows measures to bolster nuclear deterrence
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Korea's increasing US investment mutually beneficial: report
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Yoon vetoes bill for special probe into young Marine's death
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SNU alums nabbed for digital sex crimes
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Minister warns against trusting NK stated intentions, says Moon misguided
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South Korea bans viral North Korea propaganda video praising Kim
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AI Seoul Summit to discuss ways to make AI equitable in Global South
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Hermes celebrates craftsmanship
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Central banks, oil price rout to rule markets in 2015
PARIS (AFP) ― Addicted to liquidity and disconnected from the real economy, global markets are likely to dance in 2015 to the different monetary policy tunes played by the U.S. Fed, the ECB and China, while plunging oil prices could spice up the mix.In 2015, “like the last seven years, it is the central bank interventions which will have an influence over the markets,” said Romain Boscher, a stock portfolio manager at Amundi.For the past several years central banks have tried to stimulate stalle
Dec. 15, 2014
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Gulf stocks reel on sliding oil prices
KUWAIT CITY (AFP) ― Share prices in energy-rich Gulf Arab states fell sharply at the start of the week Sunday, dragged down after global oil prices plunged to new lows.The decline took place on almost all of the region’s seven exchanges, with the Dubai and Qatari markets leading the way as investors dumped stocks soon after trading kicked off.Dubai’s benchmark DFM Index slumped 7.6 percent to 3,321.30 points, ending at its lowest level so far in 2014.The DFM had climbed as much as 60 percent thi
Dec. 15, 2014
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Krugman says Fed rate unlikely to rise in 2015
Paul Krugman, challenging the consensus of economists and the Federal Reserve’s forecasts, said policy makers are unlikely to raise interest rates in 2015 as they struggle to spur inflation amid sluggish global economic growth. “When push comes to shove they’re going to look and say: ‘It’s a pretty weak world economy out there, we don’t see any inflation, and the risk if we raise rates and it turns out we were mistaken is just so huge’,” the 2008 Nobel laureate said in Dubai. “It’s certainly a r
Dec. 15, 2014
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Sony asks media groups to destroy ‘stolen’ data
WASHINGTON (AFP) ― Sony Pictures Entertainment pressed media outlets Sunday against using data hackers may have leaked about the studio.In the letter sent to groups including The New York Times and The Hollywood Reporter, lawyer David Boies said the “stolen information” must be destroyed and should not make it to publication.The studio “does not consent to your possession, review, copying, dissemination, publication, uploading, downloading or making any use of the stolen information, and to requ
Dec. 15, 2014
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Germans cling to shop-free Sunday
In Germany, where hard work is prized, one day of the week remains sacred for rest. While neighbor France last week announced plans to loosen restrictions on Sunday work, Germany is tightening regulations on the few businesses that had been allowed to open. Setting aside the day for coffee and cake with family and friends has been ingrained in German society for a century. The country’s ban on stores being open, which stretches back to 1919 during the Weimar Republic, was enshrined in the West G
Dec. 14, 2014
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IMF deputy ‘impressed’ by Ukraine’s move toward reform
WASHINGTON (AFP) ― The International Monetary Fund’s No. 2 said Saturday he was “impressed” by Kiev’s plans for economic reform, following a visit to the country.The IMF, which this year granted Kiev $17 billion in financial aid over two years, as part of a $27 billion global rescue package set up by Western countries, warned last month that Ukraine would need as much as an extra $19 billion by the end of next year.IMF First Deputy Managing Director David Lipton traveled to Kiev on Friday to mee
Dec. 14, 2014
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Little inflation pressure on Fed to speed up rate hike
WASHINGTON (AFP) ― The U.S. Federal Reserve holds its final policy meeting this week facing a conundrum most countries would love to have: Slowly accelerating economic growth with no sign of inflation.The good signs in the U.S. economy ironically make it harder for the Fed to move closer to what it knows it must do sooner rather than later: begin lifting the benchmark federal funds interest rate from the zero level, where it has been for six years now.Anticipation of the move has riveted markets
Dec. 14, 2014
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Congress passes spending bill after bruising fight
WASHINGTON (AFP) ― The U.S. Congress passed a $1.1 trillion spending bill for fiscal year 2015 Saturday amid intense partisan wrangling, sending the measure to President Barack Obama and averting a government shutdown.The bill, which narrowly cleared the House of Representatives on Thursday and survived a series of procedural hurdles to pass the Senate 56 votes to 40 on Saturday, funds nearly all federal government agencies through next September.But by funding the Department of Homeland Securit
Dec. 14, 2014
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Air fares dipping thanks to oil slump
GENEVA (AP) ― Flying could get cheaper next year as airlines say they will finally start passing on some of the savings made on plummeting oil prices.Carriers are forecasting record profits for 2015 thanks to cheaper fuel and rising demand. As a result, they expect to cut the average ticket price by 5 percent in 2015, excluding surcharges and taxes.That may not be a big decrease considering that the price of crude oil has fallen 40 percent since June, but is the most carriers can do for now, the
Dec. 11, 2014
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U.S. issues commercial drone permits to 4 firms
WASHINGTON (AP) ― Under pressure from Congress to speed access to U.S. skies for commercial drones, the government granted four companies permission Wednesday to use drones for aerial surveillance, construction site monitoring and oil rig flare stack inspections.The new permits bring the total number of companies granted permits for commercial operations to 13. They were announced by the Federal Aviation Administration an hour before a House hearing at which lawmakers warned that if the agency d
Dec. 11, 2014
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Fed targets JPMorgan as it favors traditional banks
NEW YORK (AFP) ― In publicly declaring that JPMorgan Chase should raise $22 billion, the Federal Reserve has delivered a hard blow to the largest U.S. bank and shown its preference for traditional banks. The central bank unveiled a new, tougher capital rule for eight big U.S. banks considered systemically important, including JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, Citigroup and Wells Fargo.Those financial institutions, which have raised billions of dollars since the 2008 finan
Dec. 11, 2014
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Putin in India to boost trade
NEW DELHI (AP) ― Russian President Vladimir Putin was holding talks with Indian leaders Thursday to strengthen trade and energy cooperation with Asia’s third-largest economy as Western sanctions threaten to push his country’s economy to the brink of a recession. Putin’s discussions with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi are expected to focus us on deepening ties at a time when New Delhi is perceived to be drawing closer to the United States, especially in areas such as defense and investment.
Dec. 11, 2014
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U.N. predicts increased global growth
UNITED NATIONS (AP) ― The global economy will grow by more than 3 percent in 2015 and 2016, the United Nations predicted Wednesday, but that growth will be uneven in some regions.The U.N.’s annual economic report says growth edged up in 2014 at an estimated 2.6 percent.The U.N. is forecasting 3.1 percent economic growth in 2015 and 3.3 percent growth in 2016.The World Economic Situation and Prospects 2015 report says business investment will be a major driver in the United States, growth in the
Dec. 11, 2014
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U.S. lawmakers reach deal on spending bill
WASHINGTON (AFP) ― U.S. congressional negotiators finalized a huge spending bill late Tuesday that funds most federal operations through next September, concluding weeks of haggling to avoid a looming government shutdown.The $1.1 trillion measure, which includes money for anti-jihadist operations including training for moderate rebels in Syria, was agreed to with little time to spare before funding runs out at 11:59 p.m. Thursday.“This bill will allow us to fulfill our constitutional duty to res
Dec. 10, 2014
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China deflation risk deepens signaling room for easing
China’s factory-gate deflation deepened and consumer prices climbed at the slowest pace since 2009, signaling room for further monetary easing. The producer price index dropped 2.7 percent in November from a year earlier, a record 33rd-straight decline and the biggest fall since mid last year. Consumer prices rose 1.4 percent, compared with the 1.6 percent increase in October. Falling oil and metals prices have cut costs for China’s factories, leading to lower export prices and adding to dis-inf
Dec. 10, 2014
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Greek stocks plummet on fear of political crisis
The Greek stock market had its biggest plunge since 1987 Tuesday as concerns mounted that the country is heading for a political crisis that could jeopardize its financial rescue program. The benchmark stock index in Athens dropped 12.8 percent after the conservative-led government brought forward the date of a presidential vote. If the vote in Greece's parliament is inconclusive, investors fear it could lead to general elections and a possible victory for an opposition party that wants to modi
Dec. 10, 2014
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Microsoft says private data ‘at risk’ in court case
NEW YORK (AFP) ― Microsoft argued Monday in a court brief that an order requiring it to give U.S. prosecutors data stored in Ireland could “put all of our private digital information at risk.” The brief with the U.S. Court of Appeals in New York comes with prosecutors seeking customer emails in a narcotics probe, with the data stored in Microsoft servers in Ireland.A lower court ruled that the tech giant must hand over data sought in the probe, dismissing Microsoft’s claims of “extraterritorial”
Dec. 9, 2014
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HuffPost launches in India, eyes China edition
The Huffington Post launched an Indian version of its news website Monday, seeking to tap the country’s exploding number of Internet users, and announced its next big goal was a Chinese edition.The AOL-owned website featuring, news, entertainment, health and blogs, has allied with the Times of India Group to launch HuffPost India, its 13th edition worldwide.It hopes to gain new readers in the world’s second-most-populous nation of 1.25 billion, where smartphones and other Internet-enabled device
Dec. 9, 2014
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Honda adds 2.6m vehicles to air bag repair list
DETROIT (AP) ― Honda plans to replace driver’s air bag inflators on 2.6 million more vehicles as it expands repairs to the entire U.S.The Japanese automaker is the only company to comply with demand from the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to do repairs nationwide. Honda says it’s doing so to address customer concerns.Air bags made by Japanese supplier Takata Corp. can inflate with too much force, blowing apart a metal canister and spewing shrapnel. At least five people have
Dec. 9, 2014
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China rate swaps rise as new repo rules spark bond sell-off
China’s interest-rate swaps climbed to a three-month high, bonds dropped and stocks retreated after policy makers narrowed the pool of corporate debt that can be used as collateral for short-term loans. China Securities Depository and Clearing Corp. has stopped accepting new applications for repurchase agreements that involve notes rated below “AAA” or sold by issuers graded lower than “AA,” according to a statement posted on the agency’s website yesterday. The move means that about 470 billion
Dec. 9, 2014