AMMAN (Reuters) - A bomb killed at least seven people on Wednesday near a Shi'ite shrine in a suburb of the Syrian capital Damascus, opposition activists said.
The semi-official Addounia television said there were casualties in the explosion in the Sayeda Zainab district. Another bomb in the area was defused, the station said.
(Reporting by Khaled Yacoub Oweis, Amman newsroom; Editing by Jon Boyle)
By Crispian Balmer
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Most Israelis would be reassured if Mitt Romney won next week's U.S. presidential election, feeling they had an unquestioning friend rather than a dispassionate critic in the White House.
But any change would probably be a question of style over substance, analysts say, with a Republican administration expected to follow the path already laid out by President Barack Obama when it comes to Iran and the Palestinians.
The allies are too joined at the hip on fundamental challenges for the head to make that much difference.
"There is a great deal of continuity in foreign policy," said Zalman Shoval, a former Israeli ambassador to the United States and member of the ruling conservative Likud party. "Things don't change overnight if a new president takes power."
Obama, a Democrat, never enamoured himself to the Israeli people, nor to their prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.
The U.S. leader was accused of trying to browbeat Israel into making concessions to the Palestinians, particularly in his efforts to halt settlement-building in the occupied West Bank, and of refusing to impose red lines on Iran's atomic project.
While Obama also oversaw ever-closer military ties between the two allies, Israelis remembered the perceived slights - such as his failure to find time to see Netanyahu when he flew to New York last month to address the United Nations.
He is also disparaged for not visiting Israel as president. There again, only four of the last 11 U.S. presidents managed to make the trip, with only two coming their first term.
A survey released on Sunday by Tel Aviv University showed Israeli Jews preferred Romney to Obama by almost a three to one margin - the inverse of the predicted American Jewish vote.
"There is clear daylight between the prime minister and the White House, and most Israelis believe that Obama deliberately wanted it that way," said Ehud Yaari, an Israel-based fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
"But there wouldn't be much of a difference between (Obama and Romney) on the Palestinian conflict or even with the Iranian issue. The course of future U.S. policy is pretty much set."
UNDER THE BUS
Romney has certainly tried to play up divergences with Obama over Middle East policy, repeatedly accusing his rival of throwing Israel "under a bus" and suggesting he would adopt a tougher line with the Iran's powerful clerics.
But in their debate on foreign policy last week, the two men appeared in broad agreement on a range of issues, competing with each other to show their support for Israel and making clear it was by far their most important partner in a troubled region.
They also adopted a similar line on Iran - promising to prevent Tehran from getting nuclear weapons without mentioning the words "red line", or committing to using military force.
"It is ... essential for us to understand what our mission is in Iran, and that is to dissuade Iran from having a nuclear weapon through peaceful and diplomatic means," Romney said.
Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons.
Romney's language was duly noted in Israel, even raising questions of whether a Republican administration, haunted by the Iraq-tattered legacy of former President George W. Bush, would have the stomach for a daunting new Middle East conflict.
According to that theory, if anyone is likely to send in the warplanes, it is the Democrat Obama, who has succeeded in convincing Russia and China to back tough sanctions on Iran and is viewed with less suspicion around the globe than Romney.
But Dore Gold, president of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs and a Netanyahu confidant, suggested that the sort of military mission often envisaged for Iran, centred on air power, would banish the ghosts of the Iraq quagmire.
"No one wants another war in the Middle East, but there is a huge difference between a major ground war with a commitment of troops that march into an Arab capital, and the spectrum of options that exist now. Some of them may involve just air assets or intelligence cooperation," he said.
HEAVEN OR HELL
Whether or not there proves to be any substantive difference between the two presidential contenders in terms of core policy-making, there can be no doubt that the conservative Netanyahu would feel more comfortable dealing with the Republican Romney.
In his two terms as prime minister, Netanyahu has only ever dealt with Democratic presidents - first Bill Clinton and now Obama. He is often quoted as having said "I speak Republican" and his relations with Obama were at very best frosty.
"If Romney wins, (Netanyahu) will be in paradise. If it is Obama, it will be hell," said one former aide, who worked alongside Netanyahu for a stretch of his second stint in office.
Whether by coincidence or design, the next U.S. president will be sworn in the day before an Israeli parliamentary election, with Netanyahu widely touted to win, meaning that the countries' leaders will be in electoral lockstep.
Some Democrats have accused Netanyahu of interfering in the U.S. election by trying to coerce Obama into setting red lines for Iran. Palestinians hope that if he is re-elected he will get his own back by reviving the moribund peace process and put heavy pressure on Israel into making concessions over territory.
That is wishful thinking.
While Israel was mentioned 34 times in last week's debate, the Palestinians won just one mention, underlining how far down the world agenda they have tumbled.
In a secretly recorded video at a fund-raising event in May, Romney said "the pathway to peace is almost unthinkable" and suggested his policy would be to "kick the ball down the field".
After investing time and energy on the issue in his first term, and winning only animosity from both sides, Obama is unlikely to revisit the problem any time soon, said Aaron David Miller, a former senior U.S. adviser on the peace process.
"This whole notion that freed from political restraints the American president is going to go for some grandiose ambitious peace plan that will put him into conflict with the Israeli prime minister is the grandest of illusions," he said.
Swept to the sidelines, the Palestinian leadership watched the foreign policy debate with a mix of gloom and anger.
"What we didn't see in the debate was any sign of who has the backbone and foresight to bring about a just peace, and that's what was needed," said Hanan Ashrawi, an executive committee member of the Palestine Liberation Organisation.
DUBAI (Reuters) - Bahrain must lift its total ban on opposition protests, which violates the right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, rights group Amnesty International said on Wednesday.
Bahrain, a U.S. ally which hosts the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet, has been in political turmoil since pro-democracy protests led by its Shi'ite Muslim majority erupted last year and were put down by the island's Sunni Muslim rulers.
On Tuesday, Interior Minister Sheikh Rashed bin Abdullah al-Khalifa said the Gulf Arab kingdom had banned all rallies and gatherings to ensure public safety and prevent violence.
He said the move was necessary because violence accompanying marches and gatherings had disrupted traffic, affected trade and the economy and damaged private property.
London-based Amnesty said the measure nullified the rights to freedom of association, expression and assembly.
"Even in the event of sporadic or isolated violence once an assembly is under way, the authorities cannot simply declare a blanket prohibition on all protests," said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, its Middle East and North Africa Deputy Director.
"Law enforcement officials must act to protect peaceful protesters rather than using the violent acts of a few as a pretext to restrict or impede the rights of all."
Bahrain's leading opposition party Wefaq described the ban as an attempt to silence it.
"We reject this decision and consider it against our constitutional right. There is no reason for it because all our events are peaceful," Wefaq official Sayed Hadi al-Mousawi told Reuters from Manama, adding that he feared the prohibition might lead to more tension in the street.
Britain has expressed concern over the ban and called on demonstrators to "desist from violent protest".
"A blanket ban of this nature is excessive," Alistair Burt, Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, said on Tuesday.
"Peaceful protest is a democratic right. I hope the Bahraini government will rescind this measure as quickly as possible."
Bahrain has banned a series of protests organised by Wefaq in the past few months. A senior official said in July that the government had no plans to ban rallies outright, but wanted to ensure they did not turn violent.
Since April the authorities have stepped up efforts to crack down on unrest. Activists cite an increased use of shotgun pellets, whose use officials have declined to confirm or deny.
Activists have been sentenced to jail for organising or taking part in unlicensed anti-government protests.
The ruling Al Khalifa family used martial law and help from Gulf neighbours to put down last year's uprising, but unrest has resumed. Shi'ite protesters and police clash almost daily.
On October 19, a policeman was killed and another critically wounded in a bomb attack while on patrol in south Manama. (Reporting by Rania El Gamal; Editing by Alistair Lyon)
MUMBAI (Reuters) - The direct-to-home television broadcast services arm of India's diversified Videocon Group is planning to raise between $150 million and $200 million through an initial public offer, four sources with direct knowledge of the matter said.
The unit, Videocon D2H, has picked Swiss bank UBS and Indian investment banks Enam Securities and ICICI Securities as advisors for the shares sale, said the sources, declining to be named as they were not authorised to speak to the media.
The company plans to file the draft prospectus for the share offering by the end of next month and launch it in the first half of next year depending on market conditions, two of the sources told Reuters.
Billionaire Venugopal Dhoot, who controls Videocon Group that has interest in consumer electronics, telecoms and power, declined to comment.
Videocon D2H launched its operations in 2009. Its rivals include Tata-Sky, a joint venture between India's Tata Group and News Corp owned British Sky Broadcasting, and Airtel DTH from Bharti Airtel.
(Reporting by Nandita Bose and Sumeet Chatterjee)
Tue, Oct 30, 2012 at 18:09
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Get a degree online
Thanks to the online courses, you can now pick up a new skill that you always wanted to learn or add a certificate from a prestigious university abroad to your repertoire, which otherwise would be a difficult task.
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Get a degree online
Thanks to the online courses, you can now pick up a new skill that you always wanted to learn or add a certificate from a prestigious university abroad to your repertoire, which otherwise would be a difficult task.
In today's fast paced world, the degrees you have will soon be outdated. This is especially true when it comes to IT skills, as newer technologies are adopted by the hour. And if you are a working professional, then staying abreast with emerging technologies can prove to be quite a task. What can come to your rescue are online education sites, which offer certificates and diplomas in various subjects at little or no cost. True to the open source and free spirit of the Internet, there are many educational sites that endeavour to provide free education to benefit millions around the world. And increasingly, many prestigious universities around the world have joined in the bandwagon, by offering either their course content or at times even offering courses. It's also a good way to pick up a new skill that you always wanted to learn or add a certificate from a prestigious university abroad to your repertoire, which otherwise would be a difficult task. Listed below are few such online educational resources you can tap into.
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Friday 10:30 pm, Sunday 9.30 am
& Sunday 11:00 pm
Published on Tue, Oct 30,2012 | 18:11, Updated at Tue, Oct 30 at 18:14Source : Moneycontrol.com
This EY Tax Alert summarizes the key recommendations in the final report issued in August 2012 by the Accounting Standards Committee constituted by the Central Government (CG) in December 2010. The CG published the report on 26 October 2012.
Section 145 of the Indian Tax Laws (ITL) gave the power, effective from tax year 1996-97, to the CG to notify Tax Accounting Standards to be followed by any class of taxpayers or in respect of any class of income. In view of significant developments in convergence to International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), the CG constituted the Committee in December 2010, comprising officials of the Tax Authority and professionals. The terms of reference of the Committee were to study harmonization of accounting standards issued by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI AS) with the ITL and to suggest accounting standards for tax compliance under the ITL and also to deal with the issue of the tax impact of convergence to IFRS.
The Committee has recommended notification of 18 Tax AS for compliance with the ITL on the issue of harmonization of ICAI AS with the ITL and has also provided drafts of 14 Tax AS. The CG has invited comments/suggestions on the recommendations of the Committee and draft Tax AS by 26 November 2012.
Copyright © e-Eighteen.com Ltd. All rights reserved. Reproduction of news articles, photos, videos or any other content in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of moneycontrol.com is prohibited.
"CREDAI has expressed strong disappointment at the RBI's latest credit policy. The Central Bank should shed its negative approach towards the real estate industry," the apex realtors' body said in a statement.
Stating that the cost of funding for real estate is very high, CREDAI President Lalit Kumar Jain said the RBI should come out with a positive policy and facilitate reduction in interest rate.
"We have been pointing out that the real estate industry is not only the 2nd largest employer in the country but also contributes handsomely to the GDP and growth of 400 other industries," he added.
After the recent meetings with Finance Ministry officials, CREDAI had been hopeful that the government and the RBI would come out with "pragmatic policy", Jain said.
Echoing similar views, CBRE South Asia Chairman and Managing Director Anshuman Magazine said: "The RBI's decision to keep the key policy rates unchanged once again is a disappointment for the real estate sector".
"While a cut of 25 base points in the CRR rate does infuse some liquidity, a reduction in the repo rate would have helped boost investor sentiment. The festive season coupled with an expected change in policy rates would have been the ideal time for improving consumer confidence," Magazine said.
Net interest income rose by 11 percent to Rs 1,249.3 crore from Rs 1,122 crore during the same period.
Gross non-performing assets (NPA) increased 21 basis points quarter-on-quarter to 3.45 percent but net NPAs declined 3 basis points to 2.04 percent in the quarter.
Provisions against bad loans declined marginally to Rs 494.6 crore in the July-September quarter from Rs 510 crore in the previous quarter.
Capital adequacy ratio was 13.91 percent in the second quarter as against 14.36 percent in first quarter of FY13.
Mon, Oct 29, 2012 at 18:28
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RSWM Sep '12 sales at Rs 611.89 crore
RSWM has reported a sales turnover of Rs 611.89 crore and a net profit of Rs 21.52 crore for the quarter ended Sep '12
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RSWM Sep '12 sales at Rs 611.89 crore
RSWM has reported a sales turnover of Rs 611.89 crore and a net profit of Rs 21.52 crore for the quarter ended Sep '12
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From DJ EU Officials Spain Aid Cap Of 100 Bn Euros 'should Be Enough'
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Mon, Oct 29, 2012 at 18:28
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Pratibha Ind Sep '12 sales at Rs 416.91 crore
Pratibha Industries has reported a sales turnover of Rs 416.91 crore and a net profit of Rs 23.63 crore for the quarter ended Sep '12
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Pratibha Ind Sep '12 sales at Rs 416.91 crore
Pratibha Industries has reported a sales turnover of Rs 416.91 crore and a net profit of Rs 23.63 crore for the quarter ended Sep '12
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From DJ EU Officials Spain Aid Cap Of 100 Bn Euros 'should Be Enough'
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Mon, Oct 29, 2012 at 18:28
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Punjab & Sind Sep '12 profit at Rs 1,798.41 crore
Interest earned for the quarter was Rs 1,798.41 crore and net profit was Rs 117.07 crore.
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Punjab & Sind Sep '12 profit at Rs 1,798.41 crore
Interest earned for the quarter was Rs 1,798.41 crore and net profit was Rs 117.07 crore.
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From DJ EU Officials Spain Aid Cap Of 100 Bn Euros 'should Be Enough'
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Sundaram Fin Sep '12 sales at Rs 506.28 crore
Sundaram Finance has reported a sales turnover of Rs 506.28 crore and a net profit of Rs 111.50 crore for the quarter ended Sep '12
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Sundaram Fin Sep '12 sales at Rs 506.28 crore
Sundaram Finance has reported a sales turnover of Rs 506.28 crore and a net profit of Rs 111.50 crore for the quarter ended Sep '12
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From DJ EU Officials Spain Aid Cap Of 100 Bn Euros 'should Be Enough'
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By Mike Collett
LONDON (Reuters) - A late Mikel Arteta goal ended some determined resistance from Queens Park Rangers as Arsenal beat the Premier League's bottom club 1-0 at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday.
Arteta struck from close range after 84 minutes, turning the ball in from the rebound after the ball hit the bar.
The goal came soon after Rangers' Stephane Mbia was sent off for lashing out at Arsenal defender Thomas Vermaelen.
He was the ninth QPR player to be red carded during 2012.
Reading and Fulham drew 3-3 in a thriller at the Madejski Stadium, Wigan Athletic beat West Ham 2-1, Aston Villa drew 1-1 with Norwich City and Stoke City and Sunderland drew 0-0.
Champions Manchester City were playing Swansea at the Etihad at 1630GMT.
Arsenal's win halted a run of two successive defeats to Norwich City in the Premier League and Schalke 04 in the Champions League over the last seven days.
The Gunners welcomed back Jack Wilshere after the England midfielder missed the last 17 months with ankle problems and he played well for the 67 minutes he was on, helping Arsenal move into fourth place while QPR are still without a win in their opening nine league games and have only three points.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger told Sky Sports the victory came as a relief after a difficult week.
"When you lose two games the confidence goes quickly and for us today the most important thing was to win the game," he said.
"It was a fight against a good QPR side and a fight against our nerves. But QPR are a good team and they will not stay bottom of the league."
SIX-GOAL THRILLER
Reading and Fulham shared the points in a six-goal thriller which left Reading still looking for their first win of the season, although they moved up a place from 19th to 18th, ahead of Southampton who play Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.
Mikele Leigertwood put Reading ahead with a fine strike after 26 minutes before Brian Ruiz equalised for Fulham in the 61st minute three minutes after coming on as a substitute.
Chris Baird put Fulham 2-1 up after 77 minutes but had to go off after injuring himself on the advertising hoardings as he celebrated his goal.
Three goals then followed in the closing stages as Gareth McCleary made it 2-2 after 85 minutes before Dimitar Berbatov looked to have scored Fulham's winner two minutes from time with a thunderous drive.
Then, almost with the last kick, Hal Robson-Kanu earned Reading a point, scrambling home from close range.
Goals from Ivan Ramis and James McArthur gave Wigan their second win of the season and halt West Ham's strong start to the season despite a late reply by James Tomkins.
Aston Villa continue to labour towards the relegation zone after a disappointing home draw with Norwich.
Villa, whose manager Paul Lambert was up against his old club, were reduced to 10 men when Joe Bennett was sent off early in the second half.
They had taken the lead through Christian Benteke but Michael Turner replied for Norwich late on.
(Reporting by Mike Collett; editing by Martyn Herman)
By Brian Homewood
BASEL (Reuters) - Roger Federer and Juan Martin del Potro will meet on Sunday for the first time since their epic Olympic Games clash after both beat French opponents to reach the final of the Basel Open.
Argentine Del Potro overpowered Richard Gasquet 6-2 6-2 to reach his fifth final of the year while world number one Federer met more resistance before beating Paul-Henri Mathieu 7-5 6-4.
Federer has spoiled what has otherwise been an excellent year for Del Potro, winning all six of his meetings against the Argentine on a mixture of clay, grass and hard courts.
The most recent of those was their astonishing Olympic semi-final at Wimbledon where Federer won a 36-game final set.
Del Potro, who claimed his third title of the year in Vienna last week, also lost to Federer in the quarter-finals of the Australian and French Opens, the Rotterdam final, the Indian Wells quarter-final and the Dubai semi-finals.
Overall, Federer has won 13 out of 15 meetings with Del Potro whose only wins over the Swiss were at the U.S Open final in 2009 and at the World Tour Finals the same year.
"You have to hit winners all the time and see if you have a chance to win, there are very few players who can beat him," Del Potro told reporters.
"This year, I have lost to him six times already, I was very close at the Olympics and I was ahead at the French open."
"It will give me a chance to measure myself against him and see how far I have come."
"The important thing is to keep getting closer to the top five," added Del Potro, who has edged his way back towards the top despite a series of injuries including a wrist problem which forced him to miss most of the 2010 season.
Gasquet provided some resistance for the first four games which all went with serve.
Del Potro then won the next four games to take the first set which he wrapped up with his third ace of the match.
Both players lost their opening serve in the second set and, although Del Potro's serve was not at its best, he was still far too powerful for the Frenchman, running out an easy winner to win his eighth match in a row.
Federer did not have to face one break point against Mathieu, converting two of the four that came his way to ease into the final of his hometown where he will be looking for a sixth title on Sunday.
(Writing by Brian Homewood; editing by Martyn Herman)
"(There will be) No early...nor mid-term polls and the upcoming Parliament session would go smoothly," Singh said during a press conference here today. On reports of strained ties between UPA parties, Singh said, "There were always difficulties in coalition governments, which, the UPA government, too, is facing".
Alleging that the BJP had always made an issue of the development measures taken by the Congress-led UPA government, Singh said, "I am shocked that the BJP had opposed implementation of VAT, de-regulation of petrol and FDI in retail, which the erstwhile NDA government had decided to effect in its policies".
The BJP-ruled states were not providing any relief in tax or providing subsidy to consumers, he alleged. On the issue of subsidised LPG cylinders, Singh said, the Congress leadership was considering to raise the number of subsidised cylinders to at least nine and the BJP-ruled states should also provide three more subsidised cylinders to consumers. The former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister claimed that there was no discord within the state congress committee, led by Kantilal Bhuria.
Meanwhile, when asked about Singh's comments on the sidelines of a function here today, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said he did not want to indulge in any allegation and counter-allegation game. "I will appeal to everyone cutting across the party lines that they should not give a political colour to any development works," he said. "I do not want to spend my energy on what he (Digvijay) told media," Chouhan added.
Indore, Oct 27 (PTI) Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh today said he would soon expose "real owners" who are allegedly holding benami flats in controversial Adarsh building. Adarsh, the 31-storey highrise in south Mumbai, became the centre of controversy following allegations that ineligible persons, including politicians and bureaucrats among others, had got membership to the society. "I will soon release names of real owners who own flats in Adarsh Housing Society," Singh told reporters. Taking a swipe at BJP president Nitin Gadkari over controversy surrounding flowing of funds into the companies that invested in Poorti Sugar and Power Limited (PSPL) promoted by him, Singh said, "Adarsh ke tale bhi koi driver ho sakta hai...(There can be a benami flat registered in someone else's name in Adarsh Society as well)". He was referring to media reports claiming that Gadkari's driver was a director in one of the companies. On Ashok Chavan, Singh said, "he was asked to step down as Maharashtra chief minister after it came to light that some of his relatives owned flats in the highrise. Adarsh was builders cooperative society and not run by the state government." The former Madhya Pradesh chief minister alleged that BJP-ruled Chhattisgarh government had allocated a coal block to party MP Ajay Sancheti's firm even though it did not fulfil the criteria for conducting commercial mining. "Gadkari ki pol khul gayee hai...unke Sancheti parivar se sambandh hain..( Gadkari stands exposed...He has relations with Sancheti family)," he alleged. Even a CAG report for 2010-11 had pulled up the Raman Singh government over the allocation, Singh said. On allegations of financial irregularities in a trust run by Union Minister Salman Khurshid and that of corruption against former Himachal Pradesh chief minister Virbhadra Singh, he said they had clarified their respective positions. Singh also denied allegations of murkier transactions involving Robert Vadra and real estate company DLF. PTI GG NSK KAS BSM
MIAMI (Reuters) - Tropical cyclone Sandy regained hurricane strength on Saturday after flagging wind speeds earlier in the day triggered its downgrade to a tropical storm, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.
At 8 a.m. EDT (1200 GMT), the Miami-based Hurricane Center said Sandy's top sustained winds were 75 miles per hour (120 km per hour), making it a weak Category 1 hurricane.
The massive storm, with a rapidly expanding wind field, was located about 335 miles (540 km) southeast of Charleston, South Carolina, and moving on a north-northeast track toward its expected landfall early next week on the northeast U.S. coast.
(Reporting By Tom Brown; Editing by Vicki Allen)
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Two blasts hit a Baghdad Shi'ite neighbourhood and a bus full of Iranian pilgrims on Saturday, killing at least 13 people on the second day of the Islamic Eid al Adha religious festival.
Sunni Islamist insurgents and al Qaeda's Iraq wing often target Shi'ites in an attempt to stir up the kind of sectarian tensions that dragged the country close to civil war in 2006-2007 though bombings and attacks have eased.
In one attack on Saturday, a roadside bomb planted near an open-air market killed seven people, including three children at a playground. Another blast killed six people when it hit a bus carrying Iranian pilgrims to a Baghdad shrine, police and hospital officials said.
"We heard an explosion, we rushed out, I saw children running, some with wounds and crying. We evacuated some of the injured people. Mothers were running to the place to find their children," Abu Ahmed, one witness said.
Police said blast on the Iranian pilgrims came from a bomb that had been attached to their bus. It exploded around 300 metres from a police checkpoint, sending the bus out of control before it flipped over on its side.
Insurgents have carried out at least one major attack a month since the last U.S. troops left in December. Iraqi officials worry Syria's crisis is bolstering Iraqi insurgents as Islamist fighters cross into the neighbouring country.
The monthly death toll from attacks in Iraq doubled in September to 365, the highest number of casualties in two years, including a series of bombings targetting Shi'ite neighbourhoods that killed more than 100 people.
Security officials had said they believe insurgents would try to carry out a large attack during the religious holiday, which started on Friday.
Car bombs exploded and mortars landed around the Shi'ite neighbourhood of Shula, northwestern Baghdad, on Tuesday killing 8 people and wounded 28, and another person was killed by a mortar round in Kadhimiya area.
(Reporting by Raheem Salman; writing by Patrick Markey)
ROME (Reuters) - Former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, reacting to a Milan court's conviction for tax fraud, said on Saturday he would stay in politics.
Berlusconi told an Italian television interviewer that he felt "obliged to stay in the field" in order to protect other Italians from what he called judicial injustices.
But it was not clear if Berlusconi, now a member of the lower house of parliament, meant he would run for high office again or just stay on as an unelected political force of the centre-right.
"There will be consequences," Berlusconi said, referring to his jail sentence on Friday - which will not be enforced until his appeals are exhausted.
"I feel obliged to stay in the field to reform the justice system so that what happened to me does not happen to other citizens," he told Italy's Channel Five television, part of his Mediaset empire.
The move came as a surprise because last Wednesday Berlusconi said he would not run in next year's elections as the leader of his People of Freedom (PDL) party, ending almost 19 years as the dominant politician of the centre-right.
The court sentence included a five-year ban on running for political office but since the sentence does not become executive until all appeals are exhausted, Berlusconi can run for parliament in the next national elections in April.
The 76-year-old billionaire media magnate, who was convicted three times during the 1990s in the first degree before being cleared by higher courts, has the right to appeal the ruling two more times before the sentence becomes definitive.
Berlusconi has often accused magistrates of waging a political war against him.
(Reporting By Philip Pullella; Editing by Myra MacDonald)
By Robert-Jan Bartunek
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Iran has cancelled a European Parliament delegation visit to Tehran after the group asked to meet two Iranian activists awarded a top EU rights prize, a parliament spokeswoman said on Saturday.
The decision came after senior officials at the parliament, which on Friday awarded its Sakharov prize for human rights and freedom of thought to human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh and filmmaker Jafar Panahi, said they wanted the delegation to meet the two activists.
"After hearing the new conditions, the Iranians decided to cancel," European Parliament spokeswoman Satu Helin told Reuters. The delegation was set to travel to Tehran from October 27 to November 2.
Iran's Mehr news agency quoted an Iranian parliamentary official as saying the European delegation had stated as a "precondition" a visit with Sotoudeh and Panahi.
"The European parliamentary delegation wished to visit two Iranian political prisoners and give them a prize," said Hossein Sheikholeslam, international affairs adviser to Iran's parliament, according to Mehr. "Iran did not agree with this condition."
Ties between Iran and Europe have become increasingly strained over Tehran's disputed nuclear programme.
But meetings between European and Iranian parliamentary delegations were meant to keep open another line of communication, including with civil society - even though the European Parliament has little influence over dealings with Tehran.
Western countries accuse Iran of seeking a nuclear bomb; Tehran denies this and says its programme is for peaceful purposes only.
(Additional reporting By Yeganeh Torbati in Dubai; Editing by Myra MacDonald)
TOKYO (Reuters) - The operator of Japan's quake-struck Fukushima nuclear power plant said on Friday it could not rule out the possibility that it may still be leaking radiation into the sea.
A massive earthquake and tsunami in March 2011 triggered fuelrod meltdowns at the plant, causing radiation leakage, contamination of food and water and mass evacuations, although the government declared in December that the disaster was under control.
The comment by Tokyo Electric Power Co <9501.T> follows a U.S. academic journal Science article that said high radiation levels in bottom-dwelling fish caught off Fukushima prefecture indicate continued radiation leaking from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
Asked if Tokyo Electric, also known as Tepco, could confirm that the plant is not leaking radiation into the sea any more, a spokeswoman said: "Tepco cannot say such a thing, but we have confirmed that radiation levels are declining in both the sea water and seabed soil around the plant."
Ken Buesseler, senior scientist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution of the United States, said in his article on the Science website that little change in radioactive caesium levels found in Fukushima fish suggested a continued leak.
"The fact that many fish are just as contaminated today with caesium 134 and caesium 137 as they were more than one year ago implies that caesium is still being released to the food chain," he said.
Fishing off Fukushima prefecture, north of Tokyo, is prohibited except for test fishing for a few species such as certain types of octopus and squid, which are shipped only when they are found to be safe. (Reporting by Kiyoshi Takenaka and Aaron Sheldrick; Editing by Nick Macfie)
Fri, Oct 26, 2012 at 18:22
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Apple's weak margin outlook surprises analysts
APPLE-RESULTS-IPHONE-IPAD:Apple's weak margin outlook surprises analysts
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Apple's weak margin outlook surprises analysts
APPLE-RESULTS-IPHONE-IPAD:Apple's weak margin outlook surprises analysts
REUTERS - At least three brokerages cut their price targets on Apple Inc
From DJ EU Officials Spain Aid Cap Of 100 Bn Euros 'should Be Enough'
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Net interest income fell by 2.8 percent to Rs 605.8 crore from Rs 623.5 crore during the same period.
Other income spiked 49 percent to Rs 242 crore from Rs 162 crore YoY.
Gross non-performing assets (NPAs) increased 41 basis points quarter-on-quarter to 3.88 percent and net NPAs went up by 18 basis points QoQ to 1.95 percent during the quarter.
Provisions of the bank too went up by 11 percent QoQ to Rs 258.6 crore in the July-September quarter of FY13. Capital adequacy ratio was 12.08 percent in the second quarter as against 12.50 percent in a year ago quarter.
The share fell 2.26 percent to close at Rs 64.95 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.
By Clare Jim
TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC Corp<2498.TW> vowed to step up its marketing efforts to try and meet increasingly tough competition as it forecast another quarter of falling revenue and margins, underlining the challenge it faces to rebuild.
The former contract maker has been suffering a sharp decline in its fortunes since the second half of 2011 following a fairytale ride that turned it from an unknown into a strong global brand with phones based on Google Inc's Android software.
Having fallen victim to the runaway success of Apple Inc
"As part of the strategy, the company will initially invest USD 25 million to open additional data centres in Arizona and Virginia in the US, Amsterdam in The Netherlands and Slough in the UK", a company statement said.
These data centres, would further strengthen Cognizant's infrastructure management capabilities and enable clients to maximise value in their IT environment, it said.
"Clients need to modernise their IT capabilities and bring consumer IT models to their users, and at the same time virtualise their infrastructure, rationalise costs and improve productivity through flexible, business models", Cognizant IT Infrastructure Services division Senior Vice-President Robert Boles said.
With the expanded cloud capabilities across our network of data centres, it would greatly enhance the ability to satisfy the client needs, he added.
He said the expanded capabilities help Cognizant to offer clients a fully integrated suite of business solutions, business process services, application development, data services and cloud infrastructure.
Net sales jumped 70 percent to Rs 51.1 crore in the second quarter of current financial year from Rs 30.1 crore in the corresponding quarter of last fiscal.
Net sales grew by 13 percent to Rs 289.6 crore in the July-September quarter from Rs 256.7 crore in the corresponding quarter of last fiscal.
The share rallied 6 percent to close at Rs 186.85 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.
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IDFC Arbitrage Plus Fund-Plan A &Plan B: Rs 0.05 per unit
IDFC Arbitrage Fund - Plan A & Plan B: Rs 0.05 per unit
IDFC Asset allocation Fund of Fund - Conservative Plan: Rs 0.03 per unit
Wed, Oct 24, 2012 at 18:02
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Snow in higher reaches, cold wave grips HP
Snow in higher reaches, cold wave grips HP
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Snow in higher reaches, cold wave grips HP
Snow in higher reaches, cold wave grips HP
Shimla, Oct 24 (PTI) High altitude areas of Himachal Pradesh experienced snowfall as intense cold wave conditions prevailed parts of the state today. Several areas in mid and higher hills were lashed by high velocity icy winds followed by intermittent showers. The Rohtang, Kunzam, Saach and Chansel passes, high altitude tribal areas of Lahaul and Spiti and Pangi and mountain peaks in Kullu, Mandi and Shimla districts experienced mild snowfall. Keylong recorded 2cm of snow while Rohtang and Kunzam passes had 10cm of snow. Shimla was lashed by high velocity icy wind followed by intermittent showers, causing a sharp fall in temperature which dipped to 6.5 degree Celsius while Keylong and Kalpa in tribal Lahual and Spiti and Kinnaur reeled under intense cold wave conditions with mercury dropping to minus 0.5 degree and 1.0 degree Celsius respectively. The lower areas of Kangra and Mandi district received moderate rains. Manali recorded minimum temperature at 5.0 degree while Sundernagar and Bhuntar recorded a low of 10.1 degree, followed by Nahan 11.7 degree, five degrees below normal. The sky remained cloudy and a strong wind swept the region, forcing people to stay indoors. PTI PCL SAI PAL
From DJ EU Officials Spain Aid Cap Of 100 Bn Euros 'should Be Enough'
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Gonda (UP), Oct 24 (PTI) A woman and her minor daughter were killed after their house in the Dhanepur area here caught fire, a senior official said today. Nankun Devi died on the spot, whereas her daughter Roshni (13) and son Ajeet (11) suffered serious burn injuries when their Mujehna village residence caught fire from a lamp last night, Superintendent of Police Navneet Kumar Rana said. The girl died on way to the hospital, he said adding, Ajeet, who continues to remain in a serious condition, has been referred to Lucknow for treatment. PTI CORR AVA PG KAS
By Jonathan Cable
LONDON (Reuters) - The euro zone's biggest member Germany is being sucked into the bloc's worsening economic quagmire, business surveys suggested on Wednesday, as similar data signalled the slowdown in China may be abating.
The slump that began in Greece and spread to other smaller euro zone economies was clearly gripping the core in October, marking the worst month for the 17-member bloc since it emerged from recession more than three years ago.
Markit's Composite Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), which polls around 5,000 businesses across the 17-nation bloc and is viewed as a reliable growth indicator, fell to 45.8 this month.
That was the lowest reading since June 2009, confounding consensus expectations in a Reuters poll for a rise to 46.4. The index has now been below the 50 mark that separates growth from contraction since February.
Similar PMI data for China suggested the world's second biggest economy, a key world exporter, is slowly recovering from its weakest period of growth in three years, with new orders and output at their highest in months.
A comparable PMI for the United States due at 1258 GMT is also expected to rise, showing a modest acceleration in growth.
GERMAN PLUNGE
The manufacturing PMI for Germany - another major exporter and Europe's economic powerhouse - plunged to 45.7 from 47.4, also confounding expectations for a rise and well below even the lowest forecast polled by Reuters. The rate of decline was even worse in France.
"(It) reinforces concern that the economic downturn in the region may be deepening and widening," said Martin van Vliet, senior economist at ING.
The data were published just before European Central Bank President Mario Draghi was due to appear before German lawmakers for a grilling over whether his plans to buy euro zone sovereign debt might trigger inflation or compromise ECB independence.
They also coincided with the latest numbers from Germany's Ifo institute showing business sentiment in the country dropped sharply to its lowest in more than 2-1/2 years, the sixth consecutive monthly fall.
"Any hopes of a rebound appear to have been dashed for now. Germany is heavily dependent on exports so a global slowdown is going to impact on Europe's growth motor," said Peter Dixon at Commerzbank.
Germany has been mostly resilient to the three-year old sovereign debt crisis. But economic data in recent months have shown the rot is spreading.
The euro zone economy contracted 0.2 percent in the second quarter and is predicted to have shrunk 0.3 percent in the third, meeting the technical definition of recession.
While official data implies a similar decline in the third quarter just ended, Markit said the PMIs suggest the downturn will accelerate into the current quarter - a far gloomier prediction than in a Reuters poll last week.
"We are more downbeat than the official data. The PMIs are running at levels in the third quarter and start of the fourth quarter historically consistent with GDP falling at about 0.6 percent," said Chris Williamson at data collator Markit.
Bad news has been flowing out of company boardrooms too.
Carmaker Volkswagen reported a fall in nine-month operating profit on Wednesday and sportswear maker Puma reported sales in the region dropped in the third quarter.
Heineken NV , the world's third-largest brewer, reported a stronger than expected increase in third-quarter revenue, but sold more beer everywhere except western Europe.
Markit's measure of services business expectations sank to its lowest reading since February 2009, at the nadir of the last recession and when world stock markets were tumbling.
STABILISATION IN CHINA
But it was a different story for China, where the HSBC Flash Manufacturing PMI rose to a three-month high of 49.1 in October but remained below the key 50 mark.
"(This) adds to recent signs of stabilisation of the Chinese economy, thus underpinning our view that the slowdown in activity is bottoming out," said Nikolaus Keis at UniCredit.
A Reuters poll taken after last week's GDP data showed economists anticipating a modest rebound in growth in Q4 to 7.7 percent from Q3's below-target 7.4 percent.
Even that figure would not be enough to lift full year expansion from an expected 13-year low, however. (Editing by Catherine Evans)
By Adrian Croft
GARDEZ, Afghanistan (Reuters) - Military-led teams set up to deliver aid projects in Afghanistan are winding down their operations, sparking concern among some local officials that the government is not ready to take over their development role.
Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs) were a key part of U.S.-led forces' strategy "to win hearts and minds" in both Iraq and Afghanistan, building schools, hospitals and roads.
But now the teams, led by different countries in the coalition, are scaling back in Afghanistan as NATO-led forces hand over security responsibility to local commanders before most foreign combat troops pull out by the end of 2014.
Of the 22 existing today -- down from 26 last month -- three are expected to close by the middle of next year, NATO military officials have said.
The PRT in Paktia, a poor, mountainous province in eastern Afghanistan bordering Pakistan and used as a transit route by insurgents, was the first to open in Afghanistan in 2003.
The PRT was slated to close in December 2014, but the unit's U.S. commander said he was proposing to shut it earlier, in June 2013, on grounds that Afghans were ready to take on the work.
Naiz Mohammad Khalil, governor of the Sayid Karam district of Paktia, which borders Gardez and benefits from the PRT, said he would be "upset" when it closed.
"We need more mentors, we need them to stay for longer to train us more," he said in the provincial capital Gardez.
The PRT's commander, U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel John Morse, said that when the PRT was established, "We were the only ones that were delivering the basic services to the people.
"That's important at the time when there was no one doing that, but now as the Afghan government stands up and starts to deliver basic services, the PRT can be looked (at) negatively, so we can't do that any longer," he told reporters during a media visit organised by NATO last week.
PROJECT NUMBERS DECLINE
In 2010, the Paktia PRT, headquartered at a U.S. military base near Gardez, managed 114 projects costing $15.5 million. In 2011, that fell to 101 projects worth $10 million and this year to 21 projects costing $800,000.
Of those projects, only three remain, Morse said.
Morse conceded that Kabul had not sent enough money to Paktia this year for development work. "We really felt that Paktia province is starting to stand on their own and they are getting funding from Kabul, (though) not in the amounts we would like to see," he said.
Before 2011, the Paktia PRT built agricultural dams, irrigation systems, wells, hospitals and schools. More recent projects have been more modest, ranging from solar lights for bazaars to a wall around a girls' school.
The main focus of the PRT's work has switched to advising and mentoring Afghan officials to provide services.
Paktia Governor Juma Khan Hamdard said while the provincial government would implement development projects well and act against corruption, he cautioned that the Afghan government did not have the money to make up for the fall in PRT funding.
"The ministers do not (have) money up in Kabul," Hamdard said.
The Paktia officials' fears echo greater concerns by Afghans over how development projects will be sustained once foreign donors pull the plug, which they are in the process of doing.
Donors pledged in Tokyo in July to give Afghanistan, one of the world's poorest countries, $16 billion in development aid through 2015. But there are no guarantees for what will happen after that date.
There are also concerns by major donors and aid organisations that weak political will and graft could prevent funds reaching the right people at a crucial time.
Some development projects in Paktia will continue, paid for by international donors.
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the U.S. government aid arm, is financing one of the most important projects in Paktia, the paving of a section of highway connecting Gardez with the neighbouring province of Khost.
The World Bank is funding an Afghan-led project to build the Machalgho dam in Paktia, although work on the project, under the supervision of an Afghan ministry, has been delayed.
USAID will continue to work in Afghanistan after the Paktia PRT closes, but projects will be run from Kabul and carried out by charities or local people, said Justin Gordon, USAID senior field programme officer for Paktia province.
He said Afghan officials were generally in a position to take more development responsibility but the situation varied. (Editing by Amie Ferris-Rotman and Ron Popeski)
By Mike Collett-White
LONDON (Reuters) - Paparazzi favourite Pippa Middleton is already a global celebrity. Now the 29-year-old sister of the future British queen is aiming to become a global brand.
The woman whose appearance at the spectacular 2011 wedding between Kate Middleton and Prince William caused as much of a sensation as the bride herself has written a recipe and party planning book which hits the shelves this week.
"Celebrate: A Year of British Festivities for Families and Friends" has been praised and pilloried in equal measure ahead of its Thursday release, but, perhaps predictably, Middleton's introductory comments have dominated the headlines.
In them, she addresses her status as one of the world's most photographed individuals, and even tackles the topic many people most closely associate her with - her behind.
"It's a bit startling to achieve global recognition (if that's the right word) before the age of 30, on account of your sister, your brother-in-law and your bottom," she wrote with a candour that won admirers in the royalty-obsessed British press.
"One day I might be able to make sense of this. In the meantime I think it's fair to say that it has its upside and its downside." The upside could be the size of the book deal.
Penguin imprint Michael Joseph, which is publishing the 416-page glossy hardback in Britain, has declined to give details of the size of the agreement, although a spokeswoman said some media coverage of the book had bordered on fiction.
The widely reported, but unsourced, amount is 400,000 pounds, a sum which to most unpublished authors would appear astronomic although such advances are not unheard of.
Lena Dunham, three years Middleton's junior and the American creator of HBO comedy "Girls", was paid more than $3.5 million for her first book, according to the New York Times.
NO INTERVIEWS
The Penguin spokeswoman did not confirm a Daily Mail report, also unsourced, that Middleton had signed up for more books, and added that one-on-one interviews to promote the publication were "never part of the plan".
The British media linked the decision to royal sensitivities over the likelihood that Middleton would be asked questions about the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge - the titles her royal brother-in-law and sister have now adopted.
The Middletons' relationship with the press has not been easy of late.
When Kate was photographed topless on holiday, the royal family sued the French magazine that published images which the palace described as a "grotesque" breach of privacy.
A tabloid picture editor estimated Pippa was photographed by paparazzi up to 400 times a day, underlining how important the sisters have become for the celebrity and tabloid press.
As well as selling newspapers and magazines and driving internet traffic, they are also considered major trend-setters who can sell outfits faster than just about anyone.
Now Pippa hopes to turn her experience working for her parents' party planning company to good commercial use.
Early reaction to Celebration, excerpts of which appeared in the Mail on Sunday, has ranged from the snide to the supportive.
The Daily Mail's Jan Moir could barely hide her scepticism.
"Critics might wonder what Pippa Middleton really knows about entertaining - particularly as she looks like a girl who has spent her entire life being entertained," she wrote.
"From the moment she appeared in butter satin at her sister's wedding, Pippa has struck absolutely no one as the kind of girl you would always find in the kitchen at parties."
But Bryony Gordon takes up her defence in the Daily Telegraph, which, like the Mail, is generally pro-royal.
While conceding that "the abiding feeling generated by Celebrate should be one of nausea," she praises Middleton for avoiding obvious exploitation of her royal connections.
Of "oddly comforting" recipes, Gordon adds: "If the world's most famous bottom can make blackberry butter, then I can too." (Reporting by Mike Collett-White, editing by Paul Casciato)
