News Archive - 30 April 2016

>In a statement detailing calls Secretary of State John Kerry has made over the past two days with UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura and with Riyad Hijab, a negotiator for Syrian opposition groups, State Department spokesman John Kirby said Kerry had made clear the United States wanted...

>BEIJING - Activity in China's manufacturing sector expanded for the second month in a row in April but only marginally, an official survey showed on Sunday, raising doubts about the sustainability of a recent pick-up in the world's second-largest economy.The official Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) was 50.1 in...

>CARACAS Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro on Saturday night increased the country's minimum wage 30 percent, amid rampant inflation that has destroyed purchasing power in the crisis-hit country. As of May 1, the minimum wage will jump to 15,051 bolivars per month - $1,505 at the strongest official exchange rate but...

>BURLINGAME, Calif. U.S. presidential candidate Ted Cruz made a plea to the California Republican Party on Saturday to line up behind him in the state's June primary in his uphill battle to stop front-runner Donald Trump from grabbing the nomination.At the same party convention that was the backdrop...

>In a statement Popolare di Vicenza said investors bought just 7.66 percent of its capital offer which the lender is carrying out at a price of 0.1 euros per share.In light of an underwriting agreement, the bank said Atlante would subscribe all the remaining shares that had...

>WASHINGTON With seven performances under his belt, U.S. President Barack Obama will try one last time to bring the house down at the annual White House correspondents' dinner on Saturday, a night of playful ribbing of both politicians and the news media.The black-tie event, which Obama has previously...

>BAGHDAD Hundreds of supporters of Shi'ite Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr stormed into Baghdad's Green Zone and entered parliament on Saturday after Sadr denounced politicians' failure to reform a political quota system blamed for rampant corruption.The protesters, who had gathered outside the heavily fortified district housing government buildings and many...

>Quarterly operating profit for the Omaha, Nebraska-based insurance and investment conglomerate probably fell to $3.73 billion from $4.24 billion.Net income probably rose to $5.59 billion from $5.16 billion, helped by a gain from the swap of Procter & Gamble Co (PG.N) stock for the...

>Germany has a flat rate withholding tax of 25 percent on private income from capital and capital gains. It was introduced by former SPD Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck with the aim of preventing tax evasion.Critics say the so-called settlement tax is unfair because it favors the wealthy and punishes...

>The Pentagon said the U.S. Air Force RC-135 plane had been flying a routine route in international airspace and that the Russian SU-27 fighter had intercepted it in an "unsafe and unprofessional" way. CNN reported that the Russian jet had come within about 100 feet (30 meters) of the...

>BEIRUT Nearly 30 air strikes hit rebel-held areas of Syria's northern city of Aleppo on Saturday, killing more people in a ninth straight day of bombardments by warring sides, and a temporary "calm" declared by Syrian military took hold around Damascus and in the northwest.The violence in Aleppo, which...

>SUTHERLAND, South Africa South Africa’s SALT telescope has helped detect the first white dwarf pulsar, the latest co-discovery that has astronomers eager to use the largest optical telescope in the southern hemisphere to unlock the galaxy's secrets.Quick reaction times, as well as being significantly cheaper than similar European or...

>Twenty jets took off from Diyarbakir air base and bombed sites in southeastern Sirnak province and others used by militants in Hakurk, Avasin and Qandil in northern Iraq, they said. The Turkish military has frequently carried out air strikes in the area in recent months. (Reporting by Seyhmus Cakan; Writing...

>There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blast at a market in the Nahrawan district but Islamic State regularly attacks civilians in and around the Iraqi capital. Police sources said the death toll could rise given the high number of injuries. (Reporting by Kareem Raheem; Writing by Stephen...

>An English-speaking country at the doorstep of Asia and offering an enviable quality of life, Australia now sits with the United States and United Kingdom as a top destination for foreign students, many from China and India. Worth more than A$19 billion ($14.43 billion) last year according to the...