News Archive - 4 December 2016

Sunday, 14th of Azar – December 4th, 2016 HEADLINES OF IRAN’S MORNING PAPERS   KAYHAN   -Torture increases in Turkish prisons The United Nations reports that, following the unsuccessful coup by the army in Turkey, cases of torture in this country have increased.   -3 million amputations, result of...

(Ayatollah Movahhedi Kermani performing Friday prayers in Tehran. Source: Arash Mirsepasi/YJC)   The US’ Senate’s unanimous vote for extension of Iran Sanctions Act for another period of ten years also received angry responses from Friday prayers’ leaders across Iran. “United States’ hostility is nothing unexpected” said Ayatollah Movahhedi Kermani...

>In a speech to parliament, Rouhani denounced legislation passed by the U.S. Congress to extend the Iran Sanctions Act (ISA) for 10 years as a violation of Tehran's nuclear deal with six major powers. The deal curbs Tehran's nuclear program in return for the lifting of international financial sanctions.

>Tai, vice chairman of Foxconn, became president of Sharp in August after the Taiwan company, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd (2317.TW), took control of the Japanese firm.The Tokyo Stock Exchange moved Sharp shares to the bourse's second section in August after the electronics maker...

>TOKYO Italian voters' defeat of a referendum on constitutional reforms cannot be compared to Britain's vote to leave the European Union, European Central Bank policymaker Francois Villeroy de Galhau said on Monday.Policymakers will still look closely at the consequences of Italy's decision, Villeroy, who is also governor of the...

>SIMI VALLEY, California Often fiercely divided over policy, Republican and Democratic national security elite gathering this weekend in California appeared to largely agree on one thing: President-elect Donald Trump's pick for defense secretary.James Mattis, a retired Marine general, is an unorthodox choice. Because he retired only in 2013, Mattis...

>"We have not been contacted before any of these conversations. We have not been requested to provide talking points," Kerry said during a question-and-answer session at a think tank conference."I do think there’s a value, obviously on having at least the recommendations, whether you choose to follow them or...

>SINGAPORE Oil prices fell by one percent on Monday as a higher U.S. rig count unsettled markets amid nagging concern that output cuts, planned as part of concerted action between producer club OPEC and Russia, might not be as big as initially anticipated.Brent crude futures were trading at...

>The two companies could reach a basic agreement as early as this month, the Nikkei said.Privately held ZKW supplies light-emitting diode headlights and lighting modules to U.S. and European automakers such as General Motors Co (GM.N) and BMW (BMWG.DE). It forecasts sales of about 900 million...

>BRUSSELS U.S. tech giants including Facebook (FB.O), Twitter (TWTR.N), Google's (GOOGL.O) YouTube and Microsoft (MSFT.O) will have to act faster to tackle online hate speech or face laws forcing them to do so, the European Commission said on Sunday.The European Union (EU) executive's warning...

>SYDNEY Hong Kong's Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings Ltd (1038.HK) made a A$7.3 billion ($5.4 billion) approach for Australian energy giant Duet Group (DUE.AX), the target said, a sign CKI has not been deterred by a recent regulatory knockback Down Under.In August, the Australian government rejected...

>VIENNA Austrian voters roundly rejected on Sunday a candidate vying to become the first freely elected far-right head of state in Europe since World War Two, halting at least temporarily the wave of populism sweeping Western democracies.The runoff vote was a litmus test, since it was a re-run of...

>MUNICH BMW will test autonomous vehicles in Munich next year as it seeks to keep up with ride-hailing firms like Uber [UBER.UL], which have spent billions on pay-per-use personal transport.The German carmaker will have about 40 vehicles with self-driving functions in Munich's inner city and then expand the...

>The euro EUR=EBS dropped 1.3 percent to $1.0534, having briefly dipped to $1.0505, the lowest since March 2015. Against the yen, the common currency fell 1.5 percent to 119.38 yen EURJPY=R. (Reporting by Cecile Lefort; Editing by Eric Meijer)...

>BRUSSELS Euro zone finance ministers hope to reach a compromise on Greek reforms on Monday in a final bid to get International Monetary Fund support for its bailout program by the end of the year.The regular gathering of the 19 ministers of the currency bloc will be held in...

>SYDNEY The euro sank to 20-months lows in Asia on Monday after Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said he would resign in the wake of a stinging defeat on constitutional reform that could destabilize the country's shaky banking system.The single currency dived as far as $1.0505 in thin...

>The market value of the combined company would have been above $20 billion, according to the Financial Times. (on.ft.com/2gRcis1)The report said proposals made by the U.S. company were informal and anticipated a cash and stock takeover of Burberry. However, it was unclear at what premium the offers...

>Exit polls and early projections on Sunday showed Renzi lost the referendum by a wide margin."Buy bonds and sell stocks," hedge fund investor Douglas Kass, who runs Seabreeze Partners Management Inc, said after the vote. "The technicals and fundamentals and political/geopolitical considerations are all souring." S&P 500 e-mini...

>JERUSALEM Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday he will discuss with Donald Trump the West's "bad" nuclear deal with Iran after the U.S. president-elect enters the White House.During the U.S. election campaign, Trump, a Republican, called last year's nuclear pact a "disaster" and "the worst...

>SIMI VALLEY, Calif. The U.S. arms industry is ready and capable of boosting production of new ships if President-elect Donald Trump makes good his vow to expand the U.S. Navy to 350 ships, Chief of Naval Operations Admiral John Richardson told Reuters.Shifting the current target of 308 ships...

>BAGHDAD/BARTELLA, Iraq Islamic State fighters retreating in the face of a seven-week Iraqi military assault on their Mosul stronghold have hit back in the last two days, exploiting cloudy skies which hampered U.S.-led air support and highlighting the fragile army gains.In a series of counter-attacks since Friday...

>WASHINGTON President-elect Donald Trump, fresh off a deal to keep nearly 1,000 U.S. jobs in the country, will decide whether to intervene with other companies to keep them from moving jobs overseas "on a day-by-day basis," Vice President-elect Mike Pence said on Sunday.Pence said the deal Trump reached...

>WASHINGTON U.S. Vice President-elect Mike Pence on Sunday downplayed the significance of a phone conversation between Donald Trump and Taiwan's president, describing it as a "courtesy call" that was not intended to show a shift in U.S. foreign policy.Trump's call with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen on Friday...

>FRANKFURT Deutsche Boerse's chief executive has sought to reassure Frankfurt over its merger with London Stock Exchange Group, saying the German regulator will retain power over the exchange when it becomes part of a larger London-based group.Carsten Kengeter told the Frankfurt Chamber of Commerce in a letter seen by...

>Euro zone finance ministers will meet in Brussels on Monday to discuss short-term debt relief for Greece, and Germany's Wolfgang Schaeuble said it must implement reforms instead of hoping for further debt forgiveness.Greece remained optimistic for a final debt deal, however, just as Italians are voting on a constitutional...

>GENEVA Europe's trade negotiator blamed China on Sunday for scuppering a global environmental trade deal by submitting impossible late demands at World Trade Organization talks aimed at scrapping import tariffs on exports worth more than $1 trillion."China came in with their list, bringing in totally new elements of perspective,...

>Asked by Swiss Sunday newspaper SonntagsBlick whether Novartis could emerge as a white knight, he said: "We have always said that we will concentrate on complementary acquisitions in the range of $2 billion to $5 billion." He did not elaborate.Actelion is worth nearly $20 billion at Friday's closing...

>Putin has spoken previously of his hope that Trump will help restore U.S.-Russia relations, and analysts said he was unlikely to want to dial up anti-Western rhetoric before Trump's inauguration in January."Trump was an entrepreneur and a businessman. He is already a statesman, he is the head...

>A father of three children, he opted for the latter, though food, fuel, water and medicine are running critically low in rebel-held areas, such is his fear of the Syrian government that insurgents have been trying to unseat for more than five years."I didn't take anything with me. I...

>Speaking to Reuters from Turkey, senior rebel official Zakaria Malahifji said the message was delivered to U.S. officials in contacts on Saturday following the statement from Russia, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's most powerful ally."Our response to the Americans was as follows: we cannot leave our city, our homes,...

>Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez, who last week met with a Bangladesh delegation, said Manila "strongly recommended" Dhaka share the results of its investigation. He assured the visitors the government was doing it everything it could to find Bangladesh's missing money. Cyber criminals tried to steal nearly $1 billion from Bangladesh...

>SANTIAGO, Cuba Fidel Castro will be laid to rest on Sunday alongside the mausoleum of Cuban independence hero Jose Marti, ensuring that the polarizing nature of Castro's life will continue in death.Castro and his leftist revolutionaries claimed Marti's mantle upon overthrowing a U.S.-backed regime in 1959 and...

>Muslim-Majority Malaysia has been increasingly critical of Myanmar's handling of violence and allegations of state abuses in northern Rakhine state, which has driven hundreds of ethnic Rohingya to flee across the borders to Bangladesh.It described the violence as "ethnic cleansing" on Saturday.Najib called on the United Nations, the...

>"It's actually making progress," Defense Undersecretary Frank Kendall told Reuters during the annual Reagan National Defense Forum in southern California."They've lost some schedule from what we had targeted for them, but not a dramatic amount. I believe they will get there."Kendall said he would meet Raytheon Chief Executive...