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JERUSALEM (AFP) — Israeli tank fire killed a Palestinian girl and a Hamas militant in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday as Israel's security cabinet met to discuss its next move nearly a year after the Islamist takeover.Palestinian medics and witnesses said 10-year-old Hadeel al-Smeiri died and two members of her family were wounded when a tank shell hit a house east of the southern Gaza town of Khan

Ripplewood Holdings Mulls Monoline Business -NY Post Last Update: 5/28/2008 11:32:35 AM DOW JONES NEWSWIRES Ripplewood Holdings is in early discussions on creating a so-called monoline insurance venture to compete with the likes of Ambac Financial (ABK) and MBIA Inc. (MBI), the New York Post reported Wednesday on its Web site, citing people familiar with the situation. Ripplewood declined comment.

The US-based Eighth Wonder group is looking at investing between US$5-6 billion in Viet Nam in the next five years, chairman of the group Mark Advent said Wednesday. Their investment portfolio may include five-star hotels, resorts and shopping centers in locations such as Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Nha Trang and Phu Quoc. The first investment project of Eighth Wonder (EW) is being carried out in

SEOUL, South Korea - General Motors Corp. is considering launching its Chevrolet brand in South Korea to capture a larger share of the country's growing market for imported cars, a company executive said Friday.The U.S. automaker will make a decision on the move after completing a study by the end of this year, said James H. Raymond, executive director of GM's Asia-Pacific vehicle sales, service a

GM is considering launching the Chevrolet brand in South Korea to win more sales in the country's fast-growing imported-car market, a company executive said Friday. The comment was made by James Raymond, GM's Asia-Pacific executive director of sales and marketing, at a press conference in Seoul. GM entered the South Korean market with the Saab and Cadillac brands a decade ago. GM cars, however,

Kia Motors Corp is considering producing the next-generation Sorento (XM) sport-utility in the automaker's first US factory in Georgia, a company official disclosed. The car plant in Georgia is already under construction, and the $1.2 billion plant is slated to be in full operation by the end of 2009. "We are mulling making the next model of the Sorento in the United States as demand for such

FRANKFURT, May 4 - Daimler Chief Executive Dieter Zetsche would be interested in a cooperation with carmakers Jaguar and Land Rover, according to a report in a German trade magazine. Zetsche could envision supplying the two brands with components, the magazine, auto motor und sport, quoted him as saying in comments published on Sunday. Jaguar and Land Rover are owned by India's Tata Motors Ltd , who acquired the two automakers from Ford Motor Co for $2.3 billion in March. Daimler owns around 7 percent in the Indian company. "If (chairman) Ratan Tata would approach us in regard to supplying components, we would be open to talks," Zetsche said, adding Daimler had no plans to increase its stake in Tata. Zetsche also said the company would take a decision o

Microsoft's board meet today to evaluate its options in an attempt to acquire Yahoo. Microsoft is evaluating an offer of as much as $32 to $33 per share, well over the present $29.12 value of Microsoft's offer, but "major Yahoo shareholders" are angling for $35 to $37 per share, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has asked the Ministry of Finance to study the feasibility of allowing the establishment of foreign-owned funds management companies, a government document said Thursday. This move is aimed to attract foreign investment efficiently and increase transparency in management to ensure... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Credit Suisse is looking to expand into Viet Nam's share-underwriting market and aims to decide on joint-venture plans by the end of this year, Kai Nargolwala, the bank’s chief executive for the Asian-Pacific region, said. "One of my key priorities is before the end of this year to internally be very clear about what we want to do and what our preferred choice would be" for a joint-venture

Microsoft may not have cashed in on the initial iPhone hype, but that doesn't mean the behemoth tech company doesn't have plans to milk the cash cow from Cupertino. Upon reviewing the recently released Apple iPhone SDK and Apple's announ...

According to the Financial Times, Apple is in talks with the Big Four music companies in an effort to bring unlimited music rentals to the iPod and iPhone lines. It is said that both an iPod-bundled package (for a premium price) is being considered, as well as the possibility for an annual subscription service. [...]

  Leading Japanese automaker Toyota is likely to enter the Korean market in the first half of 2009 with its Prius hybrid. The hybrid car combines a battery and a combustion engine to increase fuel efficiency. A Toyota Korea source said Monday the company is considering releasing the third-generation Prius in Korea, Japan and the U.S. simultaneously on its scheduled release date in April 2009. Toyota Motor Global Sales Vice President Akio Toyoda, the fourth generation heir of the Japanese motor giant, met with Toyota Korea executives in Japan to discuss a model suitable for the Korean market. (more…) Share This Related posts Beat It! GM may drive in new Chevy Matiz M300 (0) Toyota Unveils All-New 2008 Sequoia At 2007 Los Angeles Auto Show (0) Toyota to launch small SUV in Europe in 2008 (0) 2008-2009 future models of Korean Auto Maker (0) 2008 GM Daewoo gentra X-T255 of Aveo badge in Korea (0)

Politicians want to build Indonesia's first casino on an island near wealthy Singapore - a potentially lucrative but highly sensitive venture in mostly Muslim Indonesia.Gambling is prohibited in Islam. Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim country, with nearly 90 percent of its 235 million people being followers of the Islamic faith.Other plans to build casinos in Indonesia have faltered due to vocal opposition from Islamic activists. It remains to be seen whether Bintan island's local government will be able to push the plan through."We are aware of the controversy," Bintan district's deputy chief Mastur Taher said Friday.He estimated that the casino could raise the island's annual income tenfold to $132 million.He said that only foreign tourists and non-Muslims would be allowed into the casino, which is envisioned to be part of a 2,000 hectare (4,942-acre) tourist development.Indonesia News Blog: http://indosnesos.blogspot.com

By Lawrence CasirayaMANILA, Philippines--The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) says it is studying the use of text messaging to detect companies that do not properly remit the taxes of their employees. Under the BIR's "substituted filing" system, employers collect and file tax returns on behalf of their employees. "We noticed, however, some discrepancies in the amount declared versus actual remittances," said Alberto Pio de Roda, assistant BIR commissioner. For January to June this year, the bureau was short of its target by P40 billion, he said. Through text messaging, an employee can send his tax identification manager (TIN), employer's registered name, gross income and amount of tax withheld from him for the year. "We can then match the data with actual remittance. We then conduct an investigation if they don't match," Pio de Roda said. He admitted, however, that many employees do not check their declarations properly. It may take at least two years to build the text messaging s

Parsvnath Developers Ltd. draws plans to step into the international property market by setting up offshore companies in different countries to start with exclusive real estate projects overseas. These offshore companies will come under the ambit of Parsvnath, says Pradeep Jain, Chairman, Parsvnath Developers. The company is working on its business structure to start with its plans as soon as possible. However, the plan is likely to be ready within a month’s time. Parsvnath Developers envisage broadening its horizons to countries such as Sri-Lanka, Mauritius, Singapore, and the UK. As such, the company enjoys a strong presence all over India and wants to carve out a substantial niche overseas. Indian real estate did not slow down its pace despite giving off the signs of a downslide. The firm will either take a joint venture route with local developer it or foray on its own. It has already signed a joint venture agreement with the Oman based Al-Hassan Group of Industries to tap Oman p

NetMagic Solutions has accelerated its data centre investments in India. The company has in the last 12 months grown from one data centre to five, including a virtual data centre at Sunnyvale in the US. The existing ones are located in Mumbai and Bangalore. It also hinted at the possibility of establishing data centres in Hyderabad and Pune based on demand. With more and more companies seeking to outsource IT infrastructure management services, the demand for such services is on the rise considering the supply. Initially, there were issues concerning security. Over 3,000 servers have currently been hosted out of NetMagic’’s existing data centres. Now they have extended this service by offering to manage IT infrastructure outside the data centre. For overseas clients, who do not even work with us (in the US), they offer to manage several servers and network equipments, firewall and database of customers.

MGM Mirage (MGM) is exploring options for 85 acres of prime real estate in Atlantic City, N.J., that the casino operator has left vacant since it acquired the land seven years ago. The company is mulling a development similar to its sprawling $7.4 billion CityCenter project under construction on the Las Vegas strip. It will feature condos, boutique hotels, a resort casino, and a retail and entertainment district.

With the release of the Jetta Clean Diesel TDI coming to US showrooms in March, 2008, Volkswagen is considering expansion of the Clean Diesel line-up with the Rabbit. The Jetta Clean Diesel TDI will be powered by a 2.0L 4-cylinder producing 140 hp with 235 lb.ft of torque. The clean diesel powertrain is expected to expand throughout the line-up with the Rabbit first in line.VW states that the clean diesel engine will be drastically improved in fuel efficiency and emission levels over the current 1.9L diesel. Pricing of the Jetta CD TDI is expected to be higher than its gasoline counterpart and it will be available only in California and New England when it hits showrooms.

Nissan may add a drop-top variant of the Altima in the years to come. If the project is given the go-ahead, the drop-top will be based on the Altima Coupe. The Altima Coupe is based on the Altima Sedan, but only shares an interior and hood. The low-priced convertible segment isn't what we call "successful" these days as sales are slow, mainly because of the lack of new models in the segment.Main rivals of the Altima Convertible would include the Toyota Solara Convertible, Chrysler Sebring Convertible and the Pontiac G6 Convertible. [Source: Motor Authority]

It worked! Abbot Laboratories became the first pharmaceutical company to back down after the stand-off with Thailand over generic medicine. Thailand’s government must be feeling pretty proud of themselves; in the space of a week they’ve taken down Google, the world’s internet giant, and now Abbot. Abbot’s new offer, according to the Bangkok Post this morning, [...]

Abu Dhabi, May 3 (Xinhua) A senior official of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) said the government is working to draft a law allowing therapeutic abortions, as part of the country’s prevention programme of genetic disorders. “We are studying it from two ways: on the mother or child’s health. But the choice to have the abortion will be under the umbrella of religion. Whatever we decide has to be within the religious and social environment,” Ali Shakar of the ministry of health was quoted as saying in Gulf News Thursday. According to the draft law, it will be legal to terminate foetuses with severe genetic disorders such as thalassemia. Abortion is currently prohibited in the UAE unless it is to save the life of the mother. But some Islamic scholars argue that abortion of a diseased foetus is also allowed as long as it is younger than 120 days. About one in 12 Emiratis carry the gene for thalassemia, a genetic disease characterized by the breakdown of oxygen-rich

Gold miner Newmont Mining Corp. might reconsider its investments in Indonesia if one of its executives is found guilty of dumping toxic waste there, the company said on Friday. "We would have to reevaluate, given the exposure and risk," spokesman Omar Jabara said. "First, we would look at future potential investments." The implication Newmont could stop further operations in the country came as an Indonesian judge postponed until April 18 the verdict in the high-profile pollution trial of Newmont's Indonesian unit and its American head.

Indonesia's Environment Minister has said his ministry will study the environmental impact of granite quarrying in the Riau islands, a hint that the material may be banned from export. Rear Admiral Mulyono urged the central government to impose a ban on granite exports, similar to restrictions on the sale of sand to other countries.He claimed that granite mining in some areas had resulted in craters as deep as 80 metres.Indonesian Navy ships in recent weeks have intercepted dozens of barges carrying granite en route to Singapore.

From Chicago TribuneNEW YORK -- Vietnam is reportedly looking into capital-control measures to prevent an overheating of its markets, pushing the pioneering few who are invested in the country's stock market to the sidelines after some unbridled buying.Vietnamese stocks have been catapulted to a hot spot primarily as a scarcity and growth play, and foreign investors helped Vietnam's stock market rise a whopping 144.5 percent in 2006.As a portion of the country's gross domestic product, the stock market capitalization has grown from 0.4 percent at the start of 2006 to 14 percent currently.But orders to trade Vietnamese stocks have slowed down to a trickle in recent days on rumors of capital controls.[Read more]Teddy's Comment: The overheating of stock market is widely existing in other Asian countries.

Autoweek 's Richard Truett reports that General Motors, feeling squeezed by ever-tightening fuel economy standards and ever-rising gas prices, is considering offering a turbocharged 4-cylinder engine for the base trim of its upcoming 2010 (for this week, anyway) Camaro. Speaking at the NY Autoshow, GM Vice-Chairman and daily TTAC newsblog fodderman Bob Lutz said he feels that the RWD drivetrains available from the Solstice GXP and Sky Red Line would make an excellent fit in a Camaro. Of course, the last time GM tried the i4/Camaro recipe, we ended up with the "Iron Duke" in slower-than-molasses 1982 Camaro. It's not so much the number of cylinders or the power output that bothers me - indeed, a 260 HP Ecotec is more powerful than some V8's of yore - but the turbochargi

The Ford Mustang is a lot like Coke (the soft drink, that is). It's a recipe that's remained relatively unchanged since its introduction. Boiled down to its basic elements, the recipe calls for at least an optional V8, a thrilling exhaust note, a live rear axle, and an intangible sense of Americana. That hasn't stopped Ford from experimenting with "New Coke" every now and then - you'll recall the Mustang II and the SVO. Well, get ready for more:   Motor Trend reports that Ford's suits are considering inserting the upcoming 3.5L V6-TT EcoBoost engine in the 2010 Mustang. The move is no doubt inspired by the same CAFE regs which have forced GM to consider a Turbo-4 in the Camaro and cancel its DOHC V8 program. On the plus side, the V6-TT engine is slated to