German stocks outperform as Merkel forms gov't

LONDON — German shares outperformed their peers in Europe on Wednesday after the country's major parties agreed to form a new government and a measure of consumer confidence hit a six-year high.

Trading volumes were relatively light, however, as traders in the U.S. started packing up for the Thanksgiving holiday.

The news that German Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats have agreed the outlines of a "grand coalition" with the Social Democrats after two months of negotiations helped set the tone early in markets, particularly in Europe.

The rise in the GfK confidence indicator for Germany to 7.4 points for December from 7.1 in November also helped buoy stocks. It raised hopes that consumers in Europe's largest economy may be spending more — a development that could boost the battered economies of the 17-country eurozone, such as Greece and Spain.

"With a new minimum wage expected to come in as part of the coalition agreement, this should only fuel further spending from consumers, prompting further rises in these confidence figures and hopefully, more of a rebalancing in the region," said Craig Erlam, market analyst at Alpari.

Germany's DAX was one of Europe's best performers, trading 0.7 percent higher at 9,350. Elsewhere in Europe, the CAC-40 in France rose 0.4 percent to 4,296 while the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was 0.3 percent higher at 6,658.

In the U.S., the Dow Jones industrial average was up 0.2 percent at 16,102 while the broader S&P 500 index rose 0.3 percent to 1,807.

Sentiment has been positive of late, particularly in the U.S., with the Nasdaq composite index the latest stock index to push through a key hurdle. On Tuesday, it closed above 4,000 for the first time since the end of the dot-com boom in 2000. It was up a further 0.5 percent Wednesday at 4,036.

A mixed bag of U.S. economic data — weekly jobless claims were solid but durable goods orders disappointed — had little market impact as traders were heading out for Thursday's Thanksgiving break. Though U.S. markets reopen on Friday, trading levels will likely remain light through the week.

Earlier in Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 closed down 0.4 percent at 15,449.63 but Hong Kong's Hang Seng climbed 0.5 percent to 23,806.35. China's Shanghai Composite rose 0.8 percent to 2,201.07 and South Korea's Kospi was up 0.3 percent at 2,028.81.

Thailand's stock index climbed 0.9 percent after the central bank unexpectedly cut its policy interest rate by a quarter percentage point as escalating protests to topple the government add to pressure on the economy.

Elsewhere, the euro continued to recoup some recent losses, trading 0.1 percent higher at $1.3581.

The dollar was 0.8 percent higher at 102.07 yen, just shy of its earlier six-month high of 102.17 yen, as traders priced in the likelihood of further monetary easing by the Bank of Japan, which is trying to lift the world's number 3 economy and get inflation up to the 2 percent target.

"The belief of additional BoJ easing in 2014 will be important in keeping the yen on a weaker footing," said Derek Halpenny, an analyst at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ.

00.32 | 0 komentar | Read More

UK-based Standard Chartered opens branch in Iraq

BAGHDAD — British bank Standard Chartered PLC says it has opened a branch in Iraq's capital, Baghdad and that it hopes to play a role in the country's economic growth.

A statement said Wednesday that the main aim is to meet the increasing banking needs of its multinational clients in Iraq and to support large government projects. It says a second branch will be opened next month in the self-ruled northern Kurdish region and a third will be opened in 2014 in the oil-rich southern city of Basra.

The move came nearly five months after U.S.-based Citigroup Inc. opened an office in Baghdad.

Iraq has been struggling to attract Western companies outside the oil sector since the U.S.-led invasion. Security worries and political infighting have been the major concerns of foreign firms.

00.32 | 0 komentar | Read More

Clashes during Tunisia protest over economy

TUNIS, Tunisia — Clashes erupted in one of three Tunisian cities where tens of thousands of people demonstrated Wednesday over their declining economic situation, calling for greater investment in their impoverished regions.

Dozens of protesters attempted to storm government offices in the southern mining town of Gafsa before being driven back by tear gas. They later ransacked the local headquarters of the moderate Islamist Ennahda party that dominates the government, tossing the furniture out the third story windows and setting it alight in the street while crowds cheered.

General strikes were called in the northwestern city of Siliana, Gafsa and in Gabes, which is along the southeastern coast, calling for greater government investment. Witnesses reported that all shops and cafes were closed.

Tunisia kicked off the Arab Spring by overthrowing its dictator in 2011, partly over the lack of jobs of young people, especially in the impoverished interior. Nearly three years after the revolution, however, the elected Islamist-led government has been unable to jump-start the economy or redress the historic inequalities between the wealthier coast and the poorer interior.

"We live in desperate conditions because of unemployment, poverty and misery and we are only asking to live in dignity," said Badreddine Hamlaoui, a 19 year-old who lost an eye to birdshot during protests in Siliana exactly one year ago. "I ask myself why Siliana is neglected and excluded from development."

The timing of Wednesday's strikes was to mark the one-year anniversary of the Siliana protests when people marched to call for a new provincial governor and were dispersed by police wielding shotguns. At least 332 people were wounded, many partially blinded by the birdshot.

According to the National Institute of Statistics, unemployment is already a high 15.7 percent in the country, but in places like Siliana or Sidi Bouzid, where the revolution first began when a young fruit vendor set himself on fire, it rises to 20-29 percent — double that for young people.

"We continue to be forgotten and marginalized because of the policies of the current government," said Mohammed Miraoui, head of the local labor union branch in Gafsa. "From one day to another, the economic and social situation is deteriorating with not a single project from the 2012 budget even implemented."

Since its election in October 2011, Ennahda has ruled with two smaller secular parties, but amid the unrest, unmet expectations and terror attacks following the revolution, has been unable to stem the economy's slide.

On Monday, the Moody's international rating service downgraded Tunisia's government-issued bond rating another notch to Ba3, now three levels below investment grade.

The downgrade follows that of Fitch on Oct. 30 and S&P's in August, both well below investment grade, making it even more difficult for Tunisia to borrow on international markets and further reducing international confidence in the North African nation's economy.

Since the revolution, international ratings agencies have been steadily dropping the country's investment grade in light of the unrest and now a political deadlock.

The demonstrations come after the government acceded to opposition demands to step down in favor of a Cabinet of technocrats before new elections, but talks have now broken down over who will be the caretaker prime minister.

00.32 | 0 komentar | Read More

Xbox, PlayStation tackle console launch glitches

Move over, zombies. Step aside, terrorists. Aliens, out of the way.

There are a few new foes affecting gamers that are proving to be far more destructive than any on-screen villain.

With nicknames like "the blue light of death" and "the disc drive of doom," they're the game-ending glitches causing headaches for a few gamers who picked up the next-generation Xbox One and PlayStation 4 consoles at launch.

Microsoft Corp. said Monday it's replacing the Xbox One units of users who have reported systems that won't read discs, an issue dubbed "the disc drive of doom." The company said the problem is affecting "a very small number" of customers, who will also receive one free downloadable game from Microsoft Game Studios.

Sony Corp. announced after the debut of the PS4 earlier this month that it was replacing the units for "less than 1 percent" of users whose new consoles malfunctioned and displayed a pulsating blue light. The problem was given the moniker "the blue light of death."

Both glitches recall Microsoft's "red ring of death," when production problems caused several predecessors of the Xbox One to lock up and display three flashing red lights. Ultimately, the technology giant extended customers' warranties to three years and said in 2007 that it had spent more than $1 billion to repair the problems associated with the Xbox 360.

"I understand these things happen, but it sucks when they happen to you," said Donald Blankinship, an Xbox One owner who experienced a faulty disc drive after purchasing the console at Best Buy. "I can still play downloadable games until the replacement arrives, so at least there's that."

Other users have reported consoles being completely unresponsive out of the box. Both Sony and Microsoft said they're working to troubleshoot such issues and replace broken consoles as quickly as possible.

While the issues seem to affect a minority of Xbox One and PS4 owners, the concerns could deter consumers who regularly play games on smartphones and mobile devices. Sony's PS4 costs $399. Microsoft's Xbox One cost $100 more and includes a Kinect sensor.

"When I think about the Xbox brand, we want it to mean quality," said Phil Spencer, corporate vice president of Microsoft Game Studios, at last week's Xbox One launch event. "That's critical to us. I think you can overcome things, but we don't plan on that. We plan on testing it — tens of thousands of hours — to make sure it's going to be a solid launch."

Microsoft and Sony both announced that more than 1 million Xbox One and PS4 consoles were sold in the 24 hours after their release this month. It's been seven and eight years respectively since Microsoft and Sony launched the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Sony said it expects to sell 5 million PS4 units by the end of its fiscal year in March.

___

Follow AP Entertainment Writer Derrik J. Lang on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/derrikjlang .

00.32 | 0 komentar | Read More

Greek economy seen shrinking further next year

ATHENS, Greece — A leading international economic body predicted in a report Wednesday that Greece's economy will shrink further next year and that the government might need more financial help.

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said the Greek economy would contract 0.4 percent in 2014, in contrast to the Greek government's forecast for 0.6 percent growth.

However, the OECD did say the economy was improving, and that the recession was expected to come to an end.

"Positive growth is projected only in the course of 2014, reflecting a slower decline of domestic demand and a pickup in exports," it said in its survey.

Greece's economy is contracting for a sixth consecutive year, and the government has been relying on rescue loans from the International Monetary Fund and other European countries since May 2010.

"We are half a decade into the longest, deepest recession that we have known but there is hope on the horizon and 2014 promises to be a turning point for Greece," OECD Secretary General Angel Gurria said during a news conference.

The government has insisted the country will return to growth in 2014, and will post a modest primary surplus — the budget balance without taking into account outstanding interest payments.

"The 2014 budget is the budget of the Greek economy's recovery after six years of recession," Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras said during a speech to Parliament's finance committee Wednesday.

Speaking later at the news conference with Gurria, Stournaras noted he had "some disagreements with the growth projections, given that the general consensus is that we do expect to have growth in 2014, even at a modest rate."

The billions of euros of rescue loans have been contingent on Greece implementing broad structural and fiscal reforms. Successive governments have imposed repeated rounds of austerity measures, including slashing pensions and salaries, and increasing taxes.

While improving certain aspects of the economy, such as the reduction in Greece's annual budget deficit, the reforms have contributed to a sharp drop in living standards and spiraling unemployment, particularly among the young, where the jobless rate is over 60 percent.

"The depression has been much deeper than expected, which has undermined debt sustainability, induced a dramatic rise in unemployment, which affected more than 27 percent of the labor force at mid-2013 and raised social tensions, especially in the first years of the program," the OECD said in its economic survey for Greece.

It said growth was hampered by weak domestic and global demand and difficulty accessing credit.

"Together with the additional adjustment needed on the fiscal side and price competitiveness, the need for further assistance to achieve fiscal sustainability cannot be excluded," the report said.

There was praise, however, for how far Greece has come, with the organization saying the country achieved "a record fiscal consolidation by OECD standards" that managed to reduce the country's massive deficit.

00.32 | 0 komentar | Read More

Gauge of US economy's health edges up 0.2 percent

WASHINGTON — A measure of the U.S. economy's health improved in October, suggesting consumers and businesses mostly shrugged off the 16-day partial government shutdown.

The Conference Board said Wednesday that its index of leading indicators rose 0.2 percent in October to a reading of 97.5. It was the sixth gain in seven months and followed large gains in the previous two months.

The index is designed to signal economic conditions over the next three to six months.

Kathy Bostjancic, an economist with the Conference Board, said the recent gains point to stronger growth next year. The Conference Board forecasts that the economy will grow 2.3 percent in 2014, up from the anticipated 1.6 percent growth for this year.

The index is comprised of indicators, most of which have already been released individually. Seven of the 10 indicators showed positive readings in October. Low interest rates and a rise in applications for building permits were the strongest.

The October index was held back by a slump in consumer confidence and rise in weekly unemployment benefit applications.

The Labor Department has said that unemployment benefit applications fell last month because of unusual circumstances: the partial government shutdown temporarily laid off some workers, and backlogs in California distorted claims for the nation's largest state.

Unemployment benefit applications have since fallen back to pre-recession levels. On Thursday, Labor said applications dropped 10,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 316,000, a two-month low.

Cooper Howes, an economist at Barclays, said consumer confidence should also improve as the impact of the government shutdown fades.

The University of Michigan's index of consumer sentiment increased to a final reading of 75.1 for November, up from the preliminary reading of 72.0.

00.32 | 0 komentar | Read More

European financial stress seen at lowest in years

BERLIN — The European Central Bank says the overall stress level in the euro area's financial system has fallen to its lowest level since the early days of the global financial crisis six years ago.

ECB vice president Vitor Constancio said as he presented the bank's twice-yearly Financial Stability Review on Wednesday that a composite indicator of systemic stress across major financial-asset classes "is now at the levels of 2007." He said there has been a consistent improvement since July last year.

However, Constancio cautioned that "the situation in several respects remains fragile." The bank pointed to risks including turbulence on global financial markets, such as the fallout earlier this year from expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve would begin trimming its bond purchases.

00.32 | 0 komentar | Read More

Dubai chosen to host 2020 world expo

PARIS — Dubai will host the 2020 World Expo, becoming the first Middle Eastern city to organize the event in its more than 150-year history.

The Gulf emirate bested competing bids from Izmir, Turkey, Sao Paulo, Brazil and Yekaterinburg, Russia after three rounds of voting by delegates of the 168-nation Bureau International des Expositions in Paris.

Dubai authorities expect the Expo 2020 will generate $23 billion between 2015 and 2021, and estimate it will cost$8.4 billion to organize.

00.32 | 0 komentar | Read More

New Logan machines help travelers stay healthy

BOSTON — Travelers passing through Boston's Logan International Airport can now get an impromptu health report while waiting for their flights.

Four new health stations that include detailed walking paths though the airport and a machine that measures blood pressure, body mass index and weight, were installed Wednesday in Terminals A, B and C.

Hospital system Steward Health Care is sponsoring the stations for one year as part of a new health and wellness initiative at the airport.

"Now people in airports have an easy way to meet their daily physical requirements," said Dr. Juliet Nimako, a primary care physician affiliated with for=profit Steward Health Care. "We all know the benefits of exercise are immense, and many people think you have to exercise for a long time to get these benefit. But studies have shown us that even a few minutes of brisk walking gives us the same benefits."

The machines, made by World Health Networks, are a newer, more advanced generation of the blood pressure stations often found in pharmacies or stores like Walmart.

Though the machines are not for sale, each one costs about $25,000 to manufacture, according to Nic Denyer, executive vice president of World Health Networks.

Future versions of the machine may be able to test for diabetes and glaucoma, he said.

JFK International Airport in New York and George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston have installed the same machines for their patrons.

Boston-based Steward Health Care is the largest fully integrated community care organization and community hospital network in New England and has about 17,000 employees.

00.32 | 0 komentar | Read More

Judge moves airline merger step closer to takeoff

A federal bankruptcy judge has cleared the way for American Airlines and US Airways to complete their merger and create the world's largest airline.

The judge ruled Wednesday that this month's settlement of an antitrust lawsuit filed by the federal government didn't upset American's bankruptcy-reorganization plan, which is built around the merger. He rejected a request by a group of consumers to block the deal temporarily.

American said immediately after the ruling that it plans to complete the deal on Dec. 9.

The Justice Department had sued to block the deal in August, saying that it would hurt competition and lead to higher prices. But regulators settled their case in exchange for the airlines' promise to surrender some coveted landing rights at Reagan National near Washington and LaGuardia in New York and a few gates at five other airports.

Together, American and US Airways will be slightly larger in passenger traffic than United Airlines and Delta Air Lines, currently the world's biggest carriers after recent mergers of their own.

U.S. District Court Judge Sean Lane in New York had approved the merge-and-emerge-from-bankruptcy plan of American parent AMR Corp. back in September, but said it was on condition that the company won or settled the lawsuit filed by the government.

At a hearing in Lane's courtroom Monday, a lawyer for a group of consumers asked the judge to block the merger until a trial could be held on his antitrust lawsuit, which made many of the same arguments that had been raised — and dropped — by the government.

Lane denied the request by the lawyer, Joseph Alioto of San Francisco, saying that his clients had failed to show that letting the airlines merge would hurt them. The judge said that if Alioto wins his lawsuit, he can demand additional divestitures by the two airlines but can't hold up the merger.

At the same time, the judge granted American's request that it be allowed to close the merger without submitting the settlement with the Justice Department to a vote of creditors and shareholders. A committee representing unsecured AMR creditors including American's labor unions backed the company's request.

AMR filed for bankruptcy protection in November 2011 after losing billions of dollars in the previous decade. Almost immediately, US Airways began pursuing a merger. AMR management was initially reluctant, but the two sides announced a merger deal in February 2013. The new company will be called American Airlines Group Inc. and be based in Fort Worth, Texas.

A separate federal court will oversee a 60-day period in which the public can comment on the government's settlement with AMR and US Airways Group Inc., but that won't stop the merger.

00.32 | 0 komentar | Read More