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SE Asia Stocks: Indonesia falls to lowest since Jan 2; others mixed

Thu, 31 May 2012 11:10:43 GMT

SINGAPORE, May 31 – Indonesia’s stock market fell 2.2 per cent today with heavy foreign outflow linked to euro zone debt woes and volatility in its rupiah currency, while other markets in the region closed mixed. Jakarta Composite Index fell to 3,832.82, its lowest close since Jan. 2, with foreign outflow of US$117.76 million concentrated in blue ...

Roddy Doyle and Irish ghosts

Thu, 31 May 2012 11:08:32 GMT

SYDNEY, May 31 — The story of his mother's life inspired prizewinning Irish novelist Roddy Doyle's latest book, "A Greyhound of a Girl," featuring four generations of women - one of whom is a ghost. Doyle, known for his success with both adult and children's books, won the Booker Prize in 1993 for "Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha" and has seen several of ...

Romanian mining town suffers from its gold riches

Thu, 31 May 2012 10:58:01 GMT

ROSIA MONTANA (Romania), May 31 — Nature has carved a humbling landscape of deep river valleys and reddish peaks in a corner of the Carpathian mountains in western Romania. Rosia Montana town, made up of 16 villages that dot the slopes along the river Rosia, has hundred-year-old churches and houses, cemeteries and ancient Roman mine galleries. It ...

Restaurant creates buzz for being able to control noise levels

Thu, 31 May 2012 10:53:35 GMT

LOS ANGELES, May 31 – The former manager of rock band Phish is getting a lot of buzz for his new California restaurant which is outfitted with a noise-cancelling system that means diners no longer have to yell at each other over their food. A San Francisco Chronicle story published earlier this month about John Paluska’s Mexican eatery Comal in ...

Kvitova safely through in Paris

Thu, 31 May 2012 10:43:02 GMT

PARIS, May 31 – Czech fourth seed Petra Kvitova strolled into the French Open third round with a comprehensive 6-1 6-3 win over Pole Urszula Radwanska today. Kvitova, who had only dropped three games in her opening round, was never threatened by the world number 79, hitting 30 winners in a one-sided match on Court Suzanne Lenglen. The Wimbledon ...

Bursa closes mixed, KLCI firmer

Thu, 31 May 2012 10:37:55 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 – Bursa Malaysia ended mixed today despite the weaker regional markets on mounting fears that Europe’s debt crisis may affect bigger economies such as Spain and Italy, dealers said. Gains in plantations and banking stocks helped the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) to close 5.5 points, or 0.35 per cent, higher at 1,580.67, ...

Scorpene probe: Nurul Izzah wants Parliament to debate defence secrets leak

Thu, 31 May 2012 10:25:54 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar will next month demand Parliament discuss developments in the ongoing Scorpene submarine case, including yesterday's discovery that national defence secrets have been sold to the French. The Lembah Pantai MP said in a statement today that she will move an emergency motion in the House on ...

Anti-Taib radio anchor ‘abducted’ by unknown men

Thu, 31 May 2012 10:20:06 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — A radio presenter for Radio Free Sarawak, which has been heavily critical of Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud's administration, was taken by three unidentified men after landing in Miri this morning. According to a statement from the radio station, Peter John Jaban was flying in to Sarawak from Kota Kinabalu to celebrate the Gawai ...

Barcelona’s Abidal could return to play again, says doctor

Thu, 31 May 2012 10:15:09 GMT

MADRID, May 31 – Barcelona defender Eric Abidal could return to play football again after his liver transplant, the surgeon who carried out the operation has said. The France international, 32 (picture), had surgery to remove a tumour from his liver last year, but after returning to play again, was forced to undergo a transplant on April 10 with ...

Maxis posts Q1 net profit of RM572m

Thu, 31 May 2012 09:57:58 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 – Malaysia’s mobile phone operator Maxis Bhd said in a filing to the local stock exchange today that during its Q1 ended March 31 net profit rose 6.1 per cent to RM572 million from RM539 million a year earlier. Revenue climbed 5.0 per cent to RM2.23 billion. The company said the better performance was partly due to the lower ...

How many tear gas canisters were used? — Wira Bersih

Thu, 31 May 2012 09:53:58 GMT

MAY 31 — Got some news for Hishammuddin Hussein: forget about trying to persuade Malaysians that the thugs in blue were justified in beating young, old and reporters on April 28. That debate has been settled so it is pointless "releasing your edited video clips" on the Bersih rally. The Home Minister has promised that the government will release ...

Petronas to pay RM28b dividend to Putrajaya

Thu, 31 May 2012 09:35:14 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — Petronas will pay the government RM28 billion in dividends or slightly more than half of its total net profit from the 2011 financial year. Petronas reported RM55.6 billion in net profit for the nine months ended 31 December 2011. The national oil company is changing its financial year to end in December starting this ...

Hong Kong’s elderly tycoons outline succession after scandal

Thu, 31 May 2012 09:30:15 GMT

HONG KONG, May 31 – Hong Kong’s powerful family-run conglomerates are rushing to reassure investors of their succession plans, spurred by a scandal involving the city’s biggest property developer that has thrown the spotlight on plans to hand down businesses. Lui Chee-woo, the 82-year-old founder of developer K. Wah International Holdings and ...

EPF denies bidding for Battersea plant

Thu, 31 May 2012 09:19:50 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) has denied news reports in Britain that it has submitted a RM1.8 billion bid for the iconic Battersea power station in London. Bloomberg and the Financial Times had quoted a report by property researchers CoStar that the state pension fund had beat out top-flight football club Chelsea FC to ...

Petronas Q1 profit up 61pc, sees weaker Q2

Thu, 31 May 2012 09:16:36 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — Petronas reported a first quarter net profit of RM20.7 billion today, 61.7 per cent higher than the same period last year thanks to high crude oil prices. The national oil company said however that it expects lower crude oil prices to hurt second quarter results as prices have fallen from about US$130 in the first ...

Petronas posts 61.7pc Q1 profit rise

Thu, 31 May 2012 09:09:19 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 – Malaysia’s state oil firm Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) posted a 61.7 per cent increase in first-quarter profit today, saying the rise was mainly due to higher margins and the company’s sale of its stake in Centrica Plc. Petronas said its net profit for the three-month period ended March 31, 2012 rose to RM20.7 billion ...

Greek yogurt hits the frozen foods aisle for summer treats

Thu, 31 May 2012 09:02:09 GMT

NEW YORK, May 31 — The soaring popularity of Greek yogurt has expanded beyond the dairy aisle and into the frozen food section. With the arrival of rising temperatures and ice cream season, dairy and frozen dessert makers have been tapping into the meteoric popularity of the denser, thicker version of regular yogurt by turning it into a frozen ...

Michelle Pfeiffer to join Robert De Niro in Luc Besson’s ‘Malavita’

Thu, 31 May 2012 08:52:24 GMT

LOS ANGELES, May 31 – According to Variety, Michelle Pfeiffer is in talks to star in Luc Besson’s next movie Malavita. Currently on the silver screen in Tim Burton’s Dark Shadows, the actress (picture) will play Robert De Niro’s wife in a comedy about an American mafia family moving to France. After his biopic The Lady, about Burma’s democracy ...

India’s Kingfisher posts worst-ever quarter; no funding in sight

Thu, 31 May 2012 08:34:54 GMT

NEW DELHI, May 31 – India’s Kingfisher Airlines posted its worst-ever quarterly loss today, as huge cuts in the number of flights compounded the woes of a cash-strapped carrier facing high fuel prices and intense competition for low fares, sending its shares down to record lows. Kingfisher, which was India’s No. 2 airline until a year ago, has ...

MACC blamed for alleged whitewash in Shahrizat-NFC probe

Thu, 31 May 2012 08:17:24 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — The Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission (MACC) was accused today of whitewashing Datuk Seri Shahrizat Jalil's National Feedlot Centre (NFC) graft investigation , with PKR's Rafiz Ramli pointing out that he had not even been questioned by investigators despite being responsible for most of the allegations against the ...

Graft: High Court upholds ex-Immigration D-G’s acquittal

Thu, 31 May 2012 07:54:50 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — The High Court here today upheld the Sessions Court’s decision to acquit and discharge former Immigration Department director-general Datuk Wahid Md Don of accepting a bribe of RM60,000 to expedite visa approvals for Bangladeshi workers. Judge Datuk Mohamad Zabidin Mohd Diah made the decision after rejecting an appeal by the ...

Sepasang kekasih disyak mencabul, menyamun agen hartanah ditahan

Thu, 31 May 2012 07:45:05 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, 31 Mei — Polis malam tadi menahan sepasang kekasih yang didakwa mencabul dan menyamun seorang ejen hartanah di sebuah kondominium di Mont Kiara pada 10 Mei lepas. Ketua Jabatan Siasatan Jenayah Kuala Lumpur, Datuk Ku Chin Wah berkata mereka yang masing-masing berusia 33 tahun ditahan pada 11 malam hasil maklumat orang ramai. Mereka ...

FELDA denies fleecing settlers, points to 20pc stake held in trust

Thu, 31 May 2012 07:43:54 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — FELDA today denied claims of sidelining its 112,000 settlers despite allotting them just a 2.5 per cent holding in FELDA Global Ventures Berhad (FGVH), saying a trust fund will ensure a 20 per cent dividend is channelled directly to them. The federal land development scheme’s chairman Tan Sri Isa Samad (picture) told a press ...

European shares recover but Spain risks weigh

Thu, 31 May 2012 07:40:12 GMT

LONDON, May 31 — Demand for safe-haven assets kept German bond futures near record highs today, while European shares and the euro regained some stability although worries over Spain and its troubled banks are weighing on market sentiment. The single currency and world shares are poised for their biggest monthly drops since September while the ...

MACC directed to probe Azmin over graft allegations

Thu, 31 May 2012 07:36:15 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) was today asked to investigate Azmin Ali over claims he owns RM30 million in assets, following a complaint lodged by the PKR leader’s estranged sister Ummi Hafilda Ali. The MACC’s operations evaluation panel (PPO) chairman Tan Sri Hadenan Abdul Jalil told reporters it had ...

Najib: Peneroka akan diberi keutamaan dalam IPO Felda

Thu, 31 May 2012 07:33:27 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, 31 Mei — Peneroka Felda tetap mendapat keutamaan dalam langkah penyenaraian Felda Global Ventures Holdings (FGVH) apabila lebih 70 peratus saham terbitan penawaran runcit FGVH diperuntukkan kepada golongan peneroka, warga pekerja Felda dan individu yang menyumbang kepada organisasi itu. Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Najib Razak, ketika ...

Southern tsunami for Pakatan at GE13, says PAS

Thu, 31 May 2012 07:24:21 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — Pakatan Rakyat (PR) will win big in Umno bastions in Johor, Negri Sembilan and Malacca at the next national polls, PAS predicts, saying the next political “tsunami” will be in the southern states. “In the next GE, I see a tsunami coming from the south where support, especially in Johor, is growing, not like previously where ...

PNB to announce first company to be disposed of

Thu, 31 May 2012 07:19:24 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB) will announce the first of its five non-core companies that will be disposed of any time now, says president and group chief executive Tan Sri Hamad Kama Piah Che Othman. He said PNB, on its part, had identified the five companies involved and the disposal of these companies will also ...

MACC’s cow sense — The Malaysian Insider

Thu, 31 May 2012 07:17:15 GMT

MAY 31 — Here’s a question for the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC). Who accused Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil of being involved in the process of awarding the RM250 million government soft loan to the National Feedlot Centre (NFC) operated by her family? Short answer, no one. Long answer, not one person ever did. So, clearing the ...

Chua-Lim debate 2.0 — Lim Sue Goan

Thu, 31 May 2012 07:04:33 GMT

MAY 31 — MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek and DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng are going to hold another debate. To be honest, I personally am not looking forward to it. However, debates are, after all, part of democracy and it is better than having a silly war of words. The result of the first debate was not as expected and instead the ...

Najib lancar prospektus tawaran awam FGVH

Thu, 31 May 2012 07:04:12 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, 31 Mei — Felda Global Ventures Holdings Bhd (FGV), operator kelapa sawit ketiga terbesar di dunia, hari ini melancarkan prospektus tawaran awam permulaan (IPO). Saham-saham syarikat dijangka disenarai di Pasaran Utama Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd pada 28 Jun, 2012. Prospektus itu dilancarkan oleh Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Najib ...

SPRM diarah sambung siasatan dakwaan rasuah Azmin

Thu, 31 May 2012 06:58:43 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, 31 Mei — Panel Penilaian Operasi Suruhanjaya Pencegahan Rasuah Malaysia (SPRM) mengarahkan siasatan dijalankan terhadap bekas setiausaha sulit Timbalan Perdana Menteri dan Timbalan Presiden Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), Azmin Ali, yang didakwa memiliki aset dan harta melebihi pendapatan penjawat awam, antara 1995 dan ...

India growth weakest in 9 years as rupee slides

Thu, 31 May 2012 06:47:37 GMT

NEW DELHI, May 31 — India’s annual economic growth slumped in the January-March quarter to a nine-year low of 5.3 per cent as the manufacturing sector shrank and a fall in the rupee to a record low suggests the economy remains under pressure in the current quarter. Today’s figures mark a dramatic slide in fortunes for a country that was growing in ...

Didalam bermusuh sesama sendiri — Aspan Alias

Thu, 31 May 2012 06:47:09 GMT

31 MEI — Umno bukan sahaja bermasalah untuk menentang parti-parti pembangkang, parti itu juga sedang berhadapan dengan masalah dalamannya. Masalah dalaman Umno bukannya kecil. Ia melibatkan pergerakan dalam yang dilakukan oleh sekumpulan pemimpin Umno yang veteran dan yang muda untuk menyusun kembali hiraki kepimpinan parti itu. Dalam situasi ...

RM10b IPO will turn FELDA into global player, says Najib

Thu, 31 May 2012 06:27:03 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — The planned June 28 listing of FELDA Global Ventures Holdings (FGVH) will turn the “domestic organisation into a global player” as the world’s third largest palm oil operator in the world with a market capitalisation of RM16.6 billion, Datuk Seri Najib Razak said today. The prime minister said the listing has attracted the ...

Japan’s Nikkei logs biggest monthly fall in two years

Thu, 31 May 2012 06:16:02 GMT

TOKYO, May 31 — Japan’s Nikkei share average shed 1.1 per cent today, closing out its worst monthly fall in two years as investors cut exposure to risky assets on deepening concerns over Spain and its banking sector, with exporters taking a beating The Nikkei dropped 90.46 points to 8,542.73, cutting earlier losses as traders suspected the Bank of ...

Government ‘fleecing’ settlers RM8.8b with FGVH listing, claims Pua

Thu, 31 May 2012 05:47:37 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — DAP MP Tony Pua today claimed that Putrajaya would be “fleecing” FELDA settlers of a whopping RM8.8 billion through the leasing of their land under the highly-anticipated public listing of FELDA Global Ventures Berhad (FGVH). The DAP publicity secretary said the exercise would also see FELDA losing some RM394 million ...

India set for sweeping protests at petrol price rise

Thu, 31 May 2012 05:43:26 GMT

NEW DELHI, May 31 — Indian opposition parties have planned a national strike for today in protest against the steepest petrol price rise in the country’s history, seeking to exploit popular anger with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s embattled coalition government. Protests, marches and road blocks were planned across the country. The strike could ...

Seven foreign GROs nabbed in police raid

Thu, 31 May 2012 05:23:47 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — Five Thai and two Vietnamese women, believed to be working as guest relations officers (GROs), were detained in a raid on a karaoke centre in Puchong, near here, last night. Inspector Joycelyn Liza Edmund from the Selangor police Gambling, Secret Society and Vice branch, who led the operation, said the foreigners, aged 19 to ...

Malaysian ref charged with match-fixing in Singapore

Thu, 31 May 2012 05:13:30 GMT

SINGAPORE, May 31 — Two Malaysians were charged in a court here today with allegedly being involved in fixing a football match between Lions XII and Sarawak on May 22 at the Jalan Besar Stadium here. Alternatively, former Kedah footballer S. Thanasegar, 38, is alleged to have aided referee Shokri Nor, 47, to meet a man named L. Selvarajan so that ...

MACC clears Shahrizat in NFC probe

Thu, 31 May 2012 04:59:23 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 — The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has cleared Wanita Umno chief Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil of any involvement in the RM250 million National Feedlot Centre (NFC) scandal. MACC operations evaluation panel (PPO) chairman Tan Sri Dr Hadenan Abdul Jalil said today that investigations into Sharizat’s ...

Taib: Sarawak’s Dayaks to enjoy benefits of transformation plans

Thu, 31 May 2012 04:55:27 GMT

KUCHING, May 31 — The Dayak commmunity will benefit through their involvement in the government’s transformation programmes towards achieving a high-income economy by 2020, said Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud, here, today. He said all the transformation programmes mooted by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak could be implemented ...

Miami Heat edge Boston Celtics in overtime

Thu, 31 May 2012 04:29:43 GMT

MIAMI, May 31 — The Miami Heat withstood a virtuoso performance from Rajon Rondo, who tallied a career-high 44 points with 10 assists and eight rebounds, to eke out a 115-111 overtime victory over the Boston Celtics and claim a 2-0 Eastern Conference finals lead. The outstanding Rondo was on court for the entire 53 minutes of a hugely entertaining ...

Polis tahan tujuh GRO warga asing di pusat karaoke Puchong

Thu, 31 May 2012 04:26:32 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, 31 Mei — Polis menahan lima warga Thailand dan dua warga Vietnam yang dipercayai bekerja sebagai pelayan pelanggan (GRO) di sebuah premis pusat karaoke di Jalan OP 1/6, Puchong malam tadi. Ketua Operasi Jabatan Siasatan Jenayah Selangor cawangan Perjudian, Kongsi Gelap dan Maksiat, Inspektor Joycelyn Liza Edmund berkata dalam Operasi ...

Shahrizat dibenarkan pinda tuntutan saman terhadap Zuraida, Rafizi

Thu, 31 May 2012 04:21:11 GMT

KUALA LUMPUR, 31 Mei — Mahkamah Tinggi di sini hari ini membenarkan bekas Menteri Pembangunan Wanita, Keluarga dan Masyarakat Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil meminda pernyataan tuntutan samannya terhadap Ketua Wanita Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), Zuraida Kamaruddin dan Pengarah Strategi PKR, Mohd Rafizi Ramli. Hakim Vazeer Alam Mydin Meera membuat ...

Nadal primed for another step towards record title

Thu, 31 May 2012 04:08:43 GMT

PARIS, May 31 — Rafa Nadal, chasing a record seventh French Open title, will be looking to preserve his perfect record against Uzbekistan’s Denis Istomin when the two meet in the second round at Roland Garros today. Nadal, who has lost only once on the Paris clay since his debut in 2005, will eclipse the record of six titles he shares with Bjorn ...

GM signs on as Man United’s auto sponsor

Thu, 31 May 2012 04:04:16 GMT

DETROIT, May 31 — The world’s largest automaker is jilting America’s Super Bowl for the global variety of football. General Motors Co has signed on as the automotive sponsor of the world’s most popular football club, Manchester United, in an attempt to cement Chevrolet as a global brand. Terms of the five-year deal, announced in Shanghai today, ...

Aid available but try for independence, Shafie tells students

Thu, 31 May 2012 04:00:30 GMT

BANGI, May 31 — The government is always prepared to assist students from institutions of higher learning look after their wellbeing, said Rural and Regional Development Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal. But the minister also said the students, through their associations, should try to be self-reliant by generating income rather than being ...

Google unveils faster Chromebook, desktop Chromebox

Thu, 31 May 2012 03:45:39 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO, May 31 — Google is powering ahead with its cloud-based, web-centric computers and has taken the wraps off a next-generation Chromebook and a brand new compact desktop machine called the Chromebox. The Chromebox and Chromebook were made by Korean manufacturer Samsung and run on Google’s Chrome OS — an app-centric user interface based ...

Suspect in Seattle gun rampage shoots self in head

Thu, 31 May 2012 03:39:27 GMT

SEATTLE, May 31 — A gunman shot three people to death at a popular Seattle cafe yesterday then fled to a downtown parking lot where he killed another woman and stole her car before shooting himself in the head as police closed in, authorities said. The man, who was not immediately identified, was being treated at Harborview Medical Centre ...