Czech politician and ambassador to the United States Petr Gandalovič is worried about some of what he’s been seeing on social media in the wake of the capture of the Boston Marathon bombing suspects: People are confusing his home country with the eastern European republic where Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev traced their roots.In an official statement from the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Gandalovič set the record straight, once and for all: Chechnya is not the Czech Republic.His statement in full:As many I was deeply shocked by the tragedy that occurred in Boston earlier this month. It was a stark reminder of the fact that any of us could be a victim of senseless violence anywhere at any moment.Continue Reading… … Read More
Boston bombings add to market turbulence
LONDON (AP) — The sense of caution in financial markets continued Tuesday after deadly bombings at the finish line in the Boston Marathon.Investors have been spooked over recent trading sessions by the declines recorded in commodity prices — not just gold — as well as a run of disappointing economic data from the U.S. and China, the world’s two-largest economies.Monday’s explosions in Boston, which killed three people, provided investors a stark reminder of the threats posed by terrorists to a fragile global economic recovery.”The Boston bombings have only added to the sense of unease amongst investors …. equity markets have slipped in the past few days on worries that the U.S. and Chinese economies have hit an air pocket of economic activity,” said Neil MacKinnon, global macro strategist at VTB Capital.In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was down 0.5 percent at 6,312 while Germany’s DAX fell 0.4 percent to 7,6745. The CAC-40 in France was 0.5 percent lower at 3,690.Wall Street was poised to recoup some of Monday’s heavy losses with both Dow futures and the broader S&P 500 futures up 0.6 percent. How they actually open could hinge on a raft of U.S. corporate earnings and economic data that are due before the bell. Inflation and industrial production figures are likely to garner the most attention.Continue Reading… … Read More
WTO downgrades global trade growth in 2013 over protection fears
In 2012 the volume of trade grew by only 2.0%, which was the slowest rate since 1981. Trade growth in 2013 could turn weaker due to a tendency towards protectionism in the euro block. The financial crisis might may see Eurozone members try to shore up domestic growth, WTO Director General Pascal Lamy warns.“The threat of protectionism may be greater now than at any time since the start of the crisis, since other policies to restore growth have been tried and found wanting,” he said. The provisional forecast for 2014 is 5.0% and there is still hope trade will spin up. Annual rate rises are expected to stay below the historical long-term growth of 6.0% in the 20 years before the financial crisis hit.“The events of 2012 should serve as a reminder that the structural flaws in economies that were revealed by the economic crisis have not been fully addressed, despite important progress in some areas,” Mr Lamy said.“Repairing these fissures needs to be the priority for 2013.” … Read More
WTO downgrades global trade growth in 2013 over protectionism fears
In 2012 the volume of trade grew by only 2.0%, which was the slowest rate since 1981. Trade growth in 2013 could turn weaker due to a tendency towards protectionism in the euro block. The financial crisis might may see Eurozone members try to shore up domestic growth, WTO Director General Pascal Lamy warns.“The threat of protectionism may be greater now than at any time since the start of the crisis, since other policies to restore growth have been tried and found wanting,” he said. The provisional forecast for 2014 is 5.0% and there is still hope trade will spin up. Annual rate rises are expected to stay below the historical long-term growth of 6.0% in the 20 years before the financial crisis hit.“The events of 2012 should serve as a reminder that the structural flaws in economies that were revealed by the economic crisis have not been fully addressed, despite important progress in some areas,” Mr Lamy said.“Repairing these fissures needs to be the priority for 2013.” … Read More
Japan’s Fukushima nuclear plant leaks contaminated water
Though the contaminated water is not expected to reach the sea, as it is located 800 meters inland, Saturday’s incident is yet another reminder to Japan that it will still take decades to fully decommission the facility. A total of seven water storage tanks were excavated at Fukushima following a massive 9.0 earthquake in 2011, which triggered a tsunami that crippled the plant’s ability to cool its fuel rods. At the time, an all-out effort was made by TEPCO to flood the plant’s reactors with seawater to cool them, though that did not prevent three of the reactors from melting down. Hydrogen reactions also badly damaged the reactors’ housing structures. This latest incident comes on the heels of failures in the cooling system – only two weeks ago a massive power outage caused the plant’s cooling system to fail for 29 hours. The incident was later attributed to a small animal that had entered an electrical switchboard. In addition, TEPCO conceded that on Friday they had lost the ability to cool the rods at one of the reactors for some three hours following a technical glitch. Officials with the power company recently admitted that, although it has excavated seven holding tanks, it has struggled to contain groundwater from flooding into the plant’s damaged reactors, and it may take up to four years to correct that issue. TEPCO is as of yet uncertain what caused one of its seven tanks to leak, though it plans to pump the remaining 13,000 cubic meters of water into other tanks within the next two weeks. Japan’s government believes a full cleanup of the Fukushima site will take some 40 years, and the cleanup of contaminated areas will cost at least $13 billion. … Read More
U.S. economy adds 88,000 jobs
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. employers added just 88,000 jobs in March, the fewest in nine months and a sharp retreat after a period of strong hiring. The slowdown is a reminder that the job market’s path back to health will be uneven.The Labor Department says the unemployment rate dipped to 7.6 percent from 7.7 percent. While that is the lowest in four years, the rate fell only because more people stopped looking for work.The weakness may signal that companies were worried last month about steep government spending cuts that began on March 1.March’s job gains were half the pace of the previous six months, when the economy added an average of 196,000 jobs a month. The drop raises fears that the economy could slow after a stronger winter.Continue Reading… … Read More
Have we forgotten Newtown already? Why are we letting the NRA win
Like many of my friends and neighbors, I was shocked to learn that the NRA had been indiscriminately canvassing Newtown residents with pro-gun robo calls and post cards this past week. It was a chilling indication of the organization’s complete indifference to the events in Sandy Hook and a stinging reminder of their unfailing ability to erase the horrors of gun violence from the conscience of our legislature before a decisive vote on gun control.Nearly 15 weeks have passed since the shooting in Newtown. I spent the morning of Friday, December 14 feverishly collecting scant pieces of information about an incident in my hometown. As the details emerged, I did my best to shun the lurid images rushing to my mind. A massacre that could rival the most gruesome spectacle in any modern war had somehow unfolded in the elementary school I had attended as a child. I imagined the terror and anguish that must have gripped every parent with a child at Sandy Hook, then thought of the innumerable family members whose lives would never be the same after that day. It was the most sadistic act of madness imaginable visited upon the most innocent place I could think of.Continue Reading… … Read More
