Yahoo Inc Chairman Roy Bostock and three other directors will step down as the struggling company ploughs ahead with an internal overhaul, including discussions on dealing with its stakes in China's Alibaba Group and Yahoo Japan. The corporation - once a Web powerhouse but now agonizing over a range of options to revive flagging growth - on Tuesday said it appointed former Rovi Corp CEO and International Business Machines Corp veteran Alfred Amoroso and ex-eBay COO Maynard Webb as independent directors. Yahoo's board has come under fire from investors impatient with the company's persistent inability to effect a turnaround, and frustrated with the apparent indecisiveness of stakeholders over ...
Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne has vowed to fight an "anti-business culture" in Britain, warning that a row overexecutive pay and bonuses threatens the country's fragile economic recovery. "Let me say something about the row over bonuses and pay," Osborne said in a speech to the Federation of Small Businesses. "Of course rewards for failure are unacceptable -- and those who believe in the free market are the first to say so. But a strong, free market economy must be built on rewards for success." The Labour Party has heaped pressure on the ruling coalition to curb excessive pay for top executives, using a House of Commons debate to demand the return ...
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda said on Tuesday he is resolved to settle a longstanding territorial dispute with Russia at an annual rally calling for the return of all four Russian-held islands off Hokkaido in northern Japan, the Kyodo news agency reported. "We'll continue to make steady and determined efforts to move ahead with negotiations," Noda said, stressing the need to sign a peace treaty with Russia. The four islands - which Russia calls the Southern Kurils and Japan calls the Northern Territories - has been the subject of a territorial dispute between the two nations since the end of World War ...
Amanda Knox's Italian lawyer has filed an appeal of her slander conviction in Italy, a Knox family spokesman inSeattle said Monday. In October, an Italian appeals court overturned the young Seattle woman's murder conviction in the 2007 death of her British roommate in Perugia. But the same court upheld Knox's conviction for slander — for falsely accusing bar owner Diya "Patrick" Lumumba of involvement in the slaying. Lumumba was freed after two weeks in prison for lack of evidence. Knox later said she was "manipulated" during her lengthy police interrogation. An appeal of the slander conviction was filed Monday, Knox family spokesman Dave Marriott confirmed. He doesn't know when the Italian ...
The Dutch railway will remain 'vulnerable' during wintry weather but Dutch Rail (NS) and track operator ProRail did not help matters during the current cold snap by the late introduction of schedule adjustments to cope with the conditions, transport minister Melanie Schultz van Haegen told parliament in a briefing on Tuesday. The NS and ProRail assumed on Thursday of last week that there would be three to five centimetres of snow. When the forecast was increased on Friday morning to between 10 and 15 centimetres, it was too late to change the timetables automatically, Schultz van Haegen told parliament. Drivers and conductors ...
Greece can leave the eurozone without damaging monetary union, European digital affairs commissioner Neelie Kroes says in an interview with the Volkskrant on Tuesday. Kroes, a member of the Dutch ruling right-wing Liberal party VVD, is not a supporter of Greece exchanging the euro for the drachma, but says: 'It is absolutely not a case of man overboard if someone leaves the eurozone.' The commissioner is very critical of the new Greek government and says they are not fulfilling their promises. 'Too few spending cuts, too little restructuring,' she says. She says the Greeks should follow the example of Italy where the new ...
Mitt Romney hopes his presidential campaign hasn't ignored Rick Santorum's aggressive attacks for too long, as caucuses in Colorado and Minnesota on Tuesday could reshuffle the race for the Republican presidential nomination. Santorum largely bypassed Florida and Nevada to blanket the two caucus states with criticism of Romney and lay the groundwork among conservatives who have great sway in the process. RivalNewt Gingrich praised Santorum's strategy as shrewd even as he signaled he had no interest in exiting the four-way race, which also includes Ron Paul. "I think that Santorum's going to have a pretty good day," Gingrich told reporters on the eve of the caucuses. "He targeted differently than I ...
Glencore and Xstrata agreed an all-share merger worth $90 billion (56 billion pounds) on Tuesday in the industry's largest ever deal, creating a commodities powerhouse spanning mining, agriculture and trading. Glencore, the world's largest diversified commodities tradinghouse, will issue 2.8 new shares for each Xstrata share in a deal they said was a "merger of equals." The ratio is a 15.2 percent premium to Xstrata shareholders compared with its share price last Wednesday before word leaked out about the merger talks, a joint statement said. "A merger between Glencore and Xstrata offers a unique opportunity to create a new business model in our industry to respond to ...
US White House hopeful Mitt Romney aims for another big caucus win in Colorado on Tuesday, as his well-oiled campaign machine works to cement his position as the Republican front runner in the US presidential race. Polls suggest he should triumph easily in the western US state -- where he scored 60 percent in 2008 -- although there is a tighter race in Minnesota, where last-placed Rick Santorum is hoping to snatch a win. Romney's main rival, former House speaker Newt Gingrich, is battling to stay in the race after two heavy losses in a row to the former Massachusetts governor, who ...
As President Christian Wulff remains mired in allegations of impropriety, anti-corruption group Transparency International (TI) has called for politicians to use the case as a chance to open up German politics. “We are very concerned that people seem to be starting to think that all politicians behave like Wulff, and that would be fatal,” Christian Humborg, TI Germany’s managing director told The Local. “I think the Wulff affair is a wonderful opportunity for German politicians to react to the cynical attitude that this is normal, and improve things,” he said. He said the fact that the authorities were investigating whether Wulff and his ...
A total of 18 roads were closed Thursday morning due to avalanches or threats of rock or snow slides in the northern counties of Troms and Finnmark, according to the Highway Department. In Troms 12 roads were closed, while six were closed in Finnmark. Many otrher Finnmark roads, particularly on mountain passes, are open only to cars driving in convoys. Share this: {lang: 'en-US'} function open_win(url,id)... [more]
The High North is the Norwegian Government’s number one foreign policy priority, says Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, speaking at the Arctic Frontiers (AFT) 5th annual conference in Tromsø. - Our goal is to ensure peaceful, sustainable and prosperous development in this region – through increased activity, presence and knowledge. - This is the part of Norway’s neighbouring areas where most change is taking place, where we... [more]
Toyota is to recall nearly 19,000 cars in the UK due to potential problems with fuel systems. The car manufacturer said hundreds of Toyota Avensis and Lexus IS 250 models could be at risk of fuel leaks if they are not modified by mechanics. The company confirmed there were no known accidents related to the defect. However, the faults are the latest in a series of quality control problems to have hit the manufacturer, which has recalled nearly... [more]
Russia is on high alert after a suicide bomber killed at least 35 people in an attack at Moscow’s largest airport. The Kremlin has labelled the blast in the packed arrivals hall of Domodedovo airport – which also wounded more than 130 – as an act of terror. News agencies have reported that up to two Britons were among those killed. It is the latest deadly attack in the capital, coming after the March metro bombings. Russian... [more]
At least 35 people have been killed in a suspected terror attack at Moscow’s Domodedovo airport. Sky’s Amanda Walker, speaking from the airport, said the explosion ripped through the building’s “meet and greet” international arrivals area. Domodedovo is the busiest of the Russian capital’s three commercial airports and reports have suggested a suicide bomber was responsible. The Russian state news agency... [more]
A twin suicide attack on Moscow’s Domodedovo international airport killed more than 30 people and injured scores on Monday, officials said. Eyewitnesses said two terrorists blew themselves up as passengers emerged from the international arrivals zone at 4:40 p.m. (13:40 GMT). The Health Ministry said 31 people died and dozens were injured in the attack, the second terrorist assault on the Russian capital in less than 12 months. Law enforcement... [more]
South Korea released a video Sunday of a dramatic raid by commandos on a hijacked ship in the Arabian Sea that rescued all 21 crew members and killed eight Somali pirates. The 4 1/2-minute video provided by the military shows parts of the pre-dawn raid Friday, which came a week after pirates seized the cargo ship and its crew of eight South Koreans, two Indonesians and 11 Myanmar citizens. The video shows South Korean commandos in a small... [more]
China says its president’s recently concluded state visit to the United States was “fruitful” but the two countries need to work on trust so that sensitive issues do not create misgivings. Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said in comments published in Sunday’s People’s Daily newspaper that the visit by President Hu Jintao came at a time when the world is undergoing “profound and complicated changes.” Yang... [more]
Authorities told townspeople in Australia’s southeast to flee homes with three days of supplies Wednesday as a surging river threatened another community in a flooding crisis that has devastated the country’s mining industry. Up to 1,500 homes in Kerang, in the north of Victoria state, could be affected if the Lodden River rises any further. The flooding in Victoria follows weeks of massive flooding in northeastern Queensland,... [more]
HUNDREDS more homes are expected to be flooded in Victoria’s north as the Loddon and Avoca rivers gush towards the Murray. The Wimmera River peaked at Horsham around midday (AEDT) today as predicted and towns further north are now in the firing line. Upstream at Warracknabeal at least 244 homes are predicted to be inundated or isolated tomorrow or Thursday when the Yarriambiack Creek peaks and residents of Kerang have been told to... [more]
