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 ...
In a rare and strongly worded message to his fans, Bob Dylan has denied claims his songs were censored by government authorities when he made his much-publicised China debut last month. The music legend, who played in Beijing and Shanghai on April 6 and 8, missed out some of his best known politically inspired songs such as “Blowin’ in the Wind”, sparking speculation he may have been censored. Addressing the “so-called... [more]
Police will be able to hand out on-the-spot fines for careless driving under a new strategy being launched to to make Britain’s roads safer. Motorists who tailgate, undertake or cut up other drivers could be handed an immediate fine – reportedly up to £100 – rather than being taken to court. There will be a new crackdown on drug-driving and loopholes which allow people to get off drink-driving charges will be closed,... [more]
EasyJet’s net losses widened to £114 million (131 million euros, $187 million) in the first-half on soaring jet fuel costs and higher taxes, the British no-frills airline said on Tuesday. Losses after tax for the six months to March 31 compared with a net loss of £59 million during the group’s first half in 2009/10, easyJet said in a results statement. “The past six months has been tough with sharply rising fuel costs... [more]
Some 300,000 people turned out on Sunday for an open-air mass by Pope Benedict XVI near Venice as part of a tour in which he has stressed the importance of Catholic missionary work. The crowd, mostly from the surrounding area but also from Austria, Croatia and Slovenia, assembled in the San Giuliano park in Mestre, an industrial town on the other side of the lagoon from the famous island city of Venice. The 84-year-old pontiff on Saturday... [more]
Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced Saturday that Malaysia has agreed to take hundreds of asylum seekers who land in Australia illegally, in a move described as a “big blow” to people smugglers. Under the bilateral agreement, up to 800 boat people who try to reach Australia will be taken immediately to Malaysia instead, with their claims processed there by the United Nations. In return, Australia has agreed to accept and resettle,... [more]
It is one of the most emblematic – and practical – achievements of the European Union: the Schengen treaty, named after the Luxembourg town where it was signed, has gifted passport-free travel to Europeans, letting them glide unchecked across national frontiers once fiercely guarded. Now, however, this signature feat of European integration could be rolled back. The Arab uprisings have created a surge of migrants fleeing toward... [more]
Prince William and his new bride are to visit California later this summer, after their tour of Canada. The newly married Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will go to the west coast for a two-day trip between July 8 and July 10, St James’s Palace said. It is the first time William has been to the US on an official visit and Kate’s first-ever trip there. The Prince returned to his job as an RAF search and rescue helicopter pilot... [more]
Swedish car maker Saab has agreed to form a strategic partnership with Chinese company Hawtai Motor, Dutch owner Spyker confirmed on Tuesday. Hawtai is to put some €150m into Saab – €120m in the form of share capital (29.9%) and the rest in a convertible bond. The two companies will also work together in both production and technological developments. The deal is still subject to approval from certain Chinese government agencies,... [more]
Saab will restart production within a week, its owner Dutch car maker Spyker said Monday after it reached a deal on a 30 million euro cash injection for the troubled Swedish car manufacturer. “Spyker entered into a 30 million euro ($44.6 million) convertible loan agreement with Gemini Investment Fund Limited with a six month maturity,” the company said in a press release. The loan at an annual interest rate of seven percent sets... [more]
Thousands of excitable pilgrims are swarming into central Rome, on the eve of a ceremony to mark late pope John Paul II’s step towards sainthood. “I couldn’t miss this, I had to be a part of such a historical moment. We’ve only just arrived but the atmosphere’s great, it’s really exciting,” on Saturday said Patricia Wocial, 48, who had come from Britain with her young daughters. “It’s... [more]
