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 ...
The European Central Bank unveiled Thursday analysts’ forecasts for eurozone inflation and growth rates which suggest its own predictions could be revised upwards. The ECB is to release quarterly forecasts by its own staff next month and the new figures — a survey of professional forecasts — suggest the next set of its data might move upwards. The central bank’s survey of professional forecasters (SPF) for the first... [more]
The Netherlands is recalling its ambassador from Iran in protest at the execution and subsequent burial of a Dutch Iranian woman on what her family says were trumped up drugs charges. Before leaving Teheran, the ambassador will first make a formal protest to the Iranian authorities at the ‘lack of respect’ towards Zahra Bahrami’s family, foreign minister Uri Rosenthal said during a visit to Jordan. Reports say Bahrami, who was executed... [more]
Strong winds could cause delays or cancellations at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport. A spokesperson for the airport says the stormy weather is affecting Schiphol’s capacity to handle flights. Passengers are advised to consult teletext, the website of their airline and or contact the airline before leaving home. Similarly train services may also be affected by the winds. The Dutch railway company NS has split routes from the north... [more]
Foreign Minister Uri Rosenthal has admitted he made mistakes in the case of Dutch-Iranian woman Zahra Bahrami during an emergency debate on Thursday. Ms Bahrami was unexpectedly executed a week ago after being sentenced to death for possession of drugs on 5 January. He promised he would learn the lessons from “this terrible and sad incident”, after receiving severe criticism in parliament. Democrats D66, the Labour Party and... [more]
European leaders will approve measures to overhaul the eurozone’s 440-billion-euro bailout fund as they battle to control the sovereign debt crisis, the Financial Times reported Friday. Leaders will agree to expand the European financial stability facility (EFSF), giving it more scope to alleviate the ongoing crisis, according to draft summit conclusions seen by the newspaper. Germany had been reluctant to expand the EFSF’s role... [more]
The trial of MP Geert Wilders on discrimination and inciting hatred charges may be delayed, Nos television reports on Thursday. A lawyer representing groups who forced the prosecution department to take legal action against Wilders has gone to the appeal court to fight the department’s call for Wilders’ acquittal. The original court case against Wilders collapsed last year after a number of irregularities involving the judges, which... [more]
Looters have done severe damage to Dutch archaeological digs in Egypt, says Maarten Raven, Egyptologist at the Dutch National Museum of Antiquities. He was due to visit one of the digs this week, but was forced to cancel his trip due to the massive political upheaval in Egypt. The disrupted digs are in Saqqara, not far from Cairo, where the Dutch museum has been overseeing an archaeological project since 1975. The site, where people were... [more]
The Dutch government has changed its travel advice to people wanting to visit Egypt because of the continuing demonstrations. After an emergency cabinet meeting on Sunday morning, the Foreign Ministry advised against any trips to Egypt. Previously the government only advised against non-essential travel. Although no decision has been taken to evacuate Dutch nationals in the country, travel agencies are bringing holiday-makers home. Dutch... [more]
Dutch cyclist and Olympic Champion Marianne Vos has won the World Cyclo-Cross Championship in St Wendel Germany with surprising ease. It is the third time she has won the title in a row and the fourth time in her career. Things were not looking good for the title defender at the beginning of the race when she fell on the first climb, but she soon managed to get back into the leading group. She fell a few times in the same spot. But the hard... [more]
The Netherlands has formally frozen all contacts with Iran following the execution of a Dutch Iranian woman on drugs charges. In a statement, the ministry said the move is to show the Netherlands disgust at the hanging of ahra Bahrami on drugs charges. Other Iranian Dutch nationals are being advised not to travel to Iran. ‘The Netherlands is very shocked by this execution, this scandalous deed,’ foreign minister Uri Rosenthal said.... [more]
