NATO raid accidently kills 5 Afghan troops

KABUL: NATO mistakenly killed five of its Afghan army allies in an airstrike Wednesday while the Afghans were attacking insurgents in the country’s east, officials said.

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NATO raid accidently kills 5 Afghan troops

Obama denies any Israel, US rift

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama said he hoped for direct Middle East peace talks to start before the end of September, as he and visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied reports of a rift.

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Obama denies any Israel, US rift

10m on Facebook for Obama; Lady Gaga at top

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama topped 10 million fans on Facebook on Tuesday but not before pop star Lady Gaga became the first person to break the 10-million mark on the social network.

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10m on Facebook for Obama; Lady Gaga at top

A Bollywood debut for Osama bin Laden

MUMBAI: Osama bin Laden is coming soon to a movie screen near you.

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A Bollywood debut for Osama bin Laden

Germany and Spain in fight for final

JOHANNESBURG: Germany and Spain do battle on Wednesday for the right to meet the Netherlands in the World Cup final, in a semi widely expected to be one of the most exciting clashes of the tournament.

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Germany and Spain in fight for final

SBP keeps interest rates unchanged at 12.5pc

KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) announced today its sixth monetary policy for the next two months, Geo News reported Monday.

It should be mentioned that that the central bank was widely expected to keep the interest rates unchanged at 12.5 percent this year because of resurgent inflation. The decision has been caused by the unexpected rise in the consumer prices by over 13 per cent year-on-year in April, 2010.

The central bank has reviewed monetary policy every two months since September last year.

The bank said the power crisis would affect the commercial and financial activities in the country.

Direct foreign investment in the country is subject to quite precarious condition. The inflation rate made surge to 13.3 percent in April.

The government would not be able to cope with the fiscal deficit by 5.1 percent, according to the new monetary policy.

Shoaib-Sania nikkah solemnized

HYDERABAD: Mirza married Monday after a troubled engagement in a union that bridges the two nations” bitter sporting and political divide.

The wedding was the final chapter in a complex and often contradictory saga during which Malik consistently denied claims by an Indian woman, Ayesha Siddiqui, that she had married the cricketer in 2002.

The ceremony took place in the presence of family and friends at a hotel in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad, Mirza”s spokeswoman Rucha Naik said.

“The (wedding) has just been completed. Please pray for the couple,” Naik told reporters.

The marriage was originally scheduled for April 15. The Press Trust of India cited family sources as saying it had been brought forward after Muslim clerics in Hyderabad criticised the fact that Malik was living in his future bride”s house before the wedding.

Last week, Farisa Siddiqui, Ayesha”s mother, announced that a settlement had been reached and “divorce papers signed,” allowing Malik”s marriage with Mirza to go ahead.

Ayesha had initially lodged a complaint with police in Hyderabad, prompting officers to quiz Malik over the saga and confiscate his passport.

Muslim elders in Hyderabad, where both Siddiqui and Mirza live, were understood to have negotiated the settlement after days of frenzied press coverage and lurid speculation.

Even without the added drama provided by Ayesha”s revelations, the marriage of two of South Asia”s best-known sports personalities across one of the world”s most volatile borders was always going to make headlines.

Nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan have fought three wars since independence and broke off all official contact following the 2008 Mumbai attacks, which Indian blamed on Pakistan-based militants.

The stand-off extended to the sporting world, with a freeze on non-tournament matches between their respective national cricket teams.

Malik and Mirza”s sporting marriage is unprecedented in the perennial rivalry between the south Asian nations, and some right-wing Hindu groups in India had denounced the union, accusing Mirza of betraying her country.

The only similar union came when former Pakistani Test batsman Mohsin Khan, who is now Pakistan”s chief selector, married the Indian actress Reena Roy in the 1980s. The couple later separated.

The Pakistani government is preparing lavish celebrations to welcome the couple during a widely expected visit.

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani will treat the newlyweds to a reception and Pakistan”s minister for population welfare, Firdous Ashiq Awan, told AFP that she would travel to India to attend the wedding reception.

“It is a very happy occasion for both Malik and Mirza and for millions of people in both the countries and we are having a detailed discussion as to how we could celebrate the occasion in Pakistan,” Awan told AFP.

Team-mates of Malik, a former Pakistan cricket captain who is serving a one-year ban on charges of indiscipline during Pakistan”s tour of Australia and New Zealand, also passed on their congratulations.

“It”s a happy occasion that Malik has wed Sania. I congratulate him and wish him the best in his married life,” said Twenty20 captain Shahid Afridi.

Mirza, whose short tennis skirts have drawn the ire of Islamist groups in India, has been a nationwide celebrity since 2005 when, aged 18, she became the first Indian woman to win a WTA Tour title.

She is currently recovering from a wrist injury that has seen her world ranking slip from 27 in 2007 to 89.

The couple, who are both Muslims, are thought likely to base themselves in Dubai.

Malik had admitted beginning a telephone relationship with Siddiqui in 2001 after she sent him photographs — but said he later believed the pictures were of another woman.

Before the divorce settlement, Siddiqui appeared on television news channels to denounce Malik as a cheat who dumped her because his team-mates said she was overweight.

iads

Apple Inc (AAPL.O) CEO Steve Jobs on Thursday revealed stronger-than-expected sales of 450,000 for the iPad since its much-hyped debut, and touted a phone operating system with a new advertising platform to compete with rival Google Inc’s. (GOOG.O)
Analysts expect sales of 1 million units or more for the iPad — touted as a new class of gadget that will bridge laptops and smartphones — in the current quarter ending June, and roughly 5 million in 2010, though estimates vary widely.

“We’re making them as fast as we can, our ramp is going well, but evidently we can’t quite make enough of them yet so we’re going to have to try harder,” Jobs said, noting iPad sell-outs at Best Buy (BBY.N) stores.

The electronics giant has staked its reputation on the 9.7-inch touchscreen tablet. It is helping foster a market for tablet computers that is expected to grow to as many as 50 million units by 2014, according to analysts.

“I think it’s pretty impressive, five days almost half a million units, and it shows there’s still pretty good momentum behind the first day,” said Gartner analyst Van Baker.

Despite some critics who question whether a true need exists for such a gadget, analysts expect Hewlett-Packard (HPQ.N), Dell (DELL.O) and others to trot out competing devices of their own this year.

Since going on sale on April 3, users have downloaded 600,000 digital books and 3.5 million applications for the iPad, Jobs said. There are already 3,500 apps available for the iPad.

“It was above my expectations, frankly,” said Joe Clark, managing partner of Financial Enhancement Group, referring to iPad sales.

“The day the original Apps Store launched it was a game change for the iPhone and it will do the same eventually for the iPad.”

At a media event at the company’s Cupertino, California, headquarters, Jobs said Apple had so far sold more than 50 million iPhones, the smartphone that competes with Research in Motion’s (RIM.TO) Blackberry and Motorola’s (MOT.N) Droid.

Apple is expected to launch the fourth-generation model of its iPhone, which was introduced in January 2007, later this year.

Jobs, looking thin but energetic, said the forthcoming iPhone 4.0 operating system — also available on iPads this fall — will carry its new “iAd” mobile advertising platform, marking the company’s foray into a small but burgeoning market.

IAds will allow applications developers to use advertisements in their apps, pocketing 60 percent of the revenue. Apple will sell and host the ads.

Jobs harshly criticized the current manner and look of mobile advertising, particularly search ads. He promised that iAds will foster more engaging advertising that will not pull users away from the content within apps.

Tim Bajarin, president of consulting company Creative Strategies, said it was a dramatic shift in thinking about the delivery of mobile advertising, and an obvious move by Apple to set itself apart from Google, which has made its name on search ads.

“It’s very clear that Jobs believes that ads in the context of apps makes more sense than generic mobile search,” he said.

Apple’s entry into the mobile ad arena had been widely expected. This year, it paid $270 million for Quattro Wireless, an advertising network that spans both mobile websites and smartphone applications.

Google, which already sells advertising on smartphones, agreed to buy mobile ad firm AdMob late in 2009. U.S. regulators are examining the deal’s antitrust implications.

Research group Gartner expects the mobile advertising market to expand by 78 percent to $1.6 billion in 2010.

Jobs also said the new operating system will include support for multitasking — addressing a perennial consumer complaint — allowing users to switch between several programs running simultaneously.

Shares of Apple turned positive briefly after Jobs’ announcement before quickly dipping back into negative territory. They closed 0.3 percent lower at $239.94 on the Nasdaq.

Carlos Slim Is World’s Richest Man

Forbes magazine revealed the annual list of the Richest People. Bill Gates is no longer the richest person, Carlos Slim, the Mexican telecommunications billionaire with a net worth of $53.5bn, has been crowned the world’s richest person.
Recovering financial markets and commodities and strong economic growth from some Asian-Pacific and Latin American economies helped to increase the collective wealth of the world’s richest by $2.4 trillion to $3.6 trillion and the number of billionaires increased from 793 to 1,011. Average net worthrose $500m to $3.5bn.
Mukesh Ambani, chief executive of Reliance Industries, landed the number four spot with $29bn, up from seventh. Lakshmi Mittal, owner of ArcelorMittal, secured the fifth spot with $28.7bn. For the first time, China, with 64 billionaires, is the region with the most members outside of the US, which has 403, followed by Russia with 62.

World Stocks Mixed Ahead of Fed Meeting

HONG KONG: World stock markets were mixed Tuesday as investors took profits before year’s end and awaited the Federal Reserve’s latest assessment of the U.S. economy.

A mostly down day in Asia and a mixed performance early in Europe followed modest gains on Wall Street, where investors sent major indexes to new highs for 2009 after Dubai’s $10 billion bailout. Oil prices wallowed below $70 a barrel, while the dollar strengthened against the yen.

After a big run since March, the markets have drifted this month. Many investors are unwilling to increase their bets toward the end of the year, with lingering uncertainty surrounding debt problems in Dubai and other governments only adding to their caution.

This week, investors will be watching closely what the U.S. central bank has to say about the world’s largest economy after its policy meeting Wednesday. It’s widely expected to keep interest rates at historic lows.

“The Fed’s statement will definitely influence the markets,” said Peter Lai, investment manager at DBS Vickers in Hong KOng. “The big questions are when the Fed thinks the unemployment rate will start to go down and when it will have to start raising interest rates.”

As trading got started in Europe, France’s CAC-40 and Germany’s DAX were both up 0.2 percent while Britain’s FTSE 100 was off 0.3 percent. Futures pointed to modest gains Tuesday in the U.S. with Dow futures up 4 points at 10,502. S&P futures gained 5.4, or 0.5 percent, to 1,113.40.

In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 stock average fell 22.20 points, or 0.2 percent, to 10,083.48 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng retreated 271.83, or 1.2 percent, to 21,813.92.

China’s main index fell 0.9 percent amid news the government was vowing to clamp down on surging property prices. South Korea’s Kospi was marginally in the green — rising 0.1 percent to 1,665.85 — after flitting in and out of negative territory.

Elswhere, Australia’s benchmark added 0.4 percent and India’s Sensex lost 0.8 percent.

Tuesday in the U.S., the Dow rose 29.55, or 0.3 percent, to 10,501.05, its highest close since Oct. 1, 2008.

The S&P 500 index rose 7.70, or 0.7 percent, to 1,114.11, its highest finish since Oct. 2, 2008. The Nasdaq composite index rose 21.79, or 1 percent, to 2,212.10.

Oil prices fell in Asia, with benchmark crude for January delivery down 2 cents to $69.49 a barrel. The contract rose 36 cents overnight to settle at $69.51.

The dollar rose to 89.03 yen from 88.55 yen. The euro fell to $1.4561 from $1.4656.

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World Stocks Mixed Ahead of Fed Meeting was first posted on December 15, 2009 at 4:32 pm.