Australian Herald
AustralianHerald.com Monday 12th May 2008 Edition 133/2008
Front Page Breaking Business News
Shell loses money from Nigerian operation


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Royal Dutch Shell says it is losing the equivalent of 30,000 barrels of crude oil per day because of recent attacks against its installations in...


UK natural gas producer wants Australian utilities
The UK's third largest natural gas producer, BG Group, is still having discussions with Australia’s Origin Energy over its bid for the power...


China invests in new jumbo-jet company
China’s state-owned Asset Supervision and Administration Commission is to set up a US$2.7 billion company in Shanghai to develop and build a large passenger...


JVC and Kenwood to team up
The JVC company in Japan will merge with Kenwood Corp on October...


Real watches still have a good market
The wristwatch industry worldwide is being adversely affected by fake...


Big cattle farm sells for record price
A 3139 hectare cattle and sheep farm in New Zealand’s King Country has sold for NZD$32...


Magazine business builds in India
Specialist glossy magazines on anything from cigars, golf and fashion are becoming popular in...


Alitalia looking for more foreign investors
The Italian government wants to find solutions for Alitalia that will keep it both Italian and privately...


World Bank awards money for African power projects
The World Bank Group has awarded millions of dollars to 16 African organisations for innovative lighting...


Murdoch pulls out of Newsday deal
Rupert Murdoch's NewsCorp has withdrawn its bid to buy the New York area newspaper...


Google one up on Microsoft with hosted security offering
Washington, May 11 : Software as a service and cloud computing might not ring a bell for many today, but that's what is going to rule the roost in future for corporate giants. And with Google unveiling a re-branded Web Security for Enterprise, it has raced ahead of Microsoft in taking a major step towards the...


Cablevision close to buying Newsday
NEW YORK -- Cablevision Systems Corp. is close to buying the Long Island newspaper Newsday from Tribune Co. for $650 million, a person with knowledge of the situation said Sunday. The deal, which...


Ancient Marvels Abound at Vintage Computer Festival
Equal parts flea market, film festival, conference and workshop, the 10th iteration of the Vintage Computer Festival attracted the usual mix of die-hard computer enthusiasts, collectors and Silicon...


Microsoft appeals $1.4B EU antitrust fine
SEATTLE - Microsoft Corp. on Friday said it has appealed a $1.39 billion fine imposed in February by the European Commission for the company's failure to comply with a 2004 antitrust...


Shares seen lower on high oil prices, Wall Street
MANILA, Philippines -- Shares may open lower Monday with investors even more worried about inflation after oil prices surged to new record levels. "Stocks are still standing on shaky ground. There...


Wall Street looks to US consumers for direction
With millions of stimulus checks going out to taxpayers, Wall Street wants to know where that money will be spent - and this week's data could help investors gauge the mind-set of the average...


Oil steady above $126
PERTH (Reuters) - Oil hovered close to record levels above $126 a barrel on Monday as violence in the Middle East heightened worries of supply disruptions in the world's largest crude producing...


Retailers likely to post grim 1st-quarter results
NEW YORK -- After slashing inventory and cutting expenses, the retail industry is still bracing for the largest overall quarterly profit decline in at least nine years when merchants report their...


Startup shows off electric car planned for Israel
A prototype of an electric car is displayed in Tel Aviv, Israel, Sunday, May 11, 2008. A Silicon Valley start-up company presented Sunday a prototype of the electric car it says will revolutionize...


UAW says American Axle proposal closes plants
DETROIT - United Auto Workers President Ron Gettelfinger said Saturday he thought the union had been close to a contract deal to end a strike against American Axle — until the auto parts supplier...


G-8 labor officials begin 3-day meeting in Japan
By MARI YAMAGUCHIASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER TOKYO -- Labor ministers from the Group of Eight industrialized nations met with international trade union and business groups Sunday to discuss the...


Girl Model Sites Crossing Line
. Members can browse photos of a little blonde girl practicing yoga in a white leotard or strutting down a homemade runway in swimsuits. The site also sells videos of a coifed Jessi engaged in...


Rebate excludes many taxpayers with foreign spouses
He is among an estimated hundreds of thousands of taxpayers – from legal immigrants to soldiers based abroad – who won't be getting a share of the stimulus package because of a provision...


Microsoft warns of IE 7 lock in XP SP3
Microsoft has issued a warning that its latest service pack for Windows XP prevents users from downgrading from Internet Explorer 7 to older versions of the browser. "If you choose to install XP SP3,...


Gas prices knock bicycle sales, repairs into higher gear
BISMARCK, N.D. -- Four-dollar-a-gallon gas is good for business - if you run a bike shop. Commuters around the country are dusting off their old two-wheelers - or buying new ones - to cope with...


EnCana to split in two with oil at record highs
Research ), Canada's biggest energy company, said on Sunday it plans to split into two separate oil and natural gas firms in an effort to wring out more value with crude prices at record...


Embracing Japanese pop culture
Once one starts listing the examples of Japanese culture infiltrating the United States, it's pretty hard to stop. One of the most-anticipated summer movies, "Speed Racer," is based on a '60s anime....


News Corp. withdraws bid to buy NY newspaper Newsday
NEW YORK – News Corp., the media conglomerate controlled by Rupert Murdoch, has withdrawn its bid to purchase the Long Island daily paper Newsday, a News Corp. spokeswoman said Saturday. The...


Perilous browsingUsing unprotected public Wi-Fi poses major security risk
Don Lundberg accessed the Web at Lindbergh Field while waiting for a flight. In all of the airports, they saw Web surfers browsing with unencrypted connections. Their report included screen shots...


Yahoo working to stand alone after Microsoft deal
Although badly bruised, Yahoo Inc. has the strength to stand alone in the aftermath of Microsoft Corp.'s abandoned takeover bid, provided the Sunnyvale Web portal can execute its strategy of making...


Couple seek even keel after real estate storm
As San Diego's real estate market has struggled the past couple of years, Antwane and Holly Rucker felt the financial implications in more ways than...


Good economic news a mirage
WASHINGTON (AP) - The unemployment rate drops. Productivity grows. The trade deficit shrinks. Sounds great, right? Not so fast. Borrowing radio broadcaster Paul Harvey's signature saying:...


China to make jumbo jets with a $2.7 billion company
BEIJING: China on Sunday took for the first step to fulfil its long-held dream of manufacturing jumbo aircrafts. It has registered a $2.7 billion company that could take on Airbus and...


Mubadala to turn Abu Dhabi island into business zone
ABU DHABI (Reuters) - Mubadala Development Co, an Abu Dhabi investment arm which manages over $10 billion in assets, said on Sunday it will develop an offshore island into a new business district...


Chinese plane business gets wings
China has launched a new commercial plane maker which it hopes will one day compete with the likes of Boeing and Airbus, state media have reported. China Commercial Aircraft will aim to develop...


Murdoch quits US newspaper fight
Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation has withdrawn a bid to buy US newspaper Newsday only days after seemingly being in pole position to acquire it. News Corp, whose titles include the Wall Street...


Complainers of the World Unite
If you play an online game that you enjoy, there's one surefire way to spoil the experience: read the forums on the official site. There you will find a vast underworld of lost souls keening their...


Gordon Brown Gets A Pounding In The Press
John Prescott told Tony Blair to sack Gordon Brown. In his memoirs the former Deputy Prime Minister says he also told Mr Brown to resign as Chancellor. Paul Brennan reports on yet more bad news for...


Police Hunting London Bakery Row Killer
Jimmy Mizen had just turned 16 Jimmy Mizen, 16, was found with serious neck injuries in Lee, south east London on Saturday.His grieving parents have described the attack as "pure aggression"...


Job picture bright for class of
DURHAM -- For the fresh-faced and hopeful students who will toss their caps in the air at Duke University and UNC Chapel Hill's commencements today, there is a silver lining in this economy: For the...


Tesco battles for the aisle of Skye
In what threatens to be the biggest dispute since the building of the Skye Bridge, property company Oatridge has submitted plans for a 30,000sq ft food hall, with Tesco named as its preferred...


Citigroup to wind up Nikko as it seeks to save $15bn
Citigroup, the beleaguered investment bank, is to wind down Nikko Principal Investments (NPI), a UK and Australian-based private equity business, as part of a structural overhaul announced on Friday....


Web TV Has Advertisers Licking Chops
@d:tech West conference on digital marketing, it was this: American couch potatoes are tiring of television and migrating to computer screens. "Television viewership is down 15 percent in homes that...


Microsoft calls on Weta expertise
Multinational software giant Microsoft says it is teaming up with Wellington's Oscar-winning animation studio Weta Workshop to help disabled people use computer technology. "Weta Workshop...


ArcelorMittal sells off US steel mill to Severstal
PARIS: The world's largest steel group ArcelorMittal said on Saturday it has finalised the 810 million dollar (525 million euro) sale of a plant in the United States to Russian steelmaker...


Citigroup to shed nearly $500 billion in assets
NEW YORK (AP) — Citigroup Inc.'s new chief executive, Vikram Pandit, plans to stick with a global banking model after months of intense review — but only after shrinking the company by...


Aceto reports record sales
Aceto Corp. , the Lake Success-based biochemical distribution company, reported record quarterly sales and earnings that rose 83 percent from its net income for the same period last year. Aceto...


Expansion plans announced for Coca Cola bottling plant
BATON ROUGE, LA (WAFB) - Friday morning, the Jindal administration formally unveiled plans for the expansion of the local Coca Cola bottling plant. The new Coke Production and Distribution Center in...


Shell pulls out of Iran gas deal
At the time, Shell said deliveries of liquefied natural gas -- gas cooled to liquid under pressure for transportation in special tankers -- could begin in...


Five Days Of Sun And Blue Skies Ahead
Thousands of Britons will soon be grabbing for their hat and sunscreen, as the unusually warm temperatures settle into a five day stretch of beach-weather...