U.S. hostage taken by al-Qaida makes video plea to Obama

May 8, 2012 | Special
U.S. hostage taken by al-Qaida makes video plea to Obama

“My life is in your hands, Mr. President,” Warren Weinstein, the 70-year-old hostage, said in the two-minute video, posted on several Islamist websites.” (read the story…)

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Stocks open lower after European voters reject budget cuts

May 8, 2012 | Special
Stocks open lower after European voters reject budget cuts

U.S. stocks are opening mostly lower after angry voters in Greece and France rejected painful budget cuts. (read the story…)

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RECRUIT : Hotel Booking Website, 'PegiPegi' Launched in Indonesia

May 8, 2012 | Business

RECRUIT CO., LTD. has licensed system technologies to PT. Go Online Destinations (Headquarters: Jakarta, Repu (read the story…)

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DMP Introduces High-End OpenGL ES 2.0 IP Cores and Multi-Core Configurations to Its SMAPH-S Product Family

May 8, 2012 | Business

Digital Media Professionals Inc. , a leading provider of 2D/3D graphics Intellectual Property cores, today announced significant product expansion to its scal (read the story…)

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Concerns mount over the growing threat from Fukushima’s spent fuel – will the experts’ warning call be heard?

May 7, 2012 | Technology

MOSCOW – More than a year since the catastrophic nuclear and radiation disaster at Japan’s Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant, concerns loom ever larger over the site as experts warn with increasing worry of the unstable condition of the cooling pond at Unit 4, where spent nuclear fuel holds ten times the amount of radioactive...

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Tornado strikes close to Tokyo

May 7, 2012 | News

A deadly tornado has ripped through Japan, killing a 14-year-old boy. (read more…)

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Japan to Be Nuclear Power-Free as Sole Working Reactor Shuts

May 7, 2012 | Technology

Japan will have no nuclear-generated electricity for the first time in more than four decades tonight after its sole operating power reactor is halted for scheduled maintenance. (more here…)

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Japan Without Nuclear Power, First Time Since 1970

May 7, 2012 | Technology

Japan's Hokkaido Electric Power Co. closed the nation's last remaining nuclear power plant in operation on Saturday, leaving Japan without any nuclear-power source for this first time in over 40 years, according to reports. (more here…)

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Magnetic bacteria may build PCs

May 7, 2012 | Technology

Magnet-making bacteria may be building biological computers of the future, an international team of researchers says. (more here…)

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Micron Technology Likely To Win Bid For Japan's Elpida: Reports

May 7, 2012 | Technology

Micron Technology Likely To Win Bid For Japan's Elpida: Reports (more here…)

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China, Japan, ROK agree to enhance cultural cooperation

May 7, 2012 | Technology

China's Culture Minister Cai Wu (C), Japan's Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Hirofumi Hirano (L) and South Korean Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Choe Kwang-shik sign documents at the 4th culture ministerial meeting in Shanghai, east China, May 5, 2012. This year's culure ministerial meeting between China, South Korea and...

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After sake, is shochu the next drink trend to come out of Japan?

May 7, 2012 | Finance

TOKYO, May 7 — Japan is planning to designate sake and shochu as “national alcoholic beverages” as it ramps up its campaign to have Japanese cuisine added to the UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage. After a recent visit to a sake brewer in Akita Prefecture, in northern Japan, Motohisa Furukawa, the state minister...

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Whither Japan Stocks: DyDo Bids to Catch the China Canned Coffee Sales Wave

May 7, 2012 | Finance

Japanese companies like DyDo have five or six decades of not-so-different market development experience and proven products in this business. What they lack is a growing consumer market. This is what China will provide. (get the story…)

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Nikkei slides to 3-month low as Europe, US worries bite

May 7, 2012 | Finance

By Sophie Knight TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan's Nikkei average slid nearly 3 percent to its lowest close in three months on Monday after elections in Europe stoked worries about efforts to resolve the euro … (get the story…)

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Japan's Nikkei Average ends with 2.8% loss, as strong yen, Europe elections hit stocks

May 7, 2012 | Finance

Japan's Nikkei Average ends with 2.8% loss, as strong yen, Europe elections hit stocks (get the story…)

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Japan eyes guarantees for ships carrying Iran oil – Nikkei

May 7, 2012 | Finance

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan is considering a new law to provide sovereign guarantees for its ships to allow them to continue importing Iranian crude oil after EU sanctions come into effect in July, the Nikkei business daily said. The European Union has already prohibited European insurance coverage on hull and machinery for Iranian crude...

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Nikkei hits three-month low after France, Greece polls

May 7, 2012 | Finance

Japan's Nikkei average shed 2.6 percent to hit a three-month low on Monday after elections in France and Greece raised concerns on whether struggling euro zone economies will continue to pursue austerity … (get the story…)

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Japan stocks tumble in post-holiday return, as strong yen weighs; Nikkei Average down 2.8%

May 7, 2012 | Finance

Japan stocks tumble in post-holiday return, as strong yen weighs; Nikkei Average down 2.8% (get the story…)

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Spain's Bankia: an uneasy mix of politics and finance

May 7, 2012 | Finance

MADRID (Reuters) – To watchers of Spain's deeply troubled economy it was a symbolic moment – Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy posing for photos with the chairman of Bankia , one of its biggest banks, then walking away deep in conversation. Related Stories Etihad drops more A350s in setback to Airbus China April inflation, output...

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Japan Q4 GDP seen + 0.9% q/q led by firm consumption

May 7, 2012 | News

Reconstruction demand for the quake-battered northeast probably pushed public spending and a recovery in exports also contributed to growth, analysts said. (read more here…)

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RUBBER-Tokyo futures drop 3 pct after Greek, French votes

May 7, 2012 | News

TOKYO, May 7 (Reuters) – Benchmark Tokyo rubber futures fellmore than 3 percent on Monday after elections in Greece andFrance renewed investor concerns about Europe's debt problemshitting global demand, … (read more here…)

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Tokyo to track US jobs, Europe polls

May 7, 2012 | Opportunity

Investors are to look to US economic data and France and Greece's elections after Tokyo's tepid trade. (read more…)

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Japan to 'monitor' Europe reaction to Hollande win

May 7, 2012 | Opportunity

Japan said Monday it will "carefully monitor" how Europe reacts to the election in France of Socialist Francois Hollande as the continent seeks to navigate a series of debt crises. (read more…)

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Japan holds development conference in Africa

May 7, 2012 | Opportunity

Japan is this year giving $1.3 billion in aid to African nations to help combat the effects of climate change, Japan's Foreign Affairs Minister Koichiro Gemba said in Morocco on Saturday. (read more…)

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