Mainstream News

Google’s Android smartphones make up 53.7 percent of U.S. market share

"Apple and Google extended their dominance in the US smartphone market as 2012 neared its close. The share of smartphone service subscribers relying on Google’s Android software inched up to 53.7 percent in the three months leading up to December, while Apple’s portion grew to 35 percent from 34.3 percent, comScore reported. The most popular mobile phones were made by South Korean consumer electronics titan Samsung, whose handsets were used by 26.9 percent of US telecom service subscribers, according to comScore." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGoogle’s Android smartphones make up 53.7 percent of U.S. market share

U.S. fines Transocean $1.4 billion over Gulf oil spill disaster

"The United States hit drilling rig operator Transocean with $1.4 billion in criminal and civil fines Thursday for its role in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. Nearly two months after oil giant BP was fined $4.5 billion for its leading role in the disaster, Transocean agreed to plead guilty to violating the Clean Water Act and pay the fines, the Justice Department said. The firm was ordered to pay $400 million to resolve criminal charges and another $1 billion in civil penalties, partly to fund spill prevention and environmental restoration in the five states hit by the three-month-long spill." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingU.S. fines Transocean $1.4 billion over Gulf oil spill disaster

Greek debt crisis ‘far from over’

"After five straight years of recession, the eurozone's weakest link moves into 2013 with an economy set to further contract, unemployment at a record 26%, one in three living on or below the poverty line, and the worst of austerity yet to come. In the runup to Christmas, even the Greek finance minister, Yannis Stournaras, felt fit to admit that despite being the recipient of €240bn in EU and IMF rescue funds – the biggest bailout in global history – Greece could still default on its massive pile of debt, a move that would result automatically in exit from the 17-nation bloc." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGreek debt crisis ‘far from over’

Japan plans ‘nationalisation’ of factories to save industry

"Premier Shenzo Abe is to spend up to one trillion yen (£7.1bn) buying plant in the electronics, equipment, and carbon fibre industries to force the pace of investment, according to Nikkei news. The disclosure came just a day after Mr Abe vowed to revive Japan's nuclear industry with a fresh generation of reactors, insisting that they would be 'completely different' from the Fukishima Daiichi technology. Mr Abe's Liberal Democrats have already lambasted the central bank, threatening a new bank law unless it adopts radical measures to pull Japan out of deflation – including a growth target of 3pc for nominal GDP, implying massive monetary stimulus." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJapan plans ‘nationalisation’ of factories to save industry

India’s finance minister says current account deficit worrying, eyes gold curbs

"India's record current account deficit is 'worrying,' Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said on Wednesday, and hinted at cutting gold imports to bolster weak external accounts that have brought back memories of a 1991 currency crisis. He said he was considering reining in imports of gold, used as an investment tool by Indians but which mean a drain on foreign currency reserves. 'We may be left with no choice but to make it a little more expensive to import gold,' Chidambaram said. Recently, Reserve Bank of India executive Director Deepak Mohanty urged investors to shift from physical gold as a hedge against rising prices to financial products like inflation-linked bonds." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIndia’s finance minister says current account deficit worrying, eyes gold curbs

Tim Carney: How corporate tax credits got in the ‘cliff’ deal

"The 'fiscal cliff' legislation passed this week included $76 billion in special-interest tax credits for the likes of GE, Hollywood and even Captain Morgan. But these subsidies weren't the fruit of eleventh-hour lobbying conducted on the cliff's edge. The Family and Business Tax Cut Certainty Act of 2012 was copied and pasted into the fiscal cliff legislation, yielding a victory for biotech companies, wind-turbine-makers, biodiesel producers, film studios -- and their lobbyists. So, if you're wondering how algae subsidies became part of a must-pass package to avert the dreaded fiscal cliff, credit the Biotechnology Industry Organization's lobbying last summer." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTim Carney: How corporate tax credits got in the ‘cliff’ deal

Putin grants French actor Gerard Depardieu Russian citizenship

"Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday granted fast-track citizenship to France’s Gerard Depardieu after the movie star complained about the French Socialist government’s proposed 75 percent tax on the rich. The decision appears to give Depardieu — a frequent guest of the Moscow celebrity circuit who nonetheless never asked for a Russian passport — the right to pay the 13 percent tax levied in Russia on everyone from billionaires to the poor." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPutin grants French actor Gerard Depardieu Russian citizenship

Health care law may mean less hiring in 2013

"Many businesses plan to bring on more part-time workers next year, trim the hours of full-time employees or curtail hiring because of the new health care law, human resource firms say. The so-called employer mandate to offer health coverage doesn't take effect until Jan. 1, 2014. But to determine whether employees work enough hours on average to receive benefits, employers must track their schedules for three to 12 months prior to 2014 — meaning many are restructuring payrolls now or will do so early next year. About a quarter of businesses surveyed by consulting firm Mercer don't offer health coverage to employees who work at least 30 hours a week." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHealth care law may mean less hiring in 2013

Venezuela’s Inflation Rate Hit 19.9%

"Venezuelan inflation reached 19.9 percent in 2012, the central bank said in a preliminary estimate on Saturday, beating its official target thanks to strict price controls that business leaders say are unsustainable in the long term. The government of President Hugo Chavez has capped prices for a wide range of consumer goods, helping contain inflation that has traditionally been the highest in Latin America. The 2012 target had been between 22 and 25 percent. But inflation is seen accelerating in 2013 because Venezuela is expected to devalue the bolivar currency after heavy campaign spending this year that helped ensure Chavez's re-election." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingVenezuela’s Inflation Rate Hit 19.9%