Greece Faces Exit, EU and Germany Face Big Dilemma

May 10, 2012 by ·

Greece could be forced to leave the eurozone if it fails to abide by EU and IMF loan commitments, a government economic advisor warned on Wednesday as Athens raised prospects of renegotiating a bailout deal.

“If we say no to everything, we leave the eurozone,” said Gikas Hardouvelis, economic advisor to outgoing Prime Minister Lucas Papademos.

Voters roundly rejected austerity measures in Sunday’s elections, booting out a coalition by the two mainstream parties and leaving the radical left-wing Syriza party charged with forming a government. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Business, Economy ·

Clinton Presses Pakistan To Do More On Militancy

May 9, 2012 by ·

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has called on Pakistan to do more to crack down on militancy, as she ends a two-day trip to neighbouring India.

Mrs Clinton said Pakistan’s government needed to ensure that its territory was not used for launching attacks anywhere, including inside Pakistan.

Addressing reporters with Indian Foreign Minister SM Krishna, she added that India was critical in efforts to prevent Iran acquiring nuclear weapons. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy ·

Serena Williams Reaches 2nd Round At Madrid Open

May 8, 2012 by ·

Serena Williams defeated Elena Vesnina 6-3, 6-1 to reach the second round of the Madrid Open on Monday.

The ninth-seeded Williams fired 13 aces and 40 winners during her opening match against Vesnina. Williams broke her Russian opponent four times during the first match at the Madrid tournament that is being played on the blue-clay court.

The ninth-ranked American will play Russia’s Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the second round. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Celebrity, Sports ·

Venus Williams Beats Halep In Madrid Open First Round

May 7, 2012 by ·

Venus Williams held off a late surge by Simona Halep to win 6-1, 4-6, 7-6 (6) in the first round of the Madrid Open on Saturday.

The seven-time major winner hit three aces and broke the Romanian twice en route to taking the first set.

But Halep rallied to take the second set before Williams could finally edge her out in the decisive tiebreaker.

“On the last match point I went for it. I wanted to leave it all out there on the court,” said Williams, playing just her third tournament following a seven-month absence due to illness.

“A match like that can be good. We hit a lot of balls and I was able to get that clay-court mentality right away. I have to keep remembering I’m on clay.”

Earlier, fifth-seeded Sam Stosur also needed three sets to beat Petra Martic. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Sports ·

Floyd Says Arum Is In The Way Of Mega-Fight

May 6, 2012 by ·

Unbeaten boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. believes a mega-fight between him and Filipino ring icon Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao will never happen because of Pacquiao’s promoter, Top Rank chief executive officer Bob Arum.

Hopes for a Pacquiao-Mayweather mega-fight were kept alive after Mayweather won a hard-fought, competitive decision victory against Puerto Rican star Miguel Cotto last Saturday in Las Vegas (Sunday in Manila).

But Mayweather dashed those hopes in the post-fight press conference, telling reporters: “The Pacquiao-Mayweather fight is not going to happen. It’s never going to happen.” [Read more...]

Filed Under: Boxing, Sports ·

US Stocks Slip Ahead Of Jobs Report

May 5, 2012 by ·

US stocks fell as economic data sent mixed signals on the recovery a day before the April payrolls report, while shares of Green Mountain plunged after poor results.

Slower-than-expected growth in the dominant US services sector drove the day’s trading. The retail sector dragged the market lower after several chains, including Target and Gap, fell after missing April sales estimates.

Market expectations for Friday’s non-farm payrolls report have fallen this week. Traders now suspect the economy added 125,000 to 150,000 jobs in April, below a Reuters consensus forecast of 170,000. One trader said there had even been some talk of a number below 100,000. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Stock Market ·

Wind Turbine Creates Water From Thin Air

May 4, 2012 by ·

Wind turbines have long produced renewable energy but a French engineering firm has discovered another eco-purpose for the towering structures.

Eole Water claims to have successfully modified the traditional wind turbine design to create the WMS1000, an appliance that can manufacture drinking water from humid air.

The company aims to start rolling out the giant products for sale later in 2012, initially focusing on remote communities in arid countries where water resources are scarce.

“This technology could enable rural areas to become self-sufficient in terms of water supply,” says Thibault Janin, director of marketing at Eole Water. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Energy, Technologies ·