Vale Ore Carrier Sails for Singapore After Calling
By Alaric Nightingale
Jan. 3 (Bloomberg) — Berge Everest, one of the world’s largest iron ore ships, signaled it is sailing to Singapore after calling Dalian in China Omega replica watches, according to a signal from the vessel today.
The ship is operated for Vale SA Breitling replica watches, the iron ore producer spending at least $8.1 billion on such vessels to cut its long- term freight costs. The carrier’s draft is 14.4 meters compared with 21.3 when it arrived at the Chinese port, indicating it unloaded.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Alaric Nightingale at anightingal1@bloomberg.net
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Tracy Morgan – Tracy Morgan To Return To Work Toda
Tracy Morgan To Return To Work Today
Tracy Morgan will return to work on his TV show ‘30 Rock’ today after collapsing while attending the Sundance Film Festival on Sunday (22.01.12).
Tracy Morgan will return to work today (24.01.12) after recovering from his collapse at the Sundance Film Festival. The 43-year-old actor was rushed to the Park City Medical Center in Park City, Utah after he passed out following an awards ceremony on Sunday (22.01.12) but Tracy – who claimed the altitude affected him – has insisted he is fine and will begin shooting new scenes for TV show ‘30 Rock’ today. He wrote on twitter yesterday (23.01.12): “Superman ran into a little kryptonite. The high altitude in Utah shook up this kid from Brooklyn. “Thank U 2 the hospital staff. Back at work 2morrow shooting 30 Rock. Holla at me! “Gotta thank the AMAZING medical staff and all my supporters! Love you. #GOgiants @Giants #ALLIN (sic).” Ron Nyswaner – the co-director of Tracy’s new movie ‘Predisposed – blamed a combination of altitude sickness and complications with the actor’s diabetes for the collapse. He explained: “[It was] altitude sickness combined with his diabetes. And he hadn’t eaten. He hadn’t had enough water”. It had been reported that the recovering alcoholic seemed out of control at dinner, where he is said to have been shouting and falling over but a spokeswoman for the hospital said no drugs or alcohol were found in his system.
Telefonica Second-Quarter Profit Falls 27%, Missin
By Manuel Baigorri
July 28 (Bloomberg) — Telefonica SA, Europe’s second- largest phone company, said quarterly profit slumped 27 percent, trailing analysts’ estimates, as intensifying competition cut earnings in its domestic market of Spain.
Second-quarter net income was 1.54 billion euros ($2.2 billion), compared with 2.12 billion euros a year earlier, the Madrid-based company said on its website today. Profit had been projected at 1.64 billion euros, according to the average estimate of analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Sales climbed 2.2 percent to 15.45 billion euros, missing the 15.7 billion-euro average estimate.
In Spain, revenue fell 6.1 percent in the first six months, with profit margin sliding 2.3 percentage points to 44.7 percent. Chief Executive Officer Cesar Alierta will slash the Spanish workforce by about 20 percent in the next three years as he bets on Latin America’s economic growth to win back investors discouraged by Spain’s unemployment rate, at 21 percent, the highest of the euro countries.
“Spain will recover at some stage and I wonder how the market will look like because it’ll be hard to boost prices up and realign them again,” Roger Appleyard, head of global credit research at RBC capital markets in London Omega replica watches, said in a phone interview before the release. “The huge costs of job cuts tell you how much pressure they are under.”
Spain’s former phone monopoly said earlier this month it will pay about 2.7 billion euros to eliminate as many as 6,500 positions in the country and will book the whole cost this year as one-time expenses. The operator employs about 35,000 people in its home market.
Telefonica has fallen 7.3 percent in Madrid trading this year, cutting the operator’s market value to 71.7 billion euros. The Bloomberg Europe Telecommunications Index was little changed in the period. France Telecom SA and BT Group Plc also report earnings today.
Spain’s weak economy is forcing consumers to look for cheaper phone tariffs from rivals such as TeliaSonera AB’s Yoigo unit Breitling replica watches, France Telecom’s Orange and Jazztel Plc.
Second-quarter revenue was boosted by Brazil, where Telefonica last year took over Vivo Participacoes SA, the country’s largest wireless operator.
Telecomunicacoes de Sao Paulo SA, the Brazilian unit of Telefonica known as Vivo, said yesterday second-quarter net income rose 30 percent as it added subscribers.
Telefonica, which told shareholders in April it plans to cut its debt to between 2 and 2.5 times of Oibda, shelved a share sale of its Atento Inversiones & Teleservicios SAU unit after a discount in the offer price failed to entice investors amid tumbling equity markets. The initial public offering of the call center business was suspended indefinitely because of “unfavorable market conditions.”
–Editors: Kenneth Wong
To contact the reporter on this story: Manuel Baigorri in Madrid at mbaigorri@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Kenneth Wong at kwong11@bloomberg.net
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Sudans Budget Gap Likely to Swell to 5% of GDP Thi
By Maram Mazen
(Updates with finance minister comments starting in second paragraph.)
July 19 (Bloomberg) — Sudan’s budget deficit will swell to 5 percent of gross domestic product this year Omega replica watches, more than originally forecast, after oil-rich South Sudan seceded on July 9, Finance Minister Ali Mahmoud Abdel Rasoul.
To prevent the shortfall widening further, the government plans to slash spending in the second half of the year, Abdel Rasoul told lawmakers in the capital, Khartoum, today, six months after an austerity package triggered protests.
The deficit compares with the 3.2 percent shortfall envisaged in the original budget approved by lawmakers in November. The government is amending that budget after South Sudan gained control of about 75 percent of Sudan’s daily oil production of 490,000 barrels when it became independent.
“Political, economic and social changes in the country since July 9 have become the focus of everyone’s attention,” Abdel Rasoul said. The country needs a “comprehensive program to face the fiscal and economic ramifications for the loss of revenue.”
Fiscal spending will decline to 11.68 billion pounds ($4.4 billion) in the second half of the year from 15 billion in the previous first six months, Abdel Rasoul said, without giving the original spending plans. Revenue and grants will decline to 10.7 billion pounds from 12.5 billion over the same period.
Austerity Package
An austerity package passed by parliament in January spurred protests against President Umar al-Bashir’s government that were put down by security forces. The package included the partial removal of fuel subsidies and increasing the price of sugar.
No additional taxes or fees were imposed in today’s budget, Abdel Rasoul said. The government will try to keep the inflation rate below 18 percent, he said, compared with the 12 percent target in the original budget.
Abdel Rasoul also said that Sudan will start to introduce a new currency early next week. South Sudan released its own currency to banks in the capital, Juba, yesterday.
Sudan’s $68 billion economy will grow 3 percent this year, Abdel Rasoul said, less than the original budget’s target of 5 percent. The economy grew by 3 percent last year, half of the government’s target of 6 percent Rolex replica watches, al-Zubair said on June 13.
Oil Law
The finance minister also presented a new law for the transport of oil from South Sudan through its territory. Abdel Rasoul didn’t give details on the law to the press.
The two sides used to split proceeds from oil pumped in the south on a 50-50 basis, as agreed on in a 2005 peace accord which ended a two-decade civil war between the north and the south. They haven’t agreed on the amount of the new fees.
South Sudan currently has no other way to export its oil, and it relies on the crude export for 98 percent of its budget.
The crude, pumped mainly by China National Petroleum Corp., Malaysia’s Petroliam Nasional Bhd and India’s Oil & Natural Gas Corp. day, is exported through a pipeline that runs to Port Sudan on the Red Sea.
–Editors: Philip Sanders, Digby Lidstone
To contact the reporter on this story: Maram Mazen in Khartoum at mmazen@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Andrew J. Barden at barden@bloomberg.net.
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Robinsons Land eyes 1-for-2 rights issue
MANILA, Philippines – Property developer Robinsons Land Corp. announced Wednesday that its board of directors has approved a plan to undertake a stock rights offering.
"The board of directors is authorized to determine the final terms and conditions and implement any transaction in connection with the increase of shares of the corporation, including Tag heuer replica watches, but not limited to the stock rights offering, public offering or such other type of transaction without the necessity of obtaining furthur approval from the stockholders," the company said in a disclosure to the local bourse.
Company President Frederick Go told ANC that they are studying a one-for-two rights offer, meaning stockholders will be entitled to one new share for every two they own.
He said the size of the offer will be determined after the pricing in April or May.
Robinsons Land is holding a special stockholders meeting next week to vote on the increase in the property firm’s authorized capital stock.
Robinsons Land is the property arm of conglomerate JG Summit Holdings Inc. Omega replica watches, which is owned by the Gokongwei Group.
It earlier reported a 17% rise in its net income to P1.016 billion during the first quarter of its fiscal year ending December 2010. – With ANC
James powers NBA Heat over Hawks
ATLANTA Omega replica watches, Georgia – LeBron James finished with 34 points and 10 rebounds as the Miami Heat beat Atlanta 98-90 Monday (Tuesday, in Manila) to secure the Eastern Conference’s No. 2 seed.
James Jones had two crucial three point baskets down the stretch for the Heat who won their third straight game.
"It took us 81 games to get to this point but there’s a lot more work to do," James said.
Miami secured its postseason spot after Boston lost to Washington in overtime on Monday.
That gave the Heat a two-game lead over the Celtics with only one game to play. Miami will face Philadelphia in the opening round of the playoffs. The Celtics will get the third seed and will face sixth seeded New York Knicks.
"Sometimes it’s not pretty Breitling replica watches, but we’re doing the little things necessary to win," Heat star Dwyane Wade said. "That’s what will matter in the playoffs, because some games won’t be so pretty."
Josh Smith returned from an injury to score a team-high 17 points for the Hawks who nearly rallied from a 20-point deficit. Atlanta lost their fifth straight game but they hope to snap that dubious string when they face Charlotte Wednesday in their final regular season game.
The Hawks went to a makeshift lineup for the final period and nearly pulled it off.
The game got testy with just over three minutes to go when Zydrunas Ilgauskas took exception to the move and smashed the ball off Atlanta’s Zaza Pachulia’s back as he turned to head back down the court.
Ilgauskas was ejected by the officials.
"I didn’t know if it was the ball or a punch," Pachulia said. "I don’t know what he was mad about."
Stricter security around Sagada’s sacred burial gr
By XENIA RIBAYA
ABS-CBN Baguio
The local government in Mountain Province will issue an ordinance for stricter security around the burial caves of Sagada to prevent more stealing of ancient remains.
Mountain Province Governor Maximo Dalog said Thursday that stricter security measures should be observed by tour guides of the burial caves.
“Sagada is now having an ordinance to formalize such disciplinary directives. Sagada’s burial caves are one of Cordillera’s timeless and priceless treasures Cartier replica watches,” Dalog said.
The Sagada Tourist Environment Association (STEA) earlier urged the local government to implement stricter monitoring of tourists in Sagada’s burial caves.
STEA president Edward Dalay said the group has become more vigilant because some tourists tend to become irresponsible leading to the desecration of Sagada’s enticing culture.
Dalog said that under the ordinance, tourists will no longer be allowed to get near and touch the coffins of Mt. Province’s ancestors.
The Cordillera Peoples Alliance (CPA) supports Dalog’s initiative.
Santos Mero, CPA deputy secretary-general, said more watchmen are needed to prevent the loss and destruction of the sacred remains.
In the 1980’s Omega replica watches, around 80 mummies from the burial caves of Buguias, Benguet were declared missing. Among the missing were the most revered remains of Apo Ammo, a 500-year-old mummy.
Apo Ammo is being hailed in Benguet as a son of a goddess.
The remains of Apo Ammo were eventually found in 1984. It was kept in a museum in Manila, and brought back to Benguet.
Bata, Corteza invited to Thai tilt
MANILA, Philippines – Filipino pool wizards Efren "Bata" Reyes and Lee Vann "The Slayer" Corteza are all set for the 2010 Pattaya 9-Ball Invitational Pool Competition which starts on October 1 in Pattaya, Thailand.
According to sportsman-businessman Jonathan Sy of Negros Billiards Stable (NBS), Reyes and Corteza received invitations from captain Prajit Phichaisornlatat, chairman of the Q Sport Bangkok Association, which organized the event.
"Naimbitahan sina Champ (Efren Reyes) at Van-Van (Lee Vann Corteza) na maglaro sa main draw ng Pattaya 9-Ball mula sa imbitasyon ng organizing committee," said Sy during a thanksgiving dinner party on Tuesday night for the RP pool team which participated in the China Open.
Phichaisornlatat said: "We have invited 17 leading pool players from various countries such as Taiwan, the Philippines, Japan and the United Kingdom."
Reyes, top player of Puyat Sports, made it to the quarter-final round of the China Open over the weekend while Corteza, whose local and international campaigns are backed up by Kopiko and Energen, made it to the semi-final round.
“I hope to do well in this event,” said the 31-year-old Davao City native Corteza Omega replica watches, top player of Sy’s NBS. He is backed up by Kopiko and Energen.
"Maraming magagaling na naimbitahan na maglaro sa Pattaya 9 Ball, pero gagawin lamang namin ni Van-Van (Corteza) yung best namin para makapagbigay muli ng karangalan sa bayan,” said Reyes.
Reyes and Corteza left the country Wednesday morning for the Thailand event.
The champion will receive 300,000 Thai Baht prize money. The runner-up will receive 50,000 Thai Baht, and the third and fourth place will each receive 30,000 Thai Baht.
Other notable players participating in Pattaya 9-Ball are 2008 World 10-Ball Champion Darren "The Dynamite" Appleton of Great Britain, Bobby Lee Chenman of Hongkong, Takashi Uraoka Rolex replica watches, Taguchi Kenji and Tomoo Takano of Japan, Chan Keng Kwang of Singapore, Lui Hui Chan, Fu Che Wei, Liu Chien Cheih, Wong Kuo Ping and Chang Yu Long of Chinese-Taipei, and Nitiwat Kanjanasri of Thailand.
The event, which runs until October 3, will take place at the Royal Garden Plaza. – By Marlon Bernardino
Nadal thrills in Bangkok debut
BANGKOK – Rafael Nadal put on a typically commanding performance in his Bangkok debut on Thursday Omega replica watches, the Spanish top seed progressing with the minimum of fuss in his first career match at the Thailand Open.
The world No. 1 demolished feisty Belgian qualifier Ruben Bemelmans 6-1, 6-4 to set up a clash with Mikhail Kukushkin after the Kazakh saw off another Belgian, Olivier Rochus, 6-4, 5-7, 6-3.
Fans in the sell-out crowd cheered and clapped wildly for Nadal, who has won the last three majors, and the popular Spaniard also met Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, the pair exchanging gifts.
"The first round is for sure never easy Breitling replica watches," said Nadal.
"I had some time off after winning the US Open and spent a week in this great country. I played well but I must improve for the next match."
It was not such a good day for Spain’s other top player, as German Benjamin Becker defeated second seed Fernando Verdasco 6-4, 6-4.
Verdasco had not competed indoors since February — and he paid the price as he tried and failed to adjust.
"The start was the toughest part," said the Spaniard, who trailed 5-1 in the opening set and lost his serve in the penultimate game of the match on a fourth double-fault to open the door for Becker to serve out the win.
"I haven’t played indoors for so long. He had a match already and was comfortable on the surface. He played better than me today and deserved the win," said Verdasco.
In other second-round action, Finn Jarkko Nieminen put out last year’s losing finalist as he defeated Serb seventh seed Viktor Troicki 7-6 (7/4), 6-2 at the Impact arena.
Corteza tops Pacquiao Intl 10-Ball
MANILA, Philippines — Two-time National Open champion Lee Vann "The Slayer" Corteza lived up to his moniker by beating world number 1 and World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) Player of the Year Dennis "Robocop" Orcollo to rule the Manny Pacquiao International 10-Ball championships.
Corteza defeated Orcollo, 11-7, in the finals late Sunday at the Star Billiards Center in Grace Village Omega replica watches, Quezon City.
Cortez took home the $30,000 top prize, while Orcollo received $10,000 from the total pool prize of $60,000 put up by Filipino boxing icon Manny Pacquiao.
"I’m very happy and proud to have won this tournament made by my boxing idol and Congressman Pacquiao," Corteza said. "Sayang nga lang, hindi s’ya nakarating sa awarding kasi sumabay halos sa birthday n’ya."
The Davao City native Corteza marched to the finals after an 11-6 victory over Jeffrey "The Bull" de Luna Breitling replica watches, who ruled the 2007 Manny Pacquiao 9-Ball Championships.
Meanwhile, Orcollo took down the unheralded Jeffrey Diaz, 11-7, en route to the finals.
Last month, Corteza also beat Orcollo, 11-8 in the Masters category of the 2011 San Miguel Beer Oktoberfest 9-Ball Open to take home the top prize of P350,000.
The winner of the tournament was supposed to play Pacquiao in an exhibition match, but the boxing superstar was unable to make it to the event. Pacquiao did send a congratulatory message to Corteza and the rest of the players who participated in the even. — by Marlon Bernardino.