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Friday, August 1, 2014

ArcelorMittal reduces 2014 outlook on lower iron ore price

File picture shows the blast furnace of the ArcelorMittal steel plant in Grande-Synthe, northern France

Disappointment, uncertainty after India blocks WTO trade deal

By Matt Siegel and Tom Miles SYDNEY/GENEVA (Reuters) - Several member states of the World Trade Organisation voiced frustration after India's demands for concessions on agricultural stockpiling led to the collapse of the first major global trade reform pact in two decades. WTO ministers had already agreed the global reform of customs procedures known as "trade facilitation" in Bali, Indonesia, last December, but were unable to overcome last minute Indian objections and get it into the WTO rule book by the July 31 deadline. "We have not been able to find a solution that would allow us to bridge that gap," WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo told trade diplomats in Geneva, just two hours before the final deadline for a deal lapsed at midnight (2200 GMT Thursday). Most diplomats had expected the pact to be rubber-stamped this week, marking a unique success in the WTO's 19-year history which according to some estimates would add $1 trillion and 21 million jobs to the world economy.

Japan offers vessels to Vietnam to boost its sea strength

By Martin Petty HANOI (Reuters) - Japan will give six navy boats to Vietnam to boost its patrols and surveillance in the South China Sea, Japan's foreign minister said on Friday, in the latest sign of a strengthening of alliances between states locked in maritime rows with China. The deal represents a notable shift in the two countries' close diplomatic and investment ties towards defense, a move likely to irk an increasingly assertive China that is pressing hard on claims to nine-tenths of the potentially energy-rich sea, and worrying much of the region. "International security is getting more complicated... prosperity only comes with stability in the South China Sea and the East China Sea," Kishada told a news conference in Hanoi. "I hope this equipment will strengthen the ability of Vietnam's coastal enforcement authorities." Vietnam enjoys tight business ties with Japan, its biggest investor, but relations with Hanoi's largest trade partner, China, are at their worst in three decades and analysts believe that has sharpened the debate within Vietnam's secretive Communist Party over long-term foreign policy strategy.

Sierra Leone declares emergency as Ebola death toll hits 729

By Umaru Fofana FREETOWN (Reuters) - Sierra Leone has declared a state of emergency and called in troops to quarantine Ebola victims, joining neighboring Liberia in imposing controls as the death toll from the outbreak of the virus hit 729 in West Africa. The World Health Organisation said it would launch a $100 million response plan on Friday during a meeting with the affected nations in Guinea. The WHO on Thursday reported 57 new deaths in the four days to July 27 in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria, raising the death toll to 729. It said the number of Ebola cases had topped 1,300.

Separatists inflict new losses on army in east Ukraine

Ukrainian television said on Friday 20 servicemen had been killed in an attack by pro-Russian separatists in east Ukraine during the night, but a military source said the death toll was likely to be lower. Military officials said a paratrooper unit had come under mortar and tank fire near the town of Shakhtarsk, in the region where a Malaysian airliner was brought down on July 17, and the number of casualties was being checked. Channel 112 gave no details but said in a morning news bulletin: "Twenty Ukrainian paratroopers were killed in a Grad missile attack near Shakhtarsk." Ukrainian government forces have intensified their military offensive against the rebels in mainly Russian-speaking eastern Ukraine since the airliner came down, killing 298 people. The separatists are now pegged back in their two main strongholds, the cities of Donetsk and Luhansk.

No walk in the park for S. Africa's embattled game rangers

The game ranger with a rifle slung across his shoulders follows a bush trail through South Africa's famed Kruger national park, alert to the slightest sound or movement.

Thursday, July 31, 2014

Ukrainian army suffers losses in attack by separatists

KIEV (Reuters) - Ukrainian television said on Friday up to 20 servicemen had been killed in an attack by pro-Russian separatists in east Ukraine during the night, but a military source said the death toll was likely to be lower. Military officials said a paratrooper unit had come under mortar and tank fire near the town of Shakhtarsk, in the region where a Malaysian airliner was brought down on July 17, and the number of casualties was being checked. (Reporting by Pavel Polityuk, Editing by Timothy Heritage) Read More http://ift.tt/1uNsxuo