In Wednesday's Americas papers

21 May 2008 12:00  [Source: ICIS news]

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

Front Page

Obama claims delegate majority
Barack Obama edged closer to the delegates needed for the Democratic presidential nomination and won a big victory Tuesday in Oregon's primary, even as Hillary Clinton crushed him for a second straight week in a border South state, this time Kentucky, and vowed to continue to fight.

Greenberg may face SEC civil charges
The Securities and Exchange Commission has told Maurice R. "Hank" Greenberg, former chief executive of American International Group, that he may face civil charges for his alleged role in an effort to improperly boost the insurer's financials through fraudulent transactions with General Re.

Microsoft to launch cashback search service
Microsoft hopes to make gains on Google in the lucrative business of Internet search through a new service that pays consumers who buy items they find through the software company's search service, according to people familiar with the company's plan.

Money and investing

Time Warner to detail plan for cable arm
Time Warner Inc is expected Wednesday to unveil details of how it will carve off its Time Warner Cable arm, a step that will transform the media conglomerate into one more focused on movies, TV programming and magazines.

UBS divests mortgage assets to BlackRock at steep discount
UBS Wednesday said it has closed the sale of troubled mortgage-backed securities to a distressed asset-fund at a discount, indicative of the Swiss banking giant's efforts to reduce risky positions.

For energy-producing states, prices yield a boom
Even as much of the country struggles with the housing bust and a weak economy, states that produce oil, gas and other commodities are enjoying a boom and ramping up spending on things from wind farms to education.

THE NEW YORK TIMES

Front Page

Obama declares bid ‘within reach’
Senator Barack Obama took a big step toward becoming the Democratic presidential nominee on Tuesday, amassing enough additional delegates to claim an all but insurmountable advantage in his race against Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Senator Kennedy has a malignant brain tumor
Senator Edward Kennedy, the longtime Massachusetts Democrat and patriarch of the Kennedy family, has a malignant brain tumor, his doctors said on Tuesday.

Business

Airlines’ cuts making cities no-fly zones
Earlier this decade, city officials in Hagerstown, started making the case to build a longer runway at their airport to lure service by regional jets, instead of the turboprop planes that provided its only flights.

The cassandra of oil prices
Arjun Murti remembers the pain of the oil shocks of the 1970s. But he is bracing for something far worse now: He foresees a “super spike” - a price surge that will soon drive crude oil to $200/bbl.

THE WASHINGTON POST

Front Page

Abortion law overturned again
A federal appeals court in Richmond again declared Virginia's abortion law unconstitutional yesterday, saying it is more restrictive than the federal ban on late-term abortion that the US Supreme Court approved last year.

Farm bill's subsidy costs may rise
A major new program in the recently enacted farm bill could increase taxpayer-financed payments to farmers by billions of dollars if high commodity prices decline to more typical levels, administration and congressional budget officials said yesterday.

Business

Senate panel approves housing bill
A plan to rescue hundreds of thousands of homeowners at risk of foreclosure cleared a major political hurdle yesterday, improving the chances of an election-year effort to address the nation's housing crisis.

Farm bill's subsidy costs may rise
A major new program in the recently enacted farm bill could increase taxpayer-financed payments to farmers by billions of dollars if high commodity prices decline to more typical levels, administration and congressional budget officials said yesterday.

GLOBE AND MAIL, Canada

Front Page

Obama on the brink of victory
Barack Obama stepped to the brink of victory in the Democratic presidential race Tuesday night, defeating Hillary Clinton in the Oregon primary and moving within 100 delegates of the total he needs to claim the prize at the party convention this summer.

Fraud squads chase down marriages of convenience
The Harper government is deploying clandestine teams to fan out across foreign countries and gather raw information about elaborately staged phony weddings aimed at duping Canadian immigration officials.

Business

Decline in US visits has tourism firms pulling out all stops
The town of Pemberton, BC, is counting on locals and Albertans to replace absent American tourists. Ontario's Stratford Shakespeare Festival is selling cheaper ticket packages and stepping up a US advertising campaign. Casino Windsor, just across from Detroit, is rebranding and beefing up convention facilities. And Quebec's government is targeting wealthy US travellers.

Prince Rupert casts a wary eye on Chicago
As Canadian National Railway Chicago expansion plans draw new high-profile opposition from the likes of US Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama, Don Krusel is looking on with more than a little self interest.

BUENOS AIRES HERALD

Front Page

Farm lockout put on ice again
Farm leaders yesterday evening decided they would lift the lockout at midnight last night after many institutions, including the Catholic Church, had called on them to end the conflict, but warned that they will remain in “a state of alert and mobilisation”. 

France reveals it has had talks with Hamas
France said yesterday it had held talks with the Palestinian militant group Hamas, prompting criticism from Washington, which has led a Western push to isolate the Islamists who seized control of the Gaza Strip last year.

I didn’t kill President Uribe’s father, says guerrilla Karina
Karina, a guerrilla who commanded the FARC group’s “front 47” and surrendered to authorities on Sunday, maintained yesterday that she had taken no part in the murder in 1983 of the father of current Colombian President Alvaro Uribe.

By: Staff Reporter
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