In Thursday's Europe papers

07 August 2008 06:00  [Source: ICIS news]

FINANCIAL TIMES

Front page

Bush chides China over human rights
US President George W Bush condemned China’s treatment of political dissidents and pressed for an unfettered Chinese press on Thursday, in a sharp rebuke to the country just hours ahead of a controversial trip to Beijing for the Olympics.

Malaysia’s Anwar pleads not guilty to sodomy
Anwar Ibrahim, the Malaysian opposition leader, was released on bail on Thursday after pleading not guilty in court to a charge of sodomy, which he claims is a government attempt to derail a political comeback.

Companies and markets

AIG and Freddie damp recovery hopes
American International Group and Freddie Mac damped hopes for an easing of the financial crisis on Wednesday after reporting another quarter marked by billions of dollars of credit-related writedowns and substantial losses.

Citigroup to settle securities conflict
Citigroup is nearing an agreement to buy back at least $5bn (€3.2bn) worth of auction-rate securities and pay a $100m fine. The landmark settlement with regulators could be announced as early as Thursday and pave the way for similar deals by other banks.

INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE

Front page

High-profile Chinese star has kept a low profile
Though these things are kept like state secrets, many expect that China's most popular Olympic champion, the hurdler Liu Xiang, will play a visible role in Friday's opening to the Beijing Games. Perhaps he will carry China's flag or light the Olympic caldron.

Vulnerable to HIV, resistant to labels
The 29-year-old is not gay. He wants that known. He did have sex with a man once, but that was the result of loneliness and his hormones' being in overdrive, he said, not because of any attraction to men.

Marketplace

Citigroup nears deal to buy back auction-rate securities
Citigroup was nearing an agreement late Wednesday to buy back more than $7bn (€4.5bn) of auction-rate securities from investors to settle claims that it misled clients about the dangers of the investments.

Costly fuel brings dozens of airlines to their knees
From Aloha in Hawaii to Alpi Eagles in Italy, from promising upstarts like Silverjet to legends like Aeropostal of Venezuela, more than two dozen airlines have fallen off the international radar screen this year.

THE MOSCOW TIMES

Front page

Solzhenitsyn laid to rest at monastery
It was as though someone had suddenly removed the stopper from an overturned bottle. As the great man's body, hoisted high by a military procession, made its final turn on the path toward the cemetery, a sea of mourners poured down the church steps like water down a rocky crag.

Antitrust inquiries rattle investors
By vigorously cracking down on possible price fixing, the Federal Anti-Monopoly Service may help to combat one of the country's biggest economic challenges, inflation, but it is putting investors on the edge.

Business

Online advertising makes big gains
Internet advertising in Russia grew 73% to $260m (€169m) in the first half of the year and may top $600m this year, according to the MindShare Interaction research agency.

Oil shipping costs seen rising by 10%
Russia's decision to raise an oil shipping fee component will increase costs of oil deliveries by pipelines by 10% to 12% and further spur the country's runaway inflation, analysts said Wednesday.

DER SPIEGEL

Front page

Tunnels to Egypt keep Hamas in business
One year after assuming total power over the Gaza Strip, Hamas is stronger then ever. Its weapons caches are overflowing and its control over daily life is secure. The Islamists can go about their business largely thanks to the supplies that get in via the tunnels connecting Gaza to Egypt.

'There is little good news to report on AIDS'
Thousands of activists, researchers and policy makers are gathered in Mexico City for the 17th International AIDS Conference this week. Amid disappointment at the lack of progress in the search for a vaccine, the German press warns against giving up hope but also against becoming too complacent about prevention.

TURKISH DAILY

Front page

Tough odds for Turkish children
The high rate of infant mortality is an important problem in Turkey, and the deaths of more than two dozen newborn babies at a maternity hospital in Ankara in the past two weeks once again highlights the country's infant mortality rate, which is among the highest in Europe.

Turkey, Armenia should aim low, Armenian think tank
In the event of an eventual meeting between the Turkish and Armenian presidents many disputes are likely to be played as a zero-sum game, according to an Armenian think tank.

Business and finance

Japan pharmaceutical giants enter Turkey
The Turkish pharmaceutical market, worth approximately $10bn (€6.5bn), is attracting the attention of foreign companies.

Analyst indicates IMF route
As the political uncertainty in the country has ended with the top court's decision not to shut down the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, an analyst has urged decision-makers to focus on the economy.

WARSAW BUSINESS JOURNAL

Front page

PGNiG results drop
Shares in gas monopoly, PGNiG fell on Wednesday due to worries over the company's looming quarterly results and the falling oil prices.

PSL threatening early election
The Polish Peasant Party (PSL) has threatened to file for an early election if the President continues to veto key legislation in an interview with the Polish Radio Three on Wednesday.

ICIS Copyright © Reed Business Information 2009

Author: Staff Reporter
+44 20 8652 3214

For the latest chemical news, data and analysis that directly impacts your business sign up for a free trial to ICIS news - the breaking online news service for the global chemical industry.

Get the facts and analysis behind the headlines from our market leading weekly magazine: sign up to a free trial to ICIS Chemical Business.