Posts Tagged ‘energy’
Written by Rahul on 17 August 2009
London, Aug 17 (ANI): British children spend ten hours a day glued to TVs, computers, mobiles and games consoles, according to a new survey.
The survey by energy firm Npower found that square-eyed youngsters aged seven to 16 spend a shocking four months a year – staring at screens.
Experts warn that by shunning outdoor games, kids are risking their health.
The health risks include asthma and damage to the brain’s vital prefrontal cortex, leading to obesity and movement difficulties.
The computer took up most of kids’ time, with the average child spending three hours and 44 minutes surfing the web. They also devoted two hours and 43 minutes to the TV.
In the survey, kids admitted they would ‘feel lost’ without their gadgets. However, the poll of 3,000 youngsters found a third suffered from headaches.
Medical expert Dr Carol Cooper warned kids should not spend more than three hours a day in front of electronic screens.
“They are facing a variety of health problems,” the Sun quoted her as saying. (ANI)
Tags: 44 Minutes, ANI, asthma, Aug, brain, Brit, Carol Cooper, child, computer, cortex, damage, day, Dr Carol, Dr Carol Cooper, Electronic Screens, energy, Energy Firm, expert, feel, firm, four months, Front, gadgets, Games Consoles, Games Kids, headaches, Health, health problems, health risks, London, Medical, medical expert, movement, new survey, Npower, obesity, Outdoor Games, poll, prefrontal, prefrontal cortex, spending, Sun, survey, time, tvs, variety, Web, year, youngsters
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Written by Rahul on 03 May 2009
It indeed is ironic that Akshay Kumar who is one of the stars who has popularized Jeans as an attire and symbolizing youth is being tormented reportedly for an obscene gesture while promoting a new brand of Jeans. In fact Jeans as attire had a late debut in the Hindi films but after it got an endorsement from our film stars it became the attire symbolic of youth and energy.
It was the advent of Jeans that led to development of notion of health conscious and to have a toned body. It also had its rub-off effect on the female actors as well, and if a fault line were to be discerned that really swayed a nation in a big way and pushed it on to a journey of Jeans discovery, the campaign of Coke involving Aishwarya Rai could be one such fault line. Dressed simply in a white shirt and Jeans she apart from swaying Aamir Khan off his feet was able to literally swoon the whole country as well.
From the previous generation it was in SHOLAY that Jeans made its debut in a big way as attire that had element of rebel and exuberance of youth written on it, and it got manifest in the characters portrayed by Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra. As a matter of fact in SHOLAY for the first time probably in Hindi cinema, Big B had packaged a pair of Jeans with a Black shirt and it became a fashion statement.
As the generational shift acquired its mooring, Jeans slowly weeded out hose pipe pants and flaring bell bottoms, and it became the fabric which defined the chutzpah of the character. In ANDHA KANNON after a long time Amitabh Bachchan had returned to Jeans in a big way, and again the element of casual that he had brought to his character of Jaanisaar Khan got manifested in a big way through Jeans as well.
The generation of Big B probably did not patronize Jeans in a big way owing probably to the fact that this generation was at the cusp of nationalism, where Jeans still was considered as western attire.
But as the new generation made its debut in Hindi cinema, brought on the profuse dozes of Abba, BoneyM, Pink Floyd and Woodstock, Jeans came to make their presence felt in a big way in the world of Hindi cinema. The same kind of paradigm shift was noticed in case of the female actors as well, and experimentation with Jeans as an attire by the female actors also allowed them to experiment with their looks as well. If there was one film that can be considered as a film that promoted Jeans in a big way it was JAANBAAZ and it can always be a matter of debate whether Dimple Kapadia looked more beautiful in a Jeans in JAANBAAZ or in SAAGAR. Jury would go in favor of JAANBAAZ. Incidentally, Feroze Khan can be considered as the father figure of Jeans in Indian films, as right from the time when he made DHARMATAMA, followed by QUARBANI and YALGAAR, to JANBAAZ, his films are a living tribute to the humble Jeans in its most alluring manifestations.
It is a tribute to the fascination of Jeans that a film by name of JEANS was made in Hindi and the female character in this film was enacted by Aishwarya Rai sheer coincidence or fortuitousness, decision is left to sail in the wind. Even a song was written on Jeans epitomizing its association with youth, “Purani Jeans Aur Guitar”…
Jeans as it represents youth, the sense of aghast that is being experienced by the purists, may be condoned as an indulgence and exuberance of youth and nothing else.
Jeans represents youth and youth is allowed to err sometimes, but the magnanimity of the elders is to condone it and allow moving on.
Tags: aamir, Aamir Khan, abba, Advent, Aishwarya, Aishwarya Rai, Akshay, Akshay Kumar, Amitabh, Amitabh Bachchan, ANDHA, association, attire, aur, Bachchan, Bell, Bell Bottoms, Big, Black, body, BoneyM, brand, campaign, case, character, chutzpah, cinema, coincidence, coke, country, cusp, debate, debut, decision, development, DHARMATAMA, Dharmendra, Dimple, Discovery, Dressed, effect, element, endorsement, energy, experiment, experimentation, exuberance, fabric, fact, fascination, fashion, fashion statement, father, fault, Fault Line, favor, Female Actors, Feroze, figure, film, film stars, Floyd, generation, generational, Generational Shift, gesture, guitar, Health, hindi, hindi cinema, Hindi Films, history, History Of Jeans, hose, Hose Pipe, Incidentally, indulgence, jaanbaaz, Jaanisaar, JANBAAZ, jeans, journey, jury, KANNON, Kapadia, Khan, kind, Kumar, line, magnanimity, matter, name, nation, nationalism, nothing, notion, Obscene Gesture, pair, paradigm, Pink, pipe, presence, profuse, Purani, QUARBANI, Rai, rebel, right, SAAGAR, Sail, sense, shift, shirt, sholay, song, statement, swoon, time, toned body, tribute, way, Western Attire, wind, Woodstock, world, YALGAAR, youth
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Written by Rahul on 20 April 2009
Washington – In a landmark ruling Friday, US President Barack Obama’s administration found that greenhouse gases threaten US air quality and public health, setting the stage for new limits on industry emissions that cause global warming.
The so-called “endangerment finding” by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had long been anticipated by environmental groups and marks the latest shift on US climate policy since Obama took office in January.
The ruling, which now has to be submitted for public comment for 60 days, would allow the government to regulate greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide under existing clean air laws in the United States.
“This finding confirms that greenhouse gas pollution is a serious problem now and for future generations,” EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson said in a statements.
Former president George W Bush had rejected imposing mandatory limits on climate-damaging pollution and the decision comes nearly two years after the US Supreme Court ruled that the EPA must consider regulating greenhouse gases under the existing Clean Air Act, a 1990 US law governing air pollution.
The US is taking its first steps as a nation to confront climate change,” said Vickie Patt of the climate group Environmental Defense Fund. “EPAs action is a wake up-call for national policy solutions that secure our economic and environmental future.”
The EPA’s ruling could pave the way for tougher federal standards on emissions from cars, power plants and other sources global warming.
But it remains unclear how far the administration will use this authority. Congress is considering new legislation this year to create a cap-and-trade system that would force polluting companies to pay for their emissions.
Jackson, while not yet announcing any new limits, said the “solution” to global warming was finding ways to encourage green energy technologies. (dpa)
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Written by Rahul on 08 April 2009
Tallinn – Official figures released by the Estonian national statistics office Tuesday showed the Baltic state’s March consumer price index (CPI) rising by 2 per cent year-on-year, compared to 3.4 per cent in February.
The last time the year-on-year CPI figure dipped below 2 per cent was in April 2004.
Estonia’s year-on-year inflation figures peaked at 11.4 per cent as recently as June 2008.
The news will provide a boost to the Estonian government’s aim to adopt the euro as the national currency as early as July 2010.
Estonia missed the chance to replace the national currency, the kroon, in 2007 as a result of runaway inflation.
Big increases in prices for items such as alcoholic drinks and tobacco were offset by falling costs of motor fuel and rent in March.
“The economic conditions mean many companies have cut prices, making it five months in a row that prices have fallen,” said Andres Saarniit of the Estonian central bank.
“Over the coming months the trend to lower prices will continue, although not at such a rapid pace. The longer-term inflation outlook is very much dependent on changes in energy prices in world markets,” Saarniit said.
Danske Bank’s senior Baltic analyst Violeta Klyviene said the speed of the inflationary fall could provide cause for concern.
“Estonian inflation has, for several months, decelerated more rapidly than we have anticipated. This might indicate that the decline in GDP could be even deeper that the
10 per cent contraction we forecast currently,” she said.
“Without a significant cut in expenditure or rise in taxes the public deficit could breach the 3 per cent of GDP target,” she warned.
Tags: aim, alcoholic drinks, analyst, Andres Saarniit, April, Baltic State, bank, boost, cent, chance, concern, CONSUMER, Consumer Price Index, contraction, cpi, Cpi Figure, currency, cut, Danske, Danske Bank, decline, deficit, energy, Energy Prices, Estonia, Estonian Government, euro, expenditure, fall, February, figure, fuel, gdp, Gdp Target, government, index, index cpi, inflation, Inflation Figure, inflation figures, Inflation Outlook, July, June, kroon, March, Motor, Motor Fuel, National Currency, National Statistics Office, News, office, official, outlook, pace, price, Public Deficit, rapid pace, rent, result, rise, row, speed, state, tallinn, Target, Term Inflation, time, tobacco, trend, Tuesday, Violeta Klyviene, world, world markets
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Written by Rahul on 08 April 2009
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez supported on Tuesday a call by U.S. President Barack Obama for a conflict-free 21st century, but added that the United States should apologise to Japan for the atomic bombs dropped at the end of World War Two.
“Obama said about 48 hours ago that the 20th century was a century of conflicts, and that the new century should be one of peace. That was a good statement,” Chavez told a news conference in Japan, in the latest conciliatory statement ahead of an Americas Summit next week.
Japan is ambivalent about atomic weapons, being the only country to have suffered nuclear attacks, but since World War Two has benefited from the protection of the nuclear-armed United States.
Chavez said on Sunday he wanted to reset relations with Washington after nearly a decade of tension, but in Tokyo he also dismissed Obama’s views on Venezuela as those of a “newbie” and he was wary after the previous administration of President George W. Bush, whom he labelled as immoral and unethical.
Obama is scheduled to attend the April 17-19 Americas Summit in Trinidad and Tobago and Chavez is also expected to attend.
Though Venezuela provides around 10 percent of U.S. oil imports, the OPEC nation for years maintained a harsh war of words with the Bush administration.
Chavez noted that, despite the long-running diplomatic rows, the United States remained the single biggest foreign investor in Venezuela.
“Anything is possible,” Chavez said of dealings with Washington, including an approach to the United States seeking closer relations.
Japan and Venezuela agreed on Monday on cooperation in developing oil and gas projects in the Latin American nation, deepening bilateral ties to help diversify sources of energy for the resource-poor Asian country.
In one of the projects, state-affiliated Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corp (JOGMEC), Inpex Corp and Mitsubishi Corp will pursue a joint feasibility study with Venezuela on the Orinoco oil belt over the next two years.
Chavez said this project would be worth $8 billion over the next five years and projects signed with Japan would be worth $33.5 billion in investment for Venezuela.
Chavez took a cautious stance on North Korea’s weekend rocket test, calling for patience and caution.
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Written by Rahul on 08 April 2009
For many HIV positive people life comes to an end after cognizing about the deadly disease, but for the 38-year-old Khundrakpam Pradip Kumar Singh, a Manipuri body builder, his real life began in March 2000 when he came to know, he was HIV positive.
Defying physicians who warned him against the severities of muscle building, Pradip joined a gym.
After a long gap of nine years, Pradip today has several achievements to his credit, which also includes the ?Mr. Manipur? title in 2007.
Finally, the Indian Body Building and Fitness Federation (IBBFF) praised his guts and brave attitude.
On Sunday, Mr. Amit Swami, the federation?s executive director, said that the federation will support the HIV positive muscle builder who has set example for various walks of life.
Swami said, ?We will give him a special award for determination and grit. It?s our duty to ensure that he doesn?t feel deprived. We will do our best to support him.?
?He is the epitome of courage, dedication and determination. By competing in the senior national championship, he has once again proved that being HIV positive is not the end of the story,? he added.
Swami, who is also the assistant secretary general of Asian Body Building and Fitness Federation, announced Pradip Kumar will be honored with a special award in the forthcoming Asian Championship in Tehran in August.
While praising Pradip, Swami said, “HIV positive persons are not barred from any competition. We just make sure that the competitors don’t take anabolic steroids. In fact, we must appreciate Pradip Kumar for his efforts. It needs lot of energy and courage.”
While talking to media persons a few days back, Pradip showed his misery for the lack of support from administration or other organisations.
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Written by Rahul on 06 April 2009
Katrina Kaif is no longer the ‘politically correct’ belle. Instead, she has no qualms in openly comparing mentor-turned-boyfriend Salman Khan to his rival Shahrukh Khan.
“Salman is unpredictable, while Shahrukh is intelligent, and Akshay is a blast,” said Kats in a recent interview.
“Salman always does things that he feels right and only he knows why he feels that particular thing is right…you can’t track his mood. As for me, I really don’t get into those things nor spend too much time trying to understand him because the entire process is too lengthy and complicated.”
Talking of the Khiladi Kumar, Kats said: “Akshay (Kumar) is not a stuck up old man…he is a blast and his energy level is more than mine.
“I also enjoy Ranbir’s (Kapoor’s) company…he is so very funny. I find John (Abraham) funny too…not for what he says, but how he says, he speaks English in a very funny way,” Kats said.
Tags: abraham, Akshay, Akshay Kumar, Blast, company, energy, Energy Level, english, funny way, Interview, john, John Abraham, Kapoor, Katrina Kaif, Kats, Khan Shahrukh, Khiladi, Kumar, level, man, mentor, mine, mood, old man, process, qualms, Ranbir, right, rival, salman, Salman Khan, Shahrukh, Shahrukh Khan, SRK, The, thing, time, way
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Written by Rahul on 06 April 2009
Film: ‘8×10 Tasveer’; Cast: Akshay Kumar, Ayesha Takia, Sharmila Tagore, Javed Jaffrey, Girish Karnad, Anant Mahadevan; Director: Nagesh Kuknoor; Rating: ***
No wonder the director sent off an e-mail before the film’s release requesting that the suspense not be revealed in the reviews.
The plot of ‘8X10 Tasveer’ unravels with such elegant dexterity that you are tempted to spill the beans. However, doing so would be a crime worse than the multiple murders attempted and achieved in this understated, gently violent and subtly tongue-in-cheek movie.
Normally Indian whodunits are so hysterical in tone you rue the day Dolby sound was invented. But Nagesh Kukunoor’s narrative uses sound to create a delectable and subtle distinction between crime and lyricism.
The characters move through a labyrinth of heightened luxury. Canada’s sun-kissed lakes and valleys open up a vista of narrative possibilities, some realised, many unexplored. Either way, the plot obtains its bridled energy from the director’s clear and present understanding of the danger that could underline the most beautiful and desirable surfaces. All you have to do is scratch.
Kukunoor definitely knows the finest suspense creators of celluloid – from Alfred Hithcock to Brian de Palma to Manoj Night Shyamalan. In these masters, Kukunoor discovers his magic and metier. He converts the history of the whodunit into a crackling currency of characters and plot-twists that make you in the audience touch the goings-on without really embracing them.
A perfunctory attitude underlines the storytelling, creating within the high level of aesthetics a murky interior where knives are used to cut the human body rather than succinct meat on the baroque dining table.
The supernatural element is used with a delicious and devilish delicacy. Believe what you will, says the director. But you have to admit that there are times when logic simply takes a backseat.
Providentially, Kukunoor keeps the supernatural element on a believable scale. Having Akshay Kumar to go into intermittent premonitory bouts helps. Akshay doesn’t fight the tides of improbability. He goes with the flow, riding the waves with a twinkle-eyed, ever-grin, sometimes grim graciousness that allows him to get real without forfeiting his heroic image.
When Akshay is not busy being self-righteous or cocky he is very likeable in this film. Without revealing the climax, it would be appropriate to say here, more than anywhere else, the gripping elements of noire cinema kiss the masala conventions of Hindi cinema in ‘8X10 Tasveer’. It’s a heady brew cooked at an even temperature that reaches the boiling point without bubbling over.
Kukunoor is unarguably an adept storyteller. His triumph with the whodunit is manifested in delicate details that draw inspiration from the masters of the murder mystery and yet re-define the culture of filmed crime in a language that is derived from the director’s own sensibilities.
The film could have made its end-game a little less wedded to Hindi cinema’s formulistic conventions. But the concession to commercialism doesn’t compromise the suspenseful equilibrium of a canvas where a family photograph speaks a thousand words.
The film’s quiet, restrained rhythm of expression is palpable.
You can’t miss the artery of understatement even when that gloved hand with the knife gleams on the polished exterior. That is when we begin to see what the film wants to do. It takes the whodunit into a land of murderous silences.
Greed underlines the crime. But the director is not greedy. He refrains from reaching out for all the armoury of the suspense genre. For telling us that less can be more even in a whodunit Kukunoor and his leading man must be applauded.
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Written by Rahul on 05 April 2009
NEW DELHI: The BJP has revived its pet Hindutva themes of rebuilding Ram temple at Ayodhya and abrogation of Article 370 giving special status to BJP leaders release the party manifesto for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. (TOI)
More Pictures
Jammu and Kashmir as it released its manifesto for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. ( Watch )
The saffron party also promised to give 35 kg rice or wheat per month at Rs two per kg for BPL families, which is seen as a counter to Congress’ offer of rice at Rs three per kg.
The BJP manifesto comes after 11 years as the party had released NDA manifestos along with its coalition partners in 1999 and 2004.
The BJP had then refrained from making any reference to the Ram Temple issue, saying it remained on the party’s agenda but was not a part of the NDA’s national agenda for governance. The party promised to enact strong POTA-like laws to tackle terrorism.
BJP also sought to reach out to the armed forces promising them exemption from income tax and introduce ‘One Rank, One Pension’ scheme. They also promised a separate pay commission for the armed forces.
In another populist promise, the party said it would raise the slab of tax exemption of salaried class to Rs three lakh per annum. For women, the limit would be Rs 3.5 lakh per annum.
Reaching out to farmers, the BJP said it will waive off all current loans and provide fresh loans at four per cent interest rate.
The BJP?s manifesto also promised to retrieve Indian money stashed abroad. There is also a promise to provide bicycle to school-going girls in Below Poverty Line families:
BJP manifesto promises promotion of alternative sources of energy and interlinking of rivers. The party also promised to build one million houses for the poor every year.
The BJP said it would bring down interest rates on housing loans to make urban housing affordable and give complete tax exemption to citizens above the age of 60.
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Written by Rahul on 05 April 2009
A U.S.-Russian commitment to rid the world of nuclear weapons and pursue diplomacy on Iran and North Korea is a welcome boost for non-proliferation efforts, the U.N. nuclear watchdog chief said on Thursday.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and U.S. President Barack Obama pledged at a London summit on Wednesday to seek a deal by July on cutting their nuclear arsenals, work for a nuclear-free world and coordinate policy on Iran and North Korea.
Nuclear diplomacy and arms control were given short shrift by Obama’s predecessor George W. Bush and Iran, meanwhile, has expanded a secretive uranium enrichment campaign.
Mohamed ElBaradei, director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), had previously accused big powers of failing to meet obligations to disarm under the Non-Proliferation Treaty and spurring other countries to seek risky nuclear capability.
ElBaradei said he was “greatly encouraged” by the new U.S.-Russian agreement, saying it demonstrated leadership and “finally moves us beyond the Cold War mentality”.
He welcomed that Obama and Medvedev were working towards early negotiations on a treaty that would verifiably ban the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons.
ElBaradei, who often clashed with the Bush administration over what he saw as its policy of isolating and threatening Iran, said he supported the fresh U.S.-Russian stance on Tehran’s disputed nuclear programme.
“(I support) their commitment to pursue a direct and comprehensive diplomatic solution with Iran that would address the international community’s concerns while guaranteeing Iran’s right to a peaceful nuclear programme,” he said.
He has rejected criticism by some Western powers of perceived leniency towards countries such as Iran, under IAEA investigation.
Iran denies seeking a nuclear arsenal, saying its uranium enrichment work is to supply energy for purely peaceful means.
ElBaradei said he agreed with Obama’s and Medvedev’s assessment of an “urgent need” for the Korean peninsula to be rid of nuclear arms.
ElBaradei steps down in November after 12 years at the helm of the IAEA. Voting last week on a successor to head the U.N. guardian of nuclear safeguards was inconclusive, opening the field to new candidates.
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Written by Rahul on 05 April 2009
Malaysia’s government endorsed the country’s atomic energy board chief as a candidate for the U.N. nuclear watchdog director-general’s post, a minister said on Thursday.
Malaysia will put forward Noramly Muslim, chairman of the Malaysian Atomic Energy Licensing Board, after the International Atomic Energy Agency’s board of governers failed to agree on a sucessor to Mohamed ElBaradei last week.
“Yes, Professor Dr Noramly Muslim is officially endorsed by the Malaysian government (for the post),” Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Maximus Ongkili told Reuters in a mobile phone text message. He declined to give further details.
Noramly, who has researched the impact of nuclear technology in developing countries, was IAEA’s deputy director-general for technical cooperation in the late 1980s.
He has argued for Malaysia to start using nuclear energy to generate electricity much sooner than its 2020 target as the Southeast Asian country’s oil reserves are getting depleted.
Malaysia’s endorsement of Noramly comes after the two original candidates — South Africa’s Abdul Samad Minty and Japan’s Yukiya Amano — were not seen as broad-based enough to replace ElBaradei, who steps down in November this year.
Board chairman Algeria has invite fresh nominations to be submitted within four weeks. Another election will be held in May just in time for the Board’s meeting the following month.
Delegations want to avoid a prolonged, divisive succession battle given the challenges facing the IAEA. But because of the job’s sensitive nuclear security mandate and divisions between member states, there is a desire for a consensus candidate.
The IAEA Director General oversees a global inspectorate that seeks to detect and deter covert diversions of nuclear energy to bomb-making and to promote peaceful uses of the atom, in keeping with the Non-Proliferation Treaty.
He authors technical but politically charged reports on IAEA investigations into alleged proliferation activity. Iran and Syria are currently under scrutiny. North Korea, Libya and Saddam Hussein’s Iraq were subject to earlier investigations.
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Written by Rahul on 03 April 2009
SINGAPORE (AP) Oil rose above $49 a barrel Thursday in Asia as glimmers of hope that the U.S. economy may be stabilizing were weighed against concerns that global demand remains weak. Benchmark crude for May delivery rose 94 cents to $49.33 a barrel by afternoon in Singapore in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The contract fell $1.27 on Wednesday to settle at $48.39. Oil prices have pulled back from 3-month highs of above $54 a barrel last month as investor optimism that the global recession may be bottoming has waned.
Still, some investors have taken heart from improving U.S. housing data that the worst could be over. Pending home sales rebounded in February from a record low, the National Association of Realtors reported Wednesday, while the Institute for Supply Management’s index of manufacturing activity contracted in March but by a bit less than anticipated.
“You see bright spots here and there,” said Jonathan Kornafel, Asia director for market maker Hudson Capital Energy in Singapore. “But I think the supply and demand fundamentals will push us lower.
” The Energy Department reported Wednesday that crude inventories continued to rise last week, and gasoline stockpiles jumped despite predictions for a steep drop. Crude inventories grew by 2.8 million barrels, or 0.8 percent, to 359.4 million barrels for the week ended March 27, the department’s Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report.
Oil stockpiles have not been this high since July 1993, according to EIA data. They’re also 15.5 percent above year-ago levels.
Worsening jobs data is also dimming hope that crude demand could rebound soon. The ADP National Employment Report said Wednesday that private sector employment dropped by 742,000 in March, higher than anticipated.
Supply cuts by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries have helped bolster prices this year. OPEC has pledged to reduce output quotas by 4.2 million barrels a day since September.
Oil will likely trade between $40 and $50 a barrel for the next few months until investors get a clearer picture of whether massive stimulus packages across the globe can spark a second-half recovery, Kornafel said. “There’s been enough supply removed and it seems we’ve hit economic bottom,” Kornafel said.
“I don’t think oil belongs below $40, just as it doesn’t belong above $50.” In other Nymex trading, gasoline for May delivery rose 0.85 cent to $1.38 a gallon and heating oil gained 1.67 cents to $1.36 a gallon.
Natural gas for May delivery was steady at $3.70 per 1,000 cubic feet. In London, Brent prices rose 85 cents to $49.29 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.
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Written by Rahul on 03 April 2009
SINGAPORE (AP) Oil crept above $49 a barrel Thursday in Asia as glimmers of hope that the U.S. economy may be stabilizing were weighed against concerns that global demand remains weak. Benchmark crude for May delivery rose 74 cents to $49.12 a barrel by midday in Singapore in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The contract fell $1.27 on Wednesday to settle at $48.39. Oil prices have pulled back from 3-month highs of above $54 a barrel last month as investor optimism that the global recession may be bottoming has waned.
Still, some investors have taken heart from improving U.S. housing data that the worst could be over. Pending home sales rebounded in February from a record low, the National Association of Realtors reported Wednesday, while the Institute for Supply Management’s index of manufacturing activity contracted in March but by a bit less than anticipated.
“You see bright spots here and there,” said Jonathan Kornafel, Asia director for market maker Hudson Capital Energy in Singapore. “But I think the supply and demand fundamentals will push us lower.
” The Energy Department reported Wednesday that crude inventories continued to rise last week, and gasoline stockpiles jumped despite predictions for a steep drop. Crude inventories grew by 2.8 million barrels, or 0.8 percent, to 359.4 million barrels for the week ended March 27, the department’s Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report.
Oil stockpiles have not been this high since July 1993, according to EIA data. They’re also 15.5 percent above year-ago levels.
Worsening jobs data is also dimming hope that crude demand could rebound soon. The ADP National Employment Report said Wednesday that private sector employment dropped by 742,000 in March, higher than anticipated.
Supply cuts by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries have helped bolster prices this year. OPEC has pledged to reduce output quotas by 4.2 million barrels a day since September.
Oil will likely trade between $40 and $50 a barrel for the next few months until investors get a clearer picture of whether massive stimulus packages across the globe can spark a second-half recovery, Kornafel said. “There’s been enough supply removed and it seems we’ve hit economic bottom,” Kornafel said.
“I don’t think oil belongs below $40, just as it doesn’t belong above $50.” In other Nymex trading, gasoline for May delivery rose 0.83 cent to $1.38 a gallon and heating oil gained 1.42 cents to $1.36 a gallon.
Natural gas for May delivery fell 4.1 cents to $3.65 per 1,000 cubic feet. In London, Brent prices rose 62 cents to $49.06 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.
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Written by Rahul on 03 April 2009
Washington, April 3 (DPA) US lawmakers Thursday approved a $3.5-trillion budget outline for 2010 that closely mirrors President Barack Obama’s priorities for the country.
The vote in the House of Representatives was 233-196, largely along party lines, and came after weeks of polarising debate that exposed deep differences between majority Democrats and opposition Republicans over how to resuscitate the US economy.
The Senate voted 55 to 43 on a slightly different version of the 2010 budget proposal, which will require lawmakers from both chambers to forge a compromise in the coming weeks.
Senate majority leader Harry Reid said that the ‘responsible’ budget ‘will start cleaning up the mistakes of the past and make critical investments in our future’.
The budget outline, which is non-binding and serves as a guide for lawmakers, includes middle-class tax cuts and spending on education, energy, health care and the financial sector that Obama has said is key to the long-term health of the US economy.
‘The Senates budget reflects the fundamental priorities proposed by President Obama and recognises that we cannot recover unless we make health care and education better and more affordable and reduce our reliance on oil,’ Reid said.
‘Staying true to these priorities will help turn around the economy for the many Americans who are underwater right now. But we won’t settle for simply getting back to sea level – we will to prosper once again,’ he added.
The White House issued a statement calling the House vote ‘another step toward rebuilding our struggling economy’.
In the statement, President Barack Obama, who spent Thursday at the G20 summit in London, was quoted as saying: ‘By making hard choices and challenging the old ways of doing business, we will cut in half the budget deficit we inherited, within four years.’
Republicans charged that Obama’s plans raise the US deficit to dangerous levels and have countered with their own version, pledging tax cuts across the board, incentives for business and a spending freeze over the next five years in all areas except defence.
John Boehner, the top Republican in the House, slammed the Democratic budget as a ‘roadmap to disaster’.
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Written by Rahul on 03 April 2009
The BSE Sensex jumped 4.5 percent on Thursday to its best close in five months as investors across Asia and Europe rode on optimism the world economy had got past the worst.
Reliance Industries, the country’s most valuable company, led the surge as the energy giant began pumping gas from its giant field off India’s east coast.
The stock, which has the heaviest weight in the main index, rose 5.3 percent to 1,662.50 rupees, its highest close since Oct. 7, and took gains to 42 percent over the past month.
The 30-share BSE index rose 4.51 percent, or 446.84 points, to 10,348.83, its best close since Nov. 10. The market is closed on Friday for a local holiday.
ICICI Bank and State Bank of India climbed after inflation hovered above zero in mid-March, with analysts expecting it to turn negative in the next few weeks, providing room to the central bank to ease monetary policy.
Anand Shah, head of equities at Canara Robeco Mutual Fund, said, financial stocks were driving the rally because they had overdone a fall earlier due to weak global sentiment.
“Their valuations now are just too attractive,” he said.
The BSE index, which has risen almost 29 percent since hitting a 2009 low in early March, ended the week up nearly 3 percent.
“This momentum is not sustainable in the near term. There needs to be a correction,” Shah said.
Traders said a world market rebound underpinned the rise, but lingering concerns about coming general elections from mid-April and a slowing domestic economy were roadblocks.
“It strikes me as a reasonable possibility that early March was a global low,” Narayan Ramachandran, CEO and country head of Morgan Stanley India, told an investment seminar on Wednesday.
“But we are not galloping away to new highs anytime soon,” he said.
Oil and Natural Gas Corp firmed 8.3 percent to 870.40 rupees after a source told Reuters late on Wednesday the state-run explorer sold 700,000 barrels of light sweet Sokol crude for June loading to U.S. refiner Tesoro Corp at a stronger premium than its previous sale.
Government-run State Bank of India, the country’s largest lender, jumped 6.7 percent to 1,145.35 rupees. Rival ICICI Bank rose 3.1 percent to 360.25 rupees.
The banking sector rose 4.8 percent, taking its gains for the week to almost 5 percent.
In the broader section, gainers led losers in the ratio of 4:1 on heavy volume of 450.3 million shares.
The 50-share NSE index rose 4.9 percent to 3,211.05.
Japan’s Nikkei added 4.4 percent and MSCI’s measure of other Asian markets gained 5.6 percent after data on Wednesday showed U.S. factory activity in March fell at a slower rate than the month before, while pending home sales rose more than expected in February.
MAIN TOP 3 BY VOLUME
* Reliance Natural Resources on 20.1 million shares
* Suzlon Energy on 19.5 million shares
* Unitech on 14.4 million shares
STOCKS THAT MOVED
* Larsen and Toubro Ltd rose 6.7 percent to 717.25 rupees after the engineering conglomerate said it won two orders worth 11.43 billion rupees from Tata Steel.
* Power equipment firm Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd rose 4.1 percent to 1,531.85 rupees after it reported a 6.3 percent provisional rise in yearly net profit and said it expects sales to grow 20-25 percent in the year to March 2010.
* Cement firms such as Grasim Industries and ACC Ltd were up 1-5 percent after the Economic Times said several companies raised prices by 3-7 rupees per 50 kg bag in anticipation of higher demand.
* Wind-turbine maker Suzlon Energy gained 8.9 percent to 50.75 rupees after it said late on Wednesday its U.S. unit won a repeat order from U.S. firm Duke Energy for 20 wind turbines.
Tags: ACC, activity, Anand Shah, anticipation, April, asia, Asia And Europe, bag, bank, bank of india, Banking, Bharat, BSE, BSE Sensex, Canara, cement, CEO, coast, company, conglomerate, Corp, correction, country, crude, demand, domestic economy, Duke, Economic, economy, Electricals, energy, Energy Giant, engineering, equipment, Europe, Explorer, factory, fall, February, Field, Financial Stocks, firm, Friday, fund, gas, General Elections, giant, Giant Field, Government-run, Grasim, head, Heavy, holiday, home, ICICI, index, india, inflation, investment, Investment Seminar, Japan, June, larsen, lender, Loading, low, ltd, main, maker, March, market, measure, mid, mid march, momentum, month, Morgan, Morgan Stanley, MSCI, mutual, Narayan, Natural, New Highs, Nikkei, nov, NSE, Oct, oil, optimism, order, pct, percent, policy, possibility, power, premium, profit, Pumping Gas, rally, ramachandran, rate, Ratio, rebound, refiner, Reliance, reliance industries, repeat, Reuters, rise, rival, Roadblocks, Robeco, room, rupees, sale, section, sector, seminar, sensex, sentiment, Shah, share, Sokol, source, Stanley, state, state bank of india, Steel, stock, surge, Suzlon, Tata, term, Tesoro, Thursday, times, top, toubro, unit, unitech, us, volume, Wednesday, week, weight, wind, Wind-turbine, world, world economy, year
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Written by Rahul on 03 April 2009
Oil fell more than $1 a barrel on Wednesday, as U.S. data showed crude stocks were at a fresh 16-year high after growing again last week.
U.S crude futures settled down $1.27 a barrel at $48.39, eroding Tuesday’s 2.6 percent gain. London Brent crude settled down 79 cents at $48.44
The Energy Information Administration data showed a 2.8 million barrel increase in crude oil inventories.
Gasoline stockpiles increased by 2.2 million barrels, running counter to forecasts of a 1.4 million-barrel decline.
“There is no indication in these (EIA) numbers that the economy is strengthening. It looks like more of the same,” said Joseph Arsenio, managing director at Arsenio Capital Management in Larkspur, California.
Oil prices have fallen $100 from highs above $147 a barrel in July 2008 as the economic downturn dents global energy demand.
U.S private sector job losses accelerated in March to 742,000, more than economists’ expectations, according to a report by ADP Employer Services.
The U.S. economy is bracing for job data from the U.S. Labor Department on Friday which monitors public and private sector job losses in the world’s largest energy consumer.
OPEC COMPLIANCE
Producer group OPEC reached agreements in September to remove 4.2 million barrels per day to stem the slide in oil prices, and has delivered almost 80 percent of the promised reduction.
Reuters latest survey put compliance at 79 percent for March, the seventh consecutive month in which the group’s output has declined.
In deciding not to lower its output targets further in March, OPEC said it was giving the world a chance to recover from the economic downturn and looked ahead to this week’s G20 meeting in London to stimulate the economy and help shore up fuel demand.
Few expect instant results, but many analysts say OPEC, which meets again at the end of May to reassess the situation, has taken out enough oil to bolster prices.
In the immediate term the demand outlook is weak, and a flurry of bearish economic news emerged on Wednesday that weighed on stock markets and added pressure on oil prices.
Business confidence in Japan, the world’s second largest economy and the third largest oil consumer, tumbled faster than ever in the first quarter to its worst on record, the Bank of Japan’s Tankan corporate survey showed.
Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund Dominique Strauss-Kahn predicted the world economy would contract between 0.5 and 1 percent this year, following on from IMF reports predicting a decrease of up to one percent this year.
(Additional reporting by Christopher Baldwin in London Ikuko Kao and Barbara Lewis in London and Fayen Wong in Perth)
Tags: administration, Administration Data, ADP, Adp Employer Services, Arsenio, bank, Barbara Lewis, barrel, Brent, Business, California, California Oil, capital, chance, Christopher Baldwin, compliance, confidence, CONSUMER, counter, crude, Crude Futures, Crude Oil Inventories, Crude Stocks, day, decline, decrease, demand, Department, director, Dominique, downturn, economic downturn, economy, EIA, employer, end, energy, Energy Consumer, Energy Information Administration, Fayen, flurry, Friday, fuel, Fuel Demand, fund, G20 Meeting, gain, gasoline, Global Energy Demand, group, Ikuko Kao, IMF, increase, indication, information, international, Japan, job, Joseph Arsenio, July, Kahn, Labor Department, Larkspur, Larkspur California, London, London Brent Crude, Management, March, May, meeting, Monetary, month, News, oil, OPEC, outlook, output, Output Targets, percent, Perth, pressure, Private Sector Job, producer, Producer Group, public, quarter, record, reduction, report, reporting, Reuters, sector, September, situation, slide, stock, Strauss, survey, tankan, term, Tuesday, U.S. Labor, us, Wednesday, week, Wong, world, year
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Written by Rahul on 03 April 2009
Energy soldiers would soon be seen marching past the city streets to create awareness about power saving and conservation techniques.
After the success of its pilot project in Gurgaon, the Haryana Renewable Energy Development Agency (HREDA) is set to launch the Bal Urja Rakshak Mission in Panchkula. Under the project, students of Classes VIII-XI of private and government schools will act as energy soldiers.
“Energy values and conservation habits that promote sustainable future need to be inculcated in the young by encouraging learning through participation. The mission is planned to mobilise children as energy warriors and guardians who would take on the challenge to motivate people for rational and restricted use of energy in their homes, school and community,” said a senior HREDA officer requesting anonymity.
The programme targets secondary and higher secondary students of government and private schools. “Under the project, each participating school will mobilise a team of 20 urja rakshaks (energy soldiers), two energy leaders, one mentor teacher and an urja mitra, a friend from the community to support the program. The 20 soldiers will form an energy team to organise different events and create awareness among the general public,” said the officer.
“Besides the ten-point action plan under the mission, which includes mission pledge, celebration of Urja Diwas, energy saving at their homes and schools, organising competitions like ‘catch the culprit’, some other interesting activities also form part of it. One of these include celebrating various festivals with an energy and environment focus,” said the officer.
The officer added: “For example, during Raksha Bandhan, the celebration will be encouraged by taking a pledge to save trees by tying a rakhi to trees and pledging to protect them, Christmas, will be an occasion for energy soldiers to sing energy carols, Ganesh Utsav will be celebrated by energy soldiers to popularise the use of small recyclable Ganesh idols rather than that of large plaster of paris idols that are normally used, along with their immersion at home in the bucket to protect the lakes.”
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Written by Rahul on 03 April 2009
At a time when the Congress, in the run-up to the elections, seeks to showcase the Indo-US nuclear deal as one of its major contributions towards achieving energy security, party president Sonia Gandhi has taken a dim view of the party’s Uttar Pradesh unit’s decision to stitch up an alliance with a Muslim organisation whose president had offered bounties for beheading former US President George W Bush and Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen.
Party sources said Sonia was “upset” about the embarrassing episode of the party providing platform to Ittehad-e-Millat Council (IMC) president Tauqeer Raza Khan at party headquarters without checking his antecedents and credentials. Khan had reportedly offered Rs 5 lakh as bounty to anyone who beheads Nasreen and, by his own admission at the press conference at the Congress headquarters on March 26, Rs 25 crore to anyone who beheads Bush.
AICC general secretary in charge of Uttar Pradesh Digvijay Singh and state PCC chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi, who had ushered Khan to the party’s press briefing to announce his support to the Congress in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections, were found clueless when asked about Khan’s announcements regarding Bush. Although Singh had dissociated the party from this, Khan had admitted that he had offered the bounty for Bush’s head.
Party sources said even Sonia had not been informed about Khan’s antecedents and she was upset about it.
She has issued instructions that the announcement about those joining the Congress or extending their support to the party should be made at the state level, and not at the AICC headquarters in New Delhi, except in cases involving some prominent leaders, it was reliably learnt. At a 90-minute meeting with party spokespersons on Wednesday, she also expressed her disapproval of AICC general secretaries and state presidents showing up at press briefings.
At the meeting the Congress president was said to have instructed the spokespersons not to make “personal attacks” (on opposition leaders) and rather focus on highlighting the achievements of the UPA Government.
Tags: admission, AICC, alliance, announcement, Antecedents, anyone, Bangladeshi, beheading, bounty, briefing, Bush-haters, charge, conference, congress, Congress President, Council, crore, deal, decision, Digvijay, dim, Dim View, Disapproval, energy, energy security, episode, george w bush, government, head, headquarters, IMC, Indo, Ittehad-e, Joshi, Khan, Lakh, Learnt, level, line, Lok, lok sabha elections, March, meeting, Millat, minute, Muslim, Nasreen, New Delhi, nuclear deal, opposition, organisation, party, party headquarters, party president, pcc, platform, Pradesh, president, president george w bush, press, Raza, raza khan, Rita Bahuguna, run-up, sabha, Secretary, Security, showcase, Singh, sonia, Sonia Gandhi, spokespersons, state, State Presidents, stitch, support, Taslima, Tauqeer, time, unit, upa, us, Uttar, view, Wednesday, writer
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Written by Rahul on 03 April 2009
Indian shares jumped more than 4 percent on Thursday, led by financials such as ICICI Bank and State Bank of India, after positive U.S. data boosted optimism the global economy had turned a corner.
Reliance Industries, the country’s most valuable company, rallied as much as 4.4 percent after the energy firm began pumping natural gas from its giant field off India’s east
coast.
Traders said the rise was spurred by gains across the region following Wall Street’s rally on Wednesday after data showed U.S. factory activity in March fell at a slower rate than the month before, while pending home sales rose more than expected in February.
“The market is seeing the glass as half-full. Things have become less worse, even though they may not have become better. A lot of people who were left out of the rally are joining the party a little late,” V.K. Sharma, head of research at Anagram
Stock Broking, said.
The BSE index, which has leapt about 28 percent since hitting a 2009 low in early March, could see a five-month high if it breaks above 10,469.72 reached on Jan. 7 before Satyam Computer unveiled the country’s biggest corporate fraud and sparked a market slide.
“We may have seen the worst and only a catastrophic event globally can affect us now,” Madhusudan Kela, head of equity at Reliance Mutual Fund, told an investment seminar at the Bombay Stock Exchange late on Wednesday.
Private-sector lender ICICI Bank rose 7.2 percent to 374.75 rupees, while government-run State Bank of India gained 6.5 percent to 1,144 rupees.
Reliance Industries, which has the biggest weight on the main index, was up 4.1 percent at 1,643.70 rupees.
In the broader section, gainers led losers in the ratio of 4:1 on moderate volume of 180.1 million.
The 50-share NSE index was up 4.5 percent at 3,195.50.
Asian shares were higher with Japan’s Nikkei up 4.4 percent and MSCI’s measure of other Asian markets rising 4.7 percent.
MAIN TOP 3 BY VOLUME
* Suzlon Energy on 8.6 million shares
* Reliance Natural Resources on 7.3 million shares
* Unitech on 5.3 million shares
STOCKS THAT MOVED
* Cement firms such as Grasim Industries and ACC Ltd were up 1-5 percent after the Economic Times said several companies raised prices by 3-7 rupees per 50 kg bag in anticipation of higher demand.
* Larsen and Toubro Ltd rose 6.7 percent to 717.60 rupees after the engineering conglomerate said it won two orders worth 11.43 billion rupees from Tata Steel.
* Wind-turbine maker Suzlon Energy gained 8 percent to 50.25 rupees after it said late on Wednesday its U.S. unit won a repeat order from U.S. firm Duke Energy for 20 wind turbines.
11:45 a.m., the 30-share BSE index was up 4.4 percent at 10,
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Written by Rahul on 02 April 2009
SINGAPORE (AP) Oil rose above $49 a barrel Thursday in Asia as glimmers of hope that the U.S. economy may be stabilizing were weighed against concerns that global demand remains weak. Benchmark crude for May delivery rose 94 cents to $49.33 a barrel by afternoon in Singapore in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The contract fell $1.27 on Wednesday to settle at $48.39. Oil prices have pulled back from 3-month highs of above $54 a barrel last month as investor optimism that the global recession may be bottoming has waned.
Still, some investors have taken heart from improving U.S. housing data that the worst could be over. Pending home sales rebounded in February from a record low, the National Association of Realtors reported Wednesday, while the Institute for Supply Management’s index of manufacturing activity contracted in March but by a bit less than anticipated.
“You see bright spots here and there,” said Jonathan Kornafel, Asia director for market maker Hudson Capital Energy in Singapore. “But I think the supply and demand fundamentals will push us lower.
” The Energy Department reported Wednesday that crude inventories continued to rise last week, and gasoline stockpiles jumped despite predictions for a steep drop. Crude inventories grew by 2.8 million barrels, or 0.8 percent, to 359.4 million barrels for the week ended March 27, the department’s Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report.
Oil stockpiles have not been this high since July 1993, according to EIA data. They’re also 15.5 percent above year-ago levels.
Worsening jobs data is also dimming hope that crude demand could rebound soon. The ADP National Employment Report said Wednesday that private sector employment dropped by 742,000 in March, higher than anticipated.
Supply cuts by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries have helped bolster prices this year. OPEC has pledged to reduce output quotas by 4.2 million barrels a day since September.
Oil will likely trade between $40 and $50 a barrel for the next few months until investors get a clearer picture of whether massive stimulus packages across the globe can spark a second-half recovery, Kornafel said. “There’s been enough supply removed and it seems we’ve hit economic bottom,” Kornafel said.
“I don’t think oil belongs below $40, just as it doesn’t belong above $50.” In other Nymex trading, gasoline for May delivery rose 0.85 cent to $1.38 a gallon and heating oil gained 1.67 cents to $1.36 a gallon.
Natural gas for May delivery was steady at $3.70 per 1,000 cubic feet. In London, Brent prices rose 85 cents to $49.29 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.
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