Business

Businesses operating in downtown Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, are threatening to sue the government within the next two weeks, if it fails to resolve the current street protests being held by groups opposed to the government. Currently, about eighty shops had been forced to close down due to the protest. Large numbers of people took part in the Hezbollah-led protests held since the beginning of December 2006, along with the security measures imposed by the Internal Security Forces, cut off downtown Beirut from the rest of Beirut, thus stran

Ahead of an upcoming election in the Canadian province of Quebec, the Parti libéral du Québec (Liberal Party of Quebec) are in the lead, well ahead of the separatist Parti Québécois (PQ), says a poll done by Montreal based newspaper Le Devoir. The Liberals are at 37% support, 28% for the PQ, and 24% for the Action démocratique du Québec (ADQ) (Democratic Action of Quebec). The Liberals, which form the current government in the province, could win again if they had a 6-point lead, says Jean-Marc Leger, president of Leger Marketing. Quebecers

Schools in the city Peshawar, Pakistan were closed for two days at the end of last week after anonymous threats were received warning female students to wear veils in class. The threats, believed originating from members of the Taliban movement, along with the detention of two would-be suicide bombers before they exploded themselves, raised tensions and closed the schools out of safety concerns for the students. One of the two suicide bombers was a woman who attempted enter the Koochi Bazaar, a market in Peshawar, the capital of Pakistan’s N

The biggest U.S. stock market index, the Dow Jones, plunged by more than 416 points by the closing bell on Tuesday, the worst single-day decline since the re-opening of the markets following the September 11th terrorist attacks. The slip followed a 9% sell-off in Chinese markets. Other stock indices, such as the Nasdaq and the S&P 500, dipped by 96 points and 50 points, respectively. It was the 7th largest single-day decline is U.S. history. Analysts blamed the slide on a number of factors: (1) U.S. and Chinese stock exchanges had powered upwa

The officials from CBS stated on Monday that the company is going to invest in virtual world content developer Electric Sheep Co., which develops 3D properties in several virtual worlds like the one called Second Life. In recent months corporate investors are paying more attention to virtual worlds. This is mainly due to the fact that the audience is shifting from TV to Internet. Another advantage of virtual worlds is that they can help in marketing products and promoting brands. The Interactive President of CBS, Quinsy Smith, sees the virtua

A 9 Carriage Class 390 Pendolino train, with as many as 180 people onboard, operated by Virgin Trains has derailed and crashed in Cumbria, England. The train was the 17:15 service from London's Euston Station to Glasgow Central. Witnesses said that several passengers have broken bones. All but one carriage have slid down the embankment and all of the carriages were derailed. 5 people are still seriously injured in hospital, including the driver Ian Black, and 11 people altogether are still in hospital. Hospital reports early on Saturday morni

Car and suicide bombs killed at least 63 people within a single hour near markets in an area called "New Baghdad" and in Sadr City, Iraq. The two car bombs were detonated near marketplaces and bus stops in al-Jadida at 3:00 PM local time. Another was detonated near a security checkpoint. At least 134 people were wounded in the attack. A news release from the United States Army forces in Iraq said that troops helped 327 families displaced by the bombings to safe locations. During a search of a building, troops found three pistols, two AK-47s,

The Australian Prime Minister (PM), John Howard has arrived in New Zealand today for various duties. While in New Zealand Mr Howard will talk to the New Zealand PM, Helen Clark; participate in a joint New Zealand and Australian CEO conference at Wellington's Victoria University; open the new high commission for Australia in Thorndon; lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior; and talk to the leader of New Zealand's opposition party, National, John Key. Ms Clark has said that their talks will cover various topics, including trade, global

The year 2007 marks the meeting of the major representatives of the watch and jewelry industry at BaselWorld Show, Basel, Switzerland. The Show will take place in the period of April 12 - 19, 2007. The international event is to attract over 2000 companies from 45 countries and about 90,000 visitors. At present day the luxury goods business holds quite strong positions in the world industry and is still developing at high rates due to appropriate economic climate. Thus, BaselWorld is perceived by watch and jewelry producers and their partners

International car company DaimlerChrysler announced today it would cut 13,000 jobs in North America. It could part ways with the loss-making business. It also plans to cut two Chrysler plants in an attempt to make Chrysler business profitable by 2008. About 9,000 production jobs will be cut in the U.S., 2,000 production jobs in Canada, and 2,000 salaried jobs. "It's hard to say if it's enough ... but the stock is reacting nicely, which is further verification that this is a favorable restructuring move and a much-needed one at Chrysler," sai

In Vancouver, a 20-year urban success story may yet have a sad ending. The city's downtown population has doubled to 80,000 in the last 20 years thanks to Vancouver’s “Living First” policy – a planning strategy that favors residential development over commercial. And planners are expecting the population to reach more than 120,000 by 2030. But while downtown booms with people, business is busting. The International Herald Tribune reports that the city’s recently-released jobs and land-use study is estimating that downtown Vancouver may run out

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney formally announced his presidential candidacy yesterday outside of Detroit. "I don't believe Washington can be transformed from within by lifetime politicians, there've been too many deals, too many favors, too many entanglements — and too little real world experience managing, guiding, leading," said Romney, who was a successful businessman before entering politics. Romney focused on his leadership experience outside of government. Romney made the announcement at the Henry Ford Museum, something whi