Monday, August 2, 2010

International Headlines

Date: Mon, 2 Aug 2010 05:02:05 -0400
>TOP STORIES as of 0900 GMT -- 02 August, 2010

> BP GEARS UP FOR 'STATIC KILL' EFFORT TO PLUG OIL WELL
Efforts to permanently seal the ruptured oil well in the Gulf of
Mexico with mud and cement could begin as early as Monday night,
according to BP officials.

> SPACE STATION MAY NEED SPACEWALK FIXES
Crew members on the International Space Station may need to
conduct spacewalks this week to fix the station's cooling
system, NASA has said.

> PAKISTAN: FLOOD DEATHS TOP 1,100
The devastating floods in Pakistan have killed more than 1,100
people, officials say. Another 30,000 people were stranded
trying to escape rushing floodwaters.

> MORE THAN 100 DEAD IN CHINA FLOODING
Flooding and landslides in northeastern China left have more
than 100 people dead or missing, the state-run Xinhua news
agency reported Sunday, citing provincial officials.

> CUBA TO ALLOW MORE PRIVATE ENTERPRISE
Cuban President Raul Castro said Sunday that his government
would allow more private businesses and make it easier for those
businesses to hire workers, as the socialist economy struggles
to get back on its feet and shed up to one million redundant
state jobs.

> IRAQ, U.S. OFFER CONFLICTING DEATH TOLL
The U.S. disputes Iraqi figures that indicated July was the
deadliest month for civilians there since May 2008, saying the
actual numbers are less than half reported.

> ISRAEL URGES ABBAS TO RESTART TALKS
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged Palestinian
Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday to restart peace
talks with Israel saying he hopes Abbas "will accede not only to
my call, but to that of many in the international community."

> REPORT: BP USED EXCESSIVE DISPERSANTS
Documents released by a congressional subcommittee indicate that
Coast Guard officials allowed BP to use excessive amounts of
chemical dispersants in the Gulf of Mexico.

BUSINESS
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> IS CHINA SECOND-LARGEST ECONOMY?
A senior Beijing official's reference to China as the "world's
second-largest economy" has sparked excited speculation that it
may have already reached a long-looming milestone by surpassing
Japan.

> STRIKES, ASH WIDEN QUARTERLY BA LOSS
British Airways on Friday announced a pre-tax loss of 164
million pounds ($256.5 million) for the three months ending June
30.

> SPAIN UNEMPLOYMENT OVER 20%
Spain's unemployment rate rose to 20.09 percent for the second
quarter of 2010, up from 20.05 percent from the previous
quarter, Spain's National Statistics Institute said Friday.

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