Credit rating agency Standard and Poors has revised Nigeria’s economic outlook from stable to positive. In a statement, the rating agency says the Nigerian government, under President Goodluck Jonathan, has undertaken several important reform initiatives and is tightening its fiscal and monetary stance. It says authorities have restructured and strengthened the banking sector, adding that […]
Top Credit Rating Agency Revises Nigeria’s Outlook
Posted December 29th, 2011 at 12:00 pm (UTC-5)
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Police Surgeon Gunned Down in Pakistan
Posted December 29th, 2011 at 11:15 am (UTC-5)
A police surgeon who testified against Pakistani security forces is dead, gunned down by unknown assailants. Police officials say Baqir Shah was shot and killed Thursday in Quetta. He had conducted autopsies on foreigners who had been killed by police. Shah had been severely beaten and complained of constant death threats after he ruled Pakistani […]
Cambodian FM Proposes Prisoner Swap with Thailand
Posted December 29th, 2011 at 10:50 am (UTC-5)
Cambodia says it would consider repatriating two Thai nationalists jailed on espionage charges, if the Thai government requests and agrees to a prisoner swap. Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong made the offer public Thursday at a joint news conference in Phnom Penh with his Thai counterpart Surapong Tovichakchaikul. “I told Mr. Surapong that if (the) […]
US Jobless Claims Rise
Posted December 29th, 2011 at 10:15 am (UTC-5)
The number of Americans signing up for unemployment compensation rose last week, an exception to the generally improving trend in the U.S. job market. Thursday’s report from the Labor Department says first-time jobless claims rose 15,000 to a nationwide total of 381,000. But economists say averaging unemployment claims over a four-week period gives a more […]
China Lays Out Ambitious 5-Year Plan To Explore Space
Posted December 29th, 2011 at 10:10 am (UTC-5)
China has announced an ambitious five-year plan to explore outer space. The plan includes Beijing’s previously-stated goals of putting a man on the moon and building a space station. In a policy paper released Thursday, the China National Space Administration said Beijing will deploy space laboratories, launch manned spaceships and space freighters, and make technological […]
Burma Warehouse Explosion Kills 17
Posted December 29th, 2011 at 9:50 am (UTC-5)
An explosion at a warehouse in Burma’s largest city has killed at least 17 people and injured more than 100. Authorities said firefighters were fighting a blaze in the Rangoon warehouse district before dawn Thursday when the explosion occurred. Conflicting reports said the building was housing gunpowder, chemicals or medical equipment. The French news agency […]
5 Killed in Syria, Monitors Visiting Key Cities
Posted December 29th, 2011 at 8:55 am (UTC-5)
Rights groups say Syrian security forces killed at least five people on Thursday, as Arab League monitors headed to three key areas where the government has violently repressed opposition. Activists say some of Thursday’s deaths occurred near Damascus after security forces opened fire on anti-government protesters. The violence took place as monitors prepared to visit […]
Afghan Soldier Kills 2 French Service Members
Posted December 29th, 2011 at 8:40 am (UTC-5)
The French government says an Afghan soldier has shot and killed two members of the French Foreign Legion in eastern Afghanistan. French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s office said a soldier in the Afghan National Army opened fire on the troops Thursday in the Tagab Valley of Kapisa province. NATO issued a statement earlier saying a man […]
Iran Rejects US Warning Against Closing Strait of Hormuz
Posted December 29th, 2011 at 8:35 am (UTC-5)
Iran has rejected a U.S. warning against blocking oil shipments through the strategic Strait of Hormuz, as a war of words between the two countries continues. Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency Thursday quoted Revolutionary Guard commander Hossein Salami as saying Iran can carry out its own “defensive strategies.” Tehran threatened earlier this week to block […]
Afghan Soldier Kills 2 French Foreign Legion Troops
Posted December 29th, 2011 at 7:30 am (UTC-5)
The French government says an Afghan soldier has shot and killed two members of the French Foreign Legion in eastern Afghanistan. President Nicolas Sarkozy’s office said a soldier in the Afghan National Army opened fire on the troops Thursday in the Tagab Valley of Kapisa province. NATO issued a statement earlier saying a man wearing […]
