One million bid for Olympics 100m tickets
London 2012 organisers have received more than one million requests for tickets for the Olympic men's 100 metres final.
The session, at the Olympic Stadium on 5 August next year, is one of the most sought after of the London Games.
Some 40,000 seats are available after the stadium capacity was halved through sponsors, VIPs and the media.
Applicants will find out by 24 June whether they have got any of the 6.6 million Olympics tickets available.
Level of demand
Some 1.8 million people applied, with a total of 20 million ticket applications.
On Friday organising committee Locog said it would not release a sport-by-sport breakdown of figures on ticket requests until next month at the earliest.
Competition to see the 100 metres final - likely to feature Jamaican sprinter and reigning Olympic champion Usain Bolt - was always going to be fierce.
Such was the level of demand in the recent ballot for tickets that the Olympic Stadium in east London could have been sold out at least 20 times over.
BBC sports editor David Bond says those who have applied for Olympics tickets will be watching their bank accounts for a clue to what tickets they have been allocated.
But with other big events likely to be just as over subscribed as the 100 metres final, millions of people could be left disappointed.
Selling method
Olympics organisers are looking to make £500m from ticket sales as part of bid to raise £2bn through private means.
Lord Coe, chairman of Locog, said: "It is really important as 25% of everything that you see out there in terms of the organisation of these Games is our ability to nail our revenues from tickets."
Lord Coe has also defended the method for selling Olympics tickets which sees payments taken from people's accounts before they know which tickets they have been given.
He said: "It was very clear from us, very early on that we would be taking the money out and we would then let people know what they got.
"It is easier to do that all at the same time rather than in dribs and drabs. This was always the way."
The price of Olympics tickets ranges from £20 to £725 for the showpiece 100 metres final, and reaches £2,012 for the opening ceremony on 27 July.
On Wednesday, the first 74 locations on the 2012 Olympics torch relay route were revealed.
Starting at Land's End, it will see the Olympic torch travel 8,000 miles (12,800 km) covering every nation and region in the UK including island visits.
Lara in Queen'sPark Hall of Fame
Legendary West Indies batsman Brian Lara has been inducted into the renowned Queen's Park Cricket Club's Hall of Fame.
The former West Indies captain was one of two inductees, with the other being celebrated cyclist Roger Gibbon, who won three Pan American gold medals during the 1960s.
Lara was honoured for his outstanding contribution that saw him garner 11,953 runs in 131 Tests and 10,405 from 299 one-day internationals during a glittering career.
The 42-year-old said it had been a dream of his to play at the venue.
"Many times I would be there batting on a Sunday morning and the Test match would have already started," he told the induction ceremony.
"I remember just dreaming that one day I would be at the other side of the fence playing cricket at the Queen's Park Oval, not just for Queen's Park or T&T, but for the West Indies."
Outstanding
Gibbon, meanwhile, was an outstanding cyclist who captured one gold at the 1963 Games in Brazil and another two at the 1967 showpiece in Canada.
"I have to say that my career began at the Queen's Park Oval and some of my most memorable international victories were right here," the 67-year-old Gibbon noted.
"Over the years, many of T&T's top cyclists blossomed at this venue."
During the ceremony, the Queen's Park also honoured three of its stalwarts by unveiling the Willie Rodriguez End, the Joey Carew Balcony and the Bryan Davis Indoor Cricket Centre.
Carew, who played 19 Tests for West Indies, passed away in January at age 73.
Pakistan end day on 202 for 3
Pakistan ended the third day of the decisive second Digicel cricket Test against the West Indies at Warner Park here Sunday on 202 for three in their second innings.
After dismissing the West Indies for 223 in reply to their first innings total of 272 to gain a lead of 49 runs, Pakistan consolidated their position, moving from 55 without loss at lunch to 131 for one at tea in their second innings.
Opener Taufeeq Umar guided Pakistan’s batting and was three runs away from his fifth Test century on 97 not out at stumps, while captain Misbah-ul-Haq was13 not out.
Taufeeq, who benefitted from a number of dropped catches by the West Indies fielders has so far struck 10 fours off 231 balls in 304 minutes at the crease. Pakistan's overall lead is 251 runs with seven wickets in hand.
Taufeeq and Mohammed Hafeez, who made 32, shared an opening stand of 82 runs before West Indies’ captain Darren Sammy, who had missed two catches in the slip, bowled the latter off the inside edge.
Azhar Ali joined Taufeeq and hit his second half-century of the match (53 off 90 balls, 6x4) while dominating a second-wicket partnership of 76 runs.
Pakistan, trail 1-0 in the two-match series after the West Indies' 40-run victory in the Guyana first Test.
Earlier, fast bowlers Ravi Rampaul (32 not out) and Kemar Roach (29) featured in a ninth-wicket partnership of 60 runs after the West Indies resumed from their overnight score of 184 for eight. Off-spinners Hafeez (3-23) and Saeed Ajmal (3-56) were Pakistan's most successful bowlers while Marlon Samuels top scored for the West Indies with a knock of 57.
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IMF boss should be chosen on merit say Australia and SA
South Africa and Australia have said the next managing director of the International Monetary Fund should be appointed on merit and not nationality.
The pair say the current appointment system undermines the IMF's legitimacy.
The body has always been headed by a European, and UK chancellor George Osborne has backed Christine Lagarde, French economy minister, for the post.
The position is vacant after Dominique Strauss-Kahn resigned last week so he could fight sexual assault charges.
"For too long, the IMF's legitimacy has been undermined by a convention to appoint its senior management on the basis of their nationality," Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan and South African Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said in a joint statement.
"In order to maintain trust, credibility and legitimacy in the eyes of its stakeholders, there must be an open and transparent selection process which results in the most competent person being appointed as managing director, regardless of their nationality."
The duo are co-chairs of the G20's (Group of 20 leading rich and developing countries) IMF Reform Working Group.
Emerging economies have been calling for an end to Europe's traditional grip on the IMF leadership post.
Although support in Europe has been growing for Ms Lagarde, former South African finance minister Trevor Manuel also has been raised as a possibility.
Other contenders include former German finance minister Peer Steinbrueck; Axel Weber, the former head of the German central bank, the Bundesbank.
'Distinguished'
Mr Osborne said Ms Lagarde would be elected on a "merit-based candidacy, as she's been an outstanding finance minister and has chaired the G20 finance ministerial meetings this year in an effective and consensual way".
BBC Berlin Correspondent Steve Evans says Ms Lagarde has now also been endorsed "by the two people who matter in the German government".
Chancellor Merkel said Ms Lagarde was "distinguished" and "very experienced", and the finance minister, Wolfgang Scheuble, told the Bild on Sunday newspaper that she was "outstandingly qualified" and "extremely respected and appreciated in the entire financial world."
Mr Scheuble told the German newspaper: "The US and Europe pay by far the biggest share of the contributions.
"It's like in a publicly traded company: Those who hold the majority of shares will also get to name the chairman."
Meanwhile, Belgian Finance Minister Didier Reynders appeared to also express an interest in the top post.
Asked by a journalist on public television channel RTBF if he would be interested in the post, he replied: "But of course, these are the kind of jobs one could not refuse."
However he also conceded that Ms Lagarde was Europe's favourite candidate.
Voting rights
Mr Strauss-Kahn was the fourth Frenchman to have held the IMF's top job.
He is in New York on bail awaiting trial for sexual assault and attempted rape, charges he denies.
In their statement Mr Swan and Mr Gordhan said G20 leaders wanted to reforming international financial institutions, including the IMF and the World Bank.
Developed industrialised countries currently control about 57% of the voting rights in the IMF, compared with about 43% for developing nations.
With the recent emergence of Brazil, Russia, India and China, many other global figures - including the head of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development - had also called for the IMF job to go to a non-European.
Realigning trade alliances
With the demise of the Free Trade Area of the Americas, a realignment of trade alliances is evident in the hemisphere—witness ALBA, Petro Caribe, expanded Mercosur. In the aftermath of the Lome Convention between the European Union and its former colonies of Africa, Caribbean and the Pacific, the age of preferential trade agreements came to an end and the era of reciprocal trade was born. The age of reciprocity did not put an end to trade subsidies however. The advent of the World Trade Organisation ensured that developing countries would face sanctions if they subsidised agriculture for example. The US, France and other metropolitan countries still use a variety of subsidies; call them non-tariff barriers, to resist opening their markets to competition from low-cost producers with minimal leverage. As the sixth largest exporter of LNG in the world and the most dynamic economy in the English-speaking Caribbean, Trinidad and Tobago’s competitive advantages in hydrocarbon energy must be diversified and extended to other sectors in order to be sustained. The Ministry of Trade’s BizLink is an information technology platform which provides a single electronic window designed to facilitate business and trade and to promote a national change management process that modernises the way companies connect with government enabling opportunities for trade diversification.
In the 1990s Trinidad and Tobago’s non-energy exports, especially in the area of processed foods and beverages, dominated Caricom groceries and were the least expensive in the region, allowing low cost foods to be enjoyed by citizens of this country. The decline of regional banana, rice and sugar exports from the Caribbean into Europe under preferential market access coincided with pressures from OECD developed nations to eliminate off-shore financial services in the Caribbean and limited our trading options. In terms of its imports, the US is Trinidad and Tobago’s major trade partner, supplying machinery, vehicles and manufactured goods. Latin America and Europe however have been the major suppliers of food to this country in recent years. Under the People’s Partnership Government, the goal of making Trinidad and Tobago a knowledge-based, economic and financial hub of the Caribbean continues to be a development objective as it was in the previous administration. Diplomatic and trade relations with the Commonwealth and the Organisation of American States have continued as Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar has led trade missions to London, Washington and most recently, Brazil.
A significant difference however, between the PP and its predecessor is that rather than emphasise bricks and mortar or sky scrapers—the International Financial Complex, that remain largely unoccupied and have yet to attract foreign direct investment—current policy is attempting to foster national competitiveness through an export strategy that supports innovation and the use of technology to move the country forward. By stressing national rather than sectoral competitiveness, diversified products and services being produced by business are being viewed and encouraged by the Ministry of Trade as cross-sectoral promotion rather than near exclusive emphasis on petrochemicals. Taking a cue from competitiveness guru, Harvard Prof Michael Porter, prosperity is being viewed as created rather than inherited. Consequently, the Ministry of Trade, supported by incentives advanced by the Ministry of Finance, is attempting to create a business environment that invests in innovation, refocuses on the local and regional (Caricom) market to push demand and to encourage support industries based on entrepreneurship. The PP recognises the opportunity to raise competitiveness and improve performance by assessing the overall business environment so that business is facilitated by a vibrant and responsive market. This is the case, notwithstanding the continued need for the State to serve as an effective regulator against abuses, predatory, monopolistic or unfair trading practices. In this country, the State continues to control the ‘commanding heights’ of the economy—owning Petrotrin, 51 per cent of TSTT, National Flour Mills and other large industries.
It also continues to be the largest employer in the country. Although the emphasis is on market-led growth, T&T is still very much a mixed economy. Trinidad and Tobago’s trade mission to Brazil represents an important shift from the traditional northern focus to a southern one which offers new vistas for this country’s international trade. The stated intention of the mission was to diversify trading partners, reduce vulnerability to external shocks and assess the market for the export of this country’s expertise in the petrochemical industry to the southern, Portuguese-speaking giant. Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar said on the occasion of the trade and investment mission to Brazil, “Indeed we have been used as a model by other countries which are now developing their gas industry. This is particularly so for the African countries and our National Gas Company has been recently selected to partner with Ghana to develop and implement a project to transport, process and distribute natural gas to their existing downstream facilities.” The aim of the mission was to forge alliances enabling both nations to share technologies, create new jobs and further develop their mutual economies based on balanced trade flows. The Prime Minister stated that her goal was not only to increase trade in goods and services with a rapidly growing market of nearly 200 million consumers, but to learn from Brazil’s model of development. Our hope is that these lessons can make a difference in T&T’s international trade position. “Wealth has to be earned through righteousness. Desire has to be for Liberation.”
Greece default fears rise as reprofiling talk flounders
Bond markets are pricing in a growing risk of an outright debt default by Greece, with its 10-year cost of borrowing hitting a new high of 16.7%.
The rising market fears come as European leaders give mixed messages over whether Athens would be allowed to modify repayment terms on its debts in a bid to buy more time for austerity.
The Greek prime minister insisted the country would repay all of its loans.
Meanwhile, the Fitch rating agency has cut its rating of Greek debt yet again.
The agency slashed its credit rating by three notches to B+ - eight notches above default and four below "investment grade" - and warned of further downgrades if the EU and International Monetary Fund fail to come up with a credible rescue plan.
Borrowing costs
An apparent deadlock has arisen among European leaders as to whether Greece should be permitted to ask creditors to modify repayment terms on its debts.
Jean-Claude Juncker, head of the eurogroup, indicated earlier in the week that a "reprofiling" of Greece's debts may be permitted.
This "reprofiling" is understood by market participants to involve a delay in the repayment of debts falling due over the next two years, to be negotiated with the country's private creditors.
The value of these two year debts is already deeply discounted on bond markets, with an implied borrowing cost of almost 25% per year.
However, the French Finance Minister, Christine Lagarde, and the European Central Bank (ECB) have both spoke out against any kind of debt restructuring for the country.
"Debt restructuring would make the continuation of large parts of central bank liquidity provision to the banking system of Greece impossible," threatened Juergen Stark, the ECB's chief economist
With the possibility of reprofiling looking less likely - and Greek hopes of securing additional loans from European partners also looking politically unpalatable - markets appear to be pricing an even higher probability that Greece will be pushed to declare a default on its debts.
The country's 10-year borrowing cost has shot up by one percentage point over the last two days.
Its short-term borrowing cost has also risen steadily in the past two weeks, from 5.4% to 6.4%.
The latest fears also sparked a sharp fall in the euro, which at one point on Friday was down nearly two cents against the dollar, at $1.415.
The Greek prime minister, George Papandreou, played down the risk of a default in comments on Friday.
"Of course, the deficit is the reason... that markets are expressing reservations as to whether we can cope or not," he said.
"It is the reason we are forced to ask for help from our partners... to depend on their help, on their loans. And of course I want to say here that we will pay back these loans."
BP reaches Deepwater Horizon settlement with MOEX
One of the owners of the oil well that leaked millions of gallons into the Gulf of Mexico last year has agreed to contribute to BP's compensation fund.
MOEX Offshore has agreed to pay $1.065bn (£657m) to BP to settle all claims between the companies relating to the Deepwater Horizon rig accident.
MOEX, a unit of Japanese trading house Mitsui, owned 10% of the Macondo well.
BP has said it will put the money into the $20bn trust it established to meet claims relating to the oil spill.
The settlement excludes fines, penalties or punitive damages that may be applied in future.
"MOEX is the first company to join BP in helping to meet our shared responsibilities in the Gulf," BP chief executive Bob Dudley said in a statement.
"We call on the other parties involved in the Macondo well to follow the lead of the MOEX and Mitsui parties."
The explosion in April 2010 aboard the Deepwater Horizon rig killed 11 people and caused one of the worst oil spills in history.
The Macondo well, about a mile underneath the rig, was finally sealed in September.
The final report of the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling found that several companies had been at fault, although BP had overall responsibility.
BP is pursuing some of the other companies involved to contribute to its compensation fund.
In its statement, it named Transocean, which owned and operated the rig, Anadarko, which owned 25% of the project and Halliburton, "which designed and pumped the unstable cement that the Prudential Commission found was a key cause of the accident".
Tepco president quits as firm reports $15bn loss
The president of Tepco, which operates Japan's crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant, has resigned as the firm reported a loss of 1.25tn yen ($15.3bn; £9.4bn) for the past financial year.
Masataka Shimizu will be replaced by managing director Toshio Nishizawa.
Tepco's loss is a record for a non-financial firm in Japan.
The earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan on 11 March severely damaged the Fukushima plant and it has been leaking radiation ever since.
Mr Shimizu spoke to a packed news conference at its headquarters in Tokyo with Mr Nishizawa standing to his left.
"I wanted to take managerial responsibility and bring a symbolic close," said Mr Shimizu.
"We put the highest importance on experience and expertise in our business operations when we chose the person for the top post," he added.
His resignation had been widely expected.
The net loss of 1.25tn yen in the year to the end of March was the biggest in Japan's corporate history outside the financial sector. In the previous financial year, the company had reported a profit of 134bn yen.
Tepco's share price has fallen more than 80% since the earthquake.
"We want to sincerely apologise for our nuclear reactors in Fukushima causing so much anxiety, worry and trouble to society," Mr Shimizu said.
He was criticised for not making any public appearances in the two weeks after the disaster
Mr Shimizu was later hospitalised after complaining of dizzy spells.
Tepco's losses were considerably bigger than the next highest loss for a non-financial firm, which was the 812bn yen lost by Nippon Telegraph and Telecom in 2001-02.
However, its overall losses from the disaster are expected to be much bigger.
Thousands of people have been evacuated from the region around the nuclear plant, and the company has been charged with cleaning up the problem and paying compensation to the victims.
According to Bank of America Merrill Lynch, total compensation claims could reach as much as 11tn yen.
Last Friday, the government announced a plan to create an entity to help Tepco compensate the victims of the nuclear crisis.
Authorities have also been studying possible bail-outs, including using contributions from other utilities and taxpayer money.
But it has been very difficult for Tepco to borrow money since the government suggested banks should waive some of Tepco's debt, which raised concerns that the government might not fully support the company.
Tepco has not offered any guidance on its trading in the current year because it does not know how much it will have to pay in compensation.
It has announced plans to sell 600bn yen of assets to raise money.
The assets sold are expected to include its 7.9% stake in KDDI, the telecoms company that owns Japan's second biggest mobile phone network.
Pakistan: Militants attack Karachi naval air base
Gunmen have attacked a military base in the Pakistani city of Karachi, killing at least 11 soldiers, officials say.
The attackers are now holding hostages, including Chinese military personnel, at the Mehran naval aviation base.
Eight hours after the incident began, blasts and gunfire were heard as security forces brought in more troops and tackled the militants.
The Pakistani Taliban says it is responsible for carrying out the attack.
"It was the revenge of martyrdom of Osama Bin Laden. It was the proof that we are still united and powerful," Ehsanullah Ehsan told Reuters news agency.
The Taliban have vowed to avenge the killing of Osama Bin Laden by US special forces on 2 May.
They have carried out several attacks since then.
On Sunday evening at 2230 (1730 GMT) militants stormed three hangars housing aircraft at the Mehran base, according to officials.
Interior Minister Rehman Malik said: "We have been able to confine them to one building and an operation is underway either to kill or capture them."
Their first targets were aircraft parked on the tarmac and equipment in nearby hangers, says the BBC's Syed Shoaib Hasan at the scene.
Eyewitnesses say the militants used rocket propelled grenades to damage and destroy several warplanes. These included the Pakistan navy's premier anti-submarine attack jet - the US made P-3C Orion.
At least two of these multi-million dollar aircraft were set ablaze.
The gunmen then opened indiscriminate fire, killing several naval personnel as they carried their deadly raid into the heart of the base.
Subsequently, navy commandos and marines launched a counter assault. Dozens of heavily armed army reinforcements also arrived to provide cover.
Some of the militants have now been killed, officials say.
The remaining gunmen have taken several officials, including Chinese military personnel, hostage inside a building. Security officials say commandos are now being sent in to clear this area.
At dawn on Monday, three loud blasts were heard, followed by gunfire.
"The operation still continues. It is not over yet," one security official told Reuters news agency.
On Friday the Taliban bombed a US consulate convoy in Peshawar, killing one Pakistani.
Other attacks by Pakistani militants this month include a raid on a security post that killed two police in the north-west and a twin suicide bombing at a paramilitary police training centre.
China Confirms North Korean Leader’s Visit
South Korean officials say Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao confirmed Sunday that North Korean leader Kim Jong Il is in his country to study its dramatic economic development.
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak's office says the Chinese leader made his comments to Mr. Lee during a meeting on the sidelines of a tripartite summit with Japan in Tokyo.
It is the first official confirmation of the Kim visit, which began on Friday, when his special train rolled across the border.
South Korean media reports say the North Korean leader is currently in the tourist spot of Yangzhou, near the industrial city of Shanghai. His itinerary has been kept secret.
Earlier, the North Korean leader stopped in the industrial center of Changchun in northeastern China.
Trips by Mr. Kim are always shrouded in secrecy. The state-run North Korean media usually report on the visits only after he returns home.
This current visit to China is at least Mr. Kim's third in a little more than a year.