Portugal and Ireland to be given more bailout repayment time
Portugal and Ireland are to be granted an extra seven years to pay back their emergency bailout loans.
The European Union and the IMF bailed out the Republic of Ireland in 2010 and Portugal in 2011.
The 17-member group that uses the euro currency agreed to the terms at a meeting of finance ministers in Dublin.
Meanwhile, the ministers also said a 10bn euro ($13bn; £8.5bn) EU bailout loan for Cyprus was ready for approval by member states.
That could happen by the end of the month and, if the IMF also gives the go-ahead, the first bailout money could be released by mid-May.
Key extension
The plan for Ireland and Portugal is intended to give the countries' financial systems more time to recover from the debt crisis after their bailout loans run out.
Ireland's bailout money will run out later this year, and Portugal's will run out in 2014.
The Irish and Portuguese repayment extensions are expected to be backed by all 27 European Union members, which includes those outside the eurozone, later on Friday.
Eurogroup President and Dutch Finance Minister, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, said the ministers in Dublin had commended Portugal on its success in implementing the bailout programme but "asked them to maintain the reform momentum despite the difficult economic and domestic conditions".
He added: "Ireland is a living example that adjustment programmes do work, provided there is a strong ownership and genuine commitment to reforms."
The BBC's Matthew Price said that the deal could be seen as something of a reward "for good behaviour", but also as recognition that an austerity-first approach was not always the best option.
The extension is especially important for Portugal. When it received a 78bn euro bailout two years ago, it pledged to take various measures in its budget to reduce public spending.
However, last week the country's Constitutional Court ruled that several of these measures in the 2013 budget were unlawful.
If Portugal was to drop the measures because of this, it may not remain eligible for more funds under its bailout.
On Thursday, it emerged that Cyprus would need to raise an extra 6bn euros to secure the 10bn euro bailout from Brussels and the IMF.
While confirming that up to 10bn euros in loans will be provided to Cyprus, the eurozone finance ministers also rejected reports that the country might be granted more financial assistance.
Presidential spokesman Christos Stylianides said the country was not looking for more money under the bailout programme, but was hoping for support through other European support mechanisms: "What the president of the republic [of Cyprus] is discussing with European officials is the possibility of increasing European funds for growth and social cohesion."
Cyprus will ask for the money under the EU's multi-annual financial framework designed for member states suffering serious consequences from the euro crisis.
A draft document prepared by the country's creditors said the cost of the rescue had risen to 23bn euros from 17.5bn euros, with Cyprus now having to find 13bn euros of this.
Mr Anastasiades said he had spoken to EU Economy and Euro Commissioner Olli Rehn and said he would also be writing to European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso and to EU President Herman Van Rompuy.
"The letter to Mr Barroso and Mr Rompuy will refer to the need for EU policy to change towards Cyprus by giving it extra assistance, given the critical times we are going through as a result of the economic crisis and the measures imposed on us," Mr Anastasiades said.
Source-BBC
China Reports Bird Flu Infections in New Province
China has reported two cases of bird flu in a new province, west of the area where the disease has been centered.
The state Xinhua news agency said that the two human cases were reported Sunday in central Henan province.
Until Saturday, when the case of a seven-year-old girl was reported in the capital, Beijing, the breakout of the H7N9 strain of bird blue had been clustered around the eastern city of Shanghai, hundreds of kilometers away.
Michael O'Leary, the head of the World Health Organization's office in China, said Sunday that the spread of the deadly virus to other parts of the country is not surprising and was expected.
Eleven people have died in eastern China since the virus was reported in humans for the first time last month. The virus is believed to have been transmitted from birds to humans, triggering massive culls at poultry farms and restrictions on poultry trade.
Experts worry that this new strain of bird flu could become easily transmissible and trigger a pandemic, although WHO says so far there is no evidence of the virus spreading from human to human.
Germany puts brakes on EU bank union
Germany said European banking union will require changes to EU law, in a call that could slow completion of the plan designed to underpin the euro currency.
Speaking after a meeting of European Union finance ministers on Saturday, Germany Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said the EU's Lisbon treaty had to be changed to allow common rules on shutting troubled banks - a central element of the union.
"Banking union only makes sense ... if we also have rules for restructuring and resolving banks. But if we want European institutions for that, we will need a treaty change," he said.
Designed to ensure vulnerable countries do not have to tackle financial problems alone, the plan for banking union was one of the bloc's biggest political steps to stabilize the euro and prevent taxpayers from footing bills for bank rescues.
"We will not be able to take any steps on the basis of a doubtful legal basis," Schaeuble told reporters. "That's why it's also crucial that we strengthen the network of national restructuring funds and authorities."
As a first step towards the union, the European Central Bank is set to start supervising euro zone banks from July 2014.
This should be followed by a so-called bank resolution scheme to close or salvage struggling banks as well as pay for the costs involved. The third and final step would be a coherent framework across Europe for deposit protection.
Worried the supervisory role could compromise ECB monetary policy independence, Germany on Friday persuaded EU countries to sign a political declaration committing to future treaty change.
Schaeuble also made clear legal change would be necessary for the unified scheme for tackling failed banks.
Changing the Lisbon treaty, which underpins the bloc's law, would be a drawn-out process as it calls for the agreement of all member states - some of which require referenda.
It would raise particular problems for Britain, where eurosceptics have argued that the country should quit the bloc.
Schaeuble has long had reservations about banking union, which would be a step towards allowing the euro zone's rescue fund to directly assist banks, a move Germany fears might leave it facing the bill for reckless lending by foreign banks.
Schaeuble said the country of a bank in financial difficulty must first inject fresh capital before direct support from the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) is possible.
Spain's Finance Minister Luis de Guindos said member states would pay a minimum 4.5 percent of capital for troubled banks.
"From that point, there would be a burden sharing to converge towards 10 percent paid by the member state," de Guindos said. "This means the ESM will pay for around 90 percent and the member state for 10 percent."
Schaeuble also emphasized German opposition to the creation of a joint deposit guarantee scheme.
Source-Reuters
US retail sales see fall in March
US retail sales fell in March across all sectors, official figures have shown, suggesting that recent tax rises are starting to affect consumers.
The US Commerce Department said consumers spent a total of $418bn, a fall of 0.4% on the previous month.
The decline was the second in three months.
Payroll tax increases were introduced earlier this year and analysts say these may have contributed to the fall in spending.
Sales were lower across the board. Car dealers, department stores, grocery stores, electronics retailers and sports goods shops all reported a fall in business.
Both January and February's figures were revised downwards, adding to the picture of a stalling US economy.
Although the US economy is expected to notch up growth of 2% this year it remains fragile.
Jobs figures released last week showed less than 90,000 new jobs were created last month. However, because the population is growing, that number is well below the rate of job creation needed to maintain employment levels.
The payroll tax rise that came into effect at the start of the year was a reversal of a cut introduced after the recession to boost spending.
The increase means that someone with an annual salary of $50,000 (£33,500) will take home $1,000 less this year.
Paul Dales, economist at Capital Economics, said he thought the slowdown would not prove prolonged.
"The surprise fall in retail sales in March adds to other evidence that the US economy is experiencing another spring slowdown," he said.
"But we doubt that the easing in economic growth in the coming quarters will be as severe as in recent years."
JP Morgan makes record quarterly profit
JP Morgan has reported record first quarter profits of $6.5bn (£4.2bn) and says there are signs the US economy is "healthy and getting stronger".
The bank said it had reported a strong performance across all businesses.
Retail banking deposits rose 10%, new mortgage orders rose 37% and the company said it had kept the top spot for earnings from investment banking.
Mortgage lender Wells Fargo also released results, and it also reported record first quarter profits.
Wells, the fourth biggest bank in the US, saw net income rise by 22% to $5.2bn helped by cost cutting.
Wells Fargo chairman and chief executive, John Stumpf, said: "Loans and deposits demonstrated continued growth in a challenging economic environment."
'Positive signs'
JP Morgan said it had cut mortgage loan loss reserves by $650m and property asset reserves by $500m.
The bank was also boosted by a big drop in spending on litigation, which was $0.3bn in the first quarter of 2013 compared with $2.7bn a year earlier.
JP Morgan was struck by massive losses last year as a result of the "London Whale" trades, which cost the bank $6bn.
These came in the corporate and private equity division, which recorded a profit of $250m in the quarter compared with a loss of $1bn in the same period a year earlier.
Jamie Dimon, chairman and chief executive of the bank said the results were helped by an improving US economy.
"All our businesses had strong performance, and our client franchises did exceptionally well," he said.
"We are seeing positive signs that the economy is healthy and getting stronger. Housing prices continued to improve and new home purchases are also starting to come back.
"We also saw strong performance in our credit card portfolio, with net charge-offs remaining near historic lows, another sign that consumers are healthier and more confident."
However, he added that the growth in demand for loans had slowed during the first three months of the year and that small businesses remained "cautious" about the recovery and were nervous about possible changes to tax rates.
He said this was making some of them reluctant to invest.
IMF recognises Somalia government after 22-year break
The International Monetary Fund has recognised the government of Somalia after a break in relations of 22 years.
The move could enable the IMF to provide technical support and policy advice to the impoverished country in the Horn of Africa.
However, the IMF will not lend money to Somalia until it clears a $352m (£230m) debt it owes to the organisation.
Somalia has been slowly rebuilding itself following two decades of civil conflict.
"The International Monetary Fund today recognised the federal government of Somalia, headed by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, paving the way for the resumption of relations after a 22-year interval,"the IMF said in a statement.
"The decision is consistent with broad international support and recognition of the Federal Government."
Although Somalia has been an IMF member since August 1962, the years of civil war meant there was no government with which the fund could deal.
International donors have slowly been re-engaging with the Mogadishu government since President Mohamud's election last year.
It was the first vote of its kind in the country since warlords toppled military dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.
The US officially recognised Somalia in January, acknowledging the new government's progress towards political stability and attempts to end the insurgency by Islamist militants al-Shabab.
Although Washington never formally cut diplomatic ties with Somalia, the 1993 Black Hawk Down incident - in which 18 US servicemen died after militia fighters shot down two US military helicopters - marked the country's descent into anarchy.
Kobe Bryant likely out 6-9 months
Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant had surgery on Saturday afternoon to repair the torn Achilles tendon in his left leg and is expected to need six to nine months to recover, the team announced.
"When something like this happens, everybody wants to know why and there's not always a reason why. If you look at our season, it's been a nightmare," longtime trainer Gary Vitti said after Lakers practice Saturday. "We had a player come in with a surgery, which was Dwight Howard. Then we had Steve Nash break his leg. Then we had Steve Blake have an abdominal surgery. Then we had Jordan Hill with a hip surgery. Then we had Metta (World Peace) with a knee surgery. We also had Dwight with a (torn) labrum in his shoulder. Antawn Jamison will have surgery after the season is over on his wrist. So, when you try to look at the whys, it's bad luck."
Vitti said Bryant would be immobilized for at least a month after surgery. If Bryant were to recover on the short end of the six-to-nine month timetable the team provided, he might be able to play at the start of the 2013-14 season.
"That's the plan," Vitti said.
Bryant told Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak as much.
"Speaking to him this morning, that certainly was his goal," Kupchak said. "I think it would be aggressive to think he could be ready for training camp ... (but for the season opener) I think that's a goal. I think that's a realistic goal for him."
Pau Gasol had full confidence in Bryant's ability to achieve his goal.
"He's a guy that when you put something in front of him, he will get it done," said Gasol, who sent Bryant a text message with his support. "He will do it. He will put everything he's got on the line for it."
Bryant's injury was described as a "complete rupture" by Vitti.
"It's gone," Vitti said. "So, it has to be sewn back together."
Kupchak visited with Bryant at the Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic prior to the surgery and said the 34-year-old guard was in great spirits.
"He actually gave a message to me to pass on to the guys on the team, most of which I can't share with you right here (laughing), but it was a positive message as you might imagine," Kupchak said. "Very motivational."
Howard had a message of his own to impart in Bryant's absence, addressing the team after practice.
"I just told them that they put this team together for a reason and we all know how to play basketball," Howard said. "We've all done special things in our career before and it's time to do it again. We've all been blessed to play with Kobe but we all have talent, too, and we have to show it."
Bryant posted several photos to his Instagram account as he prepped for the surgery, including one posing next to Lakers minority owner Patrick Soon-Shiong while he was receiving an MRI.
Bryant fell to the floor with 3:08 remaining in the fourth quarter Friday night while being guarded by the Warriors' Harrison Barnes. Bryant had played every minute of the game up to that point, scoring 32 points -- including back-to-back 3-pointers to tie the game with 3:45 remaining.
"I made a move that I make a million times and it just popped," Bryant said after the game.
Bryant asked Barnes if he had kicked him in the leg. When Barnes said he hadn't, Bryant said he knew that a major injury had occurred.
"I was just hoping it wasn't what I knew it was," Bryant said. "Just trying to walk it off, hoping that the sensation would come back, but no such luck."
Following a timeout, Bryant went back into the game and hit both of his free throw attempts with the injury to end his night with 34 points, five rebounds and four assists before being subbed out for World Peace and heading to the locker room.
Source-ESPN
Tiger Woods did not consider withdrawing
Tiger Woods said he never contemplated withdrawing from the Masters despite the controversy over his second-round two-shot penalty.
Three-time Masters champion Nick Faldo was among the critics who said Woods should have disqualified himself after taking an incorrect drop at the 15th.
But four-time winner Woods, who shot a 70 on Saturday to reach three under, said he had "abided by the rules".
"I made a mistake, I took an improper drop and got the penalty," said Woods.
"If it was done a year or two ago, whatever, I wouldn't have the opportunity to play. But the rules have changed, and under the rules of golf I was able to play."
The controversial incident happened after Woods's third shot at the long 15th hit the flagstick and ricocheted back into the pond in front of the green.
Woods took a drop, made bogey and eventually signed for a one-over-par 73.
I wasn't even really thinking," he added. "I was still a little ticked at what happened, and I was just trying to figure, OK, I need to take some yardage off this shot, and that's all I was thinking."
Tournament officials initially deemed Woods's drop legal, but decided to review the incident after he said in a post-round interview he dropped the ball "two yards further back".
It was then determined he had violated the rule governing drops from yellow-marked (lateral) water hazards and handed a two-shot penalty.
Historically, that would have meant disqualification as he had signed for the wrong score - a six rather than an eight.
Instead they decided to apply a recent reinterpretation of the United States Golf Association rules, meaning that, rather than disqualifying him, they gave him a two-shot penalty.
The amendment was made to stop players from being disqualified for signing the wrong scorecard when television pictures later showed they had unknowingly moved the ball.
"He should really sit down and think about this and the mark this will leave on his career, his legacy, everything," said Faldo.
"It's just dreadful. Tiger is judge and jury on this. There is absolutely no intention to drop as close to the divot. That's a breach of the rules."
But senior Augusta official Fred Ridley denied Woods had received preferential treatment.
"If it'd been John Smith from wherever he would have got the same ruling," said Ridley, the competition committees chairman of the Masters.
"It is the right ruling. I can't really control what the perception might or might not be. All I can say is that unequivocally this tournament is about integrity."
Black Caviar scores her quarter century
Australian wonder mare Black Caviar extended her unbeaten streak to 25 races in some style on Saturday, blowing away her rivals in the TJ Smith Stakes at Sydney's Randwick Racecourse.
Her 25th victory was also her 15th at the sports highest level, overtaking the mark of 14 Group 1 wins set by the legendary Kingston Town in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
It was in 2011 that Black Caviar posted what many consider her greatest-ever performance in this very race, beating Hay List by three lengths after trailing him by the same distance coming into the home straight. On this occasion no such heroics were required.
Facing one of her toughest-ever fields, including her old foe Hay List, admittedly not the force he once was, and the in-form Bel Sprinter, Black Caviar's regular rider Luke Nolen had to jockey for position in the early stages as he sought to overcome an unfavorable inside draw.
The decisive move came around 300 meters out, when Nolen guided her away from the softer ground by the rail and settled her behind the leaders towards the middle of the track. From there, all Nolen had to do was pull the pin and the six-year-old instantly responded, lengthening away from the rest of the field with her to claim her eight consecutive Group 1 win.
All day Sydneysiders had celebrated the presence of one of Australia's most popular sporting heroes. Flags in her trademark salmon and black colors fluttered over Sydney's iconic harbor, while the capacity crowd ensured Randwick Racecourse was filled the rafters.
Speaking after the race, Black Caviar's trainer Peter Moody praised the crowd, adding that he was "extremely proud" of his mare for breaking Kingston Town's record. As Black Caviar was cheered on her way back to the winners' enclosure her jockey noted, "You can see what she means to racing. To be part of that -- words escape me."
Source-CNN
TT get direct Champions League entry
TRINIDAD and Tobago received a welcome boost to their Champions League hopes yesterday with the news that they will not have go through the qualifying phase this time around.
The tournament bowls off from September 17-October 6 later this year in India. The “Red Force”, captained by Denesh Ramdin, have been placed in Group ‘B’ alongside Titans (South Africa), Brisbane Heat (Australia), 2013 Indian Premier League (IPL) runners-up and a qualifier.
Group “A” consists of Highveld Lions (South Africa), Perth Scorchers (Australia), 2013 IPL champions, IPL third-placed team and a Champions League qualifier.
Speaking to Newsday yesterday, Denesh Ramdin, captain of TT, was in a euphoric mood and believes a direct entry to the Champions League main draw will help facilitate a deep progress into the competition.
Last year, the national team were forced for the second year in a row to go through qualifiers but stumbled in their opening match and were knocked out. The team returned home winless as their second fixture was washed out.
“I’m happy we are in the main draw. We won’t have to play to get into the tournament this time. Last year we had to work twice as hard to get in and then one game and we were out. All our preparations went down the drain. It was an unfortunate tournament for us. Five months preparation and to get knocked out in two days was difficult for me and the players,” he explained.
Asked about TT’s chances of a fairytale run a la 2009 where a Daren Ganga-led team went to the final, Ramdin did not make any predictions but said he remains optimistic.
The local team may have to do without a number of their top players as there are six locals currently competing in the IPL including Sunil Narine, Kieron Pollard, Samuel Badree, Dwayne Bravo, Kevon Cooper and Ravi Rampaul.
And with four teams from IPL — three in the main draw and one having to qualify — in the Champions League, it is highly likely that this country may not be at full strength for the Champions League.
“It all depends on whose team qualifies. Whoever we have available, it is an opportunity for us and the younger ones to step up. Every tournament you go into, you go with the intention of going all the way. There will be teams from all around the world coming to play for the same prize so it will be exciting,” he declared.