Anger over Justin Bieber's Anne Frank message
Justin Bieber has caused outrage with his message in a guestbook at the Anne Frank Museum, saying he hoped the Holocaust victim would have been a fan.
The 19-year-old pop idol wrote: "Truly inspiring to be able to come here. Anne was a great girl. Hopefully she would have been a belieber."
It has provoked fierce online criticism of the Canadian singer, who is in Amsterdam as part of a tour.
The museum defended the star but added his comment "wasn't very sensible".
The Canadian singer's comment was quoted on the Anne Frank House Facebook page following his visit on Friday evening.
Anne Frank's diary, written during the two years the teenager and her family hid from the Nazis in occupied Amsterdam, made her a symbol of the suffering of Jews during World War II.
The house has been turned into a museum dedicated to the young girl, who died in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in 1945 aged 15.
The suggestion that had she lived today, the teenager would have been a "belieber" - a term used by his devoted fans to describe themselves - generated thousands of horrified responses on social networking websites.
"Just saw what Justin Bieber wrote in the Anne Frank Museum guestbook. Absolutely disgusted," read one tweet.
"Way to turn an inspiring moment into something about yourself," read another.
However, museum spokeswoman Maatje Mostart defended the young star to the BBC, saying: "He's 19. It's a crazy life he's living, he didn't mean bad… and also it's nice that he made the effort, he didn't have to come."
Source-BBC
Meat Loaf pulls out of Nottingham concert
Meat Loaf has cancelled a concert in Nottingham an hour before it was due to start.
A statement on the Capital FM Arena's website said the show had to be postponed "due to medical reasons affecting several members of the band".
A spokeswoman for the arena told the BBC News website fans were told of the cancellation at 18:30 BST, ahead of the doors opening at 19:00.
The concert has been rescheduled for Monday 20 May.
All tickets for Sunday's gig will remain valid on the new date, although refunds will be given to fans who are unable to attend.
The shows are part of Meat Loaf's Last At Bat farewell tour.
He is due to play in Manchester, Sheffield, Cardiff and northern Europe before returning to the UK in May.
China economic growth lower than forecast
China, the world's second-largest economy, has seen growth slow in the first three months of this year, latest figures show.
The economy grew at an annual rate of 7.7% in the January to March quarter, down from 7.9% in the previous quarter.
Most analysts had forecast growth of closer to 8% for the period.
These are the first growth numbers to be reported after China's new leaders took charge of the country, in what is seen as a crucial time for its economy.
Beijing has been trying to spur growth after it hit a 13-year low in 2012.
Adam Scott beats Angel Cabrera in play-off
Adam Scott clinched his maiden major title and became the first Australian winner of the Masters with victory against former champion Angel Cabrera in a sudden death play-off at Augusta.
Scott, 32, holed a 15ft birdie putt in virtual darkness across the 10th green on the second extra hole to deprive Argentina's 2009 winner after both players birdied the 18th in regulation to reach nine under on a dank, drizzly day.
Australian Jason Day, runner up with Scott in 2011, was third at seven under with Tiger Woods (70) and another Australian Marc Leishman (70) tied for fourth at five under.
"It fell my way today, there was some luck there but it's incredible to be in this position. I'm honoured," said Scott, who squandered a four-shot lead with four to play to lose the Open to Ernie Els last year.
"This is the one thing in golf we hadn't been able to achieve," he added. "It's amazing that it's my destiny to be the first Australian to win."
Scott's long birdie putt on the 18th gave him a round of 69 and a one-shot lead over Cabrera, who was waiting back down the fairway in the final group. The Argentine kept his focus despite the roars from the green and hit his approach to a few feet before making his birdie for a 70 to join Scott.
Both came up slightly short of the 18th green on the first extra hole and Cabrera, playing first, almost holed his chip and tapped in from a foot for a fourScott left his chip three feet shy but holed it and they went back down the 10th. They both hit good approaches to the heart of the green but Cabrera, who won a play-off against Chad Campbell and Kenny Perry three years ago, missed his putt before Scott made his.
"That's how golf is. I came back and I had that chip on 18, I could have won it," said Cabrera.
"But Adam's a good winner. I would have been happier if I had won but he's a great player, I get along with him, we've played together in the President's Cup and I'm happy for him."
Cabrera, the joint overnight leader with Brandt Snedeker, held a two-shot lead at nine under during the first nine but on the way home he shared the lead with Scott and Day, who was two in front with three to play before bogeys at 16 and 17.
Woods was four behind at the start of the day after being penalised two shots for an illegal drop on Friday, but struggled to ignite his round and carded a two-under 70 for a seventh top four in his last eight Masters following his last win in 2005The 14-time major champion, chasing his fifth Green Jacket and first major title since 2008, said his putting cost him.
"I played well, unfortunately I just didn't make enough putts and also missed a few shots here and there," said Woods, the world number one.
"I certainly had an opportunity. If I shot 65 I thought I could win it outright, and it looked like that might be the number. I just couldn't quite get the peed right the first eight holes I left them short."
American Snedeker slumped to a 75 for four under with 23-year-old Danish debutantThorbjorn Olesen, who finished with a 68 to head the European challenge.
England's Lee Westwood once again led the British challenge and got to four under at the seventh before finishing three under with a 71. The 39-year-old, who was second in 2010 and third last year, is still chasing his first major at the 60th attempt.
"Any time you finish top 10 in a major you've got to be pleased with that," said Westwood. "There's not too many negatives to take away."
Malawi's president 'furious' after Madonna criticised
Malawi's President Joyce Banda was "incandescent with anger" over a statement labelling US singer Madonna a bully, the BBC has learnt.
She was unaware of the harshly-critical statement that was issued by her office following Madonna's recent visit to the country, senior officials have said.
The statement accused Madonna of exaggerating her contribution to the country and demanding VIP treatment.
Madonna, who was visiting her charity in Malawi, hit back at the criticisms.
She described them as lies and said she began her involvement in Malawi seven years ago "with honourable intentions".
A well-placed source told the BBC that President Banda was "incandescent with anger" when she heard about the statement, and a senior official has confirmed she knew nothing about it.
The statement issued on Wednesday, accused the star of wanting Malawi "to be forever chained to the obligation of gratitude".
It claimed Madonna believed the government should have "rolled out a red carpet and blast the 21-gun salute" upon her arrival in Malawi.
"Granted, Madonna is a famed international musician. But that does not impose an injunction of obligation on any government... to give her state treatment. Such treatment, even if she deserved it, is discretionary not obligatory," the statement said.
And, in reference to a row over whether she is building schools or classrooms, it said she "needs to learn as a matter of urgency... the decency of telling the truth".
Emily Banda, head of Malawi's NGO board, said that although President Banda "did not approve" or indeed know about the statement, there would be no apology for the mistake.
Some of the criticism of Madonna's charity work was justified, she said.
Madonna, who has adopted two children from Malawi, originally planned to build an $15m (£9.9m) girls' academy.
But two years ago she closed down the Malawian office of her charity Raising Malawi, which was headed by President Joyce Banda's sister, Anjimile Mtila-Oponyo - who now works at the education ministry - and opted to fund 10 schools instead.
Earlier this month, Malawi's education minister Eunice Kazembe said Madonna was building classrooms, not entire schools, in the country.
"She has built classrooms at existing schools... really it's a difference in terminology," the minister said.
Trevor Neilson, who is now managing Raising Malawi projects, said $400,000 had been spent on building the 10 school blocks allowing some 4,000 children, who had been learning under trees, to be taught in classrooms.
On Thursday, Raising Malawi put out a statement saying that Madonna "did not ever ask or demand special treatment at the airport or elsewhere" during her visit.
She said she saw "with my own eyes the 10 new primary schools in Kasungu province that Raising Malawi... completed this year".
"Madonna is not letting politics stand in the way of her deep commitment to help build schools there and educate as many children as possible," the statement also said.
Source-BBC
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.