Section: Business Insider (USA)
Russia tries to shrug off crisis as West snubs investment forum
Saint Petersburg (AFP) – Russian officials tried to play down fears about the country’s economic crisis Thursday as tensions with the West over Ukraine cast a pall over its showcase investment forum.Once billed as Russia’s answer to Davos, the three-day Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum has Greek Prime Minister...
WhatsApp has been criticised over its handling of user data (FB)
WhatsApp has been criticised by a prominent pressure group over the way it handles user data. The Electronic Foundation (EFF) gave the wildly popular messaging app a “one star” rating in its annual “Who Has Your Back?” report examining how tech companies respond to government demands for information on their users....
Russia is extending a gas pipeline that bypasses Ukraine
Russia is reportedly planning to build a gas pipeline to Germany. Gazprom announced on Thursday that it plans to build a pipeline with a capacity of 55 billion cubic meters per year from Russia to Germany via the Baltic Sea with E.ON, Shell, and OMV, according to Kommersant. The planned pipeline’s route will be an extension to the Nord...
Europe marks Waterloo bicentenary with call for unity
Brussels (AFP) – European royals and diplomats gathered in Belgium on Thursday to mark the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo, a turning point for the continent which still touches a nerve and stirs national passions.The stress was on modern-day reconciliation and the sacrifice of some 47,000 dead or wounded soldiers on the fields...
What are traders chatting about this morning? Greece. (DIA, SPX, SPY, QQQ, IWM, TLT)
Via Dave Lutz at JonesTrading, here’s what traders are chatting about this morning. Good Morning! S&P futures are 70bp better than Germany’s, as the $ drop + Greece + Ukraine weigh on our European brethren. Get ready for Headline Bombs – FinMins are arriving for the Eurogroup meeting – A post-meeting press conference...
Record 60 million fled ‘out of control’ violence in 2014: UN
Geneva (AFP) – Conflicts and violence raging around the world sent the number of people forced to flee their homes soaring to a record 60 million last year, the United Nations said Thursday.That is 8.3 million more refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs) in the world than in 2013 — the highest-ever increase in a single year,...
6 out of 10 top oil-producing countries are under serious corruption risk
In the wake of the recent FIFA scandal, a risk analysis company called Verisk Maplecroft has ranked 198 countries on their prevalence of bribery and corruption. That ranking also looked at the top 10 oil-producing countries and found that six of them were under serious risk of corruption. The countries are divided into four risk categories: low,...
Ukraine creditors reject ‘haircut’ despite default threat
Kiev (AFP) – Ukraine’s biggest private creditors mounted a firm defence Wednesday of their refusal to accept a debt write-off that could keep the impoverished but strategic ex-Soviet nation from slipping into default.The group of four US investment giants — owed nearly two-thirds of the $15.3 billion (13.6 billion euros) Kiev is...
European diplomats are going to take another shot at resolving the Ukraine crisis next week
Europe and Russia are headed into another high-stakes bid at solving the conflict that has been raging in eastern Ukraine since early 2014. A ministerial meeting between Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany aimed at finding a rapid solution to the conflict will be held next week in Paris, Reuters reports. The high-level talks will be the latest...
Wawrinka latest star to fall at Queen’s
London (AFP) – Stan Wawrinka became the latest star to suffer a shock exit from Queen’s Club as the French Open champion was beaten 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (13/11) by South Africa’s Kevin Anderson on Wednesday.Just 24 hours after Rafael Nadal’s first-round defeat against unheralded Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov, it was...
