First 4G Android Tablet With Netflix Launches on Outdated OS

It’s a big day of firsts for Sprint. The carrier launched its first Android tablet on Friday compatible with the new 4G “Wi-Max” network. The device is also the first Android tablet out there capable of running Netflix.

Unfortunately, despite being first in line for 4G and Netflix, Sprint’s HTC Evo View tablet ships with the older version of Android: 2.3 (Gingerbread), not version 3.0 (Honeycomb). A future software update will bring Honeycomb, the version of Android made specifically for tablets, to the device.

That speaks to a larger problem of “fragmentation” on Android devices: the inability to implement the platform consistently across multiple types of hardware made by different manufacturers. Fragmentation is also the key reason why Android tablets have been slow getting popular video-streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu onto its devices. It presents a problem for making sure that Digital Rights Management technologies — or applications that make sure you aren’t ripping and recording any of the streaming content you’re watching — function across all devices.

“It’s not one type of gas that goes into every vehicle,” said Netflix head of communications Steve Swasey, in an interview. “DRM isn’t consistent across all Android devices, and unlike the iPad and iOS devices, there’s not one universal solution to it.”

Nonetheless, the HTC Evo View 4G’s compatibility with Wi-Max will be significant for those who want to watch streaming media on their tablet devices, as the speed boost you’ll get moving from a 3G device to 4G is considerable.

The even better news for movie buffs: Unlike the multiple Android tablets that have already hit the market this year, it’s the first Android tablet to run Netflix at launch. The device will essentially come pre-bundled with the Netflix app (after a minor software update upon first powering up the tablet). As of today, only five Android phones are officially capable of running the Netflix app.

“This is a result of extensive testing of the Netflix app on the product to make sure it works smoothly on our network,” a Sprint spokeswoman told Wired.com.

Most tablets released in 2011 so far fall into two categories: Wi-Fi only, the type of device most manufacturers launch first, and a 3G or 3.5G networked device, like the original Samsung Galaxy Tab (on Sprint’s 3G network) or T-Mobile’s G-Slate (which is 3.5G at best). HTC introduced the Flyer, the Evo View’s Wi-Fi-only predecessor, in late May.

Under the hood, the Evo View 4G is no slouch. The tablet sports a 1.5-GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, a gig of ram, front and back-facing cameras and a 7-inch 1024×600 screen. It’s also got a stylus pen, which (for a limited time) will be thrown in for free if you buy a two-year contract.

In addition to the Evo View tablet, Sprint also launched the Evo 3D, HTC’s first 3-D-video-capable Android smartphone. The Evo View and Evo 3D are both available in Sprint and Best Buy stores as well as online, for $400 and $200 respectively, if purchased in conjunction with a two-year contract.

Read More

Instant view: Transportation buoys durable goods orders

(Reuters) - New orders for long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods rose more than expected in May as bookings for transportation equipment rebounded strongly, according to a government report on Friday that could allay fears of a sharp slowdown in factory activity.

U.S. economic growth was revised modestly higher in the first quarter to account for a slightly faster pace of restocking by businesses and a smaller increase in imports, government data showed on Friday, but remained anemic.

COMMENTS:

ROGER VOLZ, DIRECTOR OF CASH EQUITIES AT BGC FINANCIAL IN NEW YORK

"Enough to lift us off over the overnight lows, and it was better than expected. Cap good orders were also better than expected, though ex-transportation was a little light. This is giving us a bit of a relief bounce off the lows, but is it enough to turn us? That depends on how the headlines develop throughout the day."

SCOTT BROWN, CHIEF ECONOMIST, RAYMOND JAMES, ST. PETERSBURG, FLORIDA

"I think it's consistent with a slow path in economic growth. These numbers tend to be really choppy and uneven. The market was braced for much worse news. We got a pretty positive surprise."

MICHAEL BROWN WELLS FARGO, CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA

"What we're are seeing is a nice bounce back from the contraction last month, from the supply disruptions we faced from Japan.

"The most positive information we can glean from this is capital goods, which is up 5.6 percent compared to the 5.4 percent decline we observed last month.

"Capital goods orders feeds into business fixed investment, which has been posting fairly strong economic gains over the past quarters.

NIGEL GAULT, CHIEF U.S. ECONOMIST, IHS GLOBAL INSIGHT, LEXINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS

"The key thing to look at is always non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft, up 1.6 percent. That's OK, it's not a great month, but at least it's moving in the right direction. A little better than you might have expected given the gloomy news that's coming out of the manufacturing surveys. So that's a small plus.

"We also have got an improvement in the shipments of non-defense capital goods ex-aircraft, reversing May's decline. That goes straight into the GDP calculation, so that's helpful for the GDP but it does mean over the last two months that spending has been roughly flat.

"So overall it's up, it may be slightly better than expected, it's not great but it is better than you would have expected given the manufacturing surveys you've seen recently.

"Certainly the next month or so of data from what we've seen in the early regional manufacturing surveys for June and the latest surveys of the labor market that at least the next month of data doesn't look like it's going to be good. We'll have a very weak ISM and then another poor employment report."

KURT KARL, CHIEF U.S. ECONOMIST, SWISS RE, NEW YORK

"There was a little improvement in the GDP annualized and the durables goods orders are better than expected. A punch from aircraft but even non-defense ex-aircraft is doing well so the capital goods outlook is pretty strong. It is a good report. That is for May which would be post the shock of Japan.

"What I am seeing is a turning around. We had a lot of bad news at the beginning of the year, initially it was oil prices and then it was Japan, and some of the things have been price impacts with the weak dollar. There has been a whole bunch of little negatives, but the way I'm looking at it is these negatives are all temporary."

VIMOMBI NSHOM, ECONOMIST, IFR ECONOMICS, A UNIT OF THOMSON REUTERS

"After orders for durable goods dropped 2.7% in April, May manufacturing activity mustered to recover most of the decline, as orders grew by 1.9%. This is an encouraging report considering the influx of manufacturing surveys suggesting an impending slowdown in the industry, and April's decline was upwardly revised from an original decline of 3.6%. However, the good tone may not follow reflecting June data."

MARKET REACTION: STOCKS: U.S. stock index futures rise. BONDS: U.S. bond prices extend losses. FOREX: The euro pares losses versus dollar.

Read More

Google hits back in FTC antitrust probe

Search engine Google has claimed it is “committed to fostering a web that benefits us all” as it confirms formal Federal Trade Commission investigation.

Google has confirmed that the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has begun a “review of our business”, and presented a robust defence of its practices.

Writing on the Google Blog in a post entitled “Supporting choice, ensuring economic opportunity”, the company’s Amit Singhal said that “At Google, we’ve always focused on putting the user first. We’re committed to giving you choices, ensuring that businesses can grow and create jobs, and, ultimately, fostering an Internet that benefits us all”.

He claimed that “it’s still unclear exactly what the FTC’s concerns are, but we’re clear about where we stand. Since the beginning, we have been guided by the idea that, if we focus on the user, all else will follow”.

The FTC is investigating suggestions that Google’s search algorithm favours the company’s own sites over its rivals. A similar investigation is also taking place in Europe.

“Using Google is a choice—and there are lots of other choices available to you for getting information: other general-interest search engines, specialized search engines, direct navigation to websites, mobile applications, social networks, and more,” Singhal claimed.

In a robust defence of the company’s practises, he added that “[Google] will continue to follow the principles that have guided us from the beginning”. He said that these included adjusting the search algorithm to improve user experience, and sharing information about how the site works. “We want you to stay with us because we’re innovating and making our products better—not because you’re locked in,” said Singhal. “Not every website can come out at the top of the page, or even appear on the first page of our search results.”

The case has clear echoes of antitrust probes into Microsoft in the Nineties, which saw the company pay millions of pounds in fines and prevented from apparent plans to dominate huge swathes of the IT sector. Google, however, will benefit from changed laws, and from the difficulty of proving that Google abused its powerful position, rather than simply providing a service that millions of businesses and consumers choose to use every day.

Read More

Sears gets incentive to move to Michigan: report Read more: http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20110624/NEWS07/110629889/sears-gets-incentive-to-

(Crain's) — Sears Holdings Corp., which has expressed interest in moving its headquarters out of Illinois, is being courted with a $50-million incentive package offered by Michigan.

The Michigan Economic Development Corp. and officials in Wayne and Oakland counties are attempting to lure the retail chain to southeast Michigan, according to a Detroit Free Press report Friday. The publication, citing unnamed sources familiar with the issue, said local Michigan agencies have floated tax breaks in addition to suggesting buildings in Dearborn and Southfield as potential sites.

The Michigan Economic Development Corp. had no comment, the Detroit Free Press report said.

Sears has expressed its dissatisfaction with recent Illinois legislation that has temporarily hiked the corporate tax rate to 7% from 4.8% and has said it would consider moving out of state. The Hoffman Estates-based retailer, parent of Kmart and Sears department stores, has been in talks with representatives from Washington, D.C., North Carolina, Texas, Tennessee and New Jersey, according to news reports.

A Sears representative was not available for comment, but the company has repeatedly issued the same statement on its future.

"It's very important for everyone to understand that we have made no decisions at this point," the company said in a statement first issued last month. "We do owe it to our associates and shareholders to consider options and alternatives and intend to be very thoughtful and thorough in our deliberations."

If Sears were to take Michigan up on its offer, it would mark a homecoming of sorts. Sears Roebuck & Co. bought Troy, Mich.-based Kmart Corp. in 2005 to form Sears Holdings.

Gov. Pat Quinn has said he would work with Sears to find a way to keep it from leaving Illinois.

The retailer is among 107 companies that will see tax breaks expire in the next three years, a situation that could lead to a number of defections.

Caterpillar Inc. and CME Group Inc. are other firms that have threatened to leave Illinois in recent weeks and months.

Mr. Quinn has already cut a deal with Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. in which the state will grant the firm $100 million in tax breaks over the next decade if the mobile-phone manufacturer agrees to keep its headquarters in Libertyville. The cell-phone maker agreed to maintain 3,000 jobs in Illinois.

Read more: http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20110624/NEWS07/110629889/sears-gets-incentive-to-move-to-michigan-report#ixzz1QGtLXVXZ
Stay on top of Chicago business with our free daily e-newsletters

Read More

U.S. First Quarter Third Gross Domestic Product (Text)

Following is the text of the Gross Domestic Product from the Commerce Department.

Real gross domestic product -- the output of goods and services produced by labor and property located in the United States -- increased at an annual rate of 1.9 percent in the first quarter of 2011, (that is, from the fourth quarter to the first quarter), according to the "third" estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the fourth quarter, real GDP increased 3.1 percent.

The GDP estimate released today is based on more complete source data than were available for the "second" estimate issued last month. In the second estimate, the increase in real GDP was 1.8 percent.

The increase in real GDP in the first quarter primarily reflected positive contributions from personal consumption expenditures (PCE), private inventory investment, exports, and nonresidential fixed investment that were partly offset by negative contributions from federal government spending and state and local government spending. Imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, increased.

Annual Revision of the National Income and Product Accounts

The annual revision of the national income and product accounts (NIPAs) will be released along with the "advance" estimate of GDP for the second quarter of 2011 on July 29. In addition to the regular revision of estimates for the most recent 3 years and the first quarter of 2011, GDP and some components will be revised back to the first quarter of 2003 (see "Preview of the Upcoming Annual NIPA Revision" in the May Survey of Current Business). The August Survey will contain an article that describes the annual revision in detail.

FOOTNOTE.--Quarterly estimates are expressed at seasonally adjusted annual rates, unless otherwise specified. Quarter-to- quarter dollar changes are differences between these published estimates. Percent changes are calculated from unrounded data and are annualized. ``RealüEestimates are in chained (2005) dollars. Price indexes are chain-type measures.

The deceleration in real GDP in the first quarter primarily reflected a sharp upturn in imports, a deceleration in PCE, a larger decrease in federal government spending, and a deceleration in nonresidential fixed investment that were partly offset by a sharp upturn in private inventory investment.

Motor vehicle output added 1.18 percentage points to the first-quarter change in real GDP after subtracting 0.27 percentage point from the fourth-quarter change. Final sales of computers added 0.10 percentage point to the first-quarter change in real GDP after adding 0.35 percentage point to the fourth-quarter change.

The price index for gross domestic purchases, which measures prices paid by U.S. residents, increased 3.9 percent in the first quarter, 0.1 percentage point more than in the second estimate; this index increased 2.1 percent in the fourth quarter. Excluding food and energy prices, the price index for gross domestic purchases increased 2.3 percent in the first quarter, compared with an increase of 1.1 percent in the fourth.

Real personal consumption expenditures increased 2.2 percent in the first quarter, compared with an increase of 4.0 percent in the fourth. Real nonresidential fixed investment increased 2.0 percent, compared with an increase of 7.7 percent. Nonresidential structures decreased 14.8 percent, in contrast to an increase of 7.6 percent. Equipment and software increased 8.8 percent, compared with an increase of 7.7 percent. Real residential fixed investment decreased 2.0 percent, in contrast to an increase of 3.3 percent.

Real exports of goods and services increased 7.6 percent in the first quarter, compared with an increase of 8.6 percent in the fourth. Real imports of goods and services increased 5.1 percent, in contrast to a decrease of 12.6 percent.

Real federal government consumption expenditures and gross investment decreased 8.1 percent in the first quarter, compared with a decrease of 0.3 percent in the fourth. National defense decreased 11.8 percent, compared with a decrease of 2.2 percent. Nondefense was unchanged, after an increase of 3.7 percent. Real state and local government consumption expenditures and gross investment decreased 4.2 percent, compared with a decrease of 2.6 percent.

The change in real private inventories added 1.31 percentage points to the first-quarter change in real GDP, after subtracting 3.42 percentage points from the fourth-quarter change. Private businesses increased inventories $55.7 billion in the first quarter, following increases of $16.2 billion in the fourth quarter and $121.4 billion in the third.

Real final sales of domestic product -- GDP less change in private inventories -- increased 0.6 percent in the first quarter, compared with an increase of 6.7 percent in the fourth.
Gross domestic purchases

Real gross domestic purchases -- purchases by U.S. residents of goods and services wherever produced -- increased 1.7 percent in the first quarter, in contrast to a decrease of 0.2 percent in the fourth.
Gross national product

Real gross national product -- the goods and services produced by the labor and property supplied by U.S. residents -- increased 3.4 percent in the first quarter, compared with an increase of 2.8 percent in the fourth. GNP includes, and GDP excludes, net receipts of income from the rest of the world, which increased $51.1 billion in the first quarter after decreasing $10.5 billion in the fourth; in the first quarter, receipts increased $14.2 billion, and payments decreased $36.8 billion.
Current-dollar GDP

Current-dollar GDP -- the market value of the nation's output of goods and services -- increased 4.0 percent, or $146.7 billion, in the first quarter to a level of $15,018.1 billion. In the fourth quarter, current-dollar GDP increased 3.5 percent, or $126.3 billion.
Revisions

The "third" estimate of the first-quarter change in real GDP is 0.1 percentage point more than the second estimate. A downward revision to imports and an upward revision to inventory investment were largely offset by downward revisions to exports, to nonresidential fixed investment, and to state and local government spending.

Adv Second Third (Percent change from preceding quarter)

Real GDP 1.8 1.8 1.9 Current-dollar GDP 3.7 3.8 4.0 Gross domestic purchases price index 3.8 3.8 3.9
Corporate Profits

Profits from current production (corporate profits with inventory valuation and capital consumption adjustments) increased $48.7 billion in the first quarter, compared with an increase of $38.2 billion in the fourth quarter. Current- production cash flow (net cash flow with inventory valuation adjustment) -- the internal funds available to corporations for investment -- increased $16.7 billion in the first quarter, compared with an increase of $36.9 billion in the fourth.

Taxes on corporate income increased $33.2 billion in the first quarter, in contrast to a decrease of $1.3 billion in the fourth. Profits after tax with inventory valuation and capital consumption adjustments increased $15.5 billion in the first quarter, compared with an increase of $39.5 billion in the fourth. Dividends increased $14.8 billion, compared with an increase of $8.9 billion; current-production undistributed profits increased $0.7 billion, compared with an increase of $30.6 billion.

Domestic profits of financial corporations decreased $66.3 billion in the first quarter, in contrast to an increase of $57.7 billion in the fourth. Domestic profits of nonfinancial corporations increased $60.7 billion in the first quarter, in contrast to a decrease of $10.1 billion in the fourth. In the first quarter, real gross value added of nonfinancial corporations increased, and profits per unit of real value added increased. The increase in unit profits reflected an increase in unit prices and a decrease in the unit labor costs; unit nonlabor costs were unchanged.

The rest-of-the-world component of profits increased $54.4 billion in the first quarter, in contrast to a decrease of $9.4 billion in the fourth. This measure is calculated as (1) receipts by U.S. residents of earnings from their foreign affiliates plus dividends received by U.S. residents from unaffiliated foreign corporations minus (2) payments by U.S. affiliates of earnings to their foreign parents plus dividends paid by U.S. corporations to unaffiliated foreign residents. The first-quarter increase was accounted for by an increase in receipts and a decrease in payments.

Profits before tax with inventory valuation adjustment is the best available measure of industry profits because estimates of the capital consumption adjustment by industry do not exist. This measure reflects depreciation-accounting practices used for federal income tax returns. According to this measure, domestic profits of financial corporations decreased while domestic profits of nonfinancial corporations increased. The increase in nonfinancial corporations reflected increases in all the major subaggregates shown except for a small decrease in transportation and warehousing. Within manufacturing, the increase reflected increases in all the industries shown except computer and electronic products.

Profits before tax increased $140.3 billion in the first quarter, in contrast to a decrease of $48.3 billion in the fourth. The before-tax measure of profits does not reflect, as does profits from current production, the capital consumption and inventory valuation adjustments. These adjustments convert depreciation of fixed assets and inventory withdrawals reported on a tax-return, historical-cost basis to the current-cost measures used in the national income and product accounts. The capital consumption adjustment decreased $90.5 billion in the first quarter (from -$15.8 billion to -$106.3 billion), in contrast to an increase of $153.5 billion in the fourth. The inventory valuation adjustment decreased $1.2 billion (from - $103.2 billion to -$104.4 billion), compared with a decrease of $66.8 billion.

The large decrease in the first-quarter capital consumption adjustment reflects the expiration of bonus depreciation claimed under the Small Business Jobs and Credit Act of 2010. (For detailed data, see the table at www.bea.gov/national/xls/technote_tax_acts.xls.) Profits from current production are not affected because they do not depend on the depreciation-accounting practices used for federal income tax returns; rather they are based on depreciation of fixed assets valued at current cost and using consistent depreciation profiles based on used-asset prices.

Next release -- July 29, 2011, at 8:30 A.M. EDT for:

Gross Domestic Product: Second Quarter 2011 (Advance Estimate)

Annual Revision of the National Income and Product Accounts

(First Quarter 2003 through First Quarter 2011)

Read More

Instant view: Transportation buoys durable goods orders

(Reuters) - New orders for long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods rose more than expected in May as bookings for transportation equipment rebounded strongly, according to a government report on Friday that could allay fears of a sharp slowdown in factory activity.

U.S. economic growth was revised modestly higher in the first quarter to account for a slightly faster pace of restocking by businesses and a smaller increase in imports, government data showed on Friday, but remained anemic.

COMMENTS:

ROGER VOLZ, DIRECTOR OF CASH EQUITIES AT BGC FINANCIAL IN NEW YORK

"Enough to lift us off over the overnight lows, and it was better than expected. Cap good orders were also better than expected, though ex-transportation was a little light. This is giving us a bit of a relief bounce off the lows, but is it enough to turn us? That depends on how the headlines develop throughout the day."

SCOTT BROWN, CHIEF ECONOMIST, RAYMOND JAMES, ST. PETERSBURG, FLORIDA

"I think it's consistent with a slow path in economic growth. These numbers tend to be really choppy and uneven. The market was braced for much worse news. We got a pretty positive surprise."

MICHAEL BROWN WELLS FARGO, CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA

"What we're are seeing is a nice bounce back from the contraction last month, from the supply disruptions we faced from Japan.

"The most positive information we can glean from this is capital goods, which is up 5.6 percent compared to the 5.4 percent decline we observed last month.

"Capital goods orders feeds into business fixed investment, which has been posting fairly strong economic gains over the past quarters.

NIGEL GAULT, CHIEF U.S. ECONOMIST, IHS GLOBAL INSIGHT, LEXINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS

"The key thing to look at is always non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft, up 1.6 percent. That's OK, it's not a great month, but at least it's moving in the right direction. A little better than you might have expected given the gloomy news that's coming out of the manufacturing surveys. So that's a small plus.

"We also have got an improvement in the shipments of non-defense capital goods ex-aircraft, reversing May's decline. That goes straight into the GDP calculation, so that's helpful for the GDP but it does mean over the last two months that spending has been roughly flat.

"So overall it's up, it may be slightly better than expected, it's not great but it is better than you would have expected given the manufacturing surveys you've seen recently.

"Certainly the next month or so of data from what we've seen in the early regional manufacturing surveys for June and the latest surveys of the labor market that at least the next month of data doesn't look like it's going to be good. We'll have a very weak ISM and then another poor employment report."

KURT KARL, CHIEF U.S. ECONOMIST, SWISS RE, NEW YORK

"There was a little improvement in the GDP annualized and the durables goods orders are better than expected. A punch from aircraft but even non-defense ex-aircraft is doing well so the capital goods outlook is pretty strong. It is a good report. That is for May which would be post the shock of Japan.

"What I am seeing is a turning around. We had a lot of bad news at the beginning of the year, initially it was oil prices and then it was Japan, and some of the things have been price impacts with the weak dollar. There has been a whole bunch of little negatives, but the way I'm looking at it is these negatives are all temporary."

VIMOMBI NSHOM, ECONOMIST, IFR ECONOMICS, A UNIT OF THOMSON REUTERS

"After orders for durable goods dropped 2.7% in April, May manufacturing activity mustered to recover most of the decline, as orders grew by 1.9%. This is an encouraging report considering the influx of manufacturing surveys suggesting an impending slowdown in the industry, and April's decline was upwardly revised from an original decline of 3.6%. However, the good tone may not follow reflecting June data."

MARKET REACTION: STOCKS: U.S. stock index futures rise. BONDS: U.S. bond prices extend losses. FOREX: The euro pares losses versus dollar.

Read More

Swiss Franc Climbs to Record High Versus Euro Amid Concern on Debt Crisis

The Swiss franc rose against all of its 16 most-traded peers, reaching a record against the euro, as investors sought safety on concern an austerity plan to stabilize Greece won’t resolve Europe’s sovereign-debt crisis.

The dollar gained for a third week against the euro, the longest since February, on speculation Greece’s parliament may reject Prime Minister George Papandreou’s plan to cut the budget deficit, win more aid and avoid default. The pound slid for a fourth week against the dollar after U.K. policy makers discussed more monetary stimulus. Growth in U.S. manufacturing cooled in June, a report next week may show.

“All these headlines continue to add to uncertainty and nervousness amongst investors and continue to create the choppy price action that we’ve been seeing,” said Paresh Upadhyaya, head of Americas G-10 currency strategy at Bank of America Corp. in New York. “Just as you feel you’re on top of the Greek situation, you get thrown a curve ball.”

The franc touched 1.1806 versus the euro yesterday, the strongest level since the shared currency’s 1999 debut. It gained 2.6 percent for the week to 1.1826 per euro, from 1.2142 on June 17. The franc gained 1.8 percent to 83.31 centimes per dollar, from 84.82 centimes a week earlier.

The greenback appreciated 0.8 percent to $1.4188 against the euro, from $1.4306. The U.S. currency rose 0.5 percent against the yen to 80.43, from 80.05, gaining for the first time in five weeks. The euro fell 0.3 percent to 114.13 yen in its third week of losses, the longest losing streak since January.
No New Purchases

IntercontinentalExchange Inc.’s Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against the currencies of six trading partners, rose for a third week as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke dashed expectations policy makers would expand stimulus measures. That eased concern Fed policies would further debase the currency. The index rose 0.8 percent to 75.583.

The central bank said June 22 after a two-day meeting it will maintain monetary stimulus to support a flagging economic recovery while letting a $600 billion bond-purchase program end on schedule this month. Bernanke told reporters policy makers are in a “different position” now than last August, when deflation posed a “nontrivial risk” and he first hinted the Fed might undertake the debt buys.

Sterling fell for a fourth week against the greenback, the longest since September, as minutes of the latest Bank of England meeting showed some policy makers saw a risk that more bond purchases may be required.

The pound weakened 1.5 percent to $1.5959, from $1.6194 on June 17. It touched $1.5939 on June 23, a three-month low.
Austerity Vote

Greece’s Papandreou may struggle to pass austerity measures even after winning a confidence vote by 155-143 on June 22, which sent the euro to a one-week high against the dollar. The prime minister will seek parliament’s approval next week for a 78 billion-euro ($111 billion) package of budget cuts and asset sales, a condition for more aid the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.

“Anything that starts with a “G” I’ll be paying attention to,” said Carl Forcheski, a director on the corporate currency sales desk at Societe Generale SA in New York.

Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos said he’ll speak to dissenters from the ruling Pasok party in a bid to persuade them to back the austerity measures in a vote that’s due by June 30.

Thomas Robopoulos, a lawmaker from the party, said he hadn’t decided whether he’ll vote for the plan. He said yesterday by telephone he was leaning toward voting against it.

“The majority that they had for the confidence on Tuesday of 155 seems to be dwindling away,” said Mark McCormick, a New York-based currency strategist at Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.
Italian Banks

The euro fell 1.5 percent over the past three months, according to Bloomberg Correlation-Weighted Currency Indexes, which track the currencies of 10 developed nations. The Swiss franc was the best performer, gaining 8.4 percent.

The 17-nation currency fell against most major counterparts yesterday as Italy’s two largest banks, UniCredit SpA and Intesa Sanpaolo SpA, led a drop in bank stocks in Milan. Trading in both firms’ shares was briefly suspended after breaching limits on intraday swings.

Moody’s Investors Service said June 23 it may downgrade 13 Italian banks because they would be vulnerable to a cut in the government’s credit rating. The firm said last week Italy’s ratings may be cut because of slowing economic growth and the potential for Europe’s debt crisis to drive up borrowing costs.

“Adding to unexpected risk to the euro, the market now has to concentrate on risks to Spain and Italy, which were long considered safe in this go-around,” said Bank of America’s Upadhyaya.
Canadian Dollar

Canada’s dollar dropped against the greenback as crude oil, the nation’s biggest export, fell. The International Energy Agency said its members will release 60 million barrels of oil from emergency stockpiles to alleviate possible shortages following the loss of Libyan crude.

The Canadian currency depreciated 0.9 percent to 98.86 cents per U.S. dollar, from 97.94 cents a week earlier. It touched 98.87, yesterday, within one cent of the weakest since March 17. Crude fell 2.3 percent to $91.16 a barrel in New York, dropping below $90 on June 23 for the first time since February.

The Institute of Supply Management’s manufacturing index slipped to 51.8 in June from 53.5 in May, according to a Bloomberg News survey of economists before the data is released on July 1. Readings above 50 signal growth.

Read More

Souris River surges past 130-year-old flood record

Minot, N.D. -- The Souris River's full weight hit Minot on Friday, swamping an estimated 2,500 homes as it soared nearly 4 feet in less than a day and overwhelmed the city's levees. City officials said they expect as many as 4,500 homes to be flooded.

More than a quarter of the city's 40,000 residents evacuated earlier this week, packing belongings they hoped to save.

Fed by heavy rains upstream and dam releases that have accelerated in recent days, the Souris surged past a 130-year-old record Friday and kept going. The river was more than 5 feet above major flood stage Friday and expected to crest as early as today about 8 1/2 feet beyond major flood stage.

"This has been a very trying time for our community," Mayor Curt Zimbelman said. "It's emotionally draining for all of us."

As they had the past two days, emergency officials focused on protecting water and sewer systems to avoid the need for more evacuations.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service launched four boats to patrol flooded neighborhoods and respond to 911 calls. City officials said no injuries or incidents had been reported by Friday afternoon. The evacuation zone was empty except for emergency officials and some geese, who paddled in about 5 feet of water washing down the streets.

George Moe, 63, whose house was about a block from the water's edge, returned briefly Friday to pick up some keys. Moe worried about the home he's lived in for four decades and the shop where he works as a mechanic; it was taking on water and he wasn't sure he'd have a job after the flood.

"I hate to see something go to hell after 40 years," he said. "There ain't much you can do."

Read More

The New Arrivals At Port Lympne Wild Animal Park

Two De Brazza's monkeys stand together at Port Lympne Wild Animal Park on June 21, 2011 in Hythe, England. Port Lympne has welcomed a host of new arrivals this year with wildebeest, colobus monkeys, gorillas and rhinos all adding to the current stock. Port Lympne and Howletts Wild Animal parks were set up by the late John Aspinall to protect and breed rare and endangered species and, where possible, return them to safe areas in the wild. The Aspinall Foundation which runs the parks also manages two gorilla rescue and rehabilitation projects in the central African countries of Gabon and Congo where they have successfully reintroduced over 50 gorillas to the wild. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

An Eland grazes in the African Experience section at Port Lympne Wild Animal Park on June 21, 2011 in Hythe, England. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

A 6 month old Black Rhino calf stands with its mother in its enclosure at Lympne Wild Animal Park on June 21, 2011 in Hythe, England. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Baby Baboons play at Port Lympne Wild Animal Park on June 21, 2011 in Hythe, England. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

A Grevy's Zebra stands in its enclosure at Port Lympne Wild Animal Park on June 21, 2011 in Hythe, England. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

A Western Lowland Gorilla clutces her baby at Port Lympne Wild Animal Park on June 21, 2011 in Hythe, England. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

A female Ostrich walks along the fence in the African Experience section at Port Lympne Wild Animal Park on June 21, 2011 in Hythe, England. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Read More

The Glastonbury Festival 2011: Day Two

Festival goers enjoy the atmosphere during the Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm, Pilton on June 23, 2011 in Glastonbury, England. The festival, which started in 1970 when several hundred hippies paid 1 GBP to watch Marc Bolan, has grown into Europe's largest music festival attracting more than 175,000 people over five days (Photo by Ian Gavan/Getty Images)

Read More

Jodrell Bank Observatory In Bid To Become UNESCO World Heritage Site

“The Lovell Telescope is a radio telescope at Jodrell Bank Observatory, near Goostrey, Cheshire in the north-west of England. When it was constructed in 1955, the telescope was the largest steerable dish radio telescope in the world at 76.2 m (250 ft) in diameter; it is now the third largest, after the Green Bank telescope in West Virginia, USA, and the Effelsberg telescope in Germany. It was originally known as the 250 ft (76 m) telescope or the Radio Telescope at Jodrell Bank, before becoming the Mark I telescope around 1961 when future telescopes (the Mark II, III, and IV) were being discussed. It was renamed to the Lovell Telescope in 1987 after Bernard Lovell, and became a Grade I listed building in 1988. The telescope forms part of the MERLIN and European VLBI Network arrays of radio telescopes”. – Wikipedia

The Lovell Telescope listens to the night sky for radio signals from space at Jodrell Bank on June 22, 2011 in Holmes Chapel, England. Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics and it's world famous Lovell Telescope is on the shortlist of Britain's submission for Unesco World Heritage Site status. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

Engineers carry out maintenance on the focus box inside the 76 metre dish of the the Lovell Telescope on June 21, 2011 in Holmes Chapel, England. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

Read More

Mannequins

Jahmar Bailey works on preparing a mannequin that sports extra large breasts for the display window of the Ocean 9ine store on April 26, 2010 in Miami Beach, Florida. A recent phenomenon in curvy mannequins is thought to be a reflection in the number of women who now have plastic surgery as well as catering to men's fondness for large boobs. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

A customer measures dummies at a mannequin store on February 1, 2007 in Nanjing of Jiangsu Province, China. Most dummies sold at the Chinese shops remain stick-thin despite the debate in the fashion industry, as the fashion federations of France, Italy, the United States and Britain discuss the controversy over ultra-thin models working on the catwalks at fashion shows. (Photo by China Photos/Getty Images)

Read More

The World's Finest And Most Expensive Cars Are Showcased At The Salon Prive Garden Party

People look at a vehicle at the “Salon Prive” luxury and supercar event on June 22, 2011 in London, England. The annual three day Salon Prive offers the opportunity to view the most exotic modern and vintage super cars in the world and is being held for the first time at Syon Park. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Car enthusiasts watch the car parade at the “Salon Prive” luxury and supercar event on June 22, 2011 in London, England. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

A man takes a photograph of an Aston Martin “Atom” at the “Salon Prive” luxury and supercar event on June 22, 2011 in London, England. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

A woman has her photograph taken in front of a Bugatti Veyron at the “Salon Prive” luxury and supercar event on June 22, 2011 in London, England. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

The rain hammers down on a row of classic cars at the “Salon Prive” luxury and supercar event on June 22, 2011 in London, England. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Read More