Yahoo! News India

By Natsuko Waki LONDON (Reuters) - The world's biggest investors may be rethinking 20 years of boosting overseas holdings and are instead seeking more stable cash income at home, as aging societies and tighter regulation dull risk appetite. This heralds a structural shift toward investments that produce long-term income in advanced economies, home to two thirds of the money held by insurers and pension funds - some $55 trillion. ...

By Pedro da Costa and Alister Bull WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve's monetary stimulus is helping the U.S. economy recover, and the central bank needs to see further signs of traction before taking its foot off the gas, central bank chairman Ben Bernanke said on Wednesday. In testimony that offered no sign that he is ready to retreat from the Fed's latest round of bond buying, Bernanke emphasized the high costs of unemployment and inflation that continues to run below the central bank's target. ...

By Suleiman Al-Khalidi AMMAN (Reuters) - British Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Wednesday Iran and its militant Shi'ite Lebanese ally Hezbollah were "propping up" Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and giving him increasing support. "It is very clear that Syrian regime is receiving a great deal of support, increasing support in recent months from outside Syria from Hezbollah and Iran. This is a regime that is increasingly dependent on external support," Hague said in a news conference with his Jordanian counterpart Nasser Judeh. ...

CANNES (Reuters) - This year 20 films are in the main competition at the Cannes film festival, vying for the Palme d'Or for best picture that will be awarded on May 26. Here is the 2013 lineup with the average rating out of four by 10 international critics as published in trade magazine Screen: - HELI by Amat Escalante, Mexico Stars: Armando Espitia, Andrea Vergara. Synopsis: A 12-year-old girl falls in love with a police cadet, dragging her family into Mexico's brutal drug war. Average Critic Score: 1. ...

By Lehar Maan and Sagarika Jaisinghani (Reuters) - Data storage equipment maker NetApp Inc , under pressure from activist shareholder Elliott Management, said it would spend about $1 billion in the next four months to buy back shares. Shares of the company, which also initiated a quarterly dividend and cut about 7 percent of its workforce, rose 4 percent in trading after the bell. Elliott confirmed on Tuesday it had acquired about 16 million, or about 4.3 percent, of NetApp's shares, making it one of the largest shareholders of the company. ...

By Cris Chinaka HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe signed a new constitution into law on Wednesday, replacing a 33-year-old document forged in the dying days of British colonial rule and paving the way for an election later this year. Approved overwhelmingly in a referendum in March, the constitution clips the powers of the president and imposes a two-term limit. However, it does not apply retroactively so the 89-year-old Mugabe could technically extend his three decades in office by another 10 years. ...

REUTERS - Just Dial's up to 9.4 billion rupee ($170 million) initial public offer was subscribed 11.6 times on closing on Wednesday, in what is the biggest IPO in the country so far this year. The response to the equity offering signals strong investor appetite for new shares, although bankers said this would unlikely open up the moribund IPO market in the near term with few medium-to-large sized issues in the pipeline. ...

LONDON (Reuters) - An 18th century silver Rococo coffee pot is expected to become the most valuable piece of English silver ever sold at auction when it goes up for sale in July, auction house Christie's said. The ornate George II pot made in 1738 by one of the greatest silversmiths of his day, Paul de Lamerie, is expected to fetch up to 4.5 million pounds when it goes to auction on July 4 in London, Christie's said on Wednesday. That sale would trump the silver wine cistern of 18th century diplomat Thomas Wentworth, which sold for 2. ...

By Zorianna Kit LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Rapper Pitbull has taken his blend of American pop music fused with Latin beats from the clubs of Miami to international pop charts, but he now is crossing into film with his first acting role as an animated character in the upcoming movie, "Epic." Pitbull, whose real name is Armando Perez, has become a staple in the pop music field with lively dance-floor tracks including recent chart hits "Feel This Moment" with Christina Aguilera and "Live it Up" with Jennifer Lopez. ...

By Jonathon Burch ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey has shut its side of the last border crossing with Syria still controlled by President Bashar al-Assad's government, stepping up security following two deadly bombings this month. Fifty-one people were killed when twin car bombs ripped through the Turkish border town of Reyhanli in the southern province of Hatay on May 11, heightening fears that Syria's civil war was dragging in neighbouring states. Turkey has accused Syria of involvement in the attacks. Damascus has denied any role. ...

By John O'Donnell BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Europe moved closer to ending banking secrecy on Wednesday after Austria dropped objections to sharing data on foreign depositors and the EU focused on negotiating a similar agreement with Switzerland. "It's a bad day for tax cheats," Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann told reporters at a meeting of EU leaders to discuss fighting tax fraud. "We will act jointly and I believe we will manage the exchange of data by the end of the year. ...

By Kevin Lim and Pedja Stanisic SINGAPORE (Reuters) - The parents of an American engineer found dead in Singapore last year said on Wednesday they will not take part in the rest of a coroner's inquiry into his death, which they say was linked to a project involving the transfer of sensitive technology to China. In a statement, Rick and Mary Todd said they had lost confidence in the system investigating the death of their 31-year-old son, Shane, who was found hanging from a door in his Singapore apartment last June. ...

ROME (Reuters) - Pope Francis on Wednesday urged Catholics in China to remain loyal to the Vatican, whose authority is challenged by China's Communist rulers. China's Catholics number between 8 and 12 million and are divided between the state-sanctioned Catholic Patriotic Association, which has installed bishops without Vatican approval, and an "underground" wing loyal to the Vatican that rejects state control. Francis's predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, made May 24 a day dedicated to prayer for China's Catholics. Francis said at his weekly audience in St. ...

Hyderabad, May 22 (IANS) Netxcell Limited, a leading telecom technology services provider, Wednesday announced its association with Funmobile, a leader in the mobile content domain in west Africa.

New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) Sunrisers Hyderabad captain Cameron White won the toss and elected to bat against Rajasthan Royals in the Eliminator of the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Ferozeshah Kotla here Wednesday.

Kolkata, May 22 (IANS) The state Election Commission may notify the West Bengal panchayat elections Friday, an official said.

New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) The BJP Wednesday targeted the UPA government over appointment of Shashi Kant Sharma as the new Comptroller and Auditor General of India, and said there was "institutional conflict of interest" as he will be auditing defence deals which were finalised during his term as defence secretary.

Mumbai, May 22 (IANS) Engineering and construction conglomerate Larson & Toubro Wednesday posted a 6.8 percent drop in net profit at Rs.1,787.94 crore for the fourth quarter ended March.

New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) Former Ranji cricket player Baburao Yadav, arrested in the IPL spot fixing scandal, had planned to play in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) with the help of one of the arrested bookies, police said Wednesday.

Kampala (Uganda), May 22 (IANS) Serbia-born Sredojevic Milutin has been confirmed as the new coach of Uganda's national football team.

Agartala, May 22 (IANS) A consumer court in Tripura has ordered Cadbury India to pay a compensation of Rs.30,000 to a complainant who found an iron pin inside a chocolate bar made by the company.

Gaborone (Bostwana), May 22 (IANS) The president of the world motorsport governing body, Federation Internationale de I' Automobile (FIA), Jean Todt is scheduled to visit Botswana in August, Botswana Motorsport Association (BMSA) has confirmed.

Ranchi, May 22 (IANS) The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) Wednesday ruled out any pre-poll tie-up in the state assembly and Lok Sabha polls in 2014.

Madrid, May 22 (IANS) Spanish Primera Liga football club, Real Sociedad have confirmed that coach Philippe Montanier will leave the club at the end of the current season.

Mumbai, May 22 (IANS) Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone, daughter of badminton icon Prakash Padukone, says sports was pure and clean during her father's time. She rues how malpractices such as spot-fixing can give any sport a bad name.

Mumbai, May 22 (IANS) Actress Sherlyn Chopra grabbed the paparazzi's attention by grooving at the 66th Cannes International Film Festival wearing a white and gold Indian lehenga choli. She is there to promote her movie "Kamasutra 3D" with the team.