Ghazni (Afghanistan), May 22 (IANS) Five people were killed and 20 others wounded Wednesday evening by a suicide bomber in Muqur district in eastern Afghanistan's province of Ghazni, Xinhua said, quoting a provincial police source. More »5 killed in Afghan suicide bombing
By Nick Macfie ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - China and Pakistan should make cooperation on power generation a priority, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said, as Islamabad seeks to end an energy crisis that triggers power cuts of up to 20 hours a day, bringing the economy to a near standstill. Li arrived in the Pakistan capital under extra-tight security on Wednesday on the second leg of his first official trip since taking office in March and after a visit to Pakistan and China's arch rival, India. Li's plane was escorted by six air force fighter jets as it entered Pakistani air space. ... More »China's Li offers to help end Pakistan energy crisis
TRIPOLI, Lebanon (Reuters) - Lebanese supporters of rival factions in Syria's civil war battled overnight in the city of Tripoli in the worst such bout of spillover violence since the conflict started two years ago. One person was killed and many were wounded as Sunni and Shi'ite Muslim gunmen fired mortar bombs and rocket-propelled grenades at each other in a fifth day of clashes in the coastal city, security sources said on Wednesday. ... More »Sectarian violence over Syria war rages in Lebanon's Tripoli
New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Wednesday said that the UPA government had improved the performance of the economy, made growth more inclusive and ensured better delivery of welfare programmes. More »UPA made growth more inclusive: PM
Shimla, May 22 (IANS) Himachal Pradesh Transport Minister G.S. Bali submitted his resignation to senior Congress leaders as he was allegedly unhappy with his portfolio, party sources said. The minister himself refused to comment on the issue. More »Himachal minister 'resigns'
NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks extended gains on Wednesday immediately following prepared testimony from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke before a congressional panel. The head of the central bank said monetary stimulus is helping the economy recover, and the Fed needs to see further signs of traction before taking its foot off the gas. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 83.42 points, or 0.54 percent, to 15,471.00. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 10.00 points, or 0.60 percent, to 1,679.16. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 18.40 points, or 0.53 percent, at 3,520.52. ... More »Wall St extends gains after Bernanke comments
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. ... More »Analysis: Rich country investors returning home
LEEDS, United Kingdom, May 22, 2013 (AFP) - Joe Root said Wednesday that England would look to carry on from where they left off against New Zealand at Lord's during the second and final Test at his Headingley home ground. More »Cricket: Root hopes England can build on Lord's success
Bangalore, May 22 (IANS) Since Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is viewed in a section of the Congress as a "migrant" because he moved over from the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) in 2006, the state party Wednesday sought to end the insider-outsider debate. More »Karnataka Congress for ending debate on 'migrant' members
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. More »Netxcell joins hands with Funmobile in Nigeria
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. More »Sunrisers elect to bat against Royals
Kolkata, May 22 (IANS) The state Election Commission may notify the West Bengal panchayat elections Friday, an official said. More »Bengal panchayat polls notification Friday likely
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. ... More »Bernanke touts benefits of easing, no hint of pullback
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. More »BJP targets government over new CAG
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. ... More »Iran, Hezbollah increasing support for Assad: Britain
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. More »L&T Q4 profit drops near 7 percent
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. ... More »Factbox: Reviews for films in main competition at Cannes 2013
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. More »'Yadav planned to play in Bangladesh league'
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. ... More »NetApp speeds up share buyback, starts dividend
Kampala (Uganda), May 22 (IANS) Serbia-born Sredojevic Milutin has been confirmed as the new coach of Uganda's national football team. More »Uganda signs new national football coach