BEIJING – China unveiled data yesterday that showed tyre exports to the United States fell in the first half of 2009, saying the numbers undercut Washington’s accusations China had breached rules by flooding the US market.
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MOSCOW – In a startling admission, President Dmitry Medvedev said Russia was run by corrupt officials and many of its businessmen did nothing but live off the sale of raw materials.
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NEW YORK – Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the recession was technically over, while data including on US retail sales bolstered hopes that recovery from the worst downturn in decades was progressing.
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ERFURT, Germany – German Social Democrat (SPD) leader Frank-Walter Steinmeier stepped up his attack on Chancellor Angela Merkel at a rally as a poll showed her on track to form the centre-right government she is seeking.
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BAGHDAD – Militants fired several mortars or rockets at Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone government district shortly after US Vice President Joe Biden flew in, underlining the fragility of Iraq’s security gains.
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VIENNA/BRUSSELS – Iran held out the prospect of “deeper cooperation” with the UN nuclear watchdog as it gears up for talks with world powers that are likely to be held in Turkey.
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TOKYO – Japan’s incoming prime minister Yukio Hatoyama will pick a veteran lawmaker for finance minister, domestic media said, adding experience and fiscal caution to his untested party’s line-up.
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BEIJING – China said it would unveil new plans for tackling global warming at a United Nations summit next week that will try to break deadlock between rich and poor nations on a new climate treaty.
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LIVERPOOL, England – Prime Minister Gordon Brown conceded he would have to cut spending in order to tackle Britain’s soaring debt, but promised voters “vital frontline” services would not be affected.
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UNITED NATIONS – Both the Israeli army and Palestinian militants committed war crimes, and possibly crimes against humanity, during the December-January Gaza war, the United Nations charged.
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GENEVA – H1N1 influenza is “a virus of extremes” likely to cause far more deaths in poor countries than affluent ones, the head of the World Health Organisation said.
