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Written By Unknown on Sabtu, 27 Juli 2013 | 18.38

Hub to Istanbul flights

Boston will be more firmly connected to the global economy next May when Turkish Airlines begins offering the first nonstop service from Logan International Airport to Istanbul, Turkey, with connections to 236 global destinations, including cities in Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa.

Turkish Airlines will use a 289-seat Airbus A330-300 aircraft on the route and will begin flying out of Boston five days a week starting May 12, 2014. The service will increase to daily flights on June 9, 2014.

Citigroup 
says Summers
a consultant

Larry Summers, the former Treasury secretary and Harvard University president, who is in the running to replace Ben S. Bernanke as Federal Reserve chairman, is a paid consultant for Citigroup Inc. Summers, 58, has worked for Citigroup since at least 2012, according to Danielle Romero-Apsilos, a spokeswoman for the New York-based lender. She declined to say how much compensation he receives from the bank, the third-biggest in the U.S. The Fed is one of the primary regulators of the nation's lenders.

THE SHUFFLE

  • Rockland Trust announced Ian Brandon has joined the bank as first vice president in the commercial banking division serving the Boston and Metrowest areas. In his new position, he will develop and cultivate commercial relationships.

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Death at Pinehills spurs probe

The owner of Diaz Construction Co., whose worker was killed on a Plymouth job site Tuesday, said the Avon company tries to go "by the book" when it comes to safety.

But Leonel Diaz's company has been cited by the U.S. Occupational Safety & Health Administration for 19 safety violations totaling $46,000 in initial fines — 15 of which were deemed serious violations — since 2005, according to OSHA records.

OSHA is investigating the death of Jason Faria, a Diaz Construction employee who died at The Pinehills residential community in Plymouth, where the Mirabeau Inn & Spa is under development. The Fall River man was killed when a concrete form to which he was harnessed came loose and fell, according to Mike Fish, a partner at the project's general contractor, JK Scanlon Co.

Diaz Construction is a subcontractor on the project for whom Faria had worked for four years.

"Everything looked safe," Diaz told the Herald yesterday. "Nobody knows how it happened. We have a safety officer, and we try to do everything by the book. That's why he was tied up."

Faria would have turned 27 years old yesterday.

His stepfather, Mario Benjamin, said he was unaware of Diaz Construction's past safety violations.

"I work in construction, and a lot of companies do get fined," Benjamin said. "This is just a tough situation. What I know is he was tied up on his harness on a concrete form … and the form started to slip down, and he tried to unhook the harness to jump off, but he couldn't."

An OSHA spokesman confirmed the agency has launched an investigation. OSHA has fined Diaz Construction for safety violations on eight separate occasions after job site inspections that were planned or the result of complaints in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010 and 2011, according to OSHA documents.

The violations ranged from issues with scaffolding, protruding steel, protective helmets and protecting employees from potentially hazardous loose rock or soil to daily excavation inspections, protecting employees from cave-ins, portable ladders, safety training, and eye and face protection, the documents state.

Diaz, who told the Herald that he wasn't on the job site when Faria died, said he was awaiting OSHA's report on the incident.

"The hard part is that we lost Jason," Diaz said. "Everybody feels sorry about that. He was a good worker, a nice kid. We're sorry for him and his family."


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Cambridge single-family fresh from makeover

This unassuming two-family in North Cambridge has been converted into an upscale single-family home.

Built in 1894, the 2,100-
square-foot three-bedroom home at 225 Rindge Ave. was recently renovated with new systems and wiring, higher ceilings, slate and wide-plank wood laminate floors, recessed lighting and all-new marble bathrooms. It's on the market for the just-reduced price of $839,900.

Geared for low maintenance, the home has new vinyl siding and a tankless water-heating system. And although there is no front yard, there is a fenced-in grass backyard.

The exterior has been nicely restyled with gray siding and white trim with plum-colored shutters. A small front porch leads into a foyer with brown slate floors and a cutout that opens up to the adjoining living room, which has 10-foot ceilings with white soffits, wood floors and recessed lighting.

Straight ahead from the foyer, through French doors, sits a sunny formal dining room with two windows, recessed lighting and slate floors. At the far end of this room, under a metal overhead fixture, is a granite-topped cutout leading into the kitchen.

The home's recessed-lit kitchen has white soffits, brown slate floors, 15 custom wood cabinets and granite counters and backsplash. There are Samsung, Kitchen Aid and Whirlpool stainless-steel appliances.

Off the kitchen is a half bath and at the end of a slate hallway, there's a laundry room with a full-size Whirlpool washer and dryer.

The home's three bedrooms are on the second floor, reached via a turning staircase. The master bedroom suite, with wood floors and two closets with built-ins, has a high-end bathroom with brown marble floors and walls around a tub and shower and a stylish double-sink vanity. There's a back porch leading from this bedroom.

There are two other bedrooms, one good for a children's room and a third that's nursery sized. There's a stylish, second full marble bathroom with tiled surround for a tub/shower and white sink vanity.

The home's finished basement has a slate-floored family room plus an adjoining home office. There's also a full ceramic-tiled bath here with a tub/shower and white sink vanity.

There's extra storage space in an unfinished area of the basement, along with the home's high-efficiency gas-fired heating and cooling system, as well as a Rinnai tankless water-heating system.

A driveway next to the house accommodates three vehicles.

Broker: Bremis Realty, brokers Brenda Bremis at 617-828-1872 and Stephen Bremis at 617-828-1070


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Obama says choices now will govern future economy

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama says Washington's top priority must be to reverse trends like economic inequality, weakened middle-class security and global competition. He says Washington has lost focus on the economy.

In his weekly Internet and radio address, Obama is pressing economic ideas he's been promoting in an ongoing series of speeches. He wants better access to education, home ownership, health care and secure retirement.

He says that he'll listen to good ideas from either party but that Republicans are threatening to take the nation in the wrong direction.

In the Republican address, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor of Virginia says Republicans will focus this week on government abuse, such as intrusive regulations and red tape that he says threaten Americans' paychecks and civil liberties.

___

Online:

Obama address: www.whitehouse.gov

GOP address: www.gop.gov


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Study: Consolidate state’s 105 pension systems

Written By Unknown on Jumat, 26 Juli 2013 | 18.38

Consolidating the administration of the state's 105 public employee retirement systems would save nearly $25 million annually in employment costs and stipends that could be used to pay off unfunded pension liability, according to a new study.

The Pioneer Institute, a Boston think tank, estimates that consolidation could save up to $22.5 million in annual labor costs and another $2.3 million in retirement board member stipends. Each local retirement system is overseen by a board, each of whose five members receives a $4,500 annual stipend, plus travel and other expenses.

"We have so many retirement systems it's very hard to know whether they're doing the right thing," said Iliya Atanasov, Pioneer's senior fellow on finance and one of the study's authors. "If we consolidated that system, we would be able to have substantial savings and have much more transparency about what is going on with pension assets because it would be clear where the responsibility lies and what's happening with those dollars."

Atanasov and co-
author Casey Miles found that the median local board had 524 beneficiaries for every board member, but one of the least staffed boards — Middlesex County — was almost four times as efficient. Only the state employees' system had a lower staffing level, with 2,597 beneficiaries per employee compared with Middlesex's 1,968.
 The largest local system, Boston, has 2 1⁄2 times as many beneficiaries as the Middlesex system but employs almost six times as many staff.

Daniel J. Greene, executive officer of the Boston Retirement Board, could not be reached for comment.

Jon Carlisle, a spokesman for state Treasurer Steven Grossman, who oversees the state retirement board, said the treasury strongly supports cost-saving initiatives but cannot compel independent retirement boards to merge into the state system.

"Instead, the Pension Reserves Investment Management Board, the investment arm of the state retirement system, has encouraged local boards to invest their holdings with it and has attracted those investments through strong performance and outstanding customer service," Carlisle said. 
"The management fees that an independent board can save through this arrangement are substantial."


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Aerosmith drummer’s coffee rolls into local stores

Fans of Aerosmith and fans of java unite! Beginning next month, you'll be able to indulge your taste for both when drummer Joey Kramer's organic brew hits store shelves.

Rockin' & Roastin' coffee will be available in 100 locations throughout New England, including Big Y's 59 stores in Massachusetts and Connecticut.

"I'm a coffee addict forever," Kramer told the Herald. "This is not just another celebrity putting his name on a product. I'm hands on. I'm working really hard on it. There's no reason people should be gouged."

For $7.99, you can take your pick from his trio of small-batch brews: two dark roasts from Sumatra and Ethiopia and one dark-medium roast from Guatemala.

All three previously were available only online. But in May, Kramer announced his partnership with Comfort Foods of North Andover, which now roasts, packages and distributes them.

Currently, the coffee is available in both whole bean and ground forms, and soon Kramer will unveil a single-serving option.

Java lovers need feel no guilt for indulging their addiction. Through June 2014, he'll donate a portion of his coffee sales to auto-dealership magnate Ernie Boch Jr.'s nonprofit, Music Drives Us, which offers grants for music programs for people in need.

In addition to Big Y, Rockin' & Roastin' coffee will also be available at five other grocers: Roche Bros., Trucchi's Supermarkets, Dave's Fresh Marketplace in Rhode Island; Durham Marketplace in New Hampshire; and Geissler's Supermarket in Connecticut.

Next stop for Kramer's coffee: Texas, where he owns a home, although no date has been set.


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Stakes raised at Belmont Estate

When it comes to satellite communities, Belmont is in its own orbit.

It's a place where professionals retreat and families thrive — all within sight of the city skyline.

Belmont Estate Homes is the latest project from renowned builder Cindy Stumpo of C. Stumpo Development. A fixture in the high-end construction business, you might also know her from her HGTV and FoxLife Series "Tough as Nails."

Originally a private estate, the property now includes four spectacular residences, three of which are built from the ground up.

They will all include five bedrooms, four full-bathrooms and two half-bathrooms, with anywhere from over 5,000 square feet of living space to upwards of 8,000 square feet, depending on the level of finish work a buyer chooses to include.

The basement and third floor can be customized according to the owner's specifications. Additionally, the homes will feature marble and hardwood floors, custom-built cabinets, granite countertops, state-of-the-art appliances from Sub-
Zero, Bosch and others, abundant outdoor space, mature landscaping complete with full irrigation systems and magnificent views of the Boston skyline.

Care to have the latest "Smart Home Technology"? Not a problem. Belmont Estate Homes already contain distributed pre-wiring for audio, television, Internet, outdoor cameras, touch panel and security. All of this may be controlled from a remote, mobile device, allowing you to alter temperature, check the cameras and so much more.

Ranging in price from $3,135,000 to $3,950,000, the homes will "work well in the Belmont environment as they are all beautifully elegant" says Stumpo. She goes on to say that "the homes are both stunning yet simplistic, following very classic lines and details."

Two of the three new structures are nearing completion with an early fall, 2013 target date.

These homes are being marketed exclusively by Michael Carucci of Group Boston Real Estate, LLC who can be reached at Michael@Bostonrealestate.net.

For more information on this project visit Bel-
montestatehomes.com.

Charlie Abrahams is a licensed real estate agent in Boston who works with buyers and sellers and 
can be reached for any 
additional information 
at: Bostonrealestate@
charlieabrahams.com


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Greece's rescue creditors clear new batch of loans

BERLIN — Greece's international creditors have cleared a 2.5 billion-euro ($3.3 billion) installment of bailout loans following the approval of new austerity measures by authorities in Athens.

European Commission spokesman Simon O'Connor said the decision was made by deputy finance ministers of the 17-country eurozone on Friday, pending some national approval procedures to be concluded Monday.

He added that Greece will also get a 1.5 billion-euro payout stemming from profits on bonds bought by the European Central Bank under a now-defunct bond-buying program.

Greece has approved new debt reduction measures, including thousands of public-sector job cuts, to meet the conditions that are part of its 240 billion-euro rescue package from its EU partners and the International Monetary Fund.


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True-crime writer Ann Rule sues Seattle newspaper

Written By Unknown on Rabu, 24 Juli 2013 | 18.38

SEATTLE — True-crime author Ann Rule is suing a weekly Seattle newspaper, saying she was defamed in 2011 when the fiance of a convicted killer wrote a lengthy article accusing her of "sloppy storytelling."

The lawsuit, filed in King County Superior Court last week, is the latest twist in a long-running feud precipitated by Rule's book about Liysa Northon, an Oregon woman who served 12 years in prison after killing her husband in 2000.

Northon argued she was a battered spouse and said she shot her husband, pilot Chris Northon, during a camping trip in eastern Oregon to protect herself and her children. But Rule's book "Heart Full of Lies" laid out a different theory: that Liysa Northon had long planned the killing and faked evidence of abuse to cover up her real motive, collecting insurance money and other benefits.

Liysa Northon pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was released from prison last fall. She sued Rule for defamation — a case that was dismissed by a federal judge in 2007, with Liysa Northon and her father ultimately being ordered to pay more than $60,000 for Rule's legal fees after an unsuccessful appeal.

In 2011, the Seattle Weekly ran an article about the Chris Northon case by Rick Swart, a freelance writer who previously served as the editor and publisher of a small Oregon newspaper, the Wallowa County Chieftain. The article accused Rule of making numerous mistakes in her book and ignoring important facts beneficial to Liysa Northon's case.

The Seattle Weekly's then-editor, Caleb Hannan, has said he didn't learn until after the article was published that Swart and Northon were engaged. The couple got married in prison later that year.

In a lengthy editor's note days after the piece ran, Hannan explained the omission and said he had uncovered several minor mistakes in Swart's reporting.

Rule argues in her lawsuit that the damage had been done because to sell her books, she relies on her reputation for accuracy and attention to detail.

"The article contained innumerable inaccuracies and untruths concerning the testimony and evidence in the trial of Liysa Northon and also included various unfounded personal attacks on Rule," her lawyer, Anne Bremner, wrote in the complaint. "At the time ... Swart and Northon were engaged, and any meaningful inquiry by Seattle Weekly or Hannan should have discovered this significant source of bias."

Hannan and Swart, who are also named as defendants, did not immediately return messages seeking comment.

"The article in question was published prior to our ownership," Sound Publishing President Gloria Fletcher said in an email. "At the time, Seattle Weekly was owned by New Times Media. Sound Publishing has not been served with any complaint."

The lawsuit seeks "reasonable damages."

Rule has written dozens of books. Her first, "The Killer Beside Me," came out in 1980 and detailed her time working on a crisis hotline with serial killer Ted Bundy.

___

Johnson can be reached at https://twitter.com/GeneAPseattle


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Gov't needs $95.51 per share to break even on GM

DETROIT — General Motors stock would have to sell for $95.51 per share for taxpayers to break even on bailing out the company, according to a government watchdog's report released Wednesday.

That price is about three times what GM shares are selling for now, even after a 25 percent increase in the price so far this year.

"There's no question that Treasury, the taxpayers, are going to lose money on the GM investment," Special Inspector General Christy Romero, author of the July quarterly report to Congress, said in an interview.

GM needed the $49.5 billion bailout to survive its trip through bankruptcy restructuring in 2009. Since emerging from bankruptcy, the restructured company has piled up $17.2 billion in profits. In exchange for the bailout, the government got 61 percent of GM's stock. It cut that to 33 percent in GM's November 2010 initial public offering.

The government has gradually been selling off the rest of the stock, with the goal of exiting the investment by April of next year. As of June 6, it still owned 189 million shares, or about 14 percent of the company, according to the report.

Taxpayers are still $18.1 billion in the hole on the $49.5 billion bailout, including interest and dividends, according to the report.

If the government sells its remaining shares of GM for the current stock price of $36.61, it would get just over $6.9 billion, meaning taxpayers would lose about $11.2 billion on the bailout.

When GM was bailed out in 2008 and 2009, the government said it was necessary to stop the industrial Midwest economy from collapsing. Chrysler was bailed out for $12.5 billion at the same time. Taxpayers wound up losing $2.9 billion on that bailout, Romero's report said.

The report says that taxpayers still are owed $14.6 billion for bailing out Ally Financial Inc., which once was GM's auto lending arm. Treasury still owns 74 percent of the company, plus $5.9 billion worth of preferred stock.

Ally has made one principal payment of $2.5 billion since the bailout 4 ½ years ago. It also has paid the government $3.4 billion in dividends, according to the report.

Residential Capital LLC, or ResCap, Ally's troubled mortgage arm, filed for bankruptcy protection last year. Romero criticized Treasury for having no clear plan to deal with mortgage liabilities, which he said is preventing the government from selling its stock.

"We really want to see what's the plan here. How are taxpayers going to recoup our money? Are we taking a loss?" Romero asked.

Overall, the government allocated $474.8 billion to the TARP program to bail out banks, insurers, auto companies and others during the financial crisis. Taxpayers are still owed $57.6 billion, the report stated. Of that, the Treasury Department has written off losses of $29.6 billion, leaving a balance of $28.6 billion outstanding.

That figure excludes $8.6 billion spent on the government's bailout program for struggling homeowners. That money is designated as government subsidies and no repayment is expected, the report said. Romero said Treasury has yet to spend $29.9 billion available for the housing program.

Her report also cited continuing problems with the mortgage aid program, which has been criticized for years for failing to help enough homeowners at risk of foreclosure. The program allows modifications of mortgages for eligible homeowners. The report says the longer homeowners have stayed in the program, the greater their chance of missing payments and defaulting on their modified mortgages.

It says the oldest modifications, from the third and fourth quarters of 2009, have an average default rate of 46 percent, compared with modifications granted in 2010, which have an average rate of 38 percent. About 306,000 homeowners have defaulted of a total 865,000 or so in the program. The original goal was to help 3 million to 4 million struggling homeowners, in a program based on banks participating and reworking mortgages for borrowers — including some with weak credit histories.

Treasury said there will always be a risk of defaults in such a program. But Treasury disputed the idea that homeowners are more likely to default the longer they're in the program, saying that in fact the longer they remain in it, the more likely they are to keep up payments and avoid default.

Treasury has taken steps to improve its ability to give "as many struggling homeowners as possible the chance to keep their home while recognizing that not all will succeed," Mark McArdle, the acting chief of homeownership preservation, said in a post on the department's website. For example, he said, the program established eligibility rules so that mortgage aid would go to those homeowners most in need, and standards to make the modifications provided sustainable for homeowners.

__

AP Business Writer Marcy Gordon in Washington contributed to this report.


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Obama to try to focus public attention on economy

WASHINGTON — Seeking to focus public attention on the problem he was sent to the White House to solve, President Barack Obama is making a renewed push for policies to expand the middle class, helping people he says are still treading water years after the financial meltdown.

Obama will use a series of back-to-back speeches over two days to take another stab at selling the public on his vision of a thriving economy.

The first of those speeches comes Wednesday when Obama visits the Midwest to speak at Knox College in Galesburg, Ill., where he gave his first major speech as a freshman U.S. senator in 2005 during booming economic times. He is not expected to announce any new initiatives. The president also speaks later in the day at the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg. The third speech is set for Thursday at the Jacksonville Port Authority in Florida.

The White House is billing Obama's latest speech at Knox College as a major one, comparable in tone to the commencement address he delivered there eight years ago, also about the economy. Back then he talked about how the country can give every American a "fighting chance" in a 21st century transformed by technology and globalization.

The trio of speeches comes as Congress prepares to leave Washington next week for its monthlong August recess. These and other speeches planned for the coming weeks and months are designed to increase public pressure on lawmakers in hopes of avoiding showdowns over taxes and spending in the fall. The White House believes such stalemates will stunt the economy, which has added more than 200,000 jobs a month in the past six months. The new federal budget year begins Oct. 1 and the government will soon hit its borrowing limit.

Republican congressional leaders dismissed Obama's effort as the latest act in what one called the "endless political road-shows."

In his 2005 speech at Knox College, Obama spoke about how technology and globalization and the weakening of labor unions had upended the idea that those who worked hard would be able to get good jobs that paid enough to support their families, provided adequate health care, allowed them to retire with dignity and gave them hope that their children would have a better future.

He was expected to argue Wednesday that those underlying trends haven't been reversed.

"They are still a central challenge that we face," Obama told supporters Monday night in Washington. "There's no more important question for this country than how do we create an economy in which everybody who works hard feels like they can get ahead and feel some measure of security."

Other issues, like stemming climate change, advancing women's and civil rights, and reducing gun violence, are important too, Obama said. "But what we also know is, is that so many of the issues that we care about are more likely to progress if people feel good about their own lives and their economic situation."

Republicans mocked Obama's new focus on the economy.

"Welcome to the conversation, Mr. President. We've never left it," said House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio. He suggested that approving the Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast and delaying Obama's health care law would do more to create jobs than delivering speeches would.

"If Washington Democrats were really serious about turning the economy around, they'd be working collaboratively with Republicans to do just that, instead of just sitting on the sidelines and waiting to take their cues from the endless political road-shows the president cooks up whenever he feels like changing the topic," added Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky

Obama said Wednesday's speeches begin a monthslong effort to refocus on the economy. New policy proposals are expected to be included in a series of single-issue, follow-up speeches planned through September.

The economy largely has been overshadowed in the first six months of Obama's second term, partly driven by a White House that chose to invest time and political capital on other parts of his agenda, such as the failed effort to enact stricter gun laws and the push for an immigration bill.

Circumstances outside of the White House's control also played a role, including the civil war in Syria, the coup in Egypt and renewed attention by Congress to the deadly attack on Americans in Libya. Closer to home, the targeting of political groups by the Internal Revenue Service and the seizure of journalists' telephone records by the Justice Department also required large investments of White House time.

The economy has showed slow improvement throughout, registering gains in the housing and stock markets and consumer confidence. The national unemployment rate, though it remains high by historical levels, actually is down to 7.6 percent.

But the coming fiscal deadlines threaten to undo that progress, adding a sense of urgency to the push in Washington and with the public at large to focus on the economy.

___

Follow Darlene Superville on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/dsupervilleap


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LG's profit falls on weak TV demand, handset costs

SEOUL, South Korea — LG Electronics' latest quarterly report underlined challenges facing global electronics makers as weak TV demand and stiffer competition in smartphones undermine profit.

The results Wednesday showed an 8 percent decline in April-June net profit to 155.5 billion won ($140 million) even as LG's revenue rose 10 percent from a year earlier to 15.2 trillion won ($13.6 billion). Operating profit fell 9 percent from a year earlier to 479 billion won.

LG's TV sales improved a bit and smartphone sales hit a quarterly high of 12.1 million handsets. The smartphone shipment figure was more than double from the year-earlier quarter.

But that was not enough to create bigger profits as consumers snapped up cheaper devices that have lower margins for manufacturers. LG said sales of LCD TVs rose but soft TV demand combined with competition from rivals depressed TV prices.

Even though LG turned around its loss-making mobile unit to the world's No. 3 smartphone supplier, its handset business is not a cash cow like Samsung and Apple's, which dominate the high-tier smartphone market. LG's cheaper smartphones are popular but also burden the company with heavy marketing costs.

To improve its bottom line, LG is rolling out high-end models for its core TV and handset businesses in the current quarter.

Earlier this week, LG began sales in the U.S. market of curved TVs that cost $15,000.

LG and Samsung Electronics Co., the world's two largest TV makers, have invested billions of dollars to make giant TVs with OLED screens, or organic light-emitting diodes, hoping to outclass the crispness and color saturation of other TVs. But there are still challenges to successful OLED mass production, accounting for their high price.

On the smartphone side, LG is set to introduce the latest iteration of its flagship Optimus G series phone globally by October. LG has not launched a new smartphone in the second quarter.

The G2 smartphone will be its first smartphone to have a debut event at Apple's home market. On Aug. 7, LG is announcing the G2 smartphone at the Lincoln Center in New York City.

LG said the G2 smartphone secured contracts with more global wireless carriers than its predecessors, including Verizon Wireless, which will help expand sales. Chief financial officer Jung Do Hyun said the company plans to spend big on marketing in the third quarter to promote the new phone as LG struggles to build premium brand in the mobile market.

The company needs a "mega hit smartphone to dramatically raise its profit," said So Hyun-chul, an analyst at Shinhan Investment Corp.

That is the same challenge facing other top smartphone makers.

While Apple and Samsung Electronics cashed in on the initial explosive growth in smartphone use, impressing consumers with new smartphones has become harder as top handset makers offer similar hardware features. Growth is stalling in developed countries where smartphone use has reached saturation point. Emerging markets are still growing but the demand is for cheaper phones that are less profitable for the handset makers.

LG said its second-quarter smartphone sales increased thanks to demand for middle-tier smartphones.

On Tuesday, Apple reported lower quarterly earnings for the second straight quarter as it increased sales of older, less expensive models of the iPhone instead of the latest version.

___

Follow Youkyung Lee on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/YKLeeAP


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Survey: Brighter US economic outlook boosts hiring

Written By Unknown on Senin, 22 Juli 2013 | 18.38

WASHINGTON — Companies are increasingly confident the economy will grow at a modest pace over the next year and are hiring more, according to a survey of business economists.

Nearly one-third of the economists surveyed by the National Association for Business Economics said their companies added jobs in the April-June quarter, according to a report released Monday. That's the highest percentage in nearly two years. And 39 percent expect their firms will hire more in the next six months. That's near the two-year high of 40 percent reached in the January-March quarter.

The hiring pickup occurred even though sales and profit growth slowed in the second quarter.

Optimism about future economic growth increased. Nearly three-quarters of the survey respondents forecast growth of 2.1 percent or more over the next 12 months. That's up from two-thirds in the first quarter survey, released in April, and the most in a year.

The quarterly survey's results echo much of the recent data tracking the economy. Growth has been slow in the past nine months, but employers have added jobs at a healthy pace. Many economists anticipate that the steady hiring will help accelerate growth in the second half of this year.

The NABE surveyed 65 of its member economists between June 18 and July 2. The economists work for companies from a variety of industries, including manufacturing, transportation and utilities, finance, retail and other services.

Among the findings:

— Only about 35 percent of the respondents said sales at their firms increased in the second quarter. That's sharply lower than the 55 percent who reported rising sales in the first quarter. And 15 percent said sales fell, up from 9 percent in the first quarter.

— Profit growth also slowed: Only 21 percent of respondents said profit margins increased last quarter, down from 29 percent in the first.

— Only 19 percent of economists said their firms were raising wages and salaries, down from 31 percent in April and the lowest proportion since October.

— A small but increasing minority of respondents say that government spending cuts and tax increases have hurt their businesses. Twenty-six percent of the economists said their firms were negatively impacted, up from only 16 percent in April. Still, 74 percent said the government policies had no impact on their businesses, though that's down from 79 percent three months earlier.

Looking ahead, companies are increasingly concerned about higher interest rates. That reflects the jump in rates that took place following Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's comments in late May that the Fed could slow its bond-buying program later this year. Those purchases are intended to keep interest rates low.

The interest rate on the 10-year Treasury bond, a benchmark that influences mortgage rates and other borrowing costs, has increased nearly a full percentage point to about 2.5 percent since May.

When asked for their biggest concern over the next 12 months, 17 percent of the respondents cited rising interest rates. That is a big jump from April, when only 4 percent cited such concerns.

The biggest concern for most companies is the health of the global economy, which was cited by nearly one-third of the respondents. Europe's financial crisis has plunged that region into a recession, and growth in China, Brazil and other large emerging markets has also slowed. That's crimping U.S. exports.


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Pump prices jump 12 cents, AAA sees further rise

American motorists are bracing for further increases in gas pump prices this summer after average national prices rose 12 cents in the past week alone.

AAA says drivers are experiencing "sticker shock" as increased summer demand, unrest in Egypt and production disruptions in the U.S. and other countries push up the price of crude oil and gasoline.

The national average price for regular unleaded gasoline was $3.67 a gallon on Friday.

AAA says that's 23 cents more expensive than the same time last year but still below the all-time daily high of $4.11 a gallon on July 17, 2008.

The association says retail gas prices are likely to rise more in the coming weeks.

Unscheduled refinery shutdowns or hurricanes on the U.S. Gulf Coast could also add to price increases.


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Emerging economies give Philips a Q2 profit boost

AMSTERDAM — Royal Philips Electronics NV says its net profit in the second quarter soared to €317 million ($416 million) from €102 million in the same period last year partly thanks to stronger sales of consumer products like shavers in emerging economies.

Lower restructuring and acquisition costs also helped lift quarterly profits.

Sales for the quarter totaled €5.65 billion ($7.41 billion), up from €5.57 billion in the second quarter of 2012.

Philips CEO Frans van Houten said Monday Philips is "concerned about economic uncertainties around the world," but committed to achieving its full-year targets.

Sales of consumer lifestyle products such as electric razors and other domestic appliances rose 13 percent to €1.1 billion and lighting sales were up two percent to €2.05 billion.

Sales in emerging economies grew by 12 percent.


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Hasbro 2Q results miss Wall Street's expectations

PAWTUCKET, R.I. — Hasbro Inc.'s second-quarter net income fell 16 percent, hurt by cautious consumer spending and a steep drop in sales of boys' toys.

The No. 2 toy maker earned $36.5 million, or 28 cents per share, for the period ended June 30. That compares with $43.4 million, or 36 cents per share, a year earlier.

Removing pension-related charges, earnings were 29 cents per share.

Analysts expected earnings of 34 cents per share.

Revenue for the Pawtucket, R.I., company dropped 6 percent to $766.3 million from $811.5 million, missing Wall Street's $800.6 million estimate.

Sales of boys' toys declined 35 percent against tough year-ago comparisons. But girls' toys jumped 43 percent, and board game sales climbed 19 percent.

Last week rival Mattel Inc.'s second-quarter net income fell, hurt by ongoing softness in Barbie sales and a write-down on the Polly Pocket line.


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Mich. governor front, center in Detroit bankruptcy

Written By Unknown on Minggu, 21 Juli 2013 | 18.38

DETROIT — Seven governors came and went during the decades-long decay of Michigan's largest city that culminated with a humiliating collapse into financial ruin.

It's the eighth, former business executive and relative political novice Rick Snyder, who is aggressively tying his legacy to the prospects of a Detroit turnaround.

When he took office, Snyder pushed for more powers for the state to intervene in distressed cities and schools. After voters repealed the law last November, he ignored critics and signed another one. He also hired the city's turnaround specialist and, nearly four months later, blessed the request to file for bankruptcy.

For the man with the "one tough nerd" moniker, it's the latest bold decision in a 2 ½-year stretch that's remarkable for the sheer breadth and pace at which Snyder has moved. He's again in the national spotlight just a half-year after making Michigan — the bastion of the auto industry and organized labor — a right-to-work state, a move that pollsters say led a drop in his approval ratings.

Though the impact of the bankruptcy filing on Snyder's 2014 re-election may be difficult to predict, it's still a legacy definer that's being watched not only in Michigan but also by Wall Street and other elected officials across the country.

Snyder, a former venture capitalist and computer company CEO, has no known presidential aspirations.

"I don't spend time dwelling on my legacy. I just try to do my job well," the Republican governor told The Associated Press in an interview. "That's relentless positive action. No blame, no credit. Just simply solve the problem.

"Here was a problem 60 years in the making. The can was being kicked down the road for far too long. It was time to say enough was enough. Let's stop, let's stabilize, let's grow."

Detroit's bankruptcy could last at least through summer or fall 2014, when Snyder is expected to ask voters for another term.

"I deeply respect the citizens of Detroit," he said. "They along with the other 9 million people in our state hired me to do this job. They're my customers. This was a tough step, a difficult decision, but it's the right decision."

The first-term governor, perhaps more than any other state's chief executive, hasn't been afraid to confront mounting retiree pension and health care costs hampering state and city budgets. He's done that mainly by signing laws making public workers pay more of their health costs, ending retiree health care for new hires and enticing teachers to contribute more toward their future pensions.

But the stakes could be higher with the Detroit intervention under Michigan's emergency manager law.

Eric Scorsone, a Michigan State University economist and expert on government finances, said while Snyder helped revise the law to make it one of the toughest in the country, bankruptcy likely was inevitable even under the old law — unless creditors had voluntarily agreed to accept far less than what they're owed.

"Other governors may have taken different approaches. But even under the old law, if we had a different governor, it's pretty obvious something would have had to be done," he said.

Scorsone said many other U.S. cities have issues similar to Detroit, though not on the same scale. Other states will be watching to see what happens in part because Snyder — not local elected officials — is taking responsibility for improving public safety and other basic needs, he said.

"I think it's aggressive in the sense that most states don't intervene in local affairs to the same extent," Scorsone said.

Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero, a Democrat who lost to Snyder in the 2010 election, said Snyder "definitely" deserves credit if Detroit emerges in better shape, especially in providing everyday services.

"It's bold and decisive. You've got to give him credit, however late," Bernero said, adding that Snyder should have intervened in Detroit within three months of taking office in 2011.

"There was a sense of inevitability about this bankruptcy," Bernero said. "I would have moved quicker with an emergency manager. The ship couldn't right itself. Why prolong the agony? Lance the boil and move on."

Snyder first struck a consent agreement in April 2012 with the Democratic-led city to wipe out its enormous budget deficit and mountainous debt but appointed Kevyn Orr as emergency manager after that didn't work.

Steven Rattner, who was chief adviser to President Barack Obama's auto bailout task force, said from his detached vantage point in New York, Snyder "has handled this thing quite well."

While acknowledging the political difficulties associated with anything viewed as a bailout, Rattner questioned why the state and possibly the federal government aren't offering Detroit a rescue package.

"It's not logical for there to be political fallout from putting Detroit in bankruptcy because there's no other alternative to that," Rattner said. "The question people can ask is whether Snyder is offering all the help the state of Michigan can offer. ... These are tough politics either way."

There seems little appetite from either Democrats or Republicans in Washington for a federal rescue of Detroit. Bailing out the city with state money could bring resistance in the Republican-led Legislature and prompt anger from out-state residents concerned about funding their own schools and local services.

"There are so many great things going on in Detroit. We resolve the city government issue, Detroit's really well poised to see outstanding growth take place when people can say there are better services," Snyder said. "We're going to get there."

___

Associated Press writer Ed White in Detroit contributed to this report.


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If you’re smelling burning oil, look out for a leak

I have a 2005 Mazda 6 with the 3-liter V6 engine and 70,000 miles. I do my own oil changes and for the past several changes have noticed a strong smell of burning oil when stopped at lights or in traffic, lasting three weeks after I have done the oil change. I am very careful not to spill any oil onto the exhaust when removing the filter, and to eliminate this possibility I left the filter in place after the last change. This failed to eliminate the problem. The engine burns no oil between changes and no smoke is visible from the exhaust. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

In most cases, smelling hot oil at idle indicates some type of external leak or spillage that drips onto the hot exhaust. In addition to the exhaust components near or under the oil filter, check to make sure no oil is dripping from the valve cover gaskets onto the exhaust manifolds, particularly from the front valve cover with the oil filler cap. Perhaps enough oil collects against the gasket when you refill the engine with fresh oil that it slowly migrates past the gasket and drips on the manifold.

The other system to focus on is the positive crankcase ventilation (PCV) system. Your engine features a PCV valve plumbed into the induction system downstream of the throttle plate, meaning engine vacuum pulls crankcase vapors into the combustion chambers where they are burned. If the PCV valve is stuck or clogged and doesn't open under engine vacuum, the crankcase may become somewhat pressurized and force oil and vapors past the piston rings and into the combustion chambers.

I have an '83 Jeep CJ-7 with the 258 six-cylinder engine. The oil pressure gauge was showing about 50 pounds per square inch when it suddenly went to zero. I connected a mechanical gauge to the engine block and it showed 60 psi. Is this an easy fix? How does the electrical gauge work?

Could you mount the mechanical gauge in or under the dash? If so, you've "fixed" your problem. I've always preferred mechanical gauges anyway for two reasons — they are instant and accurate, and not subject to electrical gremlins.

To determine whether the problem is the gauge or the electrical sending unit on the engine, disconnect the wire from the sending unit and connect a 12-volt test light from this wire to ground. Turn on the ignition. If the lamp flashes, the instrument voltage regulator is good. If the lamp stays lit, the regulator is bad. If the lamp doesn't light, check the regulator's connections and ground. And check for an open circuit in the connection from the regulator to the gauge.

And finally, if the lamp flashes as it should but the gauge isn't accurate, the gauge is the likely culprit.

My 2005 Grand Marquis is scaring me. I put on the brakes to stop but the car suddenly accelerated. I pushed on my brakes with all my might but the car kept going. I had to shift into neutral. By that time I was out in traffic against the light. This has happened three times. My shop could not find anything wrong. Please help!

I am so pleased to hear that you remember the simplest way to stop/prevent any type of unintended acceleration — shift into neutral! The other quick answer is to turn off the key.

What could have caused this? I can only speculate but I would suggest having the cruise control cable disconnected to eliminate this possibility. I would also inspect very carefully the power brake vacuum system, booster and check valve. A sudden, large vacuum leak could bleed off power assist to the brakes while at the same time possibly cause the engine idle speed to suddenly increase.

Did you feel any rapid pulsing in the brake pedal when this occurred, indicating ABS activation? Check for diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs) from the ABS system. Ford also suggests checking the ABS module connector for water intrusion.

Paul Brand, author of "How to Repair Your Car," is an automotive troubleshooter, driving instructor and former race-car driver. Readers may write to him at: Star Tribune, 425 Portland Ave. S., Minneapolis, Minn., 55488 or via email at paul brand@startribune.com. Please explain the problem in detail and include a daytime phone number. Because of the volume of mail, we cannot provide personal replies.


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Boston Entrepreneur Olympics goes for gold

Don't necessarily expect any new world records to be set at Boston's inaugural Entrepreneurs Olympics on Aug. 1. But do expect fun — and for a good cause.

There will be basketball, volleyball, a 5K race and high jump.

But for $20, you can also watch the less athletically inclined vie for first place at typing, tug-of-war, remote-control helicopter races, blind-folded baby-food tasting and bowling with human inflatable orbs.

"It's not about athletic ability," said Erica Rife, program director for the start-up accelerator MassChallenge, one of the event's partners. "It's about coming together as a team to do something for the greater good."

Sasha Hoffman, head of strategy and partnerships at the online payment company Plastiq, got the idea at a charity wine party last January.

"I thought there's really no event that brings together people's different talents," said Hoffman, who also is on the board of Build Boston, a nonprofit that uses entrepreneurship to propel disengaged, low-income students through high school to college. "I thought it would make sense to do a benefit for (Build)."

Plastiq teamed up with MassChallenge, TUGG, the New England Venture Capital Association and T3 Advisors to organize the event, setting $50,000 as their goal, said David Brown, executive director of TUGG, which raises funds for early-stage nonprofits.

By Friday, they had raised $43,000 and had signed up 300 participants, charging $40 for individuals, $500 for teams of 10 and $1,000 for teams of 20, Hoffman said.

But Build also hopes to recruit mentors at the event for the 200 young entrepreneurs it will have in September in Boston schools, said regional executive director Ayele Shakur.

The Entrepreneurs Olympics will be held from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center at 1350 Tremont St. in Roxbury Crossing.

But if you miss out, all is not lost.

"We're absolutely planning to have one next year," Hoffman said, "and to make it even bigger."


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Mastectomy aid eases recovery

Before she woke up in the hospital after her mastectomy 12 years ago, Cathy McGrath knew her breast would be gone. What she didn't plan for was multiple post-surgical drains — little plastic bulbs with a long tube — to collect fluid.

"I was really taken aback by it," the North Andover woman said. "I thought, how am I going to manage all of these?"

A nurse told her some women pin the drains to their clothes or go to Home Depot and get a tool belt to put them in.

So McGrath asked herself: What would Princess Di or Jackie O do?

"I thought there's no way they'd be going to Home Depot," she said. "They'd want something incognito, discreet, but with a lot of functionality to it, something that would make them look more like a person than a patient."

So McGrath designed the Jacki, a post-surgical jacket for breast cancer patients, and started A Little Easier Recovery, a nonprofit to give the garments away to patients.

On the outside, the Jacki looks like a classic suit jacket in black or plum. But on the inside, it has pockets all the way around the bottom.

The initial version was made of Polartec fleece. But when McGrath told her story to Polartec, the company gave her a deal on a soft, wicking material that is now used in many of the jackets. The rest are made of interlocking cotton.

In the beginning, her aunt sewed the garments, and McGrath gave them to Brigham and Women's Hospital and Tufts Medical Center. When the hospitals told her that patients loved them, she realized she was on to something and applied for nonprofit status, giving her organization a name that she thought was "humble" but fitting.

"There's absolutely nothing easy about cancer treatment," McGrath said. "The most I could give patients was a little easier recovery."

Since then, her nonprofit has given away more than 10,000 of the garments nationwide and been named a finalist in this year's MassChallenge startup accelerator and competition.

McGrath never meets the patients who wear her jackets, but she has received letters from them, like the woman who delivered her father's eulogy wearing the Jacki, or the one who wore it to her son's wedding, or the woman who was just content to wear it while she played Thomas the Train with her toddler.

"It gives patients some sense of dignity as they recover from a surgery that's affected their body image," said Cate Mullen, the nurse coordinator at Tufts Breast Center, which receives about 150 of the jackets each year. "There's a lot of pain, so it's a big relief that it's easier to get into and out of. It's a wonderful thing we can offer them."


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