Oil near $105 ahead of US supplies report

BANGKOK — Oil rose to near $105 a barrel Wednesday, driven by speculation that U.S. crude stockpiles fell last week in a sign of higher demand.

Benchmark crude for August delivery was up $1.12 to $104.65 a barrel at early afternoon Bangkok time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Earlier in the day it reached $104.79, which is oil's highest price since May 2 last year. The contract gained 39 cents to close at $103.53 on Tuesday.

Oil was higher after Bloomberg, a financial data provider, said U.S. crude inventories fell by 9 million barrels last week. It cited an unnamed person at the American Petroleum Institute, an industry group. The Energy Department releases its weekly report on U.S. inventories of crude oil and refined fuels later Wednesday.

A drop in supplies would suggest stronger demand and underline the signs of economic recovery shown in last week's stronger-than-expected U.S. hiring report.

Other factors that could influence trading Wednesday include OPEC's release of its monthly update on the oil market and the publication of minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve's last policy meeting.

Brent crude, which is used to set prices for oil used by many U.S. refineries, was down 3 cents at $107.04 on the ICE Exchange in London.

In other energy futures trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange:

— Wholesale gasoline added 2.1 cents to $2.947 a gallon.

— Natural gas fell 2.3 cents to $3.634 per 1,000 cubic feet.

— Heating oil was steady at $2.986 per gallon.

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Senate to try again on student loan vote

WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats are trying to restore lower interest rates on student loans, a week after Congress' inaction caused those rates to double.

A procedural vote is scheduled for Wednesday on a Senate measure that would return rates on subsidized Stafford loans to 3.4 percent for one year. An earlier attempt in the Senate to keep rates low came up short and rates for those loans doubled to 6.8 percent on July 1.

The increase did not affect many students right away; loan documents are generally signed just before students return to campus, and few students returned to school over the July Fourth holiday. Existing loans were not affected, either.

However, absent congressional action in the coming weeks, the increase could spell an extra $2,600 for an average student returning to campus this fall, according to Congress' Joint Economic Committee. Lawmakers from both parties have criticized the increase and the costs passed to students, but there is little agreement on how to restore the lower rates.

"It's not fair for Democrats who run Washington to stand in students' way," said Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington state, a member of the House GOP leadership.

Countered Democratic Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, "The Republican proposals are attractive in the short term but in the long term are extremely expensive."

During last year's presidential campaign, lawmakers from both parties voted to keep interest rates on subsidized Stafford loans at 3.4 percent. Yet this year, without a presidential election looming, the issue seemed to fizzle and the July 1 deadline passed without action.

Most Democratic senators favored keeping the rates at 3.4 percent for now and including a broad overhaul of federal student loans in the Higher Education Act rewrite lawmakers expect to take up this fall. Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., said the matter needs to be viewed in a holistic way.

"How are we going to address the costs of college? How are we going to make college more affordable for our kids?" Franken said.

Yet an earlier Democratic attempt at a two-year extension failed to overcome a procedural hurdle before lawmakers left for the July Fourth holiday. Under Senate rules, 60 votes are needed to let the proposal go forward and Democrats alone cannot force it ahead.

A one-year extension seemed heading toward the same fate.

"What is good about a short-term political fix?" said Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, the top Republican on the Senate Education Committee.

Efforts to find a compromise seemed heading nowhere as well. Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia worked with Alexander to write a bipartisan bill that closely follows a bill the GOP-led House has already passed. That bill incorporated an idea that was included in President Barack Obama's budget to link interest rates to the financial markets.

Under the House plan, interest rates would be lower in the next few years but rise as the economy improves.

"That is not fair to students and it is certainly not good for our economy," said Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash.

The Democratic chairman of the Education Committee, Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa, also said the GOP proposal was not an option and stood opposed to considering it this summer. Instead, he insisted on a one-year extension of the current rates.

"Congress has an imperative to pass a plan to keep rates low now so that students and families struggling to afford college can count on affordable federal student loans," Harkin said.

Without an agreement, though, students are facing 6.8 percent interest rates on new subsidized Stafford loans, which typically go to students from lower- and middle-income families.

That is unacceptable, said Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich. "You can go out and get a car loan for 4 percent," she said.

Despite the widespread agreement that the current 6.8 percent interest rate is too high for students, there is little consensus on what to do.

House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, has remained adamant that the chamber he leads has already taken action and it's up to the Senate to fall in line.

"Republicans have acted to stop student loans' interest rates from doubling," Boehner said. "The House has done its job. It's time for the Senate and the White House to do its job."

Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid has signaled he has no interest in anything beyond an extension of current rates until at least 2014 — when a third of the Senate and the full House face re-election.

"Speaker Boehner says the House has acted and the ball is in the Senate's court," Reid said. "But Democrats can't support a plan that would be worse for students than doing nothing at all."

___

Follow Philip Elliott on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/philip_elliott

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

New Zealand, Taiwan sign free trade deal

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — New Zealand on Wednesday signed a free trade agreement with Taiwan in a deliberately low-key ceremony designed to demonstrate the South Pacific nation's fealty to its formal relations with mainland China.

The location of the signing ceremony at a university and the absence of senior officials from either side underscored New Zealand's interest in maintaining its increasingly important ties with Beijing. Five years ago, New Zealand became the first developed nation to sign a free trade deal with China, which has since become its largest export market.

In contrast to New Zealand, the deal was widely trumpeted in Taiwan, which is eager to break out of its China-imposed diplomatic isolation. It was Taiwan's first free trade agreement with a developed country and, from its point of view, a victory that was more political than economic. Television crews were on hand to beam the signing ceremony live to Taiwan.

Taiwan and China split amid civil war in 1949, and the Chinese government goes out of its way to pressure other countries to give short shrift to Taiwanese attempts to expand the democratic island's international profile.

But it also seeks to assist the Taiwanese government of President Ma Ying-jeou in solidifying the island's economy as a way of promoting the interests of Ma's China-friendly Nationalist Party among an increasingly disaffected Taiwanese electorate. China-Taiwan relations have been considerably less fractious since the election of Ma in 2008.

Like most Western nations, New Zealand doesn't recognize Taiwan as an independent country. To complete the deal, New Zealand used the wording and status from the World Trade Organization, which describes Taiwan as a "separate customs territory."

The New Zealander who signed the deal was Stephen Payton, director of the Commerce and Industry Office which comes under the banner of the Wellington Employers' Chamber of Commerce. That meant he wasn't technically a government official, although he had been seconded into the role from his government job.

"We have a no surprises relationship with China," Payton said. "So yes, they are comfortable with what we are doing."

Payton said the gradual removal of tariffs from the beef, fruit and other products it exports to Taiwan would result in savings of 40 million New Zealand dollars ($31 million) in the first year and NZ$75 million after 12 years when all the tariffs expired.

Taiwan will also win some small economic gains when New Zealand tariffs on machine tools, steel plates and bicycles are removed under the deal.

Elliott Charng, who signed the agreement for the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New Zealand, said the deal was a "win-win."

"I don't want to talk about the political issue here," Charng said in response to a question. "I don't know anything about China's involvement."

In Taipei, Taiwan's Foreign Minister David Lin shrugged off questions about the choice of venue, saying that Victoria University of Wellington was an "ideal site" for the ceremony because the university assisted in the feasibility study of the deal when talks began in 2011.

The agreement "will enhance interests on both sides," Lin said. "The deal was signed under the WTO framework, and it had nothing to do with mainland China."

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said China has no objections to trade and other types of exchanges between Taiwan and foreign countries as long as they stop short of "official relations."

"The current China-New Zealand relationship is in good shape. New Zealand's adherence to the one-China policy and proper handling of relevant issues is conducive to the sound development of the China-New Zealand relationship," Hua told reporters at a regularly scheduled briefing.

Taiwan has previously signed trade deals with its diplomatic allies, which are mostly small, impoverished countries in Africa and Latin America.

"It's a small step but has opened a window for Taiwan to raise its economic and diplomatic profiles globally," said Wu Fu-cheng, an economist with the Taiwan Institute for Economic Research.

Taiwan is also negotiating free trade deals with India and Singapore.

__

Enav reported from Taipei, Taiwan. Associated Press writers Annie Huang in Taipei and Christopher Bodeen in Beijing also contributed to this report.

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

China's June auto sales rise 9.3 percent

BEIJING — China's auto sales growth held steady in June and Japanese brands rebounded from a slump despite a credit crunch and slowing economic growth.

Auto sales rose 9.3 percent over a year earlier to 1.4 million vehicles, the China Association of Auto Manufacturers reported Wednesday. That was in line with May's 9 percent growth.

The strong sales could come as reassurance to global automakers that are looking to China, the biggest auto market by number of vehicles sold, to drive revenues amid weakness elsewhere.

June sales rose despite a shortage of credit in China's financial markets and indications economic growth weakened.

Total sales, which include trucks and buses, also grew strongly, rising 11.2 percent to 1.7 million vehicles, according to the CAAM.

Sales overall were better than expected, said Zhang Xin, an analyst at Guotai Jun'an Securities in Beijing.

"Lower prices are the main reason. The authorities encouraged consumers to spend money," said Zhang.

Chinese auto sales growth has decelerated steadily since mid-2012 as some major cities tried to curb congestion and smog by limiting new vehicle registrations.

"Expensive parking fees and licenses and limited room makes sales more difficult and limits the development of the auto industry," said Zhang. "The government should not encourage consumption before doing good planning."

Sales of Japanese brands rose 16.5 percent to 2.3 million vehicles, according to CAAM, improving from a slump that began last year amid tensions between Beijing and Tokyo over ownership of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea.

Chinese brands lagged the market again in June, the CAAM said, indicating domestic automakers were losing market share to global brands and their local partners.

Sales of Chinese brand autos rose 5.5 percent to 5.3 million vehicles. Sales of German brands rose 20.6 percent to 2.9 million vehicles and American brands were up 12.7 percent to 1.8 million vehicles.

General Motors Co. said June sales by the company and its Chinese joint venture partners rose 10.6 percent over a year earlier to 236,207 vehicles. Ford Motor Co. said its sales gained 44 percent to 75,254 vehicles.

Sales at Japan's Nissan Motor Co. fell 7.7 percent to 101,400 vehicles, though it said that decline was due partly to comparison with strong sales in the same month last year.

Germany's BMW said sales of its BMW and Mini brand vehicles rose 6.9 percent to 184,489 vehicles.

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Experts: Facebook tool threatens privacy

After six months of tests with a select group, Facebook is rolling out a new search tool to the rest of the site's U.S. users, making it easier to find people, places, photos and interests in your social circle.

But the company's Graph Search could backfire because of privacy concerns sparked by the National Security Agency domestic surveillance scandal, analysts and social-media consultants said.

"It is every stalker's fantasy tool," said Max Wolff, senior analyst at Greencrest Capital. "It could actually alienate people. People are extra-sensitive about privacy because of the NSA scandal. So the average user could jack up their privacy settings and decide to disclose less on Facebook, which could hurt advertising."

Todd Van Hoosear, owner of Fresh Ground, a Cambridge social-media consulting firm, said he'd like to know what personal information of his might show up in a search done by someone he isn't friends with.

"I want to have full control over my personal information," Van Hoosear said. "I think that would go a long way toward addressing concerns about privacy."

As Graph Search rolls out more widely, people on Facebook will see a notice on their home page with a reminder about how to control what they share and with whom, said Facebook spokeswoman Kate Guarente. This follows a similar notice in December that highlighted new privacy tools to help people manage what they share on Facebook, Guarente said.

While there may be more work to be done in that area, Van Hoosear said, Facebook has made strides with other aspects of its search tool since the company announced it in January.

Graph Search has become faster and, like Google, more intuitive, offering suggestions in a pull-down menu as you type what you're looking for. Unlike Google, however, Graph Search mines data in your social circle, allowing you to search for restaurants that your friends like in Cambridge, or search for photos of your significant other before you met.

Facebook is also working on getting mobile Graph Search ready, Guarente said.

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Chatham Whites’ shark shirt biz shows its teeth

Cape Cod entrepreneur Justin Labdon is banking on the great white shark taking a bite out of the Black Dog as he ratchets up his Chatham Whites apparel line featuring the iconic predator.

"I'm having a ball with it," said Labdon, 41, who sells Chatham Whites at his Cape Cod Beach Chair store in East Harwich and online (www.chathamwhites.com). "People love the sharks."

A local retail expert thinks the idea has teeth.

"The white shark has always been an iconic image on the Cape and Islands. When (Peter) Benchley wrote 'Jaws,' it started an interest in all things sharks, and now sharks show up. This guy took the idea to the next step," said Caroline Daniels, a professor of entrepreneurship at Babson College.

A Cape native, Labdon recalled four years ago when shark sightings began in earnest, and media from around the world called his paddleboard shop for firsthand reports. He started selling a single style of shark shirt in 2010. But in Boston's North End last summer, he said, "We saw somebody wearing the shirts. It was kind of cool, and I thought, 'I should grow it.'"

Chatham Whites are priced slightly lower than The Black Dog, the line that originated as souvenir shirts for the eponymous restaurant on Martha's Vineyard. The shirts shot to fame after celebrities, including President Bill Clinton, wore them in the 1990s.

"I've had orders from Rhode Island and the Boston area," said Labdon.

He has designed sharks in polka dot prints but hopes his "all-American" stars and stripes print will be a hot seller. Labdon said he wants the line to be fun for tourists and locals alike, but he added, "Someone might get eaten, and it might be a different story."

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

China's June inflation rises to 2.7 percent

BEIJING — China's inflation rose in June but was well below the government's target in a sign of weak demand amid an economic slowdown.

Consumer prices rose 2.7 percent over a year earlier, up from May's 2.1 percent gain but below the 3.5 percent official target for the year, the government reported Tuesday. The June figure was driven by a 4.9 percent rise in food costs.

Pressure for prices to rise is relatively low in China because of weak demand, excess production capacity in many industries and lower costs for raw materials and components.

June prices were unchanged from May levels, and the uptick in the inflation rate was due to comparison with unusually low prices last year, according to Alaistair Chan of Moody's Analytics.

"The inflationary environment in China remains largely nonexistent," Chan said in a report. "Non-food inflation is low, reflecting a large output gap and lack of policy stimulus."

Economic growth slowed to 7.7 percent in the first quarter of this year from the previous quarter's 7.9 percent. Some forecasters say it could dip below 7 percent in coming quarters due to government efforts to cool a credit boom and weak demand for Chinese exports.

Communist leaders are trying to shift the basis of China's economic growth from exports and investment to domestic consumption. They have refrained from launching new stimulus spending even as economic growth drifted down.

Producer prices declined 2.7 percent in June compared with a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics reported. That was driven by an 8.5 percent fall in the price of goods from the mining industry and weaker costs for other industrial raw materials.

"This trend will continue through to year end, judging by the government's signals and the outlook for global growth," said Chan of Moody's.

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Newsday publisher to retire by end of the year

NEW YORK — The publisher of Newsday is retiring at the end of the year.

The newspaper reports that Fred Groser said in an email to employees that he would retire effective Dec. 31.

Groser said the paper's owner, Cablevision Systems Corp., would be conducting a search for a new publisher.

The 58-year-old Groser became publisher in 2010 after serving as the paper's advertising chief.

He said retiring was a difficult decision but would allow him to pursue new ventures and spend more time with his family.

During his tenure, Newsday expanded desktop, tablet and smartphone offerings for readers and advertisers.

Groser also serves on the board of directors of the Long Island Associate business group.

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Japan moves closer to restarting nuclear reactors

TOKYO — Japan moved a step closer to restarting nuclear reactors Monday as four utility companies applied for safety inspections of 10 idled plants, the clearest sign of a return to atomic energy nearly two and a half years after the Fukushima disaster.

With all but two of the country's 50 reactors offline since a tsunami swept through the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant in March 2011, Japan has been almost without nuclear energy that once supplied about a third of its power.

Four Japanese nuclear plant operators — supplying the regions of Hokkaido, Kansai, Shikoku and Kyushu — Monday filed applications for inspections by the Nuclear Regulation Authority for 10 reactors at five plants under new safety requirements that have just come into effect. Applications for two more reactors are expected later in the week.

Only reactors that pass the stricter rules will be allowed to restart, possibly early next year. Inspections would take about six months for each reactor, the watchdog said, as its staff can handle just a few reactors at a time. Obtaining consent from local governments and communities would require at least several weeks

Watchdog officials refused to say which reactor they will inspect first. Critics say the rules have loopholes, including grace periods for some safety equipment

Hit by soaring gas and oil costs to run conventional power plants to make up the energy shortfall, Japanese utility companies have lobbied hard to get their reactors back online.

Nearly all the utilities that own nuclear power plants reported huge losses last fiscal year due to higher costs for fuel imports. Hokkaido Electric Power Co. said it has been hit with additional daily fuel costs of 600 million yen ($6 million) to make up for three idled reactors. Nuclear operators have requested rate hikes or plan to do so.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has pushed for restarts since taking office in December, freezing the previous government's nuclear phase-out plan. Resumption of nuclear power plants is part of his ruling party's campaign platform in parliamentary elections in two weeks.

New rules for the first time require plants to guard against radiation leaks in the case of severe accidents, install emergency command centers and enact anti-terrorist measures. Operators are required to upgrade protection for tsunamis and earthquakes, as well as tornadoes and aviation accidents.

Safety was previously left up to the operators, relying on their self-interest in protecting their investments as an incentive for implementing adequate measures. Tokyo Electric Power Co. came under fire for underestimating the risk of a tsunami and building a seawall that was less than half the height of the wave that hit its Fukushima Dai-ichi plant and caused multiple meltdowns and massive radiation leaks. About 160,000 evacuees still cannot return home.

Ikuo Morinaka, senior official at Kansai Electric Power Co., which is applying to restart four reactors in Fukui prefecture that supply power to large parts of western Japan, said the company has taken emergency measures and additional steps since the Fukushima disaster.

"We are ready," Morinaka said after handing a thick file of documents to a watchdog official at a media-packed ceremonial event.

Dozens of activists opposing nuclear power staged rallies outside a building that houses the watchdog's office, holding banners and chanting anti-nuclear slogans.

Critics say the new safety requirements have loopholes that make things easier for operators, including a five-year grace period for some of the mandated steps given to reactors known as PWRs. They come with larger containment chambers considered less likely to suffer from pressure buildup than ones like those ravaged at Fukushima. This means half of the 48 reactors that use a pressurized water system could operate without the features for up to five years.

All 10 reactors set for inspections are PWRs, and none of them have completed filtered vents and full-fledged emergency command centers yet, according to the summary of their application documents released Monday.

The approvals are aimed at resuming reactor operations even though nearby communities lag in enacting needed emergency and evacuation procedures, and the restarts will cause more nuclear waste, plutonium stockpiles and other safety and environmental risks, said a group of experts headed by Hosei University sociologist Harutoshi Funabashi.

The critics say running nuclear plants will eventually become a financial burden, as safety upgrades under the new requirements add up and the cost of decommissioning aging reactors and waste cleanup. Even initial safety upgrades are estimated to exceed a combined total of 1 trillion yen ($10 billion).

The operators said it's a necessary investment.

"Despite the spending, we need to get nuclear plants running in order to provide stable power supply," said Toru Yoshisako, vice president of Kyushu Electric Power Co., which operates six reactors in southern Japan.

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Oil extends gains above $103 after US hiring jump

BANGKOK — The price of oil extended gains above $103 a barrel Monday after a stronger-than-expected jump in U.S. hiring suggested demand for fuels will increase.

Benchmark crude for August delivery was up 18 cents at $103.40 at early afternoon Bangkok time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The contract on Friday jumped $1.98 to close at $103.22 in New York after the Labor Department reported that U.S. employers added a robust 195,000 jobs in June and many more in April and May than previously thought. The job growth suggests a stronger economy.

Oil has also been pushed higher by instability in Egypt where Mohammed Morsi was ousted as president by the military last week.

Egypt is not an oil producer, but its control of the Suez Canal, one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, gives it a crucial role in maintaining global energy supplies.

Brent crude was up 28 cents at $108 a barrel on the ICE futures exchange in London.

In other energy futures trading on the Nymex:

— Wholesale gasoline was up 0.2 cent at $2.899 per gallon.

— Natural gas added 2.1 cents to $3.638 per 1,000 cubic feet.

— Heating oil gained 0.2 cent to $2.992 per gallon.

18.38 | 0 komentar | Read More