International

Tuesday, June 14th 2011 - 22:20 UTC
Facebook preparing for public offering; company value over 100 billion USD

Facebook is preparing to file for an initial public offering as early as October or November that could value the popular social networking site at more than 100 billion US dollars, financial news channel CNBC reported this week.
Tuesday, June 14th 2011 - 21:42 UTC
Timberland sold for 1.8bn USD with a 43% premium for shareholders

US clothing giant VF Corporation, parent of brands including The North Face, Wrangler jeans and Nautica, will buy Timberland for about 1.8 billion US dollars in cash, the companies announced Monday.
Tuesday, June 14th 2011 - 20:47 UTC
EU/Mercosur trade talks are frozen on the “edge of the cliff”

Trade talks between Mercosur and the European Union have been frozen on the “edge of the cliff” because of the European debt crisis, differences over agriculture subsidies and other crucial issues according to sources in Brazil from both sides.
Tuesday, June 14th 2011 - 15:09 UTC
China hikes bank reserves to contain inflation; food costs up 11.7% in May

China's central bank raised bank reserve ratios on Tuesday for the ninth time since October to try to curb inflation, which is running at its fastest pace in almost three years.
Tuesday, June 14th 2011 - 14:04 UTC
Nepal designated landmine free country; UK main contributor to the milestone

The UK Government congratulated Nepal for the successful clearance of its last remaining minefields and its designation as a landmine free country. On the culmination of the task, the Foreign Office called on the Nepalese government to join the Ottawa Convention
Monday, June 13th 2011 - 22:02 UTC
Ban Ki-moon celebrates birthday on an Argentine coach and with ‘alfajores’

On the day of his 67th birthday, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and his delegation arrived in Buenos Aires by coach after having landed in the northern city of Cordoba.
Monday, June 13th 2011 - 21:56 UTC
Argentina asks more support from Ban Ki–moon for Malvinas sovereignty claim

President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, CFK, renewed the Argentine claim of sovereignty over the Malvinas Islands before UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, who’s visiting the country on his birthday.
Monday, June 13th 2011 - 12:53 UTC
E. coli outbreak has killed 35; tests to determine if bean sprouts are the cause

The death toll from a killer E. coli outbreak centred on Germany rose to 35 Sunday as health officials said it was the worst of its kind on record and the German government feared more people could die. Meantime laboratory tests are trying to confirm suspicions that organic bean sprouts could be the origin of the outbreak.
Monday, June 13th 2011 - 12:10 UTC
US main interest is a “stable Argentina”, warns Falklands Task Force head

The head of the Royal Navy Task Force that recovered the Falkland Islands during the 1982 South Atlantic conflict has warned about UK defense cuts and underlined that United States has little interest in supporting Britain in any conflict since a stable Argentina is more important to the State Department.
Monday, June 13th 2011 - 11:37 UTC
Volcanic ash cloud reaches New Zealand and Australia

A cloud of ash from an erupting volcano in Chile has drifted over the Atlantic and Indian oceans to lie over southern parts of New Zealand and Australia, prompting the cancellation of dozens of flights.