International

• Saturday, June 13th 2009 - 05:41 UTC

  “Black boxes” are obsolete technology says air safety pioneer

  

  Whether the black boxes from Air France flight 447 are found or not, the crash has shown that new technology is needed to record a flight's last moments in real-time, an aviation expert argues.

• Friday, June 12th 2009 - 18:15 UTC

  Clearing the Amazon for cattle and soy a “boom-bust cycle”

  

  Cutting down Amazon forest for cattle and soy does not bring long-term economic progress, researchers say. A study of 286 Amazon municipalities found that deforestation brought quick benefits that were soon reversed.

• Friday, June 12th 2009 - 18:04 UTC

  A/H1N1 flu: Ban Ki-moon cautions against “rash and discriminatory” actions

  

  United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon cautioned on Thursday against undue alarm while stressing the need for preparedness, as the United Nations health agency announced that the world is experiencing an influenza pandemic caused by the new A(H1N1) virus.

• Friday, June 12th 2009 - 18:02 UTC

  Bleak prospects for poor countries with global contraction of 3%

  

  The world economy is set to contract this year by more than previously estimated, and poor countries will continue to be hit hard by multiple waves of economic stress, said World Bank Group President Robert B. Zoellick.

• Friday, June 12th 2009 - 17:36 UTC

  Global flu pandemic but no A/H1N1 vaccines until September

  

  The World Health Organization (WHO) declared on Thursday a global flu pandemic after holding an emergency meeting. This means the influenza A/H1N1 virus is spreading in at least two regions of the world with rising cases being seen in the UK, Australia, Japan and Chile.

• Friday, June 12th 2009 - 17:29 UTC

  Chinese imports in May dropped 25% and exports 26%

  

  Chinese exports dropped by a record amount in May as demand for its goods from the US and Europe slumped. Exports fell 26.4% from the same month earlier, more than February's previous record drop and imports declined by 25.2%.

• Thursday, June 11th 2009 - 11:10 UTC

  Brazil confirms purchase of 10 billion US dollars in IMF bonds

  

  Brazil will buy 10 billion US dollars of bonds issued by the International Monetary Fund to help the multilateral lender provide financing to countries hurt by the financial crisis, announced Finance Minister Guido Mantega.

• Thursday, June 11th 2009 - 10:12 UTC

  Spain warns about “delisting” and “colonialism by consent” at C24

  

  The Spanish Government made a short but sharp intervention at the start of United Nations C24 session stating Spain's “firm wish to renew conversations with the United Kingdom within the framework of the Brussels process”.

• Thursday, June 11th 2009 - 10:05 UTC

  Thomas Cook “completely ring-fenced” against bankruptcy

  

  Germany's Arcandor, which owns 52% of Thomas Cook, filed for bankruptcy protection after the German government rejected a request for loan guarantees.

• Thursday, June 11th 2009 - 10:01 UTC

  Shell settles lawsuit in Nigeria to help “reconciliation process”

  

  Royal Dutch Shell has agreed to settle a lawsuit accusing the firm of complicity in the executions of human rights activists in Nigeria for 15.5 million US dollars, revealed families of those killed. The settlement agreement came this week as the more than decade-long dispute was due to go to trial in a district court in New York.