International

Friday, May 11th 2007 - 21:00 UTC
Concern with future of RN submarines Devonport Dockyard

British Members of Parliament from Devon are calling for an urgent meeting with the new owners of Devonport Dockyard to discuss the site's future. Engineering group Babcock International is buying the naval dockyard in Plymouth in a £350m deal.
Friday, May 11th 2007 - 21:00 UTC
Euro benchmark interest rate unchanged at 3.75%

The European Central Bank decided on Thursday's meeting, held in Dublin, to maintain the benchmark interest rate on hold at 3.75%. However many analysts believe ECB's “strong vigilance” could see rates rise as early as June to keep inflation in check.
Friday, May 11th 2007 - 21:00 UTC
Warnings of “speculation bubble” in Shanghai's stock market

China's booming A-share market could turn into a bubble if speculation among exuberant domestic retail investors is not curbed, Goldman Sachs warned Thursday, as the Shanghai Composite Index hit yet another intraday record high.
Friday, May 11th 2007 - 21:00 UTC
It's official: the Blair era comes to an end June 27

British Prime Minister Tony Blair announced Thursday he will stand down on June 27. He made the announcement in a speech to party activists in his Sedgefield constituency, after earlier briefing the Cabinet on his plans.
Friday, May 11th 2007 - 21:00 UTC
Brown launches Labor leadership bid with “new ideas”

Gordon Brown kicked off his Labour leadership campaign as Tony Blair finally offered a “full” endorsement.
Friday, May 11th 2007 - 21:00 UTC
Spain praises the “irreversible” tripartite process in Gibraltar

The tripartite process is “irreversible” and there is no turning back. That was the view expressed by Jose Pons, Spain's chief negotiator at the forum in which Gibraltar, Spain and Britain participate as separate parties, reports The Gibraltar Chronicle.
Friday, May 11th 2007 - 21:00 UTC
Magallanes record unemployment is Chile's regions lowest

Magallanes in the extreme south is Chile's region with the lowest unemployment in the first quarter of 2007 according to the latest release from the national Statistics Office.
Friday, May 11th 2007 - 21:00 UTC
Punta Arenas delegation to Ecotourism summit in Norway

Sixteen tourism operators from Punta Arenas are traveling to Norway to participate in the World Eco-Tourism Summit which begins next May 14 in Oslo and will be opened by Queen Sonja.
Friday, May 11th 2007 - 21:00 UTC
China's trade surplus almost doubles in four months of 2007

China's April trade surplus more than doubled from March, the government said Friday, as a mission on a US tour signed billion-dollar deals in a bid to narrow the trade gap.
Thursday, May 10th 2007 - 21:00 UTC
Winners of North Pole race pledge funds to UN refugee agency

Two intrepid young Britons have won an Arctic sprint to the magnetic North Pole which they say should boost their chances of raising $495,000 for the United Nations refugee agency