French minister Besson against "destabilizing Renault"

PARIS (Reuters) – French Industry Minister Eric Besson said on Sunday he did not want to destabilize carmaker Renault (RENA.PA) when asked if chief executive Carlos Ghosn should step down over a now debunked espionage scandal.
"As industry minister, I hear the voice of the people asking for punishment, but the industry minister's greater concern at this time is not to destabilize Renault any further," Besson told RFI radio in an interview.
He said Ghosn played a key role in Renault's alliance with Japanese carmaker Nissan (7201.T), and was also facing a major industrial challenge with the launch of electric cars.
Renault admitted this month it had wrongly dismissed three senior executives after it had been tricked into believing they had sold vital know-how on the electric car project to third parties, possibly involving China.
The three men were fired in January on suspicion of industrial espionage. All denied wrongdoing from the start and began legal action against the carmaker. A Renault security manager has been placed under investigation for suspected fraud.
Ghosn and right-hand man Patrick Pelata held onto their jobs after the climbdown, but despite giving up bonuses they have come under continued public pressure over the fiasco, whose impact rippled well beyond the world of automobile research.
The affair embarrassed France's government, which owns 15 percent of Renault, and caused a rift with China, weeks ahead of a key visit to the country by President Nicolas Sarkozy.
Beijing implicitly rebuked France over its handling of the matter on Thursday, saying it hoped that people checked facts before unjustly implicating the country.
Relations were strained when a French government source, speaking before the case collapsed, said investigators were following up a possible link with China.
Besson and Finance Minister Christine Lagarde issued a joint statement last week saying the government would ensure anyone responsible for the discredited espionage claims was dealt with.

Arkansas prepares for significant tax cuts

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Arkansas is poised to become one of the first states in the nation to enact a significant tax cut this year, showing the sentiment for scaling back government even in places where state spending is limited and no fiscal crisis exists.
State representatives Monday are expected to approve cutting the grocery tax, the centerpiece of a $35 million tax cut package. The action comes days after lawmakers reached an agreement with Democratic Gov. Mike Beebe on reductions of five other taxes likely to be approved later this week.
The amount of the cuts doesn't compare with the deep reductions proposed in some larger states, especially those with fiscal problems that are trying to attract new businesses. But it shows the far-reaching impact of the anti-spending backlash in the 2010 election that swept more Republicans into office across the nation. The cuts could be enacted so rapidly in Arkansas because the state's Democrats, including Gov. Mike Beebe and the majority that control both chambers of the Legislature, are conservative and differ little from Republican lawmakers on most fiscal issues.
"Arkansas is going to cut $35 million in taxes, have a balanced budget and adequately fund education," said Sen. Gilbert Baker, the Republican who co-chairs the Joint Budget Committee. "There isn't another state that wouldn't love to have that scenario right now."
Arkansas' government is already modest in scale; it doesn't offer the range of services provided by states such as Wisconsin and New Jersey, where heated battles over spending and employee compensation are under way. But officials decided to cut more anyway.
Beebe, a popular Democrat, handily won re-election last year after promising to continue reducing the state's grocery tax. Since he took office in 2007, he's successfully pushed for cutting the tax from 6 percent to 2 percent.
Although the state's residents are accustomed to lean services, Beebe said he is concerned the tax and spending restraints could go too far.
State officials estimate that they could face as much as an $80 million shortfall in the state's Medicaid trust fund in the fiscal year that begins July 1, 2012. Beebe asked federal officials for permission to overhaul the way Arkansas pays for services in Medicaid to address that danger.
"I'm not worried about this year," Beebe said in an interview last week. "I mean, we can make some adjustments on the balanced budget this year. I'm really worried about next year and the year after, because of Medicaid."
The tax cuts this year may mean that a proposed cost-of-living increase for state workers may be limited to lower-paid employees.
About one in five governors are proposing large tax cuts this year, and several are states with a budget shortfall, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. In many of these states, such as Florida and New Jersey, the tax relief is coupled with calls for cuts in education, health care and employee salaries.
Arkansas has escaped the fiscal problems plaguing many other states partly because of the state's budgeting system, which requires that spending priorities be linked directly to expected revenues.
Aside from the grocery tax cut, lawmakers are expected to approve cutting taxes for manufacturers' utilities, single parents and used car sales. They're also planning to institute an annual back-to-school sales tax "holiday" and expand a tourism-related tax exemption.
Beebe originally had proposed only cutting the grocery tax but acknowledged that in the current political climate, he couldn't hold that line.
"The way this stuff was running through here, it was necessary for me to accede to some additional tax cuts in order to keep (away) even more tax cuts that would exacerbate it or increase it even more than we can afford," Beebe said in the interview last week.

'One killed' as police fire on Syria protesters

DAMASCUS (AFP) – Syrian security forces fired on thousands of demonstrators Sunday in the town of Daraa, killing one and wounding around 100, two of them critically, a rights activist at the scene said.
Daraa, south of the capital Damascus, has turned into a "volcano", the witness told AFP by telephone.
"A protester was killed today by live bullets. His name is Raed Akrad," he said, adding that two others wounded in the head were in critical condition.
Earlier he reported that more than 100 people were wounded when security forces fired live bullets and tear gas at thousands of demonstrators who gathered in Daraa for a third consecutive day of protests.
"The army surrounds the town but it has not intervened," he said.
He said tensions were very high in Daraa and anger flared as a top-ranking government delegation arrived to pay condolences to families of demonstrators killed by security forces on Friday.
Rights groups have said that four protesters were killed on Friday while two of them were buried Saturday in Daraa.
Syrian authorities announced on Saturday the establishment of a commission of inquiry on the violence in Daraa.
The delegation included deputy foreign minister Faysal Meqdad, Local Administration Minister Tamer al-Hijjeh and senior security officer Rustom Ghazaleh, the activist said.
"The came to offer their condolences to the families of the protesters killed on Friday," the activist said, adding that protesters seethed with anger when they saw the officials.
"The protesters cried out: 'He who strikes his own people is a traitor,'" he added.
The protest began in the afternoon -- before the officials arrived -- with a march setting off from the Omari mosque, the witness added.
"The security forces backed by police fired live rounds at the demonstrators, numbering more than 10,000," the witness said.
"They are also firing tear gas mixed with toxic products," he claimed.
The latest casualties were being evacuated to the mosque, which has turned into a "field hospital," the activist said, declining to be named.
"There has been shooting in several parts of the city and there are clashes between protesters and security forces," backed by plain-clothes police, the witness said.
He also reported an unspecified number of arrests.
On Saturday security forces arrested dozens of protesters in Daraa, where thousands of people attended the funerals of Akram al-Jawabra and Hussam Abdelwali Ayash, two of the four protesters killed on Friday.
Sporadic demonstrations against President Bashar al-Assad's regime have taken place in Syria since last Tuesday after calls on Facebook demanding greater freedom in the country, which has been under emergency law since 1963.
As well as Daraa, they erupted on Friday in the capital Damascus, the coastal city of Banias and in Homs north of the capital.
Protesters have been mainly calling for the release of political prisoners and reforms at a time of popular uprisings across the Middle East.

4 Ways Your Home Can Pay You

Despite being financially stressed and worried about retirement, homeowners, by and large, continue to see their homes as a roof over their head and not a key financial asset that may improve their retirement prospects. According to research by the Society of Actuaries, only about 20 percent of homeowners plan to use their home equity to help finance retirement. Of those who do, few have thought about tapping their home's value and simply plan to sell it to generate retirement funds.
"Even for middle-income and moderately affluent Americans in their critical preretirement years (55-64), non-financial assets, principally home equity, may represent as much as 70 percent of total assets exclusive of pensions and Social Security," the report said. Tom Horgan, a Society of Actuaries spokesman and former chief actuary of the Federal Housing Administration, agrees with traditional advice that home equity should only be tapped when necessary, and when it helps achieve a specific retirement objective. In most cases, his best advice for homeowners approaching retirement is to sell their home and downsize into smaller, less-expensive living quarters that also may be closer to shopping and cultural activities. Renting an apartment also eliminates property taxes and most maintenance expenses.
[See 10 Ways Your Home Can Pay You Money.]
"Retirees are really not looking at home equity as an attractive option for helping to fund their retirement," says another Society of Actuaries spokesman, Steve Siegal. "I think people tend to look at their houses as an anchoring point, and are kind of reluctant to mess with that. There's an emotional attachment there." While echoing Horgan's emphasis on only accessing home equity after very careful thought, Siegal adds that the study found that people were "not exploring any of the options. The point is that people should explore options and find out what's right for them."
There were slightly more than 23 million U.S. households in 2009 headed by someone at least 65 years old, according to federal housing statistics. About 80 percent of these households owned their homes, and of these, 65 percent had no mortgage or other home debt. Even with sharp housing price declines, the median value of homes owned by older people was about $150,000--over $100,000 more than they paid for it.
The best home-finance solutions, experts agree, tend to be the ones that meet an individual's specific needs. The major variables in home equity use include age, health and healthcare expenses, marital and family situation, life expectancy, current and future income streams, family assets, and estate considerations. In short, just about all significant life decisions can come into play in deciding how to deal with your home as a possible retirement asset.
[See the 10 Best Places to Downsize in Retirement.]
There are four major types of decisions that involve your home and your future: borrowing against the value of your home, generating rental income from your home, taking full advantage of government tax breaks, and moving into a residence that cuts monthly housing expenses and is more aligned with reduced retirement income levels:
1. Loans. Home equity loans and mortgage refinancings are rarely advised for paying basic retirement expenses, but they may make sense for special needs or one-time projects. Usually, borrowers need a reliable income stream to satisfy lenders of their ability to repay the loan. In some cases your retirement income would be enough, but you'd need to satisfy lenders that you have enough left over after paying your living expenses to service and repay the loan. Reverse mortgages do not require repayment but usually only make sense for people who plan to stay in their homes for a long time and do not intend to sell them and use the proceeds for other retirement needs. If you have a mortgage and are sure you want to downsize to a smaller home in a few years, consider refinancing your mortgage into a five-year adjustable rate mortgage. You will save a lot of money on mortgage payments and can use those savings to pay down your home loan even further. Just make sure you can sell the home before the five-year reset deadline occurs.
[See Reverse Mortgages Face Another Makeover.]
2. Income. Consider renting out a room in your home to generate extra income. This may make special sense if you're still carrying a mortgage on the property. Most retirees bring home less money in retirement than when they worked, which can make carrying a mortgage very difficult. Rental income can help you pay off the mortgage and take a lot of pressure off of your retirement budget. You could even consider renting our your entire home for a visiting vacationer. It could pay for your own vacation, and tax specialist CCH says if you rent out your home fewer than 15 days a year, you don't even have to include the money you receive as gross income on your tax return.
3. Taxes. The mortgage tax break may be reduced or even disappear as Congress wrestles with reforming the tax code and reducing budget deficits. But for now, it's the largest single tax break that individuals receive. Interest on home equity loans is usually deductible. There may also be energy credits and other tax breaks that make sense.
4. Moving. Downsizing can be the smartest way to let your home--or in this case, your new home--pay you money. Reduced living expenses, smaller utility bills, and even lower commuting costs should be on your mind as you consider how you will balance the household budget during your retirement years. Moving closer to key shopping and cultural activities can not only save you money, but also make increasing sense as you age and your time behind the wheel of a car grows shorter. Think carefully about whether you want to rent or buy your new home. And don't forget that gains on the sale of your current home--up to $500,000 in gains for a couple--are tax-free.

Toys R Us cancels $1.1 billion loan deal: report

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Privately held toy retailer Toys R Us (TOY.UL) has canceled a $1.1 billion loan deal that was intended to refinance its debt and reduce borrowing costs, Bloomberg reported on Monday.
Citing five people familiar with the matter, Bloomberg reported the cancellation but did not say why. Spokespeople for Toys R Us were not immediately available to comment.
The company has filed with regulators for an $800 million initial public offering; the relationship of the debt refinancing to the offering was not immediately clear.
Reuters Loan Pricing Corp reported last week that commitments had been due today on the deal.
(Reporting by Ben Berkowitz; Editing by Steve Orlofsky)

After lean times, Greek tourism eyes rebound

ATHENS (AFP) – After two lean seasons and a year marred by austerity protests, Greek tourism operators expect a rebound in 2011 with the global economy in recovery and unrest in North Africa turning demand elsewhere.
And although visitors avoiding Egypt and Tunisia may not necessarily flock to Greece -- which has troubles of its own from an unpopular economic overhaul -- the extra demand is enough for the entire region, industry representatives said.
"As an all-year destination, Spain is most likely to gain Egypt's market, followed by Turkey," says Yiannis Papadakis, deputy chairman of the Hellenic association of travel and tourist agencies (Hatta).
"But we also stand to benefit as there will be a lack of availability. Turkey is already between 80 and 85 percent booked and will be fully booked in about two months," he told AFP.
Early booking data from key European target markets -- Germany, Britain, France and Russia -- look promising and family travel is shying away from former favourite destinations in North Africa and the Middle East that have been hit with political turmoil.
"Bookings from Germany are up eight percent, Britain 12 percent and Russia by over 20 percent while France is also seeing a two-digit rise," says Andreas Andreadis, head of the Panhellenic confederation of hoteliers (POX).
"They were already rising from January before events in North Africa unfolded as these (European) countries have positive growth rates," he added.
"It's a normal rebound. This time last year we were a world news story. Now we no longer feature in negative headlines," Andreadis said.
Official data in January showed that foreign arrivals in Greece in the first nine months of 2010 had risen by 1.5 percent despite the country's economic woes and waves of frequently violent protests in Athens and Thessaloniki.
In May, three people died in an Athens bank that was firebombed during a protest.
"Events in May were disastrous, bookings for the entire month were frozen," Andreadis said.
"We still have two critical months ahead of us, so it's still too early to say how the season will play out."
Unions have already held a general strike this year against sweeping wage and pension cuts mandated by the EU and the International Monetary Fund after they rescued Greece from imminent bankruptcy with a 110-billion-euro ($154-billion) loan. Another seven national shutdowns were organised last year.
Some of last year's demonstrations against measures by the Socialist government to deal with an unprecedented debt crisis specifically targeted tourism-related infrastructure including hotels, the main port of Piraeus and the Acropolis, Greece's most emblematic monument.
At the time, the government offered to compensate travellers stranded in the country after the strikes and protests threatened to sink the season.
Residents of the popular island of Rhodes even took matters into their own hands, banning striking sailors from their harbour and dispatching flower-toting delegations to welcome incoming cruise ship passengers.
Price cuts by operators limited the damage but caused a revenue blow.
The Bank of Greece has said tourism takings were down by 7.3 percent to 9.45 billion euros ($13.2 billion) in the period to November.
To boost flight traffic, the government this week waived fees at all state airports except Athens International Airport from April 1 to December 31.
Tourism generates about 18 percent of Greece's gross domestic product.
Hatta's Papadakis said operators had been lowering their prices at the last minute for the last two years in order to elicit demand.
Hoteliers in particular saw their takings go down by 13 percent in 2009 and a by another 7 percent in 2010, Andreadis added.
"A room priced at 50 euros would be reduced to 30 euros," Papadakis said. "That's not going to happen this year".

Foolish FAQ: The Fukushima Nuclear Crisis

Japan continues to deal with an incredible tragedy right now. The earthquake on March 11 triggered a tsunami that hit the country's east coast, killing thousands and decimating the landscape. We mourn the losses and pray for the survivors and relief workers.
In the U.S., our attention has now shifted toward the nuclear power generation plants at Fukushima Daiichi, heavily damaged by the quake and tsunami, as operators work tirelessly to fend off nuclear disaster.
The struggles at Fukushima have brought many companies into the spotlight, including reactor designer General Electric (NYSE: GE - News) and Exelon (NYSE: EXC - News), the largest nuclear power plant operator in the United States. We've also seen a renewed focus on alternative energy sources from solar power companies such as First Solar, Trina Solar, and Suntech Power and wind energy companies like Broadwind Energy. While we need healthy debate about energy policies in the future, we have the opportunity to learn more about nuclear power today.
To get the scoop, I interviewed my father, Butch Meier, who's had decades of experience working with nuclear energy. The views he will express are his own, but based on his experience, he's got plenty of interesting things to say. We'll learn more about the situation at Fukushima, what the workers are trying to prevent, and how you can help. So let's get right to it.
David Meier: I may know about your background, but readers don't. What's your experience with nuclear energy?
Butch Meier: I studied reactor theory and design at the United States Naval Academy and in graduate school on an Atomic Energy Commission Fellowship at the University of Arizona. I served in U.S. Navy nuclear submarines for 29 years. Since 1998, I have done consulting work in related fields.
David: Why is cooling water so important for the situation at Fukushima right now?
Butch: Keeping things cool is vital.
Here's the problem the Japanese are trying to overcome: The earthquake, followed by the tsunami, absolutely wiped out their infrastructure, causing the cooling pumps to lose power. They have also experienced fires in the pumps providing cooling water to the spent fuel pools. Without a flow of cooling water, the water in the core or spent fuel pool eventually boils. With no water to remove the decay heat, the temperature of the fuel rises, causing the pressure to increase. In the limit, it can increase to the point that the fuel cell ruptures, which would release radioactive fission products. Chernobyl is the only example where this has happened.
(Editor's note: Tokyo Electric Power is working hard to restore dedicated power to the reactors in order to get the cooling systems working.)
David: Are the reactors running right now?
Butch: No. The reactors are shut down, and there is no worry about them restarting. The issue centers on the fission products in the shutdown reactors -- atoms that are produced when uranium atoms split in the fission process.
David: Speaking of uranium, the fuel used in a nuclear reactor, what goes on inside to create heat and radioactive byproducts?
Butch: When a uranium atom fissions, or splits, it releases energy as it splits into two other midweight atoms. ... These unstable radioactive atoms decay as they seek a stable state, emitting radiation in the process. Fissions still occur when the reactors are shut down -- just not at the rate when the reactor is "critical" or producing power. The shutdown fission rate is 8-10 or more orders of magnitude lower than during reactor operation.
Two types of radiation -- gamma rays (think of X-rays) and neutrons -- emitted from these decay products generate heat by mechanical interaction. Some of the neutrons are absorbed in the uranium fuel, causing more fission and more heat. So while the shutdown reactor doesn't require anywhere near the cooling needed when it is operating, it still requires cooling. Even the spent fuel removed from the reactors still generates heat. Water is the most prevalent coolant.
You may have heard that boric acid or borated water is being pumped into the cores. (Editor's note: South Korea has agreed to send some of its boron reserve to Japan.) Boron has a tremendous affinity for neutrons. It prefers to absorb them rather than the fuel, reducing the heat generated.
David: There have been reports of explosions at the plant. How do you think those happened?
Butch: Steam pressure from boiling water in the uncooled core has to be vented, or it could rupture the core vessel and the containment around the core vessel. (Editor's note: For a reactor diagram, see "Inside the Reactors" here.) Hydrogen is also produced in the core. The gas is vented into the containment building around the two inner containments. The vented gas also contains some radioactivity. The explosions that have occurred involve this hydrogen-steam mixture buildup, coupled with the loss of power and the ability to ventilate the containment building.
David: News headlines flash that radiation levels are high or rising. That doesn't tell the whole story. Break down the types of radiation -- how it can interact with humans or the environment, and how can people protect themselves against radiation?
Butch: Radiation is a challenging subject to discuss meaningfully. You can't see it, feel it, or taste it. We are not familiar with units, which are millisieverts, unlike a gallon of milk or the yards on a football field. But the effects of the various types of radiation and doses/dose rates -- the intensity and accumulation of radiation -- are well understood and documented. (Editor's note: This CNN blog entry does a nice job of putting things in perspective.)
There are four types of radiation. Gamma and neutron radiation, discussed above, can penetrate the body and cause long-term health problems under chronic exposure. Exposure to extremely concentrated doses could be immediately fatal. From what I have read, Fukushima is nowhere near exposures that are harmful.
Two others -- alpha and beta -- don't penetrate, and are only a problem if you ingest them or absorb them. You mitigate the gamma and neutron radiation by time, distance, and shielding. You mitigate alpha and beta radiation by staying inside or using filters or masks. The contaminations you see and hear about on TV are predominantly alpha and beta. (Editor's note: Japanese officials have been ordering people to stay inside and pictures show relief working with masks covering their noses and mouths.)
The release of the fission products in the cores and spent fuel pose the radiation hazard due to large amounts of long-lived penetrating radioactivity. Two fission product isotopes, cesium and strontium, are readily taken up by the body (bones, marrow), plants, food supply, etc. While they are not the most abundant fission products, they are long-lived and are a significant hazard.
Another fission product of concern is iodine, which concentrates in the thyroid. The potassium iodide tablets the government passed out are designed to flood the thyroid so it can't take up any more, thus blocking any released radioactive iodine. Note that the government has just made the tablets available they haven't told the people to take them, because they do not presently anticipate fission products released. If they do direct the people to take them, the problem is getting worse.
David: Let's go back to the beginning. On March 11, there was an earthquake measuring 8.9 on the Richter scale off the northeast coast of Japan. This caused a tsunami to hit the east coast, causing massive damage to homes, land, and infrastructure, including loss of power, reduced communication, and damage to the Fukushima nuclear plant. How well are Japanese officials and workers handling the situation?
Butch: Some perspective will help. The 1906 San Francisco earthquake is estimated as an 8 on the Richter scale -- it flattened the city. The 8.9 quake is one of the three or four most powerful ever. For perspective, the energy released in the Japan earthquake is about 30 times that released in San Francisco. Japanese officials have an almost impossible task, but they are doing well in my opinion.
David: The troubles at Fukushima conjure images of Three Mile Island for many, Chernobyl for others, and perhaps even Hiroshima and Nagasaki for some. Should operators lose control of the recovery effort in the plant, what would you be most worried about?
Butch: The release of the fission products in the cores and spent fuel -- no question.
David: We shouldn't take the possibility of a nuclear disaster lightly -- and no one is. What do you think is missing from the disaster in Japan?
Butch: Essentially the same thing that was missing in the Three Mile Island accident -- useful practical public education of the basics of nuclear power, including the risks, and media reporting that uses the context of technical facts. Our news media is quite driven by hysteria and sensationalism rather than facts and information -- that is not useful.
How you can helpThe tragedy in Japan gives us a great opportunity to learn. I hope that you leave this interview with more knowledge about the challenges at Fukushima.
There's also a chance to improve the lives of the survivors over in Japan by donating to the relief efforts. Please consider making a contribution. The story of the struggle at Fukushima has pushed the needs of the tsunami victims off of the front page, but you can read "Donating to Japan" to learn more about how to make a contribution.

Microsoft says business demand picking up

REDMOND, Wash.--Citing a pickup in business spending, Microsoft today reported quarterly earnings and revenue that topped what many had been expecting.

For the three months ended Sept. 30, Microsoft said it earned $5.41 billion in net income, or 62 cents per share, on revenue of $16.2 billion. Sales were up 25 percent from a year earlier, although the prior year results included the effects of a deferral of revenue ahead of the release of Windows 7. Without that, sales were up 13 percent and net income rose 16 percent.
"This was an exceptional quarter combining solid enterprise growth and continue strong consumer demand for Office 2010, Windows 7 and Xbox 360," CFO Peter Klein said in a statement.
The company also said it is seeing strong sales of long-term enterprise agreements with business customers. "We are seeing improved business demand and adoption," Chief Operating Officer Kevin Turner said in a statement.
Shares of Microsoft, which rose less than 1 percent in regular trading today ahead of the earnings report, were trading after hours at $26.56, up 1 percent from the $26.28 closing price.
The company earned $4.3 billion from its Windows and Windows Live division, on revenue of $4.79 billion, as PC sales grew by an estimated 9 percent to 11 percent from a year ago.
Buoyed by the release of Office 2010, the Microsoft Business division posted $3.39 billion in earnings on sales of $5.13 billion. Overall revenue was up 14 percent, although consumer sales grew at more twice the rate of business spending.
The Server and Tools unit posted a $1.63 billion operating profit on revenue of $3.96 billion as the company saw double digit growth in both multi-year agreement and one-time sales as well as a pick-up in the mix of premium versions of Windows Server. Additionally, the company said subscriptions of its still new Windows Azure grew 40 percent quarter-over-quarter.
However, despite an increase in online advertising revenue, Microsoft continued to lose money in its online services unit, which lost $560 million in the quarter, on revenue of $527 million.
The Entertainment and Devices unit posted a $382 million operating profit on sales of $1.79 billion. Xbox console sales grew 38 percent as the company introduced a new, slimmer version of the game hardware.
Update 2:40 p.m. PT: On its conference call with analysts, Microsoft said that it has seen a shift from low-end PCs to higher-end models, but has not seen a significant impact from tablets such as Apple's iPads. "We have not seen a material shift," Klein said.
As for PC growth, Microsoft did say that growth in emerging markets was three times as strong as that of mature markets.
In addition to record sales, Klein said that the company generated $8 billion in cash flow for the first time amid a significant jump in both revenue and a strong pipeline of future bookings.
As for Office 2010, early sales have been strong, Klein said, with unit sales up 20 percent from Office 2007 in its early days.
3:00 p.m. PT: Microsoft said it expects sales of PCs and servers to businesses to continue to be strong for the rest of the fiscal year, which goes through June, but declined to predict how long the buying cycle would last beyond that.
The company also predicted revenue in the entertainment unit would grow around 30 percent in the current quarter, as compared to a year earlier, amid strong sales of Xbox and Kinect. However, Microsoft makes less of a profit on those products, so margins could take a hit.

Facebook feature converts profiles to business pages

(Credit: Facebook)

Facebook users ready to move from a personal profile to a business page can now make the switch through a new process offered by the company.
Sparing people from the chore of building a business page from scratch, Facebook's Profile To Business Page Migration tool can provide a head start by just converting an existing personal profile. The process is geared for a variety of business types and categories, including local companies, larger organizations, public figures, causes, and even individual products.
The migration works by converting all of a user's friends into fans and moving over his or her profile photos. All other content, including wall posts and extra photos, won't come along for the ride. After choosing the appropriate business category, a user can specify a name, subcategory, and a few other items. Once the business page is live, the user can then fill in any other necessary details.
Be aware that the conversion is a one-way trip. Once it's finished, you can't transform your business page back into a personal profile. Facebook advises users who need to save content from their personal profile to download the information through the data downloader feature that the company set up last year.
You'll find more details on the conversion process and tips on maintaining a business page at Facebook's Help Center.
Though this new conversion may benefit business users, Facebook isn't just offering it out of the goodness of its heart. The company warns that having a personal profile for anything other than a single individual violates its guidelines. For such profiles, Facebook suggests converting them to business pages, otherwise users could lose access to their own content.

Several thousand rally against Serbia government

CACAK, Serbia – Thousands of anti-government protesters have rallied in a central Serbian town to demand the government call early elections over the deep economic crisis.
About 7,000 people gathered Saturday in Cacak. Organizers say similar protests will be held throughout the Balkan country in the coming weeks.
Nationalists want the pro-Western government to schedule an early vote for November. They accuse it of corruption and bad economic policies.
Opposition leader Tomislav Nikolic says "the time has come for elections; we will not let Serbia rot."
Organizers say a major rally will be held on Apr. 16th in the capital Belgrade.

Nike 3Q net income up but misses expectations

PORTLAND, Ore. – Nike Inc. reported lower net income than expected for its third quarter as the athletic shoe and clothing company struggled with higher costs for materials, labor and freight.
The news shocked investors, who are used to Nike consistently outperforming Wall Street's expectations. The company's shares plunged in after-hours trading Thursday.
Nike's net income rose 5 percent to $523 million, or $1.08 per share, from $497 million, or $1.01 per share, in the same period a year earlier. Its revenue rose 7 percent to $5.08 billion as sales rose in most markets around the globe.
The company, which is based in Beaverton, Ore., warned investors in December that rising costs would cut into its profit margins in the second half of the year even as revenue rose. But analysts had anticipated stronger margins. On average, they forecast earnings of $1.12 per share on revenue of $5.17 billion, according to FactSet.
Nike executives said higher costs will continue to hurt its profitability into 2012. It plans to raise prices on a broad array of products beginning this spring and control its costs, but those moves may not pay off until much later.
"Whatever may be unknown in the global economy, you can be absolutely certain that we'll continue to invest in our single biggest competitive advantage: our fixation on innovation that benefits consumers and shareholders," CEO Mark Parker said.
Company leaders said sales rose in nearly every market worldwide, in part with the introduction of new products.
But that growth was uneven: Revenue rose 9 percent in North America and 21 percent in China but fell 2 percent in Western Europe and 8 percent in Japan. Excluding the impact of currency fluctuations, revenue rose in all markets except Japan, where Nike has long struggled with sluggish sales.
Japan is a relatively small market for Nike, however.
The company said its employees in Japan all are accounted for, and it extended its sympathies to the country as it struggles with the impact of the earthquake and tsunami. The company said it is working with relief agencies to assist any way it can.
Nike said demand would continue to grow around the globe. It said orders for the upcoming season, which many investors look to for insight into the company's near-term strength, rose 11 percent.
"While the headwinds we face are the same for everyone, the competitive advantages we have are ours alone," Parker said.
Shares of the company fell $4.81 — 5.6 percent — to $80.60 in after-hours trading. They had ended regular trading up 59 cents and have traded between $66.34 and $92.49 the past 52 weeks.
Nike's quarterly earnings haven't fallen below analysts' average forecast for nearly eight years, according to FactSet.

Fed Gives Banks OK To Raise Dividends

The Federal Reserve on Friday cleared the way for some major banks to boost stock dividends, prompting announcements from JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and U.S. Bancorp.
JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM - News) said it will increase its dividend to 25 cents a share from 5 cents, Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC - News) hiked its dividend to 12 cents a share from 5 cents, and U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB - News) also boosted its dividend.
JPMorgan authorized a $15 billion stock buyback, with up to $8 billion in 2011. U.S. Bancorp OK'd a 50-million-share buyback plan.
Most of the 19 biggest U.S. banks hiked dividends, set buybacks or announced plans to do so.
Financials rallied, though gains faded somewhat along with the broader market. JPMorgan rose 2.5%. The SPDR Financial ETF (ARCA:XLF) climbed 1%.
Banks can increase dividends if they pass "stress tests" showing they can weather another recession.
The Fed said it had completed those tests and expects "some firms" to increase or resume dividend payments, buy back shares or repay government capital. The Fed isn't revealing either the names or number of banks that are expected to do so.
All of the 19 largest banks overseen by the Fed were subject to the examinations. They included Citigroup (NYSE:C - News), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC - News), JPMorgan and Wells Fargo.
During the financial crisis, banks slashed dividends to build capital cushions to absorb losses. Regulators barred banks from boosting dividends without obtaining approval.
By increasing payments, banks may be able to attract new investors, a situation that should lead to more lending to people and businesses, the Fed said.
The central bank is taking a "measured and conservative approach" on banks' dividend requests. It expects banks to limit dividends to 30% or less of their anticipated earnings.
Big Banks In Better Shape
A green light from the Fed on bigger dividend payments would also signal that banks are in better financial shape.
Federal regulators have been working closely with banks to strengthen operations and get lending flowing more normally again after the worst crisis since the 1930s.
The Fed said Friday that the 19 banks had increased common equity by more than $300 billion from the end of 2008 to the end of 2010. Overall, both the banks' amount and mix of capital have improved since the financial crisis, the Fed concluded in a paper released Friday.
Under the stress tests, banks had to show that they could survive a scenario in which U.S. GDP falls 1.5% this year and unemployment spikes to 11%. In addition, stocks and home prices would tumble.
Across the Atlantic, European regulators pledged to make their banks' stress tests this year more difficult than last year's.
The Fed kept the results of this latest round of stress tests confidential, which is standard practice in bank exams. But after its first stress tests in 2009, the central bank released the results to the public to boost confidence in the fragile U.S. banking system.
At the time, the government had launched a taxpayer-funded bailout of banks. The fear was that by withholding information on banks' health, investors' and the American public's shaky confidence would be further hurt.

IBM to pay $10 million to settle Asian bribe case

WASHINGTON (AFP) – IBM has agreed to pay $10 million to settle charges it gave cash and gifts to Chinese and South Korean officials to win contracts for mainframe and personal computers and other products.
The agreement with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) calls for the US computer titan to pay disgorgement of $5.3 million, interest of $2.7 million and a civil penalty of $2 million.
Under the agreement, which is subject to court approval and was released by the SEC on Friday, IBM does not admit or deny the allegations it violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).
In the complaint filed with the US District Court for the District of Columbia, the SEC outlined the accusations against IBM, which is based in Armonk, New York.
The complaint detailed instances of IBM Korea employees allegedly handing over envelopes filled with cash to South Korean officials in parking lots, providing them with free notebook computers, fiddling bid sheets and making payments to the bank account of a "hostess in a drink shop."
It said employees of IBM subsidiaries and a majority-owned joint venture provided cash and improper gifts, travel and entertainment to Chinese and South Korean government officials between 1998 and 2009.
From 1998 to 2003, employees of IBM Korea and joint venture LG IBM PC Co. paid $207,000 in cash bribes and gave improper gifts to South Korean government officials to secure the sale of IBM products, the complaint said.
It said that from 2004 to 2009, employees of IBM China provided overseas trips, entertainment and improper gifts to Chinese government officials.
"The misconduct in China involved several key IBM China employees and more than 100 IBM China employees overall," the complaint said.
IBM China employees "created slush funds at local travel agencies in China that were then used to pay for overseas and other travel expenses incurred by Chinese government officials," it said.
"In addition, IBM China employees created slush funds at its business partners to provide a cash payment and improper gifts, such as cameras and laptop computers, to Chinese government officials," it added.
"Deficient internal controls allowed employees of IBM's subsidiaries and joint venture to use local business partners and travel agencies as conduits for bribes or other improper payments to South Korean and Chinese government officials over long periods of time," the complaint said.
It said improper payments were recorded as "legitimate business expenses."
In a statement acknowledging the settlement, IBM said it "insists on the highest ethical standards in the conduct of its business and requires all employees to follow its policies and procedures for conducting business."
IBM shares were up 0.95 percent at $155.65 shortly before the closing bell on Wall Street.

Japan mulls capital injections for banks in quake region: report

TOKYO (Reuters) – The Japanese government plans to inject public funds into banks in areas ravaged by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami to make sure that businesses in the area can get credit to rebuild their operations, The Nikkei newspaper said in its Sunday edition.
The Nikkei did not say how big such capital injections would likely be but it noted that more than 11 trillion yen ($136 billion) was still available under a law passed after the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008 that allows for the use of public funds to replenish the capital of regional banks, credit banks and cooperatives.
Companies' demand for funds is expected to soar once rebuilding of the devastated areas starts in earnest and the government wants to give regional banks a sufficient capital cushion so they can keep on supplying credit to smaller businesses.
Among the banks operating in the quake-affected region are Tohoku Bank (8349.T), Toho Bank (8346.T), Bank of Iwate (8345.T), and 77 Bank (8341.T).
The newspaper had reported on Saturday that Japan was also considering making up to 10 trillion yen available in crisis financing to businesses to help them repair damage and finance day-to-day operations affected by the quake.
The Japanese authorities, racing to avert a disaster at a quake-crippled nuclear plant, have yet to produce an estimate of economic damage and decide how much the government will need to spend to help the world's third largest economy get back on its feet.
Economists' early estimates point to about $200 billion in losses, meaning Japan faces its biggest reconstruction push since post-World War Two. The economy could topple into recession before the effects of that effort can be felt.
Another concern is how Japan will finance that effort.
Japan's public and private investments abroad make it the world's biggest creditor and it has more than $1 trillion in foreign reserves, second only to China's.
But its public debt is twice the size of the $5 trillion economy, and although the government owes nearly all of it to its own institutions and households, economists wonder for how long it can count on them to keep underwriting spending

Shell drills 17 wells in China, eyes big spend: CEO

BEIJING (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) is drilling 17 wells in China, including for tight gas and shale gas, Chief Executive Peter Voser told Reuters on Sunday.
If the drilling is successful, Shell aims to spend $1 billion a year over the next five years on shale gas in China, he said on the sidelines of a forum, adding that it was already spending $400 million on unconventional gas in China this year.

U.S. News Ranks Best Graduate Schools

The 2012 rankings have been released. Find out which graduate schools are on the rise.

These are unsettling times for anyone pondering grad school. Economic turmoil and the effects of healthcare reform have altered not only the job market for new J.D.s, M.B.A.s, and M.D.s, for example, but also many of the time-honored methods used to train them.


The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania is one of many business schools reshaping their curriculum around a global model; medical schools nationwide are increasingly focused on primary care, given the nation's imminent shortage of family physicians. Harvard Medical School, for instance, opened a $30 million center dedicated to primary care practice and instruction late last year. And with newly frugal law firms demanding first year hires who can actually practice rather than merely provide research and support as they acclimate to the legal world, Northwestern University Law School, for one, seeks students with substantial work experience and offers them the option of a degree in just two years.

It's important for those considering graduate school to be mindful of the significant changes being made at graduate programs nationwide as they seek a school that best fits their needs and puts them in place to succeed with their diploma in hand. U.S. News's 2012 rankings of Best Graduate Schools, released today, are a tool to help prospective grad students do just that.

The rankings highlight the top programs in business, law, medicine, education, and engineering, among numerous other specialties. Rankings for health programs like public health, veterinary medicine, and physician assistant, where Johns Hopkins University, Cornell University, and Duke University ranked first, respectively, were also updated.

Business

With significant changes in technology and curriculum afoot at business schools nationwide, a shift has taken place at the pinnacle of the business school rankings. Last year, Stanford University was tied with Harvard University for the top spot amongst business schools. This year, however, Stanford has surpassed Harvard, claiming sole possession of the top spot. The University of Pennsylvania also moved up from a fifth-place tie last year to a third-place tie this year with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The University of Minnesota made one of the largest jumps among the top 25 programs, moving up three spots to 21st, taking the place of now 25th-ranked Ohio State University.

Medicine

While the top spots in the rankings of medical schools remained constant, a pair of elite schools were knocked down several spots. Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, and Johns Hopkins maintained their respective rankings as the top three medical schools. Stanford jumped to fifth this year from 11th overall last year, and the University of Michigan—Ann Arbor fell from sixth to 10th.
With a shortage of primary care physicians causing alarm in the medical community, more students are being incentivized to follow that path by government loan repayment assistance and forgiveness programs for family and internal physicians. U.S. News ranks primary care programs in addition to the aforementioned research-centric rankings of medical schools. The University of Washington, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, and Oregon Health and Science University maintained the top three spots in the primary care rankings.

Law

Yale University continued its long run atop the rankings of Best Law Schools, and the top five schools from the previous year's rankings remained the same. The University of Texas—Austin made the jump from 15th to a tie for 14th with Georgetown University, cracking the so called "T-14"—the law programs that have remained in the top 14, in some order, since the advent of the U.S. News Best Law Schools rankings and are held in the highest esteem by many in the legal world. Conversely, Emory University tumbled to 30th after being ranked 22nd last year.

Engineering

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is once again the top ranked engineering program, and the only change among the top 10 is the University of Texas—Austin sliding ahead of the University of Michigan—Ann Arbor to the eighth spot.

Education

Among education programs, Vanderbilt University claimed the top spot yet again. Johns Hopkins University fell from sixth place last year into a tie for 18th this year. The University of Texas—Austin, on the other hand, leapt from a tie for 10th last year to a tie for 2nd on this year's list.

RPattz and Cruise's Funny 'Business'

Last week Justin Bieber starred in a hilarious commercial with "The Hurt Locker's" Jeremy Renner and "Parks and Recreation's" Aziz Ansari for the MTV Movie Awards, which air on Sunday, June 6. Now the network continues the funny business with new promos starring Tom Cruise and Robert Pattinson.

In the first short, Cruise has a bizarre flashback to the set of his own 1980s breakout hit "Risky Business" where his "Tropic Thunder" alter ego Les Grossman meets his young "Risky Business" self. If the clip's not a CGI special effects recreation, and it really is Tom in a wig playing himself from 28 years ago, then the man is seriously drinking some kind of elixir of youth!

Nestle makes $35.8B profit in 2010 on Alcon sale

VEVEY, Switzerland – Swiss food and drinks giant Nestle SA boasted a full-year net profit of 34.23 billion Swiss francs ($35.8 billion) Thursday, inflated by the sale of its stake in eye care company Alcon that added 24.5 billion francs net to its balance sheet.
Analysts had predicted an even higher profit of 37 billion francs for the world's biggest food company. But investors cheered strong organic growth of 6 percent and a proposed 15.6 percent dividend hike to 1.85 francs per share — by noon the shares were trading almost 1 percent higher at 52.85 francs.
In 2009, the maker of Nescafe, Perrier, Jenny Craig and Haagen Dazs had made a net profit of 10.4 billion francs. Excluding extraordinary one-off gains such as the Alcon sale, net profit dipped to 8.78 billion francs in 2010 from the corresponding figure of 9.26 billion francs.
Sales reached 109.7 billion francs last year, up from 107.6 billion in 2009.
The popular Nespresso coffee capsules, boosted by ads featuring actor George Clooney, surpassed sales of 3 billion francs for the first time. That continues a recent streak of more than 20 percent annual organic growth, a measure that excludes acquisitions. Nestle added 36 more Nespresso boutique stores last year, and now has 215 worldwide.
Other brands such as Gerber and Nestea also saw strong sales growth. Among the 29 brands the company listed, the lowest-performing were Stouffer's and Herta with between 0 and 3 percent organic growth, and Dreyer's, Hot Pockets and Lean Cuisine with declining sales.
The Vevey, Switzerland-based company achieved almost a third of its sales — some 34.3 billion francs — with food and drinks in the Americas region, despite strong headwind from the weakness of the U.S. dollar compared to the franc.
The sale of Nestle's remaining 52 percent stake in eye care company Alcon to drug maker Novartis AG allowed it to launch new products, cut its debt, buy back shares and build new factories around the world last year. Early in 2010 it bought Kraft Foods Inc.'s frozen pizza business.
Chief executive Paul Bulcke said the company is aiming for organic growth of 5 to 6 percent in 2011 — the same target as in previous years — and is starting 2011 with continued momentum.
"2010 was a challenging year," he told reporters. "We have actually been able to outperform our industry ... in all geographies of the world."
Jim Singh, the chief financial officer, said the company saw organic growth in sales of 11.5 percent in emerging markets and 3.3 percent in developed markets. He said Nestle reduced costs by 1.5 billion francs through energy savings, reduced workplace accidents and fewer bad risks.
"We expect another good year in 2011," he said.
At the headquarters, a building perched along the shores of Lake Geneva that is worlds away from many of the poor countries the company operates in, CEO Bulcke highlighted the extent of Nestle's global reach.
He singled out the "floating supermarket," a vessel that sells chocolate, powdered milk, coffee and other Nestle products to 800,000 previously unreachable consumers in isolated communities along the Amazon River.
The ship, named the Terra Grande, began operating in South America last June.
Officials also pointed to booming Chinese demand for chicken bouillon, fast food, bottled water and other Nestle products. "I don't go into details, but when I say it is strong double-digit growth, I mean strong," said Frits van Dijk, an executive vice president who oversees Asia, Africa and Oceania.
Bulcke said the company's procurement policies would help guide it through the political crisis in Ivory Coast, the world's largest cocoa producer and a focal point for human rights advocates trying to force the world's chocolate makers to improve their labor practices.
Nestle's market value is now more than 180 billion francs, helped by gains in shares of about 2.6 percent during the past year. By stock market value it is now Europe's third-largest company, after HSBC Holdings Plc and Royal Dutch Shell Plc.