Tag Archives: economic

Under-fire PM Brown braces for EU vote blow

Beleaguered British Prime Minsiter Gordon Brown, under pressure to quit from members of his own party, was bracing himself for a potential new wave of troubles Sunday as counting began in European Elections. Voting in the UK is expected to be dominated by dissatisfaction with Brown’s Labour government and its handling of the economic crisis and a recent scandal over politicians’ expenses. Brown’s authority suffered heavy blows last week as he was forced to reshuffle his Cabinet following the resignation of several key Cabinet ministers, some of whom urged him to step down.

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Bush defends interrogation program in Michigan speech

Former President George W. Bush on Thursday repeated Dick Cheney’s assertion that the administration’s enhanced interrogation program, which included controversial techniques such as waterboarding, was legal and garnered valuable information that prevented terrorist attacks. Bush told a southwestern Michigan audience of nearly 2,500 — the largest he has addressed in the United States since leaving the White House in January — that, after the September 11 attacks, “I vowed to take whatever steps that were necessary to protect you.” In his speech, Bush did not specifically refer to the high-profile debate over President Obama’s decision to halt the use of harsh interrogation techniques

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On the Road Again: the Global Recession Scatters Workers

During China’s boom years, the lure of Beijing was irresistible for tens of thousands of South Koreans. With trade and investment between China and South Korea soaring, businessmen flocked to the Chinese capital seeking their fortunes; students, eager to learn Chinese, flooded into local universities. They collected in areas like Wangjing, an upscale neighborhood in the city’s northeast, where some 80,000 Koreans settled

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Southern province a gauge to China’s economy

For gauging the economic health of China, Guangdong province is a canary in a coal mine. Double-digit growth rates in China are now a thing of the past. The nation’s first quarter gross domestic product grew 6.1 percent, the government announced Thursday — down from 10.6 percent a year ago.

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