Venezuela furious at Obama’s comments on ailing Chavez

CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuela‘s government reacted with fury on Friday to U.S. President Barack Obama‘s criticism of ailing Hugo Chavez‘s “authoritarian” government at a time of national anxiety over his battle to recover from cancer surgery.In an interview with U.S. network Univision, Obama declined to speculate on the 58-year-old socialist president’s health in Cuba, where he is in a delicate state...

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Euro factory output pain eases

14 December 2012 Last updated at 05:43 ETPlease turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. Markit’s senior economist Rob Dobson: “There’s some sign of light at the end of the tunnel”The decline in the eurozone’s manufacturing sector has eased, a closely watched survey indicates, in a rare spot of good news for the region.Markit’s eurozone manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index rose to...

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Cuban lawmakers meet to consider economy, budget

HAVANA (AP) — Cuban lawmakers are holding the second of their twice-annual sessions with a year-end report expected on the state of the country’s economy.Legislators are also to approve next year’s budget.Cuban leaders have sometimes used the parliamentary gatherings to make important announcements or policy statements.Observers will be watching for word on the progress of President Raul Castro‘s...

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Sitar maker: Ravi Shankar’s legacy inspires others

NEW DELHI (AP) — The walls of Sanjay Sharma‘s music shop are lined with gleaming string instruments and old photographs of legendary musicians.Beatles George Harrison, John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Indian classicial musicians Zakir Hussain, Shiv Kumar Sharma and Vishwamohan Bhatt. And the man who brought these two very different musical worlds together: Ravi Shankar.Like his grandfather and father...

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Actelion says FDA accepts lung drug for review

ZURICH (Reuters) – Biotechnology company Actelion said on Friday the U.S. health regulator accepted a submission on the company’s macitentan drug, meant to treat patients with a potentially life-threatening lung condition.Actelion submitted the application for its drug for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension, a condition characterized by abnormally high blood pressure in the arteries...

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HMRC warns 300,000 late filers

13 December 2012 Last updated at 19:06 ETAbout 300,000 people who have failed to send in their tax returns for 2010-11 could soon see their goods seized.The taxman is sending warning letters to those who have now run up late-filing penalties of £1,300 for that year, under self-assessment.They can still pay, or ask for the penalty to be taken off their income in 2013-14 if they are in the PAYE system.The...

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The Hobbit: Richard Armitage Talks Preparations For Playing Thorin Oakenshield

British actor Richard Armitage admitted it wasn’t a walk in the park to play a J.R.R. Tolkien character in Peter Jackson’s reimagining of “The Hobbit,” the first installment of which is on its way into theaters.Upon touching down in New Zealand, where the trilogy was shot, the cast had a lot of character preparation to do.PLAY IT NOW: Martin Freeman Discusses The Hobbit’s ‘Good Chemistry’ & Playing...

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U.S. federal agency to test RIM’s BlackBerry 10

TORONTO (Reuters) – Research In Motion said a U.S. federal agency, which recently outlined plans to move away from BlackBerry in favor of Apple Inc’s iPhone, is now set to begin testing RIM‘s new BlackBerry 10 platform and devices.The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE), will early next year begin a pilot program on RIM’s new line of BlackBerry 10 smartphones and BlackBerry Enterprise...

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McAfee arrives in U.S. from Guatemala

MIAMI (Reuters) – Computer software pioneer John McAfee, who is wanted for questioning in Belize over the murder of a fellow American, arrived in Miami on Wednesday evening after he was deported by Guatemala, according to fellow passengers on an American Airlines flight.After landing, McAfee, 67, was escorted from the plane by airport security officers, passengers said. Shortly afterward, he tweeted,...

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Obama backers turn from re-election to “fiscal cliff” fight

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – After a year of knocking on doors and working the phones to get President Barack Obama re-elected, Meechie Biggers had gotten over her fear of talking politics with strangers.So when she came to Washington last week, the small-town real estate agent and a few like-minded Tennesseeans paid a visit to one of their Republican senators, Bob Corker, to try to persuade him to back...

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