Five more bodies have been found in the half-submerged wreck of the Costa Concordia cruise liner, bringing the number of confirmed dead to 30, Italy's Civil Protection agency said on Thursday. The giant vessel capsized off the Tuscan island of Giglio after hitting rocks on Jan. 13. Two people are still unaccounted for. A spokeswoman
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Hackers have disabled an independent Hong Kong "civil referendum" aimed at gauging how people might have voted if allowed in a scandal-laced, undemocratic leadership election on Sunday, the director of the initiative told reporters on Friday. The Hong Kong chief executive will be chosen by a 1,200-strong election commission, stacked with Beijing loyalists, as public
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Australia's swimming trials unearthed an impressive crop of young talent raising hopes the country might regain its superpower status in the pool, but this year's London Olympics could just come too soon to harvest a golden haul. Australia won six swimming golds at Beijing, following a seven-gold haul at Athens in 2004 and five at
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Asian shares fell on Friday and growth-linked currencies such as the Australian dollar were shunned after data showing shrinking factory activity in China and the euro zone heightened concerns about a slowdown in the global economy. Materials stocks such as miner BHP Billiton were prominent among the losers, but crude oil steadied after tumbling overnight
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European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said he was against any suggestion of Greece leaving the euro zone because that would not solve the country's woes and would lead to higher inflation as well as instability in Greece. In an interview with Germany's Bild newspaper to appear on Friday, Draghi also said he was opposed
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OPAP, Europe's biggest betting firm, may review its 2011 dividend payout for a possible increase if the government does not impose a windfall tax on profits, its chief executive said on Thursday. Austerity in Greece is taking its toll on OPAP, which on Wednesday posted a 21% drop in fourth quarter profit and announced its
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Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan began the race to host the European Championship in 2020 on Thursday when he said his country would like to stage the event for the first time. In a speech to delegates at the opening of the UEFA Congress, Erdogan said: "I would like to repeat the request to host
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President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Thursday that France would make it a crime to consult Web sites that advocate terrorism or hate crimes and would toughen a crackdown on people who went abroad for ideological indoctrination. "From now on, any person who habitually consults Web sites that advocate terrorism or that call for hatred and
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Chinese manufacturing slumped for a fifth month in March and the euro zone economy is showing new signs of wilting, according to surveys on Thursday that pointed to weakening global demand. Only the United States is showing signs of momentum at the moment among the world's top economies, underlined by jobless claims falling to a
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Emirates SkyCargo, the freight division of Emirates, one of the fastest growing international airlines, has cemented its position as a leading global player in air cargo industry by winning the Platinum Award (Air Cargo Carrier – 800,000 or more tonnes) at the prestigious Air Cargo Excellence Awards 2012. Organised by Air Cargo World, the Air
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