TOKYO, April 2 (GNN) - Japan's Nikkei share average rose
on Thursday, rebounding from a three-week low, helped by
short-covering and hopes that the central bank is buying stocks.
The Nikkei benchmark ended 1.5 percent higher to
19,312.79, posting the biggest daily percentage gain since
February 12.
The broader Topix gained 1.7 percent to 1,554.17 and
the JPX-Nikkei Index 400 also added 1.7 percent to
14,126.63.
Central bank data showed that it bought 35.2 billion yen
worth of exchange traded funds (ETF) on Wednesday, when the
market fell to a three-week low.(Reuters)
Nikkei posts biggest daily gain since mid-Feb on short-covering; BOJ buying helps mood
U.S. condemns Kenya attack, says offering help to take on al Shabaab
(GNN) - The United States on Thursday strongly condemned an attack by gunmen from the Islamist militant group al Shabaab on a Kenyan university campus and said it was offering Nairobi assistance to take on the group that has links to al Qaeda, the White House said in a statement.
(Reuters)(Reporting by Sandra Maler; Editing by Mohammad Zargham)
(Reuters)(Reporting by Sandra Maler; Editing by Mohammad Zargham)
How technology eased Buhari's path to power in Nigeria
Three decades after seizing power in a military coup, part of the 72-year-old former general's appeal to the electorate in Africa’s biggest economy lay in his successful rebranding as a man who embraced democracy.
A good deal of that rebranding happened online, where campaigning from smartphones can build momentum at low cost.
"The digital strategy has been a lifeline of the campaign for young people. We needed to create an image that enabled people to connect with him," Adebola Williams, the 29-year-old whose Lagos-based communications company, StateCraft, orchestrated Buhari's digital drive, told Reuters.
Even the doubters conceded that they had seen campaign material online.
"There were a lot of discussions on their Facebook pages, but I am not sure that really influenced me," said Endurance Dauda, 24, a student in the northern city of Kaduna, who said many of her friends are not online.
While not everyone was convinced the online methods swung their vote, the potential is hard to argue with.
Africa’s most populous nation - with 170 million inhabitants - has some of the world's highest levels of mobile phone ownership. There are 127 million mobile phone subscriptions in Nigeria, the International Telecommunications Union says.
"In the last four years it has become a lot easier and cheaper to get the Internet on your phone. It isn't exclusive anymore," Williams said, arguing that going online is no longer a luxury, despite most Nigerians living on less than $2 a day.
Defeated president Goodluck Jonathan's team also used social media, including YouTube videos highlighting Buhari’s autocratic past and facets of Jonathan’s life. In one, he was seen exercising with a personal trainer and playing squash.
But possibly more significant than the online campaigning was the use of biometric machines to identify voters, which prevented the ballot-box stuffing and multiple voting that characterised past polls.
"The card reader played a constructive role in deterring individuals who, in the past, have tampered with the electoral process either through ballot stuffing or tampering with the election results," said Dr Christopher Fomunyoh, of the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, a non-governmental organization that promotes democracy.
As a result, this election was judged Nigeria's freest and fairest election yet.
"Fortune favors the bold. Deciding to go hi-tech was absolutely the right thing to do," U.S. Ambassador James Entwistle said after the poll.
Once the biometric aspect of election technology had been proven, there was only way for the victor to celebrate.
When Buhari got the call from Jonathan conceding defeat, Williams used his phone to capture the moment and share the image on Twitter and Instagram.
(Reuters)(Additional reporting by Felix Bate; Editing by Tim Cocks and Alison Williams)
How technology eased Buhari's path to power in Nigeria
(GNN) - Somali al Shabaab militants said they were still holding many hostages inside a Kenyan university campus, nearly two hours after Interior Minister Joseph Nkaissery said the siege was nearing its end.
"We still control the scene and have many hostages," Abdiasis Abu Musab, al Shabaab's military operations spokesman, told Reuters without giving exact figures.
"Lying around us are also dead bodies, many more than the dead bodies that were carried out," Musab added. Nkaissery earlier said at least 70 people had been killed and 79 wounded in the attack on the campus on the northeastern town of Garissa.
(Reuters)(Reporting by Feisal Omar; Writing by Drazen Jorgic; Editing by Andrew Roche)
"We still control the scene and have many hostages," Abdiasis Abu Musab, al Shabaab's military operations spokesman, told Reuters without giving exact figures.
"Lying around us are also dead bodies, many more than the dead bodies that were carried out," Musab added. Nkaissery earlier said at least 70 people had been killed and 79 wounded in the attack on the campus on the northeastern town of Garissa.
(Reuters)(Reporting by Feisal Omar; Writing by Drazen Jorgic; Editing by Andrew Roche)
Investment banking fees fall 8 percent in weakest first quarter since 2012
Fees for deals done fell 28 percent in Japan, 14 percent in Europe and 18 percent in Asia Pacific, according to data compiled by Thomson Reuters and Freeman Consulting.
The North American investment banking market remained stable, with fees little changed at $11.5 billion.
JPMorgan Chase & Co topped the global investment banking league table in the quarter with $1.49 billion in fees. Goldman Sachs Group Inc was second with $1.48 billion.
Morgan Stanley and Citigroup Inc were the biggest gainers among the top 10 banks in fees earned, while Credit Suisse Group AG's fees dropped 23 percent.
Investment banking activity in the financial, healthcare, and energy and power sectors generated 54 percent of the global fee pool during the quarter.
Fees from deal making in the healthcare sector jumped 24 percent, with Goldman commanding 14 percent of all fees booked in the sector.
Equity capital markets underwriting fees fell 2 percent to $5.3 billion, dragged down by a 36 percent drop in fees from initial public offerings.
Fees from debt capital markets underwriting rose 4 percent to $6.3 billion, while mergers and acquisition advisory fees fell slightly to $5.5 billion.
Investment banking fees generated by financial sponsors and their portfolio companies dropped 30 percent to $2.5 billion. Blackstone Group LP's investment banking fees rose 79 percent to $168 million.
(Reuters)(Reporting by Amrutha Gayathri in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)
Pakistan PM approves deal to buy eight Chinese submarines: official
(GNN) - Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has approved a deal "years in the making" to buy eight submarines from China, a Pakistani government official said on Thursday, in what could be one of China's largest overseas weapons sales once it is signed.
The official, who was present at Tuesday's meeting of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Defense which was briefed by the Navy, said the deal to buy the diesel-electric submarines would likely be signed by Chinese President Xi Jinping when he visits, "but that is still not final".
Xi was due to travel to Pakistan this month, the government in Islamabad has said. China has said Xi would visit this year, but given no timeframe.
China and Pakistan call each other "all-weather friends" and their close ties have been underpinned by long-standing wariness of their common neighbor and rival, India, and a desire to hedge against U.S. influence across the region.
"The prime minister has approved buying eight submarines from China and these would be used to bolster Pakistan's strength," the official, who asked not to be identified, told Reuters.
He added that "last-minute homework is pending".
"Some officials are traveling to China even today. Work is ongoing," he said. "This deal is years in the making."
He said Pakistan was looking at S20 and Yuan class diesel-electric vessels.
A former senior Pakistan navy officer with knowledge of the negotiations told the Financial Times the contract could be worth $4 billion to $5 billion.
Asked about the submarines, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said China and Pakistan were friendly neighbors and that the two sides had normal military exchanges.
"I can tell you, relevant cooperation does not violate international convention and accords with China's three principles on military exports," she told a daily news briefing.
China is Pakistan's top supplier of weapons, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), which tracks global arms sales, selling 51 percent of the weapons Islamabad imported in 2010-2014.
China has also surpassed Germany to become the world's third largest arms exporter, SIPRI said in a report last month. Little is known about China's arms exports because the country does not publish data on such sales.
The Pakistani official also said that Pakistan had been in talks with France to buy new submarines, but the proposal was declined by the French.
A top U.S. Navy admiral said in February that, though they were technologically inferior, China's submarine fleet now outnumbered that of the United States.
(Reuters)(Reporting by Mehreen Zahra-Malik in Islamabad and Ben Blanchard and Megha Rajagopalan in Beijing; Writing by Nick Macfie; Editing by Alex Richardson)
The official, who was present at Tuesday's meeting of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Defense which was briefed by the Navy, said the deal to buy the diesel-electric submarines would likely be signed by Chinese President Xi Jinping when he visits, "but that is still not final".
Xi was due to travel to Pakistan this month, the government in Islamabad has said. China has said Xi would visit this year, but given no timeframe.
China and Pakistan call each other "all-weather friends" and their close ties have been underpinned by long-standing wariness of their common neighbor and rival, India, and a desire to hedge against U.S. influence across the region.
"The prime minister has approved buying eight submarines from China and these would be used to bolster Pakistan's strength," the official, who asked not to be identified, told Reuters.
He added that "last-minute homework is pending".
"Some officials are traveling to China even today. Work is ongoing," he said. "This deal is years in the making."
He said Pakistan was looking at S20 and Yuan class diesel-electric vessels.
A former senior Pakistan navy officer with knowledge of the negotiations told the Financial Times the contract could be worth $4 billion to $5 billion.
Asked about the submarines, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said China and Pakistan were friendly neighbors and that the two sides had normal military exchanges.
"I can tell you, relevant cooperation does not violate international convention and accords with China's three principles on military exports," she told a daily news briefing.
China is Pakistan's top supplier of weapons, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), which tracks global arms sales, selling 51 percent of the weapons Islamabad imported in 2010-2014.
China has also surpassed Germany to become the world's third largest arms exporter, SIPRI said in a report last month. Little is known about China's arms exports because the country does not publish data on such sales.
The Pakistani official also said that Pakistan had been in talks with France to buy new submarines, but the proposal was declined by the French.
A top U.S. Navy admiral said in February that, though they were technologically inferior, China's submarine fleet now outnumbered that of the United States.
(Reuters)(Reporting by Mehreen Zahra-Malik in Islamabad and Ben Blanchard and Megha Rajagopalan in Beijing; Writing by Nick Macfie; Editing by Alex Richardson)
China angered after U.S. fighter jets land in Taiwan
(GNN) - China's Foreign Ministry expressed anger on Thursday after two U.S. fighter jets landed in Taiwan, in a rare official contact between the militaries of the United States and the self-ruled democratic island.
Taiwan's Central News Agency said the two F-18s landed at an air force base in southern Taiwan on Wednesday after experiencing mechanical problems. It said it was not clear where they were coming from or where they were going.
"While this landing was unplanned and occurred exclusively out of mechanical necessity, it reflects well on Taiwan that they permitted pilots in distress to land safely," said U.S. Pentagon spokeswoman Henrietta Levin.
China's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Hua Chunying, told a regular news briefing: "We have already made solemn representations to the U.S. side."
"China demands that the United States strictly abide by the 'one-China policy' ... and cautiously and appropriately handle this incident."
The United States is obligated to help Taiwan defend itself under the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979, when Washington severed formal ties with the island to recognize the People's Republic of China in Beijing.
U.S. weapons sales in recent years to Taiwan, or indeed any formal contact between the two armed forces, have provoked strong condemnation by China, but have not caused lasting damage to Beijing's relations with either Washington or Taipei.
China views Taiwan as a renegade province and has not ruled out the use of force to bring it under its control.
While Taiwan and China have signed a series of landmark trade and economic agreements since 2008, political and military suspicions still run deep, especially in democratic Taiwan, where many fear China's true intentions.
China's military modernization has also been accompanied by a more assertive posture in its regional territorial disputes.
(Reuters)(Reporting by Michael Martina, and J.R. Wu in Taipei; Writing by Ben Blanchard and Clarence Fernandez)
"While this landing was unplanned and occurred exclusively out of mechanical necessity, it reflects well on Taiwan that they permitted pilots in distress to land safely," said U.S. Pentagon spokeswoman Henrietta Levin.
China's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Hua Chunying, told a regular news briefing: "We have already made solemn representations to the U.S. side."
"China demands that the United States strictly abide by the 'one-China policy' ... and cautiously and appropriately handle this incident."
The United States is obligated to help Taiwan defend itself under the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979, when Washington severed formal ties with the island to recognize the People's Republic of China in Beijing.
U.S. weapons sales in recent years to Taiwan, or indeed any formal contact between the two armed forces, have provoked strong condemnation by China, but have not caused lasting damage to Beijing's relations with either Washington or Taipei.
China views Taiwan as a renegade province and has not ruled out the use of force to bring it under its control.
While Taiwan and China have signed a series of landmark trade and economic agreements since 2008, political and military suspicions still run deep, especially in democratic Taiwan, where many fear China's true intentions.
China's military modernization has also been accompanied by a more assertive posture in its regional territorial disputes.
(Reuters)(Reporting by Michael Martina, and J.R. Wu in Taipei; Writing by Ben Blanchard and Clarence Fernandez)
BMW, Mercedes grapple with unauthorized exports from U.S. to China
So-called gray imports to China have jumped since the country allowed dealers registered in Shanghai's free trade zone to import cars without the consent of foreign carmakers, exacerbating price pressure for German manufacturers.
"We got concerned when it hit 4,000," said Steve Cannon, head of Mercedes-Benz USA, referring to the number of vehicles being shipped to China from the United States.
Mercedes can penalize U.S. dealers who knowingly sell vehicles to so-called gray-market exporters, who operate through unauthorized channels.
As a first step it has encouraged dealers to vet buyers of exclusive models such as the GL large SUV, using online resources such as Zillow to check addresses of would-be buyers, and has discouraged cash payment for cars, Cannon said.
"We nipped it in the bud," Cannon said, referring to the ability of unauthorized buyers to acquire vehicles in the United States for immediate export to China. "We took it down to almost nothing."
China has had a gray market in auto sales for some time, centered around the northern port city of Tianjin, where about half of China's total car import deals are done. Together, Audi (VOWG_p.DE), BMW and Mercedes have about 70 to 80 percent market share in the premium segment.
A BMW 650i xDrive Convertible that sells from $97,900 in the United States can cost close to 2 million yuan ($320,179) in China.
Ian Robertson, BMW AG's (BMWG.DE) board member responsible for global sales, said the company is concerned about the effect of new Chinese laws that clear a legal path for parallel imports. The automaker is cooperating with U.S. law enforcement authorities investigating the source and flow of the money used to acquire such vehicles.
BMW does not have a precise figure for how many vehicles are being shipped to China from the United States through unofficial channels. "It's not a single entrepreneur," Robertson said. "It's difficult to know."
But BMW is seeing vehicles turn up in China with navigation systems and engines that are specified for the United States, not China. One concern, he said, is that U.S. engines are designed to run on different fuel than is commonly available in China, and the result could be that gray-market BMWs perform poorly.
After years of growth that turned China into the world's biggest car market, cooling demand is exacerbating tensions between global automakers and local car dealers.
Earlier this year, BMW said it will pay 5.1 billion yuan ($823 million) to its established China dealers who are suffering from slowing sales as the economy cools and competition from unauthorized dealers increases.
(Reuters)(Additional reporting by Edward Taylor in Frankfurt; editing by Matthew Lewis)
China knocking on door of IMF's major league, U.S. wavers
(GNN) - China is closer to joining the major league of reserve currencies with a deal possible later this year to include the yuan in the International Monetary Fund's unit of account, international finance officials say.
However the United States, where China's growing economic and political muscle is a source of strategic concern in Congress, is reluctant to add the yuan so soon to the basket of currencies that make up the IMF's Special Drawing Rights.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said after a visit to Beijing this week the yuan was not yet ready to join the virtual currency that defines the value of the IMF's reserves, used for lending to countries in financial difficulty.
"While further liberalization and reform are needed for the (yuan) to meet this standard, we encourage the process of completing these necessary reforms," Lew said in a speech in San Francisco on Tuesday.
The yuan, also known as the renminbi or RMB, is already the world's fifth most-used trade currency. Beijing has made strides this year in introducing the infrastructure needed to float it freely on global capital markets.
European members of the Group of Seven major industrialized economies - Germany, Britain, France and Italy - favor adding the yuan this year to the basket that comprises the dollar, the euro, the yen and the pound sterling. Japan, like the United States, is more cautious, the officials said.
The IMF's board will hold an initial discussion in May on China's request and a full five-yearly review of the SDR's composition will be conducted later in the year ahead of a decision expected in November, IMF officials said.
"The German side supports China's goal to add the RMB to the SDR currency basket based on existing criteria," Joachim Nagel, a member of the executive board of the German central bank, said last weekend at a high-level forum in Boao, on the southern Chinese island of Hainan.
The upcoming review could be a good opportunity to introduce the yuan into the basket, he said, adding: "We appreciate China's recent development and progress towards liberalization."
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang asked IMF chief Christine Lagarde last month to include the yuan in its SDR basket, pledged to speed up its "basic convertibility" and said China hoped to play an active role in international efforts to maintain financial stability, state news agency Xinhua said.
PHASED ENTRY?
A euro zone central bank source said one route could see a phased entry into the SDR, linked to fulfilling the official criterion that the yuan must be "freely usable", which Western officials interpret as full convertibility.
It would be the first emerging market currency to join the SDR, marking another stage in China's rise as a global economic player and requiring the United States to accept a dilution of its unrivalled power in international finance.
While the Europeans are vying for commercial advantage in the world's second biggest economy, Washington sees Beijing also as an authoritarian strategic challenger that may not feel bound by rules written by the West.
The U.S. Congress has held up ratification of a 2010 reform of voting rights in the IMF intended to give China and other emerging economies more say.
Britain, keen to secure pole position for London as an offshore center for international trading in yuan, has taken the lead in pressing publicly for China's admission to the SDR.
David Ramsden, chief economic adviser at the UK Treasury, said much had changed since the makeup of the virtual currency was last reviewed in 2010, and including the yuan was now a "very live issue".
Germany has ambitions to lure yuan trading to Frankfurt, home of the European Central Bank, and was irked when Britain last month jumped ahead of its EU partners to become a founder member of the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.
Washington suffered a diplomatic reverse after trying to dissuade its allies from joining the Chinese initiative, seen as a potential rival to the World Bank and Asian Development Bank, dominated by the United States and Japan.
Keen to avoid a second rift with Europe - even though the United States can block IMF decisions - Lew focused on the terms for admitting the yuan to the SDR rather than the timing.
"China will need to successfully complete difficult fundamental reforms, such as capital account liberalization, a more market-determined exchange rate, interest rate liberalization, as well as strengthening of financial regulation and supervision," he said.
While Washington believed Beijing has stopped intervening to weaken its currency, Lew said the true test would come when market pressure increased for the yuan to strengthen.
David Marsh, managing director of the central banking think-tank OMFIF, sees a "grand bargain" between China, the United States and the IMF taking shape under which Beijing would enter the heart of global finance in exchange for turning the yuan into a strong currency on world financial markets.
The Chinese central bank was using its $3.8 trillion in reserves to keep the yuan steady against the dollar. The Chinese currency has appreciated by 11 percent in trade-weighted terms in the past year.
"All of this is a potential challenge for the dollar and its pivotal position in world money," Marsh said in a briefing.
While there is no fixed set of indicators to measure the eligibility of a currency for the SDR basket, in 2011 IMF staff set out a number of indicators that could show whether a currency is "freely usable":
- currency composition of official reserve holdings;
- currency denomination of international banking liabilities; - currency denomination of international debt securities;
- volume of transactions in foreign exchange spot markets.
More than 60 central banks hold the yuan in their reserves, according to China-focused bankers in London. Offshore trading in the yuan CNH= soared some 350 percent on Thomson Reuters trading platforms last year and rival platform EBS said the yuan was one of its top five traded currencies.
A former high IMF official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said 2015 was too soon for the yuan to qualify, but the Chinese central bank could use the review to persuade Communist Party leaders to move further towards convertibility.
Zhu Min, the IMF's Chinese deputy managing director, noted the yuan was increasingly used in trade and was also growing in capital markets.
"Clearly the RMB is already qualified, in a sense, on trade activity," he told reporters at the Boao Forum. "But on the freely usable side ... there are still some obstructions."
(This story corrects paragraph 18, changing to Asian Development Bank)
(Reuters)(Additional reporting by Adam Jourdan in Boao, China, Rory Carroll in San Francisco, Randall Palmer in Ottawa and Patrick Graham in London; Writing by Paul Taylor. Editing by Mike Peacock.)
U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said after a visit to Beijing this week the yuan was not yet ready to join the virtual currency that defines the value of the IMF's reserves, used for lending to countries in financial difficulty.
"While further liberalization and reform are needed for the (yuan) to meet this standard, we encourage the process of completing these necessary reforms," Lew said in a speech in San Francisco on Tuesday.
The yuan, also known as the renminbi or RMB, is already the world's fifth most-used trade currency. Beijing has made strides this year in introducing the infrastructure needed to float it freely on global capital markets.
European members of the Group of Seven major industrialized economies - Germany, Britain, France and Italy - favor adding the yuan this year to the basket that comprises the dollar, the euro, the yen and the pound sterling. Japan, like the United States, is more cautious, the officials said.
The IMF's board will hold an initial discussion in May on China's request and a full five-yearly review of the SDR's composition will be conducted later in the year ahead of a decision expected in November, IMF officials said.
"The German side supports China's goal to add the RMB to the SDR currency basket based on existing criteria," Joachim Nagel, a member of the executive board of the German central bank, said last weekend at a high-level forum in Boao, on the southern Chinese island of Hainan.
The upcoming review could be a good opportunity to introduce the yuan into the basket, he said, adding: "We appreciate China's recent development and progress towards liberalization."
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang asked IMF chief Christine Lagarde last month to include the yuan in its SDR basket, pledged to speed up its "basic convertibility" and said China hoped to play an active role in international efforts to maintain financial stability, state news agency Xinhua said.
PHASED ENTRY?
It would be the first emerging market currency to join the SDR, marking another stage in China's rise as a global economic player and requiring the United States to accept a dilution of its unrivalled power in international finance.
While the Europeans are vying for commercial advantage in the world's second biggest economy, Washington sees Beijing also as an authoritarian strategic challenger that may not feel bound by rules written by the West.
The U.S. Congress has held up ratification of a 2010 reform of voting rights in the IMF intended to give China and other emerging economies more say.
Britain, keen to secure pole position for London as an offshore center for international trading in yuan, has taken the lead in pressing publicly for China's admission to the SDR.
David Ramsden, chief economic adviser at the UK Treasury, said much had changed since the makeup of the virtual currency was last reviewed in 2010, and including the yuan was now a "very live issue".
Germany has ambitions to lure yuan trading to Frankfurt, home of the European Central Bank, and was irked when Britain last month jumped ahead of its EU partners to become a founder member of the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.
Washington suffered a diplomatic reverse after trying to dissuade its allies from joining the Chinese initiative, seen as a potential rival to the World Bank and Asian Development Bank, dominated by the United States and Japan.
Keen to avoid a second rift with Europe - even though the United States can block IMF decisions - Lew focused on the terms for admitting the yuan to the SDR rather than the timing.
"China will need to successfully complete difficult fundamental reforms, such as capital account liberalization, a more market-determined exchange rate, interest rate liberalization, as well as strengthening of financial regulation and supervision," he said.
While Washington believed Beijing has stopped intervening to weaken its currency, Lew said the true test would come when market pressure increased for the yuan to strengthen.
David Marsh, managing director of the central banking think-tank OMFIF, sees a "grand bargain" between China, the United States and the IMF taking shape under which Beijing would enter the heart of global finance in exchange for turning the yuan into a strong currency on world financial markets.
The Chinese central bank was using its $3.8 trillion in reserves to keep the yuan steady against the dollar. The Chinese currency has appreciated by 11 percent in trade-weighted terms in the past year.
"All of this is a potential challenge for the dollar and its pivotal position in world money," Marsh said in a briefing.
While there is no fixed set of indicators to measure the eligibility of a currency for the SDR basket, in 2011 IMF staff set out a number of indicators that could show whether a currency is "freely usable":
- currency composition of official reserve holdings;
- currency denomination of international banking liabilities; - currency denomination of international debt securities;
- volume of transactions in foreign exchange spot markets.
More than 60 central banks hold the yuan in their reserves, according to China-focused bankers in London. Offshore trading in the yuan CNH= soared some 350 percent on Thomson Reuters trading platforms last year and rival platform EBS said the yuan was one of its top five traded currencies.
A former high IMF official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said 2015 was too soon for the yuan to qualify, but the Chinese central bank could use the review to persuade Communist Party leaders to move further towards convertibility.
Zhu Min, the IMF's Chinese deputy managing director, noted the yuan was increasingly used in trade and was also growing in capital markets.
"Clearly the RMB is already qualified, in a sense, on trade activity," he told reporters at the Boao Forum. "But on the freely usable side ... there are still some obstructions."
(This story corrects paragraph 18, changing to Asian Development Bank)
(Reuters)(Additional reporting by Adam Jourdan in Boao, China, Rory Carroll in San Francisco, Randall Palmer in Ottawa and Patrick Graham in London; Writing by Paul Taylor. Editing by Mike Peacock.)
IBM forges mobile app partnership with China Telecom
Under the agreement, state-owned China Telecom will host on its servers IBM's MobileFirst service, which helps corporations manage apps for Apple Inc's (AAPL.O) iPhone and iPad devices.
IBM's strategy has been to deepen its presence and win favor in China through partnerships with local firms despite political headwinds.
Citing cybersecurity concerns, the Chinese government recently announced regulations that encourage state-affiliated companies to procure more tech products from domestic suppliers and shun international vendors. Western business lobbies say this is an unfair tactic to protect Chinese companies or spur technology transfer.
IBM Chief Executive Virginia Rometty said in a speech before business and political elite in Beijing last week that the company would share its technology and help Chinese companies to continue doing business in the country.
Thomas, the Beijing-based executive, said IBM intended to collaborate closely with China Telecom, the largest cloud provider in China and the largest fixed-line carrier.
"When we think about technology sharing, that is the first foundation we'll be working on when we're bringing MobileFirst to China Telecom's cloud," Thomas said.
MobileFirst is the result of a collaboration between IBM and Apple. IBM has released dozens of iPhone and iPad apps that for instance help shipping companies manage freight or provide records on-the-go for medical doctors.
Although sources have told Reuters Beijing has unofficially forbidden the use of iPhones in sensitive departments, Thomas spoke of the broad market opportunity for a Chinese economy that is moving rapidly into the mobile age.
Thomas said the deal with Telecom was set in motion before the Chinese government announced the regulations and could not comment on the policies' effect on the MobileFirst business.
"We're looking to China Telecom to be the foundation to give clients confidence" in the service's security, she added.
Twenty-four apps have been translated into Chinese, and additional ones will be tailored for retail, travel, transportation, government and healthcare, among other sectors, Thomas said.
(Reuters)(Additional reporting by Matthew Miller; editing by Susan Thomas)
Two Chinese energy executives under investigation
(GNN) - Two senior energy executives are under investigation, authorities in China said on Thursday, as a corruption crackdown on state-owned enterprises continues to fell top officials.
The deputy general manager and board member of state-run China Southern Power Grid, Xiao Peng, is under criminal investigation for "work-related crimes," the procuratorate in Guangdong province said in a statement on its website.
And at state-owned China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC), a former general manager named Wu Zhenfang is being probed for "serious disciplinary violations," the central government's corruption watchdog said on its website.
A call to Peng's office went unanswered. CNOOC could also not be reached for comment.
China's president, Xi Jinping, has warned that corruption threatens the survival of China's ruling Communist Party and his two-year anti-graft campaign has brought down scores of senior officials in the party, the government, the military and state-owned enterprises.
Peng is the second high-level executive at China Southern Power Grid, one of the country's two national power grid operators, to come under scrutiny this week.
On Monday, authorities said Qi Dacai, the company's vice president and director, was under investigation for "serious disciplinary violations."
On Tuesday, authorities announced an investigation into a top executive at state-owned Baosteel Group.
(Reuters)(Reporting By Adam Rose and Chen Aizhu; Editing by Tom Hogue)
The deputy general manager and board member of state-run China Southern Power Grid, Xiao Peng, is under criminal investigation for "work-related crimes," the procuratorate in Guangdong province said in a statement on its website.
And at state-owned China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC), a former general manager named Wu Zhenfang is being probed for "serious disciplinary violations," the central government's corruption watchdog said on its website.
A call to Peng's office went unanswered. CNOOC could also not be reached for comment.
China's president, Xi Jinping, has warned that corruption threatens the survival of China's ruling Communist Party and his two-year anti-graft campaign has brought down scores of senior officials in the party, the government, the military and state-owned enterprises.
Peng is the second high-level executive at China Southern Power Grid, one of the country's two national power grid operators, to come under scrutiny this week.
On Monday, authorities said Qi Dacai, the company's vice president and director, was under investigation for "serious disciplinary violations."
On Tuesday, authorities announced an investigation into a top executive at state-owned Baosteel Group.
(Reuters)(Reporting By Adam Rose and Chen Aizhu; Editing by Tom Hogue)
Iran nuclear talks went to the wire and beyond
(GNN) - When Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced on Wednesday that a framework nuclear deal had been reached between Iran and major world powers, the French delegation to the talks thought it was an April Fool's Day joke.
In the end, a deal was reached a day later. But after eight days of talking, with a Tuesday midnight deadline already history, it had gone to the wire and beyond.
Before the delegations paused to rest briefly as the sun came up over Lake Geneva on Thursday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met repeatedly during the night with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javed Zarif, Laurent Fabius of France and Germany's Frank Walter Steinmeier.
Pressure from outside had been intense. The White House said Washington was prepared to walk away if necessary, while the Iranian delegation had to constantly consult with Tehran.
In an indication of how fraught the discussions had become, Fabius left the talks on Tuesday in the middle of the night, ostensibly to attend a cabinet meeting. But diplomats said the negotiations had become too complicated and it was "not for him to haggle over centrifuges".
The talks were held in Lausanne's lakeside Beau Rivage Palace hotel, where a cocktail can cost more than $70. Coco Chanel's dog is buried in the grounds and at times it looked as if hopes of a nuclear deal might be interred there too.
However fragile it might prove, the framework deal was eventually announced. The process that preceded it was long and hard and it is not over yet, with June 30 set for a final deal and much horsetrading expected before then.
Senior Iranian officials began thinking about the need to reopen negotiations with Washington in late 2012 after they began to see the crippling impact of Western sanctions imposed because of Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
Iranian officials close to the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had grown tired of former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's confrontational approach to Israel and the West, which had galvanized opposition to Iran.
A few months before Iran's June 2013 presidential election, in a secret meeting between Khamenei and a small group of top officials, the issue of who should succeed Ahmadinejad was discussed. They all agreed on Rouhani.
"Rouhani's mandate was to improve the economy, hit by the sanctions and Ahmadinejad's economic mismanagement," an Iranian official told Reuters.
AMERICAN OFFICIALS
After Rouhani was elected, Foreign Minister Zarif, who knew a number of American officials including Secretary of State John Kerry, approached them seeking to pave the way toward ending the nuclear standoff, the official said.
Khamenei was suspicious of the Americans and not optimistic about talking with them. But in the interests of the economy, he backed negotiations.
"Since the talks started, there have been ups and downs, good moments and bad moments. But generally, despite fiery public speeches, top Iranian officials, particularly the leader, backed the talks and the team," the Iranian official said.
Immediately after winning a vote of confidence in parliament, Rouhani met Kerry in September 2013, followed by the Iranian president's historic phone call with Barack Obama - the first such conversation between Iranian and U.S. presidents since ties were severed three decades ago.
After secret meetings between Iranian and U.S. officials, sometimes involving Omani intermediaries, the two sides agreed in September 2013 to relaunch the talks process that began in 2006 but stalled when it became clear that Ahmadinejad could not deliver a deal that Iran's hard-liners could accept.
Ahmadinejad's diatribes against the West had persuaded the European Union to join Washington in imposing sanctions on Iran, and the leadership in Tehran eventually opted for negotiations.
"It was clear when we began exploring talks with Iran that they were on their knees because of the sanctions," a U.S. official said. "It was time to talk."
In a year and a half of talks in Geneva, Vienna, Lausanne, New York and elsewhere, U.S.-Iranian relations underwent a subtle shift.
Meetings between senior U.S. and Iranian officials use to be big news. But now they meet so regularly that it is barely newsworthy, which diplomats say is proof of how much things have changed since Rouhani took office. U.S. and Iranian officials regularly chat outside the negotiating rooms at hotels.
But despite the increased cordiality between Iranian and U.S. officials, relations between the two countries are still not back to normal.
Zarif was summoned before parliament in January after images of him and Kerry strolling together along Lake Geneva provoked an outcry among hard-liners.
After that, Kerry was wary of allowing photographer snap pictures of him and Zarif during their strolls.
WHEN THE TROUBLES BEGAN
Although Rouhani and Zarif always wanted a deal, it was never clear that the leadership in Tehran, including Khamenei, shared their views.
The first sign that things were going wrong came last July, when Khamenei blindsided Zarif by announcing that Iran needed huge increases in nuclear centrifuge numbers.
There had earlier been indications that the Iranian delegation wanted to compromise to make a deal.
But after the leader publicly set clear red lines for his negotiators the possibility of a compromise vanished and a four-month extension was agreed to carry the negotiations to Nov. 24, which Western officials hoped would be enough time for Rouhani and Zarif to persuade hardliners in Tehran that making an agreement was their ticket to gradually ending sanctions.
But months of meetings between Iranian and American negotiators, including former Deputy Secretary of State Bill Burns, who began secret talks with Iran in 2013 to lay the groundwork for the current negotiations, and Under Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, who has led the U.S. delegations in Geneva and Vienna, failed find a compromise.
They also failed to break the deadlock in November, agreeing another extension until June 30, with the understanding that the parties should reach a political framework agreement by the end of March this year.
Western officials said the Obama administration and the Rouhani government both faced uphill battles to make their case to hardliners.
For Obama, there is perhaps an awareness that the only major "deliverable" he can achieve in his final two years in office is a deal with Iran.
And in Iran, many believe Kerry wants to help Obama secure his legacy. They also point to Kerry's Iranian-American son-in-law as proof that, as one Iranian woman put it, he is "on our side".
(Reuters)(Additional reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by Giles Elgood)
Before the delegations paused to rest briefly as the sun came up over Lake Geneva on Thursday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met repeatedly during the night with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javed Zarif, Laurent Fabius of France and Germany's Frank Walter Steinmeier.
Pressure from outside had been intense. The White House said Washington was prepared to walk away if necessary, while the Iranian delegation had to constantly consult with Tehran.
In an indication of how fraught the discussions had become, Fabius left the talks on Tuesday in the middle of the night, ostensibly to attend a cabinet meeting. But diplomats said the negotiations had become too complicated and it was "not for him to haggle over centrifuges".
The talks were held in Lausanne's lakeside Beau Rivage Palace hotel, where a cocktail can cost more than $70. Coco Chanel's dog is buried in the grounds and at times it looked as if hopes of a nuclear deal might be interred there too.
However fragile it might prove, the framework deal was eventually announced. The process that preceded it was long and hard and it is not over yet, with June 30 set for a final deal and much horsetrading expected before then.
Senior Iranian officials began thinking about the need to reopen negotiations with Washington in late 2012 after they began to see the crippling impact of Western sanctions imposed because of Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
Iranian officials close to the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had grown tired of former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's confrontational approach to Israel and the West, which had galvanized opposition to Iran.
A few months before Iran's June 2013 presidential election, in a secret meeting between Khamenei and a small group of top officials, the issue of who should succeed Ahmadinejad was discussed. They all agreed on Rouhani.
"Rouhani's mandate was to improve the economy, hit by the sanctions and Ahmadinejad's economic mismanagement," an Iranian official told Reuters.
AMERICAN OFFICIALS
After Rouhani was elected, Foreign Minister Zarif, who knew a number of American officials including Secretary of State John Kerry, approached them seeking to pave the way toward ending the nuclear standoff, the official said.
Khamenei was suspicious of the Americans and not optimistic about talking with them. But in the interests of the economy, he backed negotiations.
"Since the talks started, there have been ups and downs, good moments and bad moments. But generally, despite fiery public speeches, top Iranian officials, particularly the leader, backed the talks and the team," the Iranian official said.
Immediately after winning a vote of confidence in parliament, Rouhani met Kerry in September 2013, followed by the Iranian president's historic phone call with Barack Obama - the first such conversation between Iranian and U.S. presidents since ties were severed three decades ago.
After secret meetings between Iranian and U.S. officials, sometimes involving Omani intermediaries, the two sides agreed in September 2013 to relaunch the talks process that began in 2006 but stalled when it became clear that Ahmadinejad could not deliver a deal that Iran's hard-liners could accept.
Ahmadinejad's diatribes against the West had persuaded the European Union to join Washington in imposing sanctions on Iran, and the leadership in Tehran eventually opted for negotiations.
"It was clear when we began exploring talks with Iran that they were on their knees because of the sanctions," a U.S. official said. "It was time to talk."
In a year and a half of talks in Geneva, Vienna, Lausanne, New York and elsewhere, U.S.-Iranian relations underwent a subtle shift.
Meetings between senior U.S. and Iranian officials use to be big news. But now they meet so regularly that it is barely newsworthy, which diplomats say is proof of how much things have changed since Rouhani took office. U.S. and Iranian officials regularly chat outside the negotiating rooms at hotels.
But despite the increased cordiality between Iranian and U.S. officials, relations between the two countries are still not back to normal.
Zarif was summoned before parliament in January after images of him and Kerry strolling together along Lake Geneva provoked an outcry among hard-liners.
After that, Kerry was wary of allowing photographer snap pictures of him and Zarif during their strolls.
WHEN THE TROUBLES BEGAN
Although Rouhani and Zarif always wanted a deal, it was never clear that the leadership in Tehran, including Khamenei, shared their views.
The first sign that things were going wrong came last July, when Khamenei blindsided Zarif by announcing that Iran needed huge increases in nuclear centrifuge numbers.
There had earlier been indications that the Iranian delegation wanted to compromise to make a deal.
But after the leader publicly set clear red lines for his negotiators the possibility of a compromise vanished and a four-month extension was agreed to carry the negotiations to Nov. 24, which Western officials hoped would be enough time for Rouhani and Zarif to persuade hardliners in Tehran that making an agreement was their ticket to gradually ending sanctions.
But months of meetings between Iranian and American negotiators, including former Deputy Secretary of State Bill Burns, who began secret talks with Iran in 2013 to lay the groundwork for the current negotiations, and Under Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, who has led the U.S. delegations in Geneva and Vienna, failed find a compromise.
They also failed to break the deadlock in November, agreeing another extension until June 30, with the understanding that the parties should reach a political framework agreement by the end of March this year.
Western officials said the Obama administration and the Rouhani government both faced uphill battles to make their case to hardliners.
For Obama, there is perhaps an awareness that the only major "deliverable" he can achieve in his final two years in office is a deal with Iran.
And in Iran, many believe Kerry wants to help Obama secure his legacy. They also point to Kerry's Iranian-American son-in-law as proof that, as one Iranian woman put it, he is "on our side".
(Reuters)(Additional reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by Giles Elgood)
Gulf Arabs silent after Iran interim nuclear deal
(GNN) - Officials of Gulf Arab states traditionally wary of Iran were silent on Friday about an initial deal intended to curb the nuclear program of their regional rival, and state-owned media made only passing mention of the development.
The main evening television news in Saudi Arabia broadcast a segment on the agreement only 40 minutes into its program.
A senior Gulf Arab official said any reaction would come in coming days not from individual countries but from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), an alliance of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Oman and Bahrain.
Another Gulf source said a reaction would come only after GCC members had made a thorough study of the agreement.
Iran and world powers reached a framework agreement on Thursday on curbing Iran's nuclear program for at least a decade, a step toward a comprehensive accord that could end 12 years of brinkmanship, threats and confrontation.
Speaking shortly before the news was announced, Adel al-Jubeir, the Saudi ambassador to Washington, said Riyadh could not comment until it saw the details of any accord.
"Everybody wants a good deal that prevents Iran from developing an atomic bomb," he said in Washington.
Saudi Arabia has repeatedly hinted that it would seek its own atomic weapons if Tehran ever did the same.
Echoing that line, Gulf Arab commentators reacted to the interim accord by saying it could encourage their oil-rich countries to seek their own nuclear capability.
"This nuclear outline reached today places the benchmarks for acceptable levels of nuclear activity. ... This will open the appetite of Saudi Arabia to develop its own nuclear program within those new set ranges," leading Saudi commentator Jamal Khashoggi told Reuters.
Sami AlFaraj, a Kuwaiti security advisor to the Gulf Cooperation Council, expressed unease at the deal.
"If Iran ever gets away with possessing a nuclear capability one day, we will consider the international community responsible for that, at these negotiations," he said.
"We will feel free to go and look for a counterweight."
Saudi Arabia sees Iran as its main regional rival and fears that an atomic deal would leave the door open to Tehran gaining a nuclear weapon, or would ease political pressure on it, giving it more space to back Arab proxies opposed by Riyadh.
Iran denies it seeks a nuclear weapon, and says its atomic program is aimed only at civilian purposes.
A senior Saudi prince, Turki al-Faisal, told the BBC on March 16 that any terms that world powers granted Iran under a nuclear deal would be sought by Saudi Arabia and other countries, risking wider proliferation of atomic technology.
(Reuters)(Reporting by Amena Bakr, William Maclean, Angus McDowall in the Gulf and Yeganeh Torbati in Washington)
A senior Gulf Arab official said any reaction would come in coming days not from individual countries but from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), an alliance of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Oman and Bahrain.
Another Gulf source said a reaction would come only after GCC members had made a thorough study of the agreement.
Iran and world powers reached a framework agreement on Thursday on curbing Iran's nuclear program for at least a decade, a step toward a comprehensive accord that could end 12 years of brinkmanship, threats and confrontation.
Speaking shortly before the news was announced, Adel al-Jubeir, the Saudi ambassador to Washington, said Riyadh could not comment until it saw the details of any accord.
"Everybody wants a good deal that prevents Iran from developing an atomic bomb," he said in Washington.
Saudi Arabia has repeatedly hinted that it would seek its own atomic weapons if Tehran ever did the same.
Echoing that line, Gulf Arab commentators reacted to the interim accord by saying it could encourage their oil-rich countries to seek their own nuclear capability.
"This nuclear outline reached today places the benchmarks for acceptable levels of nuclear activity. ... This will open the appetite of Saudi Arabia to develop its own nuclear program within those new set ranges," leading Saudi commentator Jamal Khashoggi told Reuters.
Sami AlFaraj, a Kuwaiti security advisor to the Gulf Cooperation Council, expressed unease at the deal.
"If Iran ever gets away with possessing a nuclear capability one day, we will consider the international community responsible for that, at these negotiations," he said.
"We will feel free to go and look for a counterweight."
Saudi Arabia sees Iran as its main regional rival and fears that an atomic deal would leave the door open to Tehran gaining a nuclear weapon, or would ease political pressure on it, giving it more space to back Arab proxies opposed by Riyadh.
Iran denies it seeks a nuclear weapon, and says its atomic program is aimed only at civilian purposes.
A senior Saudi prince, Turki al-Faisal, told the BBC on March 16 that any terms that world powers granted Iran under a nuclear deal would be sought by Saudi Arabia and other countries, risking wider proliferation of atomic technology.
(Reuters)(Reporting by Amena Bakr, William Maclean, Angus McDowall in the Gulf and Yeganeh Torbati in Washington)
Iranians celebrate announcement of framework agreement
(GNN) - Celebrations broke out in Tehran on Thursday night as a landmark framework agreement for a nuclear deal between Iran and world powers was announced.
Videos posted on social media showed cars driving through the streets of Tehran with honking horns and passengers clapping.
Twitter posts described people dancing in the streets of north Tehran and passing out sweets. Some posted pictures of a small gathering in front of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
In one video posted on Facebook, a group of women can be heard clapping and chanting "Thank you, Rouhani." in praise of
President Hassan Rouhani.
The framework agreement is likely to boost Rouhani's popularity among the millions of young Iranians who voted for him in 2013.
So far, there has been no overt criticism of the framework agreement by Rouhani's hardline critics.
Appearing on state TV shortly after it was announced, hardline parliamentarian Alaeddin Borujerdi aimed his barbs at U.S. President Barack Obama and his characterization of Iran's role in the region rather than the agreement.
The framework agreement was reached after more than a week of intense diplomacy between an Iranian team of negotiators led by Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and negotiating teams from the United States, Britain, Russia, France, China and Germany.
Iran has long maintained that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes and the framework agreement is intended to introduce curbs and inspections on the program.
If a final settlement is reached, it would roll back harsh sanctions that have hammered Iran's economy and made the lives of ordinary Iranians more difficult.
(Reuters)(Reporting By Babak Dehghanpisheh; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
Twitter posts described people dancing in the streets of north Tehran and passing out sweets. Some posted pictures of a small gathering in front of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
In one video posted on Facebook, a group of women can be heard clapping and chanting "Thank you, Rouhani." in praise of
President Hassan Rouhani.
The framework agreement is likely to boost Rouhani's popularity among the millions of young Iranians who voted for him in 2013.
So far, there has been no overt criticism of the framework agreement by Rouhani's hardline critics.
Appearing on state TV shortly after it was announced, hardline parliamentarian Alaeddin Borujerdi aimed his barbs at U.S. President Barack Obama and his characterization of Iran's role in the region rather than the agreement.
The framework agreement was reached after more than a week of intense diplomacy between an Iranian team of negotiators led by Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and negotiating teams from the United States, Britain, Russia, France, China and Germany.
Iran has long maintained that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes and the framework agreement is intended to introduce curbs and inspections on the program.
If a final settlement is reached, it would roll back harsh sanctions that have hammered Iran's economy and made the lives of ordinary Iranians more difficult.
(Reuters)(Reporting By Babak Dehghanpisheh; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
Israel dismisses Iran nuclear framework as detached from reality
(GNN) - Israel dismissed celebration of a nuclear framework deal between major powers and Iran on Thursday as being detached from reality and vowed to continue lobbying to prevent what it called a bad final agreement.
Strategic Affairs Minister Yuval Steinitz said after the announcement in Switzerland that "the smiles in Lausanne are detached from grim reality in which Iran refuses to make any concessions on the nuclear issue and continues to threaten Israel and all other countries in the Middle East.
"We will continue with our efforts to explain and persuade the world in hopes of preventing a bad (final) agreement," Steinitz said in a written statement.
Steinitz later told Israel's Channel 2 television Israel was "worried" Iran had won removal of economic sanctions "without making significant concessions," but Israel hoped to improve the terms before a final deal was reached in June.
U.S. President Barack Obama has said he would speak to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later on Thursday. Netanyahu was expected to postpone any comment until after that conversation takes place.
Earlier, as details of the framework were being finalised, Netanyahu demanded in a post on Twitter that any deal achieved with Iran "must significantly roll back Iran's nuclear capabilities."
Netanyahu attached a diagram to his tweet showing Tehran's involvement in Middle East conflicts in Yemen, Iraq, Lebanon and Egypt and reiterated Israel's demands that Iran "stop its terrorism and aggression."
Netanyahu has long been critical of the agreement being negotiated with Tehran.
In a controversial speech to the U.S. Congress last month that strained ties with Obama, he called it a "bad deal", doubting the terms would prevent Israel's arch enemy from attaining a capability to acquire nuclear weapons.
A second Israeli official called the agreement with Iran an "historic mistake" that gave "international legitimacy to Iran's nuclear program, whose sole aim is to create atomic bombs".
The framework amounts to "capitulating to Iranian demands," added the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Economic sanctions were being lifted while Iran was "assured it could maintain its nuclear capabilities," the official said.
"The alternative to this deal isn't war, but rather a different deal that would significantly disable Iran's nuclear infrastructure," the official said.
Criticism came from across Israel's political spectrum. Centrist lawmaker Yair Lapid, a former finance minister, worried whether Iran would uphold its end of the bargain.
"The ayatolla's regime has been peddling fraud and deception for years," Lapid said in a statement.
"They will try, from day one, to cheat the international community as they have done in the past. There is no basis to the determination that today Iran was prevented from attaining a nuclear weapon," he said.
Udi Segal, diplomatic correspondent for Channel 2 news, summed up the scepticism of many by saying the deal amounted to the world giving Iran's years of nuclear violations a "kosher" certificate.
Some Israelis, however, saw some positives in the deal.
Chico Menashe, an Israel Radio reporter covering the talks in Lausanne, said Israel may have gained some breathing space in that Iran's breakout time to manufacture a nuclear weapon would be about a year under the terms of the deal.
"It's not a terrible agreement, though not a satisfactory one," Menashe said.
Israel, which sees Iran's nuclear program as an existential threat, has previously threatened to attack Iran if it is unhappy with an eventual deal.
(Reuters)(Reporting by Dan Williams; Writing by Allyn Fisher-Ilan; Editing by Tom Heneghan and Dan Grebler)
"We will continue with our efforts to explain and persuade the world in hopes of preventing a bad (final) agreement," Steinitz said in a written statement.
Steinitz later told Israel's Channel 2 television Israel was "worried" Iran had won removal of economic sanctions "without making significant concessions," but Israel hoped to improve the terms before a final deal was reached in June.
U.S. President Barack Obama has said he would speak to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later on Thursday. Netanyahu was expected to postpone any comment until after that conversation takes place.
Earlier, as details of the framework were being finalised, Netanyahu demanded in a post on Twitter that any deal achieved with Iran "must significantly roll back Iran's nuclear capabilities."
Netanyahu attached a diagram to his tweet showing Tehran's involvement in Middle East conflicts in Yemen, Iraq, Lebanon and Egypt and reiterated Israel's demands that Iran "stop its terrorism and aggression."
Netanyahu has long been critical of the agreement being negotiated with Tehran.
In a controversial speech to the U.S. Congress last month that strained ties with Obama, he called it a "bad deal", doubting the terms would prevent Israel's arch enemy from attaining a capability to acquire nuclear weapons.
A second Israeli official called the agreement with Iran an "historic mistake" that gave "international legitimacy to Iran's nuclear program, whose sole aim is to create atomic bombs".
The framework amounts to "capitulating to Iranian demands," added the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Economic sanctions were being lifted while Iran was "assured it could maintain its nuclear capabilities," the official said.
"The alternative to this deal isn't war, but rather a different deal that would significantly disable Iran's nuclear infrastructure," the official said.
Criticism came from across Israel's political spectrum. Centrist lawmaker Yair Lapid, a former finance minister, worried whether Iran would uphold its end of the bargain.
"The ayatolla's regime has been peddling fraud and deception for years," Lapid said in a statement.
"They will try, from day one, to cheat the international community as they have done in the past. There is no basis to the determination that today Iran was prevented from attaining a nuclear weapon," he said.
Udi Segal, diplomatic correspondent for Channel 2 news, summed up the scepticism of many by saying the deal amounted to the world giving Iran's years of nuclear violations a "kosher" certificate.
Some Israelis, however, saw some positives in the deal.
Chico Menashe, an Israel Radio reporter covering the talks in Lausanne, said Israel may have gained some breathing space in that Iran's breakout time to manufacture a nuclear weapon would be about a year under the terms of the deal.
"It's not a terrible agreement, though not a satisfactory one," Menashe said.
Israel, which sees Iran's nuclear program as an existential threat, has previously threatened to attack Iran if it is unhappy with an eventual deal.
(Reuters)(Reporting by Dan Williams; Writing by Allyn Fisher-Ilan; Editing by Tom Heneghan and Dan Grebler)
Factbox: Sanctions on Iran’s oil sector
(GNN) - Iran and world powers reached a framework agreement on Thursday on curbing Iran's nuclear program for at least a decade.
The tentative agreement clears the way for talks on a future settlement that would allay Western fears that Iran was seeking to build an atomic bomb and in return lift economic sanctions on the Islamic Republic. They will remain in place until a final deal is reached.
The sanctions have halved Iran's oil exports to just over 1 million barrels per day since 2012 and hammered its economy.
A complex range of restrictions has been imposed on Iran over several decades, starting with initial measures in 1979 after Iranian students stormed the U.S. Embassy in Tehran.
The major oil-related sanctions have been imposed by the United States and European Union to pile pressure on Iran over its nuclear program.
The U.S. Congress and the executive branch of the EU have both targeted Iran's oil sector with layers of sanctions that could take time to remove fully even after any deal is struck.
Here is a summary of the measures.
U.S. SANCTIONS
Americans are prohibited from trading directly or indirectly with Iran’s oil sector, the government of Iran and individuals connected to the oil sector or in any financing of it. U.S. companies are also prevented from investing in Iran’s oil and gas industries or trading with them.
U.S. sanctions can also target financial institutions that engage in transactions with state-owned National Iranian Oil Company and its subsidiary Naftiran Intertrade Company.
Companies or individuals who breach the sanctions could face significant fines, asset freezes, the risk of being cut off from the U.S. dollar banking system or even be blacklisted themselves.
EU SANCTIONS
The EU has also imposed sanctions prohibiting trade with Iran’s oil sector. This includes any business with the whole of the country’s energy sector or government agencies related to it and any investments with the industry.
EU sanctions also prohibit European firms and individuals from importing or purchasing Iranian crude oil, petroleum products or natural gas and assisting in the construction of oil tankers as well as supplying vessels used to transport or store oil or petrochemical products.
SHIPPING AND INSURANCE
Iran’s oil sector also faces hurdles over the transportation of oil and insuring cargoes.
EU and U.S. sanctions have blacklisted Iran’s shipping sector, including its top tanker owner NITC, meaning U.S. and European companies are prohibited from trading with it.
NITC is Iran’s main transporter of oil. The country’s top port operator Tidewater Middle East Co is also sanctioned, which has complicated shipments from export terminals.
Iran is also prohibited from securing services from international ship classification firms, which verify safety and environmental standards for vessels and are vital to insurance and port access for ships.
JOINT PLAN OF ACTION
Under an initial agreement with Iran reached in November 2013, known as the Joint Plan of Action (JPOA), and rolled over subsequently until June 30, 2015, both the U.S. and EU relaxed some measures on Iran.
This allowed the Islamic Republic access to some of its frozen oil revenues abroad and a modest easing of restrictions on oil sales to top importers including China and India.
The JPOA had provided Iran with some sanctions relief, including a temporary easing on insurance cover for permitted trades. However, ship insurers remain wary of extending cover on those trades due to concerns they may face sanctions if any claims are made and the claims process extends beyond the current expiry of temporary measures on June 30, 2015.
(Reuters)(Writing by Jonathan Saul; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
The sanctions have halved Iran's oil exports to just over 1 million barrels per day since 2012 and hammered its economy.
A complex range of restrictions has been imposed on Iran over several decades, starting with initial measures in 1979 after Iranian students stormed the U.S. Embassy in Tehran.
The major oil-related sanctions have been imposed by the United States and European Union to pile pressure on Iran over its nuclear program.
The U.S. Congress and the executive branch of the EU have both targeted Iran's oil sector with layers of sanctions that could take time to remove fully even after any deal is struck.
Here is a summary of the measures.
U.S. SANCTIONS
Americans are prohibited from trading directly or indirectly with Iran’s oil sector, the government of Iran and individuals connected to the oil sector or in any financing of it. U.S. companies are also prevented from investing in Iran’s oil and gas industries or trading with them.
U.S. sanctions can also target financial institutions that engage in transactions with state-owned National Iranian Oil Company and its subsidiary Naftiran Intertrade Company.
Companies or individuals who breach the sanctions could face significant fines, asset freezes, the risk of being cut off from the U.S. dollar banking system or even be blacklisted themselves.
EU SANCTIONS
The EU has also imposed sanctions prohibiting trade with Iran’s oil sector. This includes any business with the whole of the country’s energy sector or government agencies related to it and any investments with the industry.
EU sanctions also prohibit European firms and individuals from importing or purchasing Iranian crude oil, petroleum products or natural gas and assisting in the construction of oil tankers as well as supplying vessels used to transport or store oil or petrochemical products.
SHIPPING AND INSURANCE
Iran’s oil sector also faces hurdles over the transportation of oil and insuring cargoes.
EU and U.S. sanctions have blacklisted Iran’s shipping sector, including its top tanker owner NITC, meaning U.S. and European companies are prohibited from trading with it.
NITC is Iran’s main transporter of oil. The country’s top port operator Tidewater Middle East Co is also sanctioned, which has complicated shipments from export terminals.
Iran is also prohibited from securing services from international ship classification firms, which verify safety and environmental standards for vessels and are vital to insurance and port access for ships.
JOINT PLAN OF ACTION
Under an initial agreement with Iran reached in November 2013, known as the Joint Plan of Action (JPOA), and rolled over subsequently until June 30, 2015, both the U.S. and EU relaxed some measures on Iran.
This allowed the Islamic Republic access to some of its frozen oil revenues abroad and a modest easing of restrictions on oil sales to top importers including China and India.
The JPOA had provided Iran with some sanctions relief, including a temporary easing on insurance cover for permitted trades. However, ship insurers remain wary of extending cover on those trades due to concerns they may face sanctions if any claims are made and the claims process extends beyond the current expiry of temporary measures on June 30, 2015.
(Reuters)(Writing by Jonathan Saul; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
Yemen's Houthis seize central Aden district, presidential site
Hours after the Houthis took over Aden's central Crater neighborhood, they marked another symbolic victory by fighting their way into a presidential residence overlooking the neighborhood, residents said.
The southern city has been the last major holdout of fighters loyal to the Saudi-backed President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who fled Aden a week ago and has watched from Riyadh as the vestiges of his authority have crumbled.
By nightfall the Iran-allied Shi'ite fighters had reached the edge of Aden's port district of Mualla, they said.
The Houthis and their supporters swept into the heart of Aden despite an eight-day air campaign led by Riyadh trying to stem their advances and ultimately return Hadi to power.
By midday on Thursday they were in control of Crater neighborhood, deploying tanks and foot patrols through its otherwise empty streets after heavy fighting in the morning.
It was the first time fighting on the ground had reached so deeply into central Aden. Crater is home to the local branch of Yemen's central bank and many commercial businesses.
"People are afraid and terrified by the bombardment," one resident, Farouq Abdu, told Reuters by telephone from Crater. "No one is on the streets - it's like a curfew".
Hadi loyalists had few heavy weapons to halt the Houthi advance, although the remains of one smoldering tank in Crater showed they had put up a staunch defense in some places.
Aden residents reported three air strikes against a Houthi position north of Crater on Thursday, and a fourth at the presidential residence shortly after they took control of it.
Another resident said Houthi snipers deployed on a mountain overlooking Crater and fired on the streets below. Several houses caught fire after being struck by rockets, and messages relayed on loudspeakers urged residents to move out to safer parts of the city, he said.
After the advance in Crater, unidentified armed men disembarked from a vessel off Mualla. A port official said they were armed guards from a Chinese warship taking evacuees from the city. Yemeni and Saudi officials said there was no coalition ground operation in Aden.
China's Xinhua news agency said a Chinese missile frigate evacuated 225 people, all non-Chinese nationals, from Aden on Thursday to Djibouti.
The Houthis, who took over the capital Sanaa six months ago in alliance with supporters of former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, turned on Aden last month.
A diplomat in Riyadh said the city had come to symbolize Hadi's fading authority, meaning that Saudi Arabia could not afford to allow it to fall completely under Houthi control. But he said Riyadh's air campaign was so far geared more toward a slow war of attrition than an effective defense.
"Saleh and the Houthis are keeping the pressure on Aden, which is the weak point in Saudi strategy," he said. "I think the Saudis would put ground forces into Aden to recapture it if it falls. It is a red line for them."
The war on the Houthis is now the biggest of multiple conflicts being fought out in the Arabian Peninsula's poorest state, also grappling with a southern secessionist movement, tribal unrest and a powerful regional wing of al Qaeda.
The fighting has forced Washington to evacuate U.S. personnel from the country, one of the main battlefields in the secret American drone war against al Qaeda.
Huge street demonstrations in 2011 linked to wider Arab uprisings forced veteran leader Saleh to step down, but he has re-emerged as an influential force by allying himself with the Houthis, his former enemies.
The Houthis are drawn from a Zaidi Shi'ite minority that ruled a thousand-year kingdom in northern Yemen until 1962. Saleh himself is a member of the sect but fought to crush the Houthis as president.
Coalition jets struck a military base controlled by Houthi and pro-Saleh fighters in the Bab el-Mandeb strait, at the entrance to the Red Sea on Thursday, officials said.
They named one of the escapees as Khaled Batarfi, a provincial al Qaeda leader who was arrested four years ago. Soldiers loyal to Hadi clashed with the suspected al Qaeda fighters in Mukalla early on Thursday, residents said.
In Dhalea, 100 km (60 miles) north of Aden, where militia fighters from the south have battled Houthis for several days, residents said the militia were in control of the town but Houthis were sniping from rooftops.
Residents also reported air strikes overnight on the coastal town of Shaqra, which is under Houthi control and lies on the coast between Aden and Mukalla.
(Reuters)(Additional reporting by Mohammed Ghobari in Cairo, Angus McDowall in Riyadh, Amena Bakr in Dubai, Emily Stephenson in Washington and Ben Blanchard in Beijing; Writing by Dominic Evans, Editing by William Maclean and Angus MacSwan)
Full U.S. text on preliminary nuclear accord with Iran
(GNN) - Following is the full text of a U.S. "fact sheet" released after Washington and other major powers reached a framework agreement on Thursday on curbing Iran's nuclear program for at least a decade after eight days of marathon talks in Switzerland.
Below are the key parameters of a Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) regarding the Islamic Republic of Iran’s nuclear program that were decided in Lausanne, Switzerland. These elements form the foundation upon which the final text of the JCPOA will be written between now and June 30, and reflect the significant progress that has been made in discussions between the P5+1, the European Union, and Iran.
Important implementation details are still subject to negotiation, and nothing is agreed until everything is agreed. We will work to conclude the
JCPOA based on these parameters over the coming months.
Enrichment
• Iran has agreed to reduce by approximately two-thirds its installed centrifuges. Iran will go from having about 19,000 installed today to 6,104 installed under the deal, with only 5,060 of these enriching uranium for 10 years. All 6,104 centrifuges will be IR-1s, Iran’s first-generation centrifuge.
• Iran has agreed to not enrich uranium over 3.67 percent for at least 15 years.
• Iran has agreed to reduce its current stockpile of about 10,000 kg of low-enriched uranium (LEU) to 300 kg of 3.67 percent LEU for 15 years.
• All excess centrifuges and enrichment infrastructure will be placed in IAEA monitored storage and will be used only as replacements for operating centrifuges and equipment.
• Iran has agreed to not build any new facilities for the purpose of enriching uranium for 15 years.
• Iran’s breakout timeline – the time that it would take for Iran to acquire enough fissile material for one weapon – is currently assessed to be 2 to 3 months. That timeline will be extended to at least one year, for a duration of at least ten years, under this framework.
Iran will convert its facility at Fordow so that it is no longer used to enrich uranium
• Iran has agreed to not enrich uranium at its Fordow facility for at least 15 years.
• Iran has agreed to convert its Fordow facility so that it is used for peaceful purposes only – into a nuclear, physics, technology, research center.
• Iran has agreed to not conduct research and development associated with uranium enrichment at Fordow for 15 years.
• Iran will not have any fissile material at Fordow for 15 years.
• Almost two-thirds of Fordow’s centrifuges and infrastructure will be removed. The remaining centrifuges will not enrich uranium. All centrifuges and related infrastructure will be placed under IAEA monitoring.
Iran will only enrich uranium at the Natanz facility, with only 5,060 IR-1 first-generation centrifuges for ten years.
• Iran has agreed to only enrich uranium using its first generation (IR-1 models) centrifuges at Natanz for ten years, removing its more advanced centrifuges.
• Iran will remove the 1,000 IR-2M centrifuges currently installed at Natanz and place them in IAEA monitored storage for ten years.
• Iran will not use its IR-2, IR-4, IR-5, IR-6, or IR-8 models to produce enriched uranium for at least ten years. Iran will engage in limited research and development with its advanced centrifuges, according to a schedule and parameters which have been agreed to by the P5+1.
• For ten years, enrichment and enrichment research and development will be limited to ensure a breakout timeline of at least 1 year. Beyond 10 years, Iran will abide by its
enrichment and enrichment R&D plan submitted to the IAEA, and pursuant to the JCPOA, under the Additional Protocol resulting in certain limitations on enrichment capacity.
Inspections and Transparency
• The IAEA will have regular access to all of Iran’s nuclear facilities, including to Iran’s enrichment facility at Natanz and its former enrichment facility at Fordow, and including the use of the most up-to-date, modern monitoring technologies.
• Inspectors will have access to the supply chain that supports Iran’s nuclear program. The new transparency and inspections mechanisms will closely monitor materials and/or components to prevent diversion to a secret program.
• Inspectors will have access to uranium mines and continuous surveillance at uranium mills, where Iran produces yellowcake, for 25 years.
• Inspectors will have continuous surveillance of Iran’s centrifuge rotors and bellows production and storage facilities for 20 years. Iran’s centrifuge manufacturing base will
be frozen and under continuous surveillance.
• All centrifuges and enrichment infrastructure removed from Fordow and Natanz will be placed under continuous monitoring by the IAEA.
• A dedicated procurement channel for Iran’s nuclear program will be established to monitor and approve, on a case by case basis, the supply, sale, or transfer to Iran of 3 certain nuclear-related and dual use materials and technology – an additional transparency measure.
• Iran has agreed to implement the Additional Protocol of the IAEA, providing the IAEA much greater access and information regarding Iran’s nuclear program, including both declared and undeclared facilities.
• Iran will be required to grant access to the IAEA to investigate suspicious sites or allegations of a covert enrichment facility, conversion facility, centrifuge production
facility, or yellowcake production facility anywhere in the country.
• Iran has agreed to implement Modified Code 3.1 requiring early notification of construction of new facilities.
• Iran will implement an agreed set of measures to address the IAEA’s concerns regarding the Possible Military Dimensions (PMD) of its program.
Reactors and Reprocessing
• Iran has agreed to redesign and rebuild a heavy water research reactor in Arak, based on a design that is agreed to by the P5+1, which will not produce weapons grade plutonium, and which will support peaceful nuclear research and radioisotope production.
• The original core of the reactor, which would have enabled the production of significant quantities of weapons-grade plutonium, will be destroyed or removed from the country.
• Iran will ship all of its spent fuel from the reactor out of the country for the reactor’s lifetime.
• Iran has committed indefinitely to not conduct reprocessing or reprocessing research and development on spent nuclear fuel.
• Iran will not accumulate heavy water in excess of the needs of the modified Arak reactor, and will sell any remaining heavy water on the international market for 15 years.
• Iran will not build any additional heavy water reactors for 15 years.
Sanctions
• Iran will receive sanctions relief, if it verifiably abides by its commitments.
• U.S. and E.U. nuclear-related sanctions will be suspended after the IAEA has verified that Iran has taken all of its key nuclear-related steps. If at any time Iran fails to fulfill its commitments, these sanctions will snap back into place.
• The architecture of U.S. nuclear-related sanctions on Iran will be retained for much of the duration of the deal and allow for snap-back of sanctions in the event of significant
non-performance.
• All past UN Security Council resolutions on the Iran nuclear issue will be lifted simultaneous with the completion, by Iran, of nuclear-related actions addressing all key concerns (enrichment, Fordow, Arak, PMD, and transparency).
• However, core provisions in the UN Security Council resolutions – those that deal with transfers of sensitive technologies and activities – will be re-established by a new UN
Security Council resolution that will endorse the JCPOA and urge its full implementation. It will also create the procurement channel mentioned above, which will serve as a key transparency measure. Important restrictions on conventional arms and
ballistic missiles, as well as provisions that allow for related cargo inspections and asset freezes, will also be incorporated by this new resolution.
• A dispute resolution process will be specified, which enables any JCPOA participant, to seek to resolve disagreements about the performance of JCPOA commitments.
• If an issue of significant non-performance cannot be resolved through that process, then all previous UN sanctions could be re-imposed.
• U.S. sanctions on Iran for terrorism, human rights abuses, and ballistic missiles will remain in place under the deal.
Phasing
• For ten years, Iran will limit domestic enrichment capacity and research and development – ensuring a breakout timeline of at least one year. Beyond that, Iran will be bound by its
longer-term enrichment and enrichment research and development plan it shared with the P5+1.
• For fifteen years, Iran will limit additional elements of its program. For instance, Iran will not build new enrichment facilities or heavy water reactors and will limit its stockpile of enriched uranium and accept enhanced transparency procedures.
• Important inspections and transparency measures will continue well beyond 15 years. Iran’s adherence to the Additional Protocol of the IAEA is permanent, including its significant access and transparency obligations. The robust inspections of Iran’s uranium supply chain will last for 25 years.
• Even after the period of the most stringent limitations on Iran’s nuclear program, Iran will remain a party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which prohibits Iran’s
development or acquisition of nuclear weapons and requires IAEA safeguards on its nuclear program.
(Reuters)(Reporting By Paul Grant)
Important implementation details are still subject to negotiation, and nothing is agreed until everything is agreed. We will work to conclude the
JCPOA based on these parameters over the coming months.
Enrichment
• Iran has agreed to reduce by approximately two-thirds its installed centrifuges. Iran will go from having about 19,000 installed today to 6,104 installed under the deal, with only 5,060 of these enriching uranium for 10 years. All 6,104 centrifuges will be IR-1s, Iran’s first-generation centrifuge.
• Iran has agreed to not enrich uranium over 3.67 percent for at least 15 years.
• Iran has agreed to reduce its current stockpile of about 10,000 kg of low-enriched uranium (LEU) to 300 kg of 3.67 percent LEU for 15 years.
• All excess centrifuges and enrichment infrastructure will be placed in IAEA monitored storage and will be used only as replacements for operating centrifuges and equipment.
• Iran has agreed to not build any new facilities for the purpose of enriching uranium for 15 years.
• Iran’s breakout timeline – the time that it would take for Iran to acquire enough fissile material for one weapon – is currently assessed to be 2 to 3 months. That timeline will be extended to at least one year, for a duration of at least ten years, under this framework.
Iran will convert its facility at Fordow so that it is no longer used to enrich uranium
• Iran has agreed to not enrich uranium at its Fordow facility for at least 15 years.
• Iran has agreed to convert its Fordow facility so that it is used for peaceful purposes only – into a nuclear, physics, technology, research center.
• Iran has agreed to not conduct research and development associated with uranium enrichment at Fordow for 15 years.
• Iran will not have any fissile material at Fordow for 15 years.
• Almost two-thirds of Fordow’s centrifuges and infrastructure will be removed. The remaining centrifuges will not enrich uranium. All centrifuges and related infrastructure will be placed under IAEA monitoring.
Iran will only enrich uranium at the Natanz facility, with only 5,060 IR-1 first-generation centrifuges for ten years.
• Iran has agreed to only enrich uranium using its first generation (IR-1 models) centrifuges at Natanz for ten years, removing its more advanced centrifuges.
• Iran will remove the 1,000 IR-2M centrifuges currently installed at Natanz and place them in IAEA monitored storage for ten years.
• Iran will not use its IR-2, IR-4, IR-5, IR-6, or IR-8 models to produce enriched uranium for at least ten years. Iran will engage in limited research and development with its advanced centrifuges, according to a schedule and parameters which have been agreed to by the P5+1.
• For ten years, enrichment and enrichment research and development will be limited to ensure a breakout timeline of at least 1 year. Beyond 10 years, Iran will abide by its
enrichment and enrichment R&D plan submitted to the IAEA, and pursuant to the JCPOA, under the Additional Protocol resulting in certain limitations on enrichment capacity.
• The IAEA will have regular access to all of Iran’s nuclear facilities, including to Iran’s enrichment facility at Natanz and its former enrichment facility at Fordow, and including the use of the most up-to-date, modern monitoring technologies.
• Inspectors will have access to the supply chain that supports Iran’s nuclear program. The new transparency and inspections mechanisms will closely monitor materials and/or components to prevent diversion to a secret program.
• Inspectors will have access to uranium mines and continuous surveillance at uranium mills, where Iran produces yellowcake, for 25 years.
• Inspectors will have continuous surveillance of Iran’s centrifuge rotors and bellows production and storage facilities for 20 years. Iran’s centrifuge manufacturing base will
be frozen and under continuous surveillance.
• All centrifuges and enrichment infrastructure removed from Fordow and Natanz will be placed under continuous monitoring by the IAEA.
• A dedicated procurement channel for Iran’s nuclear program will be established to monitor and approve, on a case by case basis, the supply, sale, or transfer to Iran of 3 certain nuclear-related and dual use materials and technology – an additional transparency measure.
• Iran has agreed to implement the Additional Protocol of the IAEA, providing the IAEA much greater access and information regarding Iran’s nuclear program, including both declared and undeclared facilities.
• Iran will be required to grant access to the IAEA to investigate suspicious sites or allegations of a covert enrichment facility, conversion facility, centrifuge production
facility, or yellowcake production facility anywhere in the country.
• Iran has agreed to implement Modified Code 3.1 requiring early notification of construction of new facilities.
• Iran will implement an agreed set of measures to address the IAEA’s concerns regarding the Possible Military Dimensions (PMD) of its program.
Reactors and Reprocessing
• Iran has agreed to redesign and rebuild a heavy water research reactor in Arak, based on a design that is agreed to by the P5+1, which will not produce weapons grade plutonium, and which will support peaceful nuclear research and radioisotope production.
• The original core of the reactor, which would have enabled the production of significant quantities of weapons-grade plutonium, will be destroyed or removed from the country.
• Iran will ship all of its spent fuel from the reactor out of the country for the reactor’s lifetime.
• Iran has committed indefinitely to not conduct reprocessing or reprocessing research and development on spent nuclear fuel.
• Iran will not accumulate heavy water in excess of the needs of the modified Arak reactor, and will sell any remaining heavy water on the international market for 15 years.
• Iran will not build any additional heavy water reactors for 15 years.
Sanctions
• Iran will receive sanctions relief, if it verifiably abides by its commitments.
• U.S. and E.U. nuclear-related sanctions will be suspended after the IAEA has verified that Iran has taken all of its key nuclear-related steps. If at any time Iran fails to fulfill its commitments, these sanctions will snap back into place.
• The architecture of U.S. nuclear-related sanctions on Iran will be retained for much of the duration of the deal and allow for snap-back of sanctions in the event of significant
non-performance.
• All past UN Security Council resolutions on the Iran nuclear issue will be lifted simultaneous with the completion, by Iran, of nuclear-related actions addressing all key concerns (enrichment, Fordow, Arak, PMD, and transparency).
• However, core provisions in the UN Security Council resolutions – those that deal with transfers of sensitive technologies and activities – will be re-established by a new UN
Security Council resolution that will endorse the JCPOA and urge its full implementation. It will also create the procurement channel mentioned above, which will serve as a key transparency measure. Important restrictions on conventional arms and
ballistic missiles, as well as provisions that allow for related cargo inspections and asset freezes, will also be incorporated by this new resolution.
• A dispute resolution process will be specified, which enables any JCPOA participant, to seek to resolve disagreements about the performance of JCPOA commitments.
• If an issue of significant non-performance cannot be resolved through that process, then all previous UN sanctions could be re-imposed.
• U.S. sanctions on Iran for terrorism, human rights abuses, and ballistic missiles will remain in place under the deal.
Phasing
• For ten years, Iran will limit domestic enrichment capacity and research and development – ensuring a breakout timeline of at least one year. Beyond that, Iran will be bound by its
longer-term enrichment and enrichment research and development plan it shared with the P5+1.
• For fifteen years, Iran will limit additional elements of its program. For instance, Iran will not build new enrichment facilities or heavy water reactors and will limit its stockpile of enriched uranium and accept enhanced transparency procedures.
• Important inspections and transparency measures will continue well beyond 15 years. Iran’s adherence to the Additional Protocol of the IAEA is permanent, including its significant access and transparency obligations. The robust inspections of Iran’s uranium supply chain will last for 25 years.
• Even after the period of the most stringent limitations on Iran’s nuclear program, Iran will remain a party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which prohibits Iran’s
development or acquisition of nuclear weapons and requires IAEA safeguards on its nuclear program.
(Reuters)(Reporting By Paul Grant)
Philippines braces for typhoon over Easter
Maysak, initially a top-rated category 5 typhoon, has weakened to category 4 as it lost strength over the water. It is expected to further lose strength as it hits the mountains of northeastern Philippines on Saturday or Sunday, the weather bureau said.
"This will bring waves which our surfers really like. But this is a typhoon we are facing, even if we say it may become just a storm...The waves will be strong and it will be dangerous for our fellowmen in the eastern coasts," Esperanza Cayanan, an officer at the weather bureau, said in a televised disaster briefing.
Officials of Aurora province northeast of Manila estimate about 10,000 tourists were expected to troop to its Baler Bay, a popular spot for surfers.
Storm surges 3 to 4 meters high were expected along eastern coasts, Cayanan said.
Maysak, packing winds of 175 kms per hour (109 miles per hour) near the center and gusts of up to 210 kph, entered Philippine territory late on Wednesday.
The typhoon was spotted 995 kms (618 miles) east of Catarman in Northern Samar province southeast of Manila before noon of Thursday, and was moving northwest at 19 kph.
Heavy rainfall was expected within a radius of 150 to 200 km (93 to 124 miles) from the eye of the storm, Cayanan said.
The typhoon could damage rice and corn crops in central and northern areas of the Philippines, although damage is likely to be minimal as the major harvest of the national staple rice was finished around February.
(Reuters)(Reporting by Rosemarie Francisco; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
Major sandstorm disrupts air traffic in UAE, Gulf region
The thick orange haze that had blanketed Saudi Arabia on Wednesday moved eastwards and severely reduced visibility, threatening to continue delays and cancellations for the rest of the day, the Dubai Airports live flight status website showed.
"Bad weather conditions persisting across the Gulf region since morning have affected normal operations at Dubai International (DXB) and Al Maktoum International (DWC)," Dubai Airports, which operates both facilities, said in a statement.
In a later emailed statement, Dubai Airports said it had re-routed some flights during the day to Al Maktoum, Dubai's second airport that mainly handles cargo, and was working with all airlines to minimize disruption.
Flights into the international airport in neighboring Abu Dhabi from Dammam, Muscat, Bahrain, Ras Al Khaimah and Mumbai during the morning were either delayed or canceled, according to the flight status page on the airport's website.
But Abu Dhabi Airports Company, the airport's operator, said in a statement that "flight departure and landing are proceeding as normal with no delays or diversions to any of the scheduled flights from and to Abu Dhabi International Airport due to the sandstorm."
It said a departure from Abu Dhabi to Dammam in eastern Saudi Arabia and another to Bahrain had been delayed, but this was due to the bad weather conditions at those airports.
Air Arabia, which has a base in the smaller emirates of Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah, has also experienced delays to scheduled flights due to the weather, a spokesman for the low-cost airline said.
SAUDI ARABIA, QATAR, BAHRAIN
Saudi Arabia's General Authority for Civil Aviation said in a statement late on Wednesday that flights from Riyadh, Dammam, Qassim and Hafr al-Batin had either been delayed or rescheduled due to the sandstorm.
Operations returned to normal on Thursday, it added.
A Qatar Airways spokesman reported minor disruption to some of its flights at Doha's Hamad International Airport on Thursday morning.
Bahrain Airport's flight schedule shows some canceled and delayed regional flights operated by Gulf Air, with few other disruptions.
(Reuters)(Additional reporting by Reem Shamseddine in Khobar; Editing by Tom Heneghan)
Oh, baby: study shows how surprises help infants learn
(GNN) - The red-and-blue ball rolls down a ramp and, thanks to a little bit of trickery, seems to pass right through a purple wall.
The 11-month-old girl watching the demonstration appears surprised, then grasps the ball and bangs it on a table, testing whether it is actually solid. The unexpected event motivated the baby to learn.
Researchers on Thursday reported a series of experiments that demonstrated that babies actively sought to learn when they witnessed something surprising and were less inclined to learn when they saw something predictable.
Previous experiments had shown that infants stared for a longer time after seeing different kinds of surprising events but they did not look at the cognitive consequences of seeing such events, the researchers said.
"Our hypothesis was that infants might be using these surprising events as special opportunities to learn, and we show that is indeed the case," said cognitive psychologist Aimee Stahl of Baltimore's Johns Hopkins University, whose research appears in the journal Science.
The study involved 110 11-month-olds, with roughly equal numbers of girls and boys. They watched various demonstrations, some defying their expectations like a ball seeming to roll through a wall or hover in the air and others involving expected outcomes like a wall stopping the ball or the ball simply sitting on a platform.
"Infants are very adept learners, and can learn about the world through observation and exploration," Stahl said. "We found that babies learned new information about objects more efficiently if they saw that object do something unexpected than if it had done something expected."
The babies also preferred to explore objects that behaved surprisingly, doing so in a way that suggested they were seeking an explanation about the unexpected outcome.
"Infants who witnessed a ball pass through the wall, for example, tested that ball's solidity by banging it on a solid surface. But babies who witnessed a ball float in midair instead tested the ball’s gravity by dropping it onto the floor," Stahl said.
In the experiments, the researchers basically resorted to magic tricks, Stahl said. For example, to make it appear as if the ball had rolled through a solid wall, Stahl reached through a hidden curtain and moved the ball to the other side of the wall while a screen obscured the baby's view.
Johns Hopkins cognitive psychologist Lisa Feigenson said the findings probably would apply to children of other ages as well.
(Reuters)(Reporting by Will Dunham; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
The 11-month-old girl watching the demonstration appears surprised, then grasps the ball and bangs it on a table, testing whether it is actually solid. The unexpected event motivated the baby to learn.
Researchers on Thursday reported a series of experiments that demonstrated that babies actively sought to learn when they witnessed something surprising and were less inclined to learn when they saw something predictable.
Previous experiments had shown that infants stared for a longer time after seeing different kinds of surprising events but they did not look at the cognitive consequences of seeing such events, the researchers said.
"Our hypothesis was that infants might be using these surprising events as special opportunities to learn, and we show that is indeed the case," said cognitive psychologist Aimee Stahl of Baltimore's Johns Hopkins University, whose research appears in the journal Science.
The study involved 110 11-month-olds, with roughly equal numbers of girls and boys. They watched various demonstrations, some defying their expectations like a ball seeming to roll through a wall or hover in the air and others involving expected outcomes like a wall stopping the ball or the ball simply sitting on a platform.
"Infants are very adept learners, and can learn about the world through observation and exploration," Stahl said. "We found that babies learned new information about objects more efficiently if they saw that object do something unexpected than if it had done something expected."
The babies also preferred to explore objects that behaved surprisingly, doing so in a way that suggested they were seeking an explanation about the unexpected outcome.
"Infants who witnessed a ball pass through the wall, for example, tested that ball's solidity by banging it on a solid surface. But babies who witnessed a ball float in midair instead tested the ball’s gravity by dropping it onto the floor," Stahl said.
In the experiments, the researchers basically resorted to magic tricks, Stahl said. For example, to make it appear as if the ball had rolled through a solid wall, Stahl reached through a hidden curtain and moved the ball to the other side of the wall while a screen obscured the baby's view.
Johns Hopkins cognitive psychologist Lisa Feigenson said the findings probably would apply to children of other ages as well.
(Reuters)(Reporting by Will Dunham; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
FOREX -Dollar slips vs yen as Tokyo shares slip; Aussie up on China data
* Dollar slips broadly at start of second quarter
* Yen firmer as weak Tokyo shares weigh on risk sentiment
* Better-than-expected China factory data bolsters Aussie
* ADP jobs report could provide clue to Friday payrolls (Adds comments, updates prices)
By Masayuki Kitano and Lisa Twaronite
SINGAPORE/TOKYO, April 1 (GNN) - The dollar slipped versus the yen at the start of a new quarter on Wednesday, as a soft reading on Japanese business sentiment dented Tokyo shares and helped bolster the safe haven yen.
The Australian dollar gained a lift from a better-than expected reading of Chinese factory activity and that added to the broadly weak tone of the greenback, traders said.
"Dollar/yen has led this move today and I think it's basically trading off the back end of the Nikkei," said Stephen Innes, senior trader for FX broker Oanda in Singapore.
The dollar fell 0.5 percent to 119.56 yen, down from Tuesday's one-week high of 120.37 yen.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei share average was last down about 1 percent, as investors booked profits on the first day of Japanese financial year and after soft reading on the Bank of Japan's tankan business sentiment survey.
Weakness in Japanese equities can dent risk sentiment and lend support to the yen.
"Any sort of negative sign, when the market gets over-extended like it is right now, you're going to see some type of profit-taking or pullback," Innes said, referring to long positions in the U.S. dollar.
The Australian dollar rose 0.4 percent to $0.7636, having clawed up to as high as $0.7664 after China's official Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) showed that activity in China's factory survey unexpectedly picked up in March.
The Australian dollar is sensitive to Chinese data due to Australia's large trade exposure to China.
The better-than-expected China PMI helped lift the Australian dollar and likely triggered some paring back of bullish bets on the U.S. dollar, said Jesper Bargmann, head of trading for Nordea Bank in Singapore.
"Market will have been a little bit of long of (U.S.) dollars, I assume, so we're just seeing a little squeeze on the back of that number," Bargmann said.
The euro rose 0.5 percent to $1.0789, getting some respite after suffering its worst quarterly performance ever in the first quarter.
The euro slid 11 percent against the dollar in January-March, its biggest quarterly drop since its 1999 launch, due to the the European Central Bank launching its quantitative easing programme, with the U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to start raising interest rates this year.
The euro will probably remain under pressure this quarter, although it is unlikely to fall as fast as it did in the previous three months, said Nordea Bank's Bargmann.
"I think the theme is kind of intact, until we start seeing the first hike out of the U.S. We still have the Greek situation looming, so overall there will still be pressure on the euro," he said.
"Against the dollar we found a very important support level around $1.04/$1.05. I think it will be challenged again and I think we may test around parity," Bargmann added.
The euro has regained some ground in the past couple of weeks after setting a 12-year low of $1.04570 in mid-March.
Later on Wednesday, the ADP National Employment Report will provide a picture of the U.S. private sector employment situation and could offer some clues to Friday's non-farm payroll report. (Reuters)(Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
* Yen firmer as weak Tokyo shares weigh on risk sentiment
* Better-than-expected China factory data bolsters Aussie
* ADP jobs report could provide clue to Friday payrolls (Adds comments, updates prices)
By Masayuki Kitano and Lisa Twaronite
SINGAPORE/TOKYO, April 1 (GNN) - The dollar slipped versus the yen at the start of a new quarter on Wednesday, as a soft reading on Japanese business sentiment dented Tokyo shares and helped bolster the safe haven yen.
The Australian dollar gained a lift from a better-than expected reading of Chinese factory activity and that added to the broadly weak tone of the greenback, traders said.
"Dollar/yen has led this move today and I think it's basically trading off the back end of the Nikkei," said Stephen Innes, senior trader for FX broker Oanda in Singapore.
The dollar fell 0.5 percent to 119.56 yen, down from Tuesday's one-week high of 120.37 yen.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei share average was last down about 1 percent, as investors booked profits on the first day of Japanese financial year and after soft reading on the Bank of Japan's tankan business sentiment survey.
Weakness in Japanese equities can dent risk sentiment and lend support to the yen.
"Any sort of negative sign, when the market gets over-extended like it is right now, you're going to see some type of profit-taking or pullback," Innes said, referring to long positions in the U.S. dollar.
The Australian dollar rose 0.4 percent to $0.7636, having clawed up to as high as $0.7664 after China's official Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) showed that activity in China's factory survey unexpectedly picked up in March.
The Australian dollar is sensitive to Chinese data due to Australia's large trade exposure to China.
The better-than-expected China PMI helped lift the Australian dollar and likely triggered some paring back of bullish bets on the U.S. dollar, said Jesper Bargmann, head of trading for Nordea Bank in Singapore.
"Market will have been a little bit of long of (U.S.) dollars, I assume, so we're just seeing a little squeeze on the back of that number," Bargmann said.
The euro rose 0.5 percent to $1.0789, getting some respite after suffering its worst quarterly performance ever in the first quarter.
The euro slid 11 percent against the dollar in January-March, its biggest quarterly drop since its 1999 launch, due to the the European Central Bank launching its quantitative easing programme, with the U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to start raising interest rates this year.
The euro will probably remain under pressure this quarter, although it is unlikely to fall as fast as it did in the previous three months, said Nordea Bank's Bargmann.
"I think the theme is kind of intact, until we start seeing the first hike out of the U.S. We still have the Greek situation looming, so overall there will still be pressure on the euro," he said.
"Against the dollar we found a very important support level around $1.04/$1.05. I think it will be challenged again and I think we may test around parity," Bargmann added.
The euro has regained some ground in the past couple of weeks after setting a 12-year low of $1.04570 in mid-March.
Later on Wednesday, the ADP National Employment Report will provide a picture of the U.S. private sector employment situation and could offer some clues to Friday's non-farm payroll report. (Reuters)(Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
Hurricane-strength winds pummel Europe, four killed
The Dutch meteorological office issued a red warning for the northern and coastal provinces of the low-lying Netherlands, as gusts of up to 120 kph (75 mph) caused damage estimated at several million euros.
German weather service spokesman Peter Hartmann said winds had reached up to 160 kph (100 mph) on higher ground.
"This is one of the worst storms in recent years," he said, noting that such hurricane-force winds were highly unusual for this time of the year.
Two road workers were killed in the western region of Rhineland-Palatinate when a tree fell on their vehicle, while another man was crushed under a stone wall in front of his house near Magdeburg in eastern Germany.
The fourth victim was in the eastern Dutch town of Ede, where a man was killed when the roof of a warehouse fell on him.
About 140 flights were canceled at Frankfurt airport, where one runway was shut. Around 90 flights were canceled at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport.
At Rotterdam, Europe's largest port, two container terminals were closed, with ships forced to queue out at sea. A spokesman said this was a routine precaution when winds rise above gale force seven. Bulk liquid terminals continued to operate.
Dutch authorities warned freight drivers not to travel with lightly loaded vehicles after overturned trucks blocked roads, while in the north some bridges had to be closed.
Near the port of Vlissingen on the Belgian border, authorities were able to refloat a 300-metre (1,000-foot) container ship that ran aground in the small hours.
In Germany, train services were suspended in the northern states of North Rhine Westphalia and Lower Saxony, and disrupted as far south as Bavaria.
In Britain, winds gusted up to 97 mph (156 kph) overnight, with a major bridge over the River Thames closed for several hours because of the bad weather, causing long traffic delays.
In Belgium, the wind uprooted trees and cut power lines to hundreds of homes. In some places, cars and buildings were damaged by flying debris and some rail and road links were briefly obstructed.
(The story corrects headline to drop reference to all four dead being in Germany)
(Reuters)(Reporting by Michael Nienaber, Markus Wacket, Sabine Wollrab, Anthony Deutsch, Erik Kirschbaum, Alastair Macdonald, Stephen Addison, writing by Michael Hogan and Thomas Escritt; Editing by Alison Williams and Kevin Liffey)
Electrical fault corrected, 'Big Bang' collider to restart soon
A statement from the research center just outside Geneva said a metal fragment that caused an intermittent short circuit in one of the giant magnets in the vast underground complex had been successfully removed.
The relaunch of the so-called 'Big Bang' machine had to be postponed last week because of the problem.
CERN said that after new tests on all the circuits in the area where the fault appeared, the way would be clear for proton particles to be sent in opposite directions right around the machine's 27-kilometre underground tubes.
This could happen "in a few days", the statement said.
However, proton particle collisions at twice the power of the first runs, which brought the discovery of the long-sought Higgs boson, will not begin until May, physicists say.
These collisions, at almost the speed of light, create the chaotic conditions inside the LHC close to those that followed the Big Bang 13.8 billion years ago, from which the universe eventually emerged.
The product of the collisions is captured in the collider's giant detectors and is analyzed by scientists at CERN and around the world for signs of new information about the cosmos and how it works at the elementary particle level.
Among the aims of scientists at the revamped LHC is to establish the existence of the unseen dark matter that makes up around 96 per cent of the stuff of the universe, but has only been detected through its influence on visible objects.
(Reuters)(Reporting by Robert Evans; Editing by Crispian Balmer)
