China bank lending up in 2014 as govt seeks credit boost
Shanghai (AFP) Jan 15, 2015 -
China's bank lending rose to $1.60 trillion in 2014, the central bank said Thursday, as the government sought to loosen credit to spur faltering growth in the world's second-largest economy.
Domestic banks made new loans of 9.78 trillion yuan ($1.60 trillion) last year, the People's Bank of China (PBoC) said in a statement.
The figure represented year-on-year growth of 10.0 percent from ...
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Offshore wind would boost jobs, energy more than oil: study
Miami (AFP) Jan 14, 2015 -
Developing offshore wind technology in the Atlantic Ocean would produce twice the energy and job growth as drilling for oil would, an environmental group said Wednesday.
The analysis by Oceana was released ahead of the US government's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management's five-year plan for oil and gas leasing, which could involve seismic testing for potential reserves in the Atlantic.
"Th ...
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Canada to host NAFTA summit 'later this year'
Ottawa (AFP) Jan 15, 2015 -
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper will host his American and Mexican counterparts for their annual summit "later this year," his office said Thursday, denying reports he had cancelled it over friction with Washington.
The partners in the North American Free Trade Agreement typically meet in February or March for what is often referred to as the "Three Amigos Summit" to discuss trade and ...
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Silicon Valley firms ink settlement in non-poaching case
San Francisco (AFP) Jan 16, 2015 -
Apple, Google, Intel and Adobe have inked a $415 million settlement over charges they colluded not to poach one another's employees, according to court documents.
The revised settlement still needs to be approved by US District Court Judge Lucy Koh, who rejected an early deal after deeming the damages to the plaintiffs in the class action suit were insufficient.
The new settlement propos ...
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Congestion expected after Toyota green car orders soar
Tokyo (AFP) Jan 15, 2015 -
Toyota has been swamped by orders for its first mass market hydrogen fuel-cell car, the company said Thursday, with demand in the first month nearly four times higher than expected for the whole year.
The Japanese auto giant said it had received more than 1,500 orders for its "Mirai" sedan since its launch in mid-December. It had planned to sell 400 in Japan over 12 months.
Roughly 60 pe ...
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China to Start Building Five Nuclear Reactors in 2015
Moscow, Russia (Sputnik) Jan 16, 2015 -
China will launch the construction of at least five new nuclear reactors with a total capacity of more than five gigawatts in 2015, the deputy secretary general of the Chinese Nuclear Society (CNS) said Thursday as reported by Bloomberg.
Shen Lixin told journalists in Beijing that currently China has 22 reactors in operation and 26 under construction. In 2014, China launched the constructi ...
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President Xi confident of China's nuclear power future
Beijing (XNA) Jan 16, 2015 -
President Xi Jinping on Thursday pledged that China will sharpen the competitive edge of its nuclear industry, which has seen healthy growth over the past six decades.
The country will adhere to peaceful and safe use of nuclear power, said Xi in written comments marking the 60th anniversary of the beginning of China's nuclear projects.
Nuclear industry is "an important foundation for ...
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