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Batteries suit offers clues to Apple’s car ambitions

Apple’s CarPlay system is seen in the touchscreen console of a Ferrari FF automobile A maker of electric car batteries is suing Apple for poaching some of its best researchers, providing further evidence of the iPhone maker’s plans for a big push into the automotive market . In court filings this week, A123 Systems accused Apple of “systematically hiring away [its] high-tech PhD and engineering employees, thereby effectively shutting down various projects/programs” at the Massachusetts-based company. “They are doing so in an effort to support Apple’s apparent plans to establish a battery division that is similar if not identical to A123’s,” the lawsuit states. The company is also suing five former employees from its R&D lab who have joined Apple since June last year. The lawsuit follows news of Apple’s extensive hiring efforts from carmakers, first reported by the Financial Times last week. The creation of a top-secret automotive […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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BP Loses Bid to Cut Maximum $13.7B Gulf Spill Fine

Deepwater Horizon Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Feb 19 (Reuters) – A U.S. judge on Thursday rejected BP Plc’s attempt to reduce the maximum civil fine it could face for its role in the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, leaving it potentially liable to pay $13.7 billion under the federal Clean Water Act. U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier in New Orleans agreed with the federal government that the maximum civil penalty that BP could face is $4,300 per barrel spilled. BP had sought a $3,000 per barrel maximum, equal to a maximum $9.57 billion civil fine. Barbier has not decided how much BP should pay, and it is unclear when he will. Setting a fine is the last step in a civil trial overseen by Barbier to determine responsibility and penalties for the April 20, 2010 blowout of the Macondo oil well, which killed 11 workers and caused […]

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Texas tax collections point to surging fuel demand: Kemp

LONDON (Reuters) – Consumption of gasoline and diesel in Texas is growing faster than at any time since the financial crisis, as an improving economy and lower fuel prices encourage more use of cars and trucks on the state’s roads. Receipts of motor fuel taxes in January 2015 were 9 percent higher than the same month in 2014, according to the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Texas collected almost $288 million in motor fuel taxes last month compared with $264 million in January 2014, according to the comptroller’s monthly Revenue Watch report ( link.reuters.com/heg24w ). Tax rates have not changed so the revenue rise is directly attributable to increased sales volumes. Motor fuel taxes must be paid to the comptroller by the 25th day of the month after which they are collected by suppliers and distributors, so the January receipts are for gasoline and diesel sold in December. By […]

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Canada’s Oil Industry ‘In Near-Death Condition

BobInget on Thu, 19th Feb 2015 10:45 am  Before buying or increasing ones positions it’s a grand idea to express fault in whatever you are interested in. Here’s the latest rundown. In terms of reserves; Saudi Arabia comes in SECOND. Second to Venezuela. Canada trails at number three in the World. China cornered future Venezuelan exports. This leaves Canada open for sale.Canada and Venezuela. All the rest, except deep-sea, is window dressing. Bloomberg) — For debt investors betting Venezuela will default this year as oil slumps, there is one big wildcard that threatens to sink the trade: China. The Asian nation, whose $3.9 trillion in foreign reserves are the world’s largest, has a history of lending out money to Venezuela, having doled out $45 billion over the past decade. And it has a strong incentive to provide more — Venezuela sits on the world’s biggest oil reserves while China […]

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U.S. Says More Russian Troops, Weapons Enter Ukraine; Europe Stands By Truce

ENLARGE Ukrainian soldiers who left Debaltseve on Wednesday prepare to return to support the further withdrawal of troops on Thursday in Artemivsk. Photo: Getty Images European leaders on Thursday stood by the cease-fire they brokered a week ago for Ukraine, even as the U.S. said Russian equipment and troops continued to flow into the country and the Ukrainian military significantly raised its latest casualty toll. Kiev and its Western backers had denounced a dayslong offensive by Russia-backed separatists to seize the strategic rail hub of Debaltseve as a violation of the cease-fire. But as fighting subsided generally after the hasty retreat on Wednesday by Ukrainian forces, none of the parties appeared willing to declare the latest deal dead. “The four leaders agreed to rigorously implement the entirety of the package of measures” agreed to on Feb. 12, the office of French President François Hollande said after the conference call […]

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Kiev accused of cutting gas supplies to rebels

A new faultline opened up between Ukraine and Russia over natural gas on Thursday when pro-Russian rebels in east Ukraine accused Kiev of cutting off supplies to them amid sub-zero temperatures. Russia said it had started supplying gas to the rebel-controlled regions of Donetsk and Lugansk, while Kiev said supplies had been interrupted temporarily after heavy fighting damaged pipelines. More On this topic IN Europe The gas dispute broke out less than 24 hours after thousands of Ukrainian troops were withdrawn from the ruined town of Debaltseve as it was captured by the rebels. The seizure of the town was a significant defeat for Kiev’s forces and threw into doubt a new ceasefire signed in Minsk last week. Late on Wednesday Petro Poroshenko , Ukraine’s president, called for UN and EU peacekeepers to monitor the ceasefire. But the proposal was swiftly rejected by Moscow and Russian-backed rebels in east […]

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Ruble’s Best Rally on Record Seen Being Short-Lived

(Bloomberg) — Don’t get too excited about the Russian ruble’s best ever rally. That’s the advice of banks from Credit Suisse Group AG to Sweden’s SEB AB, which warn that the currency’s 12 percent gain versus the dollar this month is vulnerable because it depends on a Ukraine cease-fire and Brent oil staying at about $60 a barrel. Options traders remain more bearish on the ruble than on any of its 31 major peers, and strategists are cutting their forecasts to anticipate an 8 percent decline by mid-year. “It’s not a turning point,” said Per Hammarlund, the chief emerging-markets strategist in Stockholm at SEB, which sees the ruble tumbling 10 percent by the end of next month. “The risk of an oil-price reversal is significant. A resurgence of fighting in Ukraine would also weaken the ruble.” A relapse in the exchange rate would heap further pressure onto President Vladimir […]

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Eurozone activity rises at fastest pace in 7 months

Activity increased in both the dominant services sector and the manufacturing industry Fresh evidence that the eurozone’s economy may finally be heading for a meaningful recovery emerged on Friday, as an influential poll of purchasing managers showed activity rising at its fastest pace in seven months despite the stand-off between Athens and its creditors. February’s flash purchasing managers’ index, compiled by Markit, rose to 53.5, up from 52.6 in January and well above the crucial 50 level that marks an expansion in activity. Falling energy prices , a weaker euro and the announcement of a landmark quantitative easing programme by the European Central Bank have helped lift expectations that after years of sluggish growth the region’s recovery will quicken in 2015. Though concerns linger that political risks emanating from Athens and the EU’s eastern borders will undermine optimism, regional GDP figures for the fourth quarter of 2014 published last […]

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Oil falls sharply as U.S. crude inventories rise

LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices tumbled on Thursday after another big weekly build in U.S. crude inventories and a possible rise in Saudi output stoked worries about oversupply. U.S. crude stocks rose by 14.3 million barrels last week, data from industry group the American Petroleum Institute (API) showed after Wednesday’s settlement, compared with analysts’ expectations for an increase of 3.2 million barrels. [API/S] If U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) data due at 1600 GMT confirms the large build, it would be the biggest weekly addition in barrels since such data became available in 1982. The API and EIA reports are a day late this week because of a U.S. holiday on Monday. At 0843 GMT, benchmark Brent crude futures for April were down $1.67 at $58.86 a barrel, extending declines from Tuesday’s two-month high of $63. U.S. crude for March delivery, which expires on Friday, was down $2.05 at […]

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Oil Prices Fall as U.S. Crude Stockpiles Grow

ENLARGE A gas staion in Newark, N.J., U.S. Data from the American Petroleum Industry on Wednesday showed an increase in crude stocks last week. Photo: Associated Press LONDON—Oil prices fell sharply on Thursday extending their losses on expectations that U.S. crude stockpiles will reach a record level. The American Petroleum Institute, an industry group, said late Wednesday its data showed a 14.3 million-barrel increase in crude stocks last week . The U.S. Energy Information Administration will release its official data later Thursday. In recent weeks, oil futures have rebounded strongly , with Brent—the global price benchmark—up close to 30% from its mid-January low. But U.S. stockpiles and production data, which have been hitting records in recent months, indicate that the market is still suffering from the oversupply which drove oil prices off a cliff last year. Brent crude for April delivery fell 2.3% to $59.10 a barrel on London’s […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple