NFL-Ravens show their spirit with stunning win in Denver

Jan 12 (Reuters) - The Baltimore Ravens fell behind the Denver Broncos four times on Saturday and each time they battled back to level the game with the final rally paving the way for a stunning playoffs win which epitomises the team's fighting spirit.
"This is a team of destiny," said running back Ray Rice, who rushed for 131 yards and a touchdown in the thrilling 38-35 double overtime AFC divisional playoff victory.
"Just look at the way we played today - it wasn't pretty, it wasn't perfect, but it was us," he added.
Baltimore were 31 seconds away from elimination when quarterback Joe Flacco hurled a 70-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Jacoby Jones to silence the home fans and send the game into overtime.
Then, after Peyton Manning threw an interception, Justin Tucker's 47-yard field goal sent the Ravens into the AFC Championship game for the second successive year.
"This will probably go down as one of the greatest victories in Ravens history," said linebacker Ray Lewis, Baltimore's undisputed leader, who will retire whenever this season finally ends.
Last week's 24-9 win over the Indianapolis Colts was Lewis' final home game for the team he has played for since being drafted in 1996 but his farewell could yet be at the Super Bowl in New Orleans.
"It's his last ride, why not send him off the right way," said Rice, who feels that the Ravens, beaten by the New England Patriots in last year's AFC Championship game, have made a leap in quality.
"These are the games we used to lose and now we are finding ways to win them," he said.
GREW UP
The pressure was certainly on Flacco who, despite everything he has achieved, still faced questions over whether he had what it took to win in the post-season.
Three touchdowns, including that memorable pass late in the fourth, and 331 yards without an interception, were the perfect answer to the lingering doubters.
"He grew up today," Lewis said.
"I told him in the tunnel, 'lead us to victory'. To look in his eyes he had something different about him today. I've always been a Joe Flacco fan, but to watch what he did, this was one of his greatest days," he said.
The quarterback agreed.
"It was pretty incredible, we overcame some things today and we fought to the very end," Flacco said.
"When some of those things happened, none of us blinked, we just sat on the sideline and said 'alright, it's our turn'. Slowly but surely we were able to score points when we needed to and our defense was able to stop them," he said.
In next week's AFC championship game, Baltimore will face either the Houston Texans or the Patriots, who extinguished their Super Bowl hopes last year.
"We feel it is going to take a lot for somebody to kick us off the field in the AFC Championship," Flacco added.

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Ravens show their spirit with stunning win in Denver

(Reuters) - The Baltimore Ravens fell behind the Denver Broncos four times on Saturday and each time they battled back to level the game with the final rally paving the way for a stunning playoffs win which epitomizes the team's fighting spirit.
"This is a team of destiny," said running back Ray Rice, who rushed for 131 yards and a touchdown in the thrilling 38-35 double overtime AFC divisional playoff victory.
"Just look at the way we played today - it wasn't pretty, it wasn't perfect, but it was us," he added.
Baltimore were 31 seconds away from elimination when quarterback Joe Flacco hurled a 70-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Jacoby Jones to silence the home fans and send the game into overtime.
Then, after Peyton Manning threw an interception, Justin Tucker's 47-yard field goal sent the Ravens into the AFC Championship game for the second successive year.
"This will probably go down as one of the greatest victories in Ravens history," said linebacker Ray Lewis, Baltimore's undisputed leader, who will retire whenever this season finally ends.
Last week's 24-9 win over the Indianapolis Colts was Lewis' final home game for the team he has played for since being drafted in 1996 but his farewell could yet be at the Super Bowl in New Orleans.
"It's his last ride, why not send him off the right way," said Rice, who feels that the Ravens, beaten by the New England Patriots in last year's AFC Championship game, have made a leap in quality.
"These are the games we used to lose and now we are finding ways to win them," he said.
GREW UP
The pressure was certainly on Flacco who, despite everything he has achieved, still faced questions over whether he had what it took to win in the post-season.
Three touchdowns, including that memorable pass late in the fourth, and 331 yards without an interception, were the perfect answer to the lingering doubters.
"He grew up today," Lewis said.
"I told him in the tunnel, 'lead us to victory'. To look in his eyes he had something different about him today. I've always been a Joe Flacco fan, but to watch what he did, this was one of his greatest days," he said.
The quarterback agreed.
"It was pretty incredible, we overcame some things today and we fought to the very end," Flacco said.
"When some of those things happened, none of us blinked, we just sat on the sideline and said ‘alright, it's our turn'. Slowly but surely we were able to score points when we needed to and our defense was able to stop them," he said.
In next week's AFC championship game, Baltimore will face either the Houston Texans or the Patriots, who extinguished their Super Bowl hopes last year.
"We feel it is going to take a lot for somebody to kick us off the field in the AFC Championship," Flacco added.
"We know what it felt like last year without the win, we know what we have put in this year so far to get back to this point so it is going to be a great game."

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NFL-Manning's comeback ends with 'stinging' loss to Ravens

Jan 12 (Reuters) - Peyton Manning's bid to reach the Super Bowl in his comeback season ended miserably with a game-costing interception as the Denver Broncos quarterback handed victory to the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday.
The 36-year-old four-time National Football League (NFL) Most Valuable Player was left to wonder what could have been after Baltimore secured a 38-35 double overtime win that ended Manning's season on his home field.
"We had plans for playing next week, guys were excited and to get beat in overtime by a field goal is really disappointing," Manning said.
"We made a lot of strides and accomplished a lot this season but it definitely stings ending in a loss like this."
Manning was cut by the Indianapolis Colts after missing the 2011 season due to various neck surgeries and began the season with many wondering whether he was still capable of being a top caliber quarterback.
By the end of a regular season where he threw for 4,659 yards, 37 touchdowns and led the Broncos to the top playoff seed in the American Football Conference, pundits were wondering if he could add to his 2007 Super Bowl win with the Colts.
But that ambition ended in dramatic fashion.
Manning completed 28-of-43 passes for 290 yards and three touchdowns and played his part in a thrilling playoff encounter but was responsible for all three Denver turnovers -- two interceptions and a lost fumble.
A first quarter pass was picked off by Corey Graham, who returned it 39 yards to put the Ravens ahead 14-7 five minutes into the game.
It got worse late in the first overtime period when Graham superbly picked off a Manning pass intended for Brandon Stokley.
"A bad throw and the decision probably wasn't great either," said Manning. "I thought I had him in the open and didn't get enough on it. Certainly I'd like to have it back.
"It's a very disappointing finish in the game. You can go through lots of plays offensively that you'd like to have back."
Despite the loss, Manning was able to reflect positively on a 13-3 regular season.
"I accomplished a lot more this year than I certainly thought I would have personally and I think the team exceeded its expectations as well," said Manning.
"We really didn't know what to expect from this team. It's hard to form chemistry when you have a lot of new players come in such a short space of time and we did that.
"This is a hard one to swallow but I'm certainly proud of this team and what it went through to get to this point." (Reporting by Simon Evans in Miami; Editing by Frank Pingue)

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BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi officials say insurgent attacks in separate parts of the country have killed four people including a 7-year-old boy and wounded five others. Police officials say that the first attack took place early Sunday when gunmen attacked an army checkpoint near the city of Samarra north of Baghdad, killing three soldiers and wounding two others. In the western province of Anbar, police said a roadside bomb went off on a security patrol in the city of Fallujah, killing the boy who was walking near the patrol. Three policemen were wounded also in the attack. Medics in nearby hospitals confirmed the casualty figures. All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to talk to media. Violence has ebbed in Iraq, but insurgent attacks are still frequent.Egypt court grants Mubarak appeal, orders retrial

CAIRO (AP) — A Cairo court on Sunday granted Hosni Mubarak's appeal of his life sentence, ordering a retrial of the ousted Egyptian president convicted of failing to prevent the killing of hundreds of protesters during the uprising that toppled his regime.
The ruling read out by judge Ahmed Ali Abdel-Rahman during the brief court session also overturned the conviction of Mubarak's former security chief, Habib el-Adly, who was convicted on the same charges and also sentenced to life in prison. He too will be retried.
Mubarak will not walk free, as he is being held while under investigation on other charges. The defendants were not present in the courtroom. The 84-year-old ex-president, currently in a military hospital, was reported last year to have been close to death, but the current state of his health is unknown.
A small crowd of Mubarak loyalists in the courtroom erupted with applause and cheers after the judge read his ruling. Holding portraits of the former president aloft, they chanted: "Long live Justice." Another jubilant crowd later gathered outside the Nile-side hospital where Mubarak is kept in the Cairo district of Maadi, where they passed out candies to pedestrians and motorists passing by.
Abdel-Rahman did not provide the grounds for his decision to grant the defense's appeal, but the reasoning behind his ruling was expected to be released later. No date has been set for the retrial.
Mubarak's defense lawyers had argued that the former president did not know of the killings or realized the extent of the street protests, but an Egyptian fact-finding mission has recently determined that he watched the uprising against him unfold through a live TV feed at his palace.
The mission's report could hold both political opportunities and dangers for Mubarak's successor, President Mohammed Morsi of the fundamentalist Muslim Brotherhood. A new Mubarak trial would be popular, since many Egyptians were angered he was convicted for failing to stop the killings, rather than ordering the crackdown.
But the report also implicates the military and security officials in the protesters' deaths. Any move to prosecute them could spark a backlash from the powerful police and others who still hold positions under Morsi's Islamist government at a time when the nation's new leader is struggling to assert his authority over a nation mired in turmoil.
Abdel-Rahman also granted the prosecution's request to overturn not-guilty verdicts on Mubarak, his two sons and an associate of the former president, Hussein Salem, on corruption charges. Salem was tried in absentia and remains at large to this day.
The judge also ordered the retrial of six of el-Adly's top aides who were acquitted in the same trial. Five of them were found not guilty of involvement in the killing of the protesters, while one was acquitted of "gross negligence." No date was set for their retrial either.
The six top police commanders held key positions at the Interior Ministry, which was led by el-Adly and which is in charge of the security forces. Their acquittal surprised many Egyptians who are still demanding retribution for the nearly 900 protesters killed during the 18-day uprising that culminated with Mubarak's ouster on Feb 11, 2011.
The prosecutors in the Mubarak trial complained that security agencies and the nation's top intelligence organization had not cooperated with their investigation, leaving them with little incriminating evidence against the defendants. During the trial, prosecutors focused their argument on the political responsibility of Mubarak and el-Adly.
Sunday's ruling came one day after a prosecutor placed a new detention order on Mubarak over gifts worth millions of Egyptian pounds he and other regime officials allegedly received from Egypt's top newspaper, Al-Ahram, as a show of loyalty while he was in power.
The public funds prosecutor ordered Mubarak held for 15 days pending the completion of the investigation. Mubarak, 84, was moved to a Cairo military hospital last month after slipping inside a prison bathroom and injuring himself.
Mubarak's sons, one-time heir apparent Gamal and businessman Alaa, are in prison while on being tried for alleged insider trading and using their influence to buy state land at a fraction of its market price.

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Iraq attacks kill 4, including 7-year-old boy

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi officials say insurgent attacks in separate parts of the country have killed four people including a 7-year-old boy and wounded five others.
Police officials say that the first attack took place early Sunday when gunmen attacked an army checkpoint near the city of Samarra north of Baghdad, killing three soldiers and wounding two others.
In the western province of Anbar, police said a roadside bomb went off on a security patrol in the city of Fallujah, killing the boy who was walking near the patrol. Three policemen were wounded also in the attack.
Medics in nearby hospitals confirmed the casualty figures. All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to talk to media.
Violence has ebbed in Iraq, but insurgent attacks are still frequent.

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Israeli PM vows to move ahead with E-1 settlement

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — Israel's prime minister pledged Sunday to move ahead with construction of a new Jewish settlement in a strategic part of the West Bank, speaking just hours after Israeli troops dragged dozens of Palestinian anti-settlement activists from the area.
The activists had pitched more than two dozen tents at the site on Friday, laying claim to the land and drawing attention to Israel's internationally condemned settlement policy.
Before dawn Sunday, hundreds of Israeli soldiers removed the protesters by force, beating some, activists said. Despite the eviction, Mustafa Barghouti, one of the protest leaders, claimed success, saying the overall strategy is to "make (Israel's) occupation costly."
The planned settlement, known as E-1, would deepen east Jerusalem's separation from the West Bank, war-won areas the Palestinians want for their state. The project had been on hold for years, in part because of U.S. objections.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revived the E-1 plans late last year, in response to the Palestinians' successful bid for U.N. recognition of a state of Palestine in the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem, territories Israel captured in the 1967 Mideast war.
Jewish settlements are at the heart of the current, four-year impasse in Mideast peace efforts. The Palestinians have refused to negotiate while Israel continues to build settlements on the lands they claim for a future state. Netanyahu says peace talks should start without any preconditions. Netanyahu also rejects any division of Jerusalem.
Israel expanded the boundaries of east Jerusalem after the 1967 war and then annexed the area — a move not recognized by the international community. Since then, it has built a ring of Jewish settlements in the enlarged eastern sector to cement its control over the city.
E-1 would be built in the West Bank, just east of Jerusalem, and close one of the last options for Palestinians to create territorial continuity between Arab neighborhoods of east Jerusalem, their hoped-for capital, and the West Bank. According to building plans, E-1 would have more than 3,000 apartments.
The Palestinians say they turned to the U.N. last November out of frustration with the deadlock in peace talks. They believe the international endorsement of the 1967 lines as a future border will bolster their position in future negotiations. But Israel has accused the Palestinians of trying to bypass the negotiating process and impose a solution.
Netanyahu told Israel Army Radio on Sunday that it would take time to build E-1, citing planning procedures. Still, he said, "we will complete the planning and there will be construction."
Barghouti, one of the protest leaders, said the demonstrators pitched the tents on private Palestinian land and obtained an Israeli court injunction preventing the removal of the tents for several days. In response, Israel declared the site a closed military zone, enabling Israeli soldiers to evict the activists, he said.
When asked why the protesters were removed, Netanyahu said: "They have no reason to be there. I asked immediately to close the area so people would not gather there needlessly and generate friction and disrupt public order."
About half a million Israelis live in the dozens of settlements that dot the West Bank and east Jerusalem. Over the past 15 years, Jewish settlers have also set up dozens of rogue settlements, without formal approval, and critics say the government has done little to remove them.

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Browns introduce Rob Chudzinski as new coach

CLEVELAND (AP) — Rob Chudzinski is back for his third tour with the Cleveland Browns, and this time he's calling the shots.
Chudzinski, who spent the past two seasons as Carolina's offensive coordinator, was introduced as the club's sixth fulltime coach on Friday. He'll inherit a young roster he'll try to develop into a contender with the Browns, who have lost at least 11 games in each of the past five seasons.
The 44-year-old previously worked as an assistant with the Browns, most recently as offensive coordinator in 2008. Chudzinski has no previous head coaching experience, but he's familiar with the Browns and their history. He rooted for the Browns while growing up in Toledo, Ohio.
"I would not miss the chance for the world." Chudzinski said. "We're going to win here."

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Strahan, Sapp, Ogden among Hall of Fame finalists

CANTON, Ohio (AP) — Single-season sacks leader Michael Strahan and two players who tried to block him are among 15 modern-era finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Strahan, who had 22½ sacks in 2001 and 141½ for his 15-year his career with the New York Giants, is joined by offensive tackle Jonathan Ogden of the Ravens and guard-tackle Larry Allen of the Cowboys and 49ers.
The fourth first-year eligible to make the cut is defensive tackle Warren Sapp of the Buccaneers and Raiders.
Strahan, Ogden and Sapp all won Super Bowls.
The hall announced Friday that the other finalists are running back Jerome Bettis; receivers Cris Carter, Tim Brown and Andre Reed; LB-DEs Charles Haley and Kevin Greene; guard Will Shields; defensive back Aeneas Williams; coach Bill Parcells; and former owners Edward DeBartolo Jr. of the 49ers and the late Art Modell of the Browns, who moved to Baltimore in 1996 to become the Ravens.
The two senior nominees are defensive tackle Curley Culp — who played for the Chiefs, Oilers and Lions — and linebacker Dave Robinson of the Packers and Redskins.
Between four and seven new members will be selected Feb. 2, the day before the Super Bowl, in New Orleans.
Bettis played for the Rams and Steelers — he won the 2006 Super Bowl in his final game, something Strahan did in 2008. He's in his third season of eligibility and was beaten out by fellow running backs Marshall Faulk in 2011 and Curtis Martin in 2012 for the hall.
Carter, Brown and Reed all were in the top 10 in receptions when they retired. Haley won five Super Bowls, two with San Francisco and three with Dallas.
Greene was one of the first hybrid linebacker-end defenders, which best suited his pass-rushing skills.
Shields was an ironman blocker for 14 seasons in Kansas City. Williams was a versatile defensive back who played on the corner and at safety. He had 55 career interceptions and 23 fumble recoveries.

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Eager Chudzinski takes over new-look Browns

CLEVELAND (AP) — The Browns have always been a part of Rob Chudzinski's life. Now, he's the man in charge.
Chudzinski, who spent the past two seasons as Carolina's offensive coordinator, was introduced as the club's sixth fulltime coach on Friday, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the 44-year-old who as a kid pretended he played tight end for the Browns during games in his backyard in Toledo, Ohio.
"It is a dream come true," Chudzinski said. "I can't wait to get started."
Chudzinski will inherit a young roster he'll try to develop into a contender with the Browns, who have lost at least 11 games in each of the past five seasons and made the playoffs only once since 1999.
Chudzinski previously worked as an assistant with the Browns, most recently as their offensive coordinator in 2008. Although he has no previous head coaching experience, owner Jimmy Haslam and CEO Joe Banner are confident they hired the best possible candidate available to turn their club into a consistent winner.
"I would not miss the chance for the world." Chudzinski said. "We're going to win here."
The Browns hauled their search to find the 14th coach in franchise history to Arizona and back. They talked to high-profile college coaches, NFL assistants and a fired pro coach who took a team to a Super Bowl.
None of them was hired.
Instead, Chudzinski became their pick.
"I believe we came back with the best coach for the Cleveland Browns," said Haslam, who flew to Charlotte, N.C. on Thursday night with Banner to offer Chudzinski the job. "He is one of the brightest young coaches in the business."
Chudzinski's first move will be to hire his staff. He will immediately meet with the assistants currently working for the Browns. Chudzinski would not comment on any possible candidates to become his coordinators. There are reports he is considering former San Diego coach Norv Turner to run his offense. Chudzinski worked for Turner with the Chargers.
"I have a plan in place," he said. "We're going to get a great staff. We have a young group of players. This is going to be about the process. Lots of people are worried about the end result, but this is going to be the right process to get us where we want to be."
Now that they've hired their coach, Haslam and Banner will focus on finding a new general manager to help pick players for Chudzinski, who will be involved in finding the GM.
The new coach — "Chud," as he's known to players and friends — worked with the Browns' tight ends in 2004 and was their offensive coordinator in 2007, when the team won 10 games — their most since an expansion rebirth in 1999. He was released when Romeo Crennel was fired in 2008.
Chudzinski said when he walked off the field after the final game that season he knew he would be coming back to Cleveland "someday, somehow."
Chudzinski replaces Pat Shurmur, another first-time coach when he was hired, who was fired on Dec. 31 after a 5-11 season. For the past two years, Chudzinski has worked with talented Panthers quarterback Cam Newton and resuscitated Carolina's offense, which was one of the league's worst before he arrived.
When Haslam and Banner embarked on their coaching search as 2013 began, the pair vowed they would wait as long as necessary to find "the right coach" for Cleveland. They promised to give their new coach final say over the roster and planned to pair him with an executive to help pick players.
Chudzinski wasn't seen by many as an option.
And then he became the choice.
Haslam said Chudzinski's passion for the Browns was a bonus, but he had all the credentials and characteristics they were looking for in a new coach.
"If Rob was from Plano, Texas, we would have hired him," Haslam said.
Chudzinski said he wants a team that attacks on both sides of the ball. He would not comment on any of Cleveland's players, and sidestepped a question about rookie Brandon Weeden, who had an uneven first season with the Browns.
Chudzinski interviewed with the team on Wednesday, when the club also visited with Cincinnati defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer. Chudzinski appeared to be a long shot for the job, not because he wasn't qualified, but because it was thought Haslam wanted to make a big splash with his first coaching hire.
However, Chudzinski wowed Haslam and Banner during his meeting and the team decided it was time to end its search in its second week. Haslam said 10 minutes into the interview that he nodded at Banner that they had found their man.
In his first season in Carolina, Chudzinski turned Newton, the No. 1 overall draft pick, loose and the Panthers set club records for total yards (6,237) and first downs (345). Carolina also scored 48 touchdowns after getting just 17 in the season before Chudzinski arrived. The Panthers jumped from last in the league in total yardage to seventh, the biggest improvement since 1999.
Haslam pointed out the Panthers scored 88 touchdowns the past two seasons. Cleveland scored 44.
Following last season, Chudzinski interviewed for head coaching jobs with St. Louis, Jacksonville and Tampa Bay before returning to Carolina.
In getting the Browns' job, Chudzinski was picked over Zimmer, Montreal Alouettes coach Marc Trestman, fired Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt and Cardinals defensive coordinator Ray Horton. Whisenhunt was in Cleveland for a second interview on Thursday, and appeared to be the front-runner. The Browns also were expected to interview Indianapolis offensive coordinator Bruce Arians.
Chudzinski's hiring may have shocked some Cleveland fans, many of whom at fantasies about Nick Saban or Jon Gruden or Kelly brining his supersonic offense to the NFL.
But his selection is in keeping with at least one of Banner's past moves. When he was in Philadelphia's front office, Banner went outside the box and hired Green Bay assistant Andy Reid, a relative unknown who spent 14 seasons with the Eagles.

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Kuwait sentences second man to jail for insulting emir: lawyer

DUBAI (Reuters) - A Kuwaiti court sentenced a man to two years in prison on Monday for insulting the country's ruler on Twitter, his lawyer said, the second person to be jailed for the offence in as many days.
The U.S.-allied Gulf Arab state has clamped down in recent months on political activists who have been using social media websites to criticize the government and the ruling family.
Kuwait has seen a series of opposition-organized protests, including one on Sunday night, since the ruling emir, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, used emergency powers in October to change the voting system.
The court sentenced Ayyad al-Harbi, who has more than 13,000 followers on Twitter, to the prison term two months after his arrest and release on bail.
Harbi used his Twitter account to criticize the Kuwait government and the emir. He tweeted on Sunday: "Tomorrow morning is my trial's verdict on charges of slander against the emir, spreading of false news."
His lawyer, Mohammed al-Humidi, said Harbi would appeal.
"We've been taken by surprise because Kuwait has always been known internationally and in the Arab world as a democracy-loving country," Humidi told Reuters. "People are used to democracy, but suddenly we see the constitution being undermined."
On Sunday, another man, Rashid Saleh al-Anzi was given two years in prison over a tweet that "stabbed the rights and powers of the emir", according to the online newspaper Alaan. Anzi, who has 5,700 Twitter followers, was expected to appeal.
In Washington, the U.S. State Department said it had seen the reports of the two men's sentences and had raised the issue with the Kuwaiti government, which it urged to respect freedom of speech.
"We call on the government of Kuwait to adhere to its tradition of respect for freedom of assembly, association, and expression," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters. "You know how strongly we feel about locking people up for their use of Twitter."
Kuwait, a major oil producer, has been taking a firmer line on politically sensitive comments aired on the Internet.
In June 2012, a man was sentenced to 10 years in prison after he was convicted of endangering state security by insulting the Prophet Mohammad and the Sunni Muslim rulers of Saudi Arabia and Bahrain on social media.
Two months later, authorities detained Sheikh Meshaal al-Malik Al-Sabah, a member of the ruling family, over remarks on Twitter in which he accused authorities of corruption and called for political reform, a rights activist said.
Public demonstrations about local issues are common in Kuwait, a state that allows the most dissent in the Gulf, and the country has avoided Arab Spring-style mass unrest that has ousted four veteran Arab dictators in the past two years.
But tensions have risen between Kuwait's hand-picked government, in which ruling family members hold the top posts, and the elected parliament and opposition groups.

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European businesses slow to go online: study

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European businesses are not doing enough to use the internet to grow their customer base and promote products, Belgian database and marketing firm Email-Brokers said after studying 13 million websites.
Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands have the highest proportion of companies online but even in these countries 40 percent of business have no internet presence, it found.
The European Commission has estimated that companies which exploit the full potential of the internet create, on average, more than twice as many jobs.
"It is one of the ways to create employment and economic growth and it is not Star Trek, it exists today," Email-Brokers head William Vande Wiele said.
Britain and Liechtenstein were the most advanced in terms of e-commerce - defined as being able to process orders and payments, with 16 percent and 17 percent, respectively, of business sites offering it, compared with 6 percent in Belgium and 9 percent in Austria, Germany and the Netherlands.
Vande Wiele said many corporate websites were badly designed, and did not provide basics such as adequate contact information or company details.
In Belgium, 91 percent of all corporate websites did not meet such basic standards, compared with about 20 percent in Luxembourg and France, the study concluded.
"Sites which do not comply with such minimum standards do not inspire confidence and before buying something online a user will need a minimum level of confidence," Vande Wiele said.
Many websites are not kept up to date, the study also found, with more than 80 percent of business sites in Belgium, Greece, Italy and Spain not updated for more than a year.

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Target to match some rivals' online prices year-round

(Reuters) - Target Corp said on Tuesday it will match on a year-round basis the prices found on the websites of key rivals Amazon.com Inc, Best Buy Co Inc, Wal-Mart Stores Inc and Toys R Us, its latest tactic to hold onto shoppers focused on price.
The move extends an online price-matching program that Target introduced over the holiday season and which was supposed to last only from November 1 to December 16. It also comes after Target last week reported flat sales growth in December at stores open at least a year.
"I think this is largely symbolic, it's akin to removing the Kindle from their stores," said Wells Fargo analyst Matt Nemer, referring to Target's decision to stop selling Amazon's tablet devices last year.
In November, Chief Executive Gregg Steinhafel said Target was not seeing a lot of price-match activity in its stores.
"It's not likely to have a huge impact on financials or customer behavior," said Nemer, who noted that customers are not likely to go to Target's guest services desk for a refund for just a small difference in price.
Also, much of what Target sells, such as apparel and accessories, is exclusive to the store, so there would be no comparable prices from competitors.
But Target will now also match prices year-round from its own website in its stores.
Nemer called that "a really important step," saying it removes confusion for customers who sometimes see different prices for products such as televisions in stores and online.
While shopping online has grown rapidly in recent years, it still represents a small fraction of overall shopping in the United States. Target's policy of matching online prices differs from policies at several chains, which match only printed advertised prices for items sold at stores.
Target said that throughout the year it will match the price when a customer buys an eligible item at one of its stores and finds the same item at a lower price in the following week's Target circular or in a local competitor's printed ad. It will also match the price if the customer finds the same item at a lower price within a week on Target's website or the websites of Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy and Toys R Us.
Amazon says it offers competitive prices and does not offer price matching when an item's price drops after a customer buys it, with the exception of televisions. Walmart matches the prices of print ads from competitors and said it has no plans to change its policy. Walmart also says it checks the prices of 30,000 items at competing chains each week to make sure it has the lowest prices.
Best Buy matches the price from a local competitor's store, a local Best Buy store or its own web site. Toys R Us matches in-store prices and certain online prices.
Shares of Target were down 60 cents at $60.70 in afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

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Ethiopia Dec inflation falls yr/yr, at lowest for 2012

ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - Ethiopian inflation dropped in December to 12.9 percent year-on-year, its lowest rate of 2012, official data showed on Wednesday.
The government had targeted single-digit inflation in 2012, something it now hopes to achieve this year.
Inflation, which has been billed by the IMF as the country's biggest economic challenge, peaked at 36.3 percent last February, and has steadily declined due to rising agricultural output and government subsidies on a number of food items.
Last month's year-on-year inflation fell to 12.9 percent from 15.6 percent in November, according to the Central Statistics Agency.
It said the consumer price index actually fell 0.7 percent month-on-month in December after a 0.5 percent drop in November.
The agency said food price inflation fell to 11.8 percent year-on-year in December, down from 13.4 percent in November. The non-food inflation rate also dropped to 14.6 percent in December from 19.4 percent the previous month.
The International Monetary Fund has said inflation is the biggest challenge facing policymakers in the Horn of Africa country, which has however registered one of the world's highest economic growth rates for the last few years.
Ethiopia's economy is expected to maintain a growth rate of 11 percent in 2012/2013, the seventh consecutive fiscal year of growth, according to senior officials.
High coffee earnings in the past few years have boosted the economy of Africa's biggest coffee producer, as have rising gold, oil seed and livestock exports.

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Sudan says secures $1.5 bln loan from China as it battles currency slide

ABU DHABI (Reuters) - Sudan has secured a $1.5 billion loan guaranteed by Chinese state oil firm China National Petroleum Corp, its finance minister said, throwing a lifeline to the African country battling its worst economic crisis for decades.
Sudanese Finance Minister Ali Mahmoud said the loan, agreed on December 31, would come from a Chinese bank, which he declined to identify. It comes at a crucial time for Sudan which has been unable to stop a slide in its currency since losing three-quarters of its oil production when South Sudan seceded in 2011.
Oil was the main revenue source for the budget and for dollars needed to buy basic food imports such as wheat and sugar.
China is the country's biggest trading partner apart from Gulf Arab oil producers and China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC), which was not immediately available to comment, is the biggest investor in the oil industry in Sudan and South Sudan.
Sudan has avoided an "Arab spring" revolution that toppled the rulers of Egypt, Tunisia and Libya but annual inflation running at 46.5 percent in November has sparked small protests against the government.
"The $1.5 billion loan will be used to bridge the fiscal gap and enhance our balance of payments," Mahmoud told Reuters in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.
He said the loan would help stabilise the Sudanese pound which has more than halved in value on the key black market since southern secession in July 2011.
In July, Sudan devalued the official dollar exchange rate to around 4.4 pounds to end a differential with the black market rate. But the pound fell further, to 7 pounds to the dollar in December on the black market, which has become the reference for import firms as the central bank struggles to supply dollars.
CHINA INTEREST
China has stayed out of recent tensions between both African countries which came close to war in April. But Beijing has an interest in Sudan overcoming its crisis given that it has been the biggest buyer of South Sudanese oil which has to be exported through Sudan.
Landlocked South Sudan shut down its output of 350,000 barrels a day a year ago after failing to agree with Sudan over export fees. Both countries now plan to resume cross-border flows but need to secure their disputed border first.
CNPC is also helping Sudan to boost its own oil production, last estimated by the oil ministry at almost 140,000 bpd, but the output only serves domestic consumption.
An oil industry source said CNPC, China's biggest oil and gas producer, had done some exploration work in Sudan's Red Sea but had not found it promising in terms of reserves.
Sudan has been expanding exports of minerals and agriculture products to offset the loss of oil revenues. It has forecast it would sell $2.5 billion worth of gold last year, up from $1.5 billion in 2011. China is also a big player in the gold industry.
"With most of our oil exports gone, we are enhancing agricultural products exports. This year we are expecting to export edible oil and will cut imports of sugar by half," Mahmoud said.
Last year, Sudan opened a new sugar factory, funded by Gulf countries, to lower its dependency on imports. But analysts are sceptical the country will be able to expand its agricultural exports soon due to mismanagement, outdated technology and corruption. Much of Sudan's food needs come from abroad.
Mahmoud spoke after the signing ceremony for a $45 million loan for Sudan from the Arab Monetary Fund (AMF), a pan-Arab fund based in Abu Dhabi. Since 1997 the fund has granted Sudan $650 million in total, including the latest loan.

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Obama aide presses Republicans to accept more tax revenues

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Congress should accept in the next round of deficit-reduction talks that revenue from taxes must be raised further if it expects President Barack Obama to sign off on a deal, the president's top economic adviser, Gene Sperling, said in an interview.
The White House and Congress are trying to reach an agreement that would delay planned austerity measures and keep funding the government, while at the same time cutting the budget deficit over the long term.
Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell has ruled out raising revenues as part of any deal, but Sperling said a significant chunk must come from higher taxes.
"The president is not suggesting that in this next round of deficit reduction it all be on revenues," Sperling said in an interview taped on Tuesday with Reuters TV's "Impact Players."
"He's just suggesting that we continue to do it in a balanced way so that our overall agreement really is about two dollars in spending cuts for every dollar in revenue."
Republicans and Democrats reached a deal last week to soften an austerity package scheduled to kick in at the beginning of the year that may have pushed the economy back into recession.
However the deal only postponed by two months some of the harshest measures: across-the-board spending cuts in areas like defense and education. Also, a temporary budget measure expires in March and failure to extend it could mean another government shutdown like brief ones in 1995 and 1996.
Some Republicans are insisting deficit-reduction talks now be linked to a debate over granting the Treasury authority to borrow more money.
On December 31, the Treasury hit the $16.4 trillion limit on the amount of borrowing that is authorized by Congress, and the United States will default on its debt within a few months unless the debt ceiling is raised.
Sperling lashed out at Republicans for using the debt limit as a bargaining chip.
"We can fight, we can argue, but neither of us should put a gun to the country's head," Sperling said in the interview with Reuters' Robert Wolf, who advises Obama as a member of the president's jobs council and is a former CEO of UBS Americas.
AN ODD PRACTICE
The United States has the odd practice of authorizing government borrowing in a two-stage process, with Congress first drafting plans to spend more than it raises in tax revenues.
Then, typically every few years, lawmakers raise the debt ceiling to accommodate annual deficits.
Obama has said flatly that he will not negotiate over the debt ceiling, arguing that Congress must pay the bills for spending it has already approved.
Last week, the government allowed taxes to rise on most workers by allowing a two-year payroll tax holiday to expire. And in a substantial compromise by Republicans, the deal also raised income tax rates on the wealthiest Americans while keeping them steady for households making less than $450,000 a year.
The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, deficit- reduction group, believes that deal will lower the deficit and come pretty close to stabilizing the debt burden over the next ten years, although not in the longer term.
Sperling sketched out the broad outline of a possible deficit-reduction deal that would involve higher taxes along with spending cuts on social welfare programs, including the federal health insurance program for the elderly and the Social Security pension plan. In Washington these programs are called "entitlements."
Sperling pointed out that Republicans have already expressed willingness to allow taxes to rise on wealthy Americans by eliminating exemptions rather than by raising rates.
"There certainly is significant room for more revenues that are related to things that Republicans have agreed to or proposed," said Sperling, who is the director of Obama's National Economic Council.
He noted that Obama already has floated the idea of reducing the ability of rich people to write off mortgage interest payments from their tax bills.
"That's the type of thing that could be paired with very serious entitlement reform to have the next step of deficit reduction," Sperling said.

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LB Rolando McClain bonds out of Ala. jail

DECATUR, Ala. (AP) — Authorities say Oakland Raiders linebacker and former University of Alabama standout Rolando McClain has bonded out of jail on charges of violating rules on car window tint and trying to lie to police about his identity.
Authorities at the Decatur City Jail in Alabama say the 23-year-old McClain was pulled over Tuesday because of the tint violation. When McClain was asked to sign a ticket, police say he provided a false name.
Officials say McClain was taken into custody and posted $1,000 bond.
McClain had been sentenced to jail time on an assault charge. He was accused of firing a gun next to a man's head in 2011, also in Decatur. Those charges were later dismissed.
McClain served a two-game suspension this season for conduct detrimental to the Raiders. The team had no comment on his latest arrest.

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George scores 29 to lead Pacers over Heat 87-77

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Paul George made no attempt to downplay the importance of his matchup with LeBron James.
"It's a chance to for me to see where I'm at, going against one of the best, if not, the best in the league," George said. "Another challenge to myself to go at LeBron. I definitely wanted to battle him."
George rose to the occasion with 29 points and 11 rebounds, and the Pacers held Miami to a season-low point total in an 87-77 win over the Heat on Tuesday night.
George has moved from shooting guard to small forward and has become a primary scoring option with Danny Granger, Indiana's leading scorer last season, out all season because of a left knee injury.
Indiana's 22-year-old forward has earned James' respect for the way he has handled his new responsibilities.
"I see him playing with a lot of confidence and a lot of opportunities," James said. "The simple fact that Danny Granger is hurt has created this opportunity for him to show what he can do. He's doing everything. He was a good player last year, but we weren't able to see it because he wasn't a featured player."
David West added 14 points and 11 rebounds, and Lance Stephenson chipped in with 13 points for the Pacers (21-14), who have won 11 of their last 14 games.
Dwyane Wade scored 30 points and James had 22 points and 10 rebounds for Miami (23-10), which still has the best record in the Eastern Conference. It was the first time the teams had met since Miami beat the Pacers in six games in the conference semifinals last year.
The Pacers outrebounded the Heat 55-36 to help make up for 36 percent shooting.
"That was a big emphasis tonight," George said. "Miami is a team that, for as good as they are, they struggle with rebounding. We knew that coming in. We knew that we had to get the boards. And we're bigger. We're a big team."
George had gone 8 for 29 in his previous two games, but he broke out of his slump by making 12 of 27 shots against Miami.
Miami entered the game leading the NBA in field goal percentage, while Indiana led the league in field goal percentage defense. The matchup resulted in the Heat scoring only 35 points in the second half, their lowest-scoring half of the season.
"Offensively, we did not have a very fluid game on that side of the court," Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said. "I'll have to take care of that tomorrow."
Indiana led 38-28 in the second quarter before the Heat rallied late in the half. Wade hit a 3-pointer to cut Indiana's lead to 38-37, and a putback by James gave the Heat the lead. The teams were tied at 42 at halftime. Wade scored 23 points in the first half, including 16 in the second quarter.
The Heat found their offensive flow in the early minutes of the second half. A 3-pointer by Mario Chalmers gave the Heat a 51-44 lead and caused the Pacers to call a timeout, but Indiana rallied. Stephenson found West in the corner for a 3-pointer, then Stephenson made a 3-pointer to give the Pacers a 55-53 lead.
George made consecutive 3-pointers to make it 67-57 at the end of the quarter. The Pacers made 5 of 8 from 3-point range in the period. Miami scored just 15 points on 7-for-18 shooting in the third and Wade went scoreless.
George opened the fourth with a jumper over James to expand Indiana's lead to 12, and Ian Mahinmi's putback bumped it to 14.
Another 3 by George made it 77-60 with about 8 minutes to go, and the Pacers remained comfortably ahead the rest of the way.
Wade scored just seven points on 1-for-4 shooting in the second half. George said Stephenson deserved credit for bothering Wade.
"He made it hard for him in the second half," George said. "Everybody was locked in to his drive and tried to contest all his shots."
The Pacers were subdued in the locker room after the game, perhaps a sign that they have come to expect such victories.
"We can't overreact to this," West said. "We're just happy to get a win. That's a good basketball team."
Notes: Vogel said Granger's recovery from his left knee injury is on schedule, meaning he should be ready to play in about a month. ... The Pacers led 20-19 at the end of the first quarter, despite shooting just 28 percent. ... Wade was fouled on a 3-pointer in the second quarter and made all three free throws. ... West's 3-pointer was just his third of the season and the 39th of his 10-year career. ... Indiana won its eighth straight at home.

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Bucks beat Suns 108-99 in Boylan's first game

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Brandon Jennings glanced over and expected to see coach Scott Skiles on the end of the Milwaukee Bucks' bench. Instead, he saw Jim Boylan sitting in Skiles' old spot.
Jennings scored 29 points and the Bucks gave Boylan a win in his first game as coach with a 108-99 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night.
"I'm just hooping," Jennings said. "It was weird looking on the end of the bench and he wasn't there. I'm sure I'll get over it soon. Jim's been here for four years. It'll be good sooner or later."
The Bucks parted ways with Skiles on Monday in what was called a mutual decision, and the Bucks tapped Skiles' top assistant Boylan as a replacement.
"I almost called Jim 'Scott' at one point," Jennings said. "But, hey, it's a business. I understand now. I've seen a lot."
Milwaukee's new head coach said before the game his top priority would be to get the Bucks playing well again after losing four consecutive games.
The Suns were a perfect opponent, playing poorly in the last few weeks with nine losses in the previous 10 games overall to go with a nine-game losing streak on the road.
"We can't play 40 minutes, 42 minutes or 38-minute games where we play pretty good and give ourselves an opportunity and then let it deteriorate away over a four- or five-minute period," Phoenix coach Alvin Gentry said. "That's kind of how our season has gone, really. We've just got to find a way to get better. The season is slipping away."
This is the second time Boylan has succeeded Skiles midseason. He took over the Chicago Bulls when Skiles was fired on Christmas Eve in 2007.
"I've been down this road before," Boylan said. "I won my first game against the Bucks when I was in Chicago, and it felt great. Feels great right now, too."
Jennings, who before the game said he was frustrated that he learned of the coaching change from Skiles himself instead of someone from the Bucks organization, made 9 of 15 shots and had nine assists.
"The main thing is I wasn't thinking," he said. "I was just, you know, taking whatever the defense gave me. I was able to find guys. Guys were making shots tonight."
Goran Dragic scored 21 points and Jared Dudley added 18 for Phoenix.
Larry Sanders had 10 points, eight rebounds, six blocks and three steals for Milwaukee. The Suns scored only 10 points in the paint in the second half as Sanders dominated defensively.
"Everything went down again," Marcin Gortat said of the second half. "Brandon Jennings, he just took it over, he started shooting 3s. We couldn't stop him."
The Bucks won despite an off-night from leading scorer Monta Ellis, who missed 14 of 19 shots and committed five turnovers. Ellis finished with 13 points after coming in with a 19.4 average.
Boylan made a couple of significant changes in his first game at the helm, inserting forward Ersan Ilyasova into the starting lineup and giving more minutes to rookie forward John Henson, the team's first-round draft pick.
Ilyasova had 12 points, six rebounds and four assists in 26 minutes. Henson had 12 points and 11 rebounds in 19 minutes.
"I like the way that looks right now," Boylan said of playing Henson and Ilyasova.
Milwaukee took control with a 12-3 run that spanned the end of the third and beginning of the fourth quarters. Beno Udrih had four points in the spurt and hit a 17-foot jumper with 8 minutes left to give the Bucks a 90-79 lead.
Phoenix pulled to 95-91 on a pair of free throws by Dragic with 3:49 left, but Henson scored on a dunk and Mike Dunleavy made a driving layup to extend the Milwaukee lead to 99-91 with 2:45 remaining. Phoenix never seriously threatened the rest of the game.
The Bucks used a 13-0 run, keyed by a pair of 3-pointers from Jennings and four points from Ilyasova, to open a 71-66 lead with 4:57 left in the third quarter.
Luis Scola's baseline jumper tied it at 71, but Ellis drove the lane for a basket that gave Milwaukee the lead for good, 73-71, with 3:34 left in the third.
Notes: Bucks GM John Hammond said before the game he and the team were talking about a contract extension. ... The ball stopped motionless at the back of the Phoenix rim — not stuck — with 9:24 to go in the second quarter, prompting wide grins from the Suns bench. Milwaukee won the ensuing jump ball. ... The teams meet again Jan. 17 in Phoenix.

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Nationals convince LaRoche to extend Washington stay

(Reuters) - The Washington Nationals finally persuaded Adam LaRoche to put pen to paper on Tuesday after spending the first half of the off-season courting their lead slugger.
The free agent inked a two-year deal worth $24 million with an option for a third season, adding solidity to an improving Nationals team and rewarding the franchise for their patience.
The 33-year-old had earlier declined to re-sign with the Nationals as he sought out a three-year deal but the first baseman eventually opted to return to a team where he has spent the last two seasons.
"We were patient with Adam and his representatives," Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo told the team's website (washingtonnationals.mlb.com).
"At the end of the day, I think we both agreed (Washington) was the best place for Adam to be."
Last season, LaRoche was instrumental in helping lead the Nationals to their first post-season berth since the team relocated from Montreal in 2004.
He hit .271 and led the team with 33 home runs and 100 RBIs as Washington (98-64) captured the National League East Division with the best overall MLB record.
Washington were beaten 3-2 in the best-of-five NL Division Series by the St Louis Cardinals, giving up four runs in the top of the ninth inning to fall 9-7 in the series decider.

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Cowboys release defensive coordinator Ryan

(Reuters) - The Dallas Cowboys released fiery defensive coordinator Rob Ryan on Tuesday after another disappointing season that saw them miss the playoffs.
Ryan, the twin brother of New York Jets coach Rex Ryan, had spent the last two seasons with the Cowboys where his demonstrative demeanor made him a colorful figure on the sidelines.
The Dallas defense did not show enough improvement, however, as they struggled with injuries and finished last in the NFL in interceptions.
Demanding owner Jerry Jones promised changes after the team finished 8-8 for the second consecutive year. The Cowboys have not reached the post-season since 2009.
"At this time, the decision has been made to move forward in a different direction philosophically on defense," Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said in a statement.
"I have an immense amount of respect for Rob as a person and as a football coach and I wish him and his family the very best.

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Rockets beat Lakers 125-112 for 5th straight win

HOUSTON (AP) — Sure the Los Angeles Lakers are short-handed.
But a team with Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash and Metta World Peace should still play better than this.
James Harden scored 31 points and Chandler Parsons added 20 to help the Houston Rockets pick up their fifth straight win with a 125-112 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night
Houston trailed by as many as 14 in the first half, but used a pair of runs in the third quarter to go on top and build a big lead.
World Peace had a season-high 24 points for the Lakers, who were playing without their top three big men: Dwight Howard, Pau Gasol and Jordan Hill — who are all out with injuries.
Bryant added 20 points for the Lakers and Nash had 16 points and 10 assists to become only the fifth player to surpass 10,000 career assists, joining John Stockton, Jason Kidd, Mark Jackson and Magic Johnson.
Nash said he tweaked his back in the game, but that he was OK.
"It's really hard to enjoy it right now," Nash said of the assists. "I don't want to discredit it, or not appreciate the company I share in this milestone, but right now it's the farthest thing from my mind. We're just trying to find a way to win one game."
The Lakers, who lost their fourth straight to fall to 15-19, are in 11th place in the Western Conference.
"I thought we had the better team," World Peace said. "We definitely had the better team, but every night we have the better team and it's just not translating to wins."
The Rockets have rallied from double-digit deficits for their last three wins. As usual, they did it on Tuesday night behind the strong play of Harden, who has scored at least 25 points in 13 straight games.
"They were short-handed tonight, but they are still tough," Harden said of the Lakers. "We knew we couldn't take them lightly. They did a great job in the first half of really getting easy shots on us. In the second half we started to pick it up defensively. We got out in transition and made some easy shots."
Howard has a torn labrum in his right shoulder, Gasol has a concussion and Hill a right hip injury. All three are out indefinitely. Seven-foot rookie center Robert Sacre made his first career start due to the injuries, and finished with 10 points, four blocked shots and three rebounds.
"We've just got to move forward," World Peace said. "We don't have time to feel bad for anyone. This team just has to push and move forward."
Jeremy Lin chipped in 19 points with six rebounds and five assists for Houston, and Carlos Delfino also scored 19.
The Rockets led by nine midway through the fourth quarter and used a 5-0 run highlighted by a three-point play by Lin to make it 112-98. Lin drove to the basket and made the layup as he fell to the court after being fouled by Sacre.
"There are some things we can clean up as a group and do a better job," Lakers coach Mike D'Antoni said. "A little more attention to detail and we'll do better."
Houston used a 10-2 spurt early in the third quarter to tie it at 69 after a three-point play by Marcus Morris with 6½ minutes left in the quarter. The Rockets then broke off a 23-11 run to take a 92-80 lead near the end of the third. Lin had nine points in that span and Harden added six.
Bryant hit a jumper with about five minutes left in the third, and the Lakers didn't score another field goal until Chris Duhon made a 3-pointer with 48 seconds remaining in the quarter.
Houston led 96-88 at the end of the third quarter.
"Tonight we could offer up a number of excuses, but what is troubling is when we were healthy, we weren't stopping people, either," Nash said.
The Rockets were still down by six midway through the second quarter before a 7-0 run capped by a 3 from Delfino gave them their first lead of the game — 47-46 — about five minutes before halftime.
The game was tied a couple of minutes later when Nash scored five quick points to put the Lakers on top 56-51.
Los Angeles led 62-59 at halftime.
The Lakers led 18-4 early after a run where World Peace made two 3-pointers and Darius Morris made one. The Lakers were up by 13 later in the quarter before Houston used a 12-5 spurt powered by two 3s from Delfino to cut the lead to 34-28 at the end of the first quarter.
NOTES: Gasol was examined by a neurologist on Tuesday and was not cleared to play. He will be re-evaluated on Thursday. ... Harden's 13 straight games with at least 25 points are tied with Moses Malone for the such streak in franchise history. ... Delfino is shooting 61.3 percent from 3-point range in the last five games.

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Germany to host Sudan forum delayed by embassy storming

KHARTOUM (Reuters) - Germany will host a Sudan investment conference this month which was postponed after its embassy in Khartoum was stormed last year, officials and diplomats said on Monday.
Sudan is trying to attract more investment to overcome a severe economic crisis after losing most oil reserves to South Sudan when it became independent in 2011. Most Western companies shun the country due to a U.S. trade embargo.
The Berlin conference, planned for January 29, will be also attended by officials from South Sudan, who are also eager for Western firms to develop their country, ravaged by decades of civil war.
Germany, one of the few Western countries with good relations with Sudan, had originally planned the forum for October but shelved it after thousands of people stormed and set ablaze its embassy in protest against an anti-Islam film.
The Sudanese government had criticized Germany before the storming for allowing small protests by right-wing activists in August showing cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed. It also criticized Chancellor Angela Merkel for giving an award in 2010 to a Danish cartoonist who depicted the prophet in 2005.
Protesters in Khartoum also attacked the British and U.S. embassies over the film which was posted on the Internet.
Germany agreed to reschedule the forum after Sudanese Foreign Minister Ali Ahmed Karti apologized and provided land free of charge to rebuild the embassy, diplomats said.
Germany's foreign ministry declined to comment but diplomats and Sudan's foreign ministry said Karti would attend the Berlin conference.
German companies are among the few in Europe ignoring the U.S. trade embargo. Engineering group Lahmeyer just helped expanding a major dam in the southeast of the country.
Most Western countries have only limited ties to Sudan, whose President Omar Hassan al-Bashir faces charges of war crimes in Darfur at the International Criminal Court.
Diplomats said Germany was planning the conference on its own, so it would not have to rely on other Western powers which often criticize Khartoum for its human rights record. In March, Norway and Turkey called off similar events after the United States signaled it would not attend.
South Sudan seceded from Sudan under a peace deal that ended the civil war but left tensions and border issues unresolved. The neighbors agreed in September to restart cross-border oil flows but still need to secure their border first.

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Stock markets cool off following gains last week

 Global stock markets drifted lower on Monday as some investors sought to cash in on last week's strong gains and worries grew of more political brinkmanship in Washington.
Major indexes surged last week after U.S. lawmakers passed a bill to avoid a combination of government spending cuts and tax increases that have come to be known as the "fiscal cliff."
The deal, however, remains incomplete. Politicians will face another deadline in two months to agree on more spending cuts and the prospect of more squabbling seemed to hurt market sentiment.
Meanwhile, the U.S. economy keeps recovering, though only at a modest rate. On Friday, official figures showed employers added 155,000 jobs in December, roughly as expected. The good sign was that hiring held up during the tense fiscal negotiations in Washington. But the increase was not large enough to bring the unemployment rate down from 7.8 percent.
Having enjoyed a good few days, investors appeared ready to cash in some of their profits.
"It just seems like markets are entering a consolidation phase after recent gains," Stan Shamu, market strategist at IG Markets in Melbourne, said in a market commentary.
Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.4 percent to close at 6,064.58 while Germany's DAX dropped 0.6 percent to 7,732.66. France's CAC-40 lost 0.7 percent to 3,704.64.
Wall Street traded lower as well, with the Dow shedding 0.6 percent to 13,358.10 and the broader S&P 500 falling 0.6 percent to 1,457.78.
The one bright spot was the banking sector, where stocks were up after global regulators eased new rules obliging lenders to set capital aside. The so-called Basel III rules are a set of new international standards to make sure banks don't fall back into the sort of trouble that caused the 2008 financial crash. On Sunday, the officials setting those rules delayed the date by which certain amounts of cash had to be readily available.
The move caused a jump in bank shares - Deutsche Bank rose 2.8 percent but the biggest gains were among ailing Spanish banks, which some had feared would struggle to meet the new cash requirements. Bankinter soared 9.2 percent and Banco Popular gained 2.1 percent higher.
The subdued mood in the broader markets was also seen earlier in Asia. The Nikkei in Tokyo fell 0.8 percent to close at 10,599.01.
The Hong Kong Hang Seng was nearly unchanged at 23,329.75. South Korea's Kospi lost less than 0.1 percent to 2,011.25. Benchmarks in Singapore and Taiwan fell while mainland Chinese shares rose. Weakness in Australian's resource sector sent the S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney 0.1 percent lower to 4,717.30.
South Korean and Taiwanese companies that were fined by China last week for fixing prices of LCD display screens saw their stocks tumble Monday. Taiwan's AU Optronics Corp. fell 5.1 percent. HannStar Display Corp. fell 4.7 percent. South Korea's LG Display fell 2.6 percent.
In commodity markets, the benchmark crude oil contract for February delivery was 14 cents lower at $92.95 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
In currencies, the euro edged 0.2 percent higher at $1.3105 while the dollar dropped against the Japanese yen, to 87.69 yen from 88.13 yen on Friday.

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Chinese hold anti-censorship protest outside newspaper

GUANGZHOU, China (Reuters) - Hundreds of supporters of one of China's most liberal newspapers demonstrated outside its headquarters on Monday, backing a strike by journalists against interference by the provincial propaganda chief.
The rare anti-censorship protest happened in Guangzhou, capital of wealthy Guangdong, China's most liberal province and birthplace of the reforms, begun three decades ago, that propelled China to become the world's second-largest economy.
The outcry began late last week when reporters at the influential Southern Weekly newspaper accused censors of replacing an original New Year's letter to readers that called for a constitutional government with another piece lauding the party's achievements.
Police allowed the demonstration, suggesting the Guangdong government, led by newly appointed Hu Chunhua, a rising political star, may want to tread carefully in tackling public discontent over censorship.
The protesters, many of them youths, held signs with slogans such as "Freedom of expression is not a crime," and "Chinese people want freedom". Others made speeches defending the paper an laid chrysanthemums, a flower used in Chinese funerals, to symbolically mourn the death of press freedom.
"The Nanfang (Southern) Media Group is relatively willing to speak the truth in China so we need to stand up for its courage and support it now," Ao Jiayang, a young worker for a non-governmental organization, told Reuters.
"We hope that through this we can fight for media freedom in China," Ao said. "Today's turnout reflects that more and more people in China have a civic consciousness."
PETITIONS
On Sunday night, the Southern Weekly's official microblog denied that the removal of the New Year letter was due to censorship, saying the "online rumors were false".
Many Southern Weekly journalists distanced themselves from the statement and said the blog had been taken over by management, and pledged to go on strike the next day.
It was not clear if the strike was ongoing and whether the weekly paper would still appear on Thursday.
One Southern Weekly journalist said staff were determined to "not let those people (the propaganda department) take over our paper". Another reporter said they were not actually on strike, though some staffers had taken time off.
The attention paid to the protest on China's social media highlights the unique position of Guangdong, the first province Xi Jinping's visited after being anointed Communist party chief in November.
Several petitions have circulated on the Internet, signed by the paper's journalists as well as academics and prominent citizens, denouncing the censorship and called for the Guangdong propaganda chief, Tuo Zhen, to step down.
Xiao Shu, formerly a prominent commentator at the Southern Weekly, said Tuo required journalists to submit topics for him to approve.
"He has established within the Guangdong media a system of prior censorship of the press," Xiao said, calling for Tuo's removal.
Retired Southern Weekly editor Yan Lieshan said: "Not since the time of reform and opening up and the founding of China has there been someone like Tuo Zhen," accusing him of overstepping his authority.
Chinese Internet users already cope with extensive censorship, especially over politically sensitive topics such as human rights and high-level politics, and the popular foreign sites Facebook, Twitter and Google-owned YouTube are blocked.
By Monday, most search terms for the Southern Weekly and media censorship were blocked.
China shut the website of a leading pro-reform magazine on Friday, apparently because it had run an article calling for political reform and constitutional government.

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Israeli PM says border fence with Syria needed

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel's prime minister says he will erect a fortified fence on the border with Syria to protect against radical Islamist forces that he claims have taken over the area.
Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel needs a barrier like a new Egyptian border fence that he says has stemmed the flow of African migrants. He said the Syrian regime was "unstable" and Israel was concerned about the country's chemical weapons. He told his Cabinet Sunday that across the frontier "the Syrian army has moved away, and in its place, Global Jihad forces have moved in."
Global Jihad is the term Israel uses for forces influenced by al-Qaida. Syria's rebels include some al-Qaida-allied fighters.
Israel has largely stayed out of the conflict, though several mortar rounds have landed in the Israel-held Golan Heights.

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Iran lawmakers seek deeper probe in blogger death

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — A powerful group in Iran's parliament called Sunday for expanded investigations into the death of a jailed blogger in a case that has already brought down the chief of the Internet-monitoring police and opened rare public debates over the growing powers of the country's Web watchers.
While the blogger, Sattar Beheshti, was not the first suspected opposition activist to die in Iranian custody — and bring international condemnation on Iran — the fallout since November has taken an added toll by exposing apparent conflicts between regular security networks and the widening clout of the cyberpolice.
Iran's leaders have placed a top priority on efforts to stamp out online dissent and fight the co-called "soft war" against perceived Western influence via the Internet, which remains highly filtered in Iran but blocks are often bypassed by the country's educated and tech-savvy population. New Web-watching police units have gained increasing clout and took the lead in Beheshti's arrest and interrogation.
Some officials, including influential lawmakers, question whether the cyberpolice acted without going through proper judicial channels to receive an arrest warrant.
A statement read Sunday on behalf of the parliament's Committee on National Security and Foreign Policy called for a "special" investigation into the death of the 35-year-old blogger.
It was not immediately clear what kind of added probe could occur since prosecutors already have opened an investigation into the case. But the statement reflects widespread outrage over possible legal shortcuts by the cyberpolice and alleged abuses. The committee's report also urged police to monitor all detention centers through closed circuit cameras, and suggested prosecutors make regular visits.
The report said Beheshti — described as having "close contact" with foreign-based opposition groups — had bruises and inflammations in his face, left leg and back.
While in jail, Beheshti had officially complained that he was mistreated and tortured, according to Kaleme, a news website close to the opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi. Kaleme was the first to report the blogger's death in November.
In November, Iran's state prosecutor Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejehei said Beheshti died in police custody and that wounds were found on his body.
Weeks later, Iran fired its head of cyber-security, Gen. Mohammad Hasan Shokrian, for "failure and lack of sufficient supervision over the performance of personnel under his command." Three police officers remain in detention.
Arrests of activists and claims of abuse in detention are commonplace in Iran, but deaths behind bars are much rarer.
In 2010, Iran's judiciary dismissed suspended three judges and dismissed several police officers following a report by the parliament over death of three prisoners of the post-election protests and clashes in the wake of the disputed 2009 presidential elections.

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Assad outlines new Syria peace plan

BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian President Bashar Assad on Sunday outlined his vision for a road map to end nearly 22 months of violence in Syria but also struck a defiant tone, calling on his countrymen to unite against "murderous criminals" whom he said are carrying out a foreign plot seeking to tear the nation apart.
In a one-hour speech to the nation in which he appeared confident and relaxed, Assad ignored international demands for him to step down and said he is ready to hold a dialogue but only with those "who have not betrayed Syria." He offered a national reconciliation conference, elections and a new constitution but demanded regional and Western countries stop funding and arming rebels trying to overthrow him first.
The proposal, however, is unlikely to win acceptance from Syria's opposition forces, including rebels on the ground, who have repeatedly said they will accept nothing less than the president's departure, dismissing any kind of settlement that leaves him in the picture. On top of that, Assad's new initiative is reminiscent of symbolic changes and concessions that his government made earlier in the uprising, which were rejected at the time as too little too late.
Speaking at the Opera House in central Damascus, Assad told the hall packed with his supporters that "we are in a state of war. We are fighting an external aggression that is more dangerous than any others, because they use us to kill each other."
"It is a war between the nation and its enemies, between the people and the murderous criminals," he added. The audience frequently broke out in cheers and applause.
Assad has rarely spoken since the uprising against his rule began in March 2011, and his speech Sunday was his first since June.
His last public comments were in an interview in November to Russian TV in which he vowed to die in Syria. On Sunday, he seemed equally confident in his troops' ability to crush the rebels fighting his rule, even as they edge in closer than ever to his seat of power, Damascus.
British Foreign Secretary William Hague said Assad's speech was "beyond hypocritical." In a message posted on his official Twitter feed, Hague said "empty promises of reform fool no one."
Wearing a suit and tie, the president spoke before a collage of pictures of what appeared to be Syrians who have been killed since March 2011.
At the end of his speech and as he was leaving the hall, he was mobbed by a group of loyalists shouting: "With our blood and souls we redeem you, Bashar!"
The president in turn waved and blew kisses to the crowd on his way out.
Assad, in his speech, acknowledged the enormous impact of the nation's conflict, which the United Nations recent estimated had killed more than 60,000 people.
"We meet today and suffering is overwhelming Syrian land. There is no place for joy in any corner of the country in the absence of security and stability," he said. "I look at the eyes of Syria's children and I don't see any happiness."
The Internet was cut in many parts of Damascus ahead of the address, apparently for security reasons.
As in previous speeches, Assad said his forces were fighting groups of "murderous criminals" and jihadi elements and denied that there was an uprising against his family's decades-long rule.
He stressed the presence of religious extremists and jihadi elements among those fighting in Syria, calling them "terrorists who carry the ideology of al-Qaeda" and "servants who know nothing but the language of slaughter."
He struck a defiant tone, saying Syria will not take dictates from anyone and urged his countrymen to unite to save the nation.
Outlining his peace initiative, he said: "The first part of a political solution would require regional powers to stop funding and arming (the rebels), an end to terrorism and controlling the borders."
He said this would then be followed by dialogue and a national reconciliation conference and the formation of a wide representative government which would then oversee new elections, a new constitution and general amnesty.
However, Assad made clear his offer to hold a dialogue is not open to those whom he considers extremists or carrying out a foreign agenda.
"We never rejected a political solution ... but with whom should we talk? With those who have extremist ideology who only understand the language of terrorism?" he said.
"Or should we with negotiate puppets whom the West brought? ... We negotiate with the master not with the slave."
As in previous speeches and interviews, he clung to the view that the crisis in Syria was a foreign-backed agenda and said it was not an uprising against his rule.
"Is this a revolution and are these revolutionaries? By God, I say they are a bunch of criminals," he said.

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US job market shrugs off fears of 'fiscal cliff'

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. job market proved resilient in December despite fears that a budget impasse in Washington would send the economy over the fiscal cliff and trigger growth-killing tax hikes and spending cuts.
Employers added 155,000 jobs last month, roughly matching the solid but unspectacular monthly pace of the past two years.
The gains announced Friday weren't enough to reduce unemployment, which remained a still-high 7.8 percent. The November rate was revised up a notch from the 7.7 percent the government had originally reported.
The stable pace of December hiring suggested that many employers tuned out the fracas in the nation's capital. The threat wasn't averted until a deal won final passage on New Year's Day.
Rather than hold back until the fiscal cliff was resolved, many employers kept hiring, most likely in anticipation of higher customer demand.
"What would hiring have been if we had not been facing the fiscal cliff in December?" said Robert Kavcic, senior economist at BMO Capital Markets. "We might have seen quite a bit stronger job growth" — something closer to 200,000 a month.
That's an encouraging sign for the job market, because an even bigger budget showdown is looming: Congress must vote to raise the government's $16.4 trillion borrowing limit by late February. If not, the government risks defaulting on its debt. Republicans will likely demand deep spending cuts as the price of raising the debt limit.
Robust hiring in construction and manufacturing drove last month's job increases. Construction firms added 30,000 jobs, the most in 15 months. In part, that increase likely reflected hiring needed to rebuild from Superstorm Sandy. And the housing market's gradual recovery has energized homebuilding. Manufacturers added 25,000 jobs, the most in nine months.
Economists found other hopeful news in the report. Americans were given more work hours in December — an average 34.5 hours a week in December, up from 34.4 in November. And their pay outgrew inflation. Hourly wages rose 7 cents to $23.73 last month, a 2.1 percent increase compared with a year earlier. Over the same period, inflation rose 1.8 percent.
"Perhaps (the) underlying economic performance is accelerating, and even Washington can't screw it up," said Dan Greenhaus, chief global strategist at BTIG.
One company that hired last year and would like to add more jobs in 2013 is Arteriocyte, a Cleveland-based stem-cell therapy and medical device company. But CEO Don Brown is concerned about potential cuts in government spending, which he says could erode Arteriocyte's revenue.
One such cut is a 2 percent reduction in the reimbursements Medicare gives doctors and hospitals. That reduction was delayed by the budget deal reached this week. If the reimbursement cut is imposed later this year, it would lower revenue for the hospitals and surgeons that buy Arteriocyte's advanced products.
"Our entire customer base is unsure about what their reimbursement landscape is going to be," Brown said.
The Obama administration's health care reform law also imposed a 2.2 percent sales tax on medical devices. Brown estimates that will cost his company $400,000. He had hoped the tax would be eliminated as part of a fiscal cliff agreement.
Arteriocyte hired 10 workers last year and now employs 76. The new hires included research scientists, two marketing specialists and a sales representative. Brown hopes to make five to 10 additional hires this year, but he might be unable to do so if the Medicare cut takes effect.
Despite last month's hiring gains, Friday's report pointed to some weakness in the job market. For example, the number of unemployed actually rose 164,000 to 12.2 million. About 192,000 people entered the work force last month, but most did not find jobs.
The unemployment numbers come from a government survey of households. The number of jobs added comes from a separate survey of businesses.
A broader category that includes not only the unemployed but also part-time workers who want full-time jobs and people who have given up looking for work was unchanged in December at 22.7 million.
The government revised up its estimates of job growth for October and November by 14,000 jobs. October's job increases were revised down from 138,000 to 137,000 but November's were revised up from 146,000 to 161,000.
Economists said the pace of hiring almost certainly isn't strong enough to lead the Federal Reserve to cut short its bond-buying program. The Fed is spending $85 billion a month on bond purchases to try to drive down long-term borrowing costs and stimulate economic growth.
The job market is being held back by government cutbacks. Governments at all levels cut 13,000 jobs in December. Since the Great Recession ended in mid-2009, governments have eliminated 645,000 jobs — an average of nearly 15,400 a month.
By contrast, during the recoveries from the recessions of 1990-1991 and 2001, governments added an average of more than 15,000 jobs a month. If governments were hiring at that pace instead of slashing payrolls, the U.S economy would be generating more than 180,000 jobs a month.
Instead, for two full years, monthly job growth has remained stuck at a tepid pace: It averaged 153,000 in both 2011 and 2012. That isn't enough to lower unemployment to what economists regard as a "normal" rate of 6 percent or less. The Federal Reserve doesn't expect unemployment to drop that low until after 2015.
The economy has replaced just 4.8 million, or 54 percent, of the 8.8 million jobs lost between January 2008, when the job market peaked, and February 2010, when it bottomed during the recession. It has been, by far, the weakest jobs recovery since the Great Depression of the 1930s.
"A status quo report in today's labor market represents an ongoing jobs crisis," says Heidi Shierholz, an economist at the liberal Economic Policy Institute.
Still, the economy has been showing broad improvement. Layoffs are down. Banks are lending a bit more freely. Companies have built up a near-record $1.7 trillion in cash. Consumers have cut their debts to pre-recession levels. Europe has avoided a financial catastrophe.
The once-depressed housing market is rebounding. A gauge of U.S. service firms' business activity expanded in December by the most in nearly a year. Manufacturing is benefiting from the best auto sales in five years. And Americans spent more at the end of the crucial holiday shopping season.
"There is little doubt that the seeds of faster growth are being planted," James Marple, an economist at TD Bank, said in a note to clients.
That said, most economists expect slight improvement at best in hiring this year. A 2 percentage point cut in the Social Security tax expired Jan. 1. That means a household with income of about $50,000 will have about $1,000 less to spend. A household with two high-paid workers will have up to $4,500 less.
And the government may impose spending cuts this year.
Higher taxes and less government spending, along with uncertainty about future budget fights, could restrain growth and hiring.
That "likely means acceleration in the labor market will remain elusive for the time being," said Ellen Zentner, an economist at Nomura Securities.

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TSX rises as data boosts sentiment; energy leads

TORONTO (Reuters) - Toronto's main stock index finished broadly higher on Friday, with energy companies leading the gains, as encouraging North American economic data bolstered investor sentiment.
Energy stocks, which make up about 25 percent of the index were up 1.07 percent. Canadian Natural Resources Ltd was the most positive stock on the TSX, adding 2.06 percent to C$30.15. Encana Corp was also a key gainer, rising 2.75 percent to C$20.16.
North American stock markets rose after U.S. reports showed employers there kept up a steady pace of hiring workers, even though the unemployment rate crept up, and the vast services sector expanded at a brisk rate.
"It shows that perhaps we've got stability in the U.S. labor market. It's not great, but it continues to show improvement and that again bodes well for prospects through 2013," said Philip Petursson, a managing director at Manulife Asset Management's portfolio advisory group.
Canada's economy defied expectations to create 39,800 jobs in December, surpassing even the most bullish prediction in a Reuters poll.
The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index <.gsptse> finished 70.37 points higher, or up 0.56 percent at 12,540.81. All 10 of the TSX's main groups ended in positive territory and the index as a whole was up about 1.8 percent for the week.
"I still think there's a lot of people away. You're probably not going to get a good feel of the market until next week," said Bruce Latimer, a trader at Dundee Securities.
The heavyweight financial group climbed 0.5 percent, with Royal Bank of Canada gaining 0.51 percent to C$61.07.
The overall materials group recouped early losses and finished the session up 0.52 percent. Potash Corp's led mining gains with a 1.33 percent rise to C$41.03.
In corporate news, Lululemon Athletica shares fell 4.55 percent to C$70.88 after an influential analyst cut his rating on the popular yoga wear retailer's stock, citing rising competition and heavy discounting.
Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc said it was aiming to double or quadruple its revenue, but left its fourth-quarter revenue and earnings guidance unchanged. Shares fell 1.61 percent to C$59.40 and was the second most negative influence on the TSX.

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Fed officials eye timeline for ending asset purchases

SAN DIEGO (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve could halt its asset purchases this year if the economy improves and unemployment drops, two top Fed officials said on Friday, a view seconded by most economists at Wall Street's top financial institutions.
Meanwhile, another top Fed official warned the U.S. central bank's aggressive easing plan threatens the Fed's credibility.
St. Louis Fed President James Bullard, a voting member of the Fed's monetary policy panel this year, said a drop in the unemployment rate to 7.1 percent would probably constitute the "substantial improvement" in the labor market that the central bank seeks.
That's the bar for the Fed's policy-setting committee to halt the current round of asset purchases that it began in September.
"If the economy performs well in 2013, the Committee will be in a position to think about going on pause" with the asset buys, Bullard told CNBC TV on a sunny balcony outside of the hotel where thousands of economists were gathered for an annual conference here. "If it doesn't do very well then the balance sheet policy will probably continue into 2014."
The Fed has also promised to keep interest rates at their current near-zero level until unemployment drops to 6.5 percent, as long as inflation does not threaten to rise above 2.5 percent.
U.S. unemployment stood at 7.8 percent last month. While that is down from a year ago, monthly job gains are probably not enough to ratchet down unemployment much more.
Philadelphia Fed Bank President Charles Plosser, who expects unemployment to drop to between 6.8 percent and 7.0 percent by end-2013, said on Friday at the same conference that he hoped the Fed would stop buying bonds before the 6.5 percent threshold, implying he anticipated the asset purchases would halt this year.
Economists at nine of 16 primary dealers -- the large financial institutions that do business directly with the Fed -- said they expect the current Fed program of buying $45 billion per month of Treasuries to end in 2013. The Fed is also buying $40 billion in mortgage-backed securities each month.
Meanwhile, Fed policymakers are increasingly concerned about the impact their monthly purchases of $85-billion in longer-term bonds and mortgage securities are having on financial markets.
Minutes from their December policy meeting showed that "several" top officials expected to slow or stop the so-called quantitative easing program, dubbed QE3, "well before" the end of the year - news that surprised some on Wall Street and prompted a drop in stocks and bonds, and a rise in the dollar.
Jeffrey Lacker, president of the Richmond Fed bank, on Friday held his ground opposing QE3, arguing that continued monetary policy is not the appropriate way to tackle the problem.
"It is unlikely that the Federal Reserve can push real growth rates materially higher than they otherwise would be, on a sustained basis," Lacker, who dissented on all Fed easing moves last year, told a meeting of the Maryland Bankers Association.
"I see an increased risk, given the course the committee has set, that inflation pressures emerge and are not thwarted in a timely way," he said.
EYEING 7.1 PERCENT UNEMPLOYMENT
While Lacker is an outspoken policy hawk, Bullard is more of a centrist who is nonetheless toward the hawkish end of the spectrum of Fed policymakers. The pair were the first top central bank officials to speak publicly since the minutes were unveiled on Thursday.
Bullard said he expects unemployment to "continue to tick down through 2013," adding the Fed could ramp down the asset purchases if the jobless rate drops to 7.1 percent.
"That would be probably substantial improvement and the committee could think about removing accommodation on the balance sheet side of the policy at that point," he said.
After the December meeting, the Fed said it would continue buying bonds until the labor market outlook improves "substantially," which Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke has characterized as a "sustained" decline in the unemployment rate.
With the Fed's key interest rate having remained near zero since late 2008 to encourage economic recovery from the Great Recession, the bond purchases are meant to lower longer-term rates and to encourage investment and hiring in the broader economy.
The U.S. economy expanded a respectable 3.1 percent in the third quarter on an annualized basis, but growth is believed to have slowed sharply to barely above 1.0 percent in the last three months of the year.
Government data released Friday showed the U.S. jobless rate held steady from November to December. Bullard called the December jobs number - a boost of 155,000 in new non-farm jobs - "reasonably good.
Plosser, one of the Fed's most hawkish members, said he believes the United States economy likely suffered a lasting decline in its trend potential growth rate as a result of the severe 2007-2009 U.S. recession.
"Any of you who have looked at the data of the most recent ... recession, it certainly looks like we've had a permanent shock," Charles Plosser, president of the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank, told a panel at the annual meeting of the American Economic Association. "The problem is we won't know the answer to that for many years to come."
Fed Vice Chair Janet Yellen, a proponent of aggressive Fed easing, also spoke on Friday, but confined her comments to how regulators are tackling risks to financial stability.

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Northern Irish fighting rages on as rioters branded "a disgrace"

 Northern Irish police came under attack by pro-British loyalists on Friday as the province's first minister branded rioters "a disgrace" and said they were playing into the hands of rival militant nationalists.
Rioting began a month ago after a vote by mostly nationalist pro-Irish councilors to end the century-old tradition of flying the British flag from Belfast City Hall every day unleashed the most sustained period of violence in the city for years.
On Friday, police said officers came under attack in the east of the city by masked mobs hurling petrol bombs, rocks and fireworks.
A number of officers were injured, several arrests were made and police deployed water cannon to control a crowd that at one point swelled to 400 protesters.
First Minister Peter Robinson, leader of the pre-eminent Protestant group, the Democratic Unionist Party, called the decision to take down the flag "ill-considered and provocative" but said the attacks must end.
"The violence visited on (police) is a disgrace, criminally wrong and cannot be justified," said Robinson, whose party shares power with deputy first minister and ex-Irish Republican Army commander Martin McGuinness' Sinn Fein Party
"Those responsible are doing a grave disservice to the cause they claim to espouse and are playing into the hands of those dissident groups who would seek to exploit every opportunity to further their terror aims."
More than 40 police officers were injured in the initial wave of fighting, which stopped over Christmas, only to resume on Thursday when a further 10 police officers were hurt as the community divisions were exposed once more.
At least 3,600 people were killed during Northern Ireland's darkest period as Catholic nationalists seeking union with Ireland fought British security forces and mainly Protestant loyalists determined to remain part of the United Kingdom.
Anti-British Catholic dissident groups, responsible for the killing of three police officers and two soldiers since 2009, have so far not reacted violently to the flag protests, limiting the threat to Northern Ireland's 15-year-old peace.
Another demonstration calling for reinstating the Union Flag will be held outside City Hall on Saturday while some loyalists have pledged to hold a protest in Dublin the following Saturday.

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U.N. Security Council voices worry about Central African Republic rebels

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The U.N. Security Council voiced alarm on Friday at an advance by rebels in Central African Republic that has brought them within striking distance of the mineral-rich nation's capital, and renewed its call for a negotiated solution to the crisis.
Central African Republic President Francois Bozize will refuse to leave power during talks with the Seleka rebel alliance, his spokesman said on Thursday, rejecting the insurgents' main demand and raising the prospect of a return to fighting.
The rebel alliance, which has accused Bozize of reneging on a past peace deal, closed in on the capital Bangui this week before bowing to international pressure to start negotiations.
"The members of the Security Council expressed their concern regarding the 'Seleka' coalition's advance toward Bangui since ... December 27," the council said in a statement.
The 15-nation body also urged "an end to Seleka's military offensive, and said the current situation in CAR cannot be resolved militarily."
"They called again on all parties to seek a peaceful solution by engaging constructively, without preconditions, and in good faith in the negotiations to be held in Libreville beginning January 8 under the auspices of the Economic Community of the Central African States (ECCAS)," the council said.
The advance by Seleka, an alliance of five armed groups, was the latest in a series of revolts in a country at the heart of one of Africa's most turbulent regions. The country remains plagued by poverty and underdevelopment despite its reserves of diamonds, gold and other minerals.
The council also repeated its previous demands that Seleka "cease all hostilities, withdraw from seized cities, and cease attempts to advance further."
It voiced concern about "reports of the targeting of ethnic minorities, arrests, detentions, looting, as well as recruitment and use of children in armed conflict in CAR."
The Security Council urged "all parties to refrain from any acts of violence against civilians and to respect human rights, and emphasized that those responsible for such violations should be held accountable," according to the statement.

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India gang-rape victim's friend recounts attack

NEW DELHI (AP) — The companion of a woman who was gang-raped aboard a moving bus in India's capital said Friday that after being attacked for 2 1/2 hours, the pair was thrown on the side of the road, where passersby ignored them and police debated jurisdiction issues before helping them.
The male companion, who has not been named, made the comments in a TV interview, the first time he had recounted details of the Dec. 16 attack in New Delhi.
The attack has outraged Indians and led to calls for tougher rape laws and reforms of a police culture that often blames rape victims and refuses to file charges against accused attackers. The nation's top law enforcement official said the country needs to crack down on crimes against women with "an iron hand."
The 23-year-old woman died last weekend from massive internal injuries suffered during the attack. Authorities charged five men with her murder and rape and were holding a sixth suspect believed to be a juvenile. A hearing in the case was scheduled for Saturday.
The woman and her companion had just finished watching the movie "Life of Pi" at an upscale mall and were looking for a ride home. An autorickshaw driver declined to take them, so they boarded the private bus with the six assailants inside, the companion told the Indian TV network Zee TV.
Authorities have not named the man because of the sensitivity of the case. The TV station also declined to give his name, although it did show his face during the interview. The man has a broken leg and was sitting in a wheelchair during the interview.
After a while, the men on the bus starting harassing and attacking the pair, he said.
"I gave a tough fight to three of them. I punched them hard. But then two others hit me with an iron rod," he said. The woman tried to call the police using her mobile phone, but the men took it away from her, he said. They then took her to the rear seats of the bus and raped her.
"The attack was so brutal I can't even tell you ... even animals don't behave like that," the man said.
Afterward, he overheard some of the attackers saying she was dead, he said.
The men then dumped their bleeding and naked bodies under an overpass. The woman's companion waved to passersby on bikes, in autorickshaws and in cars for help.
"They slowed down, looked at our naked bodies and left," he said. After about 20 minutes, three police vans arrived and the officers began arguing over who had jurisdiction over the crime as the man pleaded for clothes and an ambulance, he said.
The man said he was given no medical care. Instead, he spent four days at the police station helping them investigate the crime. He said he visited his friend in the hospital, told her the attackers were arrested and promised to fight for her.
"She has awakened us all by her courage," he said. "People should move ahead in the struggle to prevent a similar crime happening again as a tribute to her."
On Friday, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said crimes against women and marginalized sections of society are increasing, and it is the government's responsibility to stop them.
"This needs to be curbed by an iron hand," he told a conference of state officials from across India that was called to discuss how to protect women.
He called for changes in the law and the way police investigate cases so justice can be swiftly delivered. Many rape cases are bogged down in India's overburdened and sluggish court system for years.
"We need a reappraisal of the entire system," he said.
In the wake of the rape, several petitioners appealed to the Supreme Court to take an active role in the issue of women's safety.
On Friday, the court dismissed a petition asking it to suspend Indian lawmakers accused of crimes against women, saying it doesn't have jurisdiction, according to the Press Trust of India. The Association for Democratic Reforms, an organization that tracks officials' criminal records, said six state lawmakers are facing rape prosecutions and two national parliamentarians are facing charges of crimes against women that fall short of rape.
However, the court did agree to look into the widespread creation of more fast-track courts for accused rapists across the country.

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