Chrysler 300 a real head-turner

A bold grille, brawny proportions and plenty of chrome combine to give the 2015 Chrysler 300 a distinguished appearance.

All-wheel-drive gives the big American sedan an intrepid personality while the 300's interior is luxurious and roomy. Chrysler offers the 300 in four trim levels with standard rear-wheel drive, but all-wheel-drive is available throughout the lineup.

The 300's size and weight were offset by a capable 3.6-liter V6 engine that delivers 292 horsepower. An optional V8 is available for those wanting more power. Chrysler's smooth shifting eight-speed automatic transmission conveyed the power to an optional all-wheel-drive system that seamlessly engages at any speed.

The 300's 19-inch wheels provided excellent traction as I navigated Boston's narrow, snow-choked streets. While electronic steering gave the sedan a heavy feel on the open road, the 300 was easy to maneuver at slower speeds. Four-wheel independent suspension provided precise handling while neutralizing frost heaves and other bumps. My 300C did 27 miles per gallon on the highway and 16 in the city.

My tester's dark gray exterior had an off-white leather interior with a black dashboard and black panels that extended into the upper half of the doors. A wood-and-leather-wrapped steering wheel was heated as were the front and rear seats. Front seats were also ventilated. I found ample head and foot room up front and my children had plenty of space in the second row on a day trip during February vacation. A power rear sunshade added to the 300's luxury.

The 300's center console had a streamlined appearance. A cluster of three dials tuned the radio, controlled the volume and the fan output. An 8.4-inch full-color touchscreen was intuitive and made programing the radio, navigation system and climate controls a hassle-free experience.

My Chrysler 300 tester was packed with safety technology including adaptive cruise control, blind spot detection and a lane departure warning system that keeps the sedan on the road. The 300 also had a high resolution rear-view camera for backing up that worked well as long as the camera's lens was clear of salt and other road grime.

The 300's steering wheel and instrument panel leaves drivers few reasons to take their eyes off the road. Hands-free calling, radio and adaptive cruise control can all be managed via steering-mounted buttons. A 7-inch display between the tachometer and speedometer can be customized by the driver.

The base model Chrysler 300 with rear-wheel-drive starts at $31,395 and my tester with the advanced safety technology topped out at $45,675. Other sedans to consider when looking at the 300 are the Buick LaCrosse, Kia Cadenza, Lincoln MKS and Toyota Avalon.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

The Ticker

Fracking reg draws criticism
The Obama administration said yesterday it is requiring companies that drill for oil and natural gas on federal lands to disclose chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing, the first major federal regulation of the controversial drilling technique. A rule to take effect in June also updates requirements for well construction and disposal of water and other fluids used in fracking, as the drilling method is more commonly known.

Gaming panel extends casino filing deadline

Gaming regulators have voted to give two groups chasing a southeastern Massachusetts casino license until May 4 to file applications after the bidders pleaded for more time to identify additional equity investors. 

Somerset on the Move and Crossroads Massachusetts, hoping to bring a casino to Somerset, asked the Gaming Commission for a 21-day extension, while KG Urban, which has joined up with Foxwoods, sought a 45-day extension so they can pursue a casino on the New Bedford waterfront.

A third group, which includes Raynham Park owner George Carney and Mass Gaming and Entertainment, wants to build a casino in Brockton.

• Pyramid Hotel Group has named Timothy Wolfe, right, general manager of Revere Hotel Boston Common. Wolfe has spent the past three years as area managing director for Pyramid, responsible for 750 guest rooms and $38.5 million in annual sales through the hotel group's Colorado properties.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Milton offers mix of town, country

It can be hard to believe that the beauty and tranquility of the country is a mere half-hour's drive from the bustle of Boston, but for proof, you need look no further than this renovated farmhouse nestled in the Blue Hills of Milton.

Built in 1838 and renovated beginning in 2004, this four-bedroom, 2A-bath house includes three wood-burning fireplaces and a solarium, and sits on 1.53 acres surrounded by woodlands.

"It's a wonderful blend of old and new," said broker Karen Fallon of Keller Williams Realty. "It's also close to the city but private, with a good amount of land."

The front door opens to an entry closet and, on the left, a living area with exposed beams, built-ins and a wide-open layout that gives way to a chef's kitchen with granite countertops, ample cabinet and shelf space, a stainless steel refrigerator, a dishwasher, a Thermador stove with four burners and a grill, and a range hood. In the center of the kitchen is an island with a cutting-board top and more storage below.

Off to right is a butler's pantry with a sink and a small fridge, and an informal dining area with French doors that open onto a deck. Between the kitchen and dining area is a fireplace.

The side entrance of the house leads to a formal dining area with another fireplace and French doors that open onto the solarium. A formal living room also has a fireplace and French doors that open onto a deck.

The parlor level has hardwood floors throughout and a half bath.

In the center of the house, sunlight pours through skylights above the staircase to the second level, which also has hardwood floors. The hallway to the left leads to the master bedroom, which has recessed closet space, windows overlooking the yard and a bathroom with a steam shower and a double vanity with a marble top and cabinet and shelf space.

Back out through the hallway is a second bedroom currently being used as an office; a sitting area; two more bedrooms, each with a closet; a bathroom with a tub; and a closet concealing a washer and a dryer.

There's a detached, two-car garage and, off the side entrance of the house, a driveway that fits three to four more cars.

Home Showcase

• Address: 292 Hillside St., Milton
• Bedrooms: Four
• Bathrooms: Two and a half
• List price: $875,000
• Square feet: 2,816
• Price per square foot: $310.72
• Annual taxes: $11,463
• Location: Eight minutes to a gourmet marketplace and cafe in Milton, 10 minutes to South Shore Plaza in Braintree and about 30 minutes to Boston
• Built in: 1838 and renovated beginning in 2004
• Broker: Karen Fallon of Keller Williams Realty at (617) 861-3700

Pros:

• Spacious inside and out
• Solarium

Cons:

• No air conditioning
• No nearby public transportation

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Target breach settlement on track for $10M

A Boston lawyer, whose suit against Target Corp. over its staggering 2013 data breach was consolidated into a national class-
action complaint, endorsed a 
$10 million settlement that yesterday won preliminary approval.

Preston W. Leonard said the settlement in federal court in Minnesota is a "good result for consumers."

"This case and others like it hopefully will encourage retailers to do more to safeguard consumer data when they check out," Leonard said. "I was encouraged that under the settlement, Target will appoint a chief information security officer. That is a responsible approach to handling data in this climate."

U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson scheduled a Nov. 10 hearing for final approval of the settlement.

Leonard and numerous other lawyers across the country filed class-action complaints after about 40 million Target customers' credit and debit card accounts were compromised by hackers between Nov. 27 and Dec. 15, 2013 — the height of the holiday shopping season.

"The criminal element out there is growing, it's sophisticated, and it's hard to stay ahead of," said Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, whose office is continuing its multi-state investigation into the 
Target breach.

Under the class-action settlement, affected consumers can file for up to $10,000 with proof of their losses, including unauthorized charges, higher fees or interest rates, and lost time dealing with the problem.

John Chapman, undersecretary of the state Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation, said its website, www.mass.gov consumer, will walk people through the process once the settlement is final.

The settlement would also require Minneapolis-based Target to keep a written information security program, offer security training to its workers, maintain a process to monitor for data security events and respond to such events deemed to present a threat.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Hot Property: Southie church split up into 20 luxury condos

Luxury condos in the former St. Augustine's Church in South Boston have hit the market, offering buyers an opportunity to live in new, modern units amid high Victorian Gothic architecture, with soaring ceilings and arched windows.

Twenty two- and three-bedroom condos are taking shape in the former Catholic church on Dorchester Street — each of them two or three levels — and another nine one-bedrooms will occupy the attached former rectory. Prices range from $649,000 to $1.29 million for the roughly 1,000- to 2,000-square-foot units.

After four months of demolition work, the property is still under construction, with an Aug. 31 scheduled completion date by owner Brenco Construction of Milton.

Condo interiors won't have exposed brick or stained glass windows, but the ornate arched frames will be preserved and fitted with new custom windows — including a massive one in the penthouses' lobby that will provide views of the Boston skyline and landmark buildings such as the John Hancock tower.

"It's going to have a contemporary feel inside," said Jacob Carlin, the property's exclusive listing agent and the owner of JW Brokerage in South Boston. "The church was in such disrepair that it was hard to try and save some things."

Features will include hardwood floors, tile bathrooms, professional-grade, stainless steel appliances, granite kitchen countertops, surround sound, walk-in closets and in-unit laundry hookups. Master baths will have walk-in showers with glass surrounds, while the guest baths will have soaking tubs and showers.

Garage parking is being added underneath the church in its former function hall, and residents will have an elevator and access to a clubroom with a kitchenette, surround sound and a flat-screen television.

Built in 1874, the church was designed by Patrick Charles Keely, an Irish-born architect heralded as the most prolific designer of Catholic churches, with more than 600 to his credit, including the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in the South End and more than 30 others in Massachusetts. Under mounting financial pressure, the Archdiocese of Boston closed St. Augustine's in 2004, and the city's Landmarks Commission denied a petition to designate it as a landmark.

The former church's red-brick facade is being preserved and will be repointed, and the slate roof will be maintained. The massive center entrance with its wooden doors and ornamental iron fixtures also will be preserved.

"Obviously the architecture of the church is something we could never replicate now — it would be too expensive," Carlin said.

Carlin has two of the condos under agreement for $775,000 and $1 million — close or at asking prices, he said — and has offers for another four units.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

BRA chief touts disclosure rule

If Massport adopted the same policy as the BRA on requiring developers to divulge names of equity partners, it would shed light on the silent investors on bids to build an $800 million mega hotel in the Seaport District, the head of the city authority said yesterday.

"People should know who is having a significant development interest going in their neighborhood and how they have behaved.

There are community groups and neighbors who might be OK with a development proposal but not happy with the development team," Boston Redevelopment Authority Director Brian Golden said in interview after an appearance on Boston Herald Radio.

"They deserve to know what their reputation is, what their history has been, are they solid citizens, and solid performers."

Golden explained that one of the driving forces behind the disclosure requirement his agency adopted last year is that it aims to expose any conflicts of interest among investors in a development project, particularly among BRA staffers or their relatives.

"One important reason for that is to do a conflict-of-interest scrub," he said. "We need to know who is investing in projects for our own parochial interests so we could identify conflicts of interest between investors who might be related or have some kind of connection to BRA staff."

Massport is overseeing the bid process for the proposed 1,200-room headquarters hotel on Summer and D streets that is part of the $1 billion expansion of the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.

The authority has not released the six bids by developers to build the hotel and does not have a policy requiring equity partners to be divulged.

But Massport CEO Thomas Glynn told the Herald this week that the BRA edict is a "good idea" and he hasn't "ruled out" adopting a similar policy.

The Herald reported earlier this week that two former board members of the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority — former U.S. Sen. William "Mo" Cowan, who also served as chief of staff for former Gov. Deval Patrick, and developer Dean Stratouly — are part of a development team looking to land the hotel deal.

The MCCA board and Massport's board will each vote to choose the winning bid.

Golden, while appearing on Herald Radio's "Morning Meeting," also blasted the controversial deal that gave the Boston Red Sox the right to use Yawkey Way forever as the "consummate behind-closed-doors, opaque transaction."

Golden said a new policy, requiring the agency to hold public meetings and a 10-day open comment session before giving away city-owned land, will greatly increase transparency and prevent what happened in September 2013, when the agency kept the public in the dark on the terms of its deal with the Red Sox up until just before the board's vote on the $7.3 million pact.

No public forum was ever held.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Fed redefines the unemployment range it considers acceptable

WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve was in a tough spot: The February U.S. unemployment rate of 5.5 percent is right where the Fed had been saying inflation would likely start to accelerate. Yet inflation remains even lower than the Fed wants it to be.

So on Wednesday, the Fed simply moved the goalposts.

It now says unemployment could fall as low as 5 percent to 5.2 percent before inflation pressures would probably start to build. That's down from its previous range of 5.2 percent to 5.5 percent.

That shift is a big reason many analysts think the Fed has in effect postponed the date when it will start raising the short-term interest rate it controls. Many now expect it to start raising rates in September or even later after having previously predicted June.

Investors welcomed the possibility of lower rates for longer, sending the Dow Jones industrial average up 227 points.

"With the stroke of a pen, rather than being at the top end of full employment ... we're farther away," said Allen Sinai, chief economist at Decision Economics.

As the unemployment rate falls, it typically reaches a level at which employers must raise pay to find qualified workers to hire. Those employers then raise prices to offset the higher wages they're paying, which usually accelerates inflation. The unemployment rate that triggers higher prices is generally considered "full employment."

At her news conference Wednesday, Chair Janet Yellen said the Fed's new lower range for acceptable unemployment "suggests that (Fed officials) are seeing more slack in the economy now than they previously did."

That, in turn, implies that rates will rise more slowly than many had assumed. Separate forecasts by Fed officials show they now expect the Fed's short-term interest rate to be much lower at the end of this year and next than they thought in December.

The Fed had little choice but to make the change to acknowledge economic reality, analysts said. Paychecks for most Americans have barely kept up with inflation since the recession officially ended 5½ years ago.

"If we were even close to full employment, we would be seeing more pressure on hourly earnings by now," said Richard Moody, chief economist at Regions Financial. "They are just adjusting to that reality."

The Fed had lowered the upper end of its full-employment range as recently as June 2014. But the lower end had stood at 5.2 percent since April 2011, according to Michael Gapen, an economist at Barclays.

There are no clear guidelines for what the full employment rate is. In the late 1990s, the Fed chose not to raise rates even as the unemployment rate fell. It eventually touched 3.9 percent without igniting inflation.

It "does move around a bit and is unobservable," said Paul Ashworth, chief U.S. economist at Capital Economics. "It is a genuine puzzle."

The Fed made other changes to its forecasts Wednesday after its latest policy meeting ended. It now predicts:

— Growth will be much slower through 2017 than it predicted in December. It now foresees growth of roughly 2.5 percent this year and next, down from 2.8 percent and 2.75 percent, respectively. Growth will then slow to about 2.2 percent in 2017, down from 2.4 percent, it predicts.

— Even with slower growth, unemployment will keep falling. The Fed now forecasts that the unemployment rate will be about 5.1 percent at year's end, down from its previous estimate of 5.25 percent. Next year, it will drop to 5 percent and in 2017 to 4.95 percent, it predicts.

— Inflation will be even lower this year, between 0.6 percent and 0.8 percent, down from the 1 percent to 1.6 percent it forecast in December. But Fed policymakers didn't cut their outlook as much in later years: They still project that inflation will be near their 2 percent target in 2016 and 2017.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Ginkgo designs expansion with $9M fund

A Boston biotech has raised $9 million in venture capital to expand its manufacturing process for designing custom organisms.

"It's like a factory floor. We have operators and technicians running robotics to build these microbes for customers," said Jason Kelly, co-founder of Ginkgo Bioworks. "Partially what we're using the funding for is to expand the kind of work we can do."

Calling itself an "organism design company," Ginkgo has developed an 18,000-square-foot foundry for building organisms to order for customers. Using­ robotics and automation, the system, called Bioworks1, takes 10 employees to do the work of 100 bioengineers.

The company built a yeast strain that produces rose oil for a fragrance maker so it doesn't have to use real roses. Ginkgo also works with algae and bacteria to develop organisms for natural sweeteners, cosmetics and others.

"It's a new industry, it's the overlap of industrial design and biology," Kelly said. "Humans have a long history of working with biology and designing biology. This is part of that tradition, with a suite of new tools."

Ginkgo raised $9 million in venture financing, including from Felicis Ventures, Data Collective and OS Fund.

"Biology will be one of the most defining and revolutionary technologies of the coming decades and will reinvent multiple industries from health care to energy," said Bryan Johnson, founder of OS Fund in a statement. "Ginkgo Bioworks has a world-class team of engineers building the tools and infrastructure that will allow us to use biology to address global challenges for generations to come."

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

GOP defense hawks, fiscal conservatives battle over budget

WASHINGTON — A battle between GOP defense hawks and fiscal conservatives prompted the GOP chairman of the House Budget Committee late Wednesday to delay a vote on his party's budget blueprint.

Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga., called off a vote on a move by GOP leaders to loosen restrictions on using war funding to skirt tight limits on the Pentagon budget. That delays a vote on the underlying budget, which would set up a veto struggle over the fate of the health care law and promises a whopping $5 trillion in spending cuts to erase deficits by the end of the coming decade.

Billions more for the Pentagon were Republican priorities in both House and Senate, but pushback from fiscal conservatives against spending increases appeared to force Price's hand.

At the same time, there were significant differences between the day-old proposal in the House and the one unveiled Wednesday by Senate Republicans.

Defense spending aside, Medicare was chief among them. Senate Republicans, already eying the 2016 elections, balked at a politically sensitive House plan to turn health care coverage for seniors into a voucher-like program for those who enroll beginning in 2024.

Republicans claimed a balanced-budget, no-tax-increase approach, but the House Budget Committee had to scuttle a vote Wednesday. The Senate Budget panel was set to convene Thursday morning with a vote planned for the afternoon.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said the Republicans promise a plan "that will support economic growth and more opportunity for hardworking families, while protecting our most vulnerable citizens."

By contrast, McConnell said President Barack Obama's budget from earlier in the year raised "taxes by nearly $2 trillion, and increased the national debt by more than $7 trillion. In other words, it was more of the same old tired, failed policies of the past."

Obama leaned in.

Claiming credit for the improving economy, he said Republicans offer "a path to prosperity for those who have already prospered." Reprising a criticism he leveled in his winning 2012 campaign against Mitt Romney, he said in Cleveland that the GOP budget "doubles down on trickle-down."

It will be weeks or months — if then — before Republicans can turn their non-binding blueprints into legislation and send it to the White House for Obama's signature or veto.

Before that, they will concentrate on pushing the rival budgets through the two houses. Next, they will try to agree on a compromise that they concede will stand as a test of their ability to govern.

Republicans promised during last fall's campaign they would try to balance the budget if they won power. They also said over and over they would work to eradicate the health care law that Obama has pledged to defend and the administration now says has provided coverage to more than 16 million individuals who previously lacked it.

Details contained inside the budgets make a veto struggle with Obama over the health care law a virtual certainty, although the Supreme Court could largely render that moot in a ruling is expected this spring on the constitutionality of a key portion of it. Senate Republicans said they intend to use legislation that Democrats cannot block to accomplish their goal of repeal.

Both budgets envision a significant campaign to cut spending, with much of the projected savings coming from Medicare, Medicaid, food stamps and welfare.

Defense spending remained a work in progress. The House proposal, if amended as pro-Pentagon members would like, recommended hiking existing funding by $38 billion next year along the lines of Obama's February budget. Parliamentary tangles blocked them from simply increasing core Pentagon accounts like Obama proposed; instead they pad an overseas account that has financed the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

As drafted, the Senate budget recommended the same total as Obama, although defense hawks including Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., worked behind the scenes to engineer a rewrite that would raise it to roughly the same level as the House and Obama.

Both Republicans and the White House have indicated they would like to ease cuts to the Pentagon and domestic agencies both for the next couple of years and replace them with longer-term cuts and, perhaps, new revenues, much as was the case in 2013.

To achieve their core campaign commitment, Republicans in both houses resorted to a series of sleights of hand.

Both budgets assume that dozens of popular tax breaks will be allowed to expire. One allows businesses to offset the cost of research and development, and another allows individuals and families to deduct the cost of sales tax in states with no income tax. Together, the cost of renewing all of them totals $900 billion, money not in either budget.

Both budgets also estimate large savings from the economic benefit of implementation of their spending proposals — $164 billion over a decade in the Senate, $147 billion for the House.

Without these amounts, the Senate budget would be unable to show even its minuscule $3 billion surplus for 2025, or the House its $46 billion in black ink in 2024 and 2025 combined.

In addition, the Senate budget offers no explanation for a sudden $191 billion jump in savings from benefit programs in 2025.

____

Associated Press writer Josh Lederman in Washington contributed to this report.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

China announces audit of state company assets abroad

BEIJING — The Cabinet agency that oversees China's biggest banks, oil producers and other government companies has announced plans to have outside auditors examine their foreign assets in a new move to tighten control over state industry.

The announcement comes amid a spreading anti-corruption crackdown led by President Xi Jinping in which executives of companies including PetroChina Ltd. and China Mobile Ltd. have been detained.

The State-Owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission announced Monday it was soliciting tenders from outside auditors for contracts to examine the companies. It said the firms chosen must be incorporated in China and local branch offices are ineligible, which would rule out the use of foreign firms.

State-owned banks and oil, mining and other companies are quickly expanding their investments abroad, especially in buying resource assets in Africa, the Americas and Australia.

The audit is intended to "address growing concerns about lack of transparency" about the assets of state companies, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

The foreign assets of the 110 state companies directly controlled by the Cabinet were estimated at 4.3 trillion yuan ($700 billion) at the end of 2013, according to Xinhua.

This week, the party announced the vice chairman of PetroChina, Asia's biggest oil and gas producer, was under investigation for what the company was a possible discipline violation, the party's term for corruption.

The company and its parent, China National Petroleum Corp., are among China's biggest foreign investors. At least four other executives of PetroChina or CNPC have been detained.

Beijing has encouraged state companies to expand abroad and has eased controls on their activities as part of efforts to diversify the Chinese economy.

That has led to complaints managers of politically influential state companies might be misusing their assets.

Among other things, Chinese economists believe a big share of foreign investment into China really comes from units of state companies abroad that are improperly trying to take advantage of tax breaks and other incentives.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Massport boss: No hotel bid info for now

The head of Massport told the Herald yesterday he has no intention of publicly releasing the six bids to build an $800 million "headquarters hotel" on 
authority-owned land as part of the $1 billion Boston Convention & Exhibition Center expansion — at least until after the developer is selected later this summer.

"Should the bids be made public at this early stage, it would undercut the public sector's ability to negotiate a good deal," Massport CEO Thomas P. Glynn said in an interview after his authority, citing state law, turned down a Herald public records request seeking copies of the bids. "If each of the bidders knew what the other had bid … you would lose leverage."

Glynn, however, left open the possibility of releasing the names of equity partners and other silent investors hidden behind limited liability corporations that are among those vying to build the 1,000- to 1,200-room hotel across from the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center.

"I certainly have not ruled it out," said Glynn, calling the Boston Redevelopment Authority's new policy of forcing developers to disclose investors in a project a "good idea. We have not requested that information from the bidders. We don't have a fact base to have an opinion on that yet."

The Herald reported yesterday that two former members of the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority's board, former U.S. Sen. William "Mo" Cowan and Congress Group founder Dean Stratouly, are part of a development team behind an Omni Hotel and Resorts-backed bid.

Cowan, former Gov. Deval Patrick's chief of staff and chief legal counsel, served on the MCCA board for two years, until 2010. Stratouly served on it for 12 years. State law provides for a one-year cooling off period before investing in a project that fell under their official purview — both Cowan and Stratouly have passed that period.

"When high-ranking officials leave office and return seeking contracts and approvals from the agencies they led, it creates a genuine vulnerability to unfair influence and skepticism in the minds of the general public and business competitors," said Gregory W. Sullivan, former state Inspector General and now at the Pioneer Institute. "The Legislature should toughen the anti-revolving door laws."

Sullivan, whose testimony last June at a state Senate hearing helped lead to the stripping of $110 million he alleged was a hidden state subsidy to build the hotel as part of the $1 billion convention center expansion bill, said MCCA deals need "to be free of any political influence."

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

First direct flights between New York and Cuba taking off

NEW YORK — The first direct charter flights between New York City and Cuba are now taking off.

Cuba Travel Services has started offering a weekly Tuesday charter between John F. Kennedy International Airport and Havana. The flights are operated by Sun County Airlines, and cost $849 round-trip. The price includes airfare, Cuban medical insurance and U.S. departure taxes.

In January, the Obama administration announced it would be easing travel restrictions.

Despite improving relations, tourism is still banned. Travelers must still declare a purpose that fits into one of the 12 approved categories, including family visits, government work and journalism. But most visitors no longer need to apply for a special license and wait for U.S. government approval.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Anti-graft probe targets PetroChina vice chairman

BEIJING — The vice chairman of China's biggest state-owned energy company has become the latest prominent executive targeted by Communist Party investigators in a spreading anti-corruption campaign.

Liao Yongyuan, vice chairman of PetroChina Ltd., is under investigation for possible "serious violation of the law," the ruling party's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection announced late Monday. Its one-sentence statement gave no details but a separate statement by PetroChina said Liao was suspected of violating discipline, the party's term for corruption.

PetroChina is a key target of an anti-corruption campaign led by President Xi Jinping that appears to be aimed at tightening the party leadership's control over politically influential and often independent-minded state industries.

The state-owned oil and gas industry was a power base for Zhou Yongkang, the ruling party's former security chief who was arrested in December on charges including bribery and leaking state secrets. Control over state companies can provide political figures with jobs to reward supporters and money to promote their own careers.

PetroChina is Asia's biggest oil and gas producer by volume but is regarded by executives at other companies as bloated and inefficient.

Its vast cash flow and the complexity of its heavily regulated and politically sensitive industry create ample opportunities to divert money or assets to private use.

At least four present and former executives of PetroChina and its parent, China National Petroleum Corp., have been detained. A former CNPC chairman was fired in September as head of the Cabinet body that oversees China's biggest state-owned companies.

Zhou, who stepped down in 2012 as a member of the party's ruling inner circle, the Standing Committee, would be the highest-ranking Chinese political figure to be prosecuted since the early 1980s. He is a former CNPC general manager.

Liao spent most of his career at PetroChina, working in Gansu province in the northwest and Sichuan in the southwest before becoming its vice president in 2005, according to the company website.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Asia stocks jump as Fed rate hike expectations shift again

SEOUL, South Korea — Asian stocks markets jumped Tuesday as investors cheered the prospect of stimulus in China and second guessed what signals the Federal Reserve will give on interest rates at its policy meeting this week.

KEEPING SCORE: Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 1.1 percent to 19,460.57 and South Korea's Kospi jumped 1.8 percent to 2,022.58. Hong Kong's Hang Seng was up 0.3 percent to 24,009.13 and China's Shanghai Composite added 1.3 percent to 3,494.76, extending its gain from the previous session. Stocks in Australia and Southeast Asia were also higher.

FED WATCH: Whether the Fed will drop the word "patient" in describing its timetable for raising interest rates from a record low is the focal point for investors this week. IG market strategist Evan Lucas said "all but half a handful of economists" expect the word to be removed from the statement the Fed will issue on Wednesday. But estimates of when the first rate hike will come are swinging between mid-year and later in the year. Weak U.S. economic data Monday pushed expectations toward later in the year. Last week, strong U.S. jobs had many picking mid-year. Stock markets have been boosted for several years by low interest rates.

CHINA CHEER: Chinese stocks extended gains a day after the market's key index surged to its highest level in more than five years. The rally was driven by hopes the government will announce new economic stimulus after Premier Li Keqiang said on the weekend it has plenty of room and options for boosting growth. China's economy, the world's second-largest, expanded at its slowest pace in nearly a quarter century last year.

US DATA: Industrial production growth last month was lower than expected while factory output fell for a third month, casting doubt on the strength of the U.S. recovery. Industrial production edged up slightly in February as a big surge by utilities offset a third straight decline in factory output. The Federal Reserve also reported that output at U.S. factories fell 0.2 percent last month following a decline of a 0.3 percent in January, in part due to a stronger dollar.

THE QUOTE: "Weaker U.S. industrial and manufacturing data sparked strong rallies in shares as investors and traders speculated interest rate rises may be pushed back," Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist at CMC Markets, said in a commentary.

WALL STREET: On Monday, U.S. stocks bounced back after losing ground for three weeks as the dollar's rally against the euro abated. The Standard & Poor's 500 rose 1.4 percent to 2,081.19. The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 1.3 percent to 17,977.42. The Nasdaq composite jumped 1.2 percent to 4,929.51.

ENERGY: Oil continued its decline after hitting a six-year low on supplies outpacing demand. Benchmark U.S. crude was down 22 cents to $43.66 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 96 cents to close at $43.88 a barrel on Monday. Brent crude, a benchmark for international oils, added 2 cents to $53.96 in London.

CURRENCIES: In currency trading, the euro weakened slightly to $1.0563 from $1.0578. The dollar inched up to 121.40 yen from 121.37 yen.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Report: Apple set to launch 25-channel online TV service

Apple is set to launch a 25-channel TV service this fall from broadcasters including ABC, CBS and Fox.

The slimmed-down bundle will stream channels live to Apple TV, iPhones, iPads and devices using Apple's iOS, according to the Wall Street Journal. It is expected to also include ESPN and FX, but leave out smaller channels.

The service will reportedly be available from September and cost $30 to $40 per month.

WSJ had previously reported that Apple was teaming up with Comcast on a set-top box that would take advantage of priority Internet traffic, but talks between the two are said to have broken down so the service at present won't include channels from Comcast-owned NBCUniversal.

Earlier this month, Apple struck an exclusive deal to carry HBO's standalone streaming service HBO Now. The new service, which will launch in time for the upcoming fifth season of HBO's dragons-and-swords hit "Game of Thrones," will offer more than 2,000 titles online. For $14.99 people who don't have cable or satellite service will still be able to get HBO programs.

Apple has also cut the price of Apple TV from $99 to $69.

2015 TheWrap news inc. All rights reserved.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Asian stock markets drift as investors await Fed meeting

HONG KONG — Most Asian stock markets drifted Monday as investors hunkered down ahead of a Federal Reserve meeting this week that may set the stage for the first U.S. interest rate hike since the global financial crisis.

KEEPING SCORE: Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 climbed 0.1 percent to 19,278.08 and South Korea's Kospi added 0.3 percent to 1,990.97. Hong Kong's Hang Seng was up 0.4 percent to 23,917.74. The Shanghai Composite Index in mainland China jumped 2 percent to 3,437.85 as comments by China's top economic official raised hopes of additional stimulus to bolster economic growth. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.2 percent to 5,803.00. Markets in Southeast Asia were mixed.

FED IN FOCUS: The Fed's two-day meeting begins Tuesday. A growing number of investors expect the U.S. central bank to raise its benchmark interest rate sooner rather than later and they will be watching to see whether officials signal through their language whether that's the case. Global stock markets have been lifted for several years by ultralow rates and other monetary stimulus but a Fed rate hike would mark the start of a return to more normal levels for borrowing costs.

THE QUOTE: The Fed meeting will "undoubtedly" be the week's highlight for investors, said Michael Every, head of Asia-Pacific financial market research at Rabobank, in a commentary. "We might well say goodbye to the key term 'patience', which has become a rolling rule of thumb for 'a few more months'. In other words, March could officially open the door to a potential June rate hike."

CHINA CHEER: While the rest of Asia was brooding, Chinese stocks surged on hopes of renewed stimulus a day after Premier Li Keqiang said officials still have plenty of space and means to shore up slowing growth in the world's No. 2 economy. Li said at the close of China's annual legislature Sunday that because authorities have held off on bringing in sweeping stimulus measures over the past few years, policymakers have "fairly ample room" and a "host of policy instruments" to boost economic growth if it slows more than expected.

WALL STREET: U.S. stocks dipped on Friday as investors reacted to slumping oil prices and a jump in the dollar. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 0.8 percent to close at 17,749.31 while the Standard & Poor's 500 lost 0.6 percent to 2,053.40. The Nasdaq composite lost 0.4 percent to 4,871.76.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude slid to its lowest level in six years, losing 49 cents to $44.35 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell $2.21 to close at $44.84 a barrel on Friday. Brent crude, a benchmark for international oils used by many U.S. refineries, fell 41 cents to $54.60 a barrel in London.

CURRENCIES: The euro strengthened to $1.0515 from $1.0497 Friday. The dollar weakened to 121.29 yen from 121.40 yen.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Inspector Gadget: Don’t snooze on this sleep tracker

Withings Aura ($299, various retailers)

There are lots of sleep-monitoring devices on the market these days, but this is one that is supposed to actually help you fall asleep and wake up. With a light-emitting bedside alarm clock and a connected sensor that monitors your movements and heartbeat, this is a very intriguing piece of technology.

The good: Well-
designed, futuristic-
looking and easy to use, the Aura lulls you to sleep with peaceful nature sounds and a melatonin-inducing red spectrum light.

An iOS app collects all of your data on REM and deep sleep. And it does a good job of waking you up at the right time in your sleep cycle.

The bad: If there's someone else in the bed, your tracker may be skewed by their movements. Also, the price is a bit steep.

The bottom line: If you're an insomniac who sleeps alone, then this sleep tracker is one to consider.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Booting Up: Chang’s embrace of technology intrigues

Tommy Chang, Boston's incoming superintendent of schools, wants to talk about something called the three-screen day — where students are focused on learning content, producing content and sharing content on a computer, tablet and smartphone — nearly all day long.

"I'm not saying this is what Boston Public Schools is moving toward," said Chang, 39, a top Los Angeles administrator with a background in charter school innovation, 
recently chosen for the top job in Boston. "I'm saying this is something we should be discussing: How do we create an education system that leverages technology?"

I called Chang on Friday wanting to chat about the three-screen day concept, and I had my arguments at the ready. Chang got back to me almost immediately. But he didn't just make his case: He cited books, education researchers and a specific institution in Los Angeles, the Incubator School, that embodies his philosophy. And I realized something: The three-screen day idea is meant to be provocative. It's Chang's way of getting people talking about innovation in education.

I went in fearing that Chang wanted to shove tablets and smartphones in the hands of kindergarteners, and came out believing that Boston's incoming school chief wants schools to be more like incubators, and each classroom like a startup, where students are the entrepreneurs of their own education, tinkering and testing as they would in a laboratory.

"The mayor has called on all of us to drive innovation," Chang said. "And to ask how we reinvent our schools to be vastly different, and how does Boston become a model for what public education looks like."

Technology has a leading role at the Incubator School that Chang mentioned. But it's equally about making learning relevant to students' lives. They develop prototypes and create their own little businesses. And in online testimonials, they talk about finding friends and acceptance.

If you're a luddite — the type of person who thinks that wooden toys were good enough for Thomas Jefferson, so why not our kids? — then Chang won't be your favorite superintendent.

But if you think technology must be woven though all aspects of education so that our classrooms are laboratories that nurture the next generation of entrepreneurs, then Chang is your man.

And if you're wrestling between those two extremes, like most people — if you know Boston Public Schools need to change and you know that innovation must play a central role — then you'll find Chang's ideas bold, thought-provoking, and you'll want to continue the conversation with him.

"Twenty years from now, should learning exist with a kid going to school at 8 a.m. and going to school six periods a day and going home and doing work?" asked Chang. "Is that really what learning should look like? I don't think so. And I think Boston can lead that conversation."

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Officials: Listeriosis not cause of 3 deaths, may be factor

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A foodborne illness linked to some Blue Bell ice cream products might have been a contributing factor in the deaths of three hospital patients in Kansas, health officials said Saturday.

But listeriosis didn't cause the deaths, according to Kansas Department of Health and Environment spokeswoman Sara Belfry.

Officials have not released the names of the five patients at Via Christi St. Francis hospital in Wichita, Kansas, who developed listeriosis in after eating products from one production line at the Blue Bell creamery in Brenham, Texas.

But the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the five individuals were older adults and three of them are women. The CDC did not specify the gender of those patients who died.

The five patients became ill with listeriosis during their hospitalizations for unrelated causes between December 2013 and January 2015. But hospital spokeswoman Maria Loving said she couldn't discuss why the patients were hospitalized, citing patient confidentiality laws.

According to the CDC, information available for four of the five patients shows they had eaten while hospitalized milkshakes made with Blue Bell ice cream product called "Scoops" in the month before the infection.

The FDA says listeria bacteria were found in samples of Scoops, as well as Blue Bell Chocolate Chip Country Cookies, Great Divide Bars, Sour Pop Green Apple Bars, Cotton Candy Bars, Vanilla Stick Slices, Almond Bars and No Sugar Added Moo Bars.

Blue Bell spokeswoman Jenny Van Dorf said the company has recovered all recalled products from all 23 states where they were sold, as well as those that were in storage.

Cincinnati-based supermarket chain Kroger removed recalled Blue Bell products from 860 of its 2,625 stores and the company is alerting customers through its recall notification system, spokesman Keith Dailey said in an email.

"We would not sell any product that we believed to be potentially harmful to our customers," Dailey responded when asked if Kroger has confidence in Blue Bell products not affected by the recall and that remain on store shelves.

Blue Bell says its regular Moo Bars were untainted, as were its half gallons, quarts, pints, cups, three-gallon ice cream and take-home frozen snack novelties.

The Texas Department of State Health Services said facilities like Blue Bell's are inspected on a monthly basis. The agency added that no enforcement action has previously been taken against the facility in Brenham and it is operating in compliance with food safety laws.

"Our last full inspection was February. We cited a couple minor issues but nothing related to this issue," agency spokeswoman Carrie Williams said in an email.

Van Dorf said the machine that the contamination was traced to has been shut down permanently.

It's not unusual to see listeria outbreaks linked to dairy products, including ice cream, said William Marler, an attorney who represented victims of a 2011 listeria outbreak that killed 33 people and was traced to a Colorado cantaloupe farm.

In December, an ice cream company in Snohomish, Washington, recalled nearly a year's worth of ice cream and related products because of possible listeria contamination that sickened two men.

Marler said he thought Blue Bell had responded appropriately once it knew its products were linked to illnesses and deaths. His only criticism was that Blue Bell didn't mention the patients who were sickened or died in Kansas in a statement on its Web site, instead highlighting that this was the first product recall in its 108-year history.

Listeriosis is a life-threatening infection caused by eating food contaminated with bacteria called Listeria monocytogenes, the CDC said. The disease primarily affects pregnant women and their newborns, older adults, and people with immune systems weakened by cancer, cancer treatments, or other serious conditions.

___

Lozano reported from Houston.

___

Follow Juan A. Lozano on Twitter at www.twitter.com/juanlozano70

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Juries in the drivers' seats

Two federal lawsuits brought by a Boston labor attorney are going to trial thanks to rulings by federal judges in California last week — with vast implications for Uber and Lyft.

"The judges soundly rejected the companies' arguments that they are not in the car business, they are a technology business," said Shannon Liss-Riordan, the attorney who brought the suits.

Two judges both denied a motion for summary judgment, ruling that the cases would have to be decided by juries.

The suits center on how Uber and Lyft classify their drivers. The companies claim the drivers are independent contractors, but Liss-Riordan and her clients say the drivers should be treated as full employees. By classifying drivers as independent contractors, Uber and Lyft avoid having to pay for benefits including unemployment insurance, worker's compensation and overtime. If the companies are required to pay their drivers as employees, it would mean a huge change to their business model.

"Companies like Uber and Lyft save enormously on their labor costs by calling their workers independent contractors," she said.

The problem, the two federal judges said separately, is that neither the legal definition of employee or contractor seems to describe Uber and Lyft drivers.

Uber and Lyft drivers can choose their own hours and accept or reject ride requests, like independent contractors. However, like employees, the drivers are subject to control and potential termination at will by the ride-for-hire companies.

"The jury in this case will be handed a square peg and asked to choose between two round holes," Judge Vince Chhabria wrote of the Lyft case.

"The application of the traditional test of employment — a test which evolved under an economic model very different from the new 'sharing economy' — to Uber's business model creates significant challenges," wrote Judge Edward Chen in the Uber case. "Arguably, many of the factors in that test appear outmoded in this context."

The lawsuits will only apply to California right now, but another case that would apply to Massachusetts is ongoing. The companies have come under fierce fire in Massachusetts, largely by taxi companies and cab drivers who claim they are being driven out of business.

Traditional employment laws have a long way to go to catch up with the rise of the so-called gig economy, said Pat Petitti, chief executive of HourlyNerd, which connects freelance consultants with companies looking for outside expertise.

"Neither the employee or contractor definition fits what an Uber driver does," he said. "The traditional definitions for an employee and contractor are not correct — they don't work in a world like this, where technology is changing the workforce."

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

BCEC expansion weighed against other needs

Boston officials yesterday weighed in on the debate over spending $1 billion to expand the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center amid a deep budget deficit and a crumbling public transit system.

"In difficult economic times we have to look at every single thing ... and determine what's best for now and the long term," said Boston City Councilor Tito Jackson. "Everyone has to take a look at their budgets. We need to look at the T not only as transportation, but as critical infrastructure, and it's literally the driver of our economy."

The Herald reported yesterday the convention center authority's expansion committee held an emergency closed-door session over fears the bond offering meant to pay for the expansion would be cut by Gov. Charlie Baker.

Mayor Martin J. Walsh yesterday said he supports the convention center expansion, which backers say will draw bigger — and more lucrative — shows to Boston, but said the T is in desperate need of a fix.

"The governor has to look at the budget, look at the numbers and how they work for him, but I'll be talking to him as well. I think the expansion of the convention center is about economic development and the future of our city, and this region," Walsh said. "Certainly the governor has a big concern with the MBTA ... it's not going to be one easy fix, the governor inherited a big problem here."

During the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority's public meeting on Friday, MCCA head Jim Rooney said he "has a high level of confidence" that the project will go forward.

Baker remained noncommittal on his plans yesterday, saying his administration needs to look at the numbers involved.

"We're just getting started on the capital budget, and until we have a better understanding about where the capital budget sits — not just for this year but for the next year and the year after — we're not going to say much more about it than that," Baker said. "We need to do a thorough deep dive on the capital budget before we talk about specifics or proposals."

Baker said his administration will spend the next 30 days reviewing capital projects.

In January, Baker told the MCCA he would delay the bond offering until March 30, to give the incoming administration time to review the project. The expansion will add 1.3 million square feet to the South Boston expo center.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More