China's February exports down 18 percent

BEIJING — China's exports plunged by an unexpectedly large 18 percent in February, possibly denting hopes trade will help drive the slowing economy while communist leaders push ambitious promised reforms.

Exports declined to $114.1 billion while imports rose a stronger-than-expected 10.1 percent to $137.1 billion, customs data showed Saturday.

Weakness in key European and U.S. export markets could raise the risk of politically dangerous job losses in trade-reliant industries that employ millions of workers at a time when communist leaders want to focus on restructuring China's economy.

China's official 2014 economic growth target of 7.5 percent, announced this week by Premier Li Keqiang, assumes trade also will grow by 7.5 percent. But customs data show combined imports and exports so far this year have shrunk by 4.8 percent.

The ruling Communist Party is trying to reduce reliance on trade and investment to drive growth by promoting domestic consumption and giving market forces a "decisive role" in the economy. A surge in job losses could force them to shore up growth with a stimulus based on state-led investment, setting back their reform effort.

China's trade data can be distorted by the Lunar New Year holiday, which falls at different times in January and February each year. But even grouping together the first two months of this year still showed exports fell 1.6 percent from a year earlier, while imports rose 10.1 percent.

This year's data also were expected to be unusually weak because during the comparison period in 2013 exporters were believed to be inflating sales figures as an excuse to evade currency controls and bring extra money into China for investment.

Despite that, the decline in February trade far exceeded forecasters' expectations of a contraction in low single digits. They also expected imports to grow by a similar small margin.

The official economic growth target looks unusually ambitious after last year's expansion rate fell to a two-decade low of 7.7 percent. Manufacturing weakened in February and an HSBC Corp. survey showed employers cut jobs at the fastest rate in five years.

The finance minister said this week that growth as low as 7.2 percent would be acceptable and Beijing's priority is creating jobs. Plans call for creation of 11 million jobs but the minister said as many as 13 million might be possible.

China's global trade balance swung to a deficit of $23 billion. The country often runs a trade deficit for one or months early in the year as factories restock following the Lunar New Year shutdown.

The surplus with the 27-nation European Union, China's biggest trading partner, narrowed by 22 percent to $4.1 billion. China's trade surplus with the United States narrowed by 36 percent to $7 billion.

A plunge in global demand in mid-2013 prompted Beijing to launch a mini-stimulus based on higher spending on railway construction and other public works. Growth accelerated but quickly faded once the government spending ended.

Since then, Chinese leaders have said there is little that additional stimulus can do to spur growth and improvements will have to come from longer-term reforms.

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Still no price on fix for botched Health Connector site

Beleaguered Health Connector officials continue to chip away at the massive backlog of Bay Staters' applications for health insurance, but still won't say how much taxpayers will have to shell out to fix the state's entire Obamacare fiasco.

"We are working really hard to pull that together," said Sarah Iselin, the state's new temporary Obamacare czar, during a weekly conference call with reporters. "It's a complicated picture, but we'll begin reporting on that next week at the connector meeting."

Despite repeated inquiries from the Herald, state officials have said they don't yet know how much it's costing to place 62,000 Bay Staters on temporary insurance.

The good news for the Health Connector is that the total backlog of applications — once a staggering 72,000 — is now down to 43,000.

"That's a decrease of 40 percent in about three weeks," said Iselin.

She said the state is seeing an increasing interest in insurance, receiving about 2,000 applications a day, half on paper, the other half electronically.

It used to take staffers two hours to enroll each paper application — that figure is now down to 33 minutes.

Chaos and confusion have dogged the state Health Connector's woeful 
$69 million website since it launched on Oct. 1, frustrating users who have struggled to sign up for health insurance by key deadlines.

Adding insult to injury, the Herald reported this week that many Bay Staters are seeing astounding spikes in their health insurance premiums — some soaring as much as nearly $11,000 a year.

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Microsoft warns XP users the end is near

REDMOND, Wash. — Microsoft is preparing its customers for the end of technical support and security updates for its XP operating system.

As of April 8, Microsoft says it will retire its old, dependable operating system, which first shipped in 2001.

Greg Sullivan, Microsoft's director of Windows, says "We can't continue to support it forever."

Sullivan says it's a standard industry practice to retire operating systems in the constantly evolving tech world. He points to Apple's recent decision to end support for its Snow Leopard operating system, which shipped in 2009.

XP users are being asked to go to AmIRunningXP.com for information on how to upgrade their systems.

Microsoft is encouraging its customers to upgrade to its Windows 8 operating system, which has received mixed reviews.

Sound: Upcoming

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Mass. health care lobbying totals from 2007-2013

What some of the top hospitals, insurers, unions and health care groups spent lobbying Massachusetts lawmakers between 2007 and 2013:

1. Massachusetts Hospital Association: $4,751,767

2. Partner's Health Care: $4,483,976

3. Massachusetts Association of Health Plans: $4,289,017

4. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts: $3,361,740

5. Massachusetts Nurses Association: $2,762,524

6. Harvard Pilgrim Health Care: $2,682,964

7. Tufts Associated Health: $2,599,319

8. Massachusetts Medical Society: $2,305,776

9. Children's Hospital: $2,165,709

10. Tenet Healthcare/Vanguard Health Systems: $2,113,136

___

Source: Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth's Office

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Nanocrystals come up big

In a winter of seemingly endless snow and ice, what if there were a better way of fortifying roads against potholes?

What if this same technology could be used to build stronger bridges, create solar panels, even penetrate and selectively kill cancer cells?

They're called nanocrystals — particles so small that their width measures about 1/80,000 of the diameter of a single strand of hair. And they are so light and so strong that NASA once said they theoretically could be used to build an elevator to the moon.

"The excitement to me was that they could be made out of almost anything," said Thomas Webster, chairman of Northeastern University's Department of Chemical Engineering, "and by shrinking that thing down in size, you could change its properties."

One way to do this is to start with the material in its normal form and evaporate it into individual atoms by heating it, Webster said. The degree of heat necessary depends on the material and can range from about 100 degrees to melt a polymer such as Tupperware, to as much as 9,000 degrees to melt metal. Then the atoms are collected on a cold surface, where they condense and form nanocrystals.

These tiny particles improve the strength of materials such as metal and concrete. Webster also is looking at using a combination of selenium nanoparticles, which have anti-cancer properties, and iron oxide nanoparticles, which are magnetic.

"So one can use a magnetic force to force the selenium and iron oxide nanoparticles to only go into cancer cells, and not healthy cells, to thus selectively kill cancer cells," he said. "This provides a much better solution than chemotherapy, which kills all cells."

But back to those potholes — about 6,000 of which the Boston Public Works Department filled in January and February, up nearly 400 percent from the same period last year.

Nanocrystals of asphalt could be used to keep roads from forming as many potholes by filling cracks as they begin to form and grow, Webster said, and nanocrystals of road salt could be used to keep ice from forming or to melt it more quickly by increasing the surface area to decrease the freezing point.

"To me, that is how to get the best of both worlds, using nanotechnology," he said.

So why not use that technology now? The main reason, Webster said, is the cost of heating materials.

"Some of the nanocrystals we make cost upwards of $100 per milligram," he said. "So even though using nanocrystals will make a road last longer and probably save you money in the long run on repairs to both the road and your car, filling an 
average-sized pothole would cost about $5,000 today."

Webster is optimistic, however, that if industry partners with universities, together they would be able to reduce the cost within the next five years.

"And then," he said, "the possibilities are endless."

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Medical pot shop ads to hit Mass.

Massachusetts viewers soon will get a hit of what's expected to be the Northeast's first marijuana-related commercial on major networks.

New York-based Medical Cannabis Network has booked April airtime to advertise marijuanadoctors.com, which pairs patients with doctors who'll evaluate whether medical marijuana should be used as treatment for their serious illness or chronic pain, said founder Jason Draizin.

"We consider this alternative medicine and do not condone the recreational use or marijuana," he said.

The ad campaign comes as Massachusetts prepares for the opening of its first medical marijuana dispensaries this summer.

The company hopes to add to its database of more than 93,000 patients, 300 doctors and 500 clinics already on the site, according to Draizin. Its service allows doctors to "discreetly" build a practice that includes medical marijuana prescriptions, which can be extremely profitable for them, he said.

The commercial shows a back-alley "dealer" selling the "best sushi" from inside his jacket and includes the voiceover: "You wouldn't buy your sushi from this guy, so why would you buy your marijuana from him?"

Booked through Comcast Spotlight, it will air after 10 p.m. on national cable networks and local cable channels across the state.

The timing will coincide with April 20, also known as "4/20 day" in cannabis culture, a day on which smoking pot is celebrated.

While specific networks haven't been set, they're expected to be the same used for the commercial's New Jersey launch this weekend. They include A&E, Bravo, CNBC, CNN, Discovery, ESPN, Fox News, History Channel, MTV and USA.

State Department of Public Health regulations only cover marketing and advertising by registered medical marijuana dispensaries. "The regulations require that a certifying physician may issue a written certification only for a qualifying patient with whom the physician has a bona fide physician-patient relationship," spokeswoman Anne Roach said.

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Economic data up, but weather stalling recovery

A slew of economic data released yesterday pointed to a recovery that is still struggling to take off, experts said.

"The numbers we had today show a continuation of a recovery, although it's subpar and it's anemic," said Christine Armstrong, senior vice president at Morgan Stanley.

The Commerce Department said the economy grew at 2.4 percent in the fourth quarter of 2013, revised down from its previous estimate of 3.2 percent. Also yesterday, the National Association of Realtors said its pending home sales index inched up 0.1 to 95 last month, while the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index rose to 81.6 in February, up 0.4 from January.

"We continue to be in an environment of recovery and modest growth," said James Abate, chief investment officer at Centre Asset Management.

Many economists have blamed subpar economic data on poor weather across the country, and say the GPD will temporarily dip because of the cold and snow.

"Due to Mother Nature, quarter one is not going to be anything worth writing home about," said Jennifer Lee, senior economist at BMO Capital Markets, in a research note. "The rebound ... and all of that pent-up demand won't show up until the second quarter.

Earlier this week, Eric Rosengren, president of the Boston Federal Reserve, said data have been difficult to interpret because of the weather.

Herald wire services contributed to this report.

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Slots parlor to spin ahead

Penn National Gaming is moving quickly on plans to build a slots parlor at a Plainville racetrack now that it has been awarded a state license, despite the possibility of a ballot question this fall to repeal the casino law.

"We're not going to slow down our construction process with this threat out there and we're going to fight for the right outcome," Tim Wilmott, Penn National's chief executive, said. "We have a lot of experience in political battles with gaming in other parts of the United States and we feel confident we're going to get the right outcome."

The state Gaming Commission voted unanimously yesterday to award the state's sole slots parlor license to Penn National, and company officials said they would begin construction planning next week at Plainridge Racecourse with a goal of opening next spring. Company officials celebrated the awarding of the license with workers at the track yesterday.

But a group working to strike down the casino law, Repeal the Casino Deal, is petitioning the Supreme Judicial Court to get on the November ballot over the objection of Attorney General Martha Coakley, who argues the question would violate the implied contractual rights of license applicants. The SJC is expected to hear the case in May.

John Ribeiro, chairman of Repeal the Casino Deal, said he is confident the question will get on the ballot in November and that voters will turn against gambling.

"The casino industry's empty promises may have bamboozled the governor, Legislature, Gaming Commission and a handful of struggling cities, but convincing voters across the state that any of this amounts to 'destination resort casinos' is vastly different," Ribeiro said.

Wilmott said the company's most recent election battles involved ballot measures in Ohio. The fights there involved an intense campaign with fliers, direct mail, television, radio and newspaper ads, said Eric Schippers, Penn National's vice president for public affairs.

Penn's ad blitz worked in both 2008 and in 2009, said Rick Lertzman, who was on the losing end of the measure in 2008.

"We've had a lot of interaction with Penn in the past," said Lertzman, chairman of Quest Gaming, which operates rival gaming facilities in Ohio. "We've had a lot of conflict with Penn in the past."

No date has been set for groundbreaking at Plainridge, but Penn National is promising to create 1,000 construction jobs as well as 500 permanent jobs. The facility will have 1,250 slot machines, and will help preserve roughly 100 harness racing jobs at the track.

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Wilmington tops for buying home

Considering buying a home in Massachusetts but unsure where to look? How does Wilmington, Franklin or Reading strike you?

They're the top three of the 20 best places to own a home in the Bay State, according to consumer finance website NerdWallet, which based its recommendations on U.S. Census data for the 77 communities with more than 15,000 residents. The website chose that as the cutoff because not all of the data for smaller communities were available and even when it was, the smaller the population, the greater the possibility that the data could be skewed, said Jaime Ortiz, senior analyst for strategy.

For each municipality, NerdWallet looked at three main criteria: whether homes were available, how affordable it was to live there, and whether the area was growing — a signal of a robust economy, Ortiz said.

"A lot of these places — 13 of the top 20 — were clustered around Boston," she said. "That definitely tells me they benefit from their proximity to Boston, including its jobs, its universities, its arts and entertainment."

Wilmington also had a homeownership rate of 89.8 percent — the highest in the state — as well as monthly costs that took up only 27 percent of the median monthly household income.

Franklin had a homeownership rate of 79.3 percent and monthly costs that took up 29.2 percent of the median monthly household income, while Reading's 
homeownership rate was 82.2 percent and monthly costs were 30.9 percent.

NerdWallet's other top places were, in order, Burlington, Hudson, Wakefield, Randolph, Lexington, Methuen, Longmeadow, Winchester, Braintree, Saugus, Abington, Danvers, Dedham, Milton, Somerset, Wellesley and Milford.

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Asia stocks mostly higher on US housing data

TOKYO — Shares were mostly higher Thursday in Asia following gains on Wall Street after the release of better-than-expected housing data.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng was up 0.9 percent at 22,638.65 and Seoul's Kospi gained 0.2 percent to 1,974.35. Markets in Southeast Asia were also higher and China's Shanghai Composite added 0.5 percent to 2,052.78.

Markets in Greater China are consolidating as they watch for new policy initiatives from China's annual legislative session in early March, said Linus Yip, a strategist for First Shanghai Securities in Hong Kong.

"Investors are still looking for some good news," Yip said. "The market needs structural reforms in mainland China."

Japan's Nikkei 225 stock index edged 0.2 percent lower to 14,947.28. Shares in Australia also fell, with Australian shares coming under pressure from weakness in commodities and a decline in capital spending in the last quarter.

Japanese investors are watching for Friday's release of economic data for January, looking for signs of how a sales tax hike due to take effect April 1 might affect the country's recovery.

Investors may get fresh impetus for buying on Thursday, when Janet Yellen, the new head of the Federal Reserve, testifies in front of the Senate's Banking Committee. Stocks jumped on Feb. 11 when Yellen reassured Congress over the central bank's market-friendly, low-interest rate policies.

On Wednesday, solid U.S. housing data showing new home sales in January up 9.6 percent to an annualized rate of 468,000 units helped push the Dow Jones industrial average up 18 points, or 0.1 percent, to 16,198.41. The Standard & Poor's 500 edged up a fraction to close at 1,845.16, three points below the record high close it set six weeks ago.

In currency dealings, the euro rose to $1.3687 from $1.3680. The dollar gained to 102.35 yen from 102.30 yen.

Oil prices edged lower, with benchmark U.S. crude for April delivery down 28 cents to $102.31 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract gained 76 cents to settle Wednesday at $102.59.

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