Tag Archives: horoscope
Good turnout forces Iranian voting time extension in UAE
Good turnout forces Iranian voting time extension in UAE Amira Agarib / 15 June 2013 A four-hour voting extension was put to good use by some of the hundreds of UAE-based Iranian citizens who voted in Friday’s election, which put an end to the tenure of longtime incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. An official at the Embassy in Abu Dhabi said that everything had proceeded well, with all security measures provided by police officers and voters casting a ballot for one of the eligible six candidates freely. Voting took place at the Iranian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, Consulate General in Dubai and Exhibition Centre in Sharjah from 8am. Voting was extended three times in an effort to allow more people their democratic right, with voting finally closing at 9pm at the heavily policed diplomatic missions, with more than 10 police officers checking citizenship before allowing voters entry at the Consulate General building in Dubai. A Khaleej Times photographer saw dozens of voters turn up in the dying minutes of the election at the Consulate General in Dubai, though a spokesman was unable to give a number. The spokesman told Khaleej Times on Friday evening that a result would be expected by tomorrow, in which a replacement to the controversial Ahmadinejad who has come to the end of the two terms he is constitutionally eligible for, would be announced. “There’s been a good turnout, the people are coming…but we need time…to collect the votes,” he said. “(By Sunday) I hope we’ll be finished with the election.” No violations had been recorded either. Thirty-five-year-old Iranian Hassan Ali said that people were very excited and wanted to participate in the first presidential poll since the 2009 contest. People should respect the results of the election and do their best to bring prosperity to their country, he said. However, Mohamed N. said that many people had not registered and were seemingly indifferent, while others were scared to even express their political opinions. He said for expatriates, it was very difficult to have an opinion as many did not properly know the six presidential candidates, though the large number of Iranians in the UAE meant the votes of UAE-based Iranians were vital in determining who was going to win. news@khaleejtimes.com Continue reading
Early results give Iran moderate clear lead: ministry
Early results give Iran moderate clear lead: ministry (AFP) / 15 June 2013 With results in from 10 percent of the polling stations, moderate candidate Hassan Rowhani has a clear lead, with 49.87 percent of the vote in Iran’s presidential election, the interior ministry said on Saturday. Rowhani, a former top nuclear negotiator, has collected nearly 1,460,000 votes of the some 3,024,000 ballots counted by 8:00 am (0330 GMT), the ministry said: more than twice as much as his nearest rival. On the votes counted so far, Rowhani is followed by Tehran mayor Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf with 16 percent; top nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili with 13 percent; and ex-commander of the Revolutionary Guards Mohsen Rezai with 13 percent. All three of these candidates hail from conservative camps. More than 50.5 million Iranians were eligible to vote to find a successor to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and Iranian authorities and media reported massive numbers of people turned out for Friday’s election. Earlier, Interior Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said his electoral staff would not “compromise accuracy for speed,” dismissing criticism over the pace of the counting process. No official estimate of turnout has been provided yet. Rowhani, 64, led talks with world powers over Iran’s nuclear ambitions under the presidency of reformist Mohammad Khatami. He has vowed to mend Iran’s ties with the international community, and move to ease western economic sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear drive. If no candidate gets an overall majority in the first round, the top two candidates will square off in a second-round run-off scheduled June 21. Continue reading
WB cuts global growth outlook
WB cuts global growth outlook (Bloomberg) / 13 June 2013 The World Bank cut its global growth forecast for this year after emerging markets from China to Brazil slowed more than projected, while budget cuts and slumping investor confidence deepened Europe’s contraction. The world economy will expand 2.2 per cent, less than a January forecast for 2.4 per cent growth and slower than last year’s 2.3 per cent, the bank said in a report released on Wednesday in Washington. It lowered its prediction for developing economies and sees the euro region’s gross domestic product shrinking 0.6 per cent. In contrast, forecasts were raised for the US and Japan, which was helped by fiscal and monetary stimulus. “Hard data so far this year point to a global economy that is slowly getting back on its feet,” the Washington-based lender said in its twice-yearly report. “However, the recovery remains hesitant and uneven.” Efforts by European policy makers to stem the region’s debt crisis have alleviated the main risk to global growth and financial-market stability, according to the lender. The bank now sees smaller threats, including lower commodity prices and the impact of unwinding unprecedented monetary stimulus in advanced economies including the US, the talk of which has sent currencies from India to Thailand lower and Mexican bond yields higher in recent weeks. Asian equities tumbled on Thursday, with the region’s benchmark index headed towards a correction, and the yen rose to the strongest in two months against the dollar after the World Bank cut its growth forecast amid concern central banks may pare monetary stimulus. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped as much as three per cent, erasing this year’s gains. Bond risk in Asia climbed, and emerging-market stocks slid to a nine-month low, led by Chinese and Thai shares. “In the short run, if the US becomes a little more attractive, there will be some marginal movement of money,” World Bank Chief Economist Kaushik Basu said in an interview on Wednesday. “I don’t think this is the kind of fluctuation that will last past two months or so.” The withdrawal of accommodative policy may have consequences in the longer run as interest rates in developing countries rise more than in their industrial counterparts, slowing investment and growth, according to the report. The Bank of Korea kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged on Thursday after a surprise cut in May aimed at boosting an economy hit by a yen drop that gives Japanese companies an edge over Korean exporters. New Zealand’s central bank left its Official Cash Rate at 2.5 per cent and cut its growth forecast for the year through March 2014 to three per cent from 3.3 per cent. For next year, the World Bank said it expects three per cent growth worldwide, compared with a 3.1 per cent advance in its January forecast. The World Bank predicts the US will grow two per cent this year compared with a forecast in January for a 1.9 per cent expansion, though fiscal tightening is holding it back. The new forecast for the 17-country euro area compares with a 0.1 per cent contraction seen in January. Developing countries collectively were forecast by the World Bank to expand 5.1 per cent, less than the 5.5 per cent estimated in January. China’s growth outlook was cut to 7.7 per cent from 8.4 per cent, according to the World Bank’s report. The 6.1 per cent forecast for India was reduced to 5.7 per cent and Brazil’s was lowered to 2.9 per cent from 3.4 per cent. — Continue reading
