Study could spur wider use of prenatal gene tests

A new study sets the stage for wider use of gene testing in early pregnancy. Scanning the genes of a fetus reveals far more about potential health risks than current prenatal testing does, say researchers who compared both methods in thousands of pregnancies nationwide. A surprisingly high number — 6 percent — of certain fetuses declared normal by conventional testing were found to have genetic...

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Canada OKs CNOOC's takeover bid for Nexen

TORONTO (AP) — Canada approved China's biggest overseas energy acquisition, a $15.1 billion takeover by state-owned CNOOC of Canadian oil and gas producer Nexen, but vowed Friday to reject any future foreign takeovers in the oil sands sector by state-owned companies. Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the government would only consider future takeover deals in the oil sands by state-owned companies...

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Russia fumes at US bill as "reset" plan takes hit

MOSCOW (AP) — What happened to the "reset"? U.S.-Russian ties have again plunged into acrimony amid disputes ranging from disagreement on Syria to Russian President Vladimir Putin's clampdown on dissent. A U.S. bill intended to lift Cold War-era trade restrictions but also containing sanctions against Russian officials accused of rights abuses has become the latest flashpoint, with Moscow venting...

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UK hospital: Nurse involved in Kate hoax call dies

LONDON (AP) — The news that Prince William and the former Kate Middleton were expecting their first child — joyous news for a couple looking forward to starting a family — immediately turned bittersweet with the simultaneous announcement that the duchess was being hospitalized for acute morning sickness. Then there was an invasion of her privacy by two disc jockeys who impersonated Queen Elizabeth...

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APNewsBreak: Dhaka factory lost fire certification

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — The factory where 112 garment workers died in a fire should have been shut down months ago. The fire department refused to renew the certification it needed to operate, a top fire official told The Associated Press. And its owner told AP that just three of the factory's eight floors were legal. He was building a ninth. Government officials knew of the problems, but the factory...

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Global slowdown, austerity to constrain UK economy - BCC

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's economic growth in the next two years will be weaker than previously thought, held back by a global slowdown and domestic austerity measures, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said on Tuesday. The BCC revised down its gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecasts for 2013 and 2014 to 1.0 and 1.8 percent respectively from 1.2 and 2.2 percent, also citing weak household...

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New York Film and TV Tax Credits Support 28,900 Jobs: Study

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - New York's film and television production tax credits supported 28,900 jobs in the state and generated $6.9 billion in economic activity last year, according to a new study commissioned by Hollywood's main lobbying group. Overall, the state's film and television production industry grew by 25 percent between 2008 to 2011 despite the fact that the country was mired in recession,...

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Japan candidates hit streets in first national vote since Fukushima disaster

FUKUSHIMA, Japan (Reuters) - Candidates hit the streets on Tuesday at the official start of a campaign for a parliamentary election that is expected to return the opposition Liberal Democrats to power but risks furthering the policy stalemate plaguing the world's third-biggest economy. In a sign that last year's nuclear crisis still weighs on Japan's national psyche, both former Prime Minister Shinzo...

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Oil falls below $89 on US manufacturing worries

BANGKOK (AP) — Worries about the U.S. economy following the release of a disappointing manufacturing report sent oil prices lower Tuesday. Benchmark crude for January delivery was down 27 cents to $88.82 per barrel at midday Bangkok time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract finished up 18 cents at $89.09 a barrel on the Nymex on Monday. Manufacturing the U.S. shrank...

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Australia lowers key interest rate to 3 percent

Australia's central bank cut its benchmark interest rate by a quarter percentage point Tuesday, taking it to its lowest level since the global financial crisis, as slower growth in China, uncertainty over the U.S. outlook and stubbornly weak conditions in Europe undermine the Australian economy. The Reserve Bank of Australia's decision to lower the rate to 3 percent was its fourth rate cut this year...

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