Egypt’s election commission disqualified 10 presidential hopefuls, including Hosni Mubarak’s former spy chief and fundamentalist Islamists, from running Saturday in a surprise decision that left a field of moderates in the race for the country’s first post-revolutionary leader.
The elimination of the three most powerful and controversial candidates could go in two directions with just weeks to go before the vote, observers said. It could plunge the Arab world’s most populous nation into a new political crisis, or just the opposite, defuse it.
Farouk Sultan, the head of the Supreme Presidential Election Commission that was appointed by Egypt’s military rulers to oversee the vote, said that those barred from the contest included Mubarak-era strongman Omar Suleiman, Muslim Brotherhood chief strategist Khairat el-Shater and hard-line Islamist Hazem Abu Ismail. He did not give reasons.
Disqualified candidates have 48 hours to appeal the decision, according to election rules. The final list of candidates will be announced on April 26.
The announcement came as a shock to many Egyptians as three of the 10 excluded were considered among the front-runners in a highly polarized campaign that has left the nation divided behind two strong camps: Islamists and former regime insiders who are allegedly supported by the ruling generals.
Thirteen others had their candidacy approved, including former Arab League chief Amr Moussa, moderate Islamist Abdel-Moneim Abolfotoh and former prime minister and Mubarak-era minister Ahmed Shafiq, according to Sultan.
If upheld, the decision would reshape the electoral landscape by removing the most powerful and controversial candidates and leaving moderates such as Abolfotoh, an ex-Muslim Brotherhood leader who has been trying to project crossover appeal for both religious conservatives and liberals, and Moussa, who was a member of the old regime but is popular among middle class Egyptians and who is not so closely associated with it.
The presidential election is due on May 23-24, with a possible runoff on June 16-17. The winner will be announced on June 21, less than two weeks before the July 1 deadline promised by the military rulers who took over after Mubarak to hand over power.
Abu Ismail, a lawyer-turned-preacher whose eligibility had come under scrutiny in recent weeks over the question of whether his late mother had dual Egyptian-U.S. citizenship, accused the military rulers who assumed power after Mubarak’s ouster of trying to manipulate the race from behind the scenes and warned his followers would not stay silent.
“You will drown, God willing, because you are in showdown with the people, because you are playing with fire,” he said in an interview with the Islamist TV network Al-Hakma.
Abu Ismail has led the most aggressive campaign so far. On the eve of the announcement, hundreds of his supporters surrounded the election commission’s headquarters in Cairo, forcing Sultan and his employees to evacuate under the military protection.
A new election law passed after Mubarak’s ouster bars an individual from running if the candidate, the candidate’s spouse or parents hold any citizenship other than Egyptian, and the commission had ordered the Interior Ministry to provide evidence showing whether Abu Ismail’s mother was officially documented in Egypt as having dual U.S. -Egyptian citizenship.
A spokesman for el-Shater’s campaign, Murad Mohammed Ali, also called the decision “very dangerous” and said it gives a message that “there was no revolution in Egypt no checking account payday advance.”
The Muslim Brotherhood fielded the head of its political arm Mohammed Morsi as a back-up candidate last week, fearing that el-Shater would be disqualified on the grounds that his records were not entirely cleared after serving time in prison in connection with his banned political activity under Mubarak. His lawyers say the ruling generals had dropped the charges. Morsi was not disqualified.
Despite the fiery rhetoric and promises from those disqualified to appeal, some Egyptians welcomed the news.
“This is much better,” said Ahmed Khalil, a spokesman of the liberal Free Egyptians party, which was not fielding a candidate. “These three candidates were holding extremist ideologies or holding an intelligence agenda.”
The announcement was the latest twist in an already convulated political scene as the nation struggles to redefine itself and navigate a difficult transition to civilian rule.
In the last two weeks, a court suspended the work of an Islamist-dominated, 100-member panel tasked with drafting a new constitution on the grounds its makeup violated the spirit of the interim charter that governed its formation.
Islamists as well as the largely liberal and secular activists who spearheaded the protests that led to Mubarak’s ouster had hoped to have a new constitution in place before the election in order to curtail the powers of the president after nearly three decades of autocratic rule.
The Muslim Brotherhood _ which along with hard-line ultraconservative Salafis captured more than 70 percent of the parliament seats in the first post-revolutionary elections _ announced on March 31 that el-Shater would run for president.
That reversed an earlier pledge not to seek the office and came after weeks of complaints by the Brotherhood that the parliament they control is toothless and that the ruling military was preventing it from forming a government.
In what was seen as a countermove backed by the generals, Suleiman made an unexpected announcement a week later that he was entering the race for the presidential elections. Suleiman said he had decided to run to block Islamist rule and provide stability after more than a year of turmoil.
A judge close to the commission, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to disclose the information, said that Suleiman has not presented the proper number of endorsements. Each candidate needed at least 30,000 endorsements, including at least 1,000 from each of the country’s 15 provinces, to join the race.
His campaign spokesman Mohammed Mishal promised to present extra endorsements that have not been used, giving him a gateway to re-enter the race.
Another campaign spokeswoman Reem Mamdouh said in an interview with the local CBC television network that they had not been officially notified about the decisions but would definite appeal.
“Suleiman will never withdraw and let down the hopes of the large constituency of Egyptians who supported him. This is not happening,” she said.
Ayman Nour, a liberal presidential hopeful, said the commission told him he was disqualified because of his imprisonment as a dissident under Mubarak’s regime and because his name was not listed among registered voters.
He also promised to appeal, saying the decision was “politicized as the whole race is deeply politicized.”
China
Hospital operator Tenet Healthcare Corp. has agreed to pay $42.8 million to resolve allegations it overbilled Medicare for the treatment of patients who needed intense inpatient rehabilitation.
The Dallas company said today that the settlement resolves inquiries by the U.S. Department of Justice, Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia.
The allegations involve the admission of patients at 25 facilities from May 2005 to December 2007. No information was immediately available on whether any of the facilities were in the St. Louis area, where Tenet operates two medical centers: Des Peres and St. Louis University hospitals.
The Justice Department said Tenet billed Medicare for patients who did not meet the standards for admission to inpatient rehab facilities. Medicare pays those facilities at a higher rate because patients require more difficult rehabilitation and more medical supervision than patients at other types of facilities no faxing pay day loans.
The Justice Department said it was the single largest U.S. recovery to date involving inappropriate inpatient rehab admissions.
Tenet said it already set aside money to cover the settlement and will make the payment in the second quarter.
The company said it now operates only eight inpatient rehabilitation centers. It also runs 50 hospitals and around 100 outpatient health centers.
Tenet said it identified overpayments at one facility in Georgia in 2007, and disclosed those payments to the government.
Shares of Tenet Healthcare Corp. fell 14 cents, or 2.7 percent, to $4.97 in midday trading Tuesday. Its shares have traded in a 52-week range of $3.46 to $7.56 per share.
Canada
World stock markets fell Thursday as signs of weakness in the world’s two biggest economies kept investors at bay.
Benchmark oil lingered near $105 a barrel. The dollar fell against the euro and the yen.
Caution in markets stemmed from U.S. Commerce Department data that showed orders for durable goods rose 2.2 percent in February. While that compared favorably to a steep drop in January, analysts had expected orders to increase 2.7 percent.
“U.S. data shows weakness in the economic recovery. That really confirms what the Fed Chairman, Bernanke, said last week that the Federal Reserve has to continue loose monetary policy in order to aid economic recovery and employment,” said Francis Lun, managing director of Lyncean Holdings in Hong Kong.
Investors are also concerned that China’s slowdown is accelerating. China is a huge importer of raw materials, so a slowing economy there can weigh on prices for raw materials.
European stocks were muted in early trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 was 0.4 percent lower at 5,787.75. Germany’s DAX lost 0.4 percent to 6,971.46 and France’s CAC-40 slipped 0.1 percent to 3,425.29.
Wall Street futures headed lower as traders awaited weekly jobless claims later in the day. Dow Jones industrial futures fell slightly to 13,049 while S&P 500 futures lost less than 0.1 percent to 1,399.50.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index retreated for a second day after reaching a one-year high, falling 0.7 percent to 10,114.79.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng tumbled 1.3 percent to 20,609.39 and South Korea’s Kospi dropped 0.9 percent to 2,014.41. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dipped 0.1 percent to 4,337.90.
The prospect of slowing growth from the world’s two biggest economies pummeled industrial, energy and materials stocks payday loans.
Hong Kong-listed Aluminum Corp. of China shed 1.3 percent. CNOOC Ltd., China’s main offshore oil and gas producer, tumbled 3.3 percent despite reporting that its 2011 profit rose 29.1 percent on higher oil and gas sales. Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., South Korea’s leading shipbuilder, fell 3 percent.
Leighton Holdings plummeted 6.7 percent in Sydney after the Australian construction company cut its full year profit forecast because of losses in several major infrastructure projects.
Mainland Chinese shares spiraled downward amid dwindling hopes for a looser monetary policy, analysts said.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index lost 1.4 percent to 2,252.16 and the Shenzhen Composite Index lost 1.6 percent to 895.07. Shares in nonferrous metals, engineering and materials weakened.
Analysts said investors are also holding back as they await news later this week on Europe’s progress in resolving its debt crisis.
Benchmark crude oil was up 1 cent to $105.42 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell $1.92 to end at $105.41 per barrel on the Nymex on Wednesday. Oil prices declined after France’s government said it is considering a release of emergency stockpiles as part of a U.S.-led effort to ease the recent climb in prices.
In currencies, the euro rose to $1.3326 from $1.3324 late Wednesday in New York. The dollar fell to 82.41 yen from 82.79 yen.
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JPMorgan Chase & Co. is being sued by a trader who says he accepted a contract from the investment bank because a typographical error made him believe he would be paid 10 times what was actually offered.
Kai Herbert, a Switzerland-based currency trader, is suing JPMorgan for about 580,000 pounds ($920,000), his lawyers said at a trial in London this week. The original contract said Herbert
Searchers on Thursday found three more bodies in the wreck of the Costa Concordia cruise ship that capsized off the Italian coast, an official said, raising the number discovered to 28 and leaving four still missing.
Civil Protection agency chief Franco Gabrielli did not give details on the sex or ages of the victims, and it was not immediately clear where the bodies were spotted. The remaining missing are presumed dead.
The ship hit a rocky reef, took on water and turned over just outside the port of the tiny island of Giglio off Tuscany on Jan. 13. Divers and searchers have been combing the half-submerged ship, from passenger cabins to elevators to the decks where many of the 4,200 passengers and crew gathered during the delayed and frantic evacuation.
Even before the latest bodies were found, eight discovered in recent weeks were awaiting official identification. Weeks in the water badly decomposed the remains, and forensic authorities have used DNA sampling to try to identify them.
Among those listed missing or unidentified are a crew member from India and several passengers, including an elderly U.S. couple and others from Italy and Germany.
The Concordia capsized in a protected sea sanctuary, and salvage teams have been removing fuel since Feb. 12 in hopes of sparing the pristine waters from pollution. Costa Crociere SpA., the Italian cruise company, and Italian officials said fuel removal was expected to be completed by Friday evening.
Occasional bad weather and choppy seas have at times forced suspension of both the search for bodies and the fuel removal.
The operation to remove the wrecked Concordia itself could take as long as 12 months. Bids for the job are being evaluated.
The Concordia’s Italian captain is under house arrest near Naples. Capt. Francesco Schettino is under investigation for alleged manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and abandoning ship during the evacuation. Schettino has denied wrongdoing and claimed that the reef wasn’t marked on charts.
Investigators are probing allegations that Schettino deliberately came too close to the island as part of a publicity stunt for the cruise line. Costa Crociere officials have distanced themselves from Schettino.
Stock futures headed lower Monday as last week’s rally, bolstered by healthy job data, appeared to lose some steam.
Even the Nasdaq futures, which had been trading higher Monday, dipped after Apple Inc. announced a dividend and $10 billion share buyback program.
In premarket trading Dow Jones industrial average futures fell 21 points to 13,142 and the broader Standard & Poor’s 500 futures fell 2.50 points to 1,396. Nasdaq 100 futures fell 2.75 points to 2,706.25.
European markets were lower in midday trading there after Asian markets finished narrowly mixed.
Apple said Monday it would pay a quarterly dividend of $2.65 per share and that its board had authorized a three-year share buyback program that will begin later this year.
Apple is sitting on $97.6 billion in cash and securities. For years, it has resisted calls to reward shareholders with some of that money. Since the death of CEO Steve Jobs, management had signaled that it’s been considering options for the money.
Shares broke $600 in early premarket trading, but gave up some ground after the announcement. Shares rose $3.94 to $589.51 30 minutes ahead of the opening guaranteed cash advance.
There is also some macroeconomic data that investors will be watching Monday. The National Association of Home Builders is scheduled to release its March housing market index, which measures homebuilder confidence.
In February, the index rose to 29, the highest level since May 2007. The index has been rising since September as builders are more hopeful about the potential for sales this year. Still, readings below 50 indicate negative sentiment about the new-home market. The index hasn’t hit that level since 2006, during the housing boom.
In Europe, the CAC-40 in France fell 0.7 percent to 3,568, while Germany’s DAX was down the same rate to 7,109. The FTSE index of leading British shares pulled back 0.4 percent to 5,940.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 1 percent to 21,115.29. Benchmarks in Singapore, Taiwan and Indonesia fell.
Other Asian indexes finished slightly up. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 closed 0.1 percent higher at 10,141.99.
MADISON, Wis. — Apple’s latest iPad drew the customary lines of die-hard fans looking to be first, and entrepreneurs looking to make a quick profit.
Many buyers lined up for hours, and in some cases overnight, as the tablet computer went on sale in the U.S. and nine other countries. They did so even though Apple started accepting online orders a week ago.
The new model comes with a faster processor, a much sharper screen and an improved camera, though the changes aren’t as big as the upgrade from the original model to the iPad 2.
As with the previous models, prices start at $499 in the U.S.
“I don’t think it’s worth the price, but I guess I’m a victim of society,” Athena May, 21, said in Paris.
Dan Krolikowski, 34, was first in line at a mall in Madison, Wis. He arrived 14 hours before the store’s opening and was buying an extra one to sell on the “gray market.”
“Last year I sold one on eBay and made over $500 in profit,” Krolikowski said, leaning back in a reclining lawn chair he brought. “I’m hoping to do that again this year.”
Those who ordered iPads online started getting them delivered Friday. However, Apple now says there’s a two- to three-week shipping delay for online orders. There’s also demand in countries where the new iPad isn’t available yet.
In Hong Kong, a steady stream of buyers picked up their new devices at preset times at the city’s sole Apple store after entering an online lottery.
The system, which required buyers to have local ID cards, helped thwart visitors from mainland China, Apple’s fastest growing market. A release date in China has not yet been announced. Apple will begin selling the iPad in 25 additional countries next Friday, mostly in Europe.
At the flagship Apple Store on New York’s Fifth Avenue, the composition of the line, and the way many customers were paying for two iPads each with wads of cash, suggested that many of the tablets were destined to be resold abroad.
About 450 people lined up outside Apple’s Ginza store in downtown Tokyo. Some had spent the night sleeping outside the store.
Dipak Varsani, 21, got in line in London at 1 a.m. Thursday and said he was drawn by the new device’s better screen.
“You’ve got clearer movies and clearer games,” he said. “I use it as a multimedia device.”
Despite competition from cheaper tablet computers such as Amazon.com Inc.’s Kindle Fire, the iPad remains the most popular tablet computer. Apple Inc. has sold more than 55 million iPads since its debut in 2010.
Apple says the iPad is propelling us into a “post-PC era,” with computers that work very differently from the traditional laptops and desktops.
Norway is moving closer to a housing bubble as the central bank
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