World-Business/World news

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has allocated an additional $1 million in emergency assistance for the people of the Philippines in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Ketsana, bringing the total assistance provided by USAID to $1.1 million.

The American Red Cross is on the ground in American Samoa where a tsunami swept across the island after a powerful earthquake hit the South Pacific.

UN children's agency UNICEF has provided USD$143,000 in supplies to address the urgent needs of affected children and their families in the wake of tropical storm Ondoy in the Philippines.

UPS (NYSE:UPS) today announced a multi-year, multi-million-dollar initiative to improve the capabilities of relief organizations to respond to global emergencies.

Together with its Chinese joint-venture partner FAW, Audi opened a new assembly hall today at the existing plant premises of FAW-VW in Changchun.

E.ON and Siemens are putting a pilot CO2 capture plant into operation at the E.ON power plant Staudinger in Grosskrotzenburg near Hanau. The two companies are thus pushing further ahead with the development of a process geared toward climate-friendly coal-based power generation.

Thomson Reuters today announced that it has retained its leading position as the number one trading and risk management solution provider according to Asia Risk’s technology rankings for 2009.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) today released the report of the Evaluation Commission for the Games of the XXXI Olympiad in 2016.

Shell announced that it is starting construction of a major new lubricants blending plant - the first to be built by an international oil company in Russia.

As part of a continued commitment to supporting the career-life needs of its people, Deloitte has rolled out a voluntary sabbatical program across all of its U.S. offices.

The 2010 Honda Odyssey continues to stand apart from the minivan crowd with a reputation built on innovation, quality and engineering excellence.

Mazda Motor Corporation has announced the completion of the new passenger car plant at AutoAlliance Thailand (AAT), a joint venture manufacturing facility with Ford Motor Company.

Secretaries Chu, Salazar and Vilsack and Chairs Sutley and Wellinghoff announce energy and transmission policies at the Western Governors’ Association Annual Meeting

A few days ago, the mobile phone boarding pass service was introduced on all flights to the French Overseas Departments (Pointe à Pitre, Fort de France, Cayenne and Saint Denis de la Réunion). This service enables customers to board their flight with no other paper document apart from their passport, on departure from Paris-Orly.

As a part of an expansion program Turkish Airlines will increase the number of flights departing from Istanbul to various international cities including Peking, Shanghai, Beirut, Tunis, Skopje, Sanaa.

Siemens IT Solutions and Services provides the passport authorities in Austria with 900 scanners to record and manage digital fingerprints. Since the beginning of April, all passports issued in Austria have two fingerprints on the security chip in addition to a passport photo. The required software components were provided by Siemens.

AEGON has agreed to sell its Taiwanese life insurance business based on a valuation of approximately EUR 65 million, as per the end of 2008, to Zhongwei Company*.

It is now 30 years since production of the Mercedes-Benz G-Class began. The Stuttgart-based car maker first unveiled this robust off-roader to the public in 1979, since when it has delivered a total of some 200,000 units of the G-Class to customers around the world.

UNICEF is seeking $34.5 million to address urgent recovery needs for children and their families in Gaza. The request forms part of the UN appeal for $613 million to cover needs for over a nine-month period, launched today in Geneva.

Zimbabwe's cholera outbreak, one of the world's largest ever recorded, is far from being brought under control. An enhanced response is needed to urgently reverse an epidemic that has so far infected more than 60,000 people and killed more than 3,100 since August 2008.