The US government allowed the cap stemming the flow of oil in the Gulf of Mexico to remain closed for another day, as BP fleshed out plans for a possible “static kill” operation.

US disaster response commander Admiral Thad Allen said engineers had found seepage and other anomalies, but said none were “consequential” enough to stop the well integrity test, now in its fifth day.

Despite his optimism, Allen ordered BP to produce a “detailed timeline” by the end of Monday for restarting operations to contain the oil with a fleet of surface vessels if the cap had to be opened again.

The announcement on Thursday that BP had stopped the oil flow completely for the first time since April raised hope among devastated communities along the Gulf Coast that a three-month nightmare may soon be over.

Measuring devices on BP’s cap have given steadily increasing high-pressure readings, which would indicate there are no major leaks in the well bore that stretches an astonishing 2.5 miles (four kilometers) below the seabed.

BP wants to keep the valves on the cap closed continuously until operations to permanently seal the well can begin in less than two weeks time, meaning no more toxic crude would stream into the Gulf.

Allen is more cautious and insists that keeping the cap on until the relief well operation is not a done deal as there are still too many uncertainties to know it has been shut in safely.

Both Allen and BP floated the idea of a new operation to plug the well called the “static kill” — very much like the “top kill” operation that failed almost two months ago.

BP said the idea would be to send down heavy drilling mud as before through the giant blowout preventer valve that sits on top on of the well and then inject cement to seal it.

Planning was still in its infancy and he was waiting further analysis from BP before making a final decision, Allen said, stressing that the relief well was still the ultimate fix.

The latest estimate for when the relief well will intercept the leaking well is July 29 and the plugging operation would then take place by mid-August.

Gulf residents, who have seen the crude tarnish their shorelines and cripple the local economy since a rig leased by BP exploded and killed 11 workers on April 20, are desperate for a permanent fix so they clean up and start to rebuild.
Kenneth Feinberg, who manages BP’s 20-billion-dollar compensation fund, said capping the well would allow compensation claims to move forward more quickly as the extent of the damage becomes clearer.

(via AFP)

Japanese stocks fell the most this week after Sony Corp. forecast profit that missed analyst estimates, the euro and dollar weakened against the yen and commodity prices declined.

Sony, a maker of audio/visual devices, plummeted 6.7 percent to 2,954 yen, the biggest decline in the Nikkei. The company forecast net income of 50 billion yen ($535 million) in the 12 months ending March 2011, less than half the average of 19 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Barclays Capital, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Nomura Holdings Inc. cut their share-price estimates on Sony.

Sony, the maker of Bravia televisions, plunged 6.7 percent. Fanuc Ltd., a maker of industrial robots that derives 80 percent of its revenue outside Japan, dropped 2.1 percent. Inpex Corp., Japan’s largest oil explorer, retreated 2.6 percent after crude oil declined.

2010 Forbes Billionaire Asian List Ranking. The number of billionaires has gone from 793 last year to 1,011 this year, almost to where it was [in] the record level of 2008,” Forbes told reporters at a new conference in New York to announce the magazine’s annual ranking. “The overall net worth of these billionaires is $3.6 trillion, up from $2.4 trillion just a year ago — a 50 percent increase.”

Forbes declared that Asia is leading the world’s financial recovery and said the number of its billionaires, 234, reflects the “remarkable changes taking place in the global economy,” as emerging economies flex their new muscles.

The United States, he says, is meanwhile slipping. The United States used to account for nearly half the names on the list, but now its share is just 40 percent — or 403 billionaires. The United States still dominates the world economy, Forbes says, but he notes “it’s not doing as well as the rest of the world in coming back from the financial crisis.”

2010 Forbes Billionaire List Ranking : The World’s Richest People . There are 1,011 billionaires in the world this year. These titans control entire swaths of the global economy, from energy and steel to fashion and telecom. The top slot in this year’s list was taken by the Mexican telecoms giant Carlos Slim, who has a fortune of £53.5bn (£36bn), an increase of $18.5bn on last year. Mr Slim leapfrogged BIll Gates and Warren Buffett, who held first and second places last year.


Slim’s fortune has swelled to an estimated $53.5 billion, up $18.5 billion in 12 months. Shares of America Movil, of which Slim owns a $23 billion stake, were up 35% in a year.

There are 29 British billionaires on the list – four more than last year. The Duke of Westminster and his family top the UK list, with a fortune of $12bn. They sit in 45th place in Forbes’ list overall. Newcastle owner and sportswear retailer Mike Ashley has a $1.5bn fortune.

Chinese New Year 2010 : Lunar New Year 2010. Chinese New Year or Spring Festival is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays. It is sometimes called the “Lunar New Year” by English speakers. The festival traditionally begins on the first day of the first month in the Chinese calendar and ends on the 15th; this day is called Lantern Festival.

The Lunar New Year celebration focuses on bringing luck for the Golden Tiger year. Preparations sometimes begins nearly a month in advance with people buying presents, decorations, food, new clothing and new underwear. Households begin cleaning and preparing their homes for the celebration.

An 11 Year Old Gives Birth: 11 Year Old Pregnant Woman Gave Birth to a Baby Boy. A new baby boy was born today, his mother, who lives in the Northeast, is only 11 years old. Both baby and mother are said to be in good health. Dr. Manny Alvarez of FoxNews said she is at a higher risk for certain dangers and that her condition will need to be monitored regularly in order to ensure she remains healthy.

Al-Khan said other medical challenges facing a girl as young as 10 or 11-years-old include:

— The pelvis is not defined for natural childbirth;

— The vagina could sustain injury during a natural birth;

— The patient is at high-risk for pre-eclampsia, which is high blood pressure and protein in the urine and could lead to convulsions and/or multi-system organ failure;

— A higher risk of pre-term labor and delivery, which would mean the baby’s size would be compromised, and the baby is at risk for developmental issues, fetal growth restriction and chromosomal abnormalities;

— Higher incidence of stillbirth;

— Higher incidence of cholestasis of pregnancy, a condition where the patient starts itching like crazy, which can lead to stillbirth and placenta issues;

— Chance of fatty liver developing, which could be fatal.

Toyota Motors Recall Models and Years Complete List! Here are the Complete List Toytoa recall models and years. The Toyota recall models and years do not include Toyota Prius.

Prius break problems in 2009-2010 model were reported across press Wednesday. The list below is prompted with an additional halt on the sale of specific new models. If you own a Camry, Corolla and Tundra vehicle, you need to see this list. Always, check with your local retailer for updates and corrections.

• Camry 2007 – PRESENT
• RAV4, Corolla and Matrix 2009-2010
• Sequoia 2008-2010
• Tundra 2007-2010
• Avalon 2005-2010
• Highlander 2010

GM recalled the Pontiac Vibe, which is similar to the Toyota Matrix, days later. Toyota, which recalled and suspended sales of million of its market leading brands in the U.S. and UK has already sought the apology of its consumers for the concerns. The President of Toyota Motor Sales USA announced that the company has taken all the measures to fix the problem and the required accessory parts have so far been shipped to the U.S. to fix the issues as early as possible.

Ethiopian Airlines Plane Crash January 2010 Updates. The plane, said to be a Boeing 737, disappeared off the radar shortly after takeoff. An airline official said contact was lost about 45 minutes after the early morning departure. About 50 of the passengers were Lebanese nationals, most of the others were Ethiopians, airline sources said. There were thought to be seven crew members.

The plane took off shortly after its scheduled time of 3:10 a.m. (0010 GMT), flying south-west. According to the Ethiopian Airlines website, the flight from Beirut was bound for Addis Ababa. Senior Lebanese officials headed to Rafik Hariri International Airport after news of the crash. The plane had flown in from Addis Ababa earlier in the night, the sources said.

Among those on flight 409, which was heading to the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, were two British nationals of Lebanese origin, as well as the wife of the French ambassador to Lebanon, Reuters reported. The majority of the passengers were Lebanese or Ethiopian.

Television footage showed the remains of mangled airplane seats and luggage washed up on the shore south of Beirut where the airport’s main runway is located. Lebanese army patrol boats, helicopters and divers were searching frantically in a small area off Na’ameh, 10 km (six miles) south of the capital.

The Boeing 737-800 took off from Rafik Hariri international airport at around 2.30am (12.30am GMT) and disappeared from the radar a few minutes later, two miles off the coast from Naameh, a coastal village just south of Beirut.

CNN.com/haiti360 Hope for Haiti Telethon Update. All the musicians are joining together in their efforts to raise money and relief for disaster struck Haitians. The popular musicians bandied together on Friday nigth today and gave out an awesome performance for their fans with the idea of raising money which will be donated to provide relief on the island.

CNN.com’s Haiti360 located at cnn.com/haiti360 takes you through Haiti interactively. cnn.com/haiti360 is CNN’s Haiti 360 degree tour optimized with video shot in recent days. Three different videos can be chosen. Once selected, the imagery places virtually full screen enabled by video recorded truck mounted while driving through the ravaged streets.

Says CNN:

“Use your mouse to click and drag around the video to change the view. You can also zoom in and out. Pause and explore at any time by pressing the play/pause button under the video to stop and look around.”

Justin Timberlake : Hope for Haiti Telethon. Timberlake and his former “Mickey Mouse Club” castmate Matt Morris performed Leonard Cohen’s 1984 track “Hallelujah” for the telethon. In the years since its release, “Hallelujah” has snowballed in popularity, in part because it’s been covered by many musicians — John Cale, Rufus Wainwright and former “American Idol” hopeful Jason Castro, to name a few.

Jeff Buckley’s version, which appeared on his 1994 album Grace, topped the Hot Digital Songs chart in 2008, after Castro’s cover aired on “Idol.” Later that year, Alexandra Burke, winner of the Simon Cowell-masterminded U.K. talent show “The X Factor,” topped that country’s charts with her own version.

The Timberlake/Morris take puts a new spin on the song because it’s a duet. The two singers harmonized beautifully, no doubt in part because the song is a go-to track when they’re working on music together.

Via MTV
image via Reuters