Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/98711
Thursday, December 13, 2012 ��� Daily News 5A WORLD BRIEFING Vital loan to rescue Egyptian economy hangs in the balance Egypt opposition alliance urges ���No��� vote CAIRO (AP) ��� Egypt���s political crisis is threatening to plunge its ailing economy even deeper into distress after the government delayed a request for a $4.8 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund that would have eased a ballooning budget deficit and reassured foreign investors. Fear of stoking the street unrest over a disputed Islamist-oriented constitution led President Mohammed Morsi to suspend a package of tax hikes that were key to reducing that deficit ��� and his government may now have to renegotiate the loan deal that took more than a year to hammer out. While the government said it wants to delay the request for only a month, the IMF the mentioned no timeframe in its statement on Tuesday, saying only that it stands ready to ������consult with the authorities on the resumption of discussions.������ That raises the possibility that the loan may be put off until the political situation stabilizes, and so far protests have shown no signs of abating. Tensions have risen ahead of Saturday���s constitutional referendum, with Morsi���s opponents calling for Egyptians to reject the charter. ������It���s a serious blow to hopes that the economy will get back on track ��� the country really needs a financial backstop to convince investors to bring back much-needed capital,������ said Neil Shearing from research consultancy Capital Economics in London. No apparent budging: Fiscal cliff talks appear stalled WASHINGTON (AP) ��� Republicans aren���t budging on tax rates, and Democrats are resisting steps like raising the eligibility age for Medicare. Negotiations on averting a year-end fiscal train wreck combining big automatic tax hikes and sweeping spending cuts again appear stalled. There are less than three weeks before the government could careen off this ������fiscal cliff,������ but the chief GOP negotiator, House Speaker John Boehner, ROhio, said Wednesday that ������serious differences������ remain between him and President Barack Obama after an exchange of offers and a pair of conversations this week. Boehner spoke after a closed-door meeting with fellow GOP lawmakers in which he advised them not to make plans for the week after Christmas. Neither side has given much ground, and his exchange of proposals with Obama seemed to generate hard feelings more than progress. The White House has slightly reduced its demands on taxes ��� from $1.6 trillion over a decade to $1.4 trillion ��� but isn���t yielding on demands that rates rise for wealthier earners. Boehner responded with an offer very much like one he gave the White House more than a week ago that offered $800 billion in new revenue, half of Obama���s demand. Boehner is also pressing for an increase in the Medicare eligibility age and a stingier cost-of-living adjustment for Social Security recipients. NKoreans dance in the streets to celebrate 1st satellite PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) ��� In Christmas Special December 13, 14 & 15 50 % off Clarks Floral inside Clark���s Drug Store 2126 Solano St., Corning 824-3502 Latimer���s Pharmacy Christmas Sale Friday, December 21 th 9am to 5:30pm Jim Shore Jewelry Bean Pod Candles Camille Beckman Lotions & Soaps New Clearance Items and much, much more!!! Cookies & Tea Free Gift Wrapping 7885 Hwy 99E ��� Los Molinos Pyongyang, North Koreans clinked beer mugs and danced in the streets to celebrate the country���s first satellite in space. In Washington, Seoul and Tokyo, leaders pushed for consequences for Wednesday���s successful rocket launch, widely seen as a test that takes the country one step closer to being capable of lobbing nuclear bombs over the Pacific. The surprising, successful launch of a threestage rocket ��� similar in design to a model capable of carrying a nucleartipped warhead as far as California ��� raises the stakes in the international standoff over North Korea���s expanding atomic arsenal. As Pyongyang refines its technology, its next step may be conducting its third nuclear test, experts warn. The U.N. Security Council, which has punished North Korea repeatedly for developing its nuclear program, condemned the launch after a closed-door meeting Wednesday and said it will urgently consider ������an appropriate response.������ The White House called the launch a ������highly provocative act that threatens regional security,������ and even the North���s most important ally, China, expressed regret. In Pyongyang, how- CAIRO (AP) ��� Egypt���s main opposition alliance called for a ������No������ vote in the referendum on a disputed constitution rather than a boycott, hours after Islamist President Mohammed Morsi���s government forged ahead by starting overseas voting in diplomatic missions for expatriates. The opposition���s decision did not dispel the atmosphere of a nation in crisis, deeply polarized over the referendum that has stoked three weeks of turmoil on the streets. The opposition still plans more protests and the country���s judges are still on strike over a decree by Morsi, since rescinded, that placed him above judicial oversight. The military is inching back into politics. And if the referendum passes, there is potential for even greater upheaval. There are also growing concerns about the already flailing economy Egypt on Tuesday requested a postponement of a $4.8 billion IMF loan after Morsi, fearing a popular backlash at a time of already heightened tensions, suspended a package of tax hikes that had been part of a program to reduce the huge budget deficit. The opposition said it still may boycott the vote starting in Egypt on Sat- ever, pride over the scientific advancement outweighed the fear of greater international isolation and punishment. North Korea, though struggling to feed its people, is now one of the few countries to have successfully launched a working satellite into space from its own soil; bitter rival South Korea is not on the list, though it has tried. ������It���s really good news,������ North Korean citizen Jon Il Gwang told The Associated Press as he and scores of other Pyongyang residents poured into the streets after a noon announcement to celebrate the launch by dancing in the snow. ������It clearly testifies that our country has the capability to enter into space.������ urday if its conditions are not met. Hamdeen Sabahi, one of the leaders of the opposition National Salvation Front, said at a news conference the alliance would urge its supporters to boycott if judges do not oversee the vote and the state does not provide security at the polls. Mandela battles lung infection JOHANNESBURG (AP) ��� Military doctors are treating South Africa���s former President Nelson Mandela for a recurring lung infection, an ailment the 94-year-old antiapartheid leader remains susceptible to because of his age and his 27 years in prison. Government officials acknowledged for the first time Tuesday that the illness forced soldiers to admit Mandela to a military hospital on Saturday, though they said politician was responding to treatment. Mandela fought off a similar infection in 2011 and has a history of tuberculosis. Medical experts say respiratory illnesses like pneumonia striking a man his age are a serious matter that require care and monitoring. ������They call pneumonia ���the old man���s friend��� because it is the thing that ultimately carries many people off,������ said Dr. Peter Openshaw, the director of the Center for Respiratory Infection at Imperial College���s National Heart and Lung Institute in London. 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