World News 08-28-08

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width="100%" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><B>News and Music Free Radio Stations RadioZX</B></FONT>     |     <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="News and Music Free Radio Stations Radio">home</A>                              back to  <A HREF="news.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="News">News</A></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <I><B>World News 08-28-08</B></I></div> <div> Bill Clinton pledges support for Barack Obama</div> <div> The former president gave the <B>best speach of his life</B>, praises his wife's onetime rival and urges his divided party to unite behind the Illinois senator.</div> <div> William Jefferson Clinton, 42nd president of the United States, made the most compelling case for why Sen. Barack Obama, the man who defeated his wife for the Democratic nomination, should become the 44th.</div> <div> After two nights of mixed results, the third night of the Democratic National Convention delivered just what Democrats were looking for, <I><B>The best VP in the History of America!</B></I><FONT SIZE="4" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Verdana" ><I><B>               </B></I></FONT><FONT SIZE="4" COLOR="#CC9900" FACE="Verdana" >Sen. Joe Biden</FONT></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> World War III</div> <div> Russia China Coalition Calls on <FONT SIZE="4" COLOR="#CC3333" FACE="Times New Roman" >Asian alliance</FONT> for support</div> <div> Russia has appealed to an Asian security alliance to support its actions in Georgia. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev meets with Chinese President Hu Jintao.</div> <div> <B><IMG SRC="7975eb90.png" border=0 width="350" height="185" ALT="Rassian President Dmitry Medvedev met Chinese President Hu Jintao in Dushanbe " ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="6" VSPACE="0">Medvedev hails support from China, Central Asia</B></div> <div> President Dmitry Medvedev on Thursday claimed backing from <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#CC0000" FACE="Arial" ><B>China</B></FONT> and four <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#CC0000" FACE="Arial" ><B>Central Asian states</B></FONT> for <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#CC0000" FACE="Arial" ><B>Russia's actions</B></FONT> in Georgia and said their support should send a "serious signal" to the West.</div> <bR> <div> The Russian president was seeking support on the issue from China and central Asian nations at a meeting in Tajikistan of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.</div> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="7965ee90.png" border=0 width="350" height="233" ALT="The presidents of Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, China, Tajikistan, Russia and Afghanistan" ALIGN="RIGHT" HSPACE="6" VSPACE="0">Some of the members of the SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization.) - Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, like Georgia, had once been part of the former Soviet Union.</div> <bR> <div> They became independent nations after the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.</div> <bR> <div> SCO was set up in 2001 to counter NATO influence in the strategic Central Asia region.</div> <div> Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is also hoping Iran may join the group as a fully-fledged member.</div> <div> <B>China, the founder of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization</B>, is also concerned about sending the wrong signal to independence supporters in Tibet, Xinjiang, and Taiwan, the self-ruling island that Beijing claims as its own.</div> <div> As <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#CC0000" FACE="Arial" ><B>Taiwan will be China's first take over target</B></FONT>, and <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#CC0000" FACE="Arial" ><B>Alaska will be Russia's next traget</B></FONT>.</div> <div> <B><IMG SRC="794504e0.jpg" border=0 width="80" height="78" ALT="Dalai Lama" ALIGN="RIGHT" HSPACE="6" VSPACE="0"></B><FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" >Today China launched a new attack on exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama on Thursday, denouncing what it said were his "lies" about Tibet and saying the region would never become independent.</FONT></div> <div> <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#CC0000" FACE="Arial" >Also See:</FONT> RadioZX's Web Site: <A HREF="http://www.Chapele.com/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.Chapele.com/">Chapele.com</A> for more information about China and the Dalai Lama.</div> <bR> <div> Bank of China sees first-half profit rise 43%</div> <div> Bank of China Ltd., one of China's four large state-owned lenders, Thursday posted a 43% rise in first-half net income from a year earlier, helped by strong growth in non-interest income.</div> <div> European Union leaders are considering imposing sanctions on Russia over the crisis in Georgia, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner has said.</div> <div> <B>France's third- and fourth-largest banks</B> reported slumping results from the credit crunch on Thursday, with Credit Agricole revealing a 94% profit drop and Natixis swinging to a loss of about $1.5 <B>...</B></div> <bR> <div> Caterpillar:To Invest $100 Million To Expand Shandong Plant</div> <div> Caterpillar's partnership with Xuzhou Construction</div> <bR> <div> Russia China, ethnic cleansing of Georgia nearly done</div> <div> Georgia's foreign minister says the ethnic cleansing of Georgians from the separatist province of South Ossetia has nearly been completed. </div> <div> Eka Tkeshelashvili says Georgians have been cleared from their homes across the disputed territory. In some villages, Georgians had lived alongside South Ossetians.</div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> Alaska senator wins vote despite charges</div> <div> Alaska - Sen. Ted Stevens breezed to an expected primary win Tuesday, even as he faces federal charges. The 84-year-old Republican, feisty as ever, immediately proclaimed the November election a "piece of cake.</div> <div> <B>I told you, that he is an ASS!</B></div> <div> For the life of me I do not understand how criminals keep getting reelected, when I was a kid they told me that if you brake the law you go to jail, but I guess that's only for poor people!</div> <div> He will be the longest serving Republican Senator in the history of our country, Ted Stevens.</div> <div> <B>for more Political Information see</B></div> <div> RadioZX's web site . . .    <B>Voting4America.com</B>   <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#6633FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="http://www.voting4america.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.voting4america.com">CLICK HERE</A></FONT></div> <div> <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#CC0000" FACE="Arial" ><B>ALSO SEE:</B></FONT> www.voteSmart.org    <A HREF="http://www.votesmart.org/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.votesmart.org/">CLICK HERE</A></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> Say Goodbye to Chrysler</div> <div> <B>Cerberus Capital Management is ready to sell off the pieces</B></div> <div> Chrysler Crunch Hits the Viper</div> <div> Chrysler needs to raise cash and could sell its high-performance Viper marque, and sales of other assets could follow</div> <div> by <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="../../../bios/David_Welch.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="../../../bios/David_Welch.htm">David Welch</A></FONT> </div> <div> <B>Is Chrysler slithering away from the Viper? </B></div> <div> It's possible. <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?capId=261035" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://investing.businessweek.com/resear">Chrysler</A></FONT> Chairman and CEO Robert Nardelli said Aug. 27 that the company has enlisted investment banking firm <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?capId=661170" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://investing.businessweek.com/resear">Lazard Freres</A></FONT> to explore strategic options for the Dodge Viper, Chrysler's iconic 600-horsepower sports car. </div> <div> <IMG SRC="79290180.jpg" border=0 width="400" height="280" ALT="Dodge Viper" ALIGN="RIGHT" HSPACE="6" VSPACE="0">Chrysler needs to raise cash. Viper is one of the assets Chrysler has marked for sale in a play to raise a total of $1 billion. Chief Financial Officer Ron Kolka told <I>BusinessWeek</I> in an <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="/lifestyle/content/aug2008/bw2008081_213456.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="/lifestyle/content/aug2008/bw2008081_213">interview in early August</A></FONT> (BusinessWeek.com, 8/1/08) that the company is burning cash and, even though it has posted a $1.1 billion operating profit in the first half of the year, Chrysler is losing money.</div> <bR> <div> "Maybe being in the limited-edition sports car business is a luxury they can't afford," says John Casesa, principal of consulting firm <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?capId=33148865" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://investing.businessweek.com/resear">Casesa Shapiro Group</A></FONT>. "If it raises $400 million, that's half a car program." </div> <bR> <div> <B>Sports Car Cred</B></div> <div> In business terms, selling Viper outright wouldn't hurt the company much. The Viper franchise does give Chrysler credibility with the hard-core auto enthusiast crowd.</div> <bR> <div> But the automaker hasn't been able to connect the sports car's powerful image with the other cars in Dodge showrooms, says James N. Hall, principal of 293 Analysts, a Detroit auto consulting firm.</div> <bR> <div> The Viper became its own franchise with minimal connection to the trucks, SUVs, and minivans that most Dodge customers buy, Hall said. Dodge made an attempt to marry the Viper's image with the SR-T performance versions of its stock cars.</div> <bR> <div> But even that connection was pretty thin, Hall says. "After a while, Viper became an icon of its own," he said. "Then it has to justify itself on a product and marketing basis."</div> <bR> <div> Its limited sale of 594 cars in the first half of this year also doesn't justify national advertising, Hall says. So in the end, Chrysler didn't get enough out of it.</div> <bR> <div> Chrysler notes that the company might not part with the brand. There are several options. Other than selling the franchise, Chrysler could cut a joint-venture deal that has someone else building the car for the company. Right now, it's assembled by hand in a small specialty shop in Detroit.</div> <bR> <div> <B>Technology Transfer</B></div> <div> Chrysler could sell the technology to another sports car player. That firm could make Vipers for Dodge and other sports cars-using similar technology and hardware-for its own brand, Hall says.</div> <bR> <div> Industry insiders say that a company like super sports car firm <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?capId=4490882" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://investing.businessweek.com/resear">Saleen</A></FONT>, which is tied to specialty parts company <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?capId=1542237" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://investing.businessweek.com/resear">ASC</A></FONT>, could cut a deal to make the car. Saleen could then make sports cars under its brand name and a similar car for Dodge.</div> <bR> <div> Another player, such as Canadian parts company Magna International (<FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?symbol=MGA" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://investing.businessweek.com/resear">MGA</A></FONT>), could manufacture the Viper for Chrysler, which would then continue to market and sell the car. Magna assembled cars for automakers in its plant in Graz, Austria, and has set its sights on a similar operation in the U.S. </div> <bR> <div> Chrysler started building the Viper in 1992. General Motors (<FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?symbol=GM" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://investing.businessweek.com/resear">GM</A></FONT>) Vice-Chairman <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="http://investing.businessweek.com/businessweek/research/stocks/people/person.asp?personId=1090426&symbol=GM" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://investing.businessweek.com/busine">Robert Lutz</A></FONT>, then a top Chrysler executive, started the car to give the Dodge brand some cachet. Since then, the car has been overhauled just twice.</div> <bR> <div> A new version came out last year, but it was mechanically very similar to the existing car.</div> <bR> <div> One problem, analysts say, is that Chrysler never really invested enough to freshen the car or support marketing efforts around the brand. Bob Martin, a senior consultant at the CarLab, a consulting firm in Orange, Calif., likened the possible sale of Viper to efforts by GM to shop its Hummer SUV division.</div> <div> "Viper has a small, loyal buyer base. But like its Motown brethren, Chrysler appears incapable of supporting a niche product," Martin says.</div> <bR> <div> <B>For Now, No Split-Up</B></div> <div> Industry analysts have speculated since <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?capId=139449" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://investing.businessweek.com/resear">Cerberus Capital Management</A></FONT> bought a controlling 80% stake in Chrysler last year that the private equity giant might split up the automaker, selling its core Jeep brand and the minivan franchise if it couldn't fix the company.</div> <bR> <div> But Chrysler management has said firmly that it is trying to fix the company and right now, it is exploring strategic options only for the Viper.</div> <bR> <div> Selling the Viper franchise is clearly a cash-raising move, but not much of a cost saver, says Thomas Stallkamp, former Chrysler president and now a partner with private equity firm <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?capId=22717" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://investing.businessweek.com/resear">Ripplewood Holdings</A></FONT>.</div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.businessweek.com/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.businessweek.com/"><IMG SRC="790ff360.gif" border=0 width="255" height="54" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></A></div> <div> He says the Viper doesn't cost much to build and isn't much of a financial drag. "It's another sign that they're becoming more of a marketer," Stallkamp says. </div> <div> <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="http://www.businessweek.com/bios/David_Welch.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.businessweek.com/bios/David_W">Welch</A></FONT> is <I>BusinessWeek</I>'s Detroit bureau chief</div> <div> <B>Also See:</B></div> <div> <B>RadioZX's web site: </B><A HREF="http://www.HotV8.com/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.HotV8.com/"><B>HotV8.com</B></A><B> for more Auto News</B></div> </td> </tr></table></body>