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AP Business NewsBrief at 3:17 a.m. EST
[December 03, 2012]

AP Business NewsBrief at 3:17 a.m. EST


(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) AP IMPACT: China overtaking US as global traderSEOUL, South Korea (AP) _ Shin Cheol-soo no longer sees his future in the United States. The South Korean businessman supplied components to American automakers for a decade. But this year, he uprooted his family from Detroit and moved home to focus on selling to the new economic superpower: China.



'Cliff' talks: White House waiting on GOP moveWASHINGTON (AP) _ Republicans have to stop using "political math" and say how much they are willing to raise tax rates on the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans and then specify the spending cuts they want, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner said in an interview that aired Sunday. Just four weeks from the proverbial "fiscal cliff," House Speaker John Boehner countered that Republicans have a plan for providing as much as $800 billion in new government revenue over the next decade and would consider the elimination of tax deductions on high-income earners. But when pressed on "Fox News Sunday" for precise details, the Ohio Republican declined to say.

Asia stocks rise on improved China manufacturingBANGKOK (AP) _ Asian stock markets rose Monday after surveys showed a recovery in China's manufacturing. HSBC's Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 50.5 in November on a 100-point scale on which numbers above 50 indicate activity is expanding. It was the first expansion in 13 months. The reading in October was 49.5.


Boehner tells Geithner, 'You can't be serious'WASHINGTON (AP) _ House Speaker John Boehner says he was "flabbergasted" when Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner (GYT'-nur) pitched the White House plan to save the nation from the "fiscal cliff." Boehner tells "Fox News Sunday" that after Geithner briefed him privately on Thursday, he looked at Geithner and said, "You can't be serious." Boehner called it "silliness" that the White House was, among other things, asking Congress to give up its power to set the nation's debt limit.

Brinksmanship on Obama Medicaid expansion for poorWASHINGTON (AP) _ It's health care brinksmanship, with hundreds of billions of dollars and the well-being of millions of people at stake. President Barack Obama's health care law expands Medicaid, the federal-state health program for low-income people, but cost-wary states must decide whether to take the deal.

Singapore in talks to sell Virgin Atlantic stakeSINGAPORE (AP) _ Singapore Airlines said Monday it's in talks to sell its 49 percent stake in billionaire Richard Branson's Virgin Atlantic. The airline said in a statement it's in discussions with "interested parties" about a sale.

Carbon pollution up to 2 million pounds a secondWASHINGTON (AP) _ The amount of heat-trapping pollution the world spewed rose again last year by 3 percent. So scientists say it's now unlikely that global warming can be limited to a couple of degrees, which is an international goal. The overwhelming majority of the increase was from China, the world's biggest carbon dioxide polluter. Of the planet's top 10 polluters, the United States and Germany were the only countries that reduced their carbon dioxide emissions.

Bangladesh fire victims want old jobs backDHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) _ Major retailers have disavowed the Bangladesh garment factory where 112 workers died in a fire last month, but the survivors of the fire have not. They can't afford to. Factories like the one gutted Nov. 24 are a rare lifeline in this desperately poor country, and now many of the more than 1,200 surviving employees have no work and few prospects.

Iraq telecom operator to go public in early 2013BAGHDAD (AP) _ The Iraq Stock Exchange says one of the country's largest mobile operators will start publicly trading its shares early next year. It will be the first stock float since the reign of Saddam Hussein. The ISX said in a statement Sunday that a quarter of the Iraqi telecom operator Asiacell shares will be traded publically as of Feb. 3.

New Zealand: Forget Kyoto, write new climate dealDOHA, Qatar (AP) _ Highlighting a rift between the rich countries and emerging economies like China, New Zealand's climate minister staunchly defended his government's decision to drop out of the emissions pact for developed nations, saying it's an outdated and insufficient response to global warming. Other key issues at the conference, now starting its second week, include how to help emerging nations switch to climate-friendly energy sources and charting the course for a new treaty that would replace the Kyoto Protocol, which covers only developed countries.

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