Bobbi Kristina Brown’s cause of death has been determined, but officials say they will not reveal the post-mortem results.
They say a court in Georgia ordered a medical examiner to seal the results.
Whitney Houston’s daughter died at the age of 22 at a hospice on July 26, six months after she was found unresponsive in a bath in her Atlanta flat.
Photo Instagram
The singer also drowned in a bath in 2012.
Whitney Houston died at a Los Angeles hotel on the eve of the Grammy Awards ceremony.
In a statement, the Fulton county medical examiner said Bobbi Kristina Brown’s post-mortem results would not be publicly released on the order of the Fulton county superior court.
“The Fulton County medical examiner has classified the cause and manner of Bobbi Kristina Brown’s death,” it said.
Bobbi Kristina Brown was the only child of Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown.
She was buried in August at the Fairview cemetery in Westfield, New Jersey, next to her mother.
Skywatchers around the world have observed a rare celestial event, as a lunar eclipse coincides with a so-called “supermoon”.
A supermoon occurs when the Moon is in the closest part of its orbit to Earth, meaning it appears larger in the sky.
The eclipse – which made the Moon appear red – has been visible in North America, South America, West Africa and Western Europe.
This phenomenon was last observed in 1982 and won’t come again until 2033.
Skywatchers in the western half of North America, the rest of Europe and Africa, the Middle East and South Asia were expected to see a partial eclipse.
From Western Europe, observers saw the Moon pass through the Earth’s shadow in the early hours of Monday morning. In North and South America the eclipse was seen on Sunday evening.
In a total lunar eclipse, the Earth, Sun and Moon are almost exactly in line and the Moon is on the opposite side of the Earth from the Sun.
As the full Moon moves into our planet’s shadow, it dims dramatically but usually remains visible, lit by sunlight that passes through the Earth’s atmosphere.
As this light travels through our planet’s gaseous envelope, the green to violet portions get filtered out more than the red portion, with the result that light reaching the lunar surface is predominantly red in color.
Observers on Earth may see a Moon that is brick-colored, rusty, blood red or sometimes dark grey, depending on terrestrial conditions.
A supermoon occurs when a full or new moon coincides with a Moon that is nearing its minimum distance (perigee) to Earth.
The Moon takes an elliptical orbit around Earth, which means that its average distance changes from as far as 405,000km (its apogee) to as close as 363,000km at the perigee.
The coincidence between a supermoon and an eclipse means that Earth’s lone companion is expected to look 7-8% bigger.
He said a supermoon was to some extent a moveable feast compared with an eclipse, where the timing can be measured precisely.
The supermoon should also not be confused with the Moon Illusion, which causes the Moon to appear larger near the horizon than it does higher up in the sky.
The eclipse began at 00:11 GMT, when the Moon entered the lightest part of the Earth’s shadow, known as the penumbra, and adopted a yellowish color. At 02:11 GMT the Moon completely entered the umbra – the inner dark corpus of our planet’s shadow.
The point of greatest eclipse occurred at 02:47 GMT, when the Moon was closest to the centre of the umbra with the eclipse ending at 05:22 GMT.
Unlike the solar equivalent, a total lunar eclipse event is safe to watch and needs no special equipment.
Pope Francis held a large open-air Mass in Philadelphia, ending his six-day visit to the US.
The pontiff appealed for unity and family love, as thousands of people gathered at Philadelphia’s Benjamin Franklin Parkway.
Earlier, the Pope prayed with a group of victims of child abuse, saying “God weeps” for their suffering.
Clergy and bishops abusing children would be held accountable, he said. The Roman Catholic Church in the US has been embroiled in child abuse scandals.
US dioceses have made huge compensation payouts to victims.
However, many abuse survivors are angry at how the Vatican has dealt with allegations.
During Sunday’s homily in Spanish, Pope Francis, 78, called the crowd to be open to “miracles of love for the sake of all the families of the world”.
“The urgent challenge of protecting our home includes the effort to bring the entire human family together in the pursuit of a sustainable and integral development, for we know that things can change.”
Finishing Mass, Pope Francis said: “I ask you to pray for me. Don’t forget.”
Catalonia’s pro-independence parties have won an absolute majority in Spain’s regional elections, early results show.
With more than 90% of the votes counted, the main separatist alliance and a smaller party won 72 seats in the 135-seat regional parliament.
They said earlier a majority would allow them to declare independence from Spain unilaterally within 18 months.
Spain’s central government has pledged to block such moves in court.
With nearly 94% of the votes counted, the “Junts per Si” (“Together for Yes”) won 62 seats, while the far-left separatist CUP party is expected to secure 10 mandates.
“We have won,” Catalan regional President Artus Mas told his cheering supporters late on Sunday.
The pro-independence parties said ahead of the vote that they considered it a de facto referendum on independence from Spain.
They argue that the Spanish government has consistently refused to allow a legally recognized referendum to take place, ignoring an unofficial vote backing independence in November 2014.
Opinion polls suggest a majority of Catalans favor a referendum on independence but are evenly divided over whether they want to secede.
Polling stations in the wealthy north-eastern province opened at 09:00 local time and closed at 20:00.
More than five million people were eligible to vote.
Arturo Mas’ ruling Convergencia party and the Esquerra Republicana party put up a single list of candidates – under the “Together for Yes” banner.
The anti-independence vote in Catalonia was split between a number of groups, including Spain PM Mariano Rajoy’s Popular Party.
The centre-right government in Madrid has described any breakaway plans as “a nonsense”.
Mariano Rajoy argues that because the loss of Catalonia would affect all of Spain, the democratic approach would be for all of the country to vote in a referendum on Catalonia’s future.
Skywatchers around the world are gearing up to spot a rare phenomenon, as a lunar eclipse coincides with a supermoon.
A supermoon occurs when the Moon is in the closest part of its orbit to Earth, meaning it appears larger in the sky.
The total lunar eclipse – expected to make the Moon appear red in color – will be visible in North America, South America, West Africa and Western Europe.
NASA claims a supermoon last coincided with a lunar eclipse in 1982 and is not expected to again until 2033.
However, the definition of a supermoon is debated among astronomers.
Skywatchers in the western half of North America, the rest of Europe and Africa, the Middle East and South Asia will see a partial eclipse.
In a total lunar eclipse, the Earth, Sun and Moon are almost exactly in line and the Moon is on the opposite side of the Earth from the Sun.
As the full Moon moves into our planet’s shadow, it dims dramatically but usually remains visible, lit by sunlight that passes through the Earth’s atmosphere.
As this light travels through our planet’s gaseous envelope, the green to violet portions get filtered out more than the red portion, with the result that light reaching the lunar surface is predominantly red in color.
Observers on Earth may see a Moon that is brick-colored, rusty, blood red or sometimes dark grey, depending on terrestrial conditions.
A supermoon occurs when a full or new moon coincides with a Moon that is nearing its minimum distance (perigee) to Earth.
The Moon takes an elliptical orbit around Earth, which means that its average distance changes from as far as 405,000km (its apogee) to as close as 363,000km at the perigee.
The coincidence between a supermoon and an eclipse means that Earth’s lone companion is expected to look 7-8% bigger.
The supermoon should also not be confused with the Moon Illusion, which causes the Moon to appear larger near the horizon than it does higher up in the sky.
The eclipse will begin at 00:11 GMT, when the Moon enters the lightest part of the Earth’s shadow, known as the penumbra, and adopts a yellowish color. At 02:11 GMT the Moon completely enters the umbra – the inner dark corpus of our planet’s shadow.
The point of greatest eclipse occurs at 02:47 GMT, when the Moon is closest to the centre of the umbra. The show will be over by 05:22 GMT on September 28.
Unlike the solar equivalent, a total lunar eclipse event is safe to watch and needs no special equipment.
Pope Francis has met five victims of child abuse in the US, saying “God weeps” for their suffering.
The pontiff told the five survivors, an unknown number of whom had been abused by priests, that clergy and bishops would be held accountable when they abuse or fail to protect children.
Many abuse survivors are angry at how the Vatican has dealt with allegations.
The Roman Catholic Church in the US has been embroiled in child abuse scandals.
US dioceses have made huge compensation payouts to victims.
Photo AP
Pope Francis met the five victims, all now adults who had suffered abuse as children, on September 27 at a seminary in Pennsylvania, his spokesman said.
The group – three women and two men – had been abused by clergy, family members or teachers, Father Federico Lombardi said in a statement.
Each was accompanied by a family member, he added.
The Pope was “overwhelmed with shame that men entrusted with the tender care of children violated these little ones and caused grievous harm,” he told bishops following the meeting, on the final day of his visit to the US.
Pope Francis told the victims who were abused by a member of the clergy that he was “deeply sorry” for the times when the abuse was reported, but victims or their families “were not heard or believed,” the Vatican said in a statement.
“Please know that the Holy Father hears you and believes you,” Pope Francis told the survivors.
The Pope listened to the survivors’ stories, prayed with them, and expressed his “pain and shame” in the case of those harmed by clergy or church workers, Federico Lombardi said.
Pope Francis “renewed his commitment” to ensure that victims are treated with justice, the guilty are punished, and to effective prevention in the Church and in society, the statement said.
However, survivors’ advocacy groups expressed some skepticism at whether the Pope’s words would lead to any change.
In June the Pope approved the creation of a tribunal to hear cases of bishops accused of covering up child abuse by priests.
In 2014, the UN strongly criticized the Church for failing to stamp out abuse and for allowing cover-ups.
At the end of a nine-day tour of Cuba and the US, Pope Francis is due to hold an open-air Mass in Philadelphia later on Sunday.
Pope Francis also met inmates at a prison in the city earlier in the day.
According to German media, a VW engineer warned the automaker about cheating over its emission tests as early as 2011.
Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung says the warning emerged during Volkswagen’s current investigation into the scandal.
Separately, Bild am Sonntag said the internal inquiry had found that parts supplier Bosch had warned VW not to use its software illegally.
Last week VW apologized for cheating on emissions tests in the US. Some 11 million VW diesel cars built since 2008 are affected by the scandal.
They had devices which could detect when the engine was being tested and could change the car’s performance to improve results.
Citing unidentified sources, Bild said Bosch had warned VW as early as 2007 that its software should only be used in company tests and not for normal driving.
Last week VW CEO Martin Winterkorn was forced out over the scandal and replaced by Matthias Muller, the former head of Porsche.
As well as shocking VW customers, the scandal has stunned investors in the world’s largest automaker.
The debt products issued by Volkswagen are under review by the European Central Bank (ECB).
The ECB has been buying debt products from big companies, including VW, as part of its scheme to boost the eurozone economy.
Following VW’s admission that it cheated emissions tests, the ECB is reviewing its purchase of debt from the automaker.
In particular, the ECB is examining debt backed by loans to buyers of VW cars.
The products, known as asset-backed securities, have been popular investments as they offer a relatively high rate of return in an era when interest rates are low.
Such debt is also very important to car makers and allows them to finance loans to customers.
The indication of concern by the ECB will be a worry for other investors in that debt and could affect VW’s ability to raise money.
On September 25, Switzerland temporarily banned the sale of VW diesel-engine models which could have devices capable of tricking emission tests.
It said the move could affect 180,000 cars – not yet sold or registered – in the Euro5 emission category.
The Swiss authorities have also set up a taskforce to fully investigate the issue.
In the US, the EPA’s findings of the scandal cover 482,000 cars, including the VW-manufactured Audi A3, and the VW brands Jetta, Beetle, Golf and Passat.
VW has admitted that about 11 million cars worldwide are fitted with the so-called “defeat device” – 2.8 million of them in Germany – and further costly recalls and refits are possible.
NASA has announced it will reveal a major scientific discovery related to their continued exploration of Mars.
The findings will be detailed during a news briefing at 11:30 a.m. EDT on Monday, September 28 at the James Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
The event will be broadcast live on NASA Television and the agency’s website.
A brief question-and-answer session will take place during the event with reporters on site and by phone. Members of the public also can ask questions during the briefing using #AskNASA.
NASA won’t give too many details on what exactly the big reveal is.
According to the space agency’s website, the news conference participants will be:
Jim Green, director of planetary science at NASA Headquarters
Michael Meyer, lead scientist for the Mars Exploration Program at NASA Headquarters
Lujendra Ojha of the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta
Mary Beth Wilhelm of NASA’s Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, California and the Georgia Institute of Technology
Alfred McEwen, principal investigator for the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) at the University of Arizona in Tucson
A rare combination of a supermoon and a total lunar eclipse is set to occur at 02:11 GMT on Monday, September 28, 2015.
It is the second total lunar eclipse this year.
The entire eclipse will be visible from eastern North America, South America, West Africa and Western Europe.
Skywatchers in the western half of North America, the rest of Europe and Africa, the Middle East and South Asia will see a partial one.
From Europe, observers will see the Moon pass through the Earth’s shadow in the early hours of Monday morning. In North and South America the eclipse will be seen on Sunday evening.
In a total lunar eclipse, the Earth, Sun and Moon are almost exactly in line and the Moon is on the opposite side of the Earth from the Sun.
As the full Moon moves into our planet’s shadow, it dims dramatically but usually remains visible, lit by sunlight that passes through the Earth’s atmosphere.
As this light travels through our planet’s gaseous envelope, the green to violet portions get filtered out more than the red portion, with the result that light reaching the lunar surface is predominantly red in color.
Photo NASA
Observers on Earth may see a Moon that is brick-colored, rusty, blood red or sometimes dark grey, depending on terrestrial conditions.
A supermoon occurs when a full or new moon coincides with a Moon that is nearing its minimum distance (perigee) to Earth.
The Moon takes an elliptical orbit around Earth, which means that its average distance changes from as far as 405,000km (its apogee) to as close as 363,000km at the perigee.
The coincidence between a supermoon and an eclipse means that Earth’s lone companion is expected to look 7-8% bigger.
The supermoon should also not be confused with the Moon Illusion, which causes the Moon to appear larger near the horizon than it does higher up in the sky.
The eclipse will start at 00:11 GMT, when the Moon enters the lightest part of the Earth’s shadow, known as the penumbra, and adopts a yellowish color. At 02:11 GMT, the Moon completely enters the umbra – the inner dark corpus of our planet’s shadow.
The point of greatest eclipse occurs at 02:47 GMT, when the Moon is closest to the centre of the umbra. The sky show is over by 05:22 in the morning on September 28.
Unlike the solar equivalent, a total lunar eclipse event is safe to watch and needs no special equipment.
During the eclipse, the Moon lies in front of the stars of the constellation Pisces.
Chris Brown has been told he is unlikely to be given a visa to perform in Australia because of his record of domestic violence.
The 26-year-old singer is scheduled to go on tour in Australia in December, and tickets are due to go on sale on September 28.
Chris Brown now has 28 days to appeal.
In 2009, Chris Brown pleaded guilty to assaulting his then-girlfriend Rihanna. He has toured Australia twice since, but the government is under pressure to refuse him this time.
Photo Instagram
Australia’s immigration department has issued a “notice of intention to consider refusal”, Immigration Minister Peter Dutton said.
Chris Brown has 28 days to present a case as to why he should be granted a visa, after which a final decision will be made.
Minister for Women Michaelia Cash, who was until recently assistant immigration minister, had urged Peter Dutton to take a stand on the issue.
“People need to understand, if you are going to commit domestic violence and you want to travel around the world, there are going to be countries that say to you, <<You cannot come in because you are not of the character that we expect in Australia>>,” Senator Michaelia Cash said.
The decision about chris Brown’s visa follows the government’s decision earlier this year to refuse a visa for world champion boxer Floyd Mayweather on similar grounds.
New Zealand has already ruled that Chris Brown is unsuitable for entry into the country.
Soccer’s governing body chief Sepp Blatter and UEFA President Michel Platini are facing an investigation by FIFA’s ethics committee.
The move comes after the Swiss attorney general opened criminal proceedings against 79-yar-old Sepp Blatter.
Sepp Blatter is accused of signing a contract “unfavorable” to FIFA and making a “disloyal payment” to UEFA President Michel Platini, 60.
Photo Getty Images
The FIFA president denies wrongdoing and his lawyer says he is co-operating fully.
The ethics committee is looking into the circumstances of a payment of 2 million Swiss francs ($2.2 million) that Michel Platini received in 2011 for work said to have been carried out more than nine years previously, reported the Press Association.
Swiss prosecutors opened criminal proceedings against Sepp Blatter on September 25.
Michel Platini – who worked as Sepp Blatter’s technical advisor between 1999 and 2002 – was interviewed as a witness by officers from the attorney general’s office.
Michel Platini is yet to explain the nine-year delay in payment but he too denies any wrongdoing.
Catalonia is voting in regional elections that nationalist parties hope will set them on the road to independence from Spain.
Two separatist parties have joined forces, and are aiming to secure a majority of seats in parliament – 68 out of 135.
They say this would allow them to unilaterally declare independence within 18 months.
Spain’s central government in Madrid has pledged to block in court such moves.
Polls suggest a majority of Catalans favor a referendum on independence but are evenly divided over whether they want to secede.
Polling stations in the wealthy north-eastern province have opened open at 09:00 local and will close at 20:00.
More than five million people are eligible to cast their votes.
Artur Mas’ ruling Convergencia party and Esquerra Republicana have created a single list of candidates – under the banner “Junts pel Si” (Together for Yes).
They say that September 27 vote is a de facto referendum on independence from Spain.
They argue that the Spanish government has consistently refused to allow a legally recognized referendum, ignoring an unofficial vote backing independence in November 2014.
The anti-independence vote in Catalonia is split between a number of groups, including Spanish PM Mariano Rajoy’s Popular Party.
The centre-right government in Madrid has described any breakaway plans as “a nonsense”.
Mariano Rajoy argues that because the loss of Catalonia would affect all of Spain, the democratic approach would be for all of the country to vote in a referendum on Catalonia’s future.
At the same time, if “Together for Yes” fails to gain a majority it would be tantamount to a serious defeat for the pro-independence movement.
Addressing a UN summit on development goals, Chinese President Xi Jinping has pledged to establish a $2 billion fund to assist developing countries and to significantly increase investment.
Xi Jinping said investment would reach $12 billion over the next 15 years.
He also said China would cancel debts to the world’s least developed nations, including small island nations.
Beijing, the Chinese leader added, would assist in 600 overseas projects in the next five years and offer more scholarships.
“Looking around the world, the peace and development remain the two major themes of the times,” Xi Jinping said.
“To solve various global challenges, including the recent refugee crisis in Europe, the fundamental solutions lie in seeking peace and realizing development.
“Facing with various challenges and difficulties, we must keep hold of the key of the development. Only the development can eliminate the causes of the conflicts.”
Xi Jinping’s pledges of aid give a big boost to the launch of the UN’s new Global Goals for Sustainable Development – the day after all members states committed themselves to a hugely ambitious program.
The plan aims to eradicate poverty and hunger by 2030.
It was China’s extraordinary record shifting so many families out the ranks of the poor which ensured that the overall global record in poverty reduction under the previous Millennium Development Goals was substantial.
Now China is offering to help other countries – particularly in Africa.
This new initiative also suggests China is willing to take on more of the responsibilities that go with its status as emerging superpower.
Bangkok bomb attack suspects Adem Karadag and Yusufu Mieraili have been forced to reenact their alleged role in bombing the Erawan Shrine, Thai police say.
Such re-enactments are standard police procedure in Thailand.
Earlier police said one of the men, named as Adem Karadag, was suspected of planting the bomb in the attack on August 17, contradicting what they had previously said.
The motive for the bombing, which killed 20 people, remains unclear.
Fourteen foreigners were among those killed.
Authorities now say they have enough evidence to prosecute the two men and say that Adem Karadag has confessed.
This contradicts earlier statements from police that neither of two men were the main suspects for the attack.
Adem Karadag, who has also been named as Bilal Mohammed, was arrested in late August in a raid on a flat on the eastern outskirts of Bangkok. His lawyer says he was not in Thailand at the time of the attack.
Police have released warrants for a total of 17 people over charges stemming from the attack.
The suspects are believed to carrying Chinese, Thai, Turkish and Pakistani passports, though their exact origins are unclear as some are thought to be using fake documents.
Many of the suspects named by Thai police have Muslim-sounding names, prompting speculation that they may be linked to jihadist networks or to Uighur separatist militants from China.
However, the police have not suggested that the attack was politically motivated.
The Erawan shrine – with its four-faced golden statue of the Hindu god Brahma – is considered sacred by Thai Buddhists, and attracts many foreign visitors.
The assets of General Gilbert Diendere, the leader of Burkina Faso’s failed coup, have been frozen by state prosecutors.
Another 13 people suspected of involvement have also had their assets frozen, the state prosecutor says.
Interim President Michel Kafando was reinstated on September 23 after an intervention from the army and West African leaders following last week’s coup.
On September 25, Michel Kafando’s government ordered the presidential guards’ unit that carried out the coup to be disbanded.
At least 10 people were killed and more than 100 injured in clashes during the take-over which Gilbert Diendere described as “the biggest mistake”.
In a statement announcing the latest move, state prosecutor Laurent Poda said that the assets of 14 people, including Gen. Gilbert Diendere and his wife Fatou Diendere, a lawmaker for the former ruling party, would be frozen for three months.
During this period, they would only be able to withdraw 300,000 CFA ($512) a month.
On September 25, the first full meeting of the government since Michel Kafando’s reinstatement decided to disband the presidential guard (RSP) and to dismiss the minister in charge of security.
The RSP – a unit of 1,200 well-armed and well-trained men – is loyal to Blaise Compaore, the country’s long-time ruler who was ousted in a popular uprising last year. They were unhappy about being integrated into the regular army.
Members of the unit stormed the cabinet room on September 16, seizing the interim president, the prime minister and others.
A week later, when it became clear they did not enjoy popular support and after a threat from the regular army to step down or be ousted by force, the RSP withdrew.
An emergency meeting of the regional bloc ECOWAS earlier in the week also helped to bring a smooth end to the crisis.
Blaise Compaore is currently in exile and was accused of committing widespread abuses, and trying to change the constitution to extend his term in office.
Japanese climber Nobukazu Kuriki, who lost nine fingers to frostbite in 2012, is nearing the final stage of an attempt to climb Mount Everest.
Latest contact suggests that Nobukazu Kuriki, 33, has reached the South Col, where he will rest before a final push on September 26 to reach the summit.
Nobukazu Kuriki is the first person to attempt the climb since Nepal’s devastating earthquake in April.
It will be his fifth try at reaching the summit in the past six years.
Nobukazu Kuriki is expected to rest on the South Col for about seven to eight hours before attempting the final leg of the climb.
Tackling the final stretch overnight allows climbers to reach the summit and descend in daylight, and the lack of heating from the Sun can mean lower winds.
Nobukazu Kuriki, who arrived in Nepal more than a month ago to begin acclimatizing, is so far the only person scheduled to climb Everest during the challenging autumn season.
He is following the same route used by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay when they became the first people to reach the summit in 1953.
Nobukazu Kuriki prefers to climb in winter, alone and with minimal gear.
“This is the purest form of climbing and it is worth the extra danger,” he has said.
He has taken on Everest alone four times in the previous six years but has been forced to abandon the climb each time with the summit in view.
In 2012, Nobukazu Kuriki lost all of his fingers and one thumb after spending two days in a snow hole at 27,000 feet (8,230m) in temperatures lower than -20C.
His injuries present significant challenges in even the most basic climbing maneuvers.
“I do feel nervous and afraid,” he told Reuters shortly after arriving in Nepal.
“This is only natural before attempting the challenge of climbing Everest, particularly after the earthquake and at this time of year.”
Nepal’s lucrative climbing industry was destroyed by the April 25 earthquake which killed more than 9,000 people and the avalanches that followed.
If Nobukazu Kuriki is successful, his climb may help to reinvigorate the ailing industry, correspondents say.
Construction and mining equipment maker Caterpillar has announced it could cut its workforce by more than 10,000 by 2018.
The US-based company – which employs more than 126,000 worldwide – said it would cut up to 5,000 jobs by the end of 2016.
Caterpillar is looking to reduce annual costs by $1.5 billion by the end of 2016.
The company has been hit by the collapse of commodity prices which have affected its key customers in the mining and energy sectors.
It has reduced its revenue forecast for this year by 2% to $48 billion and says 2016 earnings will fall 5%.
It will be first time in Caterpillar’s 90 year history that sales revenues have fallen for four years in a row.
Caterpillar shares were the biggest faller on the Dow Jones index on September 24, losing almost 6% as the market opened.
Doug Oberhelman, Caterpillar chairman and chief executive, said: “We are facing a convergence of challenging marketplace conditions in key regions and industry sectors – namely in mining and energy.”
The company has reduced its total workforce by more than 31,000 since mid-2012.
Caterpillar warned there could be a “total possible workforce reduction of more than 10,000 people” and said it expected to close some 20 manufacturing facilities over the next three years.
Doug Oberhelman said: “While we’ve already made substantial adjustments as these market conditions have emerged, we are taking even more decisive actions now.
“We don’t make these decisions lightly, but I’m confident these additional steps will better position Caterpillar to deliver solid results when demand improves.”
Japan’s core consumer price index (CPI), fell on an annual basis for the first time in over two years in August.
The CPI, which includes oil but not fresh food prices, declined 0.1% from a year ago – the first drop since April 2013.
The headline consumer price index rose 0.2% from a year ago, but remained flat from the previous month.
Photo Reuters
Deflation fears have plagued Japan, putting pressure on policymakers.
PM Shinzo Abe and Bank of Japan have pledged to get the economy out of the deflation it has been battling for years.
Even though the fall in prices in August was expected, economists said the latest reading would result in Japan’s central bank stepping up its pace of easing in October.
Japanese Economics Minister Akira Amari told the media on September 25 that it was up Bank of Japan to take appropriate steps on monetary policy after the data came out.
Nike’s profits have beaten expectations, helped by rapidly rising sales in China.
For Q3 2015, the world’s biggest sportswear maker reported a profit of $1.18 billion, up 23% from a year earlier.
Total revenues rose 5.4% to $8.41 billion, with sales in Greater China up 30% to $886 million.
The rise comes despite the slowdown in China’s economy, which is heading towards its weakest growth in 25 years.
Several global retailers have been hit hard by slowing sales in China.
However, Nike said sales in China were “amazing” and it had seen a strong performance in all categories.
“While we are very mindful of the macroeconomic volatility in China, our brand has never been stronger and our marketplace has never been more healthy,” said CFO Andy Campion.
The results mark the ninth consecutive time that Nike has beaten expectations for its profit.
Nike’s New York-listed shares were up 7.5% in after-hours trading in reaction to the results.
Saudi Arabia’s Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin-Abdullah al-Sheikh has said Thursday’s stampede that killed 717 people at the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca was beyond human control.
The country’s most senior cleric told the interior minister, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, that he was not to blame for the tragedy.
Iran and several other countries have criticized Saudi authorities for the way they handled safety issues.
It was the deadliest incident to occur during the pilgrimage in 25 years.
King Salman of Saudi Arabia has ordered a safety review.
Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin-Abdullah al-Sheikh was visited by the crown prince, who is also deputy prime minister and chairman of the Supreme Hajj Committee, on September 25, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
“You are not responsible for what happened,” the grand mufti said, the SPA reported.
“As for the things that humans cannot control, you are not blamed for them. Fate and destiny are inevitable.”
The cleric’s remarks came after Iran’s Supreme National Security Council accused the Saudis of “incompetence” and urged them to “take responsibility” for the deaths.
Iran has so far reported the greatest number of deaths among foreign nationals – 131.
Voices from other countries are also demanding answers from the Saudis, and the king’s promise of an investigation and review has done little to still the clamor for greater accountability.
The crush occurred on September 24 as two million pilgrims were taking part in the Hajj’s last major rite.
The pilgrims throw seven stones at pillars called Jamarat, which stand at the place where Satan is believed to have tempted the Prophet Abraham.
With temperatures around 46C, two massive lines of pilgrims converged on each other at right angles at an intersection close to the five-storey Jamarat Bridge in Mina, a large valley about 3 miles from Mecca.
It is also the second disaster to strike in two weeks, after a crane collapsed at the Grand Mosque in Mecca, killing 109 people.
Chinese President Xi Jinping met President Barack Obama at the White House during his trip in the US.
The two presidents have said they will take new steps to address cybercrime.
Speaking at a joint news conference at the White House, Barack Obama said they had agreed that neither country would engage in cyber economic espionage.
The deal covers the theft of trade secrets but not national security information.
Xi Jinping also pledged to limit greenhouse gas emissions.
Barack Obama said any escalation in China’s alleged cybercrimes against the US would prompt sanctions.
“It has to stop,” he said.
“The question is now, are words followed by action?”
Reflecting on the use of sanctions against either individuals, businesses or state-run companies, Barack Obama said: “We will apply those, and whatever other tools we have in our tool kit, to go after cybercriminals either retrospectively or prospectively.”
Both countries deny taking part in the cybertheft of commercial secrets.
Xi Jinping said the two countries would not “knowingly support” such practices and said they would both abide by “norms of behavior” in cyberspace.
“Confrontation and friction are not the right choice for both sides,” said Xi Jinping, speaking through a translator.
The cybertheft of intellectual property designed to benefit Chinese industry was described by former National Security Agency Director Keith Alexander as “the greatest transfer of wealth in history”.
US officials have alleged that the Chinese state was behind a massive data security breach of government databases as well as attacks on private firms. That kind of breach is not covered by this deal.
Barack Obama thanked Xi Jinping for introducing a cap-and-trade emissions trading system to limit greenhouse gas production.
The White House on September 25 put out a fact sheet on the US and China’s joint national carbon emissions trading scheme set to launch in 2017.
The “cap-and-trade” scheme would see Chinese companies charged to emit pollutants beyond a certain level.
China said it would commit $3.1 billion to help developing countries reduce carbon emissions, along with other initiatives outlined in the fact sheet that would align China’s climate work with that of the US.
There were also areas of sharp disagreement.
Barack Obama expressed concerns about the growing tensions in the South China Sea and criticized China’s human rights record, saying that preventing lawyers, journalists and others from operating freely is an obstacle to China living up to its potential.
Adem Karadag, who was arrested in Thailand over a deadly bombing at Bangkok’s Erawan shrine in August is indeed the bomber, say Thai police contradicting earlier statements.
A police spokesman said the man Adem Karadag was the figure in a yellow shirt seen on CCTV leaving a bag at the Erawan shrine.
Thai police had earlier said neither of two men in their custody were the main suspects for the August 17 attack.
The motive for the bombing, which killed 20 people, remains unclear.
Fourteen foreigners were among those killed.
Police have released warrants for a total of 17 people over charges stemming from the attack.
The suspects are believed to carrying Chinese, Thai, Turkish and Pakistani passports, though their exact origins are unclear as some are thought to be using fake documents.
Adem Karadag, who has also been named as Bilal Mohammed, was arrested in late August in a raid on a flat on the eastern outskirts of Bangkok.
Thai police had said DNA samples taken from him did not match the DNA found on evidence that the bomber is believed to have left behind on the night of the attack.
Police also appeared to rule out that a second man in their custody – identified as Yusufu Mieraili – was a main suspect in the attack.
However, on September 25, police spokesman Prawut Thornsiri said one of the warrants issued was for “Bilal Mohammed, who is the man in yellow who placed the rucksack at the Erawan shrine”.
“All the information we have leads back to him.”
Many of the suspects named by Thai police have Muslim-sounding names, prompting speculation that they may be linked to jihadist networks or to Uighur separatist militants from China.
However, the police have not suggested that the attack was politically motivated.
The Erawan shrine – centered around a four-faced golden statue of the Hindu god Brahma – is considered sacred by Thai Buddhists, and attracts many foreign visitors.
About 11 million VW vehicles worldwide have diesel engines with software “irregularities”.
The automaker plans to set aside 6.5 bn euros ($7.3 bn) in Q3 2015 to cover the costs of addressing the issue. The amount of provisions it needs could still change as the investigation continues, VW said.
United States: Scandal emerged following findings by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Department of Justice and New York regulators have launched criminal investigations
Germany: Transport Ministry to send fact-finding committee to Volkswagen
Canada: Environmental Agency investigating some 100,000 Volkswagen and Audi diesel cars
Switzerland: Task force set up to investigate. Switzerland has temporarily banned the sale of VW diesel-engine models which could have devices capable of tricking emission tests.
Italy: Spot checks to be carried out on at least 1,000 diesel vehicles, transport minister says
United Kingdom: Vehicle Certification Agency to re-run lab tests and compare with “real-world” driving emissions
France: Random checks on 100 diesel cars aimed at “ensuring the absence of fraud”, says Environment Minister Segolene Royal
South Korea: Environment Ministry to investigate 4-5,000 Jetta, Golf and Audi A3 vehicles, could extend to all German diesel cars if problems found
The sale of VW diesel-engine models which could have devices capable of tricking emission tests has been temporarily halted in Switzerland.
The move could affect 180,000 cars – not yet sold or registered – in the Euro5 emission category.
This comes after VW, the world’s largest automaker, admitted cheating on emissions tests in the US.
Meanwhile, Matthias Muller has been named new VW CEO in the wake of the scandal.
He succeeds Martin Winterkorn, who resigned on September 23.
The row erupted after it emerged that some VW cars being sold in the US had devices in diesel engines that could detect when they were being tested, changing the engine performance to improve results.
The ban was announced by the Swiss Federal Roads office on September 25.
In a statement, it said vehicles that have 1.2-litre 1.6-litre and 2.0-litre diesel engines of VW models – including VW’s Audi, Seat and Skoda brands – could be affected.
The ban does not apply to vehicles that are already in circulation or cars with Euro6 emission category engines.
The Swiss authorities have also set up a taskforce to fully investigate the issue.
After his appointment, Matthias Muller said restoring the company’s reputation was his top priority.
“My most urgent task is to win back trust for the Volkswagen Group – by leaving no stone unturned and with maximum transparency, as well as drawing the right conclusions from the current situation.”
He also announced sweeping changes to the way the company was run, including handing greater autonomy to regional divisions.
Matthias Muller said he would tighten up procedures at the company: “At no point was the safety of our customers in danger. We will now have even stricter compliance. Our objective is that the people continue to use and drive our vehicles with confidence and pleasure. That’s 80 million people driving our cars worldwide.”
The EPA’s findings of the scandal cover 482,000 cars in the US only, including the VW-manufactured Audi A3, and the VW brands Jetta, Beetle, Golf and Passat.
But VW has admitted that about 11 million cars worldwide are fitted with the so-called “defeat device” – 2.8 million of them in Germany – and further costly recalls and refits are possible.
Half of VW’s sales in Europe – the company’s biggest market – are for diesel cars.
VW shares plunged around 30% in the days after the scandal broke.
Transport authorities in several countries have announced their own investigations.
