US air security further tightened in wake of bomb plot

　　US air security further tightened in wake of bomb plot

　　

　　The US is taking additional air security measures in the wake of last month's airliner bomb plot, a senior official has said.

　　Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said the measures included enhanced random screening and more air marshals on some routes.

　　Ms Napolitano referred to the "continued threat" from al-Qaeda.

　　The US had already boosted security following the attempted attack on a trans-Atlantic jet on 25 December.

　　A 23-year-old Nigerian, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, has been accused with trying to detonate a bomb on a flight to Detroit and has been charged with the attempted murder of 290 people. He has pleaded not guilty.

　　Air marshals and better screening were among the measures announced by US President Barack Obama after an intelligence review last week.

　　'Systemic' failings

　　Ms Napolitano said on Thursday that the US was "taking an additional set of aviation security precautions to protect the American people".

　　"Some of these measures include enhanced random screening, additional federal air marshals on certain routes and adding individuals of concern to our terrorist watch list system," she said.

　　"As a result of these measures and others we have put in place since Christmas, travellers should allot extra time when flying - particularly into the United States from overseas."

　　Mr Obama has criticised "systemic" intelligence failings over the plot.

　　Last week he announced that he had ordered an immediate strengthening of the terrorist watch list, information on security risks would be distributed more widely, and analysis of that information would be improved.

　　Mr Abdulmutallab's name was on a US database of about 550,000 suspected terrorists, but not on a list that would have subjected him to extra screening or prevented him from boarding a flight to the US.

　　He caught the flight to Detroit from the Netherlands, after connecting from a flight from Nigeria.

　　Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, which is based in Yemen, claimed responsibility for the failed bomb attack.

Rising obesity prompts higher antibiotic doses call

　　Rising obesity prompts higher antibiotic doses call

 

　　Patients may have to be prescribed higher doses of antibiotics because of rising rates of obesity, say doctors.

　　The standard "one-size fits all" dose may not clear infection in larger adults and increases the risk that resistance will develop, they argue.

　　More work is needed to guide GPs on how and when to alter doses, an editorial in The Lancet to accompany the study by doctors from Greece and the US says.

　　GPs said it was an interesting theory but may end up being expensive.

　　Around one in four adults in England is classified as obese - an increase from 15% in 1993.

　　

　　Given the fact people are getting larger, use of standard doses of antibiotics in all adults, regardless of size, is outdated, argue two doctors from Greece and the US.

　　Size and even the proportion of body fat a person has, can effect the concentration of antibiotics in the body, potentially reducing how effective they are in larger patients, they say.

　　And failure to clear an infection because too small a dose is given may raise the risk of resistance - already an increasing problem for doctors.

　　Likewise, smaller than average patients may get too much drug, and suffer greater side-effects as a consequence.

　　Guidance

　　An accompanying editorial said dose adjustments could easily be made if research was done to guide doctors in treating obese patients.

　　Professor Steve Field, chair of the Royal College of GPs said he would encourage "appropriate" antibiotic prescribing and lots of patients are given them unnecessarily.

　　But he added: "Patients are getting taller and larger and it does seem right that patients are given the appropriate strength of drug.

　　"However, this might cost a lot of money because pharmaceutical companies would have to provide different doses of medication.

　　"At the moment, most come in two strengths and we would not want to see an increase in costs."

　　He added that GPs will already use their judgment to alter medication doses where necessary.

　　Professor Hugh Pennington, an expert in antibiotics from the University of Aberdeen, said antibiotics would differ in how size altered their effectiveness.

　　"But studies on this would not be hard to do.

　　"If you have too little of a drug it's not going to be good for treating the infection but it also raises the possibility that the organism will become resistant.

　　"They're such powerful drugs, we want to make sure we are using them properly."

 

European car sales up in December

　　

　　

　　European car sales rose by 16% in December, marking signs of recovery in the sector after another tough year.

　　However, total sales for 2009 were down 1.6% on 2008, according to figures from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA).

　　Some countries with scrappage schemes saw rises in sales in 2009, including France and Germany.

　　Sales in the UK were down 6.4% for the year as a whole, though December sales were up 39% compared with a year ago.

　　A total of 14.5 million cars were sold across 28 European countries in 2009.

　　Scrappage effect

　　Ivan Hodac, secretary general of the EAMA, warned that the positive figures for December compared with an extremely bad period for the sector at the end of 2008.

　　

　　He added that some manufacturers would also suffer from the end of many scrappage schemes.

　　"The scrappage schemes mainly benefited the volume manufacturers like Volkswagen, Renault and Fiat," he said.

　　"2010 will be extremely difficult for these companies."

　　Germany saw the biggest rise in sales last year - up more than 23% compared with 2008. But sales for December were lower than a year ago, following the end of the German car scrappage scheme in September.

　　The UK's scrappage scheme is due to run out in February, with a quota system for manufacturers introduced to share out the remaining money.

　　Mr Hodac also said that Europe was still making too many cars.

　　"Overcapacity has to be addressed as soon as possible, but it will take time," he said.

　　"I'm not saying brands will disappear, but groups will become bigger, brands will change hands, and production will be cut."

 

US retail sales see surprise fall

　　

　　

　　Sales at US retailers saw an unexpected fall in December, casting uncertainty over the recovery of the US economy.

　　Retail sales fell by 0.3% compared with November, figures from the US Commerce Department said.

　　Sales of electrical goods and cars saw some of the biggest falls, though core sales - which exclude cars, fuel and building materials - still fell.

　　Concerns over job security are expected to continue to restrict spending, with unemployment still at 10%.

　　Many economists expect unemployment to keep rising until the middle of the year.

　　December's figures end a tough year for US retailers, with total sales for 2009 down 6.2% on the previous year.

　　But sales were expected to have been stronger, given the string of retailers reporting positive results for the festive season.

　　Job worries

　　The weaker-than-expected retail figures will add to concerns over the strength of the recovery in the US economy.

　　In December, the US unexpectedly cut a further 85,000 jobs after seeing some job creation in November.

　　Economists are still predicting a recovery in 2010, but warn that it will be slow.

　　"I don't think that portends a new downturn in the economy, but it does serve as a warning that the recovery is going to take some time to put in place here," commented Chris Rupkey, chief financial economist at the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi in New York.

Strong quarterly results at Intel

　　Strong quarterly results at Intel

　　

　　Chip maker Intel has seen fourth quarter profit soar as the personal computer market started shrugging off the effects of the recession.

　　Computer orders were up sharply during the quarter, which was good news for Intel, which dominates the personal computer microchip.

　　Sales climbed 29% to $10.6bn (£6.5bn), beating analysts' outlook of $10.2bn.

　　Investors look to the chip maker's earnings as a barometer of business and consumer demand in the US economy.

　　'Positive'

　　Intel is the first major technology company to report its results. Its net income in the three months to 26 December was $2.3bn , compared with net income of $234m a year before.

　　"It's definitely positive for the overall tech market," said David Kanter, analyst at Real World Technologies.

　　"Intel to a large extent tells you the health of the PC and computer market and that drives a tremendous amount of other activity including analogue semiconductors, and other people who fit into that ecosystem that are slightly less integral and more of a complement to the PC chip."

　　Chip makers are coming out of the industry's worst downturn in decades and are expected to benefit from increased technology spend by large firms in 2010.

China property prices accelerate

　　China property prices accelerate

　　

　　Chinese property prices rose at their fastest annual rate in 18 months in December, official figures show.

　　Real estate prices rose by 7.8% from a year ago - up from the 5.7% annual rise seen in November and renewing fears that an asset bubble is developing.

　　Chinese authorities have expressed concerns that property prices are rising too fast.

　　On Tuesday, China's central bank announced measures to curb lending in order to reduce real estate investment.

　　Lending boom

　　Last year, Chinese banks issued $1.5 trillion (£932bn) in loans in order to boost economic growth - with a large proportion being used to invest in property.

　　One of the leading rating agencies, Fitch Ratings, has been among those expressing concern over the trend, arguing that too much lending could harm the banking sector as well as the property sector.

　　"Fitch is concerned about an eventual deterioration in banks' asset quality, amid the loan growth acceleration in 2009," the ratings agency said.

　　"High investment spending, particularly in the real-estate sector, also carries the risk of asset price misalignments."

　　Banks have been told to increase the amount of capital they hold in order to curb lending, and Chinese city authorities have been told to speed up property developments and build more low-cost housing.

　　The government also this month brought back a sales tax on property sold within five years of its purchase to discourage speculators looking to make quick profits.