Fifa denies African fans priced out of World Cup

　　Only the most dedicated fans will make it to South Africa

　　A senior Fifa official has denied African football fans are being priced out of the World Cup in South Africa.

　　"It will be a real African World Cup," Jerome Valcke told the BBC. Most stadiums would be sold out, he added.

　　However, fans in the African countries that have qualified say tickets are being sold on the internet, to which they have limited access.

　　Furthermore, even if they could afford tickets, few African fans have credit cards, needed for online purchases.

　　"To sell tickets online is very unrealistic," Cameroonian football fan and librarian Kini Nsom Sylvanus told the BBC's World Today programme.

　　

 

I can walk through fire for the Lions, so you can imagine the joy in my heart

 

　　Kini Nsom Sylvanus

　　Cameroonian football fan

　　

 

　　World Cup countdown begins

　　"Checking my mail is a very difficult thing, let alone going to look for the website of Fifa to apply for a ticket. It is going to block many people.

　　"I am very unhappy about that."

　　But he said he was elated Cameroon had qualified for the first World Cup to be held in Africa.

　　"I can walk through fire for the Lions, so you can imagine the joy in my heart."

　　The BBC's Randy Joe Sa'ah says that the Cameroonian government usually pays for a small group of official fans to attend international matches but many more fans would like to travel to South Africa.

　　Mr Valcke said the world's football authority was trying to work with airline companies to offer tickets, so African fans could travel to the showpiece event, which kicks off in 100 days.

　　He said 2.3 million tickets had been sold, out of a total of 2.9 million.

　　A spokesperson for South Africa's home affairs department told the BBC that African fans who could prove they had bought tickets would be given special fee-free visas for the World Cup.

　　But she stressed that the normal requirements, such as proof of finance, vaccination certificates and a return ticket, would also have to be met.

　　Mr Valcke added that 10 matches were already sold out and extra tickets were being made available for South Africans, at a lower price.

　　Other African fans, however, will not benefit from these - the cheapest tickets available to them is $80 (£54) per match.

　　Mr Valcke also said he was confident all the stadiums, pitches and transport facilities would be ready in time.

GM potato cleared for EU farming

　　

　　

　　The Amflora potato has not been cleared for human consumption

　　The European Commission has cleared the way for a genetically modified potato to be grown in the EU - only the second GM product it has allowed.

　　The Amflora potato can be utilised for animal feed and industrial uses - such as its starch being used to make paper - but not for human consumption.

　　Environmental groups have strongly opposed the introduction of GM crops.

　　But the Commission insisted its decision was based on "a considerable volume of sound science".

Ice deposits found at Moon's pole

　　India's Chandrayaan-1 probe carried US equipment to the Moon

　　A radar experiment aboard India's Chandrayaan-1 lunar spacecraft has identified thick deposits of water-ice near the Moon's north pole.

　　The US space agency's (Nasa) Mini-Sar experiment found more than 40 small craters containing water-ice.

　　But other compounds - such as hydrocarbons - are mixed up in lunar ice, according to new results from another Moon mission called LCROSS.

　　The findings were presented at a major planetary science conference in Texas.

　　The craters with ice range from 2km to 15km (one to nine miles) in diameter; how much there is depends on its thickness in each crater. But Nasa says the ice must be at least a couple of metres thick to give the signature seen by Chandrayaan-1.

　　Dr Paul Spudis, from the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston, estimated there was at least 600 million metric tonnes of water-ice held within these impact craters.

　　The equivalent amount, expressed as rocket fuel, would be enough to launch one space shuttle per day for 2,200 years, he told journalists at the 41st Lunar and Planetary Science Conference.

　　What all these craters have in common are large areas of their interiors that never see sunlight.

　　Extreme cold

　　Temperatures in some of these permanently darkened craters can drop as low as 25 Kelvin (-248C; -415F) - colder than the surface of Pluto - allowing water-ice to remain stable.

　　"It is mostly pure water-ice," said Dr Spudis. "It could be under a few tens of centimetres of dry regolith (lunar soil)."

　　This protective layer of soil could prevent blocks of pure ice from vaporising even in some areas which are exposed to sunlight, he explained.

　　

　　Ice thrown up by the LCROSS impact was in a crystalline form

　　In February, President Barack Obama cancelled the programme designed to return Americans to the Moon by 2020.

　　However, Dr Spudis said: "Now we can say with a fair degree of confidence that a sustainable human presence on the Moon is possible. It's possible using the resources we find there.

　　"The results from these missions, that we have seen in the last few months, are totally revolutionising our view of the Moon."

　　Chandrayaan-1 was India's contribution to the armada of unmanned spacecraft to have been launched to the Moon in recent years. Japan, Europe, China and the US have all sent missions packed with instruments to explore Earth's satellite in unprecedented detail.

　　In Nasa's LCROSS mission, a rocket and a probe were smashed into a large crater at the lunar south pole, kicking up water-ice and water vapour.

　　Spectral measurements of material thrown up by the LCROSS impact indicate some of the water-ice was in a crystalline form, rather than the "amorphous" form in which the water molecules are randomly arranged.

　　Water source

　　"There's not one flavour of water on the Moon; there's a range of everything from relatively pure ice all the way to adsorbed water," said the mission's chief scientist Anthony Colaprete, from Nasa's Ames Research Center.

　　"And here is an instance inside Cabeus crater where it appears we threw up a range of fine-grained particulates of near pure crystalline water-ice."

　　Overall, results from recent missions suggest there could be several sources for lunar ice.

　　One important way for water to form is through an interaction with the solar wind, the fast-moving stream of particles that constantly billows away from the Sun.

　　Space radiation triggers a chemical reaction in which oxygen atoms already in the soil acquire hydrogen nuclei to make water molecules and the simpler hydrogen-oxygen (OH) molecule. This "adsorbed" water may be present as fine films coating particles of lunar soil.

　　In a cold sink effect, water from elsewhere on the lunar surface may migrate to the slightly cooler poles, where it is retained in permanently shadowed craters.

　　Scientists have also reported the presence of hydrocarbons, such as ethylene, in the LCROSS impact plume. Dr Colaprete said any hydrocarbons were likely to have been delivered to the lunar surface by comets and asteroids - another vital source of lunar water.

　　However, he added, some of these chemical species could arise through "cold chemistry" on interstellar dust grains accumulated on the Moon.

　　In addition to water, researchers have seen a range of other "volatiles" (compounds with low boiling points) in the impact plume, including sulphur dioxide (SO2) and carbon dioxide (CO2).

　　The results from the Mini-Sar instrument are due to be published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. The team is currently analysing results for craters at the Moon's south pole.

 

Wembley pitch is one of the worst, says James Milner

　　

　　International friendly - England v Egypt

　　Venue: Wembley Stadium Date: Wednesday, 3 March Kick-off: 2000 GMT

　　Coverage: Live on ITV1, full commentary on BBC Radio 5 live and online, live text updates on BBC Sport website.

　　

　　Milner criticised the Wembley pitch after Sunday's Carling Cup final

　　James Milner says the Wembley pitch is hard to play on and he has experienced better surfaces at lower league teams.

　　The midfielder played in Aston Villa's Carling Cup final loss there on Sunday and said he hoped it would be better on Wednesday when England take on Egypt.

　　"You work as hard as you can to get to a final and it's one of the worst pitches you play on all year," he said.

　　"It was worse than the couple of lower league team's pitches we have played on, to be honest."

　　Milner added: "Wembley's the home of England. You want the best surface possible and, at the moment, it is not quite there."

　　The 24-year-old scored Aston Villa's goal in their 2-1 defeat by Manchester United on Sunday.

　　Milner acknowledged that the game had been played after a period of torrential rain but still felt the playing surface was not good enough.

　　

606: DEBATE

　　Your predictions for England v Egypt

　　"The Wembley pitch was very difficult to play on. It was slippy, cutting up, and hopefully it can improve because it wasn't good," he added.

　　"There has been a lot of rain so maybe it was poorer on Sunday than it has been.

　　"But, when I've played there before, I've never thought, 'this is a great surface'.

　　"Growing up and watching games at the old Wembley, everyone says it was like a carpet. In a cup final, you want to be playing in a great stadium, which it is, on a great pitch.

　　"I'm not a groundsman but, if you compare it to somewhere like Arsenal, that is one of the best surfaces you will play upon.

　　"If they could get it anywhere near the same as that, we'd be well happy."

 

Lewis Hamilton splits with father Anthony as manager

　

　　

　　Lewis and father Anthony, as well as half-brother Nick, enjoy a close relationship

　　Lewis Hamilton will no longer be managed by his father Anthony as the two look to build a closer family bond away from the rigours of Formula 1.

　　Anthony has overseen Lewis' career since he was eight years old, and was an instrumental figure in guiding the 25-year-old into F1 and the 2008 title.

　　But with Anthony's own business interests growing, the Hamiltons have decided to part ways professionally.

　　"I'm 25 now. I think it was inevitable there had to be change," said Lewis.

　　"Over the past few years, we looked around to see if we could bring someone else into the picture to help with the situation, whether to help with guidance, sponsors, or whatever it was.

　　"We looked at it and I just never felt comfortable with anyone else. My dad is my dad. But all of this time we were discussing bringing someone else in, we never quite had the confidence to do it.

　　

606: DEBATE

　　I think we are starting to see the beginnings of a very different Hamilton compared to the racer we were first formally introduced to in 2007

　　MajorDanby

　　"I think we're now at the point where we are looking to take that step, and I think it is a positive step.

　　"I've been in F1 for quite a while now and I wouldn't have been able to do it without my dad. He's done a fantastic job, but he's done that job."

　　And Lewis admits it will be refreshing to build his personal relationship with his father away from the pair's business interests.

　　"What I am really, really excited about now is having my dad just as my dad," Lewis told Autosport. "I want to have a manager who can take care of all the stresses and do all the other stuff, and then I want to do dad things with my dad.

　　"I want to go for a beer with my dad. I want to go bowling with my dad. I want to go on holiday with my dad.

　　"Then I want to be able to say to him: 'How is GP Prep going?', and I want to be able to tell him about all the experiences I am having too - but as a dad.

　　"I want to be able to have that, and build that relationship.

　　"I want my dad to know, and I want everyone to know, he is always going to be my dad. This is us taking a natural progression step."

Financiers 'hold Manchester United takeover talks'

　　

　　

　　Some Manchester United fans are protesting against the Glazers' ownership

　　By John Sinnott

　　

　　A group of financiers - dubbed the "Red Knights" - has met to discuss a billion-pound takeover of Manchester United, BBC Sport understands.

　　United are owned by the Glazer family, but the club's high level of debt - now at £716.5m - has prompted much unease.

　　Goldman Sachs economist Jim O'Neill, who was acting in a personal capacity, lawyer Mark Rawlinson and financier Keith Harris were at the meeting.

　　A spokesman for the Glazers told BBC Sport: "United is not for sale."

　　However, United's owners are now facing a two-pronged attack over their control of the club with the Manchester United Supporters' Trust (Must) running a vocal campaign to bring about a change of ownership.

　　Keith Harris reveals interest in Man Utd takeoverMust's chief executive Duncan Drasdo confirmed the group had been in attendance at Monday's Red Knight meeting and had been involved in discussions with the group "for some time".

　　"This development is hugely welcome as there is a genuine desire to see a change of ownership at Manchester United," he said.

　　"Initially the Red Knight Group has effectively set a challenge to Manchester United supporters to demonstrate they wish to see an alternative ownership proposal developed.

　　"In the first instance supporters are being asked to do this simply by joining the free online membership of the Supporters Trust and swelling its ranks to an initial target of at least 100,000.

　　"It is also essential for a majority of two key groups, the Old Trafford Season Ticket holders and those with Executive facilities, to show their appetite for participation by joining the Must online campaign."

　　Must has recruited 53,520 members and recently started working with Blue State Digital, a communications agency that worked on Barack Obama's successful US Presidential election campaign.

　　Their "Green and Gold" campaign has seen supporters don the colours of Newton Heath - the club was renamed Manchester United in 1902 - with plenty of green and gold scarves in evidence at Sunday's Carling Cup final.

　　BBC sports news correspondent Gordon Farquhar says the idea of an attempt to oust the Glazers has been a long time in coming.

　　"The takeover of Manchester United by the Glazers was controversial, and many fans were opposed to the way the deal was put together, involving high levels of borrowing," he said.

　　"The latest accounts show debts at United's parent company increased to more than £700m, and a recent bond issue, while successful, raised concerns further

　　"The vocal campaign has been stiffened by the emergence of the Red Knights group which includes bankers and business experts.

　　"Keith Harris has advocated fans starving the club of cash by not renewing season ticket or buying merchandise to force the club to consider a sale

　　"Should that happen this consortium wants to be ready to make an offer but for now, according to the Glazers' spokesman, the door is firmly closed."

　　The City financiers insist that their initiative is about changing the owners and that they have complete confidence in chief executive David Gill and manager Sir Alex Ferguson.

　　The "Red Knights" group also accepts that any takeover would have to be agreed by the Glazers, but that the club's American owners cannot prevent them from putting forward a proposal.

　　

　　Man Utd fans have staged 'green and gold' protests against the Glazers

　　The financiers are also understood to want supporters to play a key role in their campaign.

　　According to the latest accounts that were released in January, debts at United's parent company Red Football Joint Venture have increased to £716.5m.

　　Red Football Joint Venture is owned by the Glazer family and secures its debts against the football club, but the accounts also confirmed that six of Malcolm Glazer's children were each given loans worth £1.67m from the parent company.

　　

　　All are directors of Red Football, and such a practice is legal, but Harris, who is the head of merchant bank Seymour Pierce, has said it did "not create a good impression of the directors' governance of the company".

　　On Sunday, United beat Aston Villa 2-1 in the Carling Cup final to give Ferguson his 34th trophy with the club.

　　The "Red Knights" group is due to release a statement on Tuesday.

 

Portsmouth are ordered back to court by HMRC

　　

　　

　　Portsmouth are the first Premier League club to go into administration

　　Portsmouth are to return to the High Court on Tuesday after Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs challenged the club going into voluntary administration.

　　"We're having to go to court to show that the debenture [debt agreement] is valid," said administrator Andrew Andronikou, the man running the club.

　　"We're not unduly worried and expect the administration to proceed."

　　Pompey's move into administration means HMRC is now ranked below their football-related creditors in priority.

　　Andronikou will also meet the Premier League on Tuesday to discuss Pompey's proposed nine-point penalty for entering administration.

　　The deduction would leave the Hampshire club on 10 points - 14 from safety and virtual certainties for relegation to the Championship.

　　On Thursday, Andronikou will attend a meeting of Premier League chairmen to explore whether clubs would consider allowing Portsmouth to sell players and then take them back on loan for the remainder of the season.

　　

　　There will also be a discussion of the possibility of television revenue being forwarded early to the club, who have had four owners this season and on Friday became the first Premier League club to enter administration.

　　A Pompey spokesman said: "We don't want to pre-empt anything or pre-judge what will happen, but hopefully the Premier League and our fellow Premier League clubs will be as sympathetic as possible to our situation.

　　"The Premier League have been incredibly understanding and [club owner] Balram Chainrai would like to place on record his gratitude to chief executive Richard Scudamore, chairman Sir David Richards, company secretary and head of football administration Jane Purdon, general secretary Mike Foster and director of finance and administration Javed Khan."

　　Meranwhile, Culture Secretary Ben Bradshaw said Portsmouth's financial woes should act as a "wake-up call" to the sport's authorities.

　　The game's governing body had some "very tough questions" to answer about football finance, the MP told the House of Commons.

　　

　　He urged the Football Association to adopt the changes to the way the game is run that were recommended by Lord Burns in 2005.

　　And the minister said more clubs should follow the example of Exeter City in his constituency - a football club run by its fans.

　　"We do think that there remain some very tough questions for the football authorities to address, given the events at Portsmouth and elsewhere, issues around debt, around takeovers and strengthening the whole financial governance of football," he stated.

 

Keane joins up with Republic squad to face Brazil

　　

　　

　　Keane is currently on loan at Celtic from Tottenham

　　Robbie Keane has joined the Republic of Ireland squad ahead of Tuesday's friendly against Brazil in London after recovering from a knee problem.

　　The striker was initially ruled out after aggravating the injury in Celtic's loss to Rangers on Sunday.

　　Aston Villa defender Richard Dunne is out after sustaining an unspecified muscle injury in Sunday's Carling Cup final defeat by Manchester United.

　　He looks certain to be replaced by Hull City's Paul McShane.

　　Republic boss Giovanni Trapattoni will make a late decision about whether to start with Keane or Newcastle's Leon Best alongside Kevin Doyle of Wolves.

　　Wigan's James McCarthy, Portsmouth's Marc Wilson and Manchester City's Greg Cunningham could all be given their Republic senior debuts at some stage in the game.

　　

　　The match will see both goalkeeper Shay Given and left-back Kevin Kilbane set a new record of 103 appearances for the Republic.

　　Keane will notch his 96th international appearance if he plays.

　　Brazil coach Dunga left AC Milan pair Ronaldinho and Pato out of his squad while Sevilla striker Luis Fabiano is ruled out by injury.

　　Dunga called up Wolfsburg's Grafite and Hoffenheim midfielder Carlos Eduardo as replacements while Adriano, Nilmar, Robinho, Kaka, Elano and Julio Baptista are also in the Brazil squad.

　　The match at Arsenal's Emirates Stadium against the Republic is Brazil's last scheduled friendly before the World Cup finals in South Africa begin in June

GM recalls 1.3m cars over power steering fault

　　

　　

　　GM says the affected cars are still safe to drive

　　General Motors (GM) is recalling 1.3 million small cars in North America because of a power steering problem that has been linked to 14 crashes.

　　The firm said four models were affected - the Chevrolet Cobalt, Pontiac G5, Pontiac Pursuit and Pontiac 4.

　　It said the fault meant that at low speeds "greater steering effort may be required", but that the cars could still be "safely controlled".

　　GM blamed the fault on a supplier partially owned by Toyota.

　　GM vice-chairman Bob Lutz told the BBC at the Geneva Motor show: "This is a case where, yes, we would blame a partially Toyota-owned supplier."

　　

 

Recalling these vehicles is the right thing to do for our customers' peace of mind

 

　　Jamie Hresko, GM vice president of quality

　　Mr Lutz said the supplier had not met "all requirements for reliability and durability".

　　"So we will have to see who takes financial responsibility," he said. "But this is a risk you sometimes take when you buy a complete system from a supplier."

　　Complaints

　　GM said it had told the US car safety regulator - the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) - about the recall on Monday when it finished an investigation that started last year.

　　

ANALYSIS

　　

　　By Jorn Madslien, Business reporter, BBC News, Geneva

　　Good news at the Geneva motor show is tempered by bad news out of the US.

　　GM hopes its investment of an additional 1.3bn euros in its European Opel/Vauxhall subsidiary will convince European governments to back its remaining funding requirements by guaranteeing loans.

　　But as GM recalls some 1.3 million models in the US, it seems reluctant to take responsibility for the faulty power steering, as the part in question was produced by a Toyota-owned subsidiary.

　　GM's willingness to pass the buck could further damage Toyota's image - or it could backfire as the affair turns into a mighty row that could involve the US and Japanese governments as well as their largest automotive groups.

　　New investment for Opel

　　The NHTSA itself had been investigating the problem since 27 January after receiving more than 1,100 complaints, including 14 crashes and one injury.

　　The recall covers the 2005 to 2010 model year Chevrolet Cobalt, and 2007 to 2010 Pontiac G5 sold in the US.

　　In addition, it includes the 2005 to 2006 Pontiac Pursuit sold in Canada, and the 2005 to 2006 Pontiac G4 sold in Mexico.

　　"After our in-depth investigation, we found that this is a condition that takes time to develop," said GM vice president of quality, Jamie Hresko.

　　"It tends to occur in older models out of warranty. Recalling these vehicles is the right thing to do for our customers' peace of mind."

　　Toyota recalls

　　The GM recall comes as Toyota is continuing to call back more than eight million cars around the world following accelerator and braking problems.

　　The Japanese carmaker also said on Tuesday that it is repairing another 1.6 million vehicles in the US and Japan over leaky oil hoses.

　　The Toyota recalls are still being investigated by US politicians, and three US Toyota bosses are due to appear later before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation.

　　US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has also been called to attend the hearing, as the committee continues to investigate the speed of the recalls and the response of the authorities.

　　Toyota president Akio Toyoda appeared before a separate congressional committee last week - the House Oversight Committee - to apologise and promise that lessons would be learned.

Real Madrid top football rich list for fifth year

　　

　　By Bill Wilson

　　Business reporter, BBC News

　　

 

　　

　　Real Madrid and other large clubs can rely on continued fan loyalty, Deloitte says

　　Real Madrid have topped the league table of the world's richest football clubs for the fifth straight year, according to Deloitte's sport unit.

　　Its Football Money League, based on data for season 2008/09, also says Real are the first global sports team to see annual revenues top 400m euros (£357m).

　　Real's arch-rivals Barcelona have taken second spot in the list, ahead of Manchester United who drop to third.

　　Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool are fifth, sixth and seventh respectively.

　　

  With international TV rights becoming an increasingly important source of income and leagues competing for attention around the world, the Spanish model has clear dangers.  

　　Nils Blythe, Business correspondent

　　

 

　　Why TV is the key to Real success

　　The authors said that United would have been top of the Money League if the pound was still at June 2007 levels.

　　But they point out that, despite exchange rate issues, seven of the top 20 in its table are from England, the other three being Tottenham (15th), Manchester City(19th), and relegated club Newcastle United (20th).

　　All the 20 clubs represented are from the "big five" European leagues, with Germany contributing five clubs, Italy four, and France and Spain two each.

　　'Challenges'

　　Real retained top position despite a disappointing season, coming second in La Liga and exiting the Champions League at the Round of 16 stage.

　　

BUSINESS OF SPORT DEBATE

　　

　　Join leading figures in football for a BBC debate:

　　The Business of Sport - Football in the Red.

　　It will be broadcast live on Tuesday 2 March (all times GMT)

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　　But they were boosted by a much-improved television contract with Mediapro, guaranteeing the club more than 1.1bn euros over seven seasons.

　　Arch-rivals Barcelona had a hugely successful season, winning La Liga and the Champions League - beating Manchester United, who won the English Premier League in 2008/09, in the final.

　　"We continue to assert that the game's top clubs are well placed to meet the challenges presented by the difficult economic environment," said Deloitte's Dan Jones, who compiled the report.

　　"Their large and loyal supporter bases, ability to drive broadcast audiences, and continuing attraction to corporate partners, provide a strong base to underpin revenues."

　　He said that this was shown by the fact that the combined revenues of the top 20 Money League clubs was over 3.9bn euros in 2008/09, up 26m euros on the previous year.

　　And the majority of Money League clubs maintained average match attendances when comparing 2008/09 with 2007/08.

　　There was not a great deal of movement in the top 20, with two new clubs - Werder Bremen and Manchester City - replacing VfB Stuttgart and Fenerbahce.

　　

WEALTHIEST CLUBS BY REVENUE

　　1) Real Madrid: 401.4m euros

　　2) Barcelona: 365.9m euros

　　3) Man Utd: 327m euros

　　4) Bayern Munich: 289.5m euros

　　5) Arsenal: 263m euros

　　6) Chelsea: 242.3m

　　7) Liverpool: 217m euros

　　8) Juventus: 202.3m euros

　　9) Inter Milan 196.5m euros

　　10) AC Milan: 196.5.m euros

　　Source: Deloitte: 2008/09

　　Mr Jones said the limited change "reflects the fact that those clubs with the largest supporter bases in strongest economic markets, high attraction to commercial partners, and consistent participation in European competition, will dominate the top positions".

　　Football income

　　However, there were warnings that many clubs now face "increased pressure on ticket pricing strategies and all clubs will continue to face challenges in managing match day" returns.

　　And the report also points out that the current season, 2009/10, will offer clarification about whether the global recession has had a major impact on clubs' revenues.

　　The Deloitte review does not include the cost of transfer fees or player wages, or VAT and other sales taxes, and concentrates solely on day-to-day income from football business.

　　Income includes money from ticket sales, sponsorship, merchandising and other commercial revenues, television monies, corporate hospitality, and non-match day stadium use such as for conferences.

　　The list had been headed by Manchester United for eight years until Real Madrid deposed them.

 

GM pledges more money for Opel restructuring

　　

　　

　　GM has been awaiting aid from the German government

　　General Motors says it will spend 1.9bn euros ($2.6bn; £1.7bn) to restructure its European unit Opel - three times more than it had first pledged.

　　GM estimates that Opel - which includes the UK's Vauxhall business - needs 3.3bn euros to be turned around.

　　The carmaker is now asking that European governments put up loans and guarantees worth 2bn euros, down from 2.7bn euros.

　　GM hopes to have Opel back to profitability by 2012.

　　The decision comes as GM said it will recall 1.3 million Chevrolet and Pontiac cars sold in the US, Canada and Mexico to fix power steering problems.

　　'Strong commitment'

　　"We have shared this decision with the European Commission as well as the national and state governments involved," said Opel chief Nick Reilly.

　　

ANALYSIS

　　

　　By Jorn Madslien, Business reporter, BBC News, Geneva

　　Good news at the Geneva motor show is tempered by bad news out of the US.

　　GM hopes its investment of an additional 1.3bn euros in its European Opel/Vauxhall subsidiary will convince European governments to back its remaining funding requirements by guaranteeing loans.

　　But as GM recalls some 1.3 million models in the US, it seems reluctant to take responsibility for the faulty power steering, as the part in question was produced by a Toyota-owned subsidiary.

　　GM's willingness to pass the buck could further damage Toyota's image - or it could backfire as the affair turns into a mighty row that could involve the US and Japanese governments as well as their largest automotive groups.

　　GM recalls 1.3m cars over fault

　　"We hope that our strong commitment will be well received as a major milestone in our ongoing discussions about government guarantees to cover the remaining gap."

　　The carmaker had asked for about 60% of the total aid to come from the German government, on the basis that 60% of the company's employee costs of almost 50,000 are incurred in Germany.

　　Reports have said that Germany wanted more funding to come from GM before it committed to providing aid.

　　"Beyond the purely financial aspects, we see this as a major step towards instilling renewed trust and confidence into Opel/Vauxhall's customers, employees, business partners, unions, dealers and European governments," said GM chairman Ed Whitacre.

　　The relationship between Germany and GM has been difficult since the US firm decided to keep Opel rather than sell it to Canadian car parts maker Magna, which Germany had supported.

　　The new tripling of funds may be controversial. GM is 62%-owned by the US government since emerging from bankruptcy last year - meaning that more US taxpayer money is being spent in Europe.

　　Job losses

　　GM is cutting 8,300 jobs across Europe and is closing plants as it seeks to revive the brand.

　　No jobs will be lost at the Ellesmere Port factory in Cheshire, which employs 2,166 people and makes the Vauxhall Astra.

　　But last month it confirmed more than 510 jobs were to go at Vauxhall's Bedfordshire van plant, and 369 jobs would be lost at its Luton plant.

　　It also plans to invest 11bn euros "in a new product offensive" over the next five years

　　Opel plans to launch eight new models this year, and another four in 2011.

Google to buy photo-editing site Picnik

　　

　　

　　Google is back on the acquisition trail

　　Internet search giant Google has bought online photo-editing site Picnik - its third deal in three weeks.

　　The firm did not disclose the cost of buying Picnik - a five-year-old start-up based in Seattle.

　　The 20-strong team will start working on Picasa, Google's online photo sharing service.

　　In an eventful period since September, Google has bought eight companies, introduced a social network named Buzz and threatened to pull out of China.

　　Last month, Google bought social search engine Aardvark and mobile e-mail service reMail.

　　It also said it would become a network provider, offering super-fast broadband to thousands of US homes.

　　In October, Google chief executive Eric Schmidt said the company would resume its historic pace of acquiring one small company a month on average, with larger deals happening every year or two.

　　Google said on 12 January that hackers had tried to infiltrate its software coding and the e-mail accounts of Chinese human rights activists, in a "highly sophisticated" attack.

　　The California-based company, which launched in China in 2006, said it would quit the country unless the government relaxed censorship.

　　China has denied being behind the attacks.

　　It also launched Google Buzz, a social network that is part of its e-mail, but was heavily criticised for not offering enough privacy protections.

 

Euro drops to lowest in 10 months against dollar

　　

　　

　　The euro has fallen to its lowes

　　Persistent worries over its 300bn- euro ($419bn; £259bn) debt has weighed on the European single currency.

　　The euro traded at $1.3436 in late morning, its lowest since May 2009.

　　The pound was lower for a sixth day, down 0.4% to $1.4936 following concerns over a possible hung parliament and the UK's high level of debt.

　　The euro was up 0.4% against the pound, to 90.53 pence.

　　The UK - and eurozone members such as Greece and Spain - have borrowed heavily, making financial markets more nervous about their ability to pay.

　　European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso told Austrian newspaper Kurier that European Union (EU) governments need to be more disciplined over their public finances.

　　"Every euro spent to finance the debt cannot be used for schools, hospitals or innovation," Mr Barroso said.

　　

We have a contract which rules out the possibility of bailing out other nations

　　Angela Merkel

　　

　　Paul Mason: Sterling panic

　　Mr Barroso also told Austrian newspaper Kurier that European Union (EU) governments need to be more disciplined over their public finances.

　　Bail-out concerns

　　Greece is moving ahead with efforts to trim its vast budget deficit, as it struggles to sort out its finances.

　　But the proposed austerity measures - such as freezing public sector pay, raising taxes and changing the pension system - have provoked huge street protests.

　　Greece has pledged to reduce its deficit from 12.7% - more than four times eurozone rules - to 8.7% during 2010.

　　Greece's Prime Minister George Papandreou is due to visit German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin on Friday, in what could be a key meeting to decide what, if any, Europe-wide assistance Greece receives.

　　She said again on Sunday that Greece had to sort out its own problems.

　　"We have a contract which rules out the possibility of bailing out other nations," said Ms Merkel.

 

China demands Iran nuclear talks, despite US pressure

　　

　　

　　Tehran says its nuclear programme is for civilian energy purposes

　　China says diplomacy should be given further time in the dispute over Iran's nuclear programme, as US officials press for new sanctions on Tehran.

　　China's latest statement came as a senior US diplomat, James Steinberg, arrived in Beijing on the highest level visit since a series of bilateral rows.

　　On Monday, Moscow signalled it would consider new sanctions against Tehran.

　　And Iran rejected a UN International Atomic Energy Agency claim it was not co-operating with its investigation.

　　World powers say Iran is enriching uranium to make nuclear weapons, but Tehran says its atomic programme is solely for civilian energy purposes.

　　Asked about Moscow's statement, China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said: "We call for a resolution of the Iranian nuclear issue through diplomatic means.

　　

  Sanctions should be calibrated and smart... [they] should not target the civilian population  

　　Dmitry Medvedev　　Russian President

　　"We believe there is still room for diplomatic efforts and the parties concerned should intensify those efforts."

　　Speaking in Paris on Monday, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said he was open to the idea of sanctions - as a last resort.

　　"Russia is ready, together with our other partners, to consider introducing sanctions" if there is no breakthrough in the negotiations, he told a news conference after talks with French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

　　"These sanctions should be calibrated and smart. These sanctions should not target the civilian population," the Russian leader was quoted as saying by AFP news agency.

　　Washington and other Western powers want the backing of China - a veto-wielding member of the UN Security Council - for a proposed resolution slapping new sanctions on Tehran.

　　Washington hopes the visit by Mr Steinberg and the National Security Council Senior Director for Asian Affairs, Jeffrey Bader, will help ease Sino-US tensions.

　　"We've gone through a bit of a bumpy path here, and I think there's an interest both within the United States and China to get back to business as usual as quickly as possible," State Department spokesman Philip Crowley told reporters in Washington.

　　Beijing and Washington are at odds over a Taiwan arms deal, trade matters, internet censorship, and US policy towards Tibet.