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Published
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April 28, 2016, inVol. 17,
No. 83
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San
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28, 2016, Vol. 17, No. 83
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Go to Page 5 HERE! Go to Page 6 HERE! Sports is HERE! Opinion is HERE! Classifieds are HERE! Plus useful links |
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Business leader rejects salary hike idea By the A.M. Costa
Rica wire services
The loss of thousand of jobs and a negative impact in formal employment. These are the two main concerns for employers in response to an initiative that seeks to double minimum salaries through a referendum. According to Ronald Jiménez, president of Unión Costarricense de Cámaras y Asociaciones del Sector Empresarial Privado, the whole idea is an act of irresponsibility that is impossible to comply with. “Unions are planning something that will leave families without their income. Thousands will be fired. Salaries are to be set on technical grounds and for that we have the Consejo Nacional de Salarios.” he said. Right now, minimum wages are determined by the consejo with representatives from the government, unions and employers debating the amounts every six months. The adjustment is mainly based on accrued inflation. However, unions plan to collect enough signatures to call for a popular approval of the so called Vital minimum salary bill, which would grant unskilled private workers with a basic income to meet the needs in housing, food, education and other aspects. “If the referendum actually takes place, I'm hopeful that Costa Ricans will understand that, though it looks like a really beautiful idea, in reality it is a very bad one. We can not afford salary increases in a country where the inflation remains at zero. No one can.” Jiménez said. According to Jiménez, salaries should be calculated in the same way they have been so far. Our reader’s
opinion
Doubling wage means
unemploymentDear A.M. Costa Rica: My husband and I own a small hobby farm in an area of high unemployment. We pay our worker slightly more than minimum wage and of course, we pay his social benefits. Our worker supports his wife and children, lives in his own house, has no debts and is able to put away a small sum in the bank every year. Since he started working for us (about 5 to 6 years ago) the cost of his social benefits has nearly doubled. If this referendum is passed, we will have to terminate his employment. We simply will not be able to afford him. He will be unemployed and the only jobs occasionally available are cutting cane or picking coffee (which pay less than the minimum wage of salaried workers). Doubling the minimum wage will mean higher unemployment. Another ramification of such a wage increase is that prices for everything will increase. Please don’t support this dangerous idea. Desiree Wyant
Tuis, Turrialba
Online freedom conference in October By the A.M. Costa
Rica staff
Costa Rica will host a conference of the Freedom Online Coalition Oct. 17 and 18. The organization involves 29 countries that support the concept that the human rights people have offline also apply online. Manuel González, the Costa Rican foreign minister, is the chairman this year of the coalition.
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San
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April 28, 2016, Vol. 17, No. 83
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| Colorado
experts predict an average 2016 Atlantic hurricane
season |
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By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The Colorado State University hurricane center predicts an average season this year with 13 named storms in the Atlantic. The center predicts six hurricanes with two of them expected to be major. The center at the Department of Atmospheric Science at the university said there is a 40 percent chance of a major Caribbean hurricane. The experts, Philip J. Klotzbach and William M. Gray, said that the current weakening of El Niño is likely to change to either a neutral or a La Niña condition by the peak of the hurricane season. The tropical Atlantic, they said, is relatively warm and the North Atlantic is quite cold. The cold creates conditions that are not conducive to the formation of hurricanes and their intensification, they said. The forecast is based on 29 years of data. The Atlantic already had one hurricane this year, Alex, which took place in January. That was unusual because the hurricane season usually is considered to be from June 1 to Nov. 30. However, the experts note that hurricanes can happen at any time. The 2015 hurricane season was abnormally low, perhaps due |
 National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration photo
Hurricanes Kilo, Ignacio, and Jimena, all major
hurricanes, are seen in this unusual photo from space
Aug. 30 in the central and eastern Pacific. to El Niño. There were just four hurricanes, and two of them were major. Costa Rica has seen very few hurricanes in historic times, but the backlash from many have caused major flooding and other problems, particularly in the western part of the country. The eastern north Pacific hurricane season runs from May 15 through Nov. 30, and last year was the second most active season on record with 16 hurricanes. Typically the storms head northwest, although some can touch México. The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has yet to make a prediction. |
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| A.M. Costa Rica's Fourth News page | ||
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San
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April 28, 2016, Vol. 17, No.
83
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| More carbon dioxide gives a big boost to
planet's plant life, study says |
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By the National Areonautics and
Space Administration
news staff From a quarter to half of Earth’s vegetated lands has shown significant greening over the last 35 years largely due to rising levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide, according to a new study published in the journal Nature Climate Change. An international team of 32 authors from 24 institutions in eight countries led the effort, which involved using satellite data to help determine the leaf area index, or amount of leaf cover, over the planet’s vegetated regions. The greening represents an increase in leaves on plants and trees equivalent in area to two times the continental United States. Green leaves use energy from sunlight through photosynthesis to chemically combine carbon dioxide drawn in from the air with water and nutrients tapped from the ground to produce sugars, which are the main source of food, fiber and fuel for life on Earth. Studies have shown that increased concentrations of carbon dioxide increase photosynthesis, spurring plant growth. However, carbon dioxide fertilization isn’t the only cause of increased plant growth. Nitrogen, land cover change and climate change by way of global temperature, precipitation and sunlight changes all contribute to the greening effect, said researchers. To determine the extent of carbon dioxide’s contribution, researchers ran the data for carbon dioxide and each of the other variables in isolation through several computer models that mimic the plant growth observed in the satellite data. Results showed that carbon dioxide fertilization explains 70 percent of the greening effect, said co-author Ranga Myneni, a professor in the Department of Earth and Environment at Boston University. “The second most important driver is nitrogen, at 9 percent. So we see what an outsized role CO2 plays in this process.” |
 Boston
University/R. Myneni
This image shows the change in leaf area across the
globe from 1982 to 2015. Green areas are where
vegetation increased. Red areas are where vegetation
decreased.About 85 percent of Earth’s ice-free lands is covered by vegetation. The area covered by all the green leaves on Earth is equal to, on average, 32 percent of Earth’s total surface area, oceans, lands and permanent ice sheets combined. The extent of the greening over the past 35 years “has the ability to fundamentally change the cycling of water and carbon in the climate system,” said lead author Zaichun Zhu, a researcher from Peking University, China, who did the first half of this study with Myneni as a visiting scholar at Boston University. Every year, about half of the 10 billion tons of carbon emitted into the atmosphere from human activities remains temporarily stored, in about equal parts, in the oceans and plants. “While our study did not address the connection between greening and carbon storage in plants, other studies have reported an increasing carbon sink on land since the 1980s, which is entirely consistent with the idea of a greening Earth,” said co-author Shilong Piao of the College of Urban and Environmental Sciences at Peking University. |
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A.M. Costa Rica's
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San
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April 28, 2016, Vol. 17, No.
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woes of working overseas By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
Arzu Geybullayeva was a correspondent for Agos, an Armenian bilingual weekly newspaper published in Istanbul, in 2014 when she faced an ugly campaign from the Azerbaijani government to hurt her credibility with the Azerbaijani people. Authorities called her a traitor because the government was not happy with her critical reporting. "I was doing a lot of work with Armenians at the time,” she said. “I was co-directing a small not-for-profit organization that did dialogue programs between Armenians and Azerbaijanis. But the funny thing is, when I was called a traitor and they made an enemy of the state out of me, they never mentioned anything about my critical reporting. They always mentioned my Armenian link and how I was writing for an Armenian paper in Istanbul . . . and I was selling government secrets." This, Ms. Geybullayeva said, is still a very common method to discredit journalists in Azerbaijan. "It's the easiest way to get public support, because we are in a war with Armenia and there are a lot of people who are fed propaganda," she added. Her story is included in a new book released by the Committee to Protect Journalists. It brings together essays from female journalists who shared stories about the threats and online abuse they faced while reporting. For the launching of the committee’s annual Attacks on the Press, a panel discussion was held at the Newseum in Washington, D.C., where four journalists told their stories of sexual violence, online harassment and gender-based discrimination. Board Chairwoman Sandy Rowe said this edition is a different approach because the committee decided to focus on the intersection of gender and press freedom. The need for a book like this, Ms. Rowe said, became apparent five years ago when Lara Logan, a CBS correspondent, was sexually assaulted while covering Arab Spring protests in Egypt. "Five years later, I can tell you that the landscape is better in some ways, and in some ways, it's worse," Ms. Rowe said. Although words can change the world, Ms. Rowe said, they can also do tremendous harm. She points to the damage caused by internet trolls who target female reporters for abuse that includes threats of physical and sexual violence. "I think online — we've seen time and time again — women are subject to so much more abuse online as a foreign correspondent. Really, as a freelancing correspondent, I'm aware that any place in the world, the situation can turn for me," said Molly McCluskey, a freelance foreign correspondent. Ms. McCluskey has been stalked and harassed even for neutral stories such as those that give financial advice. She is now very selective about where she goes around the world to do reporting. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, platforms like Twitter allow anonymity or pseudo-anonymity for predators while Facebook prohibits anonymity, or makes it more difficult. The women suggested solutions to resolve some of these issues, such as having managers in the newsroom who can offer better support, or even a policy change that could address online anonymity. Ms. Logan, who attended the discussion, said she knew her story needed to be told. The CBS correspondent endured at least 25 minutes of brutal sexual assault and beating by a mob the day Egyptian ruler Hosni Mubarak stepped down from power. An Egyptian doctor who treated her after she was safely taken to a hotel refused to listen to what had happened at Cairo's Tahrir Square. "I wanted to tell him what happened to me, and he didn't want to know cause that was more than he could process. And he just kept saying to me, ‘Stop talking. You're lucky to be alive,' " she said. No one would look at her. No one would talk to her. At that moment, she said, "I felt like I disappeared." Cruz names Carly Fiorina as his vice presidential pick By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
Struggling U.S. presidential candidate Rafael “Ted” Cruz has picked the former computer technology executive and ex-foe, Carly Fiorina, for the nomination as his vice presidential running mate. Cruz, who trails Donald Trump in the race for the Republican nomination, called her an extraordinary leader who has the experience and intelligence to take over the presidency if necessary. Ms. Fiorina once headed the computer giant Hewlett-Packard before being ousted in a corporate boardroom shakeup. She ran for the Republican nomination and appeared in a number of debates before dropping out of the race in February after winning little support from voters. After Cruz announced her as his running mate, she said she was "proud, humbled and honored" to accept. Candidates usually wait until their party conventions before naming a vice presidential running mate. But Cruz, who has no mathematical chance of catching Trump in the delegate count, has vowed to stop Trump from securing the nomination at July's Republican convention. He is looking toward a deadlocked convention, and hopes that having Fiorina already on his team would help him win the nomination on a second or third ballot. Trump mocked Cruz for choosing a running mate so early. He said the Texas senator "doesn't even have a chance" of winning the nomination. Trump rips foreign policy of Mrs. Clinton and Obama By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
Donald Trump, the leading U.S. Republican presidential contender, called Wednesday for sharp changes in U.S. foreign policy to put American interests first, claiming that currently it "is a complete and total disaster." Trump, a one-time television reality show host who has never held elective office, had not previously laid out his foreign policy goals in a comprehensive way. But in a 38-minute speech at a Washington hotel, he attacked President Barack Obama's handling of U.S. foreign affairs and decisions made by his one-time top diplomat, former U.S. secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Mrs. Clinton is the likely Democratic presidential candidate who would face Trump if he is the Republican nominee in November's national election. Trump charged that Obama and Mrs. Clinton have overseen a reckless, rudderless and aimless foreign policy. He said there is no vision, no purpose, no direction, no strategy. The White House immediately dismissed Trump's broadside, saying that the United States is safer and stronger than when Obama took office in 2009. Trump also blamed, without naming him, the policies of President George W. Bush that led to the years-long war in Iraq after the 2001 terrorist attacks on the U.S. Trump, a billionaire who is closing in on the Republican presidential nomination but has yet to clinch it, said that U.S. mistakes in the Mideast "began with the dangerous idea that we could make Western democracies out of countries that had no experience or interest in becoming a Western democracy. We tore up what institutions they had, and then we were surprised at what we had unleashed: civil war, religious fanaticism, thousands of Americans just killed, lives, lives, lives wasted, horribly wasted." He vowed that if he is elected president and replaces Obama when the president leaves office in January he would destroy Islamic State insurgents in the Mideast, referring to them by one of their acronyms, ISIS. "ISIS will be gone," Trump said. "ISIS will be gone very, very quickly." Trump said he is the only U.S. presidential candidate who knows how to improve the country's chronic trade deficit. He said U.S. rivals don't take us seriously, mocking the fact that foreign leaders did not greet Obama at airports as he arrived for recent state visits in Cuba and Saudi Arabia. "America is going to be strong again," Trump said. "It is going to be reliable again. It is going to be a friend again." Shortly before Trump's speech at Washington's Mayflower Hotel, a protester was evicted. Those who heard his speech greeted it with occasional polite applause. In months of campaigning for the Republican nomination, Trump has often mentioned some specific measures he would undertake, saying he would build an impenetrable wall along the Mexican border to halt the illegal stream of migrants into the United States, deport the 11 million illegal immigrants already in the U.S. and temporarily ban Muslims from entering the country. But he did not specifically mention any of them Wednesday. At various times, he has said he would renegotiate an international agreement with Iran to curb its nuclear program, pursue better European and Pacific trade deals than those negotiated by Obama and rethink U.S. involvement in the North American Treaty Organization, the West's military alliance since the end of World War II. FBI won’t give any details about hacking of iPhone By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
The FBI confirmed Wednesday it will not reveal how it was able to gain access to the iPhone used by one of the shooters in last December’s terror attack in San Bernardino, California. After failing to crack the security codes itself and seeking a court order that required iPhone-maker Apple to write new software to disable the phone’s passcode protection, officials last month paid an outside firm more than $1.3 million to gain access. Investigators concluded they simply do not know enough about the process used to get into the iPhone 5c belonging to gunman Syed Rizwan Farook to share any more with the public. In a statement released Wednesday, FBI Executive Assistant Director Amy Hess said the agency paid to crack the password protection but it “did not, however, purchase the rights to technical details about how the method functions, or the nature and extent of any vulnerability upon which the method may rely in order to operate.” “As a result, currently we do not have enough technical information about any vulnerability that would permit any meaningful review . . . ,” she said. Presumably the agency would invoke some of the many Freedom of Information Act exceptions to avoid identifying the firm to which it paid $1.3 million. The move, for now, sidesteps a contentious debate over not just the San Bernardino iPhone, but also about how the issue will be handled in future cases. FBI officials have said previously that the technique used to access the data would not work on other so-called smart phones. FBI Director James Comey had hinted at the FBI decision Tuesday during a conference on cyber engagement at Georgetown University, saying “I think we’re close to a resolution." Comey also said Tuesday he was very glad the litigation with Apple regarding the iPhone encryption was over, though he cautioned, ”it would be bad if the conversation this started ended.” The FBI director also sought to reassure private companies that the government and law enforcement are looking for what he described as a constructive relationship, similar to what many companies have with local fire departments, which understand the layout of their buildings in case of an emergency. Little-known flu virus said to have major impact By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
Everyone knows about the flu, and the common cold, but not as many people are familiar with norovirus, despite the fact that it runs rampant around the world, sickening nearly three-quarters of a million people each year and costing billions in lost productivity. Norovirus causes severe diarrhea, nausea and vomiting. It is responsible for about 50 percent of all gastrointestinal illnesses around that world, not only in developed countries but emerging nations as well. And it kills approximately 219,000 people a year. Bruce Lee is a professor of international health at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health. He and his colleagues estimated the cost of norovirus in 233 countries, regions and territories around the world. The figure they came up with: upwards of $60 billion a year in lost productivity, due to personal illness or caring for a sick child. “We were interested in quantifying or better characterizing the impact of norovirus because it’s something that you’ve heard of, but if you think about it, you're not really sure what the impact, how often does it occur, how widespread is it.” The actual number of people who get sick with norovirus, said Lee, may be an underestimate because a substantial number of cases go unreported. “So people may suffer with the symptoms and they think, 'well I’ve got a stomach bug,' quote end quote, and 'I’ve got some food poisoning' and they never really report it or get diagnosed,” he said. Researchers report their estimates in the journal PLoS One. Their calculations are thought to be the first regarding the global impact of norovirus. Lee said the disease is a very aggressive intestinal illness, causing the worst diarrhea most people have ever had. While there is no vaccine for norovirus, Lee hopes greater awareness will lead to control measures. These include washing hands and disinfecting food preparation areas. He said people who fall ill should also be encouraged to stay home. “Many times, people who work in restaurants or the food preparation industry feel obligated to show up to work even though they are sick, because many folks are on wages and they can’t afford to miss a day, even a day . . . so they’ll come in sick and then they’ll end up contaminating food and spread it to many other people,” Lee said. Lee said there are experimental vaccines under development, although they are not funded to the same degree as drug research for other illnesses, but said he hopes one will emerge that will help contain the spread of norovirus. Chinese investment in U.S. expected to break record By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
Chinese investment in the United States is expected to break records this year, as massive amounts of money continue to flow from China. Chinese companies looking to expand and merge with U.S. firms are expected to invest $20 billion to $30 billion in many sectors. Sean Miner oversees the China program at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, and said this is good news for the U.S. economy. “It’s going to bring thousands of direct and indirect jobs," the company says. Officially as the composition of the Chinese investment in the U.S. changes now, around two-thirds of that investment is in services, from entertainment, health care, IT and financial services. Chinese companies are not just going to merge with these firms, purchase these firms, but also create new investment, improve this process.” China invested $11.9 billion in the United States in 2014. Investment grew to $15 billion last year. These figures are just a fraction of China’s outbound capital flow, most of which still goes to Europe and Asia. Only one-eighth of China’s outbound investment went to the United States last year. Those figures are set to grow though, as concerns about China’s economic slowdown and the strength of its currency persist. Raymond Yeung, China economist at ANZ, said, “There is also worry about weakening of the Chinese yuan, and these expectations for depreciation basically prompt investors to send money abroad in order to chase a higher yield and protect the currency value.” While Chinese investment in the United States lags behind Japan, Germany and Britain, it faces greater scrutiny. Many Chinese deals are evaluated by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, an interagency panel that examines foreign acquisitions of U.S. companies. In this election year, the pace of Chinese investment, while reaching record highs, may be hindered by concerns over national security, and complaints that China’s markets are not open to equal amounts of investment by American firms. A bilateral investment treaty between the United States and China has stalled, and Anbang Insurance Group’s failed acquisition of Starwood Hotels and Resorts may be an example of the kinds of hurdles that Chinese companies face in purchasing U.S. assets. Anbang walked away from the $14 billion deal, following criticism of a lack of transparency over its ownership and financial structure. Feds crack down on gangs involved in New York war By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
More than 100 gang members have been arrested in New York, in what the authorities are calling the largest gang takedown in the city's history. "Today, we seek to eviscerate two violent street gangs that have allegedly wreaked havoc on the streets of the northern Bronx for years by committing countless acts of violence against rival gang members and innocents alike," Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said Wednesday. Two gangs, "2 Fly YGZ" and "The Big Money Bosses" have been at war with each other for nearly a decade, Bharara said. The 120 members and associates of the gangs were charged with racketeering, narcotics, and firearms offenses. The early morning raids involved hundreds of law enforcement officers from the New York Police Department and federal agencies, some using helicopters and armored vehicles to round up the suspects. Brief, intense exercises said to rival longer efforts By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
Not having time to exercise may no longer be an excuse, according to one researcher. Writing in the journal PLOS One, researchers from McMaster University in Canada say that just one minute of intense exercise “produces health benefits similar to longer, traditional endurance training.” “This is a very time-efficient workout strategy,” says Martin Gibala, a professor of kinesiology at McMaster and lead author on the study. “Brief bursts of intense exercise are remarkably effective.” For the study, 27 sedentary men were split into three groups, either performing intense workouts, doing moderate training or doing no training. The researchers monitored each group’s cardiorespiratory health as well as how well their body regulated blood sugar. The intense training consisted of three, 20-second “all-out” cycle sprints, “including a two minute warm-up and three minute cool down, and two minutes of easy cycling for recovery between the hard sprints.” The moderate group did 45 minutes of cycling with the same warm-up and cool down. At the end of the study, ”the results were remarkably similar,” researchers said. “Most people cite lack of time as the main reason for not being active,” said Gibala. “Our study shows that an interval-based approach can be more efficient, you can get health and fitness benefits comparable to the traditional approach, in less time.” Dwarf planet is found to have a small moon By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
Astronomers have discovered a moon orbiting the dwarf planet Makemake. Makemake is the second brightest dwarf planet in the Kuiper Belt after Pluto. Called S/2015 (136472) 1 and nicknamed MK 2, the moon was spotted in April of 2015 using the Hubble Space Telescope. Astronomers say the moon is about 21,000 kilometers from Makemake and is about 161 kilometers across. The Kuiper Belt is believed to be made up of leftover material from the creation of the solar system about 4.5 billion years ago. "Our preliminary estimates show that the moon's orbit seems to be edge-on, and that means that often when you look at the system you are going to miss the moon because it gets lost in the bright glare of Makemake," said Alex Parker of the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado, who led the study. Makemake was discovered in 2005 and is named after a deity of the Rapa Nui people of Easter Island. It measures roughly 1,400 kilometers across. It is one of the five dwarf planets officially acknowledged by the International Astronomical Union. "Makemake is in the class of rare Pluto-like objects, so finding a companion is important," Parker said. "The discovery of this moon has given us an opportunity to study Makemake in far greater detail than we ever would have been able to without the companion." There is still much to learn about the moon. For example, whether its orbit is circular or elliptical. Astronomers believe the moon orbits Makemake in a circle, making a circuit every 12 days or more. If true, the moon was probably created by a collision of Makemake and another object. An elliptical orbit would point toward the moon being captured by Makemake’s gravity. The moon could also help in understanding Makemake, for example why some parts of the dwarf planet appear warmer in some areas and colder in others. It may be caused by the dark surface on the moon. Why the moon has a dark surface is also a mystery. One reason may be that it lacks enough gravity to allow ice to cling to the surface. |
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| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
| The
contents
of
this Web site are copyrighted by Consultantes Río
Colorado S.A. 2016 and may not be reproduced anywhere
without permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details |
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| A.M. Costa Rica sixth news page |
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San
José, Costa Rica, Thursday,
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It’s not the price, it’s
the upkeep
By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Costa Rica officials are upset at the news that neighboring Nicaragua plans to buy 50 military tanks from Russia. News reports from Nicaragua say that the government there will be paying $80 million for the tanks. President Daniel Ortega might not be getting such a great deal. Russia, when it was called the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was close to giving away the T-72 tanks when the Berlin wall came down even as the socialist state did. Some Russian soldiers were caught cutting up the tanks to sell for scrap. Although they are not showing up on eBay, there are plenty of suppliers online who can provide a Russian tank. The Czech Republic is selling the 45-ton vehicles for $50,000 because they want to obtain newer ones from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. That price probably does not include shipping or parts. Ortega will need the parts because the Russian tanks are generally unreliable. Costa Rican President Luis Guillermo Solís has said he is worried about more arms in Central America. Russian tank vendors had some bad times after U.S. forces cut through the machines in two engagements in Iraq. And that was on the ground. Such tanks are highly vulnerable to hunter aircraft and even rockets from helicopters. Costa Rica probably could obtain such weapons online, too. Nicaragua is reported ready to accept delivery next year. Ortega better pick up some tanker trucks, too, because the 12-cylinder T-72 eats diesel, about two gallons a mile. So taking the tank detachment out for a spin some weekend might burn 10,000 gallons of fuel. Of course, Russia might be selling T-90 tanks, which are a successor to the T-72. The T-90 might be better suited for Nicaraguan swamps. And the Russians would like to dump them because the new T-14 was the star of the last Victory Day parade. So far there are not enough of these to offer other countries. The Russian salesman who probably got a promotion after making the deal with Ortega is not done. All current Russian tank models can carry and fire rockets and guided missiles. And there are some optional air defense systems plus systems to identify and destroy incoming anti-tank projectiles. These obligatory options could be good for $80 million more. |
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| From Page 7: U.S. Fed maintains its low bank interest rate By the A.M. Costa Rica
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The U.S. central bank says its benchmark interest rate will remain unchanged to foster conditions for maximum employment and price stability. Despite steady hiring and unemployment at 5 percent, officials from the central bank's policy making body say inflation remains below the Fed target rate of 2 percent. That is mostly due to the earlier declines in energy prices. But the Federal Open Market Committee, which concluded its two-day meeting Wednesday, projects inflation will start to rise over the medium term as the labor market continues to strengthen and energy prices start to moderate. The Fed is also monitoring global economic and financial developments to determine the domestic impact of slower growth in emerging markets. The federal funds rate, or the rate the central bank charges banks on overnight loans, remains near record lows in a range from one-quarter to one-half of one percent. The Fed's last rate hike was in December, when it raised the rate by a quarter of one percent. The Fed has not ruled out another quarter point increase in June, at the next scheduled meeting for the bank's policy-setting group. |
