International Headlines

Date: Wed, 19 May 2010 20:02:03 -0400
>TOP STORIES as of 0800 HKT -- 20 May, 2010

> FIRES, RIOTS ERUPT AFTER CURFEW IMPOSED IN BANGKOK
Fires and small riots erupted in Bangkok despite a strict curfew
imposed after protest leaders surrender following a military
surge into their makeshift encampments.

> IRAN DISMISSES PROPOSED U.N. SANCTIONS
With a fresh set of tough sanctions on the table, Iran lashed
out Wednesday against U.S. efforts to punish the nation for its
nuclear program.

> N. KOREA BLAMED ON SHIP SINKING - LEAKS
A senior U.S. official with knowledge of the investigation into
the sinking of a South Korean warship says that "the evidence is
pretty strong that North Korea did this knowingly."

> HEAVY OIL REACHES LOUISIANA WETLANDS
BP said Wednesday that efforts to contain and clean up oil
gushing from a ruptured pipe in the Gulf of Mexico have made a
"measurable difference" even as Louisiana's governor announced
that thick, heavy oil has begun polluting the state's wetlands
and estuaries.

> FRANCE MOVES CLOSER TO BURQA BAN
The French Council of Ministers approved a measure Wednesday to
ban the wearing of full-face veils, sending the bill to
parliament.

> 9 HURT IN LATEST KNIFE ATTACK IN CHINA
About five to six men, armed with knives and cleavers, rushed
into a college dormitory in southern China on Wednesday,
wounding nine students -- one of them seriously, state media
said.

> N. KOREA BLAMED ON SHIP SINKING - LEAKS
As South Korea awaits the release of an official report into the
sinking of a warship Thursday, a range of leaks and unofficial
statements is pointing the finger firmly at North Korea.

> POLISH LEADER'S CRASH 'NOT TERRORISM'
Russian and Polish aviation experts have ruled out any emergency
or equipment malfunction as the cause of the crash of Polish
President Lech Kaczynski's plane in Russia last month, killing
him and 95 other top Polish officials and dignitaries.

BUSINESS
~~~~~~~~~~~
> BACKLASH BUILDS AGAINST GERMAN BAN
The French government on Wednesday led European reaction against
the German government's move to ban the naked short selling of
eurozone sovereign debt instruments.

> RICH-POOR DIVIDE UNDERPINS THAI CRISIS
A rift between Bangkok's economic elite and the growing clout of
Thailand's rural poor is feeding a unique political divide in a
country that is no stranger to political turmoil.

> HOW SHORT-SELLERS DESTABILIZED MARKETS
German authorities have acted against what Berlin views as
destabilizing speculation in the financial markets by
implementing a partial ban on naked short-selling of certain
stocks. Here is a guide to the practice and what the ban means.