International Headlins

Date: Saturday, September 4, 2010
>TOP STORIES as of 0900 GMT -- 04 September, 2010

> STATE OF EMERGENCY IN QUAKE-TORN NEW ZEALAND CITY
A powerful earthquake hits near New Zealand's second-largest
city, sending people into the streets as buildings crumble.
Officials report no fatalities

> MORE U.S. AID TO FLOOD RAVAGED PAKISTAN
President Obama issued a presidential order on Friday
authorizing emergency funds to Pakistan's flood victims, the
White House announced Friday.

> UPS CARGO PLANE CRASHES NEAR DUBAI
A cargo plane has crashed in an uninhabited area near the Dubai
airport, according to the official WAM news agency in the United
Arab Emirates.

> HUMAN TRAFFICKING RING EXPOSED IN U.S.
Six job recruiters have been indicted in federal court in what
the FBI has called the largest human-trafficking operation ever
to result in charges in the United States.

> NASA TO PRESENT MINE RESCUE OPTIONS
NASA experts will present recommendations Friday for rescuing 33
miners trapped deep underground in Chile. Drilling a tunnel to
the men is expected to take months.

HURRICANE DOWNGRADED, STILL 'DANGEROUS'
A weakened Hurricane Earl brushed North Carolina's Outer Banks
overnight as residents along the Eastern Seaboard braced for a
stormy Friday.

> BUFFETT, GATES ON CHINESE MISSION
Having persuaded many of their billionaire peers in the US into
giving away chunks of money, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett are
travelling to China to host newly minted Chinese tycoons to sell
them on the value of philanthropy.

BUSINESS
~~~~~~~~~~~

> OBAMA PROMISES NEW JOBS INITIATIVES
President Obama promised to lay out a broad package of ideas for
job creation next week and slamming Senate Republicans for
blocking his small business aid legislation.

> CAN CHINESE MEDIA RULE THE AIRWAVES?
At a time when many Western media outlets are contracting,
Chinese media outlets are expanding, rapidly.

> FEARS GROW OVER GLOBAL FOOD SUPPLY
Russia announced a 12-month extension of its grain export ban on
Thursday, raising fears about a return to the food shortages and
riots of 2007-08 which spread through developing countries
dependent on imports.