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Brown Calls for National Unity Amid U.K. Public Pay Freeze Prime Minister Gordon Brown will call on Britons to unite behind his government on the day many government staff learn whether their pay has been frozen.

Bali Bomber Dulmatin Killed in Raid, Yudhoyono Says (Update1) Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said wanted terrorist leader and suspected Bali bomber Dulmatin was among three people killed in a police raid yesterday near the capital, Jakarta.

Indian Stocks are Better Long-Term Bet, Franklin Says (Update1) India offers better long-term returns on stocks than China given the outlook for economic growth and corporate earnings, according to Franklin Templeton Investments.

China’s Export Recovery Adds Pressure to Pare Stimulus Measures China’s exports rose more than forecast in February and posted a third straight gain, a rebound that adds to pressure on policy makers to pare back stimulus measures adopted during the global recession.

Cathay Pacific Posts Second-Half Profit on Hedging, Haeco Sale Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd., Hong Kong’s biggest carrier, posted a second-half profit on fuel- hedging gains and the sale of a stake in a maintenance venture.

AIG ‘Money in the Door’ Deals Reap $3.2 Billion for Bondholders American International Group Inc. bondholders reaped at least $3.2 billion after the bailed-out company announced deals to sell its two largest non-U.S. life insurance divisions for $51 billion.

Yen Weakens Against Taiwan, New Zealand Dollar; Oil Erases Loss Higher-yielding currencies strengthened against the yen and oil erased losses after China said exports soared the most in three years.

Senate Said to Weigh $50 Billion Fund to Wind Down Failed Firms Senate negotiators are closing in on a deal to create a $50 billion trust fund from fees on large financial firms that may include Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Citigroup Inc. and be used to wind down failing institutions, said a Senate aide and two people familiar with the talks.

Hedge-Fund Losses Show Euro’s Drop Fails to Benefit All Traders Hedge funds that trade currencies are taking hits from politicians casting them as speculators out to sink the euro and push Greece into insolvency. They are also losing money.

Defaults Signal Bursting Muni Junk Bubble on High-Yield Surge Investors in search of better returns poured $7.8 billion into high-yield municipal bond funds last year, pushing assets to a two-year high. They may start experiencing losses as early as this year as default risks grow.

J&J Pushed Risperdal for Elderly After U.S. Warning, Files Show Johnson & Johnson made plans to reach $302 million in geriatric sales for its antipsychotic Risperdal just months after federal regulators said the company falsely claimed the drug was safe and effective with the elderly, according to internal documents.

Obama Defies Pessimists as Rising Economy Converges With Stocks The political consensus may be that President Barack Obama’s handling of the economy has been weak. The judgment of money in all its forms has been overwhelmingly positive, and that may be the more lasting appraisal.

NFL Brain Collector Shows Violence in Slices of Gray Matter Five years of hell ended in a hard death. Those are the widow’s words.

Obama’s Health-Care Push Gets Challenge From Business Coalition President Barack Obama is facing a renewed push against his health-care legislation as a coalition of business groups plans to spend as much as $1 million a day on advertisements to pressure lawmakers into voting “no.”

Buyout Firms Can’t Spend $503 Billion as Fund Deadlines Loom Buyout funds sitting on half a trillion dollars committed by investors may need more than a decade to put the money to work if deals continue at the current pace.

U.S. Senate Set to Vote on Plan to Extend Unemployment Benefits The U.S. Senate is set to approve a $138 billion plan that would extend unemployment benefits through the end of this year after eight Republicans joined Democrats yesterday to end efforts to block the plan.

Apollo Said to Triple Property Assets With Citi Unit Purchase Apollo Management LP agreed to buy Citigroup Inc.’s real estate investment unit in a move that will more than triple the value of the private-equity firm’s property assets, a person with knowledge of the deal said yesterday.

Madoff Victims Join Stanford Investors to Lobby for Payback Victims of Bernard Madoff and accused Ponzi schemer R. Allen Stanford are banding together to lobby Congress for a law that could require Wall Street firms to pay billions of dollars to cover some of the losses they suffered.

Fed’s ‘Extended Period’ Rate Pledge Criticized by Some on FOMC The Federal Reserve’s pledge to keep interest rates close to zero for an “extended period” has come under criticism from policy makers who say it’s restricting their room to maneuver as the economy recovers.

Cathay Pacific Posts Full-Year Net Income of HK$4.69 Billion Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd.’s net income for the year ended Dec. 31 was HK$4.69 billion, according to a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange. That compared with the HK$2.25 billion median estimate of 10 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

Toyota’s U.S. Sales May Spike 30% This Month, Edmunds.com Says Toyota Motor Corp., battling a two- month slide in U.S. sales amid recalls of millions of vehicles, may post a sales spike this month after introducing an incentive campaign, Edmunds.com said.

Citic Pacific Posts Full Year Net Income of HK$5.95 Billion Citic Pacific Ltd.’s net income for the year ended Dec. 31 was HK$5.95 billion, according to a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange. That compared with the HK$5.48 billion median estimate of four analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

PCCW Says Chairman Richard Li’s Buyout Plans ‘Dead’ (Update3) PCCW Ltd., linked to a police probe following a court ruling that a buyout bid by Chairman Richard Li had been manipulated, said investors at Hong Kong’s biggest phone company should consider the takeover plan as “dead.”

Canon Says China May Become Top Camera Market in 2015 (Update2) Canon Inc. expects China’s camera market to become the world’s largest as early as 2015, overtaking the U.S., its head of the business said.

Citigroup Selling TruPS After Repaying Bailout: Credit Markets Citigroup Inc., seeking to bolster capital after repaying bailout funds to the Treasury, is selling trust preferred securities as rising investor demand drives borrowing costs to near the lowest in almost five years.

Yen Declines to 2-Week Low Against Kiwi on Asia Recovery Signs The yen declined to a two-week low against New Zealand’s dollar on speculation Japan’s economic recovery will lag behind the rest of the Asia-Pacific region.

Asian Stocks Fluctuate as Oil, Shippers Drop; Telstra Advances Asian stocks fluctuated as shipping lines and oil companies declined, while Australia’s largest telephone company rose on speculation it will avoid a breakup.

SDI, LG Chem to Gain on Battery Sales, Korea Investment Says South Korean rechargeable battery makers’ stocks will outperform the benchmark index on increased use in mobile devices, autos and electricity grids, according to Korea Investment Trust Management Co.

Bali Bomber Suspect Dulmatin Killed, AFP Says, Citing Yudhoyono Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said police yesterday killed Dulmatin, suspected of helping plan the 2002 terrorist bombings on the resort island of Bali, Agence France-Presse reported, citing Yudhoyono in a speech in Canberra, Australia, today.

San Miguel Rises in Manila as Directors Initiate Tender Offer San Miguel Corp., the Philippines’ largest food and drinks maker, rose to the highest in more than two years in Manila trading after a company controlled by its directors initiated a tender offer.

Fujitsu Investors Renew Calls for Information on Nozoe Dispute Fujitsu Ltd. drew renewed calls from investors to shed more light on the departure of former President Kuniaki Nozoe after the Tokyo Stock Exchange ended a probe into the conflicting reasons given by the company.

Hedge Funds Rose 0.5% in February on Market Recovery (Update1) Hedge funds returned 0.5 percent in February, led by North American managers, as global stock markets rose on signs of recovery in corporate earnings and signs that U.S. interest rates will remain low, Eurekahedge Pte said.

Buy Ringgit Versus Won, Yen on Malaysia Rate Outlook, RBS Says Investors should buy the ringgit against South Korea’s won and Japan’s yen as Malaysia’s central bank may increase its policy rate as many as two more times in 2010, the Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc said.

Baoshan Steel May Post 20-Fold Profit Surge on Autos, CICC Says Baoshan Iron & Steel Co., China’s biggest publicly traded steelmaker, may post at least a 20-fold profit gain for its first quarter because of strong demand from automakers, China International Capital Corp. said.

Japanese Machinery Orders Declined 3.7% in January (Update2) Japan’s machinery orders slipped in January after the biggest jump since 2000, indicating a subdued appetite among the nation’s companies to ramp up capital spending even as manufacturing passed its worst.

Australia, Indonesia Will Combat People Smuggling (Update1) Australia and Indonesia agreed to work more closely on combating people smuggling and terrorism and will upgrade annual talks between leaders and officials to a level enjoyed by Australia’s closest ally, the U.S.

Palm Oil Demand to Rise Faster Than Production, TransGraph Says Palm oil demand will expand faster than output this year as El Nino curbs supply and Asian consumption expands, TransGraph Consulting Pvt. said.

Maanshan Steel’s Coal Imports to Rise; Buys From BHP (Update1) Maanshan Iron & Steel Co., the second-biggest Chinese steelmaker listed in Hong Kong, will increase coking coal imports this year, adding to rising global demand that’s sent prices soaring.

Give Congress the Boot to Save Our Great Country: Caroline Baum The public is mad as hell at Washington: at the corruption, the underhanded deals, the earmarks, the sense of entitlement that comes with lifetime employment. If we don’t want to take it anymore, we can do something about it.

Liz Cheney Would Call John Adams a Terrorists’ Pal: Ann Woolner Liz Cheney, meet John Adams. Perhaps you have heard of him.