Oil prices shoot up after US GDP data

NEW YORK: Crude oil prices shot higher Friday, propelled by news the US economy shrank less than expected in the second quarter, offering more hope for an economic rebound. A sharp decline in the dollar also helped support the oil rally. New York's main contract, light sweet crude for September, jumped 2.51 dollars to close at 69.45 dollars a barrel. In London, Brent North Sea crude for September delivery gained 1.59 dollars to settle at 71.70 dollars a barrel. The New York session was volatile, with the barrel swinging in a range of nearly five dollars. Traders' initial reaction to the US gross domestic product (GDP) data was negative. The Commerce Department reported that the world's largest economy and biggest consumer of energy shrank at an annualized rate of 1.0 percent in the second quarter. That was less than the 1.5 percent contraction that most analysts had expected, but the data showed a 6.4 percent decline in the first quarter, worse than the previous estimate of a 5.5 percent drop. But the market chose to look on the bright side of the mixed report, help by the Chicago purchasing managers index that showed a slowing in the decline of industrial activity in the region. The indicator came in better than anticipated "so the dollar got wrecked," said Phil Flynn of PFG Best Research. Link..

US economy shrinks one percent in second quarter

WASHINGTON: The US economy shrank at a one-percent annual rate in the second quarter of 2009, according to a preliminary estimate by the US Commerce Department. The figure was better than economists expected and signals that the longest US recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s has slowed dramatically. But first-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) was revised down sharply to a 6.4-percent contraction, the worst three-month stretch in 27 years, from a 5.5-percent drop reported last month by the department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis. Economists had forecast about a 1.5-percent contraction in the second quarter of the year. Friday’s figure was the first of three estimates. Link..

Couples marry on boat during Amsterdam gay pride

AMSTERDAM: Five gay Dutch-American couples tied the knot aboard a boat Saturday during Amsterdam's gay pride festival, as thousands of revellers took to waterborne floats on the city's historic canals. Organisers said around 560,000 people turned out for the celebrations in the capital of the Netherlands, the first country to legalise gay marriage in April 2001. Applause rang out from a huge crowd of spectators as the couples were married on one of the 80 boats transformed into parade floats for the celebrations. Some of the newlyweds had travelled from New York, where gay marriage is not legal, to the Netherlands in order to say their wedding vows. "Unfortunately, we have had to come all the way to Amsterdam to be able to get married legally," lamented 25-year-old Patrick Decker. "The United States is the land of freedom, but homosexuals are still not free to get married," added another one of the newlyweds, 40-year-old Hans Heijnis from the Netherlands. Mayor of Amsterdam Job Cohen, who officiated at the marriages, said the public ceremony was aimed at reminding people that "it is important for gay marriage to exist everywhere". Members of the country's armed forces were also allowed to parade in uniform during Amsterdam's gay pride for the first time this year. Military chiefs gave them permission "on condition they wore the correct dress". Police officers were also strutting their stuff aboard one of the canal boats alongside scantily clad partygoers as deafening music blasted out. Olympic champions and footballers joined the celebrations to get the message across that homosexuality and sport can go together, said Frank van Dalen, one of the organisers of the parade. Meanwhile, a gay pride march was under way Saturday in the Swedish capital Stockholm, thought to be the largest such celebration in northern Europe. Celebrities, pop stars and sportsmen hit the streets of the Nordic country known for its liberal attitudes. Link..

Iran: Former president blasts post-election trials

Iran's reformist former President Mohammad Khatami Sunday blasted the trials of people arrested in demonstrations as an "insult" to Iran and Islam."Such play-acting ... damages the system and reduces public trust," he said in a statement provided by his office.Nearly 100 Iranians arrested in the aftermath of the disputed June 12 presidential elections went on trial Saturday, two Iranian news agencies reported.But Khatami said the trials were unconstitutional, contrary to "the law and the rights of citizens."The real crimes had been committed by the authorities, he said.He condemned "the atrocities committed at certain detention centers as well as those committed during arrests which, in some cases, resulted in murder."He dismissed the reported confessions of the accused, as did another influential ex-president, Ali Akhbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, according to Iran's government-funded Press TV.

Among the charges the detainees are facing are:
-- Attacking military facilities using firearms, cold weapons and fire bombs
-- Attacking government facilities and setting fire to them
-- Destruction of public property
-- Creating panic in public
-- Beating up members of the security forces
Among the nearly 100 defendants are several members of the reformist Mosharekat Party and a member of the central committee of the Kargozaran Party, which is close to Rafsanjani, the semi-official FARS news agency reported. Link..

1 killed, 15 hurt in Alberta stage collapse

One person was killed and 15 others were injured Saturday when an outdoor stage collapsed in western Canada's Alberta province, police said. The victims were attending the Big Valley Jamboree music event in Camrose, Police Chief Darrel Kambietz told CNN.Kambietz said the victims were either on or near the stage when it collapsed. "Some of the injured were trapped. We did have emergency services on site at the time and were able to move into action quickly and free those individuals and transport quickly," he said. Kambietz said severe weather, including high winds, hit the area about 6 p.m. (8 p.m. ET)."There was approximately 15,000 people in the concert bowl when the weather front moved in very quickly," Kambietz said. "They were in the process of evacuating or removing those people when the incident occurred."Actor and film producer Kevin Costner's band "Modern West" had been scheduled to take the stage Saturday evening and was reportedly backstage at the time of the incident. The Big Valley Jamboree is an outdoor country music festival that has been held nearly 18 years. Link..

Harvard prof in arrest uproar makes rosy gesture to 911 caller

The woman who made the 911 call that led to Harvard University professor Henry Louis Gates' controversial arrest wasn't present at the so-called beer summit. But she got a shot of kindness and a taste of gratitude from Gates himself. Lucia Whalen received a bouquet of flowers at her office from Gates, according to Whalen's attorney, Wendy Murphy. "She described them as amazing, and appreciated them very much," Murphy said of the bouquet. The attorney described the flowers as being a beautiful assortment of what she believed were different colored roses. There was a note included from Gates, the details of which Murphy would not divulge. She said the note characterized Gates's "expression of gratitude" for Whalen's action.An officer responding to a report of a possible break-in at Gates' Cambridge, Massachusetts, home arrested the professor on July 16 for disorderly conduct. The charge was later dropped.The arrest sparked a national debate about race and police relations.Whalen said an older woman with no cell phone told her that she was worried someone was trying to break into the home, and decided to call 911. Link..

2 dead, 11 hurt in shooting at gay club in Israel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday condemned the "horrible murder" of two people in a shooting at a gay club in Tel Aviv. A man injured in the shooting at the club in Tel Aviv receives treatment.We will bring [the killer] to justice and apply the full extent of the law against him," the prime minister said at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting. At least two people were killed and 11 wounded in the shooting Saturday night, Israeli police said. The shooter, who was wearing black, entered the club at 10:40 p.m. and started firing all around, police spokesman Mickey Rosenfeld said. The gunman fled the scene on foot and police are conducting a search. The dead are Nir Katz, a 26-year-old man, and Liz Tarbushi, a 17-year-old girl, Rosenfeld said. Three of the wounded are in serious condition, according to Israeli ambulance services.