My New Born Kitten's Photo in past 4 days!!

Ana featured in Corriere della Sera

Ana is featured in Style magazine, a publication of leading Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. The 20-year-old was photographed and interviewed exclusively for the four-page feature, which is published today.

New Colour in Ana Ivanovic!!

The latest news about Ana!

Ana vs Govortsova
February 19, 2008 / DohaAna will take on Belarusian world No.48 Olga Govortsova in the second round of the Qatar Total Open on Wednesday. The match will be the first meeting between the two players. Top seeded Ana has a 2-0 win-loss record against players from Belarus, having beaten Viktoria Azarenka in juniors and Anastasia Yakimovia in Antwerp last year. Govortsova reached round... more... »

Roger Federer won the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year award for a fourth straight time

February 18, 2008
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) -- Roger Federer won the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year award for a fourth straight time Monday, and Justine Henin won the women's award for the first time.
Federer won his fifth straight Wimbledon title last season to equal Bjorn Borg's record.
"I am thankful the jury didn't think three was enough," Federer said.
Henin, meanwhile, became the first tennis player to win 10 titles in a season since Martina Hingis 10 years ago despite skipping the 2007 Australian Open after splitting with her husband.
"It was a tough year personally," Henin said. "Big issues, but I kept fighting and it has been the best season of my career so far."
The winners were selected by members of the Laureus Sports Academy.
Other winners included Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton for the World Breakthrough of the Year award and British marathon runner Paula Radcliffe for the World Comeback of the Year award.
Hamilton finished second in the F1 drivers' standings in his rookie season.
"I don't think I deserved it as much as some of the other nominees and I hope I can keep my country proud and do well in the future," the 22-year-old Hamilton said. "I'm approaching the season with the same determination and I want to push harder."
Radcliffe won the New York Marathon after two years away from competition following childbirth.
"Paula is renowned as a great fighter," Laureus World Sports Academy chairman Edwin Moses said. "When someone is out of running for two years when they are in their 30s you do wonder if they are going to be able to come back as fit and as strong, but Paula certainly showed she was when she won in New York.
"I wish her all the best for the Beijing Olympics."
South Africa's rugby team won the World Team of the Year award after going unbeaten to win the 2007 Rugby World Cup.

程翔獲釋今午返抵本港

內地囚禁的新加坡 海峽時報首席特派員程翔 ，昨日已經獲得假釋，今日下午返抵本港。
特首辦今早獲到內地當局通知，程翔已獲准假釋，已將消息通知程翔家人。內地當局表示，至今年2月4日，程翔服刑期已超過一半刑期，合乎假釋條件，內地司法及行政部門及法院依法決定，准許程翔假釋，可獲准在春節返港。
程翔預料會在今日下午一點在返抵紅磡車站。入境處 會協助辦理手續。
一向為爭取釋放程翔的程翔關注組指，程翔獲釋是一件好事，對此感到高興，希望程翔能趕快回港，春節與家人團聚。
程翔2005年4月在內地被捕，他被指於2000至2005年為台灣 國家安全局蒐情報，被判間諜罪，2006年被判入獄5年，充公30萬元財產。

Hong Kong Reporter to Be Released

Monday, February 04, 2008 11:36:54 PM
Hong Kong media reported Tuesday that journalist Ching Cheong, who was jailed in mainland China on spying charges, has been released and will return to Hong Kong.
Officials in China have notified the Hong Kong government that Ching was released on parole, broadcaster RTHK quoted a government spokesman as saying.
He is allowed to return home before Lunar New Year, RTHK reported.
Ching, a correspondent for The Straits Times in Singapore, was detained during a visit to the southern city of Guangzhou in April 2005, and stood trial in a one-day proceeding.

5 little-known Alba 'facts'

FACT ONE: Jessica Learned From the Very Best Jessica Alba took her first acting class at the age of twelve, and within a year she had her first movie role in Camp Nowhere. After graduating from high school at 16, she studied acting at the Atlantic Theater Company under the Oscar-nominated husband-and-wife team of William H. Macy and Felicity Huffman.
FACT TWO: She's Willing to Lend a Hand (or Shoe) Jessica is currently appearing in a new advertising campaign for the Good Cents Initiative to raise money to provides AIDS medication for children in Africa and India. She also supports Soles4Souls, a relief organization that has collected over two million pairs of shoes for disaster victims across the globe.
FACT THREE: Change Is Coming for Jess and Cash In December Jessica officially announced that she is expecting her first child with fiancé Cash Warren in the late spring/early summer. They met on the set of Fantastic Four, where he was working as the director's assistant. She told OK Magazine that pregnancy has made her more relaxed, but, "I wake up to hiccups every single morning. Never had hiccups before."
FACT FOUR: She's Bringing the "Love" to the NHL Next up for Jessica is The Love Guru, written by and starring Mike Myers. She plays the owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs hockey team who seeks the help of Pitka, a spiritual self-help guide, to mend the marriage of her star player and his wife. It also stars Ben Kingsley, Meagan Good and Justin Timberlake.
FACT FIVE: All Those in Favor Say "Eye" Following in the footsteps of Naomi Watts and Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jessica plays the lead in a remake of a successful Asian horror movie. She took six months of violin lessons for the role of a blind musician who gains supernatural visions after a corneal transplant. Scroll down to check out the theatrical trailer.

研究：不愛活動加速老化

法新社華盛頓 二十八日電） 今天公佈的研究發現另一個要你離開沙發的理由：比較愛活動的人，看起來不只比較容光煥發，生理狀況似乎也比較年輕。
英國 研究人員觀察兩千四百零一名白種人雙胞胎後，發現生活型態活躍者，生物指標似乎比生活較靜態的雙胞胎手足年輕最多十年。
倫敦 國王學院的研究主要作者琪卡絲寫道：「久坐的生活型態，會提高老化相關疾病與早夭傾向。」
「不愛動可能縮短壽命，不僅因為不愛動者較易罹患（糖尿病 、高血壓與心血管疾病等）年齡相關疾病，也因為不活躍本身就可能影響老化過程。」
琪卡絲與同事請這些雙胞胎填寫身體活動量、吸煙習慣與社會經濟地位的問卷，採集他們的血液樣本，接著從這些人的白血球中抽取DNA，檢查染色體，判定遺傳序列「端粒」的長度。
端粒位於染色體尾端，在細胞分裂上扮演重要角色，其長度會隨年齡縮短，平均每年減少二十一個結構單位，據信也在老化過程中扮演重要角色。
閒暇時間較不愛動的人，端粒長度明顯短的多。
作者寫道：「考量身體質量指數、吸煙、社經地位與工作時的身體活動量之後，白血球端粒長度與身體活動量之間的關聯仍然存在。」

Djokovic fends off Tsonga to win Australian Open title

By JOHN PYE, AP Sports WriterJanuary 27, 2008

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) -- Novak Djokovic took the expected barrage from Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the first set, then gave back some of his own to make the Australian Open his first Grand Slam title.
No. 3-ranked Djokovic fended off Muhammad Ali lookalike Tsonga 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (2) in the final on Sunday night, ending a sequence of 11 straight majors won by either Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal since Marat Safin's triumph here in 2005.
The 20-year-old Djokovic had not lost a set in six matches leading into the final, including his semifinal win over two-time defending champion Federer.
But with unseeded Tsonga coming out swinging like he did in his straight-sets upset over No. 2 Nadal in the semifinals and three other top 14 players, that streak came to a sudden end.
The 20-year-old Djokovic rebounded in the second and third sets and after saving a crucial breakpoint in the fourth, dominated the tiebreaker to clinch his first major at his 13th attempt.
"You feel the expectations and pressure, so I'm very happy with the way I dealt with the pressure," Djokovic said. "Coming on against a player with nothing to lose -- he was going for the shots and he was very dangerous, especially in the first set -- I was pretty nervous."
Djokovic was the youngest player since Stefan Edberg defeated Mats Wilander in 1985 to win the Australian title and the first man from Serbia to win a major.
Tsonga, who had been so aggressive earlier in the tournament, seemed more content to rally from the baseline, especially after getting passed several times.
"He was very dangerous," Djokovic said. "I was aware of that fact, but I was trying to stay with him because I knew sooner or later, with my style of game, I could get in control of the match, which I did in the middle of the second set."
As well as Tsonga, he had to overcome cramps.
Djokovic got treatment on the back of his left thigh while holding for a 3-2 lead in the fourth set, then fended off a break point while serving at 5-5.
Wanting to finish it off quickly, he raced through the tiebreaker -- with some help from Tsonga, who double-faulted to make it 5-1 and then sent a running forehand long to give Djokovic four championship points.
He only needed one as Tsonga hit a forehand wide.
Djokovic fell on his back, then got up to shake hands with Tsonga and put his arm around the Frenchman. He got on his knees and kissed the court, shook hands with his family, then tossed two rackets into the stands before burying his face in a towel.
"First, before I thank everybody in this world, I want to thank everybody in my box, who've supported me all the way through, not just these two weeks, all the way in my life," Djokovic said. "Thank you very much, I love you."
His father, mother and two younger brothers wore white tracksuits and sat in order with letters on the front spelling out Djokovic's nickname, Nola.
"Second of course Jo. Unbelievable tournament and you should be proud of yourself -- if he won tonight it would be absolutely deserved, so well done for his success."
Djokovic, who has had a hot and cold relationship with the Melbourne Park crowd, won them back over again in his post-match speech.
"I know the crowd wanted him to win more," he said of Tsonga. "That's OK, it's all right. I still love you guys, don't worry.
"I'm very, very happy that I won my first Grand Slam here, so hopefully we'll see you here on this stage a lot more often in the future."
Tsonga, ranked 38th coming into his fifth major, will move up to No. 18 after advancing past the fourth round for the first time.
He was aiming to be the first Frenchman in 80 years to win the Australian title and the first to win any of the four Grand Slams since Yannick Noah's win at Roland Garros in 1983.
Rod Laver Arena was packed and awash in red, white and blue, the national colors of both countries, but there was little doubt where the rowdy crowd's loyalties lay -- with underdog Tsonga, who has delighted the Melbourne Park fans with his ebullient personality and go-for-broke style.
A portrait of Ali, a racket sketched in one hand, was taped to a wall, and Tsonga sprinted onto the court for warmups.
Djokovic, who had complained after his semifinal victory over Federer that he had to fight two opponents because of the overwhelming support for the Swiss star, was at it again, frequently turning toward a pocket of chanting Serbian fans to get them fired up.
Both men looked tight at first, dropping their first service games before settling in.
Tsonga suddenly picked up his game when it appeared the first set was headed for a tiebreaker. He blasted three aces to take a 5-4 lead, then came up with two great shots to break Djokovic.
Serving at 30-30, Djokovic had an easy overhead, but didn't do enough with it. Tsonga ripped a forehand crosscourt passing shot for a winner, then raised his racket and roared with the crowd.
Another good forehand winner finished off the set, and Tsonga went down on one knee to pump his fist before dancing over to his chair to a standing ovation.
Djokovic refused to crumble. He never faced a break point in the second and third sets, yielding only 10 points in his nine service games.
Djokovic said he didn't know where he would go next, but planned to spend a couple of weeks enjoying the celebrations.
"It's my first major, but it's just the start of a long season," he said.

Police Question French Bank Trader

The French trader accused of one of the biggest bank frauds ever surfaced Saturday -- in the custody of police, who were questioning him about bad bets that cost France's No. 2 bank billions of euros in a season of jittery markets.
Financial police in Paris were questioning Jerome Kerviel in a probe into Societe Generale's allegation against the 31-year-old trader, judicial officials said. They were speaking on condition of anonymity because the investigation is continuing.
Under French law, he can be held up to 48 hours.
Kerviel has kept a low profile since the bank said Thursday that Kerviel's unauthorized trades caused it losses of euro4.9 billion (US$7.14 billion). His picture made the front page of newspapers around the world, and journalists staked out his apartment and those of his family members for days, but they did not catch him on camera -- prompting rumors he had fled the country.
His lawyer maintained he was not on the run and would speak to investigators.
His motives remained a mystery, and the bank said it appeared that he did not gain personally from the unauthorized trades. Acquaintances described Kerviel as reserved and considerate, a young man who once taught kids judo and held the door for elderly neighbors.
The debacle -- which has rattled an already nervous banking sector and appeared to be the biggest-ever trading fraud by one person -- has fueled a debate about risk management, with France's conservative president condemning speculation.
"If we can make profits in a matter of hours, we can also have huge losses," said President Nicolas Sarkozy during a visit to India. "We must stop with this system that has gone haywire and that has lost track of its aim."
"It appears to be time to ... inject a bit of common sense into all these systems," he added.
French officials have said that Kerviel, a relatively inexperienced trader, was dealing with more than euro50 billion ($73.31 billion). That is more than the bank's market capitalization of euro35.9 billion (US$52.6 billion), and is close to the annual GDP of countries such as Slovakia, Qatar or Libya.
Kerviel had been investing the bank's money by hedging on European equity market indices, meaning he bet on how the markets would perform at a future date.
Societe Generale said it discovered the fraud last weekend and unwound the trader's losing bets starting Monday, when world markets tumbled.
Some experts have suggested Societe Generale may have exacerbated the fall and indirectly led to the U.S. Federal Reserve's subsequent decision to cut rates.
Continue...
1 2

母貓過馬路時被撞死 公貓守候久久不願離去(圖)

公貓撲到母貓身上，用爪子一遍又一遍地撫摩著母貓海峽都市報1月23日報導 一隻活貓，一隻死貓，就這樣偎依著，在馬路中央，久久不散。圍觀的人都不敢上前，清潔工剛上前一步，就引來這只花貓淒厲的叫聲。“它們倆都是流浪貓，經常在那邊草叢裏竄來竄去的。”福州三利花園的保安陳師傅說，已經死掉的棕黑色母貓是先來的，後來黃白花的公貓來陪它。兩隻貓天天在一起，很親熱的樣子。昨天下午1點，它們跟往常一樣竄到馬路上嬉戲，一輛小車開過，母貓倒在血泊中。當時在社區門口休息的劉依伯說，母貓被撞死時沒發出任何響動，公貓還很歡實地往前跑。“像有感應一樣，它猛地一停，扭頭，然後像箭一樣撲過去。那個叫聲聽得人心寒！”公貓撲到母貓身上，先用爪子一遍又一遍地撫摩著母貓，“就像醫生急救做心肺復蘇一樣。”做了十幾分鐘，母貓沒動，公貓整個身子都挨了上去，不停地蹭著，簡直都要把母貓拱起來了。大約半個小時，公貓就像瘋了一樣，叼著母貓的屍體拼命地甩啊甩，甩不動，就咬著母貓的尾巴，還是甩不動，公貓發出一聲淒慘的叫聲，然後就趴在母貓身上哀號。這時圍觀的人越來越多了，有些十七八歲的小姑娘眼中有淚花。兩點半左右，清潔工又試著上前幾步，這回公貓沒動，她就把貓屍收拾到垃圾車裏，走了。公貓就這麼呆呆地看著。又過了大約半個小時，它才起身，一步一步，慢慢地走遠了。“貓也重情，不比人差啊。”路人們嘀咕著，也散了。 (本文來源：海峽都市報 )

Sharapova beats Ivanovic for Australian title.

By JOHN PYE, AP Sports WriterJanuary 25, 2008
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) -- Maria Sharapova won the Australian Open without losing a set, wrapping up her third Grand Slam title with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over Ana Ivanovic on Saturday.
After Ivanovic sprayed a forehand wide on match point, Sharapova dropped to her knees and appeared to be fighting back tears as she waved and blew kisses to the crowd.
Then the 20-year-old Russian star dropped her racket in her chair before heading to shake hands and exchange high-fives with her father and supporters.
She clasped her hands and swayed as she stood, waiting to receive the Daphne Akhurst Trophy, then told the Rod Laver Arena crowd that she'd received a text message from tennis great Billie Jean King telling her that 'Champions take chances and pressure is a privilege.'
"I took mine," said Sharapova, back in a final at a major for the first time since her 6-1, 6-2 loss to Serena Williams last year at Melbourne Park.
Sharapova wished her mother, Yelena, a happy birthday and told her: "With this big fat check, I'm going to send you a bunch of roses."
The Russian, seeded fifth, was aggressive from the start and, apart from one bad service game in the first set that allowed Ivanovic back to 4-4, controlled the important points against a Serbian player for the second consecutive match.
Sharapova beat No. 3 Jelena Jankovic in the semifinals after ending top-ranked Justine Henin's 32-match winning streak in the quarterfinals.
Ivanovic, also 20, is 0-2 in Grand Slam finals. She lost the French Open championship match to Henin last year.
Ivanovic, seeded fourth, saved two match points but sprayed a forehand wide to give Sharapova the title, to go with her wins at Wimbledon in 2004 and the 2006 U.S. Open.
On a hot, sunny day with temperatures reaching 93 degrees, people in the crowd were fanning themselves, and Sharapova retreated to the shade behind the baselines to gather herself between points.
It was Australia Day, so organizers put small national flags at each seat. But there were plenty of Serbian and Russian flags, too.
Most of the signs scattered around packed Rod Laver Arena were pretty clear, including one that said "Quiet please Maria," referring to Sharapova's high-pitched grunts that get louder and louder as pressure rises.
Both players showed some nerves in the first set, with Ivanovic particularly shaky, committing 19 unforced errors to just six winners.
Serving at 2-2, Ivanovic set up double break point with a double fault, then sent a forehand long.
After holding serve the first three times at love, Sharapova returned the favor, committing three double faults while serving at 4-3, the last two at deuce to hand the game to Ivanovic.
But she shrugged off the setback, running off the last three games, breaking to go ahead 6-5, then pumping her fist and shouting "Go Maria! Come on!" Taking every second possible between points, Sharapova then held at love.
From 3-3 in the second set, Sharapova ran off the last three games again, breaking Ivanovic twice.
Sharapova dropped to her knees and appeared to be fighting back tears as she waved and blew kisses to the crowd. Then she dropped her racket in her chair before heading to shake hands and exchange high fives with her father and supporters.

Federer's streak of 10 straight Grand Slam finals ended by Djokovic

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) -- Top-ranked Roger Federer's streak of 10 straight Grand Slam finals came to an abrupt end Friday when he lost to No. 3 Novak Djokovic 7-5, 6-3, 7-6 (5) in the Australian Open semifinals.
Federer, who had been seeking his third consecutive title here, didn't look like the same player who appeared well on his way to winning his 13th major. The emotional Djokovic had a lot to do with that, hitting 13 aces and 50 winners, largely avoiding the nerves that have occasionally troubled him.
"I am just very amazed I coped with the pressure today," Djokovic said. "In the most important moments, I played my best tennis."
"It's just amazing, indescribable, to beat the No. 1 player of the world, one of the best players this sport has ever had, in straight sets."
He will face unseeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in Sunday's final. Tsonga beat No. 2 Rafael Nadal in the semifinals Thursday.
In the women's final Saturday another Serbian, fourth-seeded Ana Ivanovic, will meet No. 5 Maria Sharapova.
Other than a twitchy third-round victory over Janko Tipsarevic that went to 10-8 in the fifth set, Federer has been in good form after a stomach ailment interrupted his pre-tournament preparations. He dominated James Blake in the quarterfinals and appeared to be peaking at the right time.
Instead, he fell to his first straight-sets loss in a Grand Slam tournament since a third-round defeat to Gustavo Kuerten at the 2004 French Open.
"I think he made the more important points today, it was a bit unfortunate for me," said Federer, who rubbed his eyes frequently at his post-match news conference. "You can't always play your best. There is no doubt I have played better before.
"I've created a monster that I need to win every tournament -- still the semifinals isn't bad."
Despite a 1-5 record against Federer that included a loss in the U.S. Open final in September, Djokovic was far from intimidated on a muggy night in a packed Rod Laver Arena, even after getting broken in the first set.
Federer, who is usually at his best as the pressure builds toward the end of a set, pulled ahead at 5-3 only to be stunned as Djokovic ran off the last four games, with the Swiss star hitting backhands long on the last two points of the set.
Federer grimaced or hung his head as his groundstrokes and feathery drop shots lacked their usual punch and accuracy, or deserted him entirely.
"He covered the court well," Federer said. "I couldn't come up with the passing shot when I needed to.
"There is some sort of a disappointment. The way I tried, that's all I could give. When you give 100 percent, you're sort of happy with your performance. It can't always go your way."
Djokovic broke him to pull ahead at 3-1 in the second set. He finished off the game by getting to a drop shot on the dead run and flicking a backhand past Federer that kissed the line. Djokovic roared and raised his fist, then repeatedly pounded his chest.
He broke again to pull ahead at 5-1. Serving for the set, Djokovic looked a little tight, and Federer took advantage to break. When he held to make it 5-3, the crowd erupted into chants of "Let's go Roger, let's go" that nearly drowned out shouts of "No-vak, No-vak."
"I felt the crowd was not behind me, but that's OK ... I fight two opponents," Djokovic said.
Federer forced deuce as Djokovic served again for the set.
Known for his tendency to bounce the ball up to two dozen times before serving, the Serbian got a time delay warning. Instead of being shaken, Djokovic was fired up. He ripped a forehand winner and glared up at chair umpire Pascal Maria of France, then blasted an ace and stared defiantly at Maria again.
The two men combined to fend off seven break points early in the third set. Federer had two chances to break as Djokovic served at 5-6, but the Serbian refused to crack, hitting two great serves, then getting to a drop for a forehand crosscourt winner to force a tiebreaker.
From 3-3, the two players combined for five straight winners, the last a good serve by Djokovic that set up match point. Federer netted a forehand to finish it in 2 hours and 48 minutes.
The crowd slowly rose to its feet, almost in disbelief, before applauding Djokovic, then gave Federer a standing ovation as he quickly left the court.

Ana Ivanovic talks to the media at a PRESS CONFERENCE.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - JANUARY 25: Ana Ivanovic of Serbia talks to the media at a press conference on day twelve of the Australian Open 2008 at Melbourne Park on January 25, 2008 in Melbourne, Australia. Ivanovic plays Maria Sharapova of Russia in the Women's Final of The Australian Open tomorrow.

Societe Generale Uncovers Massive Fraud

By Emma Vandore, Associated Press Writer
Societe Generale Uncovers Massive Fraud by Futures Trader

PARIS (AP) -- Societe Generale uncovered a $7.14 billion fraud -- one of history's biggest -- by a single futures trader who orchestrated a series of bogus transactions that spiraled out of control amid roiling markets this week, the French bank said Thursday.
Executives said the trader, a Frenchman in his 30s, acted alone. CEO Daniel Bouton said the trader's motivations were "irrational" and that he may not have benefited directly from the fraudulent deals.
The bombshell announcement destabilized a major bank already heavily exposed to the subprime crisis and rattled the global banking sector. France's second largest bank said it will seek 5.5 billion euros ($8.02 billion) in new capital.
Trading in Societe Generale's shares, which have lost nearly half their value over the past six months, was suspended Thursday morning. When trading resumed midday, the bank's shares dropped 5.5 percent to 74.77 euros ($108.97).
Societe Generale said it detected the fraud over the weekend at its French markets division.
Once uncovered, Bouton said the bank alerted market regulators and moved immediately to close the trader's positions, incurring heavy losses amid sharp declines on world markets.
"Detecting the fraud over the weekend was problematic because world stock markets on Monday and Tuesday fell hugely around the world," said Janine Dow, senior director at Fitch Ratings financial institution group in Paris. "When the positions had to be unwound, the bank did that in a terrible market of falling equities."
The bank said the trader has misled investors since 2007 through a "scheme of elaborate fictitious transactions." The trader, who was not named, used his knowledge of the group's security systems to conceal fraudulent positions, the bank said.
"In hindsight, it was this guy's superior knowledge of the control system of every aspect of trading at the bank that allowed him to build up fraudulent positions and hide them," Dow said.
The man acknowledged the fraud, the bank said, and was being dismissed. Four or five of his supervisors were to leave the group. Bouton offered his resignation but it was rejected by the board.
The trader had worked for the bank since 2000 and earned a salary and bonus of less than 100,000 euros ($145,700), executives said.
"I'm convinced he acted alone," said Jean-Pierre Mustier, chief executive of the bank's corporate and investment banking, who interviewed the trader when the fraud was uncovered.
The trader was responsible for basic futures hedging on European equity market indices, the company said, betting on how the markets would perform at a future date.
The Bank of France, the country's central bank, said it was informed of the fraud and was investigating.
The trader had until last year been betting that markets would fall, but then changed his position at the start of this year to bet they would rise, said Kinner Lakhani, an analyst at ABN Amro in London who specializes in Societe Generale shares, citing the bank's management.
There had been "daily rumors" this week that something had gone wrong at Societe Generale, he said.
"The market was sniffing something," Lakhani said.
Because the trader previously had worked in trading accounting offices, "he would have known how the risk management worked," Lakhani said. In an extended conference call with analysts Thursday morning, bank officials "talked about this guy bypassing systems and setting up false counter-trades."
"Everyone clearly is very surprised, to say the least," he said.
The fraud appears to be the largest ever by a single trader. If confirmed, it would far outstrip the Nick Leeson trading scandal in 1995 that bankrupted British bank Barings. Barings collapsed after Leeson, the bank's Singapore general manager of futures trading, lost 860 million pounds -- then worth $1.38 billion -- on Asian futures markets, wiping out the bank's cash reserves. The company had been in business for more than 230 years.
The fraud was not as big as the 1991 scandal that led to the demise of the Bank of Credit and Commerce International. Claims by depositors and creditors there exceeded $10 billion at the time.
The Bank of Credit and Commerce International failed after a 1991 scandal that led to claims by depositors and creditors exceeding $10 billion at the time.
Gilles Glicenstein, president of asset management at rival French bank BNP Paribas -- France's largest -- said, "It shows that we are in a very troubled period for banks, and I think that it's in such troubled periods that difficult things happen."
"This is not good news for Societe Generale, but also for banks in general. It can create doubt, but at the same time in this period, we are making efforts to be transparent in order to give confidence back," he said at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Axel Pierron, senior analyst at Celent, an international financial research and consulting firm, was stunned that a trader could be involved in such a massive fraud 13 years after the Barings Bank collapse.
"The situation reveals that banks, despite the implementation of sophisticated risk management solutions, are still under the threat that an employee with a good understanding of the risk management processes can getting round them to hide his losses," he said.
At Societe Generale, the fraud announcement came on the back of subprime-related difficulties. Subprime writedowns linked to the crisis in financial markets amounted to 2.05 billion euros ($2.99 billion), Societe Generale said.
As a result, the bank is planning a capital hike in the "following weeks" by selling shares in a rights offer underwritten by JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Morgan Stanley. Following the transaction, the bank's Tier 1 ratio, a measure of its financial strength, will rise to 8 percent from 6.7 percent.
The write-down and losses will lead the company to post a net profit of 600 million euros to 800 million euros ($874 million to $1.16 billion) for all of 2007, the Paris-based bank said.
Full-year results will be announced Feb. 21. In 2006, net profit was 5.2 billion euros.
AP writers Matt Moore in Davos, Switzerland, and Thomas Wagner in London, and John Leicester in Paris contributed to this report.

每周吃逾6片吞拿魚 水銀量可超標

【明報專訊】香港一名壽司店老闆月初以逾40萬港元投得東京 藍鰭吞拿魚王，成為城中佳話。但原來食用貴價的吞拿魚刺身並不安全，美國 《紐約 時報》研究發現，藍鰭吞拿的水銀含量偏高，每周吃多於6件吞拿魚壽司就已超標。
《紐約時報》從曼哈頓20間壽司店購買吞拿魚壽司進行化驗，發現其中5間店舖售賣的藍鰭吞拿壽司水銀含量之高，足以令美國食物與藥品管理局頒布禁售令。這些吞拿魚的水銀含量，比罐頭吞拿高很多，進食6件會攝取49微克水銀，是成年人一周可攝取的上限。
紐約藍鰭吞拿水銀量極高
專家指出，雖然吞拿魚取樣自紐約，但若對其他地區的藍鰭吞拿進行測試，將得到相似結果。水銀一般是工業污染物被排入大海，研究人員相信，愈肥大的吞拿魚，吃的小魚愈多，體內累積的水銀水平亦更高。
有壽司店在得悉調查結果後表示，會暫停出售吞拿魚，亦有壽司店表示，一直知道吞拿魚水銀含量高，通常會建議家長不要讓兒童「吃多於一至兩件」。專家則建議，最好每隔三周才吃一次吞拿魚壽司，而且每次不應吃多於6件。
基本上所有海鮮均含有水銀，美國政府雖沒有定期抽驗海鮮的水銀含量，但過往有研究顯示，常進食海鮮的人，體內水銀水平亦較高。人體攝取過量水銀除了令神經系統受損外，還會導致心血管疾病。美國當局曾發出指引，警告孕婦和兒童不應吃太多罐頭吞拿魚。
攝取過量可致心血管疾病
《紐時》有關藍鰭水銀偏高的報道，惹來美國右翼智庫「消費者自由中心」（CCF）質疑，該組織指控報道就政府水銀安全標準上「誤導」讀者，要求撤回。CCF的前身於1990年代中成立，早期贊助全來自煙商，常質疑有關食品安全的研究。

TSONGA stuns Nadal

French tennis player Jo-Wilfried Tsonga celebrates victory after his mens singles semi-final match against Spanish opponent Rafael Nadal at the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne, 24 January 2008. Tsonga won 6-2. 6-3. 6-2. AFP PHOTO/Peter PARKS

Queen VS Queen "ANA IVANOVIC V MARIA SHARAPOVA

Ana Ivanovic reaches her 2nd GRAND SLAM Final!!!

Serbian tennis player Ana Ivanovic celebrates during her womens singles semi-final match against Slovakian opponent Daniela Hantuchova at the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne, 24 January 2008. Ivanovic won 0-6. 6-3. 6-4. AFP PHOTO/Romeo GACAD