British petrolem worker win damage

A US jury has awarded $100 m (£62 m) in damages to 10 workers who said a leak at a BP oil refinery in Texas in 2007 had made them sick. The source of the leak at the refinery south of Houston was never identified and environmental agencies reported no evidence linking it to the refinery. BP concluded that any toxic substance had come from outside. But lawyers for the workers argued the odour had come from a sulphur recovery unit at the plant. They described BP as a serial polluter. The Texas jury agreed with the lawyers' case and imposed punitive damages. A hundred workers at the refinery were sent to hospital after being overcome by a toxic substance and a further 90 claims are to come. The workers said their injuries had included dizziness and sore throats, with one employee passing out after inhaling the substance, but none suffered long-term damage to their lungs, their lawyer said. 'Utterly unjustified' BP said it was outraged by the verdict reached by the jury in Galveston, and would appeal. "The verdict, and punitive damages award in particular, is utterly unjustified, improper and unsupportable," it added. Tony Buzbee, a lawyer for the workers, said his clients were pleased with the jury's decision, adding that he had approached BP before the trial and had offered to settle for $10 ,000 for each worker. BP had rejected the proposal, he said. "They tried to minimise it, attack the credibility of the workers," Mr Buzbee said. "They simply would not admit that they had released something." The refinery was the site of a 2005 explosion that killed 15 people and injured 170 , the worst US industrial accident since 1990. It has a history of fires, chemical releases and worker deaths, The Associated Press reports.

Software fare will held Dhaka

A five-day software exposition will kick off on February 10 at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka, organisers said in a statement yesterday. Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS) will organise SOFTEXPO-2010 , themed as Digital Bangladesh in Action. Habibullah N Karim, BASIS president, disclosed the date of the fair at a press meet in a city hotel yesterday. Karim said the IT event is expected to have a large software display and IT-enabled services breaking all previous records. A Towhid, chairman of National Events Committee, MA Mubin Khan, director, and Nahid Ahmed, secretary general of BASIS, also attended the programme. Mubin said the fair would focus on the government's Vision-2021 -- a deadline to make a Digital Bangladesh. The fair is expected to see around five lakh visitors at its stalls of over 200 local and international companies. Bangladesh has earned $32.91 million by exporting software accessories this year, a $5.91 million rise from last year. "The volume will increase by 30 to 40 percent next year." SOFTEXPO aims to create a platform for showcasing immense potential of the industry by synchronising all sorts of software resources and skills available in Bangladesh, said organisers.

United Airways fly for Kuala Lumpur

United Airways (BD) Ltd, a joint venture of non- resident Bangladeshis, is going to introduce its flight on Dhaka-Kuala Lumpur-Dhaka route today with its 155- seated MD 83 aircraft. Civil Aviation and Tourism Secretary Shafiq Alam Mehedi will inaugurate the flight. Malaysian High Commissioner in Dhaka Jamaluddin Sabeh will be present as special guest. Its three other international routes are Dhaka- Kolkata-Dhaka, Dhaka-Dubai-Dhaka and Dhaka- London-Dhaka. The two-way airfare for this new route has been fixed at Tk 19 ,900 , while for one-way at Tk 13 , 751 , including all taxes. The flight will be operated twice a week -- Monday and Friday. On November 21 , the United started its Dhaka- London-Dhaka flight. The airlines started its operation on domestic routes on July 10 , 2007. The United Airways that owns one 155- seated MD 83 aircraft and two 37- seated Dash-8-100 planes will procure another MD 83 soon, its Manager (Marketing Support and PR) Md Kamrul Islam told the news agency. It also plans to procure a Boeing 767-300 ER aircraft by mid-2010 and is scheduled to operate flights to Kathmandu, Bangkok and Jeddah soon.

Ford Motor is now in better possition

The economic storm that battered the US automotive industry has forced Ford Motor Company into a better position, chief executive Alan Mulally said Friday. Ford has undergone an intense restructuring in recent years that has left it a leaner and more focused company. "We're on a clear path to profitability now," chief executive Alan Mulally told reporters. "It's probably in the strongest position it's ever been in." Mulally noted that 2009 was an intense year for the auto industry - particularly in Detroit where Ford rivals General Motors and Chrysler declared bankruptcy after a massive government bailout - but said the prospects for 2010 were improving. "We feel a lot more confident about the economy," Mulally said. Ford managed to finance its restructuring without resorting to government aid and also escaped bankruptcy protection.

Swedish North korean jeans on sale

The "first ever" brand of jeans made in North Korea went on sale in Stockholm on Saturday, the Swedish company behind the communist- made denims said. "There has been a constant flow of shoppers," Tor Rauden Kaellstigen of company NoKo Jeans told AFP. Some 1 ,100 pairs of the jeans went on sale for 1 , 500 Swedish kronor (150 euros, 226 dollars) each. "We have a few pairs left," Kaellstigen said, refusing to disclose detailed sales figures. The jeans were to have gone on sale at trendy Stockholm department store PUB on December 5 but PUB decided at the last minute to halt the sale, saying it did not want to be dragged into a political debate. Instead, NoKo Jeans opened a temporary boutique in central Stockholm to sell the garments themselves. Kaellstigen, Jakob Ohlsson and Jacob Aastroem -- three Swedes all under the age of 25 and with no previous experience in business or fashion -- started their project in mid-2007 , prompted by a desire to enter in contact with the isolationist state.

Hyundai Motor will make truck

Hyundai Motor Co said Sunday it has agreed to launch a $400 million truck manufacturing venture in China with a local partner as it seeks further inroads in the world's biggest auto market. Hyundai Motor, South Korea's largest automaker, said it signed an initial agreement with Chinese commercial vehicle manufacturer Baotou Bei Ben Heavy-Duty Truck Co and has set a sales target of 100 ,000 heavy duty trucks in China by 2014. Under the deal, signed Saturday in Seoul, the two companies will invest a total of $400 million to set up the 50-50 joint venture next year, Hyundai said. It will take over the Chinese company's existing large truck business that can manufacture 40 ,000 vehicles a year. Hyundai, which already makes passenger cars in China, said it will initially focus on heavy duty trucks in the new venture and gradually boost its investment to include what it described as a "full line-up of commercial vehicles." "The joint venture will initially launch a refreshed Baotou Bei Ben model and then launch a brand new model by 2012 with input from Hyundai's modern technology and equipment, gaining competitiveness in the Chinese commercial vehicle market," Hyundai said in a release.

Dubai World will repay all of their loan

Top Dubai officials have been in talks with creditors in London on the possible repayment of all the banking debt owed by the troubled subsidiaries of the Dubai World group, a newspaper said on Sunday. Dubai sent its ruler's uncle, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed al-Maktoum, who heads its Supreme Financial Committee, and his deputy Mohammed al-Shaibani, to London to discuss Dubai World's debt problems.