Year: 2014

By Chuck Mikolajczak NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. stocks were poised for a modestly higher open on Tuesday, putting S&P 500 on track for a third straight advance, after the benchmark index closed out its fifth straight quarter of gains and ahead of data on manufacturing. * The S&P 500 rose 1.3 percent for the quarter, matching its longest quarterly winning streak since 2007, buoyed by gains Monday after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen soothed concerns about an earlier-than-expected rate hike. * Investors will look to data on the manufacturing sector for an indication of the economy's health after lackluster data earlier in the year was attributed to a harsh winter. The final Markit manufacturing PMI for March is due at 9:45 a.m. EDT (1345 GMT) and the Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing reading for March is due at 10:00 a.m. (1400 GMT).

By Megha Rajagopalan and Ben Blanchard BEIJING (Reuters) – Protests against a proposed chemical plant in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong spread to the provincial capital on Tuesday, even as authorities signalled they may back down on construction plans in attempt to head off more unrest. Public anger has grown since graphic photos surfaced on Chinese social networks early this week, showing demonstrators in the nearby city of Maoming – the location of the proposed plant – lying bloodied on the streets as rows of paramilitary police marched in formation. On Sunday, hundreds of Maoming residents poured into the streets protesting against the plant producing paraxylene, a petrochemical used in making fabric and plastic bottles, and environmental degradation. Protesters in the provincial capital, Guangzhou, on Tuesday renewed calls for an end to the chemical plant project, as well as justice for those who they believe were hurt or killed at the hands of paramilitary police on Sunday.

A healthcare unit of General Electric Co has recalled hundreds of incubator-like infant "warmers" in China over safety concerns as Beijing tightens oversight of the country's fast-growing medical device sector. GE Healthcare recalled 223 of the U.S.-produced warmers after uncovering a potential safety issue that could restrict oxygen supply to the child, the China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) said in a statement on Tuesday. The recall announcement coincides with tough messages from China's Cabinet this week that the government would increase oversight and fines in the medical device sector to address safety concerns. The crackdown could intensify the challenge for international medical device makers such as UK-based GE Healthcare, as well as rivals Siemens AG and Medtronic Inc, as they look to tap into the sector.

By Kiyoshi Takenaka TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan's top research body on Tuesday accused the lead writer of stem cell papers hailed as a game-changer in the field of medical biology of misconduct involving fabrication, but the scientist called the findings unacceptable. Two papers published in the scientific journal Nature in January detailed simple ways to reprogram mature animal cells back to an embryonic-like state, allowing them to generate many types of tissues. But reports have since pointed out irregularities in data and images used in the papers, prompting RIKEN, a semi-governmental research institute and employer of the lead writer, to set up a panel to look into the matter. The panel said, for example, that one of the articles reused images related to lead writer Haruko Obokata's doctoral dissertation, which was on different experiments.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Obama administration said on Monday that it has resolved a glitch affecting HealthCare.gov that temporarily prevented new users from accessing application and enrollment tools around midday, as website traffic volumes surged hours before a midnight deadline to enroll in private health insurance. (Reporting by David Morgan; Editing by Meredith Mazzilli)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The White House said on Monday that it expects final enrollment numbers for private health care insurance under Obamacare in 2014 to be “substantially larger” than 6 million after a busy final weekend of in-person and online signups. “Here on the last day of enrollment, we’re looking at a number substantially larger than 6 million people enrolled,” White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters, noting he was not sure when the government would be able to release its final enrollment figures. (Reporting by Roberta Rampton and Jeff Mason; Editing by Doina Chiacu)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. administration said key segments of its Obamacare website, HealthCare.gov, were unavailable to new users for a second time on Monday, as record numbers of people tried to access the site hours before the enrollment deadline for health insurance. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which is responsible for implementing the healthcare law, said new users were unable to access HealthCare.gov’s application end enrollment tools around midday. People already in the system were able to complete the enrollment process, officials said. …

By David Morgan WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The federal website for U.S. consumers to enroll in private health insurance under Obamacare ran into problems twice on Monday because of a surge of people trying to access the site hours before a midnight deadline to sign up for coverage. Technical issues that barred access to HealthCare.gov for several hours throughout the day underscored the frantic last-minute pace of an enrollment process that could determine the ultimate success or failure of the healthcare law that represents President Barack Obama's domestic policy achievement. More than 6 million people had signed up for private health coverage through the new Obamacare insurance markets by last week, surpassing a target set after a disastrous October rollout called the enrollment process into question.