BOAO: China's Premier Wen Jiabao said Saturday that the country's stimulus package is working and the economy is``better than expected.''He also vowed to expand the country's domestic demand and pull China out of the global economic slump. Wen spoke at the Boao Forum, an annual gathering of government and business leaders on the southern island province of Hainan.Wen said he is confident China can overcome the crisis but cautioned that global economic recovery will be a ``long and torturous process.'' ``We should not lose sight of the fact that the international financial crisis is still spreading, the basic trend of world economic recession is not reversed,'' he said.China has sufficient capital and rich labor resources, as well as institutional advantages to overcome the crisis, he said. Wen's comments came just days after China announced its economy expanded at its slowest pace _ 6.1 percent _ in at least a decade in the first quarter.
Sunday, February 28, 2010 HAVANA: Hundreds of wealthy merchants and cigar aficionados from all parts of the world gathered in Havana this week to bid high stakes for humidors full of premium cigars. Cuba's annual Habanos festival ended on Friday night with an auction of ornate humidors of cedar and mahogany stacked with hand-rolled stogies that raised 800,000 euros ($1.09 million dollars). Habanos S.A. executives this month said cigar sales fell 8 percent to $360 million in 2009, so they have created the Julieta, a smaller, milder version of the Romeo y Julieta cigar, aimed specifically at female smokers. Women now make up only 5 to 10 percent of customers for Habanos. But even with the creation of the Julieta, Garcia said Habanos has only modest hopes for 2010 sales, due largely to a weak economy in Spain, the biggest market for Cuban cigars. The flavor of premium tobacco relies on the soil and climate in which it is grown. The western province of Pinar Del Rio, famous fo...
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