Sunday, October 04, 2009 MANILA: A 6.6-magnitude earthquake struck off the Philippines Sunday, seismologists said, but at 630 kilometres (390 miles) below the seabed it was considered extremely deep and no destructive tsunami was expected.The quake hit in the Moro Gulf, off Mindanao, at 6:58 pm (1058 GMT), but there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries and the Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said it did not expect a destructive tsunami.The epicentre was 100 kilometres southwest of Cotabato, in Mindanao, the US Geological Survey said.Asia-Pacific has in the past week been hit by earthquakes, tsunamis and typhoons that have left nearly 2,000 dead.
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...
Comments