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GAO: Smooth and timely launch uncertain for Obama health law; administration making progress

WASHINGTON - There's no guarantee that President Barack Obama's health care law will launch smoothly and on time, congressional investigators say in the first in-depth independent look at its progress. But in a report to be released Wednesday, the congressional Government Accountability Office also sees positive signs as the Oct. 1 deadline approaches for new health insurance markets called exchanges to open in each state — in many cases over the objections of Republican governors.

From Canada to the Netherlands: A look at Netflix's international expansion

Netflix Inc. got its start renting DVDs through the mail in the U.S. during the late 1990s and added Internet video streaming in 2007. It has been expanding globally with a streaming-only service. Here's a look at its international expansion so far. — Sept. 22, 2010: Service in Canada begins, first outside the U.S. — Sept. 5, 2011. Service in Latin America begins. — Jan. 9, 2012: Expands to the United Kingdom and Ireland. — Oct. 15, 2012: Netflix arrives in Sweden, followed by Denmark, Norway and Finland later that week.

Pakistan pushed Afghan insurgents to the table

Pakistan likely played a crucial role in persuading a reluctant Taliban to enter into tentative peace talks with its American and Afghan government foes, experts said here. For more than two years, the United States has been promoting the idea of negotiations free of preconditions with little result, as Taliban insurgents seemed unwilling to risk talking to their adversaries, particularly Afghan leaders in Kabul.

Historic Kosovo-Serbia deal makes little headway

Two months since Serbia and Kosovo agreed to normalise relations, implementation of the accord has barely started just days before European leaders are due to decide whether they merit closer EU ties. According to the EU-brokered April 19 agreement, the first thaw in the diplomatic freeze between Belgrade and Pristina, they should by June 15 have completed talks on telecommunications and energy. But both issues appear to have hit stumbling blocks, with each side blaming the other for the impasse.

Empire State Building gets 'left-field' $2 billion offer to sell

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A New York City real estate company offered to buy the Empire State Building for $2 billion, a written offer showed, significantly below the skyscraper's appraisal price and about three weeks after investors in the iconic building approved a plan to take the tower public in a real-estate investment trust.

Journalist who brought down U.S. general is killed in Los Angeles car crash

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Journalist Michael Hastings, whose 2010 Rolling Stone magazine profile of the U.S. military chief in Afghanistan, Stanley McChrystal, led to the general being relieved of command, died on Tuesday in a car wreck in Los Angeles, his employer said. A statement from the editor-in-chief of online news outlet BuzzFeed reporting that Hastings, 33, had been killed, gave no details of the accident, and neither Los Angeles police nor the county coroner's office would confirm his death.

Mexican oil producer Pemex evacuates headquarters after bomb threat

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico's state oil producer, Pemex, said on Tuesday it had evacuated its Mexico City headquarters, the site of a deadly explosion in January, after a bomb threat. "In the face of the threat, we're applying security measures at the Pemex tower in Mexico City," Pemex said in a tweet around 8:48 p.m. (0148 GMT Wednesday).

GM aims for 10 percent of China's luxury car market by 2020

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - General Motors Co <GM.N> said on Wednesday it aims to quadruple its share of China's luxury auto market to 10 percent by 2020 as the U.S. automaker launches new Cadillac models and expands its distribution network in the world's largest car market. Bob Socia, head of GM's China operation, shared Cadillac's China growth target in a roundtable with reporters ahead of a ground-breaking ceremony for GM's new Cadillac plant on the outskirts of Shanghai.

Acer sees tablet, notebook PC shipments to be flat in second quarter

TAIPEI (Reuters) - Acer Inc, the world's No.4 PC vendor, said on Wednesday that it expects notebook and tablet PC shipment to be flat in the second quarter from the first quarter, versus an prediction of 0-5 percent growth made in April. Acer Chairman J.T. Wang made the comment to reporters at the firm's annual shareholder meeting.

Australian killer of Irish woman jailed for life

A serial sex offender was Wednesday sentenced to life for the "savage" rape and murder of an Irish woman in a Melbourne street, a random killing which shocked the nation and led to an outpouring of emotion. Adrian Ernest Bayley, who pleaded guilty, had a history of violence and was on parole at the time of the attack on Jill Meagher as she walked home alone after spending a night with friends last September.
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