Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Abiraterone: Hint of considerable added benefit

Abiraterone: Hint of considerable added benefit [ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 2-Jul-2013
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Dr. Anna-Sabine Ernst
presse@iqwig.de
49-022-135-6850
Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care

Certain men with metastatic prostate cancer have advantages in comparison with watchful waiting

Abiraterone acetate (abiraterone for short, trade name: Zytiga) has been approved in Germany since December 2012 for men with metastatic prostate cancer that is not responsive to hormone blockade, who only have mild symptoms or so far none at all, and in whom chemotherapy is not yet indicated. In an early benefit assessment pursuant to the "Act on the Reform of the Market for Medicinal Products" (AMNOG), the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) examined whether abiraterone offers an added benefit compared with the present standard therapy.

According to this, the new drug can prolong overall survival and delay the occurrence of severe pain in comparison with watchful waiting. Due to the poor data however, it cannot be excluded with certainty that abiraterone also causes greater harm in the form of side effects. Overall, IQWiG derives a hint of a considerable added benefit.

G-BA specified appropriate comparator therapy

The Federal Joint Committee (G-BA) specified watchful waiting, i.e. observation of the disease and its course without additional medical interventions, as the appropriate comparator therapy. However, current conventional androgen deprivation therapy, i.e. hormone blockade with drugs, was to be maintained or continued as combined, maximal androgen blockade with a non-steroidal anti-androgen (flutamide or bicalutamide).

Assessment on the basis of an approval study

The assessment was based on a direct comparative randomized controlled trial (RCT), namely the approval study for this indication (COU-AA-302). Patients in this study received either abiraterone and prednisone or placebo and prednisone. Almost all patients (94%) in both study arms also received a drug for hormone blockade.

In both study arms, treatment was continued until progression occurred, i.e. the disease got worse. In the abiraterone group, this was the case after 13.8 months on average (median), and in the placebo group, after 8.3 months. This means that the duration of treatment differed greatly in the two study arms.

Advantages in "mortality" and "morbidity"

The results of the study showed that, on the one hand, abiraterone had advantages in the outcome "overall survival", as life expectancy was about five months higher on average (median) in this study arm. On the other hand, severe pain occurred later in the abiraterone group, where it took about three months longer until one quarter of the patients needed an opiate. IQWiG sees an indication of an added benefit for both outcomes: in the case of "mortality" (overall survival) with the extent "minor", and in the case of "morbidity" (occurrence of severe pain) with the extent "considerable".

Data on "health-related quality of life" not usable

Data on "health-related quality of life" were obtained in this study using a questionnaire. The way these data were analysed was unsuitable, however, and therefore the results could not be used for the assessment. Therefore it remained unclear whether the differences recorded between the two study arms were really noticeable for the patients.

Results on "side effects" are uncertain

Most data on "side effects" presented by the pharmaceutical company were also not analysed appropriately, and could therefore not be used. This was true for the overall rate of adverse events and for serious adverse events, as well as for the specific adverse events "fractures" and "fluid retention/oedema".

The main reason these data could not be used was that the difference in treatment duration in the two study arms (13.8 versus 8.3 months) was not considered appropriately by the manufacturer in the analyses.

An analysis of severe adverse events that occurred during the first three months of the treatment from the approval documents could be used, however. At this early time, when the majority of patients was probably still treated with abiraterone or placebo, there was no statistically significant difference between the two treatment arms.

Hence a greater or lesser harm from abiraterone is not proven, but cannot be excluded with certainty, either.

Hint instead of indication

Therefore only positive effects remained on the basis of the available data, namely indications of a minor added benefit regarding "mortality" (overall survival) and of a considerable added benefit regarding "morbidity" (time of occurrence of severe pain). Due to the uncertainty regarding harm, however, overall, IQWiG did not derive an indication, but a hint of a considerable added benefit of abiraterone in comparison with watchful waiting.

IQWiG already published a first dossier assessment of abiraterone in January 2012. This assessment dealt with a different indication, however, namely its use in men with metastatic prostate cancer that is no longer responsive to hormone therapy and progresses further during or after therapy with the cytostatic drug docetaxel.

G-BA decides on the extent of added benefit

The approach for deriving an overall conclusion on the extent of added benefit is a proposal by IQWiG. The G-BA, which has opened a formal commenting procedure, decides on the extent of added benefit.

An overview of the results of IQWiG's benefit assessment is given by a German-language executive summary. In addition, the website gesundheitsinformation.de, published by IQWiG, provides easily understandable and brief German-language information on abiraterone.

The G-BA website contains both general English-language information on benefit assessment pursuant to 35a Social Code Book V and specific German-language information on the assessment of abiraterone.

###


[ Back to EurekAlert! ] [ | E-mail | Share Share ]

?


AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.


Abiraterone: Hint of considerable added benefit [ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 2-Jul-2013
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Dr. Anna-Sabine Ernst
presse@iqwig.de
49-022-135-6850
Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care

Certain men with metastatic prostate cancer have advantages in comparison with watchful waiting

Abiraterone acetate (abiraterone for short, trade name: Zytiga) has been approved in Germany since December 2012 for men with metastatic prostate cancer that is not responsive to hormone blockade, who only have mild symptoms or so far none at all, and in whom chemotherapy is not yet indicated. In an early benefit assessment pursuant to the "Act on the Reform of the Market for Medicinal Products" (AMNOG), the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) examined whether abiraterone offers an added benefit compared with the present standard therapy.

According to this, the new drug can prolong overall survival and delay the occurrence of severe pain in comparison with watchful waiting. Due to the poor data however, it cannot be excluded with certainty that abiraterone also causes greater harm in the form of side effects. Overall, IQWiG derives a hint of a considerable added benefit.

G-BA specified appropriate comparator therapy

The Federal Joint Committee (G-BA) specified watchful waiting, i.e. observation of the disease and its course without additional medical interventions, as the appropriate comparator therapy. However, current conventional androgen deprivation therapy, i.e. hormone blockade with drugs, was to be maintained or continued as combined, maximal androgen blockade with a non-steroidal anti-androgen (flutamide or bicalutamide).

Assessment on the basis of an approval study

The assessment was based on a direct comparative randomized controlled trial (RCT), namely the approval study for this indication (COU-AA-302). Patients in this study received either abiraterone and prednisone or placebo and prednisone. Almost all patients (94%) in both study arms also received a drug for hormone blockade.

In both study arms, treatment was continued until progression occurred, i.e. the disease got worse. In the abiraterone group, this was the case after 13.8 months on average (median), and in the placebo group, after 8.3 months. This means that the duration of treatment differed greatly in the two study arms.

Advantages in "mortality" and "morbidity"

The results of the study showed that, on the one hand, abiraterone had advantages in the outcome "overall survival", as life expectancy was about five months higher on average (median) in this study arm. On the other hand, severe pain occurred later in the abiraterone group, where it took about three months longer until one quarter of the patients needed an opiate. IQWiG sees an indication of an added benefit for both outcomes: in the case of "mortality" (overall survival) with the extent "minor", and in the case of "morbidity" (occurrence of severe pain) with the extent "considerable".

Data on "health-related quality of life" not usable

Data on "health-related quality of life" were obtained in this study using a questionnaire. The way these data were analysed was unsuitable, however, and therefore the results could not be used for the assessment. Therefore it remained unclear whether the differences recorded between the two study arms were really noticeable for the patients.

Results on "side effects" are uncertain

Most data on "side effects" presented by the pharmaceutical company were also not analysed appropriately, and could therefore not be used. This was true for the overall rate of adverse events and for serious adverse events, as well as for the specific adverse events "fractures" and "fluid retention/oedema".

The main reason these data could not be used was that the difference in treatment duration in the two study arms (13.8 versus 8.3 months) was not considered appropriately by the manufacturer in the analyses.

An analysis of severe adverse events that occurred during the first three months of the treatment from the approval documents could be used, however. At this early time, when the majority of patients was probably still treated with abiraterone or placebo, there was no statistically significant difference between the two treatment arms.

Hence a greater or lesser harm from abiraterone is not proven, but cannot be excluded with certainty, either.

Hint instead of indication

Therefore only positive effects remained on the basis of the available data, namely indications of a minor added benefit regarding "mortality" (overall survival) and of a considerable added benefit regarding "morbidity" (time of occurrence of severe pain). Due to the uncertainty regarding harm, however, overall, IQWiG did not derive an indication, but a hint of a considerable added benefit of abiraterone in comparison with watchful waiting.

IQWiG already published a first dossier assessment of abiraterone in January 2012. This assessment dealt with a different indication, however, namely its use in men with metastatic prostate cancer that is no longer responsive to hormone therapy and progresses further during or after therapy with the cytostatic drug docetaxel.

G-BA decides on the extent of added benefit

The approach for deriving an overall conclusion on the extent of added benefit is a proposal by IQWiG. The G-BA, which has opened a formal commenting procedure, decides on the extent of added benefit.

An overview of the results of IQWiG's benefit assessment is given by a German-language executive summary. In addition, the website gesundheitsinformation.de, published by IQWiG, provides easily understandable and brief German-language information on abiraterone.

The G-BA website contains both general English-language information on benefit assessment pursuant to 35a Social Code Book V and specific German-language information on the assessment of abiraterone.

###


[ Back to EurekAlert! ] [ | E-mail | Share Share ]

?


AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.


Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-07/ifqa-aho070213.php

torn acl derrick rose injury st louis news correspondents dinner i am legend san antonio spurs greta van susteren

New Apple Patent Could Finally Take Gadgets Like An iWatch Beyond The Bezel

Image (1) iwatch_def11.jpg for post 157418Apple has just been granted a new patent (via AppleInsider) for unique bezel technology that could not only add touch controls to a bezel on a small device screen (like one for an iWatch), but that would also make it possible for that bezel to fade in and out of view, providing maximum screen real estate when required, and then coming back into view when it would work better to have a bordered screen.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/pwsHPYJ-g5U/

victoria azarenka Royal Rumble 2013 senior bowl norovirus Eclampsia Kendrick Lamar JJ Abrams

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Apple iWatch: Trademark filed. Will product follow?

Apple iWatch trademark ? applied for in Japan ? is fueling speculation that the American electronics company will actually make an Apple iWatch. CEO Tim Cook has talked about exploring wearable electronics but registered skepticism about a wristwatch.?

By Reuters / July 2, 2013

Kae Shibata, left, and Yutaro Noji show off an Apple iPhone 5 that they bought at a store in Tokyo last year. Would Japanese young people be as excited by an Apple iWatch. Apple applied for a trademark for iWatch in Japan last month, although it's not clear whether a product will be coming.

Koji Sasahara/AP/File

Enlarge

Apple Inc has applied for a trademark for "iWatch" in?Japan, a patent official said on Monday, signalling the?iPhone?maker may be moving ahead with plans for a watch-like device as gadget makers turn their attention to wearable computers.

Skip to next paragraph

' + google_ads[0].line2 + '
' + google_ads[0].line3 + '

'; } else if (google_ads.length > 1) { ad_unit += ''; } } document.getElementById("ad_unit").innerHTML += ad_unit; google_adnum += google_ads.length; return; } var google_adnum = 0; google_ad_client = "pub-6743622525202572"; google_ad_output = 'js'; google_max_num_ads = '1'; google_feedback = "on"; google_ad_type = "text"; // google_adtest = "on"; google_image_size = '230x105'; google_skip = '0'; // -->

The trademark application, submitted on June 3 and released on the?Japan Patent Office?website on June 27, would cover computers, computer peripherals and wristwatches, the official said. He said it was unknown how long the application process would require.

An Apple spokesman in?Japan?could not immediately be reached for comment.

Speculation has mounted that Apple is preparing to launch an?iWatch?and CEO Tim Cook told a gathering of tech and media executives a month ago that wearable products were ripe for exploration, but added he was skeptical, including about Google Inc's recently unveiled Glass which combines a mobile computer and eyeglasses.

Ariz. fire crew that lost 19 worked front lines

Unidentified members of the Granite Mountain Interagency Hotshot Crew from Prescott, Ariz., pose together in this undated photo provided by the City of Prescott. Some of the men in this photograph were among the 19 firefighters killed while battling an out-of-control wildfire near Yarnell, Ariz., on Sunday, June 30, 2013, according to Prescott Fire Chief Dan Fraijo. It was the nation's biggest loss of firefighters in a wildfire in 80 years. (AP Photo/City of Prescott)

Unidentified members of the Granite Mountain Interagency Hotshot Crew from Prescott, Ariz., pose together in this undated photo provided by the City of Prescott. Some of the men in this photograph were among the 19 firefighters killed while battling an out-of-control wildfire near Yarnell, Ariz., on Sunday, June 30, 2013, according to Prescott Fire Chief Dan Fraijo. It was the nation's biggest loss of firefighters in a wildfire in 80 years. (AP Photo/City of Prescott)

In this 2012 photo provided by the Cronkite News, the Granite Mountain Hotshot crew clears a fire line through the forest. On Sunday, June 30, 2013, 19 members of the Prescott, Ariz.-based crew were killed in the deadliest wildfire involving firefighters in the U.S. for at least 30 years. The firefighters were forced to deploy their emergency fire shelters - tent-like structures meant to shield firefighters from flames and heat - when they were caught near the central Arizona town of Yarnell, according to a state forestry spokesman. (AP Photo/Cronkite News, Connor Radnovich)

In this 2012 photo provided by the Cronkite News, members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots run during training on the use of emergency fire shelters. On Sunday, June 30, 2013, 19 members of the Prescott, Ariz.-based crew were killed in the deadliest wildfire involving firefighters in the U.S. for at least 30 years. The firefighters were forced to deploy their emergency fire shelters - tent-like structures meant to shield firefighters from flames and heat - when they were caught near the central Arizona town of Yarnell, according to a state forestry spokesman. (AP Photo/Cronkite News, Connor Radnovich)

In this 2012 photo provided by the Cronkite News, Phillip Maldonado, a squad leader with the Granite Mountain Hotshots, trains crew members on setting up emergency fire shelters. On Sunday, June 30, 2013, 19 members of the Prescott, Ariz.-based crew were killed in the deadliest wildfire involving firefighters in the U.S. for at least 30 years. The firefighters were forced to deploy their emergency fire shelters - tent-like structures meant to shield firefighters from flames and heat - when they were caught near the central Arizona town of Yarnell, according to a state forestry spokesman. (AP Photo/Cronkite News, Connor Radnovich)

(AP) ? The 19 firefighters killed Sunday in Arizona were part of an elite crew known for working on the front lines of region's worst fires, including two this season that came before the team descended on the erratic fire that claimed their lives.

All but one member of the Prescott-based Hotshot crew died in what was the deadliest wildfire for firefighters in the U.S. in decades.

Prescott Fire Chief Dan Fraijo said the 19, whose names had not been released, were a part of the city's fire department.

Before the fire near Yarnell, the group ? one of 13 Arizona Hotshot crews ? had been profiled in local media last year as they prepared for the fire season and this year as they took on a blaze near Prescott earlier this month.

"The Hot Shots may be fighting the fire with fire," Prescott firefighter and spokesman Wade Ward told the Prescott Daily Courier in an interview last week (http://bit.ly/10tLAsZ ). "They may be removing the fuels from the fire, or building a containment line that might be a trigger point for farther down the line."

He told the newspaper members of Hotshot crews are highly trained and work long hours in extreme conditions as they carry out the most demanding of tasks. When the deadly blaze near Yarnell erupted Friday, it came amid a severe heat wave that gripped much of the West. It grew out of control as it was fanned by gusty, hot winds Sunday.

"By the time they got there, it was moving very quickly," Fraijo told The Associated Press of Sunday's fire.

Hotshot crews ? there are more than 100 in the U.S. ? often hike for miles into the wilderness with chain saws and backpacks filled with heavy gear to build lines of protection between people and fires. They remove brush, trees and anything that might burn in the direction of homes and cities.

The Prescott-based crew last year had four rookies on its 22-member squad, according to a Cronkite News Service report that profiled the group (http://bit.ly/Id3Ca8 ).

State forestry spokesman Art Morrison told the AP that the firefighters were forced to deploy their emergency fire shelters ? tent-like structures meant to shield firefighters from flames and heat ? when they were caught in the fire.

The Cronkite News Service had featured the group in its story practicing such deployment in a worst-case scenario drill.

"One of the last fail safe methods that a firefighter can do under those conditions is literally to dig as much as they can down and cover themselves with a protective ? kinda looks like a foil type ? fire-resistant material ? with the desire, the hope at least, is that the fire will burn over the top of them and they can survive it," Fraijo said Sunday.

"Under certain conditions there's usually only sometimes a 50 percent chance that they survive," he said. "It's an extreme measure that's taken under the absolute worst conditions."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2013-07-01-US-Firefighters-Killed-Crew/id-e2f56a7a141e4029afb59ccb70b768ec

jill biden martin luther king jr baltimore ravens ravens Ravens vs Patriots 49ers Vs Falcons Mama Movie

Monday, July 1, 2013

Abortion measures multiply under GOP-controlled Oklahoma Legislature

By BARBARA HOBEROCK World Capitol Bureau on Jun 30, 2013, at 2:32 AM??Updated on 6/30/13 at 7:06 AM

Sen. Clark Jolley (left) and Sen. Brian Crain: Jolley was the author of a bill passed two years ago that banned abortion after 20 weeks. Crain carried a bill that would have declared "personhood" at conception.

OKLAHOMA CITY - Abortion continues to be an emotional issue in Oklahoma as the GOP-controlled Legislature puts it at the forefront of its agenda.

Last week, Texas made national headlines after a hotly debated bill clamping down on abortion failed to secure approval by deadline following a filibuster by Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth.

The measure would have banned abortion after 20 weeks, required abortion clinics to become ambulatory surgical centers and required doctors who perform abortions to have admitting privileges at hospitals within 30 miles. The measure would have closed most abortion facilities in Texas.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry has called the GOP-controlled Texas Legislature back into session to reconsider the measure, which is expected to pass.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Supreme Court announced last week it would review an Oklahoma Supreme Court decision that found unconstitutional a law putting restrictions on medical abortions induced by drugs as opposed to surgery.

Since Republicans took control of both chambers of the Oklahoma Legislature, measures clamping down on abortion have become common. Prior to GOP control, the Senate killed or refused to hear many abortion bills.

Some recent measures have been tossed out by courts.

With the GOP expected to retain control for some time, abortion will continue to be an issue in Oklahoma.

Two years ago, the Legislature passed and Gov. Mary Fallin signed a bill banning abortion after 20 weeks, based on the assertion that a fetus can feel pain.

Sen. Clark Jolley, R-Edmond, was the Senate author of that bill.

"If the brain is developed enough it can sense pain and feel the sensation of limbs being ripped off before they have been killed. That is something that should not be done because that is a life, something we hold dear," Jolley said.

Jolley said he doesn't think the measure will have a huge impact because most abortions are performed before 20 weeks.

He said if a candidate is not solidly pro-life in Oklahoma, he or she will not win many elections, with a few exceptions in solidly Democratic districts. But even in many Democratic districts, a candidate still must be pro-life to secure approval, Jolley said.

Keith Gaddie, a University of Oklahoma political science professor, doesn't believe the issue is of paramount importance to the general public. Most voters have already made up their mind on abortion, he said.

Sen. Brian Crain, R-Tulsa, two years ago carried a measure that would have declared "personhood" at conception. The measure failed to get a hearing in the House.

The Oklahoma Supreme Court stopped an effort to put the measure before state voters.

"Up until the (former Gov. Brad) Henry administration, no pro-life bills were heard in the state Senate," Crain said. "While other states were addressing the issue of pro-life and how to regulate abortion procedures, nothing like that was being done in Oklahoma. A lot of what was going on with the state in the years I have been in the Legislature has been enacting legislation that has been in other states for years."

Former Sen. Cal Hobson, D-Lexington, served in the House and Senate and became leader of the Senate before leaving because of term limits.

He said Democrats were not of the mind to purposely pass bills they knew were unconstitutional. Hobson, a real estate developer, believes some lawmakers pursue abortion bills knowing full well they will run afoul of a legal challenge, but that they don't care.

Sen. Constance Johnson, D-Forest Park, is one of the more vocal critics of measures putting restrictions on abortion.

She said it is an effort by supporters to disregard a woman's right to make a medical decision and keep women oppressed.

Rep. Jeanie McDaniel, D-Tulsa, said abortion is not something her constituents express a lot of concern about. They are more interested in jobs, the economy and health care, she said.

Supporters of laws putting more regulations on abortion are getting more aggressive, she said.

"To me, it impedes a woman's right to take care of her own health," she said.

The issue is so controversial that some who perform abortions in Oklahoma refuse to talk about it.

Reproductive Services in Tulsa did not respond to two phone calls from the Tulsa World. The organization in the past has filed lawsuits successfully challenging some abortion measures.

Meanwhile, the number of abortions in Oklahoma is on the decline.

In 2002, there were 6,215 abortions in Oklahoma, according to the Oklahoma State Department of Health. That figure dropped to 4,840 in 2011.


Barbara Hoberock 405-528-2465
barbara.hoberock@tulsaworld.com

Original Print Headline: Abortion measures multiply under GOP

Only active print or digital subscribers of the Tulsa World are allowed to post comments on stories posted to Tulsaworld.com. After you fill out the form below and click submit, your comment will be published instantly online along with your screen name.

By clicking "Submit" you are agreeing to our terms and conditions.

Source: http://www.tulsaworld.com/article.aspx/Abortion_measures_multiply_under_GOP_controlled_Oklahoma/20130630_11_A1_CUTLIN748551?rss_lnk=16

falling skies johnny depp John Zawahri Suki Waterhouse apple apple Sagrada Familia

Exclusive: Bear market in gold pummels Einhorn's Greenlight fund

By Jennifer Ablan

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Investors in David Einhorn's Greenlight Capital Management's offshore gold fund were down 11.8 percent in June, bringing their year-to-date losses in the fund to 20 percent, two sources close to the matter said on Sunday.

Einhorn, one of the most widely followed hedge fund managers and known for warning about Lehman Brothers' precarious finances before it collapsed, has also seen his flagship $8 billion Greenlight Capital fund under recent pressure though it is still up for the year.

In June, Greenlight's flagship portfolio was down 1.1 percent but still up net 7.4 percent year to date, according to one of the sources.

Einhorn, largely known for going both long and short on stocks, formed the Greenlight gold fund to include the same investment strategy as the main fund but offers a share class backed by physical gold.

The gold fund, with a minimum investment of $1 million, had $929 million under management and 266 investors as of March, according to a recent regulatory filing.

The sources said the fund's dollar-denominated class represents a "majority" of the gold fund and is up 7.1 percent for the year. The remainder is in the gold-denominated class, which is down 11.8 percent in June alone and 20 percent so far this year. That's consistent with the sector's plunge this year.

The gold-denominated fund gives Greenlight investors exposure to gold through the fund's investments, then reprices them in gold as opposed to U.S. dollars.

Gold, which fell below $1,200 an ounce on Thursday for the first time in three years, posted its largest quarterly loss in at least 45 years amid fears the U.S. Federal Reserve may wind down its stimulus program.

After Friday's rally of 2.3 percent, gold is still 23 percent lower for the second quarter, its biggest decline since at least 1968, according to Reuters data.

Einhorn has said he prefers investing in gold bars, as opposed to the popular gold exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Shares , partly to have better control over his investment and keep a lid on trading expenses.

In 2009, Einhorn said at the annual Value Investing Congress that he was holding gold as a hedge for what he described as unsound U.S. policies.

"If monetary and fiscal policies go awry," investors should buy physical gold and gold stocks, he said at time. "Gold does well when monetary and fiscal policies are poor and does poorly when they are sensible."

This March, a month before the big April swoon in gold prices, the Greenlight Gold fund completed a financing deal with HSBC for an unspecified sum, according to a financing statement. The fund also has a financing agreement with Goldman Sachs.

Einhorn's dedicated gold fund will not be the only portfolio in the $2.2 trillion hedge fund industry that got burned in June from an investment in precious metals.

In April, a dedicated gold fund managed by John Paulson was down about 27 percent, bringing the year-to-date decline at 47 percent. Soon after, Paulson, who is the largest investor in the fund, limited the release of performance figures for his gold fund, worried it was getting too much attention in the media.

Earlier this year, the Paulson gold fund had about $700 million in assets. Paulson also invests in gold miners and in the gold ETF for his Advantage funds, which have about $5 billion in assets.

Einhorn's flagship fund also invests in gold. Earlier this year, the manager listed gold as one of the five largest positions in the fund. Reuters previously reported that Einhorn stores some of his gold in a secure facility in Queens, New York.

Dan Loeb's $12 billion Third Point firm also had a sizable position in physical gold in his portfolios but people familiar with the matter said he exited the positions in the spring. An investor with Loeb who did not want to be identified said the Third Point Partners fund fell 1.7 percent in June, but was still up 13.2 percent for the year.

(Additional reporting by Matthew Goldstein; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/exclusive-bear-market-gold-pummels-einhorns-greenlight-fund-192716724.html

farrah abraham national weather service superman man of steel superman man of steel amy adams kanye west tracy mcgrady

Ecuador flower growers in Snowden shock

PIFO, Ecuador (AP) ? Gino Descalzi used to fret about things like aphids, mildew and the high cost of shipping millions of roses a year from Ecuador to florists in the United States. These days he's worried about a 30-year-old former spy stuck thought to be in the transit area of the Moscow airport, and he can't believe it.

The Obama administration sent a thinly veiled economic threat to this South American country on Thursday when it indefinitely delayed a decision to eliminate tariffs on imports of roses worth about $250 million a year. The move created leverage over the leftist government seen as likeliest to grant National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden political asylum that would protect him from U.S. criminal charges.

A week after Snowden began his stuttering, surreal flight across the globe, every passing day without him making progress toward Ecuadorean asylum makes the prospect look less likely. But the men who grow roses, asters and delphinia in the thin air of Ecuador's sun-soaked highlands are deeply concerned that, whatever happens to Snowden, they may turn out to be the most unlikely collateral damage from the geopolitical wrangle over his fate.

"This totally changes the financial panorama for our businesses and seriously affects the structure of our markets," said Descalzi, whose 280 employees produce some 22 million roses a year. "We're just shocked that an event so far from the political and economic life of Ecuador has caused so much commotion and worry."

The rose benefit for Ecuador had been widely expected to be approved. Any delay, they say, puts it into uncomfortably uncertain territory.

Even if Snowden never touches Ecuadorean soil and the U.S. cuts the 6.8 percent tariff on Ecuadorean roses, along with tariffs on frozen broccoli and canned artichokes, Ecuadorean flower growers are worried that the brouhaha has damaged Ecuador in the eyes of the United States, hurting its reputation for stability and reliability among the buyers who must decide between flowers from Ecuador and the already tariff-free blooms from its nearby market-dominant competitor, Colombia.

"This is not a mathematical equation," said Benito Jaramillo, the head of the Ecuadorean flower-growers' association. The graduate of Texas A&M and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign employs hundreds of people growing "summer flowers" ? a category of less-flashy blooms like hydrangeas and asters ? on his farm about a half-hour from the capital, Quito.

"The point is that there are a lot of other factors that damage our industry's image and competitiveness in the mid-term," Jaramillo said.

Flowers are serious business in Ecuador.

The industry says it employs about 50,000 people on about 550 farms across the country and is indirectly responsible for 110,000 jobs, putting it after only oil, seafood and bananas in the ranks of the country's biggest exporters. It boasts that the long days, rich sunlight and cool nights of the Andean highlands mean the heads of flowers, particularly roses, grow fuller and richer than those from Colombia, which they scoff at as more suitable for grocery stores than florists.

Industry representatives spent around a year campaigning hard in Washington for the inclusion of cut roses under the Generalized System of Preferences, or GSP, a mechanism meant to encourage development in lower-income countries. A broader trade pact that covers a wide range of Ecuadorean products, the Andean Trade Preference Act, had been widely expected to expire next month. That now seems certain, not least because Ecuador declared Thursday that it was preemptively rejecting it.

Now, the flower industry has turned its focus to its own government, which it desperately hopes won't offer asylum to Snowden.

A small group of U.S. senators explicitly threatened trade retaliation if Ecuador harbors Snowden. And on Saturday, Vice President Joe Biden asked Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa to turn down any asylum request.

"We can't put the interests of 14 million Ecuadoreans at risk because of a 29-year-old hacker whom we don't even know," Descalzi said. "This gentleman doesn't mean anything to us."

The business impacts of the Snowden affair have infuriated Ecuador's main business groups, who accuse the government of putting ideology before commerce.

The decision to renounce the Andean Trade deal was "permeated by political and ideological motives," said Roberto Aspiazu, chairman of a coalition of Ecuador's largest industries. The country's business sector is calling on the government to manage the relationship with the United States "with the utmost care," he said.

The government said it planned to compensate business damaged by the loss of U.S. tariff benefits and has painted its decision in terms of the nation's sovereignty versus U.S. threats.

"But in any case, now they're wanting to destroy Ecuador for receiving an asylum application from Mr. Snowden and they are pulling out the rubbish that we spy as well," President Correa said. "If you behave badly we will take (the trade deal) away from you. Well, here you have the sovereign response from Ecuador, my comrades."

But business groups warned that any government compensation could be interpreted as a subsidy subject to international litigation.

When asked how he feels about the whole situation, Jaramillo, the head of the flower association, thought before responding with a single word: "frustrated."

"One isolated issue shouldn't create so much damage," he said.

_____ Gonzalo Solano contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ecuador-flower-growers-snowden-shock-072605949.html

boston globe Cnn.com Chechen Boston bombers chechnya live news nbc