CYPRUS-NO FLOTILLAS TO GAZA

Cyprus: No Cooperation with Flotillas to Gaza
by Chana Ya'ar MAR 14,11

President Demetris Christofias of Cyprus assured President Shimon Peres Monday in Jerusalem that his nation would stand strong in its support of Israel.The president of Cyprus, who arrived this week on his first state visit to Israel, is leading a delegation of 60 Cypriot business people. The two presidents met with news media following their meeting.Cyprus is the first country to officially declare it will not cooperate with efforts by various anti-Israel movements and countries to send flotillas to violate Israel's blockade of Gaza. Peres thanked his counterpart for also being the first country to take concrete steps to prevent flotillas from leaving its ports.Terror activities in Gaza are unacceptable, stated Christofias, and therefore we have prevented the flotillas from leaving.During the second half of 2012, Cyprus is slated to serve as the rotating president of the European Union. We are ready to contribute within the framework of the European Union to the peace process in the region,stated the Cypriot president. Consider us a bridge to advancing the peace process, and economic and diplomatic cooperation with Europe.

Cyprus supports the acceleration of the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians,he added. We support the establishment of an independent Palestinian state side by side with Israel, as well as Israel's right to security and stability. We are very well aware of the right of Israel to live next to peace-loving neighbors,he said.Christofias commented that the terrorist massacre of five members of the Fogel family -- including a 3-month-old baby -- in the Samaria Jewish community of Itamar last Friday was committed by “people lacking any humanity and is intended as a provocation against efforts to achieve peace and security in the region.In the name of the people of Cyprus, allow me to offer my condolences to the president and to the families,he said.(IsraelNationalNews.com)

DOCTOR DOCTORIAN FROM ANGEL OF GOD
then the angel said, Financial crisis will come to Asia. I will shake the world.

JAMES 5:1-3
1 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.
2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten.
3 Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.

REVELATION 18:10,17,19
10 Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.
17 For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,
19 And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.

EZEKIEL 7:19
19 They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be removed: their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the LORD: they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels: because it is the stumblingblock of their iniquity.

REVELATION 13:16-18
16 And he(FALSE POPE) causeth all,(WORLD SOCIALISM) both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:(CHIP IMPLANT)
17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.(6-6-6) A NUMBER SYSTEM

WORLD MARKET RESULTS
http://money.cnn.com/data/world_markets/
CNBC VIDEOS
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15839263/?tabid=15839796&tabheader=false

HALF HOUR DOW RESULTS TUE MAR 15,2011

09:30 AM -2.43
10:00 AM -272.33
10:30 AM -217.82
11:00 AM -213.73
11:30 AM -213.81
12:00 PM -204.38
12:30 PM -156.70
01:00 PM -197.77
01:30 PM -196.63
02:00 PM -177.55
02:30 PM -138.58
03:00 PM -136.27
03:30 PM -101.00
04:00 PM -137.74 11,855.42

S&P 500 1281.87 -14.52

NASDAQ 2667.33 -33.64

GOLD 1,396.60 -28.30

OIL 97.56 -3.63

TSE 300 13,547.00 -72.20

CDNX 2130.21 -62.86

S&P/TSX/60 782.50 -3.34

MORNING,NEWS,STATS

YEAR TO DATE PERFORMANCE
Dow -269 points at 4 minutes of trading today.
Dow -287 points at low today.
Dow -1 points at high today so far.
GOLD opens at $1,389.90.OIL opens at $97.53 today.

AFTERNOON,NEWS,STATS
Dow -287 points at low today so far.
Dow -1 points at high today so far.

WRAPUP,NEWS,STATS
Dow -287 points at low today.
Dow -1 points at high today.

GOLD ALLTIME HIGH $1,444.00 (NOT AT CLOSE)

Germany delays nuclear plans as Japanese meltdown fears rise
ANDREW WILLIS 14.03.2011 @ 19:42 CET

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - Germany has suspended plans to extend the life of the country's nuclear plants, as fears of a Japanese nuclear meltdown continue to escalate. Berlin's announcement on Monday (14 March) mirrored an earlier call from Switzerland, with European energy chief Guenther Oettinger set to hold an emergency meeting with EU ministers in Brussels on Tuesday.In Japan, technicians were frantically pumping seawater into reactors at the country's Fukushima plant after a cooling system broke, reportedly exposing nuclear fuel rods for an estimated two and a half hours, raising the risk of overheating and a possible meltdown.Tokyo has called for a large-scale evacuation of the area in the northeast of the country, devastated by a 8.9 magnitude earthquake last Friday, with France becoming the first government to advise its nationals to leave Tokyo amid the growing alarm.Experts say radioactive material is unlikely to reach Europe in the event of a large-scale release, but the political ramifications of the Japanese catastrophe continued to be felt throughout Europe on Monday.Germany Chancellor Angela Merkel put controversial government plans to prolong the lifespan of the country's nuclear power plants on hold for three months pending the outcome of an inquiry into reactor safety.

An independent commission will be set up to conduct the inquiry. There are no taboos. Everything will be put under review, Merkel told reporters in Berlin as MEPs from across the political spectrum called for EU-wide stress tests on European nuclear plants.EU energy commissioner Oettinger said the safety at older German nuclear power stations must be checked rigorously, refusing to rule out the possibility of plant closures.Known for his pro-nuclear stance, the German commissioner has called a meeting to EU energy ministers, power companies and regulators in Brussels on Tuesday to discuss nuclear safety.The first focus is on contingency planning - is there a need to better coordinate, to look again at the safety requirements, commission spokeswoman Helen Kearns told reporters in Brussels.

It's also a fact-finding to ask member states for their analysis of the situation and ask the people who do the inspections, who issue the licenses, are there new issues that we should be looking at given what we've just seen over the past days, she said.Officials said the discussions where unlike to be groundbreaking however. I don't think there is going to be any very substantive debate, a source told this website.Decisions on whether to use nuclear power lie with EU member states, although in a 2050 Roadmap published earlier this month by the commission said nuclear energy should play an important role in the bloc's transition to a low-carbon economy.Brussels also has responsibility for monitoring the implementation of the EU's nuclear safety directive which makes International Atomic Energy (IAEA) standards partially legally binding under EU law.Member states have until the middle of this year to implement the 2009 directive, with large divergences between EU members at present.Environment group Greenpeace said enforcement of safety standards was important but no sufficient. Japan's standards are the highest in the world and what we are seeing is that it really doesn't come into it, nuclear campaigner Jan Haverkamp told EUobserver.The commission approved Bulgaria's application to build a nuclear power plant at Belene in 2007, citing no seismic risks. But in 1977 roughly 120 people were killed in an earthquake only 14 km away,he added.

MUSLIM NATIONS

EZEKIEL 38:1-12
1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog,(RULER) the land of Magog,(RUSSIA) the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW)and Tubal,(TOBOLSK) and prophesy against him,
3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW) and Tubal:
4 And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws,(GOD FORCES THE RUSSIA-MUSLIMS TO MARCH) and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:
5 Persia,(IRAN,IRAQ) Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:
6 Gomer,(GERMANY) and all his bands; the house of Togarmah (TURKEY)of the north quarters, and all his bands:(SUDAN,AFRICA) and many people with thee.
7 Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.
8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.
9 Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee.(RUSSIA-EGYPT AND MUSLIMS)
10 Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:
11 And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,
12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.

ISAIAH 17:1
1 The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.

PSALMS 83:3-7
3 They (ARABS,MUSLIMS) have taken crafty counsel against thy people,(ISRAEL) and consulted against thy hidden ones.
4 They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.
5 For they (MUSLIMS) have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:(TREATIES)
6 The tabernacles of Edom,(JORDAN) and the Ishmaelites;(ARABS) of Moab, PALESTINIANS,JORDAN) and the Hagarenes;(EGYPT)
7 Gebal,(HEZZBALLOH,LEBANON) and Ammon,(JORDAN) and Amalek;(SYRIA,ARABS,SINAI) the Philistines (PALESTINIANS) with the inhabitants of Tyre;(LEBANON)

DANIEL 11:40-43
40 And at the time of the end shall the king of the south( EGYPT) push at him:(EU DICTATOR IN ISRAEL) and the king of the north (RUSSIA AND MUSLIM HORDES OF EZEK 38+39) shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over.
41 He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon.(JORDAN)
42 He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape.
43 But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.

EZEKIEL 39:1-8
1 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech (MOSCOW) and Tubal: (TUBOLSK)
2 And I will turn thee back, and leave but the sixth part of thee, and will cause thee to come up from the north parts,(RUSSIA) and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel:
3 And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand.
4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands,( ARABS) and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.
5 Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
6 And I will send a fire on Magog,(NUCLEAR BOMB) and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
7 So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.
8 Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken.

JOEL 2:3,20,30-31
3 A fire(NUCLEAR BOMB) devoureth before them;(RUSSIA-ARABS) and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.
20 But I will remove far off from you the northern army,(RUSSIA,MUSLIMS) and will drive him into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the east sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill savour shall come up, because he hath done great things.(SIBERIAN DESERT)
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.(NUCLEAR BOMB)
31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.

Arab decision boosts prospect of EU military action in Libya
ANDREW RETTMAN 14.03.2011 @ 09:33 CET

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The Arab League has given the green light for Western powers to impose a no-fly zone in Libya, prompting France to step up its campaign for military action.The 22-member league in a resolution on Saturday (12 March) called for the UN Security Council to quickly issue a mandate for a no-fly zone in Libya following a meeting at its office in Tahrir Square in Cairo, the main stage of last month's revolution in Egypt.Secretary general Amr Moussa said the move is needed to protect Libyan citizens and to maintain the safety and sovereignty of neighbouring nations.Mustafa Gheriani, a spokesman for rebel leaders under the banner of the Libyan National Council in Benghazi, said following the decision: We hope the Europeans will deliver now. This changes things a lot ... We hope it will change the American position, but most of all the European position.The Arab move prompted France to say it will use a meeting of G8 foreign ministers in Paris on Monday and Tuesday to canvass support for intervention.France will accelerate its efforts, in the coming hours, in concertation with its partners in the EU, Arab League, United Nations Security Council and the Libyan transitional national council, French foreign minister Alain Juppe said.

It is not about installing a government in Libya, it is simply about having the means to protect the population if a massacre were to happen, imagine if Benghazi were to be bombed, for example.The secretary general of the ruling French UMP party, Jean-Francois Cope, noted that the Arab call for outside intervention represents a shift in east-west relations.This is a major political event, he said.Pointing out that Colonel Gaddafi's forces continued to push back rebels over the weekend, he added: One can see the planes ... and the tanks of the Libyan army ... being used against the trucks and rifles [of the resistance].UK foreign minister Wiliam Hague also welcomed the Arab resolution. The G8 foreign ministers [event] ... will be an opportunity to widen the international coalition addressing the crisis in Libya, he said.The Arab League development comes after the UK and France failed to persuade no-fly sceptics at an EU summit in Brussels on Friday.German foreign minister Guido Westerwelle continued to voice concern at an informal EU foreign ministers' meeting in Godollo, Hungary, on Saturday, before going to the G8 event. We don't want to get pulled into a war in North Africa, he explained. I don't think it's healthy when Europe talks about other countries, instead of with those countries.German ally Austria called for an EU fact-finding mission to visit the rebel stronghold in Beghazi.

Italy and Malta, Libya's closest EU neighbours, also remain reticent. Maltese foreign minister Tonio Borg and Italy's Franco Frattini said the Union should instead try to broker an immediate ceasefire.Stop the fighting and then we shall see what happens, Mr Borg said in Godollo.For his part, the former UN envoy to Bosnia, British Liberal politician Paddy Ashdown, in an op-ed in the Financial Times on Sunday compared the situation to the genocide in Bosnia in the 1990s.In 1991, we were told that the Yugoslav crises would prove the hour of Europe had arrived. It hadn't. Europe proved itself divided and impotent, he wrote.It is difficult not to feel a wearisome sense of deja vu watching European leaders on Friday saying something needed to be done in Libya, but failing completely to say what.

Saudi Troops Enter Bahrain as Anti-Regime Protests Continue
by Elad Benari MAR 15,11

A Saudi official confirmed on Monday that more than 1,000 Saudi troops have entered Bahrain, where anti-regime protests have been going on for a month.The official told AFP that the troops entered the country on Sunday, and that the intervention came after repeated calls by the (Bahraini) government for dialogue, which went unanswered by the opposition.Bahraini television showed on Monday evening a line of armored vehicles carrying Saudi troops crossing the 16-mile causeway that links the two countries. The Los Angeles Times cited witnesses and diplomats who said that the force began taking up positions at strategic locations around the country, including the neighborhood that is home to the royal family. There was no immediate sign that the Saudi troops were positioning themselves near Pearl Roundabout, the traffic circle in the capital which is occupied by protestors.Anti-regime protests in Bahrain have been taking place since last month, as demonstrators have called on the government to announce reforms that would end what they claim is systematic discrimination against the country’s Shi’ite population (which makes up the majority) by its Sunni rulers.The Bahraini king, Hamed ibn Isa Khalifa, has offered to begin dialogue with the demonstrators and has also suggested a new parliament and other reforms. The opposition, however, has refused to talk until the government resigns.

Bahrain is home to the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet, and is the only Arab country which has a female Jewish ambassador to the United States, Huda Nono.The official Bahrain news agency posted a statement on Monday in which it said that the arrival of the Saudi troops is the first wave of a larger intervention by Bahrain's Persian Gulf neighbors.On this occasion, the Bahrain Defense Forces calls upon all citizens and residents to cooperate fully with the GCC [Gulf Cooperation Council –ed.] forces and welcome them warmly,read the statement which was quoted by The Los Angeles Times.

The Saudi intervention came just two days after U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates visited the capital Manama and held talks with the king in which he urged Bahrain to undertake rapid and significant reform.Gates noted that Washington was concerned that the longer the instability in Bahrain continues, the more likely it is that Iran would try to meddle in Bahrain's affairs.Gates’ concerns may be have some substance since, according to a report in Reuters on Monday, Iran has urged Bahrain not to allow foreign interference in the country.The report quoted the Director General for Persian Gulf and Middle East Affairs at Iran's Foreign Ministry, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, who said that foreign interference in Bahrain would only complicate the situation.The peaceful demonstrations in Bahrain are among the domestic issues of this country, and creating an atmosphere of fear and using other countries' military forces to oppress these demands is not the solution, Abdollahian was quoted by the Fars news agency as saying.It is expected that the demands of the Muslim people of Bahrain ... be seriously considered by the authorities and that they prevent the situation from becoming more complex by making right decisions and not allowing foreign interferences in Bahrain.(IsraelNationalNews.com)

Another Leak in Egyptian Gas Pipeline
by Chana Ya'ar MAR 14,11

Egypt has reported another leak in its natural gas pipeline, delaying resumption of supplies to Israel and the rest of the region.The Egyptian state-owned East Mediterranean Gas company (EMG), told its Israeli partner, Ampal-American Israel Corp. on Sunday that it was set to renew deliveries.However, while resuming commercial gas supply by GASCO (the Egyptian gas transport company) to EMG and its Israeli customers, a leak was discovered when the gas pressure exceeded 60 bars, Ampal said in a statement on Monday.The GASCO field team is currently working to repair the leak in its system. Consequently, commercial gas supply to Israel, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria as well as to major Egyptian cement industries and power gas consumers in the Sinai Peninsula awaits completion of repair, the company said.

EMG shut down service five weeks ago after terrorists blew up the pipeline in the Sinai Peninsula, disrupting deliveries not only to Israel, but to Jordan as well.
Engineers said they are working to restore the service as soon as possible, Reuters news agency reported. Deliveries will initially be sent to the Israel Electric Corporation to operate its power plants. The Israel Corporation-owned Haifa oil refinery will be next on the list.Although the EMG firm is state-owned, it is headed by Egyptian businessman Hussain Salem, whose Egypt Natural Gas Co, is a partner in the consortium together with Thailand's PTT, American businessman Sam Zell, Ampal-American and Israel's Merhav.According to a statement by the National Infrastructure Ministry, the absence of Egyptian gas has cost Israel's economy some NIS 6 million ($1.7 million) per day. Due to fears the absence of Egyptian gas may become permanent, Israeli officials have begun to implement alternative plans. The Tamar gas field, originally set to be activated by the year 2014, may instead begin operations at least a year earlier at the beginning of 2013, if not before. In addition, the National Infrastructure Ministry ordered the Israel Electric Corporation last weekend to increase production at the coal-fired power stations, despite prior cautions against doing so. The ministry also instructed power plants to switch to diesel and fuel oil instead of gas in order not to drain the Yam Tatis gas reservoir by the end of 2012.Yam Tatis is currently the sole provider of natural gas for the State of Israel due to the absence of gas supplies from Egypt. Tamar reservoir was to replace Yam Tatis in 2014.(IsraelNationalNews.com)

Watchdog Group:You Don't Boycott the MidEast's Only Democracy
by Fern Sidman, INN New York Correspondent MAR 14,11

JCC Watch is focusing attention on the partnership between the Jewish Community Center of New York City's Upper West Side and groups the support the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel.The JCC of the Upper West Side, notes the watchdog group, is a beneficiary agency of the UJA-Federation. BDS was launched in 2005 by various non-governmental organizations (NGOs) which seek to demonize, delegitimize, and ultimately destroy Israel by the spread of misinformation, incitement, and promotion of various boycotts.In a news conference held Sunday afternoon in front of the JCC offices, JCC Watch reported that the organization is partnering with a number of pro-BDS organizations.Among those listed were the leftist organizations New Israel Fund, B'Tselem, Human Rights Watch, and J Street.JCC Watch founder Richard Allen called on the JCC board of directors to establish public and transparent guidelines regarding BDS.It’s time that the board of directors of the JCC in Manhattan take action. It’s simple: all they have to do is stop supporting groups that partner with, fund, or support the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement against Israel, Allen said.At the news conference, each speaker expressed their horror and deep sadness at the gruesome terrorist massacre of the Fogel family last Friday in the Samaria Jewish community of Itamar.

Irwin Hochberg, former Chairman of the Board of the UJA-Federation of New York and former National Campaign Chairman of Israel Bonds spoke of the golden days of the United Jewish Appeal, prior to the hijacking of the organization by liberal elements of the Jewish community. He was joined by Helen Freedman, executive director of Americans For A Safe Israel.Expressing outrage at the indifference of the agency to the suffering of Jews in Judea and Samaria, Freedman said, The JCC should have its members out in the street protesting this massacre at Itamar. Instead, they go on with business as usual, ignoring the brutality waged against Israel and blaming Israel for the ills of the Arab world.She added that by partnering with organizations like J Street, B’Tzelem, the New Israel Fund and Human Rights Watch, the JCC is exhibiting a state of moral confusion. One boycotts totalitarian regimes, like the Palestinian Authority, Hamas, Hizbullah and Iran, the sponsor of these terrorist groups.One does not boycott the only democracy in the Middle East.(Israel NationalNews.com)

STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES

LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

Calif. official: Tsunami damage upward of $40M
MAR 14,11

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. – In the tsunami-battered harbor of this coastal city famous for its surf, Jody Connolly rubbed his red eyes as crews scrambled to pull his 30-foot Trident boat out of the water Monday afternoon.The hardwood floor contractor had made the vessel his home for the past two years.Connolly fled the boat when the first, powerful surge of Friday's tsunami rolled in. He watched from land as the boat broke from its moorings and sank while the entire dock crumbled.One moment I don't feel anything. The next, I'm completely torn up. It's kind of hitting me in waves, kind of like the tsunami, he said.As residents like Connolly whose lives and livelihoods depended on the harbor tried to salvage what they could, a California official on Monday estimated that statewide damage from last week's surge exceeds $40million.Mike Dayton, acting secretary of the Emergency Management Agency, gave the estimate after touring Santa Cruz Harbor, where 18 vessels sank, about 100 were damaged and another 12 remained unaccounted for.The damage in Santa Cruz Harbor alone is estimated at $17 million. The harbor is housing 58 commercial fishing vessels not able to leave the harbor for at least a week until it reopens, said Lisa Ekers, director of the Santa Cruz Port District. She said she was also working to get 60 people living on boats back into their homes.

Along the state's North Coast, officials at the heavily damaged Crescent City Harbor were still working on totaling the value of the damage. All told, 53 vessels were damaged, including 15 that sank, said Alexia Retallack, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Fish and Game.The harbor, which provided berths for more than 100 boats, was virtually destroyed by the waves, she said, devastating the fishing industry in a town where the economy is largely dependent on the day's catch.A federal team will be in Crescent City later this week to use special sonar equipment to map sunken boats in the harbor.In Santa Cruz, sonar was already being used to search for missing vessels, and crews worked to pull sunken boats out of the water Monday. Divers jumped into the brown, oil-sheened water and attached inflatable pillows as big as their own bodies to the hulls, then pumped air in them to get the battered boats to float to the top.Once the sludge-covered vessels made it to the surface, they were hauled ashore into a parking lot where the waiting owner would assess the damage.Some locals noted that the beaches in Santa Cruz had turned black after the surge. Dennis DeAnda of the California Department of Fish and Game explained: When a tsunami happens, there was a complete flushing of the harbor and so a lot of sediment was probably pulled out.Crews in Santa Cruz and Crescent City were deploying boom to block and absorb oil from leaking boats, though no serious impact from such leaks has been reported so far.State officials are still determining whether to seek federal assistance with rebuilding efforts, Dayton said.

Ecuador sends aid to Galapagos following tsunami
-MAR 14,11

QUITO, Ecuador – The Ecuadorean government has sent 6 tons of food and water to the Galapagos after the islands were hit by a tsunami from the massive earthquake off Japan.Ecuador's national emergency department says it shipped the aid Monday to 260 families on Santa Cruz and San Cristobal islands whose fishing boats — and livelihood — were destroyed.Water from the tsunami penetrated up to a third of a mile (a half-kilometer) inland in the Galapagos, causing minor damage to homes and docks, merging a lagoon with the sea.Police initially reported no major damages.The islands are located about 620 miles (1,000 kilometers) off Ecuador in the Pacific Ocean. They are home to unique animal species that inspired Charles Darwin's ideas on evolution.

50-plus boats damaged in ruined Northern CA harbor
– Mon Mar 14, 4:53 pm ET

CRESCENT CITY, Calif. – Recovery crews say 50 vessels have been damaged, including 15 that sunk, in a fishing-dependent Northern California city hit hard by the tsunami surge after the earthquake in Japan.Crescent City's inner harbor, which provided berths for more than 100 boats, was virtually destroyed by the waves.California Department of Fish and Game spokeswoman Alexia Retallack says the local fishing industry has been devastated by the damage to the harbor.Retallack says surging water and a weekend gale made an accurate damage count difficult before Monday.
Federal officials say they plan to send a team later this week with sonar equipment to help locate the sunken boats.

JAPANS MARKET OPENED TODAY 6% DOWN AND YESTERDAY ENDED 6% DOWN.12% IN TWO DAYS.JAPAN CAN'T WIN AT ANYTHING.

Japan hurts markets, but selling could wane
By Ryan Vlastelica – Mon Mar 14, 5:40 pm ET

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. stocks fell in the aftermath of Japan's devastating earthquake on Monday, but other than specific industries such as nuclear power, the broad impact on equities was expected to be short-lived.Trading volume was unusually low compared with other sell-offs, coming in at 7.68 billion shares traded on the New York Stock Exchange, the American Stock Exchange and Nasdaq, below last year's daily average of 8.47 billion. The recent pullback in stocks had been accompanied by high volume.I'm encouraged that we're seeing lighter volume on a down day since that could suggest less enthusiasm for selling, said Hank Herrmann, chief executive of Waddell & Reed Financial Inc in Overland Park, Kansas, which manages $90 billion in assets.Nuclear power stocks fell after explosions at a Japanese plant. The Market Vectors uranium and nuclear energy exchange traded fund (NLR.P) slumped 12 percent while the Global X Uranium ETF (URA.P) sank 17 percent. But the Market Vectors Solar Energy ETF (KWT.P) of alternative energy shares climbed 7.2 percent.Shaw Group (SHAW.N) sank 9.2 percent to $34.87 in the session while Cameco Corp (CCO.TO) (CCJ.N) dropped 13 percent to $32.62 on the New York Stock Exchange. Both nuclear power companies traded on volume that was more than 10 times their 10-day average.

General Electric Co (GE.N), which has combined nuclear ventures with Hitachi Ltd (6501.T), dropped 2.2 percent to $19.92 and was the top percentage decliner on the Dow.This is a knee-jerk reaction, but it could put a lid on building new nuclear plants, said James Dunigan, chief investment officer at PNC Wealth Management in Philadelphia, which oversees $105 billion.Japanese ports handling about 7 percent of the country's industrial output sustained major damage, disrupting the flow of goods globally.The Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI) was down 51.24 points, or 0.43 percent, at 11,993.16. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index (.SPX) was down 7.89 points, or 0.60 percent, at 1,296.39. The Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC) was down 14.64 points, or 0.54 percent, at 2,700.97.Texas Instruments Inc (TXN.N) fell 2.2 percent to $33.80 in extended-hours trading after the chipmaker said it will lose revenues due to production delays at its Japanese facilities from quake-related interruption of power.U.S.-listed shares of Japanese companies declined and the BNY Mellon index of leading Japanese American Depositary Receipts (.BKJP) lost 5.3 percent. Toyota Motor Co (7203.T)(TM.N), which said it would suspend production at all its Japanese car plants, fell 4.6 percent to $81.73. The iShares MSCI Japan index exchange traded fund (EWJ.P) sank 7 percent.The U.S. benchmark Standard & Poor's 500 index came off the session's bottom after falling to a six-week low. The CBOE volatility index (.VIX), which measures anticipated volatility,

jumped 5.6 percent.Shares of luxury goods companies worldwide were hit since Japan accounts for 11 percent of global luxury sales. Tiffany (TIF.N) dropped 5.3 percent to $59.86 while Coach Inc (COH.N) was off 5.3 percent to $53.11.Aflac Inc (AFL.N), the largest foreign insurer in Japan, fell 3 percent to $53.90 as experts estimated that the devastating earthquake in Japan could cost the insurance industry nearly $35 billion.Options activity showed some investors are expecting the stock to plunge more than 8 percent from the current price to about $49 by April expiration, according to Caitlin Duffy, options strategist at Interactive Brokers Group.Apple Inc (AAPL.O) rose 0.5 percent to $353.56 after analysts estimated the company sold close to 1 million units of iPad 2, its next-generation tablet computer, during the product's debut weekend.(Additional reporting by Angela Moon; Editing by Kenneth Barry)

Quake selloff wipes $287 billion off Tokyo stock market
By Antoni Slodkowski – Mon Mar 14, 6:15 am ET

TOKYO (Reuters) – A massive selloff on the Tokyo Stock Exchange wiped out some 23.5 trillion yen ($287 billion) from the market's value on Monday with investors dumping stocks as the country recoiled from a devastating earthquake and struggled to avert nuclear disaster.The selloff triggered record volumes and slashed the market's value to roughly 289 trillion yen.The Nikkei average tumbled 6.2 percent, its biggest decline in a single day since October 2008, and more than 4.88 billion shares changed hands on the exchange's first section, the highest number since World War 2.

Volume was pushed up by window-dressing selling by domestic institutional investors for the March 31 financial year-end and by domestic investment trusts and anxious retail buyers, while long-term foreign players who have piled into Japanese shares since November also rushed for the exit, market players said.It's the end of the business year for Japanese institutions. They've been net sellers of Tokyo stocks anyway, and in March they traditionally lock in profits for the year, so much of today's selling pressure likely came from them, said Mitsuhsige Akino, a fund manager at Ichiyoshi Investment Management.On the other hand, foreigners had bought over 2.75 trillion yen worth of Japan stocks since November, pushing the Nikkei several percent higher, so no wonder they tried to trim their losses or lock in as much profit as possible today, and that bolstered trading volume said Akino.Fears of more quake aftershocks and further repercussions from damaged nuclear reactors were cited as the most important factors behind the sell-off.Domestic investment trusts and funds are dumping everything today. Sell orders for tens of billions of yen were detected, said an equities trader at a Japanese domestic institutional investor, who declined to be quoted by name.

Individual investors, who often trade in smaller stocks on the TSE's Mothers section for startups, likely sold even more aggressively then the big players on the Nikkei, traders said.The Mothers market tumbled 17.2 percent, with social networking site Mixi Inc. and Japan's third-biggest airline Skymark Airlines Inc both down around 18 percent. ($1 = 81.915 Yen)(Reporting by Antoni Slodkowski and Hideyuki Sano; Editing by Michael Watson)

Cuba devalues convertible peso, at dollar parity
– Mon Mar 14, 2:40 pm ET

HAVANA (AFP) – Cuba devalued its convertible peso by eight percent Monday to the level of parity with the US dollar as part of efforts to boost the communist-ruled island's flagging economy, the central bank said.Use of the convertible peso is limited to tourists and other foreigners, for Cubans who receive remittances from abroad and for export activity.It was established in 1994 at parity with the dollar and in 2005 was revalued to a level of 1.08 US dollars.The latest action brings the convertible peso -- a currency to which only a small number of Cubans have access -- to parity with the US greenback.Authorities will maintain a 10 percent tax on exchanges with the US dollar as compensation for costs and for the irrational and unjust embargo imposed on Cuba by the United States, according to a central bank statement published in the Communist Party newspaper Granma.The revaluation is a step aimed at promoting an improvement in the balance of payments because it is a stimulus to export activity and promotes import substitution, said central bank president Ernesto Medina.Under the two-currency system in place, most Cubans use the standard peso which trades at roughly 25 to the US dollar.The devaluation could help boost tourism, by lowering costs for foreign visitors. It likewise may also encourage more private investment in Cuba, and boost the spending power or Cubans who receive remittances from abroad, amounting to between $600 million and $1 billion annually.

But it will also make foreign goods priced in dollars or other hard currencies more expensive for most Cubans. This, according to officials will encourage more local production, especially in the food sector.The move comes with Cuba embarking on a series of economic reforms aimed at opening up the country to more foreign investment and boosting private sector activity that had been strictly limited under communist rule.A Communist Party congress in April is expected to endorse the wide-ranging reform plan proposed by President Raul Castro.The reforms seek to have former state workers absorbed by the private sector, for state subsidies to be cut, for urban cooperatives to spring up, the welcoming of foreign capital, and for companies to operate autonomously.

Euro zone likely to boost bailout fund guarantees
By Jan Strupczewski - Mon Mar 14, 3:49 pm ET

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The euro zone is likely to increase guarantees for its bailout fund to boost its effective lending capacity, Eurogroup President Jean-Claude Juncker said on Monday, but a deal was likely only next week.Euro zone leaders agreed early on Saturday that the capacity of the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) should be raised to its full nominal value of 440 billion euros from the current 250 billion, but left it to ministers to work out how.The effective capacity of the EFSF is currently lower than the nominal value because not all euro zone countries issuing guarantees have the triple A rating that the fund wants.We are discussing ways and means how to return to the initial level of 440 (billion euros). Will this be done by guarantees or could there be other means? My present feeling is that this will be done by guarantees, Juncker told a news conference after the ministers' meeting.The guarantees, on a pro rata basis, now stand at 120 percent of a country's share in the capital of the European Central Bank. Germany has floated the idea that countries with ratings lower than AAA should inject cash into the facility.We have to discuss further details next week, Juncker said adding there would be an extra ministers' meeting on March 21 to deal with all the outstanding issues.The leaders also asked finance ministers to decide how much to cut the EFSF's lending rate and how to allow it to take part in bond auctions of distressed sovereigns. The details are to be ready for the next EU summit on March 24-25.

CUT IN EFSF RATE

Euro zone leaders agreed the new EFSF interest rate should be lowered to better take into account debt sustainability of the recipient countries, while remaining above the funding costs of the facility, with an adequate mark-up for risk, and in line with the IMF pricing principles.Asked about the ministers' interest rate discussions, Juncker said As regards adjusting the borrowing rates, the loan granted to Greece will serve as an example.Euro zone leaders cut the interest rate on their bilateral loans to Greece by 100 basis points and more than doubled their maturity to 7.5 years.Ireland, also a recipient of euro zone financial aid, did not get a cut in borrowing costs because it did not want to discuss harmonizing the corporate tax base.Many economists see lower interest on EFSF loans as key to solving the crisis because together with the primary budget balance and economic growth, it is crucial to the debt outlook and therefore the solvency of particular governments.

Financial markets reacted positively to the surprise outline early on Saturday of a comprehensive package of measures to get on top of the crisis, which included the expanded the size and role of the EFSF and lower borrowing costs for Greece.But Fitch Ratings said that while a move to allow the EFSF and future permanent fund -- the European Stability Mechanism -- to buy bonds was helpful, it would not resolve the concerns that have driven a year-long market sell off of government debt.The potential for the EFSF and ESM to buy government debt in the primary market all materially enhance the European policy response to the current crisis, the rating agency said.However, the policy response to the current crisis outlined by euro area leaders will not resolve market concerns over the solvency of some highly indebted euro area member states.Financial markets' initial reaction was positive, and the premium investors charge Spain, Portugal and other countries in the firing line in the crisis fell. Spanish, Italian and Portuguese yield spreads over Bunds were as much as 15-25 basis points tighter on the day and the cost of protecting struggling governments against default fell, led by a full point fall in five-year Greek credit default swaps.In our view (the leaders') agreement, relative to the dampened expectations of the last few weeks, provides good momentum for a solution to EMU's structural issues, said Gilles Moec, economist at Deutsche Bank.However, a lot still needs to be fleshed out within the next two weeks, and the absence of a deal on Ireland is a disappointment,he said.(Editing by Tim Pearce and Rex Merrifield)