The mystery of the panties in the Brazilian Parliament

Mystery in the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies. A panty appeared in full parliament. Dropped them a deputy, not known. Fewer still know who they were. The fact is that no one complained.

It happened two weeks ago and there are witnesses who saw but did not want to tell too much. The matter was kept secret for a few days, but they eventually go public.

That day, around 17h, the period of the agenda at the meeting, a deputy came running to go vote, rummaged in his pockets and dropped something. It was a white and red panties with embroidery on the sides.

The deputy did not notice and went to the floor. Some guards have the case and gave them a slight kick in a piece of lingerie to hide next to the Trash. Warned by security, an aide to Speaker of the House of Representatives kept it.

UK and Germany recruit "health" in Portugal

The UK and Germany are in Portugal to recruit doctors and nurses. In the coming days, the two countries will make a selection of candidates in Porto and Lisbon.

This is not a single case, once in the last months many applications for professionals in health care has come from many countries of Europe, thus opening a window of opportunity for many people.

But opportunities arise even outside Europe. For example, Macau is also looking to work in Portuguese.

There is no limit for candidates chosen: this selection is all determined by the quality. Germany asks nurses, while the UK needs to Portuguese doctors with experience.

The Order of Nurses estimates that in 2011 emigrated 1700 professional, or an average of five per day. The reason is obvious: wages in Britain, for example, vary between 21 and 28 thousand pounds a year, ie 26 and 35 000 euros. In the case of physicians, the annual salary can reach 124,000 euros.

Obama's gaffe or simply ignorance?

The Polish prime minister demanded an apology from the U.S. president, Barack Obama, for this speaking in a "Polish concentration camp" during a ceremony at the White House on Tuesday.
The head of Polish government Donald Tusk asks Obama to clarify his statements, since the concentration camps, though they were on Polish soil, were run by the Nazis.
The White House has issued a statement in which it apologizes, but for Tusk, is not enough.
The Prime Minister made ​​a statement on the website of Polish embassy in the U.S.: "We only have this reaction when the lack of knowledge, ignorance and bad intentions lead to such a distortion of history."
"It's a shame that ignorance and incompetence have been present at a ceremony so important," wrote the Polish foreign minister, Radoslaw Sikorski, in your account on the social network Twitter. Sikorski also notes that the blame will not be Obama, but who made ​​the speech.
This tuesday Obama made a controversial reference to deliver the Medal of Freedom posthumously to the war fighter Jan Karski.
The spokesman for the National Security Council of the United States, Tommy Vietor, has already announced that the president made ​​a mistake and he was referring to the Nazi concentration camps in Poland.

Flame computer virus: a complex threat

It is thought that this virus, which triggered a complex worldwide cyberattack, has collected private data from a number of countries, including Israel and Iran.

There are many informations indicating that the malware will be operational at least since August 2010. Several sources have announced that the attacks originated in a government program, but would not indicate the possible geographic origin of the threat.

The investigations into the origins and objectives of this attack were carried out in partnership with the International Telecommunication Union, from UNO

In the past, there was reported the existence of complex international malware with a specific target, such as Stuxnet, the virus that infected nuclear Iran. However, the new virus Flame will not aim to cause injury, but rather to collect sensitive data for your targets.

Everybody Dies: The series "Dr. House" comes to an end

It's time to say goodbye to the famous physician Dr. House. After eight seasons and 177 episodes, the series "Dr. House" comes to an end. The last episode was aired in the United States last May 21.
The channel Universal released a video that shhowed the best moments throughout the series. The final episode will be called "Everybody Dies."
Series creator David Shore, in an interview with American TVRage gave some clues about the outcome of the series. The last four episodes will be part of the same story and some characters who had left the series will return in the end.
While audiences have fallen, one of the reasons why the principaais cancel the program was the recent slippage in the script, which mischaracterize a little series.

 

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Michael Haneke's «Amour» wins Palm d'Or @ Cannes

The film "Amour", the Austrian director Michael Haneke, is the winner of the Palme d'Or Cannes Film Festival. Haneke won for the second time Palme d'Or. In 2009, won the award with "The White Ribbon."
The Portuguese actress Rita Blanco has a stake in the cast of this film as a gate of the building of an elderly couple living the last months of life of women, roles played by the French Emmanuelle Riva and Jean-Louis Trintignant. The film also features the actress Isabelle Huppert.

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Calciocaos: part 2

Stefano Mauri, Lazio captain, and 18 other players in Serie A were on Monday arrested following an investigation into the combined results for the benefit of betting.
According to Italian police, Mauri was one of 19 players arrested in an operation that ran from north to south of Italy.
The players are accused of being involved in a scheme of combined results for betting operations on the base of operations may be based in Singapore.

Merkel is confused about the geography of Germany

From Angela Merkel, the Germans have to expect everything, but hardly imagine that the Chancellor had difficulty to identify Berlin in the map. The finger of Merkel went to Russia in a Geography class, at a capital school.
The challenge seemed even more easy, so easy that the chancellor was wanting to participate. The objective was to locate on the map hometowns, but Merkel prefer to identify Berlin to Hamburg, where he was born. He looked at the map (which was white and had only contours), and decided, pointed out that Berlin would be there, in Russia it is meant. The laugh was general, but Merkel did not believe in error. "What, Russia here? So near? "

Facebook: the fall of an angel

The entry of Facebook stock market threatens to go to the courts. Many investors are preparing lawsuits against directors and entities involved in the process. Among the target of the process itself is Mark Zuckerberg, founder of social network.
At issue are delays debut on the stock exchange of shares, suspicious of information that have been advanced by the bank that handled the transaction, problems with transactions in securities on the first day and the sharp devaluation of the shares in the following days.
Facebook came into stock worth $ 38 and devalued 20% in the first three days on the market. On Wednesday, the day began to recover slightly.
Facebook, the world's largest social network with over 900 million users, debuted in the New York Stock Exchange last Friday, with the starting price of $ 38 per share.
The decline since the markets seem to agree with analysts who argue that the value of that social networking is being overvalued.
The last week has been hectic for the founder of Facebook. Besides the company's entry into purse, Mark Zuckerberg married his longtime girlfriend, Priscilla Chan, 27.

Portugal is in the group of countries that more money cuts to Universities

Portugal is one of most European countries that cut in higher education following the economic crisis. The conclusion is a study of the European University Association, recently presented in Lisbon.
According to the document, Portugal joined the group of countries that have reduced funding by 20% and that also includes Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia and Spain.
According to the dean of the University of Lisbon, with the wage cuts, reduction in Portugal reached 45%, calling into question the functioning of many establishments and university autonomy.
Most countries cut 10% and some continued funding. In turn, Norway and Germany increased funding for higher education.

University of Porto received more than 3000 foreign students

The University of Porto received about 3100 foreign students in the second half of the school year, coming under international mobility programs, which equates to nearly 10 percent of total subscribers.
University of Porto says they received enrollment of about 3,100 young people from 63 different nationalities to attend the second semester of the academic year, representing about 10 percent of total students of the institution.
The University has been the preference of foreign students due to factors such as teaching quality, reputation or recommendation from teachers or peers who have already performed a mobility period at the university, data obtained through a survey conducted by the relations international institution.
It adds that foreign students last year, attended the University of Porto, 93 percent say they would recommend to the end of their studies.
Of the more than 3,000 students who have been studing in the last months at the University of Porto, about 1,500 are pursuing a full course, including masters and doctorates, but come 1559 youth this year through programs of international student mobility , known as 'Erasmus', or bilateral agreements between the U. Port and universities around the world.

Although from the five continents, from Thailand to Nicaragua, through Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Fiji, Somalia and Vietnam, the largest share of these students continues to arrive from Brazil and Spain, followed by Italy, Poland, Czech Republic, Germany and the UK.

Euphoria! Sweden's Loreen wins Eurovision SC

Sweden, with Euphoria music, played by Loreen, won the Eurovision Song Contest in Baku, Azerbaijan.
No longer Portugal, who was ousted in the second round, Sweden was the best country among the 26 present in the grand final and reached 372 points.
With this victory, Sweden recorded the fifth win at the festival, after the successes in Brighton, with Abba in 1974, Luxembourg (1984), Rome (1991) and Jerusalem (1999).
Second place was won by Russia with 259 points, while the Serbian third place with 214.

Sandwich with 13 pounds and 10 hours to devoure

The monster snack is the largest beef sandwich in the world - filled with 41 different cuts of meat, including sausages, ham, turkey, and - of course - bacon. The sandwich, dubbed the "carnivore dream", stands out with 37 cm high, 61 cm long and weighs 13 pounds.

It contains 5 pounds of red meat, plus 1.4 pound of ham, two pounds of salami, turkey and bacon, a pound of sausage and 720 grams of sausage.
Tucked away between the meat, cheese and cucumbers, if you look carefully you may even be able to detect a bit of salad between slices.


It was made by British chef Tristan Welch to mark the launch of v Man. Food Nation Food Network in the UK.
It is estimated that a hungry person would take 10 hours to eat the sandwich.

Brazil approves a medical certificate against cachaca hangover

Anyone with a hangover from cachaca, that drink in previous day, shall be entitled to a medical certificate for not working and stay at home resting and recovering from the party.

The measure was approved after a group of revelers joined in justice, claiming thathangovers make people sick, unable to perform tasks, making the hungover worthy of a certificate for not working. The "certificate of hangover" can only be providedby a clinical examination confirming the fact.
A businessman, against the measure, believes that adoption of the "certificate ofhangover" will transform into a Monday holiday. "Nobody will work harder in the second, everyone will send a medical certificate," he said.

Lisbon is recommended by Time and USA Today as "the towering white city"

Lisbon, as a tourist destination, is a prominent theme in several foreign publications such as Time and USA Today.

With summer approaching are increasingly the suggestions of holiday destinations that fill the pages of the press. This month Lisbon was the theme chosen by several foreign publications such as Time and USA Today. The Portuguese capital is still a subject of the cover of the inflight magazine of the U.S. airline United Airlines and easyJet also.

"The towering white city" is how Time featuring Lisbon European in its latest edition.This article entitled "Four hours in Lisbon" praises the diversity of supply in the city.

"From eccentric bookstores, the colorful street markets and magnificent monuments," the article begins, "It's amazing what you can do and see in Lisbon for four hours." Time suggests that "when you have little time to visit the capital of Portugal, the best way to do that is aboard one of its electric, in order to capture the essence of Lisbon."

Also according to the statement Tourism sent to Lisbon later this morning to the editorial, USA Today also devotes an article to Lisbon in the Travel section of its online version.

This article describes a European capital Lisbon as "magical and mysterious", where the visitor can leave enchanted by Fado, the castles and palaces that seem taken from "fairy-tales" and of course the traditional cuisine.

Lisbon is still the subject of the cover of the inflight magazine of the U.S. airline United Airlines this month. This magazine - Hemispheres - an article devoted 12 pages to the Portuguese capital and suggests to his readers "Three perfect days in Lisbon."

EasyJet also dedicates the cover of this month of its inflight magazine - Traveller - the region, more specifically, to Ericeira, which considers the area with "the best surf in Europe." The article occupies five pages describing all the reasons why Ericeira was declared the first World Surfing Reserve.

Could be GEURO the next Greece currency?

The biggest German private bank proposes to introduce a parallel currency to the euro in Greece, where opponents of austerity measures to win the next election.
The measure would ensure the continued international financial support, so that Greece can pay their debts, says a study by economists at Deutsche Bank, published today.
"Greece could thus devalue its own currency without formally leaving the euro," say the same experts who suggest geuro also the name for the Greek parallel currency."
The new monetary unit would consist of government bonds issued by the Hellenic state, that could be sold in the capital markets.
Initially, the geuro suffer a sharp devaluation against the euro, but according to the study of the Deutsche Bank the Greek government would be able to strengthen the new currency, through sound fiscal policy.
Alongside the introduction of further structural reforms, the policy would provide a return in full to the euro, German economists explain.
A total renunciation of Greece to the euro is considered "unlikely" in the same study, because most Greeks want to continue in the single currency, also refer to the study authors.
Deutsche Bank also considers "unlikely" that the troika (IMF, European Union and European Central Bank) suspend all aid to Greece in case of victory of political forces that want to renegotiate the memorandum signed by the laws of Athens in June.
The payment of benefits under the new aid package of 130 billion approved in March, would be canceled, but the Greek debt service should continue to be provided by international partners, so that Greek banks could be supported by a "bad bank "of Europe, where were deposited the so-called toxic securities (very underrated), provides for the German bank.
The proposed introduction of a parallel currency to the euro in Greece has already been advanced earlier by other economists, but returned to win today, instabilities.

Candy "Pharmacy" @ Porto

It is a unique shop in the city center of Porto and reminds one pharmacy. Instead of drugs, "gives" revenues consist of gums, chocolates and other sweets to sweeten the customers mouth.

Coldplay @ Dragão Stadium - Porto, Portugal

The 'Paradise' stars showed their fans what they can expect when they descended upon the Dragao Stadium in Portugal yesterday.Coldplay have revealed a teaser video of their stage set-up as they get ready to kick off the European leg of their 'Mylo Xyloto' in Portugal today (18th May).The 'Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall' band took to their Twitter account to reveal a 360 degree view of the stage set up inside the Dragao Stadium "Dragao Stadium, Porto, Portugal. Right now. First Mylo Stadium. Showtime minus 9hrs," they tweeted alongside the clip.

Some photos of the concert:

Anti-Obesity Vaccine Reduces Food Consumption in Animals

A new therapeutic vaccine to treat obesity by suppressing the appetite-stimulating hormone ghrelin decreases food intake and increases calorie burning in mice, a new study finds. The results was presented at The Endocrine Society's 93rd Annual Meeting in Boston.
"An anti-ghrelin vaccine may become an alternate treatment for obesity, to be used in combination with diet and exercise," said Mariana Monteiro, MD, PhD, an associate professor at the University of Porto in Portugal. She is lead investigator of the study.
Ghrelin is a gut hormone that promotes weight gain by increasing appetite and food intake while decreasing energy expenditure, or calorie burning. Recent research shows that bariatric surgeries, such as gastric bypass, suppress ghrelin.
"This suggests that there is a hormonal mechanism underlying the weight loss attained by the surgical procedures," Monteiro said.
Monteiro's group developed a therapeutic vaccine using a noninfectious virus carrying ghrelin, which was designed to provoke an immune response -- development of antibodies against ghrelin -- that would suppress this hormone. They then vaccinated normal-weight mice and mice with diet-induced obesity three times and compared them with control mice that received only saline injections.
Compared with unvaccinated controls, vaccinated mice -- both normal-weight and obese mice -- developed increasing amounts of specific anti-ghrelin antibodies, increased their energy expenditure and decreased their food intake, the authors reported. Within 24 hours after the first vaccination injection, obese mice ate 82 percent of the amount that control mice ate, and after the final vaccination shot they ate only 50 percent of what unvaccinated mice ate, Monteiro said.
The effects of each vaccination lasted for the two months of the study, which for the normal 18-month lifespan of mice, corresponds to four human years, she said. They reportedly saw no toxic effects in the mice as a result of the vaccine.
Vaccinated obese mice also displayed a reduced expression of neuropeptide Y (NPY). Monteiro said, "NPY is the most potent signal that increases appetite in the central nervous system. This finding shows that the anti-ghrelin vaccine decreased the feeding signals in the brain."
Funding support for this study came from the Foundation for Science and Technology (Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia) in Lisbon, Portugal.

Mourinho & Cristiano: father & son

Mourinho believes Ronaldo would be a worthy winner when the awards come round again due to his remarkable goalscoring feats this season which helped Real Madrid to the league title.
Ronaldo scored an astonishing 46 La Liga goals this campaign – although, unbelievably, that was still four short of Messi’s haul of 50 league strikes.

Real boss Mourinho said: “Cristiano has to win the Ballon D’Or, not because he has been the top goalscorer — he was that already last season — but because his goals have delivered a title.

“Messi scored 50 goals that weren’t worth anything, in the same way that Cristiano scored 42 last season that didn’t stand for anything.

“He hasn’t been able to win the Pichichi (top-scorer in La Liga) and I believe he should be compensated with the Ballon D’Or.”

Mourinho described his first league title in Spain as the toughest he has ever won.

The 49-year-old Portuguese has now won seven championships in four different countries after collecting two league titles each with Porto, Chelsea and Inter Milan.

But he believes overcoming Barcelona has been the biggest challenge of his career.

He added: “All the titles are well recognised, this is undeniable.

“But I can say that this was the most difficult of the seven titles I have won.

“This was more difficult because we had an opponent that is recognised as the best team in the past few years.

“Throughout the whole tournament there was a great pressure because if we drew we could lose points in the title race. For this reason it has been the most difficult, but also very deserved.”

OPorto's Night

In Porto there a lot of different places to go: you can choose from a wide variety of very typical small bars to the craziest discos. Here you can check out a few options and travel virtually trough the websites.

•    Café Restaurante Guarany (Restaurant, Bar, Porto) - www.cafeguarany.com

•    Casa Agrícola Bar (Restaurant, Bar, Porto) - www.casa-agricola.com

•    Café Progresso (Coffee Shop, Porto) - http://www.cafeprogresso.net/

•    Galerias Paris (Bar, Porto) - http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=47498296407&v=info

•    Contagiarte (Cultural Center, Bar, Porto) - http://www.contagiarte.pt/  

•    Plano B (Disco, Bar, Porto) -  http://www.planobporto.com/

•    Omeumercedes (Bar, Porto) - http://www.omeumercedes.com/1280.htm

•    M80 (Disco, Bar - Porto) - http://www.clubm80.net/

•    31 Trintaeum (Bar, Porto) - www.trintaeum.com

•    Hard Club (Galery Bar, V.N.Gaia) - www.hard-club.com

•    Maus Hábitos (Cultural Center, Restaurant, Bar, Porto) www.maushabitos.com ; http://www.myspace.com/maushabitos

•    Act (Disco, Porto) - www.actporto.com

•    Buddha Club (Disco, Póvoa de Varzim) - www.buddhaclub.ws

•    Tendinha dos clérigos (Disco, Porto) - http://www.tendinhadosclerigos.com/

•    Pitch Club (Disco, Porto) - http://www.pitch-club.com/

•    Blá-Blá (Matosinhos) (Disco, Matosinhos) - www.blabla.com.pt

•    Pitch Club (Disco Bar, Porto) - www.pitch-club.com

•    La Movida (Disco, Porto) - www.lamovidabeach.com

The best Francesinhas in OPorto

The latest issue of Time Out Porto features an in-depth review of top restaurants where you can eat Francesinhas. Obviously, you can eat a francesinha almost anywhere in Porto, bu we have each tasted and rated the francesinha at ten restaurants.

An initial list of 20 restaurants was chosen by specialists, Time Out journalists and fans. The readers of Time Out were then asked to vote on their favourites, which led to the final top ten. Here is a list of the ten in order of popularity according to the ratings given to them by the reviewers.

1. Santiago (R. de Passos Manuel 226, 4000 Porto)
2. Barcarola Café (Rua Costa Cabral 806)
3. Capa Negra II (Rua do Campo Alegre 191)
4. Cufra (Avenida da Boavista 2504)
5. Locanda (Tv do Buel 40)
6. Cervejaria Galiza (Rua do Campo Alegre 55)
7. A Regaleira (Rua do Bonjardim 87)
8. Bufete Fase (Rua de Santa Catarina 1147)
9. Café Torres (Rua Rodrigues de Freitas 1509)
10. Requinte (Rua do Godinho 837)

Spain's «Indignants» protest

Tens of thousands of protesters have gathered in Spanish cities to mark the first anniversary of the "Indignants" protest movement.

In central Madrid, protesters are still occupying Puerta del Sol square despite a midnight deadline to disperse.

The movement was formed out of anger at the impact of Spain's deepest economic crisis in decades.

Unemployment hit a record high in April and the government has recently announced fresh austerity measures.

The turnout in Madrid was huge and would certainly have met organisers' expectations, says Guy Hedgecoe, reporting for the BBC from Madrid.

Spanish authorities had said they wanted the protesters to disperse by midnight local time (22:00 GMT) but many thousands have defied the time limit.

"Today's goal is to recover the public spaces," protester Sofia Ruiz told Reuters.

"It is also a way to celebrate that we have been existing for one year and that we are going to be there until the system changes or we are listened to and they take into account our claims," she added.

Last year the Indignants established a protest camp in Puerta del Sol, but the authorities have said they will prevent any protesters from staying overnight in the square.

There are some 2,000 riot police on duty but they have so far made no move to disperse the protesters.

At least 45,000 people also took to the streets in Barcelona, police said, although organisers put the attendance in the hundreds of thousands.

One protester there, Jose Helmandez, told the BBC he was a genetics and molecular biology doctor but had been unable to find a job in his field.

"A lot of people are leaving the country to find work, even if they end up not doing something they are qualified to do," he said.

"I was living in France but returned to Spain almost two years ago, and all I can find are short-term jobs."

Blue Final: R. Federer vs T. Berdych

Roger Federer eased into the Madrid Open final after a 6-2 6-3 win over Janko Tipsarevic.

The Serb had beaten compatriot Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals but was broken three times by the Swiss.

Federer will face world number seven Tomas Berdych in Sunday's decider after he beat Juan Martin del Potro 7-6 (7-5) 7-6 (8-6).

A win for Federer would see him overtake Rafael Nadal as the world's second-ranked player.

It would also see him claim his third title in Madrid and move level with Nadal on 20 Masters victories.

Federer, who is playing his first tournament for five weeks, hit 25 winners on the blue clay court with Tipsarevic, who was chasing his first win over Federer, unable to reproduce the form that helped him claim a shock win over Djokovic.

The Swiss star was dominant, moving Tipsarevic around the court and getting a break to go 3-1 ahead before breaking again at 5-2 to take the set.

Tipsarevic soon went 3-1 down in the second set and Federer quickly wrapped up victory.

In the opening semi-final, Berdych was made work hard but eventually triumphed thanks to a strong serving display, including 15 aces.

A smart Del Potro passing shot broke Berdych for the first time in the tournament and allowed him to pull 3-1 ahead early on.

He then had a chance to serve out the first set, but Berdych broke to love to level the match and go on to win the tie-break.

Berdych kept up the pressure at the beginning of the second by taking Del Potro's first service game. Although Del Potro broke back, Berdych prevailed in the second set tie-break.

"It was really just about one or two points that decided for my side," he said afterwards. "It was really close. We fought for every point and I am really happy to have gone through."

Sunday's final will be the Czech player's first since he won in Montpellier in January.

Greece’s President calls meet for last-ditch coalition effort

Greek President Karolos Papoulias called for the leaders of Greece's political parties to meet on Sunday, in a last-ditch effort to broker a deal for a coalition government and avoid another general election.

Mr. Papoulias took the step Saturday after Greece's socialist leader Evangelos Venizelos officially gave up the mandate to form a coalition government after three rounds of negotiations proved fruitless.

Courage & Bravery

Courage & Bravery

Atletico Madrid striker Radamel Falcao meets a Tiger at the Vicente Calderon

After two first-half goals in the Europa League final on Wednesday, Radamel Falcao was probably expecting a quiet time of things back in Madrid.

With fourth place still a possibility, going into the final round of games on Sunday, you would have thought Atletico Madrid would keep their main man wrapped up in cotton wool.

Instead, the Colombian striker, who is fond of bashing in goals in the Europa League, was wheeled out on to the Vicente Calderon pitch to spend time with a tiger.

Not just any tiger. This one was Carla, weighing 250 kilos and of the Bengal variety.

In truth, the tigers look pretty sedated but you can understand why Atletico were eager to get Falcao on the pitch with a tiger – his nickname is: “El Tigre.”

Portugal cancels holidays after Vatican talks

Portugal is eliminating four holidays to try to boost its economy, the government announced -- but only after getting the agreement of the Vatican.

The economically struggling European country will stop giving workers a day off for Corpus Christi and All Saints' Day, starting next year, the government said.

It will also eliminate two civil holidays to be fair, the statement said Tuesday.

The center-right government thanked the Holy See and the Portuguese Bishops' Conference for their "constructive approach" to the negotiations.

Portugal and the Vatican will re-evaluate the agreement in five years, the government said.

Economy ministry spokesman Hugo Soares declined to say how cutting the holidays would boost the economy.

The opposition Socialists and Communists did not immediately respond.

Portugal, a largely Catholic country, is struggling with recession and debt. Along with the economies of Greece, Italy, Ireland and Spain, its economy is a cause for concern across the 17 countries that use the euro as their currency.

SJM Quarterly Profit Rises 22%, Aided by Chinese Visitors

SJM Holdings Ltd. (880), the Macau casino operator founded by billionaire Stanley Ho, reported a 22 percent increase in first-quarter profit as Chinese tourists drove up gambling revenue in the former Portuguese colony.

Net income climbed to HK$1.71 billion ($220 million) from HK$1.41 billion a year earlier, the company said in a Hong Kong stock exchange statement yesterday. Gambling revenue gained 8.5 percent to HK$19.7 billion.

SJM, which owns 20 of the 34 casinos in Macau, faces growing competition from rivals such as Sands China Ltd. (1928) and Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd. (27) which operate new resorts in the city’s increasingly popular Cotai area. The gambling hub’s casino revenue jumped 42 percent to $34 billion last year, almost six times that of the Las Vegas Strip.

The company’s market share slid to 27.3 percent in the first quarter, from 31.9 percent a year earlier, it said in the statement.

SJM shares fell 3.6 percent to HK$16.86 at the close of Hong Kong trading yesterday, before the earnings announcement. The stock gained 2.3 percent to $2.26 in over-the-counter trading in the U.S., as of 12:11 p.m. New York time.

SJM, whose casinos include the Grand Lisboa and Ponte 16, said earlier this year that it was in advanced talks with the Macau government to build a new casino.

Wynn Macau Ltd., a unit of billionaire Steve Wynn’s Las Vegas company, won a land grant from the Macau government to build its second casino resort, the company said May 2. Galaxy said April 26 that it plans to invest about $2.1 billion to almost double the size of its resort.

Macau is the world’s largest gambling hub and the only place in China where casinos are legal. The number of Chinese tourist to the city soared 22 percent to 16.2 million in 2011.

Turkish clubs cleared in match-fixing scandal

Turkey's football federation has cleared all 16 Turkish teams, including Fenerbahce, of involvement in an alleged match-fixing scandal, but it also has banned two players for up to three years and imposed disciplinary measures on eight players or club officials.
The federation said late Sunday ``there was no reason'' to punish any of the clubs, including Fenerbahce which was barred from this season's Champions League as a result of the investigation.

A total of 93 officials, players and coaches, including the president of reigning champion Fenerbahce, are on trial, accused of helping fix matches last season. The federation's decision could affect the course of the trial, which was relying in part on the federation's guidance.