Malaysian Mother Who Beat Daughter's Alleged Rapist Faces Prosecution

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A mother who tied up and caned a man who allegedly raped her young daughter is facing prosecution for taking the law into her own hands.

A video showing the mother thrashing the 28-year-old man in a village in north-east Malaysia has emerged on the internet. In the video the woman can be seen caning the man across his bare buttocks with a tree branch. He is said to have needed hospital treatment for his injuries.

If he is convicted of raping the 13-year-old girl he is likely to be caned all over again by the authorities as well as receiving a lengthy prison sentence. The mother of the girl also faces punishment for meting out her own punishment.

Assistant police commissioner Lai Yong Heng said officers had viewed the video and were now trying to identify the mother and a group of people alleged to have helped her capture and flog the alleged attacker.

Lai told Malaysia's The Star newspaper: "He received injuries to his body and head and had to go to hospital, while a second man linked to the rape was assaulted by a group of people."

He added: "People should not take the law Into their own hands, even if they believe they have a right to do so. We hope that the woman and the others seen in the video will surrender themselves before they are arrested."

The Star said the teenager had been raped several times by the two suspects in a house in the village of Tawang, in the Malaysian state of Kelantang.

British Woman Gets 20 Years in Iran's Toughest Jail for Insulting Islam and Ayatollah Khomeini

Roya Nobakht has been jailed for 20 years in Iran for insulting former supreme leader Ayatollah Khomeini

A British man who went to Iran in search of his missing wife discovered her languishing in prison at the start of an enormous 20-year sentence.

Roya Nobakht, 47, has been jailed for a Facebook post she published while on holiday in the country. It offended hard-line Muslim leaders by bashing former supreme leader Ayatollah Khomeini.

Stockport resident Nobakht – who holds dual British/Iranian citizenships, fell foul of strict religious laws and was convicted of putting Iran's national security at risk and insulting Islam.

Husband Doryoush Taghipoor only found out about his wife's plight when she failed to show up at Manchester Airport last October. He flew to Iran to find her, scouring places such as hospitals. Since he tracked her down, the couple have spent only 10 minutes together.

Nobakht has been tortured while in captivity, alleged a relative, who said: "Roya is devastated. She is not doing well. She has said she would trather die then be there for 20 years. She has been tortured and the conditions in prison are terrible."

The authorities sent Nobakht to the notorious Evin prison in north-west Tehran, a mixed facility that has been described as the country's toughest jail.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: "We are aware that a British national has received a custodial sentence in Iran."

Indian Rupee Could Trade at 63 to the Dollar in 12 Months: Goldman Sachs

Indian rupee could trade at 63 to the US dollar in 12 months: Goldman Sachs.Reuters

The Indian rupee could trade at 63 to a US dollar in 12 months, according to a Goldman Sachs report.

The Goldman forecast rests partly on an anticipated increase in India's current account deficit (CAD) during the financial year 2014-15.

"We expect the current account deficit to rise gradually in [fiscal 2014-15] to 2.6% of GDP due to a gradual increase in imports on better domestic demand as well as some relaxation in gold import restrictions by the new government," the report said.

Rupee-Dollar

The partially convertible rupee finished at 59.10/11 to the US dollar on 30 May as against 59.03/04 on 29 May.

For the week, the rupee shed 1% but has gained 2% for the month as a whole.

Rupee Stability

India's CAD, foreign fund inflows into the country and the amount of forex reserves it holds are among the several factors that influence rupee stability.

A current account deficit or trade deficit occurs when a nation's payments to other countries exceed the amount it receives.

The Indian economy is heavily dependent on imports, particularly of oil and gold.

Payments to other countries are made in foreign currencies. As such, rupees have to be sold to make those payments and any surge in the sale of rupees leads to a fall in the value of the currency.

When foreigners invest in India, they sell dollars and buy rupees and therefore higher foreign fund inflows have a positive impact on the rupee's valuation.

India's central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), sells or buys dollars to control the rupee in a volatile environment. The dollars come from the RBI's reserves.

The RBI's forex reserve stands at about $15.5bn. A higher forex reserve gives the central bank greater powers to intervene in the market to control the rupee.

For the financial year 2013-14, India's average CAD was 1.7% of the GDP as against 4.7% of the GDP in the previous fiscal -- CAD dropped on a sharp contraction in imports, particularly gold imports.

The rupee slid past the 68 mark in August 2013 amid concerns about the then government's ability to tackle a widening fiscal deficit and on concerns surrounding the country's economic slowdown.

The RBI's forex reserves stood at just $3.8bn in the 2012-13 financial year.

Crude Oil Futures Log Monthly Gains Amid Geopolitical Uncertainty

A view of the Zueitina oil terminal in Libya.Reuters

Crude oil futures finished lower for the week on US inventory data but gained for the month as a whole amid geopolitical uncertainty.

US July contract finished 87 cents, or 0.8% lower at $102.71 as on 30 May.

Prices were down 1.6% for the week, but gained 3% on the month.

Brent July contract finished 56 cents, or 0.5%, lower at $109.41 a barrel on 30 May.

Prices were down 1% for the week, but rose 1.8% on the month.

Commerzbank Corporates & Markets said in a 30 May note to clients: "According to the US Department of Energy, US crude stocks rose by 1.7 million barrels last week, owing largely to a sharp rise in crude imports that led to an inventory build-up on the US Gulf coast of over 3 million barrels.

"Moreover, US crude production has risen again and is now at its highest level for almost 28 years. In contrast, oil stocks at Cushing dropped by 1.5 million barrels and are now at their lowest level since November 2008.

"US gasoline stocks were down too by an unexpected 1.8 million barrels, owing to strong demand which last week was up 4% year on year. This is an encouraging sign, as demand will be at its highest during the summer driving season.

"While WTI has made good the previous day's losses and US gasoline has gained, Brent has barely responded to the inventory data and is still trading at $110 a barrel."

"For prices to rise further, the supply-side situation (Ukraine, Libya) would have to deteriorate even more or demand would have to push them up. The Chinese PMI figure due out [on 1 June] might provide some information in this respect," the German firm added.

Libya Crisis

The protracted oil dispute between federalists in eastern Libya and the central government has cost the country £10.8bn ($18bn, €13.3bn) in lost oil trade.

Rebel groups seeking greater autonomy from the central government have relinquished control of two ports, but they continue to occupy the major eastern ports of Ras Lanuf and Es Sider.

Since rebel groups seized oil ports in the east of the country in July 2013, production has plummeted from around 1.5 million barrels and is currently operating at about a fifth of that capacity.

Volcanic Ash Cloud Grounds Flights Across South-East Asia

Mount Sangeang in Indonesia erupted on FridayTwitter/ObservingSpace

A volcanic eruption in the Pacific Ocean has created a huge ash cloud that is disrupting flights across northern Australia and between Australia and south-east Asia.

Mount Sangeang in Indonesia erupted on Friday, sending a massive plume of ash between 6-20km (up to 12 miles) into the atmosphere. The cloud is expected to affect flights across the region for several days.

The ash cloud has forced Darwin airport in northern Australia to cancel all domestic flights, and has disrupted flights between Australia and Southeast Asia. International flights to and from Australia to Singapore, East Timor and the Indonesian island of Bali have been cancelled. Flights serving Australian cities as far south as Brisbane could be disrupted.

The volcano last erupted on the same scale in 1999.

Twitter/Channel News Asia (Vira Azzukhruf)

Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss said Airservices Australia, the nation's air navigation authority, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority and the Bureau of Meteorology are all investigating the cloud.

The Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre manager at the Bureau of Meteorology in Darwin, Emile Jansons, said the ash cloud was already affecting other parts of Australian air space.

"It has currently reached the Australian coast. It has reached the Kimberley coast [in western Australia]. It is spreading east and it may dissipate, so it is not clear how far east it will get. It is not yet clear if it will affect the eastern seaboard."

Jansons said volcanic ash could be hazardous to aircraft but the decision whether to fly was a safety and economic decision that rested with individual airlines.

He told Reuters: "The volcano is undergoing a sustained, rather significant eruption at the moment, so for the last 10 hours we've been observing large masses of volcanic ash being generated. At the moment it has slowed down a little bit since its initial big eruption, but nobody has a very good handle on what this volcano is likely to do in the next 24 hours or beyond."

Based on weather conditions, the ash cloud is expected to dissipate before it reaches Australia's eastern airports and major population cities.

Gold Prices Set to Drop Further Next Week

Gold prices are set to drop further next week.Reuters

Gold prices are set to drop further next week as the anticipated European Central Bank rate cut and likely upbeat US labour market data are together expected to dent the precious metal's safe-haven investment status.

As many as 18 of 27 analysts polled in a Kitco Gold Survey said they expected gold prices to trade lower next week, while seven predicted that prices will rise and two forecast prices to trade sideways.

The ECB's Governing Council meets on 5 June and the central bank is widely expected to cut its deposit rate, placing it in negative territory for the first time. The ECB could also roll out measures to promote small business lending.

The ECB has indicated that it could roll out fresh stimulus measures and president Mario Draghi has signalled that policy makers are ready to act should they see low eurozone inflation becoming ingrained.

6 June will see the US put out its May employment report and economists expect job creation to come in above 200,000. Traders will also be tracking the ADP private-sector payrolls data due out on 6 May.

Kevin Grady, president Phoenix Futures and Options, said: "The forward rates are continuing their progression into positive territory which signals to me that the physical buying is drying up even at these levels. I would expect the price-sensitive buyers to surface again near the $1,225 area."

"We also saw the longs liquidate heavily with a drop in (futures market) open interest of 24,000 contracts from Wednesday's trading. I will continue to monitor the forward rates for any sign of the physical buyers. Until that happens, I think gold will continue on its present course."

VTB Capital analyst Andrey Kryuchenkov told Reuters: "Bullion is hovering near fresh 16-week lows as liquidation pressure remains after heavy profit-taking earlier in the week."

"The market could take more downside in technically-driven selling, with little buying interest on the physical side or, indeed, any substantial investor appetite.

"With the US economy showing robust recovery signs... investors will be more attracted to the likes of equities, or even platinum group and base metals, given the more appealing fundamentals linked to the industrial growth recovery."

Gold Ends Lower

US gold futures for delivery in June finished $10.70 lower at $1,245.60 an ounce on 30 May.

Prices were down 3.6% for the week as a whole. For the month, prices slipped 3.9%.

Spot gold was down some 1% at $1,246 an ounce on 30 May.

Prices dropped to a new 16-week low on 29 May, against the backdrop of a stronger US dollar, upbeat global equities and weak demand in leading consumer China.

A stronger US dollar makes it more expensive for holders of other currencies to trade in dollar-denominated commodities such as gold. Upbeat equities dent bullion's safe-haven investment appeal.

Indonesia-Bound Thai Diesel Tanker Believed Hijacked

A Japanese oil tanker which was raided by armed pirates sails at Port Klang, outside Kuala Lumpur, April 23, 2014.Reuters

A Thai oil tanker sailing from Singapore to Indonesia is believed to have been hijacked, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) has said.

The diesel tanker MT Orapin 4 departed from a terminal in Singapore on 27 May, but the ship's owners lost contact with it, the IMB said.

"It could be a hijacking. We have sent signals for ships in the area to keep a lookout and the authorities have been alerted," Noel Choong, the head of IMB's Piracy Reporting Centre, said, according to Reuters.

The vanished tanker had 14 crew on board and was heading to Pontianak on Indonesia's Kalimantan.

Choong added that pirates had raided many vessels in the waters around the Malacca Strait and Singapore recently.

According to the Regional Co-operation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP), pirate attacks in one of the busiest waterways in the world are on the rise.

As many as eight armed attacks by pirates took place in the Malacca Strait and around Singapore in the first three months of this year, compared with one such attack in the same period the previous year, ReCAAP told the news agency.

In April, armed pirates hijacked a Japanese oil tanker off the coast of Malaysia and stole about three million litres of diesel from it.

The Indonesian pirates pumped out the diesel, worth about $2.5m, into two waiting vessels and sailed away, Malaysia's maritime police had said.

Shipping news website Medi Telegraph had reported that in some cases of hijacking, ties with tanker crew and the pirates were suspected. Calling such cases as "intelligence-led hijacks", it said a syndicate that thrives on stealing gasoil cargoes and selling them on the black market was behind the rising attacks.

Almost a quarter of the world's seaborne oil cargoes pass through the Malacca Strait.