Dollar holds steady, eyes on Obama Asia tour

TOKYO: The dollar held steady against the yen in Asia on Wednesday, with traders looking for developments in US-Japan free trade talks as President Barack Obama starts an Asian tour.

In Tokyo midday trade, the greenback changed hands at 102.57, a touch down from 102.60 yen in New York Tuesday afternoon, while the euro bought $1.3809 and 141.66 yen, against $1.3804 and 141.65 yen.

Akira Moroga, manager of forex product group of Aozora Bank, said with Obama due in Tokyo later Wednesday investors will be keeping an eye on signs of progress in the vast Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade pact.

Work on the deal has stalled recently, with Washington and Tokyo at loggerheads over tariffs on Japanese agricultural products. Any signs of progress could help boost the Nikkei and stoke yen selling, Moroga said.

Also on Wednesday, Bank of Japan governor Haruhiko Kuroda repeated his view that there was no imminent need to expand its stimulus programme to reach an inflation target of 2.0 percent next year.

"At this point, there is nothing more to say than we will continue the quantitative and qualitative easing programme in its current form until we achieve our goal to generate stable 2.0 percent inflation," Kuroda told a parliamentary session.

The Australian dollar fell to 93.14 US cents from 93.75 cents after data showed Australian inflation was lower than expected in the first three months of the year. The figures raise the possibility the country´s central bank will lower interest rates to boost the faltering economy.

Also on investors´ radars is the crisis in Ukraine, which on Tuesday relaunched military operations against pro-Kremlin separatists, hours after US Vice President Joe Biden ended a two-day Kiev visit in which he warned Russia over its actions in the former Soviet republic.

Katrina Kaif nudges Deepika Padukone out of Ranbir Kapoor's tour

 

Deepika Padukone-Ranbir Kapoor-Katrina Kaif

Is Katrina Kaif the reason why Deepika Padukone has been unceremoniously dropped from ex-boyfriend Ranbir Kapoor's much-hyped world tour? Deepika, along with Ranbir and Priyanka Chopra, was scheduled to be part of the chain of mega events scheduled for July 2011.

While Deepika taunting Ranbir on Karan Johar's talk show is being seen as the primary reason for her ouster, industry insiders can't help notice a Katrina angle in all this.

The buzz goes that Katrina has been keen on being part of the world tour. And she would never be comfortable with Deepika around, industry insiders point out. Since Ranbir got close to Katrina while he was still dating Deepika, so the two beauties can't stand each other.

The Ranbir-Deepika split happened around the time the Kapoor scion got close to Katrina when the two were shooting together for Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani and Raajneeti last year.

"Katrina and Deepika quite obviously have never shared a great rapport. Also, Deepika's split with Ranbir, allegedly over Katrina, would have made things uncomfortable if all three were on tour together.

The dig that Deepika took at Ranbir on the chat show (Koffee with Karan) was not received kindly by Rishi Kapoor either. And anyway, Katrina is a bigger star than Deepika at the moment," a source says.

While Deepika was quite keen to be part of the tour, Rishi, who is overlooking Ranbir's affairs for the tour, said: "Deepika wanted to come along, but we didn't want any stress behind the stage. Ranbir has never performed live on stage before, so we want it to go smoothly. We don't want any problem." Ranbir's parents, Rishi and Neetu Kapoor, have never desisted from making their dislike for Deepika clear, as also the fact that they love Katrina.

Deepika angered the Kapoors when she was asked by Johar on his show what was the one thing she would like to gift to Ranbir. She replied she would like to give him condoms, taking a jibe at his philandering ways. On the same show, she also miffed Katrina by saying that she would like to see the latter's passport-a reminder that Katrina is of British origin and prefers to keep her past shrouded in mystery.

"Katrina has never taunted Deepika over anything. So, she isn't amused by the comment," the source says. Deepika's condom comment made Rishi so angry that he blasted both Deepika and her fellow guest on the show, Sonam Kapoor. 

"It's a clear case of sour grapes," he said, referring to the fact that Ranbir has dated both of them in the past. "It just shows their class." Deepika responded with a not-so-politically-correct comment: "We (she and Ranbir) are good friends. Till the time the person concerned, doesn't stop taking my calls, my friendship with him isn't affected. I don't need to bother about others." 

Ranbir's Saawariya co-star Sonam has backed out of the tour. Malaika Arora Khan, whose item number Munni badnaam hui is a huge hit, will be part of the tour, besides Priyanka, Bipasha Basu and Katrina. The first lap of the tour will be spread across the UK, the US and Canada.

Read more at: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/katrina-kaif-nudges-deepika-padukone-out-of-ranbir-kapoors-tour/1/122436.html

I was bankrupt during Monster Ball Tour in 2009: Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga: I had three million dollars in the bank to my name and I threw it all in to make my stage.

Pop star Lady Gaga has revealed that she was bankrupt during her Monster Ball tour in 2009.
The 27-year-old singer was left broke after spending her entire fortune on the show’s elaborate production, she explained in the upcoming EPIX documentary, reported Ace Showbiz.
“I had three million dollars in the bank to my name and I threw it all in to make my stage. So I was bankrupt during the show,” Gaga said.
The singer explained that she was forced to reassure her family after they were left confused by her financial troubles.
“I remember I went home and I was with my dad and he said, ‘I don’t understand. ‘Bad Romance’ is out. You are all over the radio. Everyone is talking about you and you don’t have a pot to piss in’.
“I said, ‘Just let me do this. Let me just put it on the stage because I think if I can do this I can get Arthur Fogel’s attention.’ And I did.”
The ‘Do What U Want’ singer revealed that her gamble paid off when Live Nation CEO Fogle offered her a lucrative deal. ”I remember he called me and he said, ‘We want to do this’. And he got Live Nation to write me a USD 40 million check. And it changed my life and the life of my whole family,” Gaga said.

Backstreet Boys announce North American tour

The Backstreet Boys will hit the road again this summer. (Reuters)

Pop/rock band Backstreet Boys have announced that they would hit the road again this summer.
After a string of Canadian shows, the tour will head to the US on May 22 for a concert at WaMu Theater in Seattle. They’ll then make stops in other cities like Sacramento, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Houston, Oklahoma City, Chicago, Detroit, Boston and Philadelphia before wrapping things up at Jones Beach Theater in New York, reported Ace Showbiz.
“Due to overwhelming demand on Facebook and Twitter, Backstreet’s back, all right!” they said during their appearance on a TV show.
Singer Avril Lavigne has also been tapped to support the tour. ”We really wanted to put together a great show and do our best to give everyone their money’s worth. Avril is an unbelievably talented artist who’s a perfect fit to make these shows extra special for our fans.”