RIVALS STUMP IN US BATTLEGROUND STATES FOCUSING ON ECONOMY
Iowa: US President Barack Obama and his rival Mitt Romney hunted for votes in battleground states on Saturday after the Republican propelled the economy to the forefront of the campaign by promising to restore the country’s economic engine.

Romney will take his message to Florida voters, while Obama plans to defend his record in the northeastern state of New Hampshire.

APPEAL ON KATE PHOTOS TO BE HEARD IN APRIL
PARIS: French gossip magazine Closer’s appeal against a court injunction ordering it to hand over all forms of pictures of Prince William’s wife Catherine sunbathing topless will he heard next April, a source said. The hearing will take place on April 24, 2013 at an appeals court in Versailles, west of Paris. In September, a court ordered the magazine to hand over all images of the royal couple within 24 hours or face a 10,000-euro fine for every day’s delay. It also banned Closer from re-using the pictures in print or on its website and re-selling them, or else face additional 10,000-euro fines for each infraction.

TOKYO COURT DISMISSES PRADA SEXUAL ABUSE SUIT
TOKYO: A Japanese court dismissed a sexual harassment and unfair dismissal suit against fashion house Prada after management told a female worker to lose weight and keep in shape. Rina Bovrisse, 38, who also claimed a Prada human resources manager had branded her “ugly”, said that she would appeal the case and that the ruling by a female judge at Tokyo District Court was unacceptable. AFP