GENEVA, Jan 12 (Reuters) – Shares in the world’s airlines rebounded 25 percent last year, giving carriers an important source of cash to keep flying through the economic recovery, the International Air Transport Association said on Tuesday.

In its latest snapshot of the industry, issued as American Airlines <AMR.N> and the Oneworld alliance sweetened an offer for highly indebted Japan Airlines <9205.T> [ID:nTOE60A07B], IATA said 2009 saw the biggest passenger and cargo demand drop in history.

Cut-price fares also brought about the largest-ever revenue decline for airlines whose bottom line depends on business class travel, which fell sharply as a result of the global recession.

IATA said that the rising ticket prices seen at the end of 2009 should continue this year and help the sector ramp up activity as the world economy regains momentum.

GENEVA (Reuters) – More than 74,000 Africans fled to Yemen this year, a 50 percent increase over 2008 despite instability in the country, according to figures issued on Friday by the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.

Upheaval and economic strains in the Horn of Africa fueled a rise in migrants paying smugglers and undertaking the hazardous sea crossing, said UNHCR spokesman Andrej Mahecic.

“In some cases they are beaten, raped, killed or just thrown overboard into shark-infested waters,” he said, describing the routes across the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea as “the busiest and the deadliest one in the world.”

Many Africans make the dangerous journey to Yemen in the hope of finding jobs in Saudi Arabia or further afield.

GENEVA (Reuters) – Climate change stands to drive as many as one billion people from their homes over the next four decades, the International Organization for Migration said in a study Tuesday.

The IOM report, launched on the second day of international climate talks in Copenhagen, estimated 20 million people were made homeless last year by sudden-onset environmental disasters that are set to amplify as global warming increases.

But it found that few of the “climate refugees” are able to leave their countries, lacking the means and the ability to travel to wealthier places.

Instead, the report found the displaced people were moving in droves to already-crowded cities — putting extra pressure on the poorer countries at highest risk from environmental stress and degradation associated with climatic shifts.

GENEVA (Reuters) – Impatience with the glacial pace of global free trade negotiations prompted calls this week for the Doha round to be smashed into smaller and more digestible mini-deals that could be agreed quickly.

At a World Trade Organization meeting in Geneva, ministers from both rich and poor countries expressed frustration at having to wait for an overall Doha deal to be wrapped up to benefit from some its least controversial elements.

British Trade Minister Gareth Thomas said punitive import tariffs on wind turbines, solar panels and other environmental goods should be cut immediately to give incentives to producers in the clean-energy sector.

“Why hold back now, just because we are waiting for the Doha round to be done?” he said.

GENEVA (Reuters) – Governments should not wait for a full Doha Round deal before slashing punitive tariffs on wind turbines, solar panels and water-saving showers, Britain’s top trade official said on Tuesday.

Gareth Thomas, minister for trade and development, said that countries should voluntarily cut import duties on “green goods” at once in order to encourage business in environmentally friendly technology.

“Why hold back now, just because we are waiting for the Doha Round to be done?” he told Reuters during a ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organization.

The WTO’s 153 members are aiming to wrap up the Doha accord, which spans all areas of global trade, including food, cars and banking, in 2010. Talks on the agreement began in November 2001, making it the longest-running trade round to date.

GENEVA (Reuters) – Freer trade can help create jobs and support economic growth, and tariff-cutting accords should not be scaled back on account of the global downturn, senior U.S. and other officials said on Monday.

World Trade Organization Director-General Pascal Lamy told a WTO ministerial conference that completing the long-running Doha round would strengthen the global trading system that had helped countries come through the crisis.

But trade liberalization had to be backed by other domestic policies to absorb the shocks of increased competition, he told the opening session of the conference.

Launched eight years ago to open markets and help developing countries prosper through more trade, the Doha talks have been extremely tortuous. Political leaders have called for an accord in 2010, but a deal is not yet ready.

GENEVA (Reuters) – Anti-capitalism protesters smashed the windows of banks, shops and cafes in central Geneva and set cars on fire during a demonstration Saturday against the World Trade Organization.

Organizers including unions and Switzerland’s Green Party broke off the march, called to protest against the a three-day WTO conference starting Monday, after masked protesters in the main crowd rampaged through the center of the city.

Protesters set fire to four cars near the city bus station, causing a thick cloud of smoke. Police used tear gas to disperse the violent protestors and no further damage was caused, a police statement said.

Police blocked off access to the WTO’s lakeside headquarters, which the marchers had planned to pass.

GENEVA, Nov 28 (Reuters) – Anti-capitalism demonstrators smashed windows of banks and watchmakers in central Geneva on Saturday during a protest against the World Trade Organisation.

Several people dressed in black used mallets to break windows at Credit Suisse <CSGN.VX>, a Starbucks <SBUX.O> cafe and other institutions during the protest, in which Swiss media said about 2,000 people took part.

Police in riot gear moved to head off the demonstrators, whose route had previously been agreed with city authorities.

A Reuters reporter at the scene said some demonstrators seemed to be smashing windows at every building they passed.

GENEVA (Reuters) – Flu infections may be peaking in some parts of the northern hemisphere, but are still spreading fast in others, the World Health Organization said on Friday.

In an update on the H1N1 swine flu virus, the WHO said parts of the southern and southeastern United States, as well as Iceland and Ireland, seemed to have weakening levels of disease after an unusually early start of the winter flu season.

But the U.N. agency, which declared a global flu pandemic in June, said that big sections of the United States were still experiencing “widespread and intense” flu infections.

It described waves of outbreaks across Canada and in Mexico, where the first severe cases were identified earlier this year.

By Laura MacInnis GENEVA, Nov 13 (Reuters) – Flu infections may be peaking in some parts of the northern hemisphere, but are still spreading fast in others, the World Health Organisation said on Friday. In an update on the H1N1 swine flu virus, the WHO said parts of the southern and southeastern United States, as well as Iceland and Ireland, seemed to have weakening levels of disease after an unusually early start of the winter flu season. But the U.N. agency, which declared a global flu pandemic in June, said that big sections of the United States were still experiencing "widespread and intense" flu infections. It described waves of outbreaks across Canada and in Mexico, where the first severe cases were identified earlier this year. "In Europe and central Asia, overall influenza transmission continues to intensify," the WHO said, adding that almost all the influenza viruses analysed in Europe in recent weeks have been the H1N1 strain and not seasonal flu. The pandemic virus has now spread to 206 countries, with the latest reported laboratory-confirmed cases in Somalia, Nigeria and Burundi. There have been more than 6,250 deaths to date, mostly in the Americas region, according to the WHO toll. While saying "high to very high intensity of respiratory diseases" have been reported in some parts of Europe including Belarus, Bulgaria and Russia, it said experts were now less concerned about a big outbreak in Ukraine. "The initial analysis of information from Ukraine indicates that the numbers of severe cases do not appear to be excessive when compared to the experience of other countries and do not represent any change in the transmission or virulence of the virus," it said in a statement posted on the WHO website. Ukraine and Belarus have recently extended school breaks due to fears about the pandemic virus while Afghanistan declared a health emergency and ordered its schools shut for three weeks to battle it. [ID:nISL499361] WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl said that school closures were among steps that could slow viral spread at the beginning of an outbreak, but had less usefulness once the flu had reached 5 percent of a given population. "After the virus becomes more widespread in a country, closing schools has less of an impact," he told a news briefing earlier this week. "If you take a decision to close schools and universities and other institutions you have to be aware there are social and economic consequences of this decision." In new guidance also published on Friday, WHO experts said that people planning "mass gatherings" of 1,000 people or more should consult with public health authorities to make sure the events do not amplify the spread of pandemic flu. "The decision to proceed with a mass gathering or to restrict, modify, postpone or cancel the event should be based on a thorough risk assessment," it said in the recommendations published on www.who.int. Guests and participants should also be encouraged to follow the same flu-fighting steps the WHO has widely urged, including to stay home and especially avoid travel when unwell, to clean hands frequently and to cover coughs and sneezes. "Where possible, organisers should consider distancing measures to reduce close contact among people during a mass gathering," it said, suggesting for example that transport be staggered and food and drink stations spread out to avoid unnecessary congregation.