TOP STORIES 
 
NEWMONT MINING, BARRICK GOLD MERGER TALKS BREAK DOWN 

Barrick Gold and Newmont Mining were in advanced talks this week over a deal that would have combined the world's two largest gold producers, according to people familiar with the matter.

 
KEYSTONE XL DECISION LIKELY TO COME AFTER MIDTERM ELECTIONS 
 

The Obama administration is extending its review of the Keystone XL pipeline, citing ongoing litigation in Nebraska over the project's route through the state, according to people familiar with the matter.

 
EASTERN UKRAINE'S PRO-RUSSIAN ACTIVISTS STAND FAST 
 

Pro-Russian activists in eastern Ukraine refused to vacate the government facilities they have occupied, defying a compromise agreement struck a day earlier by international powers, including Russia, that called on them to leave.

 
COMCAST, TWC IN TALKS TO SELL $20B IN ASSETS TO CHARTER 
 

Comcast and Time Warner Cable, seeking to smooth their $45 billion merger deal with regulators, are in early-stage talks with Carter Communications on a possible sale of assets, the Financial Times reported on its website.

 
SOUTH KOREA ARRESTS FERRY CAPTAIN 
 

Authorities arrested the captain of the sunken South Korean ferry, as one of the crew confirmed accounts that the captain, 69-year-old Lee Jun-Seok, was among the first to abandon the sinking ship.

 
OBAMA SIGNS BILL BANNING IRAN U.N. ENVOY FROM U.S. 
 

President Barack Obama signed legislation that effectively bans Iran from sending as its ambassador to the United Nations a diplomat with ties to the 1979 hostage crisis at the American embassy in Tehran.

 
SEARCH FOR MALAYSIA AIRLINES FLIGHT 370 CONTINUES 
 

An underwater search of a remote stretch of southern Indian Ocean seabed for the wreckage of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 continued, with a deep-sea vehicle setting out on its fifth mission after previous sorties proved fruitless.

 
TPG-LED GROUP CLOSES $450 MILLION INVESTMENT IN AIRBNB 
 

A group led by private-equity firm TPG has finalized an agreement to invest $450 million in Airbnb, valuing the home-rental site at $10 billion, according to people familiar with the situation.

 
CALPINE TO SELL POWER PLANTS FOR $1.57 BILLION 
 

Calpine will sell six U.S. power plants in the Southeast and Midwest to LS Power for $1.57 billion in cash, as the company focuses on its electricity sales businesses in Texas, California and mid-Atlantic states.

 
HOME-PRICE RISES SLOW IN CHINA 
 

Growth in residential property prices across large- and medium-size Chinese cities slowed further in March as lending limits and discounts undercut demand, according to analysts and property developers.

 
J.P. MORGAN NAMES ASIAN-PACIFIC VICE CHAIRMAN 
 

The chairman and chief executive in China for J.P. Morgan Chase, Shao Zili, is set to leave those roles and become its vice chairman for the Asian-Pacific region.

 
 
 
 
  ======= DOW JONES NEWSWIRES ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARIES ======= 
 
 
The Wall Street Journal 
SOUTH KOREA ARRESTS FERRY CAPTAIN 
 

Authorities arrested the captain of the sunken South Korean ferry, as one of the crew confirmed accounts that the captain, 69-year-old Lee Jun-Seok, was among the first to abandon the sinking ship.

 
The Wall Street Journal 
FOR APPLE INVESTORS, THE WAITING IS THE HARDEST PART 
 

Apple's stock may be pricing in little more than a decent iPhone upgrade cycle with a free option on something new, such as an iWatch. Not a bad deal--if investors can settle in now, writes Dan Gallagher.