Some of the more interesting and important items for April 17th :

• Earthquake Rocks Queensland, Aftershock Hits N.Z.’s Christchurch – Bloomberg – Australia’s Queensland state, hit by floods and a cyclone in recent months, was struck by a magnitude 5.2 earthquake as an aftershock rattled Christchurch in New Zealand, the scene of two temblors since September.
• Founders of top Web poker sites indicted – MarketWatch – SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Federal authorities unsealed an indictment Friday against founders of the three largest Internet poker companies operating in the United States, alleging they tricked banks into processing billions of dollars in illegal gambling revenue.
• Is Twitter worth $10 billion? John Dvorak’s Second Opinion – MarketWatch – BERKELEY, Calif. (MarketWatch) — There has been a slew of rumors that Twitter Inc. turned down a $10 billion offer from Google Inc. to acquire the microblogging site. Among the rationales for the high valuation is that Twitter, like Facebook Inc., is an important social-networking tool.
• China Raises Bank Reserve Ratio for Fourth Time in 2011 to Curb Inflation – Bloomberg – China raised banks’ reserve requirements to lock up cash and limit inflation after economic growth exceeded forecasts and consumer prices rose by the most since 2008.
• Dubai DFM Index Rises 21% From March Low, Enters Bull Market, Led By Emaar – Bloomberg – Dubai stocks rose to the highest since January, entering a so-called bull market, as investors bet quarterly earnings would beat estimates. Kuwait shares fell after Al-Rai reported that the chairman of Kharafi Group died.
• Finance Chiefs at IMF Split Over Forces Behind Capital Flows – Bloomberg – Global finance chiefs split over which policies are most to blame for propelling potentially risky capital flows into emerging markets, with both sides pushing the International Monetary Fund to adjudicate.
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