Games top App Store revenue in 2012

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One Direction, Rihanna, Adele lead Billboard 2012 charts

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Newcomer British boy band One Direction joined R&B diva Rihanna and British singer Adele to top Billboard‘s year-end music charts, released on Friday.

One Direction, who topped the Billboard 200 album chart twice this year with their debut, “Up All Night” in March and their sophomore album “Take Me Home” in November, were named Billboard‘s top new artist/group, rounding off a stellar year of U.S. success for the band.

Adele, 24, who became the first woman top score No. 1 single, album and artist on Billboard’s 2011 year-end charts, continued her reign in 2012, when her Grammy-winning record “21″ was the top-selling album in the U.S. and she was once again named artist of the year.

“21″ has sold more than 10 million copies in the U.S. since its release in February 2011, becoming a fixture on the Billboard 200, especially after Adele’s six wins at the Grammy Awards earlier this year.

She is the only act to be named both top artist and have the top album in Billboard’s charts for two years in a row.

Adele was also named the No. 1 female artist while R&B rapper-singer Drake was named No. 1 male artist and pop-rock band Maroon 5 were named No. 1 group.

Rihanna, also 24, was named the top Hot 100 artist after a year of chart-topping hit singles such as “We Found Love” and “Diamonds” on the Hot 100 chart, which measures top-selling singles each week.

But Australia’s Gotye picked up the Hot 100 single of the year, with his heartbreak hit “Somebody That I Used To Know.”

Billboard compile their end-of-year lists based on chart performances between December 3 2011 and November 24 2012, tallying data including album sales and streaming figures.

For more on Billboard’s year-end charts, visit http://www.billboard.com/news/the-best-of-2012-the-year-in-music-1008045682.story#

(Reporting By Piya Sinha-Roy, editing by Jill Serjeant and Andrew Hay)

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Venezuela furious at Obama’s comments on ailing Chavez

CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuela‘s government reacted with fury on Friday to U.S. President Barack Obama‘s criticism of ailing Hugo Chavez‘s “authoritarian” government at a time of national anxiety over his battle to recover from cancer surgery.

In an interview with U.S. network Univision, Obama declined to speculate on the 58-year-old socialist president’s health in Cuba, where he is in a delicate state after his fourth operation since mid-2011 for cancer in his pelvic region.

But he did say U.S. policy was aimed at ensuring “freedom” in Venezuela. “The most important thing is to remember that the future of Venezuela should be in the hands of the Venezuelan people. We’ve seen from Chavez in the past authoritarian policies, suppression of dissent,” Obama said.

Those remarks went down badly with officials in Caracas where emotions are running high over the future of Chavez and his self-styled revolution in the South American OPEC nation.

In power since 1999, Chavez is due to start a new six-year term on January 10 after winning re-election just weeks before Obama did. His health crisis has thrown that into doubt, and Chavez has named a successor in case he is incapacitated.

“With these despicable comments at such a delicate moment for Venezuela, the U.S. president is responsible for a major deterioration in bilateral relations, proving the continuity of his policy of aggression and disrespect towards our country,” the Venezuelan government said in a statement.

‘SLOW’ RECOVERY, BUT SPEAKING

During his tumultuous rule, Chavez has gleefully assumed former Cuban leader Fidel Castro’s mantle as Washington’s main irritant in the region – though oil has continued to flow freely north to the benefit of both nations’ economies.

Adored by poor supporters for his charismatic style and channeling of oil revenue into a wide array of welfare projects, Chavez is regarded as a dictator by opponents who point to his often harsh treatment of political foes.

Officials said doctors had to use “corrective measures” on Chavez to stop unexpected bleeding caused during Tuesday’s six-hour operation, but that his condition had since improved.

“The patient is fulfilling his post-operation protocol satisfactorily, given the complexity of the surgery,” the latest Venezuelan government statement on his condition said. “Recovery has been slow but progressive,” it added, saying Chavez had communicated with relatives and sent greetings to Venezuelans.

Amid rumors Chavez had been unconscious since his operation, presidential press officer Teresa Maniglia indicated he had spoken for the first time on Friday. “‘How are my people?’ was the first thing Chavez said today when he spoke with his family for the first time,” she said via Twitter.

Chavez’s situation is being closely tracked around the region, especially among fellow leftist-run nations from Cuba to Bolivia which depend on his generous oil subsidies and other aid for their fragile economies.

“The president is battling hard – this time for his life, before it was for the Latin American fatherland,” said President Evo Morales of Bolivia, a Chavez friend and ally who announced he was flying to Havana overnight for an “emergency” visit.

“This is very painful for us.”

SPECULATION

Venezuela’s leader has not divulged details of the cancer that was first diagnosed in June 2011, sparking endless speculation among the country’s 29 million people and criticism from opposition leaders for lack of transparency.

“They’re hiding something, I think,” said 57-year-old housewife Alicia Marquina. “I’m not convinced by the announcements they’re making. I’m not a ‘chavista’, but neither am I cruel. I hope he does not suffer much and finds peace.”

If Chavez has to leave office, new elections must be held within 30 days. Chavez has named his vice president, Nicolas Maduro, a 50-year-old former bus driver and union leader, as his heir apparent.

Opposition flagbearer Henrique Capriles, who lost the presidential race against Chavez in October, is the favorite to face Maduro should a new vote be held, though first the governor of Miranda state must retain his post in local elections on Sunday.

“The regime change is already occurring,” Jefferies’ & Co. managing director Siobhan Morden said in one of numerous Wall Street analyses of events in Venezuela. “The question is whether the alternative is Chavista-light or the opposition.”

Even if he dies, Chavez is likely to cast a long shadow over Venezuela’s political landscape for years – not unlike Argentine leader Juan Peron, whose 1950s populism is still the ideological foundation of the country’s dominant political party.

There are parallels with the situation in Cuba too, where Chavez’s close friend and mentor, Fidel Castro, suffered a health downturn, underwent various operations in secret, then eventually handed over power to his brother Raul Castro.

(Additional reporting by Mario Naranjo and Eyanir Chinea in Caracas, Carlos Quiroga in La Paz; Editing by Paul Simao)

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Euro factory output pain eases

14 December 2012 Last updated at 05:43 ET

Markit’s senior economist Rob Dobson: “There’s some sign of light at the end of the tunnel”

The decline in the eurozone’s manufacturing sector has eased, a closely watched survey indicates, in a rare spot of good news for the region.

Markit’s eurozone manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index rose to 46.3 in December from 46.2 in November. A reading below 50 indicates contraction.

The research firm said the rate of decline in manufacturing “showed signs of moderating”.

But the service sector dropped to its weakest levels since July.

Including services and manufacturing, the eurozone PMI composite output index was at 47.3, up from 46.5 in November.

Return to growth?

“The eurozone downturn showed further signs of easing in December, adding to hopes that the outlook for next year is brightening,” said Chris Williamson, chief economist at Markit.

“A return to growth is looking like an increasing possibility in the first half of next year, barring any surprises, if the recent improvements in the survey data can be sustained. The turnaround is being led by Germany.”

Total output from Germany rose for the first time in eight months “though the increase was only very modest as an upturn in the service sector was offset by a faster decline in manufacturing production”, the survey said.

Output fell for the 10th month in a row in France. Earlier on Friday, Fitch kept the French government’s top AAA credit rating, making it the only major ratings agency left to say the country deserves to be among the world’s most creditworthy borrowers.

In the eurozone, only Germany still has an AAA rating from all three major ratings agencies.

Markit said that eurozone confidence remained lower than at any time since before the 2008-09 financial crisis.

Separately, a survey showed China’s huge manufacturing sector expanded in December at its fastest pace in 14 months as new orders and employment rose,

The HSBC PMI for December rose to 50.9, the highest level since October 2011. It was the fifth straight month of gains.

BBC News – Business

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UPDATE 3-Cricket-Hughes shines as Australia reach 299-4

* Hughes falls just short of century

* Clarke and Hussey combine for 101

* Welegedera takes 3-99 (Adds quotes)

HOBART, Dec 14 (Reuters) – Phil Hughes made a solid 86 on his return to test cricket before Michael Clarke and Mike Hussey took up the running and steered Australia to 299 for four at close of play on the first day of the first test against Sri Lanka on Friday.

Hughes was the only batsmen to fall in the final session, lasting only a couple of overs after lunch before being bowled through the gate by Chanaka Welegedera, giving the Sri Lankan seamer his third wicket of the day.

Clarke, who had made 70 not out, and Hussey, unbeaten on 37, batted through the remainder of the day and if the evidence of their prolific partnerships in the recent series against South Africa is anything to go by, will take some shifting.

“Overall, 299 for four puts the ball in our court,” said Hughes. “I thought we were outstanding today. It really gives us momentum going into tomorrow.”

Sri Lanka’s bowlers, dubbed this week as the worst pace attack ever to tour Australia by former test bowler Rodney Hogg, made life uncomfortable for the batsmen at times but struggled for any real penetration under cloudy skies at Bellerive Oval.

“I think we showed we can put Australia under pressure and hopefully the bowlers will be fresh in the morning and we can get them out for less than 100 additional runs,” said Welegedera, who finished with 3-99 on his return after nine months out injured.

Clarke, who passed 1,400 runs for the year, has now put on 731 runs in partnerships with Hussey in the last four tests and will be looking to plunder a few more on Saturday despite taking a couple of painful knocks to his legs.

Friday, however, belonged to Hughes.

The lefthander was recalled to the side on the back of good domestic form following the retirement of Ricky Ponting at the end of the series against the Proteas.

The 24-year-old reached his fourth test half century with a square drive for three runs and then initially accelerated towards a century, most notably with an ugly but effective slog for six off spinner Rangana Herath.

CALAMITOUS RUNOUT

On the ground where his second spell as a test batsman ended amid questions about his technique after two failures against New Zealand last year, Hughes scored eight fours and one six in his 166-ball knock before Welegedera struck with a superb ball.

“It was nice to get a few,” he said. “It would have been nice to get a few more and get into three figures.”

Australia had lost openers Ed Cowan (four) and David Warner in the opening session, the latter run out for 57 on the stroke of lunch after a calamitous misunderstanding with Hughes.

Shane Watson, dropping down to fourth in the batting order to allow Hughes to come in at number three, followed them to the pavilion for 30 shortly before tea, the victim of an exceptional diving catch in the slips by skipper Mahela Jayawardene.

That was a second wicket for Welegedera and a measure of redemption for the bowler after he had Hughes caught behind for 77 only for the umpire to call a no ball.

Welegedera had also made the early breakthrough for the tourists when Cowan tried to pull a short delivery only for the ball to catch him high on the bat and carry to mid-on where Shaminda Eranga took a simple catch.

It could have been even better for the Sri Lankans, who were only centimetres away from the perfect start to the morning after Clarke had won the toss and elected to bat.

Cowan edged the second delivery of the day from Nuwan Kulasekara to the slips but Angelo Mathews was just unable to get his hands to it, despite an athletic dive. (Editing by Peter Rutherford)

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U.S. drops China’s Taobao website from “notorious” list

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States on Thursday dropped a website owned by China‘s largest e-commerce company, Alibaba Group, from its annual list of the world’s most “notorious markets” for sales of pirated and counterfeit goods.

Taobao Marketplace, an online shopping site similar to eBay and Amazon that brings together buyers and sellers, “has been removed from the 2012 List because it has undertaken notable efforts over the past year to work with rightholders directly or through their industry associations to clean up its site,” the U.S. Trade Representative‘s office said in the report.

The move came just before an annual high-level U.S.-China trade meeting next week in Washington.

Taobao Marketplace is China’s largest consumer-oriented e-commerce platform, with estimated market share of more than 70 percent. The website has nearly 500 million registered users, with more than 800 million product listings at any given time. Most of the users are in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macao.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has called Taobao “one of the single largest online sources of counterfeits.”

The Chinese Commerce Ministry strongly objected to Taobao’s inclusion on the USTR’s 2011 notorious markets list. A ministry spokesman said it did not appear to be based on any “conclusive evidence or detailed analysis.

Alibaba hired former USTR General Counsel James Mendenhall to help persuade USTR to remove Taobao from its list.

The Chinese company’s bid to shed its “notorious” label won support from the Motion Picture Association of America, a former critic of Taobao, which praised its effort to reduce the availability of counterfeit goods on its website.

But U.S. software, clothing and shoe manufacturers urged USTR to keep Taobao on the list.

To stay off in the future, USTR urged “Taobao to further streamline procedures … for taking down listings of counterfeit and pirated goods and to continue its efforts to work with and achieve a satisfactory outcome with U.S. rights holders and industry associations.”

USTR said it also removed Chinese website Sogou from the notorious markets list, based on reports that it has made “notable efforts to work with rights holders to address the availability of infringing content on its site.”

U.S. concerns about widespread piracy and counterfeiting of American goods in China are expected to be high on the agenda at next week’s meeting in Washington of the U.S.-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade.

The 2012 notorious markets list includes Xunlei, which USTR described as a Chinese-based site that facilitates the downloading and distribution of pirated movies.

Baixe de Tudo, a website hosted in Sweden but targeted at the Brazilian market, was also put on the list along with the Chinese website Gougou.

Warez-bb, which USTR described as a hub for pre-release music, software and video games, was also included. The forum site is registered in Sweden but hosted by a Russian Internet service provider, USTR said.

The full report can be found on USTR’s website at: http://www.ustr.gov/sites/default/files/121312%20Notorious%20Markets%20List.pdf

(Reporting by Doug Palmer; Editing by Will Dunham, Dan Grebler and Jim Marshall)

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Sitar maker: Ravi Shankar’s legacy inspires others

NEW DELHI (AP) — The walls of Sanjay Sharma‘s music shop are lined with gleaming string instruments and old photographs of legendary musicians.

Beatles George Harrison, John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Indian classicial musicians Zakir Hussain, Shiv Kumar Sharma and Vishwamohan Bhatt. And the man who brought these two very different musical worlds together: Ravi Shankar.

Like his grandfather and father before him, Sharma built, tuned and repaired instruments for the sitar virtuoso, who introduced Westerners to Indian classical music, and through his friendship with Harrison became a mainstay of the 1960s counterculture scene.

From his tiny shop tucked into the crowded lanes of central Delhi’s Bhagat Singh market, Sharma traveled the world with Shankar. Late in the maestro’s life, as his health and strength flagged, he even designed a smaller version of the instrument that allowed him to keep playing.

Shankar, who died Tuesday at age 92, was “a saint, an emperor and lord of music,” Sharma says in a tribute posted to the website of his sought-after shop, Rikhi Ram’s Music.

“When I opened my eyes there was him,” says Sharma, 44, surrounded by display cases full of sitars, sarangis (a stringed instrument played with a violin-like bow), guitars, tabla drums and sarods, a deeply resonating instrument played by plucking the strings.

Shankar “was music and music was him,” he says.

Sharma’s grandfather started the business in 1920 in the northern city of Lahore, now in Pakistan. He met a young Ravi Shankar at a concert there in the 1940s. Following the India-Pakistan partition and the relocation of the shop to New Delhi, the family began making sitars for Shankar in the 1950s.

By then, the musician was already famous in India and beginning to collaborate with some of the greats of Western music, including violinist Yehudi Menuhin and jazz saxophonist John Coltrane.

The Beatles visited in 1966 and bought instruments, memorialized in some of the many photographs that line the shop’s walls. Another shows Shankar’s daughter and the heir of his sitar legacy, Anoushka Shankar. But there is no picture of another Shankar daughter, American singer Norah Jones, who was estranged from her father.

Sharma’s own father succeeded his grandfather as the supplier of Shankar’s sitars. And then Sharma himself in the 1980s.

The bedroom-sized shop has two counters, one for conducting business and one for working on instruments under the beam of a large work lamp. Wood shavings and dust cover the floor of a workshop at the back.

As he chatted with visiting Associated Press journalists on Thursday, Sharma worked on a sitar, peering through his glasses as he used a mallet to hammer in a new fret. He plucked the strings, and as the sound resonated around the room, he leaned close in to the instrument and listened intently to the vibrations. Satisfied with the results, he moved on to the next fret.

It takes 15 months for a sitar to be ready for use. The actual crafting of the instrument from red cedar and hollowed-out, dried pumpkins takes three months. Then, it is left untouched to go through what is called “Delhi seasoning,” in which the extremes of New Delhi’s climate — blistering summer, followed by a brief monsoon, and a near-freezing, three-month winter — work their magic.

In 2005, a serious bout of pneumonia left Shankar with a frozen left shoulder.

“He was growing old and he wanted to experiment and change the instrument” so he could continue playing, Sharma says.

Sharma, a large, balding man, created what he calls the “studio sitar,” a smaller version of the instrument. But holding it was still difficult. So Sharma went to a Home Depot near Shankar’s San Diego, California-area home and bought some supplies to build a detachable stand.

The musician was thrilled. Sharma says Shankar told him, “Your father was a brilliant sitar maker, but you are a genius.”

Shankar was performing in public until a month before his death. Despite ill health, he appeared re-energized by the music, Sharma said.

Now, as Sharma mourns the giant of Indian music, he also worries about the future of the art itself. He sees traditional Indian instruments gradually losing their place in their own country to zippy, electronic Bollywood music.

“We are losing the originality and the core of our Indian music,” says Shankar, himself a trained Hindustani classical musician who plays the sitar and tabla, the Indian pair-drums.

At the same time, Shankar’s work as a global ambassador of music has borne fruit, Sharma says: “Because the music has gone to the West, we’re getting lots of new musical aspirants from the Western countries.”

When jazz artist Herbie Hancock was in New Delhi a few years ago, he stopped by Sharma’s shop to buy a sitar.

And in one of the shop’s display windows gleams a newly crafted sitar made of teak.

“That,” Sharma said, “is for Bill Gates.”

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China, S.Africa suspend Brazil beef over BSE doubt

BRASILIA (Reuters) – China and South Africa informed Brazil on Thursday that they were suspending imports of beef from the world’s biggest exporter of the meat following a case of atypical BSE that was confirmed last week, Brazilian agriculture ministry officials said.

Including Japan, which suspended imports on Monday, three countries have now restricted purchases of beef from Brazil while seeking details about the death of an elderly cow in 2010 which never actually developed the disease.

None of these countries are significant buyers of Brazilian beef. Brazil’s top customer, Russia, has so far imposed no such restrictions, though it said on Thursday that it was weighing its options.

Brazil has launched a diplomatic offensive to clarify the details of the case of suspected atypical BSE, which it has been at pains to differentiate from regular BSE – known as mad cow disease – which is usually caused by contaminated feed.

Atypical BSE can arise in elderly cattle due to a spontaneous genetic mutation that causes it to begin producing distorted proteins known as prions. The proteins can trigger BSE, which eventually destroys the animal’s nervous system, and it is believed humans ingesting beef from a stricken animal can contract a fatal form of the disease.

The 13-year-old cow in southern Brazil tested positive for prions, a result confirmed by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) last week. But it died of other causes in 2010 and never actually developed the disease.

The animal was buried on the farm where it had been used for breeding purposes and never entered the food chain.

Outbreaks of mad cow disease in Europe, North America and Japan in the past decade, following an epidemic in Great Britain in the late 1980s, prompted some importers to embargo shipments and roiled the industry on several occasions.

In April, the United States reported a case of atypical BSE in an animal which never entered the food chain, but the country escaped a backlash from importers.

The Brazilian agriculture ministry’s secretary for animal and plant health, Enio Pereira, told Reuters this week that much of the two-year delay between the cow’s death and confirmation of prions in its tissue was caused by a logistical anomaly at the laboratory.

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HMRC warns 300,000 late filers

13 December 2012 Last updated at 19:06 ET

About 300,000 people who have failed to send in their tax returns for 2010-11 could soon see their goods seized.

The taxman is sending warning letters to those who have now run up late-filing penalties of £1,300 for that year, under self-assessment.

They can still pay, or ask for the penalty to be taken off their income in 2013-14 if they are in the PAYE system.

The letters are part of a continuing campaign against a persistent minority of non-filers.

A spokesman for HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) said the defaulters could still pay their fines, and submit the late tax returns.

“These non-filers have ignored numerous communications from HMRC, dating back to April 2011, including flyers, reminder letters, penalty notices and warning letters,” he said.

“A customer can still phone us if they think they should not be in self-assessment, and will be taken through a number of questions to indicate if they should be in self-assessment or not.

“If they shouldn’t have been in it for 2010-11, penalties will then be waived,” he added.

About 7,000 higher-rate taxpayers who had missed tax returns from earlier years were sent similar warning letters in October.

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Aides: Chavez in tough fight, may miss swearing-in

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Somber confidants of President Hugo Chavez say he is going through a difficult recovery after cancer surgery in Cuba, and one close ally is warning Venezuelans that their leader may not make it back for his swearing-in next month.

Information Minister Ernesto Villegas said Wednesday night that Chavez was in “stable condition” and was with close relatives in Havana. Reading a statement, he said the government invites people to “accompany President Chavez in this new test with their prayers.”

Villegas expressed hope about the president returning home for his Jan. 10 swearing-in for a new six-year term, but said in a written message on a government website that if Chavez doesn’t make it, “our people should be prepared to understand it.”

Villegas said it would be irresponsible to hide news about the “delicateness of the current moment and the days to come.” He asked Venezuelans to see Chavez’s condition as “when we have a sick father, in a delicate situation after four surgeries in a year and a half.”

Moving to prepare the public for the possibility of more bad news, Vice President Nicolas Maduro looked grim when he acknowledged that Chavez faced a “complex and hard” process after his latest surgery.

At the same time, officials sought to show a united front amid the growing worries about Chavez’s health and Venezuela’s future. Key leaders of Chavez’s party and military officers appeared together on television as Maduro gave updates on Chavez’s condition.

“We’re more united than ever,” said Maduro, who was flanked by National Assembly President Diosdado Cabello and Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez, both key members of Chavez’s inner circle. “We’re united in loyalty to Chavez.”

Analysts say Maduro could eventually face challenges in trying to hold together the president’s diverse “Chavismo” movement, which includes groups from radical leftists to moderates, as well as military factions.

Tapped by the 58-year-old president over the weekend as his chosen political heir, Maduro is considered to be a member of radical left wing of Chavez’s movement that is closely aligned with Cuba’s communist government.

Cabello, a former military officer who also wields power within Chavez’s movement, shared the spotlight with Maduro by speaking at a Mass for Chavez’s health at a military base.

Just returned from being with Chavez for the operation, Cabello called the president “invincible” but said “that man who is in Havana … is fighting a battle for his life.”

After Chavez’s six-hour operation Tuesday, Venezuelan television broadcast religious services where people prayed for Chavez, interspersed with campaign rallies for upcoming gubernatorial elections.

On the streets of Caracas, people on both sides of the country’s deep political divide voiced concerns about Chavez’s condition and what might happen if he died.

At campaign rallies ahead of Sunday’s gubernatorial elections, Chavez’s candidates urged Venezuelans to vote for pro-government candidates while they also called for the president to get well.

“Onward, Commander!” gubernatorial candidate Elias Jaua shouted to a crowd of supporters at a rally Wednesday. Many observers said it was likely Chavez’s candidates could get a boost from their supporters’ outpouring of sympathy for Chavez.

Opposition leader Henrique Capriles, who lost to Chavez in the October presidential election and is running against Jaua, complained Wednesday that Chavez’s allies are taking advantage of the president’s health problems to try to rally support. He took issue with Jaua’s statement to supporters that “we have to vote so that the president recovers.”

Maduro looked sad as he spoke on television, his voice hoarse and cracked at times after meeting in the pre-dawn hours with Cabello and Ramirez. The pair returned to Venezuela about 3 a.m. after accompanying Chavez to Cuba for his surgery.

“It was a complex, difficult, delicate operation,” Maduro said. “The post-operative process is also going to be a complex and hard process.”

Without giving details, Maduro reiterated Chavez’s recent remarks that the surgery presented risks and that people should be prepared for any “difficult scenarios.”

The constitution says presidents should be sworn in before the National Assembly, and if that’s not possible then before the Supreme Court.

Former Supreme Court magistrate Roman Duque Corredor said a president cannot delegate the swearing-in to anyone else and cannot take the oath of office outside Venezuela. A president could still be sworn in even if temporarily incapacitated, but would need to be conscious and in Venezuela, Duque told The Associated Press.

If a president-elect is declared incapacitated by lawmakers and is unable to be sworn in, the National Assembly president would temporarily take charge of the government and a new presidential vote must be held within 30 days, Duque said.

Chavez said Saturday that if an election had to be held, Maduro should be elected president.

The dramatic events of this week, with Chavez suddenly taking a turn for the worse, had some Venezuelans wondering whether they were being told the truth because just a few months ago the president was running for his fourth presidential term and had said he was free of cancer.

Lawyer Maria Alicia Altuve, who was out in bustling crowds in a shopping district of downtown Caracas, said it seemed odd how Maduro wept at a political rally while talking about Chavez.

“He cries on television to set up a drama, so that people go vote for poor Chavez,” Altuve said. “So we don’t know if this illness is for that, or if it’s that this man is truly sick.”

Some Chavez supporters said they found it hard to think about losing the president and worried about the future. His admirers held prayer vigils in Caracas and other cities this week, holding pictures and singing hymns.

Chavez has undergone four cancer-related surgeries since June 2011. He has also undergone months of chemotherapy and radiation treatments. Throughout his treatments, Chavez has kept secret some details of his illness, including the exact location and type of the tumors.

Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa wished his close ally the best, while also acknowledging the possibility that cancer might end his presidency. “Chavez is very important for Latin America, but if he can’t continue at the head of Venezuela, the processes of change have to continue,” Correa said at a news conference in Quito.

___

Associated Press writer Christopher Toothaker contributed to this report.

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