Austin American-Statesman from Austin, Texas • B8

B8 AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN I WEDNESDAY, JUNE 11, 2014 ECONOMY VIDEOGAMES Nintendo unveils game toy line World Bank says crrrxwrtYi rata clinc French TV reporters look Tuesday at "amiibo" characters for the Wii at the Nintendo booth during the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, jaec. hong associated press Forecast for global expansion cut on U.S. winter, Ukraine. Associated Press WASHINGTON The World Bank downgraded its forecast for the global economy this year, citing a bitter American winter and the political crisis in Ukraine. In an outlook released Tuesday, the bank still expects the world economy to grow faster 2.8 percent this year versus 2.4 percent in 2013.

But its new estimate is weaker than the 3.2 percent expansion it had predicted in January. The U.S. economy -by far the world's largest shrank at an annual rate of 1 percent from January to March, chilled by an unusually nasty winter. The political crisis in Ukraine dragged growth in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Together, those factors will "delay the recovery we talked about in January but not derail it," World Bank economist Andrew Burns told reporters.

Helped by super-low interest rates, the world's wealthiest countries will expand 1.9 percent this year, up from 1.3 percent in 2013. In developing countries, growth is expected to stay flat at 4.8 percent. In its twice-yearly Global Economics Pros pects report, the World Bank estimates that the 18 European countries that use the euro currency will grow 1.1 percent collectively this year after shrinking in 2012 and 2013. It sees the U.S. economy recovering from the weak first quarter and growing 2.1 percent this year, up from 1.9 percent in 2013.

World growth is accelerating as the United States and Europe regain strength. Overall, the global economy is expected to expand 3.4 percent next year and 3.5 percent in 2016. The rate of economic growth has stalled in China and other developing countries that had bounced back quickly from the financial crisis of 2008-2009. China's economy is expected to decelerate steadily, from 7.7 percent growth last year to 7.6 percent this year to 7.5 percent in 2015. In China, the slowdown is partly deliberate.

Authorities are trying to manage a transition from rapid growth based on exports and investment in real estate, factories and infrastructure to slower but more stable growth based on spending by Chinese consumers. But the Chinese slowdown has pinched other developing countries that provide the world's second-biggest economy with raw materials. ery figure," said Fils-Aime. "Any Wii system will recognize the figure by touching them on the Wii GamePad, and when that happens, they spring to life in compatible games in cool new ways." The first lineup of "amiibo" figures, due out later this year, features 10 characters from well-known Nintendo franchises: the Villager from "Animal the "Wii Fit" trainer; sword-wielding Link from "The Legend of intergalactic sol-ider Samus Aran from Pikachu from iconic gorilla Donkey Kong; pink shape-shifter Kirby; and Mario, Princess Peach and Yoshi from "Super Mario Bros." The company said the figures would be com patible with the upcoming Wii fighting game "Super Smash Bros." and would eventually work with other games, including the recently released racing title "Mario Kart 8" and the forthcoming platformers "Yoshi's Woolly World" and "Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker." Bill Trinen, senior product marketing manager of Nintendo of America, said the company was working on a peripheral reader scheduled for release next year that would connect the figures to its hand-held Nintendo 3DS system. "Combining 'amiibo' with our games opens up a whole range of potential new gameplay experiences," Trinen said.

"It's one of the most exciting things that Nintendo is announcing at E3." 'Amiibo' figures will interact via Wii in game scenarios. Associated Press LOS ANGELES Nintendo is taking a cue from "Sky-landers" and "Disney Infinity." The Japanese gaming giant unveiled a toy figure line called "amiibo" that will work in tandem with its video games like the toys-meet-games franchises from Activi-sion Blizzard Inc. and the Walt Disney Co. The announcement was made in an online video released Tuesday during the Electronic Entertainment Expo, the industry's annual trade show. "We see 'amiibo' as a brand-new platform for us," said Reggie Fils-Aime, president of Nintendo of America, on the E3 show floor Tuesday morning.

"We use the term 'platform' specifically. Today, it's figures. In the future, it could be other things that tie into the near-field communication technology built right into the GamePad." Similar to Activision's "Skylanders" and "Disney Infinity," the characters' virtual histories will be stored on the plastic figures and transmitted through the Wii Game-Pad, the controller for its slow-selling Wii console that features a touchscreen and NFC capabilities. "There's a special chip that's embedded in ev Network continued from B7 reality shows in Central Texas, as well. A number of Rodriguez's films have been at least partially shot or produced in Austin in recent years, including "Machete" and "Spy Kids." The Texas Film Commission, part of the governor's office, took some criticism and was the subject of a lawsuit after allegedly promising, then later denying, incentives for "Machete." Tuesday's announcement represents an estimated $1.5 billion investment over the next decade, El Rey said.

"As a filmmaker and founder of El Rey network, I can't imagine a more iconic and inspiring location for our production headquarters or for the filming of our upcoming projects," Rodriguez said in a written statement. Even before the announcement, some of El Rey's offerings were already being produced in the Austin area, including "From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series," which debuted in March during the South by Southwest festival and has already been picked up for a sec- Jobs continued from B7 ly lower-paying jobs. Still, the professional and business services category, which includes higher-paying jobs such as accountants and engineers, also posted a big jump. There are now an average 2.2 unemployed people for each available job. That's down from a peak of 6.7 in July 2009 just after the recession ended and close to the 2-to-l ratio that is typical of a healthy economy.

Tuesday's report, known as the Job Openings and Labor Turnover survey, offers a more complete picture of the job market. It reports figures for overall hiring, as well as the number of quits and layoffs. The monthly jobs figures are a net total of job gains or losses. The additional data illustrates turnover in the job market. Stronger job For the second year in a row, Nintendo opted against hosting a flashy E3 presentation in Los Angeles and instead streamed videos showcasing the "amiibo" figures and other upcoming games.

"For us, what we want to do is find great ways to tell our stories," said Fils-Aime. "So much of our content is created by our Japanese developers. We wanted to make sure we could provide consumers a full back story." Nintendo hyped several upcoming games due out later this year for the Wii and 3DS, including "The Legend of Zelda" battle game "Hyrule Warriors," hack-and-slash sequel "Bayonetta 2" and the "Omega Ruby" and "Alpha Sapphire" installments of the "Pokemon" series. Gov. Rick Perry.

"El Rey is an important part of our burgeoning television production community, helping build our long-term industry infrastructure and making Texas even more competitive for jobs in movies and television," Perry said. Combined, Austin's creative sector including TV and film productions has a $4.35 billion economic impact on the city, Leffin- and hiring. Employers added 217,000 jobs in May and 282,000 in April, the Labor Department said Friday. The 6.3 percent unemployment rate and continued job growth should lead to more robust growth. The forecasting firm Macroeconomic Advisers estimates that the U.S.

economy will grow at annual clip of 3.9 percent in the April-July quarter and 2.4 percent over the course of the entire year. Actor Zane Holtz attracts the attention of Eiza Gonzalez in "From Dusk Till Dawn: The show, produced in the Austin area, has been picked up for a second season on the El Rey network. The network plans to shoot several upcoming films, TV series and reality shows in Central Texas, photos contributed by el rey network Filmmaker Robert Rodriguez launched El Rey in December. Available in about 40 million U.S. homes, the network will set up its production headquarters and corporate offices at his Troublemaker Studios in East Austin.

Network, which is based near the University of Texas campus. Contact Gary Dinges at 512- 912-5987. Twitter: gdinges gwell said, pointing to a recent study. That figure includes contributions from another national cable channel with its headquarters in Austin, ESPN's Longhorn BBVA Compass emplifies our creative base of talent," Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell said. "We're pleased that the network has chosen Austin, which speaks volumes about our filmmaking environment." The city offered no financial incentives to entice El Rey to locate here, city spokeswoman Melissa Alvarado told the American-Statesman.

Neither did the state, according to Rich Parsons, a spokesman for Texas Wholesale continued from B7 manufacturing and retail levels. The economy shrank in the January-March quarter due largely to the cold winter. Gross domestic product fell 1 percent in the first three months of 2013. Most economists expect the economy to accelerate over the coming months, as warmer weather fuels increased auto buying InjiTti FIRST FIDELITY Hill ond season. El Rey (Spanish for "the specializes in English-language programming targeting men ages 18 to 49, a demographic popular with many advertisers.

City and state leaders applauded Rodriguez's decision to base the network in Austin. "Austin is home to creative, talented people who do pioneering, game-changing work, and Robert Rodriguez ex markets usually include a greater amount of churn, with more people quitting and greater overall hiring. In April, the number of people who quit or were laid off barely rose. More quitting can be a sign of confidence in the economy, since most workers quit only when they have another job or are confident they can get one. Quitting also opens up more jobs for the unemployed to seek.

Tuesday's figures show that employers and workers are still relatively cautious. The number of people quitting has been rising slowly but is still below pre-recession levels. Janet Yellen, chair of the Federal Reserve, has said the central bank monitors the job openings, quits and hiring figures as key indicators of the job market's health. The figures help the Fed decide how to manage short-term interest rates and other efforts to foster financial stability. 1 1C 18 month In today's environment, a competitive rate is hard to find.

Until now. 1-800-COMPASS bbvacompass.com ron banking built for you. 1 JJapv Accounts subject to approval. $500 minimum opening deposit required to earn the advertised Annual Percentage Yield (APY). APY accurate as of 582014.

Rates are subject to change. Substantial penalty for early withdrawal. Fees could reduce earnings on accounts. Other limitations may apply. See branch for details.

BBVA Compass opens CD accounts that have no certificate known as Time Deposits or TDs. CDs are FDIC insured up to applicable limits. BBVA Compass is a trade name of Compass Bank, a member of the BBVA Group. Compass Bank, Member FDIC..