CHINA

China denounced on Friday a Pentagon report that warned its military modernization could destabilize the region, saying the U.S. military's annual assessment of Beijing's armed forces indulged in exaggeration and groundless suspicion.

Shaanxi Coal Industry plans an initial public offering in Shanghai to raise as much as 17.3 billion yuan ($2.7 billion) in what could be mainland China's biggest IPO this year.

A joint U.S.-China police operation has cracked a Chinese-language child pornography ring in New York, Chinese police said, an unusual public example of cooperation between the countries' law enforcement agencies.

An oil spill by a subsidiary of ConocoPhillips has polluted 5,500 square kilometres of water in China's northern Bohai Bay, China's marine authorities and state media said on Friday, adding the company will have to pay for the spill.

China has ordered banks to include their margin deposits in required reserves at the central bank to mop up excessive liquidity, banking sources said on Friday, the latest move in Beijing's campaign to rein in worrisome inflation.

Volkswagen AG (VOWG_p.DE) plans to sell more than 2 million vehicles this year in China, its single biggest market, it said on Friday after celebrating the 20th anniversary of the founding of a joint venture with China's First Automotive Works (FAW).

China will invest about 1.27 trillion yuan ($199 billion) to build subways and light rail lines during the current five-year plan ending in 2015 to ease traffic congestion and spur urban development, the official China Securities Journal reported on Friday.

China's Lion Fund Management Co will launch next week the country's first mutual fund that invests in overseas oil and gas-related assets, as Chinese money managers step up innovation to woo investors haunted by inflation concerns.

China will publish rules as early as next month to allow offshore yuan to be invested in the mainland's capital markets under a new scheme, the Shanghai Securities News reported on Friday, citing people close to the securities regulator.

China COSCO Holdings said on Friday that vessel seizures during contract disputes are common as it is embroiled in disagreements with several shipowners over payments.

Guinea is in advanced talks with state-owned China Power Investment to develop a bauxite mine and build an alumina refinery, deep water port and a power plant in the West African state, Guinean government sources said.

China Shenhua Energy Co Ltd , the country's largest coal producer, posted a 16.5 percent increase in first-half profit, buoyed by rising sales volume on the back of rising energy demand in the world's second-largest economy.

The booming eastern Chinese province of Zhejiang has ordered a rise in taxi fares in cities and counties with underpriced cabs following a wave of strikes by drivers demanding higher wages, state news agency Xinhua said on Friday.

The people of Tripoli ventured out to mosques on Friday, praying for peace and offering thanks for the fall of Muammar Gaddafi, though the Libyan capital remained locked down and dangerous as rebel fighters hunted the fugitive strongman.

XCMG Construction Machinery Co Ltd (000425.SZ) is slated to start pre-marketing on September 5 for an up to $1.5 billion planned share listing in Hong Kong, IFR reported on Friday.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said on Friday the U.S. economy needed more stimulus to get it moving, putting in a plug for government measures shortly before the White House unveils new proposals to boost job growth.

Vice President Joe Biden said on Friday the U.S. economy needed more stimulus to get it moving, putting in a plug for government intervention shortly before the White House unveils new proposals to boost job growth.

Tiffany & Co raised its full-year profit outlook as more shoppers worldwide bought its jewelry during the bridal season, helping it overcome rising gold and diamond costs and sending its shares up more than 5 percent.

China has ordered banks to include their margin deposits in required reserves at the central bank to mop up excessive liquidity, banking sources said on Friday, the latest move in Beijing's campaign to rein in worrisome inflation.

Irene would truly have to be a catastrophic event to fall into the following list of the costliest natural disasters in recorded history.

This year's heady bout of risk aversion on financial markets has ratcheted up demand for gold, U.S. Treasuries and the Swiss franc to levels that suggest they may no longer be the safe havens they are billed as.