CHINA

Stock index futures advanced on Thursday before data on the labor market, which may provide investors clues about Friday's key payrolls report.

It is the most popular subject on China's Internet that no one is allowed to talk about.

China is well within its rights, legally and morally, to limit rare earth exports, argued an article in Chinese state media on Thursday, days after the World Trade Organization ruled against China on its curbs of raw materials exports.

China may rein in plans to invest heavily in seven new strategic industries, including high speed rail and wind power, scaling back cutting-edge projects for industries suffering from old-fashioned problems such as corruption and overcapacity, sources said.

The euro steadied on Thursday with a widely expected rate hike from the European Central Bank later being offset by a spreading sovereign debt crisis, while China's bank stocks bounced on hopes of a near-term pause in policy tightening.

Is Jiang Zemin dead or alive? No one is sure, but Xinhua News Agency just published a news update saying that they have it on good authority that his death is pure rumor.

China's bank stocks bounced on Thursday on hopes of a near-term pause in policy tightening, keeping regional shares close to a one-month high, while the euro steadied before a widely expected rate hike from the European Central Bank later.

Japan's core machinery orders rose in May at the fastest pace in four months in a sign that capital expenditures will stay firm and support the economic recovery as the country rebuilds from a devastating earthquake and tsunami.

Jiang Zemin: Is he dead or alive?

Speculation and rumors that former Chinese leader Jiang Zemin may have died have led government Internet censors to quash any such discussion of the subject online.

A century ago, it was the explorers and infantrymen of Europe's great powers slugging it out for slices of Africa. Now, it is the agents of Chinese and Brazilian capital, but the competition is just as fierce.

Transportation stocks were among the standouts in another flat session for U.S. equities on Wednesday, and the sector's rally could be cause for optimism ahead.

Stocks bounced off session highs on Wednesday after investors shrugged off a downgrade of Portugal's credit rating and an interest-rate hike in China.

Anish Kapoor's 'Orbit' is being compared to London's Eiffel tower.

Growth in the U.S. economy's vast services sector remained sluggish in June as new orders fell, but economists said a steady employment reading pointed to job growth later in the year.

China raised interest rates for the third time this year on Wednesday, making clear that taming inflation remains a top priority even as the growth pace of its vast economy gently eases.

Amidst a worsening labor dispute in the NBA that threatens the start of the next season, the top player in the game may lead a barnstorming tour of China, the league’s biggest potential market.

Stocks fell slightly on Wednesday after a downgrade of Portugal's credit rating, China's interest rate rise and a soft report on the U.S. services sector sparked jitters about global growth prospects.

The pace of growth in the U.S. economy's services sector remained sluggish in June and new orders fell, but employment held steady last month, according to an industry report released on Wednesday.

As the core of the third generation of Communist Party leaders, and as someone famous for his flamboyant personality, Jiang's absence from CCP's 90th anniversary is unusual. Rumors of his death triggers speculations about the power shifts within the Communist Party as the 2012 leadership transition is drawing closer.

China's central bank increased interest rates for the third time this year on Wednesday, making clear that taming inflation is a top priority even when as the economy slows gently.