CHINA

Nokia was expected to report a loss for this quarter and next as it cuts prices to try to prevent more customers defecting to rivals' smartphones, a Reuters poll found.

China's constant search for natural resources to fuel its burgeoning economy has driven Beijing's helmsmen to the far reaches of Africa, South America and the embattled Middle East.

A proposed UNESCO World Heritage Site is facing threat to its green cover which may also lead to extinction of the Amur tiger with the shrinking habitat in Russia’s Primorsky Province.

The top after-market NASDAQ Stock Market gainers are: Yongye International, Global Sources, Sky-mobi, School Specialty, and Pantry. The top after-market NASDAQ Stock Market losers are: Gladstone Commercial, Diodes, Wi-LAN, SeaChange International, and Pharmasset.

Morgan Stanley and its China partner Huaxin Securities launched their joint venture on Friday, joining several other rivals looking to cash in on the country's booming investment banking business.

French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde takes her campaign to become the IMF head to social networking sites Twitter and Facebook.

Citibank becomes the latest victim in the large-scale corporation hacking trend of 2011.

Christine Lagarde, who has been touring prominent developing nations to solidify her efforts to become the next chief of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), is apparently a shoe-in for the post, according to a rival for the top job.

Cheap and good. It's been a winning formula for Rodger Riney, the founder and chief executive of brokerage Scottrade. And he's not about to change it.

General Motors is considering putting Opel up for sale again as management loses confidence its European arm will return to profitability, two German magazines reported.

The U.S. trade deficit narrowed unexpectedly in April, as U.S. exports rose to a new record and imports from Japan tumbled more than 25 percent in the aftermath of its earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster, a U.S. government report showed on Thursday.

The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment aid unexpectedly edged higher last week, stoking fears of a stalled economic recovery even as a separate report showed record exports in April.

Vietnam has accused Chinese ships of harassing another Vietnamese vessel in the South China Sea.

Nokia said its technology chief was on indefinite leave after a media report of strategy disagreements, and a second credit agency cut its rating in another blow for the stricken phone maker.

China said it hoped the United States will take effective steps to improve its fiscal position, in Beijing's latest expression of concern about the possibility that Washington could briefly default on debt.

Nokia said its chief technology officer had taken a leave of absence and a Finnish newspaper said he was unlikely to return due to disagreements on strategy, a fresh blow for the struggling mobile phone company.

The top candidate to run the International Monetary Fund, French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde, said she backed a bigger say for China at the Fund while making clear that the euro zone crisis would be a priority if she wins the job.

The top after-market NASDAQ Stock Market gainers are: American Superconductor, Solazyme, Sterling Bancshares, Limelight Networks, and Amerco. The top after-market NASDAQ Stock Market losers are: Infinera, Dialogic, CDC Corp., Rovi, and Solta Medical.

The International Monetary Fund on Thursday urged China to allow the yuan rise further to rebalance its vast economy, and called for freer use of the currency in global trade and commerce.

Turkey opened its borders to anxious Syrian refugees Wednesday, keeping its word when Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his country would not close its doors to Syrian refugees.

French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde, a leading contestant of the chief job post for Indian Monetary Fund (IMF) chief post,said on Thursday, that she was very satisfied with her meetings with top Chinese officials.