CHINA

Data showed on Monday the Chinese trade surplus narrowed in December, easing the conflict between Beijing and Washington over rising U.S. trade deficit even as Chinese President Hu Jintao is scheduled to meet President Obama in the White House on January 19.

Chinese high inflation rates are expected to continue until the second or third quarter despite the government’s efforts to tame rising prices, according to a survey of 56 leading economists.

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a lower open on Wall Street on Monday, with futures for the S&P 500 down 0.52 percent, Dow Jones futures down 0.44 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures down 0.35 percent at 4:05 a.m. EST.

China's trade surplus narrowed in 2010 for the second straight year, giving Beijing grounds to rebuff U.S. pressure for faster currency appreciation ahead of President Hu Jintao's visit to Washington next week.

China should further diversify its huge foreign exchange reserves away from U.S. government debt to reduce its risk exposure, a central bank official said in comments published on Monday.

China is set to further clamp down on the country's buoyant housing market by imposing a long-debated property tax for the first time in the southwestern city of Chongqing, domestic media reported on Monday.

Brazil is ready to take further steps to stop its currency from rising, the country's Finance Minister said on Sunday, warning of a trade war if government's keep pushing down exchange rates to boost exports.

If there was any doubt that the global economy remains tightly intertwined, rising commodity prices should put it to rest.

To hear a number of prominent economists tell it, it doesn't look good for the U.S. economy, not this year, not in 10 years.

The United States and its leaders are stuck in their own Catch 22. They need the economy to improve in order to generate jobs, but the economy can only improve if people have jobs. They need the economy to recover in order to improve our deficit situation, but if the economy really recovers long term interest rates will increase, further depressing the housing market and increasing the interest expense burden for the US.

The recent spate of energy diplomacy between china and United States have resulted in China slash export quotas of rare earth mineral by half in 2011.

China's economy grew by around 10 percent in 2010, with retail sales up 18.5 percent, showing that it is now relying more on domestic consumption, Vice Premier Li Keqiang said in remarks published on Saturday.

JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley received approval from Chinese regulators to form joint ventures with domestic firms, which would allow them to participate in underwriting Chinese stock and bond offerings.

Lenovo Group Ltd, which is making a concerted push into tablets, said it expects the devices to see good growth but still eventually only make up a fraction of the broader personal computer market.

The following are highlights from a U.S. Senate Budget Committee hearing on Friday with testimony from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.

India's will overtake the U.S. in forty years in terms of GDP at purchasing power parities (PPP) while China will sail past its financial and political rival as early as 2018, a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) report said on Friday.

Chinese authorities are planning to construct a “seven-star hotel” in western Beijing’s Mentougou district, about 30 kilometers from the Chinese capital center, in a $1.3 billion joint project with Saudi Arabia.

The euro fell to a four-month low against the dollar on Friday ahead of U.S. jobs data and next week's bond issues from euro zone peripheral countries, while world stocks and copper eased. A surprise sharp increase in U.S. private sector job creation in December have raised expectations of stronger non-farm payrolls for the month, with economists now expecting 175,000 jobs were created, up from 1...

U.S. stock index futures edged down on Friday, as caution prevailed ahead of the release of U.S. non-farm payroll figures, with futures for the S&P 500, the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq down 0.1 to 0.2 percent by 4:42 a.m. ET.

Chinese securities regulators on Friday approved the joint ventures of J.P. Morgan Chase & Co and Morgan Stanley , bringing the banks a step closer toward operating securities businesses in China that they, and other banks, have long sought.

Changes in how China manages the massive liquidity in its financial system and the persistent capital inflows chasing faster yuan appreciation may make short-term debt auctions a key indicator of Beijing's policy intentions.