CHINA

Listed steel mills in China are expected to report either declining profit growth or losses for the first half-year period due to sluggish demand, lower steel prices and over capacity, ChinaDaily reported on Thursday.

President Barack Obama plunged his presidency into a charged racial debate and set off a firestorm in one of America's most liberal bastions by siding with a black Harvard scholar who accuses police of racism.

An Asian country with large, government-backed energy companies seeks growth through cross-border acquisitions. It's inexperienced in such deals however, and gets off to a shaky start.

BBMG Corp, a leading building materials maker in China, on Thursday raised $768 million in a Hong Kong IPO at the top end of an indicated range, sources said, becoming one of the largest such deals this year and setting a positive tone for other big listings to follow.

Spot iron ore vessel bookings from Brazil to China jumped to a record in July as Australia suspended spot sales following detentions of Rio Tinto's top sales officials in China and as falling freight costs made longer haul trade attractive.

Better-than-expected company results, improving French business confidence and a pick-up in UK retail sales offered some evidence on Thursday that stimulus spending was helping to ease the global economic downturn.

China State Construction Engineering Corp (CSCEC) on Thursday set a price for its Shanghai IPO at the top of an indicated range, raising 50.16 billion yuan ($7.34 billion) in the world's largest public offering in more than a year.

Hyundai Motor Co is likely to struggle to replicate its record quarterly profit as the benefits from a weaker won and government stimulus fade but the popularity of its small, cheap vehicles will help it gain share in a weak global market.

The U.S. consumer will not drive a global economic recovery and the United States is still at risk from high unemployment and souring commercial real estate loans, said Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Wednesday.

Wireless chip and technology supplier Qualcomm Inc issued a revenue target for the current quarter that was below Wall Street expectations, sending its shares down about 5 percent.

Hisense Electric Co Ltd, one of China's leading electronics and household appliances producers, said on Tuesday its profit rose nearly 90% in the first half of 2009 due to booming flat-panel TV sales.

The Chinese government started a pilot program to provide technological support, subsidies and market pull to solar-power projects, aiming to boost the solar industry as a new growth point for the country's economy, state news agency Xinhua reported on Tuesday.

China plans to implement a five year program advocating clean online games, starting next year, an official from the General Administration of Press and Publication told an industry conference Wednesday.

The live broadcast of the Century Solar Eclipse provided by Sina had attracted more than 30 million viewers in three hours, with the latest record breaking peak concurrent users of over 3.2 million, which is much more than the one million viewers of the 2008 Olympics, Broad net Beijing reported on Wednesday.

Japan hinted on Wednesday it might do more to ease credit and Britain awaits more data before doing the same, while disappointing earnings from Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo tempered optimism Wall Street can extend its recent rally.

Israel's venture capital giant Pitango plans to team up with a Chinese partner to launch a $100-$200 million fund with investment focus on China's start-up companies, sources said on Wednesday.

The Beijing municipal government will fully support a bid by Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Corp (BAIC) for Ford Motor's Volvo car unit if the Chinese automaker fails in its current quest for General Motors' Opel, sources said on Wednesday.

A Chinese worker committed suicide in Shenzhen, South of China on July 16 on learning he was suspected of leaking company secrets. The incident sparked a web firestorm in China and has provoked criticism of Apple's intensely secretive culture.

Canada's Magna is still Germany's preferred bidder for carmaker Opel, a government spokesman said on Wednesday ahead of a meeting with General Motors representatives to discuss the takeover offers.

New studies have found direct evidence of a lung cancer risk from the presence of colorless, odorless radon gas in many homes, a United Nations committee said in a report released Tuesday.

The longest total solar eclipse of the 21st century on Wednesday swept across Asia, drawing hundreds of millions of people to the marvelous scene in the sky.