CHINA

Crude futures reached $122 a barrel inTuesday's trading as supply disruptions, overseas growing demand outlook and a falling dollar sent the prices to new all time records.

Both China's Shanghai and Shenzhen stock markets opened higher on Monday morning, boosted by Fed's cut of interest rates and China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) Chairman Shang Fulin's requirement that institutions to maintain stability.

Vietnam plans to buy more electricity from China as local energy supplies vie to keep up with the burgeoning economy.

China 's stock market watchdog said on Sunday it had allowed local fund management companies to set up branches in Hong Kong, which will help national fund firms become more familiar with international financial rules.

The Chinese Health Ministry issued a nationwide alert on Saturday in an effort to control the outbreak of a virus which has killed 23 children in the east of the country and is spreading.

Lenovo Group Ltd, the world's fourth-largest personal computer maker behind HP and Dell, and Acer says it is looking to acquire other PC firms to gain market share.

Herbalife Ltd. Maker of nutritional supplements said its president and chief operating officer Gregory Probert resigned as it was discovered he didn't complete an academic degree.

China's A-share total net profit in 2007 reached 949.7 billion Yuan (135.7 US dollar), 49.86 percent higher than the prior year; the average earnings per share reached 0.42 Yuan, up 49.71 percent, according to the report of China Securities News Press on Tuesday.

Over 222 small and medium-sized public companies listed in China's Shenzhen Stock Exchange gained an average operating income by 308 million Yuan (44 US dollar) in the first quarter, up 35.32 percent than the same period of last year, Xinhua news agency reported on April 30.

China should continue to prevent inflation and overheating of economic development in the second quarter, especially to control rising prices and curb inflation, the State Development and Reform Commission (SDRC) said Tuesday.

China's Hua Xia Bank, a business bank listed in Shanghai Stock Exchange in 2003, posted first quarter net profit of 822 million Yuan(117.4 million US dollars), 80.43 percent higher than the same period last year.

The Zimbabwe Police have released detained MDC members of the opposition party following pressure from lawyers for Zimbabwe's MDC party and a court ruling issued by the Harare High Court.

3Com Corp. on Tuesday named a new CEO who will be based in China, after it unsuccessfully sought to win a U.S. government approval to sell a minority stake to China's biggest telecom gear maker Huawei Technologies Co Ltd.

Avon Products Inc., the largest door direct seller of cosmetics, said Tuesday its net income rose 23 percent helped by stronger sales in Brazil, Russia and China.

China's Railways Ministry plans to transport 10 million tons of grain from northeast to south in order to stabilize rice prices in south China, the Chinese official media CCTV reported today. The plan will be launched on May 1 and end on June 30, totally 60days.

Vodafone India, the arm of UK based world's largest wireless telecom company Vodafone, is likely to bring the much awaited, versatile and Macintosh operating system based Apple's iPhone to India this September as per market speculations ripe in the country.

Lenovo confirmed its intentions to distribute sell and support VMware's virtualization platform in server systems sold in China.

Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group's (ADAG) flagship company and India's second largest mobile services provider, Reliance Communications said it has acquired eWave World, a UK-based WiMax operator for an undisclosed sum.

Air China Limited, the world's largest carrier by market value, earned a net profit in the first quarter of 1.04 billion Yuan (148.6 million US dollars), or 0.09 Yuan per share, which is 147 percent higher than the same period of last year.

China's Baidu.com, Inc. just posted a net profit of 144.6 million Yuan in the first quarter, 71.5 higher than the same period of last year.

CNN is being sued on not just on one, but two continents. A Chinese primary school teacher and a beautician have filed a suit against CNN in New York over remarks they say insulted the Chinese people, in addition to the 14 lawyers who are trying to have their case heard in Beijing courts.