CHINA

News Corp.-invested MySpace China aims to launch an online messaging service as soon as possible, its CEO said on Wednesday, as the venture fights for a bigger share of the world's second-largest Internet market.

Hedge funds, known for flexing their financial muscles around the globe but still largely shut out of China, hope the quickening pace of Beijing's reforms will open new gateways into the world's fourth-largest economy.

Gov't to 'appropriately tighten' monetary policy to keep inflation in check.

London is the world's top center of commerce, according to a study by MasterCard rating leading cities by how they influence the global economy.

Oil and industrial metals prices extended the week's sharp falls on Wednesday on fears that rising interest rates will dent demand from investors and consumers.

Flickr.com, one of the world's most popular online photo-sharing sites and owned by Yahoo Inc., is likely being blocked by the Chinese government, Yahoo's Hong Kong unit said on Tuesday.

Merchants Securities Co., the brokerage arm of China's top port operator Merchants Group, has hired Chinese joint ventures of UBS and Goldman Sachs to underwrite its proposed domestic IPO, sources close to the situation said on Wednesday.

A strong minority of Yahoo Inc. shareholders challenged the Web company's direction on Tuesday by voting against board-nominated directors at the annual meeting, and investors confronted Chief Executive Terry Semel.

Hong Kong stocks edged up 0.1 percent on Tuesday after investors bid up China Mobile amid a renewed focus on the prospect of 3G licences to spur a widely expected industry restructuring.

The dollar rallied against the euro for the fifth consecutive session on Tuesday to an 11-week high, according to Reuters data, as rising U.S. Treasury yields lured investors.

A strong minority of Yahoo shareholders challenged the Web company's direction on Tuesday by voting against board-nominated directors at the annual meeting, and investors confronted Chief Executive Terry Semel.

The second largest U.S. steel maker, Nucor Corp. (NYSE: NUE), said on Monday that its second quarter profit will come up short of analysts’ estimates on lower demand from automakers and homebuilders.

As leaders from eight of the world's top industrialized countries meet this week, to speak about global development, one of the main issues on the agenda will be climate change.

Korean Air Co. said on Monday that it would launch a low-cost carrier within three years, making it the largest Asian airline to target the budget aviation market.

Toyota Motor Corp. on Monday started production at its new plant in Tianjin, China, putting it in the lead of all Japanese automakers in terms of production capacity in China.

Dell Inc.(NASDAQ: DELL) said yesterday it plans to start selling its personal computers through Wal-Mart Stores Inc.(NYSE: WMT) in North America next month, departing from the direct-to-consumer business model it was founded on.

Japan is the global leader for innovation, with Switzerland, the United States and Sweden trailing behind, according to a new study.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made an offering to the controversial Yasukuni Shrine during a Shinto festival in late April, a chief Cabinet official revealed Tuesday, reigniting a dispute among Japanese leaders, some who believe the act may harm foreign relations.

The world's No. 3 PC Maker, Lenovo Group Ltd., is expanding its reach into the small and medium-sized business retail market, announcing Thursday that select computer models will be available at over 300 Best Buy for Business stores.

Hynix Semiconductor Inc.'s remarkable performance in the lucrative memory market for DRAM surpassed all but one of its rivals, as it rose to take second place in market share growth and revenue in the fourth quarter, and all of 2006.

Dunkin' Brands Inc. opened its first Dunkin' Donuts store in Taiwan on Wednesday as part of the company's larger push to expand into China.