CHINA

Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng made his way to the U.S. embassy in Beijing from his home in Linyi village in Shandong province after his escape from house arrest on Sunday, fellow dissident Hu Jia told BBC News.

China's economic relationships with Eastern Europe are deepening. Although the Asian power's trade with the former Communist bloc often goes unnoticed in the Americas, it has increased significantly in recent years.

India and Russia have chosen to boycott Zimbabwe's 53rd International Trade Fair this year to express their deep discontent with the country's new policies to nationalize and seize control over foreign companies.

Investors might be in for another week of gloomy economic news. The U.S. nonfarm payrolls report, Institute for Supply Management data, and the European Central Bank's monthly policy meeting are key items on the economic calendar from April 30 to May 4.

Gentlemen, the next time someone reaches for your junk you better run. Last week a Chinese woman reportedly killed a man by squeezing his testicles while in a fight over a parking space.

Markets shrugged off news of weaker-than-expected first-quarter growth in U.S. gross domestic product and responded positively, if modestly, to news of stronger-than-expected consumer confidence.

On the 26th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster, Ukraine launched the construction of a new and improved shelter to permanently secure the traumatized plant. The project, which is expected to cost contributors around 1.5 billion euros, is intended to repair the damage from an explosion that occurred during testing at the power plant in the early hours of April 26, 1986.

China's central bank expanded the yuan's reference rate against the dollar to another record high on Friday, in a nod to calls from the U.S. to loosen growth restrictions on the currency's value.

A headscratcher of a report on Chinese industrial profits intensified speculation about just what exactly central bankers in that country will come up with next as the note, by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), revealed data that both supporters and detractors of monetary easing in the world's second-largest economy will find justifies their rationale.

Some top Israeli officials have repeatedly compared the current regime in Tehran to Nazi Germany and Adolph Hitler?s program of exterminating the Jews.

Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F), the second-largest U.S. carmaker, said Friday profit fell 20.5 percent, missing analysts' predictions, on lower European sales, plunging South American profit and a drop in Ford Credit profit.

Shares of Hon Hai Precision Industries (TPE: 2317), more widely known as Foxconn and as the main contractor for Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), the world's most valuable technology company, plunged Friday.

India successfully launched a microwave Radar Imaging Satellite, Risat-1, into orbit from the spaceport at Sriharikota in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh on Thursday.

After reporting record profit for the first quarter of 2012, South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics has achieved yet another outstanding feat. The company has become the world's number one handset vendor, thereby ending Finnish firm Nokia's 14-year run as the global leader, according to a latest research from Strategy Analytics.

The US and Japan have reached a deal to reposition thousands of US troops from the island of Okinawa, which is considered a key strategic asset for Washington in the Asian region.

PetroChina Co, the world's second largest oil and gas firm, reported a $6.21 billion profit in the first quarter on Thursday, giving the company a 5.8 percent increase compared to the same period a year ago.

Following the successful launch of its Risat-1 satellite Thursday, India's space agency announced that it will test two of its heavy rockets prior to its planned 2014 moon mission.

Starbucks Corporation (Nasdaq: SBUX), the world's largest coffee shop chain, said Thursday its fiscal second-quarter profit jumped 18.5 percent on rising sales at stores open at least one year and higher efficiency.

Envision vast open desert, towering snow-capped mountains, and deep craggy gorges. Picture Buddhist temples, mysterious ruins, felt homes, and the caw of an eagle. Sprinkle on top of it all the legend Genghis Khan.

In Chicago on Wednesday, the 14th Dalai Lama made surprising comments during two scheduled appearances. In the afternoon, he presented a speech at the World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates. The same evening, he participated in an interview with Piers Morgan, which was televised in CNN.

Macau casino operator Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd plans to invest HK$16 billion in the second phase of its latest resort in the world's largest gambling destination.