CHINA

Wednesday's statement didn't explicitly demand that President Bashar al-Assad step down, but it warned that his regime should immediately cease troop movements towards, and end the use of heavy weapons in, population centers, and begin pullback of military concentrations.

A Chinese college student committed suicide on Saturday night, just after leaving a farewell note that would auto-post online hours after her death.

Despite what the stage monologist would have audiences believe, there are serious journalists who have devoted their careers to reporting on conditions in China. One of them, Rob Schmitz, told IBT that Daisey has undermined his and other reporters' work.

The move means that banks in Japan and 10 EU nations have been given a six-month break from being cut off from the US financial system while they work to reduce their dependence on Iranian oil.

Pyongyang officials said such rhetoric may be akin to a declaration of war.

The Samsung Galaxy S3 has had so many rumored release dates there is no real way of knowing when the phone will actually come out, but a new report indicates that Samsung's Greater China president, Kim Young-Ha, is planning on moving the launch forward to April.

Gold traded broadly steady on Wednesday, as a boost from a modestly stronger euro against the dollar partly offset slow consumer demand and an erosion in holdings of the metal in exchange-traded products.

Stocks opened little changed on Wednesday as investors awaited data on the housing market a day after the S&P 500 snapped a three-day winning streak.

Tobacco-related deaths have nearly tripled in the past decade and big tobacco firms are undermining public efforts that could save millions, a report led by the health campaign group the World Lung Foundation (WLF) said on Wednesday.

U.S. stocks were poised for a slightly higher open on Wednesday ahead of data on the housing market a day after the S&P 500 snapped a three-day winning streak.

Mobile phone users in China have got in their basket of offerings two much-awaited smartphones. Japanese phone manufacturer Sony has just announced the upcoming availability of its first Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich smartphone, Sony Xperia neo L MT25i. And Taiwanese mobile phone maker HTC Corporation has made available its HTC Eternity from today, the first Windows Phone device to officially reach the country.

Royal Dutch Shell Plc (NYSE:RDS) signed Wednesday the first-ever production sharing contract with China's state-owned China National Petroleum Corp., or CNPC, as the world's second largest economy seeks to develop its untapped reserves, similar to those that gave rise to the U.S. natural gas boom, with the help of foreign technology.

Nigerian Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and former Colombian Finance Minister Jose Antonio Ocampo are set to be nominated to lead the World Bank, sources with knowledge of emerging market efforts to find candidates said on Tuesday.

The world's largest television and online retailer QVC Inc. is starting a joint venture with China's national radio broadcaster to enter the world's most populous growing consumer and media market.

U.S. stock index futures rose on Wednesday ahead of data on the housing market a day after the S&P 500 snapped a three-day winning streak.

Asia shares continued to fall amid lingering worries about China growth. In Japan, shares declined for the first time in six sessions.

Beginning in the fourth quarter of this fiscal year (July), Apple will pay a $2.65 per share dividend.

Stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street on Wednesday, with futures for the S&P 500 up 0.4 percent, Dow Jones futures up 0.2 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures also up 0.2 percent at 5 a.m. E.D.T. (0900 GMT)

Gold is expected to reach a new record high of $2,200 per ounce as fears of Economic and Monetary Union of the European Union break-up surge again and with U.S. monetary policy anticipated to remain supportive, according to Capital Economics.

Angry Birds maker Rovio is teaming up with a major U.S. retail chain to sell its merchandise, and plans to open themed activity parks in Britain, as it continues to expand beyond mobile games to establish a Disney-style brand, it said on Tuesday.

Business confidence in China has climbed up this quarter, although demand has continued to slow according to Capital Economics.