CHINA

Futures on major US stock indices point to a higher opening Tuesday as investors closely watch the start of US corporate earnings.

China reported Tuesday an unexpected $5.35 billion trade surplus in March, following a vast deficit in February and in the midst of a continued exports weakness caused by economic crises in overseas markets.

We always tend to believe what comes straight from the horse's mouth. But what if it keeps on changing? Yes, that's what happening with the next-gen Apple iPhone release date speculations as two contradictory statements have come from two Foxconn employees in less than one week.

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street on Tuesday that would halt a four-session losing streak, with futures for the S&P 500 up 0.32 percent, Dow Jones futures up 0.34 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.44 percent at 0845 GMT.

Honda Motor Co Ltd will launch 10 more car models in China by 2015 and expects sales in the country to double over the same period, a senior executive said on Tuesday, as it moves to narrow the gap with foreign rivals in the world's largest auto market.

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street on Tuesday that would halt a four-session losing streak, with futures for the S&P 500 up 0.32 percent, Dow Jones futures up 0.34 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.44 percent at 0845 GMT.

Most Asian stocks ended lower Tuesday, following a slump in the Wall Street overnight as disappointing March employment report raised concerns about the strength of recovery in the world’s biggest economy.

The top aftermarket NYSE gainers Monday were: C&J Energy Services, Visteon Corp, Centene Corp, Brookdale Senior Living, Hovnanian Enterprises and Alere Inc. The top aftermarket NYSE losers were: FX Alliance, Carnival Corp, Standard Pacific Corp, Vantiv, McClatchy and PPL Corp.

The top after-market NASDAQ losers Monday were: VIVUS, Harmonic, Shutterfly, Finish Line, Ocean Rig UDW, Power-One, Associated Banc, Schnitzer Steel Industries, Vertex Pharmaceuticals and China Real Estate Information Corp.

The earnings season, which starts with Alcoa Inc. reporting first quarter results Tuesday, is expected to be sluggish and could witness markets struggling to maintain gains made in the past several weeks.

Google Inc's Android mobile operating system was the top smartphone platform in China last year, growing its market share by about 35 percent in the world's largest market for mobile phones, a Chinese technology research firm said.

Asian shares eased Tuesday as investors cautiously awaited Chinese trade data to gauge whether the world's second-largest economy could achieve a soft landing, after a sharp slowdown in U.S. jobs creation clouded prospects for global growth.

China expressed consternation over the decision of the Australian government to ban telecommunications giant Huawei from competing in its new national broadband network over concerns for cybersecurity.

The Dow and the S&P 500 extended losses to a fourth day on Monday, as investors took their cues from last week's disappointing jobs report, which raised fresh concerns about the U.S. economy's recovery.

Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff said she used an official visit to President Obama to press her concern that monetary policy pursued by the U.S. and Europe was inhibiting Brazil's economic growth.

King concedes that quitting the euro zone and reintroducing its drachma currency would likely lead to financial and economic turmoil, but the move would ultimately benefit the Mediterranean country.

North Korea is preparing a third nuclear test at the site where it carried out its two previous tests, South Korean media report. The news further complicates an already tense situation in the Korean peninsula, following the North's decision to go ahead with a rocket launch feared by its neighbors.

Maryland officials have put a bounty on the snakehead, also know as the fish from hell, in an aim to save eco-systems from being devastated.

Stocks fell on Monday but pulled off their lows by mid-session, suggesting the market is shrugging off the weaker-than-expected jobs data that pushed major indexes down more than 1 percent earlier.

President Obama will host Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff on Monday in an effort to strengthen ties between two of the world's largest economies.

Stocks fell more than 1 percent on Monday after a much weaker-than-expected report on March U.S. job creation last week.