JAPAN

Planetary Resources, an asteroid mining company backed by filmmaker James Cameron and other well-know investors, was officially announced on Tuesday, with plans to launch exploratory spacecraft over the next two years to hunt for raw materials, ranging from water to precious metals from Near-Earth Asteroids (NEAs) a few years after that.

Huawei Technologies Co Ltd , the world's No.6 mobile phone maker, said on Wednesday that it expects to ship more than 100 million mobile phones this year including 60 million smartphones as it aims to increase its global market share.

The doubling of the International Monetary Fund's firepower, an increase in Europe's bailout fund and liquidity injections should be enough to contain Europe's sovereign debt crisis, the head of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development said on Wednesday.

Asian stock markets advanced Wednesday as signs of an improvement in the US housing market and better-than-expected quarterly earnings from corporate majors buoyed sentiment.

A Japan earthquake struck a southeastern section of Honshu island Tuesday afternoon, rocking the region with a reported 5.5-magnitude shock.

Over the past three decades, South Korea has catapulted itself from Third World-caliber poverty to becoming a technologically superior economic powerhouse.

Mexican President Felipe Calderon on Tuesday gave an impassioned defense of free trade as Mexico waits for the United States and others to decide whether it will be allowed to join talks on a trade pact in the Asia-Pacific region.

China is still friendly with North Korea, despite the latter being roundly condemned by the international community. History plays a role, but Beijing is getting something out of it too - just how much, though, remains to be seen.

The unnamed source said the North had almost completed preparations for the nuclear test, which if it went ahead would draw strong international condemnation and further isolate the impoverished state from its sole major ally, China.

Nissan Motor Co <7201.T> is proving that being late to the party in China doesn't have to be a handicap, and is poised to widen its lead among Japanese automakers in the world's biggest car market with speedy and aggressive expansion plans.

Ever since Japan began challenging the United States as the leading automobiles and consumer electronics manufacturer in the 1980s, a debate has been raging over whether America's days as the preeminent manufacturing nation in the world are coming to an end. It would only intensify in the next two decades, when another Asian giant, China, emerged as a manufacturing power.

Stock index futures crept higher on Tuesday after sharp market losses in the previous session but continued concerns about Europe's debt crisis could mean gains will be slight.

It is highly expected that the Bank of Japan will resort to additional monetary easing at its next meeting on April 27 so that the economy could recover from deflation and grow more strongly.

Most of the Asian stock markets declined Tuesday, following losses on Wall Street overnight as increased political uncertainty in France and the Netherlands as well as disappointing Euro zone manufacturing and services PMIs weighed on the sentiment.

JPMorgan Chase on Tuesday named Jeff Urwin as its new chief executive Asia Pacific, taking over from Gaby Abdelnour who announced in March that he will be leaving the firm.

Stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street on Tuesday, with futures for the S&P 500 up 0.37 percent, Dow Jones futures up 0.35 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.48 percent at 4:35 a.m. EDT.

The Bank of Japan is likely to ease monetary policy on Friday by boosting asset purchases by up to 10 trillion yen ($123 billion) and in doing so may extend the maturity of government bonds it targets to around three years, according to sources familiar with the central bank's thinking.

Asian shares fell and the euro was under pressure on Tuesday as political uncertainty and slumping business in Europe raised fears the euro zone could struggle to push through austerity measures and may stay in recession longer.

Asian shares inched up on Tuesday but gains were limited as political uncertainty and disappointing data in Europe raised fears the euro zone could struggle to push through austerity measures and may stay in recession until late in the year.

Asian shares inched up on Tuesday but gains were limited as political uncertainty and disappointing data in Europe raised fears the euro zone could struggle to push through austerity measures and may stay in recession until late in the year.

Asian shares fell Tuesday as political uncertainty and disappointing data in Europe raised fears the euro zone could struggle to push through austerity measures and may stay in recession until late in the year.