THAILAND

When Aung San Suu Kyi left her husband and children in England to visit her ailing mother in Myanmar 24 years ago, she never imagined that she'd be stuck inside the Southeast Asian country for 24 years. Now, she will leave Myanmar for the first time since 1988.

The World Bank lowered on Wednesday its 2012 China growth forecast to 8.2 percent from 8.4 percent on faltering demand for exports in the U.S. and Europe and a slowdown in the Chinese real estate market. The bank urged the entire region to focus on spurring domestic demand and reduce its dependence on exports.

In 1999, Andrew Grove, then Chairman of Intel (Nasdaq: INTC), the No. 1 chipmaker, published a bestseller, ?Only the Paranoid Survive.?

The 24th season of Survivor' came to a close on Sunday night when Kimberly Spradlin won the final vote, broadcast live by CBS. Spraldin will go home with one million dollars for winning seven out of nine votes from a jury of fellow contestants, plus another $100,000 for winning the title of fan favorite from viewers at home.

Hundreds of Philippine protestors took to the streets outside the Chinese embassy in Manila demanding China to withdraw its ships from the region.

Jackie Green, the British teenager who made history by having sex change at the age of 16, is now looking forward to win Miss England after entering into semi-final of the beauty pageant.

Consumer electronics and entertainment giant Sony Corp reported Thursday a record net loss for the fiscal year ended March but pinned hopes on a restructuring strategy to return to profit this year.

Toyota Motor Corporation (NYSE: TM) reported a 30 percent drop in income for its fiscal year ended March 31, but the company is nevertheless making headway down the road to recovery from last year's earthquake in Japan and floods in Thailand as income for January-March 2012 increased by a factor of five.

Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp said Wednesday that its net profit for the three months ending March 31 surged five times compared to a year earlier as the car market picked up in the US.

Japanese technology conglomerate Toshiba Corp said Tuesday that its net profit for the three months ending March 31 declined 63 percent from a year earlier on a strong yen and weak global sales of digital products.

Mazda announced Friday that several dozens of its US employees had agreed to the voluntary buyouts as a part of the automaker's effort to make profits.

In accordance with global May Day celebrations, the Southeast Asian nation of Malaysia has introduced a minimum wage for the first time, following a decade of pressure by labor unions.

The companies whose shares are moving in pre-market trade Friday are: DigitalGlobe Inc, Linkedin Corporation, Veolia Environnement, Deutsche Bank, The Dow Chemical Company, Northstar Realty Finance Corp and Seadrill Ltd American International Group Inc.

Critics complain that the minimum wage will hurt small business owners and the country?s competitiveness.

The Chinese are benefiting from advances in transportation and communication, as well as policies established by the government,

The U.S. coast is being invaded by cannibal shrimp, according to by the U.S. Geological Survey and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

As Britain's Prince William and his wife Catherine approach their first year of marriage on Sunday, online travel adviser Cheapflights has come up with a list of its top 10 travel destinations to celebrate wedding anniversaries.

If you?ve heard of these little known islands, pat yourself on the back and make sure to frame that passport before it rips to shreds.

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.

U.S. regulators are investigating major U.S. movie studios' dealings with China as the entertainment companies try to get a greater foothold in one of the fastest-growing movie markets in the world.

Argentina added to its gold reserves for the first time in nearly six years in September 2011 as the price hit record highs, mirroring the trend among emerging central banks to diversify further from paper currencies such as the U.S. dollar.