IBT Staff Reporter

The Swiss National Bank shocked foreign exchange markets by setting a minimum exchange rate target of 1.20 francs to the euro on Tuesday, saying it would enforce it by buying foreign currency in unlimited quantities.

Roger Federer will face Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarterfinals of the US Open, in a rematch of the Wimbledon quarters earlier this year, after a straight-sets victory against Juan Monaco, before which Novak Djokovic fought past Alexandr Dolgopolov.

European financial markets steadied on Tuesday, with the euro jumping against the Swiss franc, after a sharp sell-off a day earlier due to fears for the euro zone's future and that of its banking sector.

Spot gold climbed more than one percent to a record high above $1,920 on Tuesday, as concerns about a worsening euro zone debt crisis and stalled global growth drove investors out of from riskier assets to safe havens, including gold.

China has begun work on an 18-month reshuffle of its top economic and regulatory policy officials as part of a leadership transition that will see President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao hand their posts to a younger generation.

Apple Inc said on Tuesday it will open its first Hong Kong retail store this quarter and is targeting another Shanghai store opening by the end of the year.

Japan's Toshiba Corp is in talks with Shaw Group over the U.S. company's 20 percent stake in nuclear power plant company Westinghouse Electric Co, a person familiar with the matter said.

Athens may ask its euro zone partners that its second bailout, agreed by EU leaders in July, expire a year earlier than currently planned because of a higher than expected deficit, newspaper Kathimerini said on Tuesday.

The global economy is unlikely to fall back into recession but there are risks, World Bank President Robert Zoellick said on Tuesday.

Asian shares fell and U.S. Treasury yields dropped to the lowest levels in at least 60 years on Tuesday on fears that Europe's sovereign debt troubles are worsening and could trigger a second full-blown banking crisis.

Asian shares and the euro fell on Tuesday, gold jumped to a fresh record while European stocks appear set to slide further on fears that Europe's sovereign debt troubles are worsening and could trigger a second full-blown banking crisis.

China's economic growth in 2012 may drop below 9 percent for the first time in a decade, a senior Chinese foreign exchange official said on Tuesday, underlining the gloom in Beijing over the deteriorating health of the global economy.

Switzerland is set to partially meet a U.S. ultimatum and deliver an estimate of the amount of assets held by U.S. residents in secret accounts at Swiss banks, possibly up to $30 billion, a newspaper reported on Tuesday.

New Jersey alternative rock band, My Chemical Romance, fired their drummer, Michael Pedicone, claiming that he was caught stealing from the band.

The maids of The Help didn't take the Labour Day weekend off. The surprise summer hit held firm at the top of the domestic box office for the third straight week with $19 million in ticket sales

Dell Inc said on Tuesday it will partner China's top search engine Baidu Inc to develop tablet computers and mobile handsets.

The rupee dropped for a second straight session on Tuesday in tandem with weakness in the euro, Asian peers and local shares as worries over global growth deepen.

India's cabinet approved on Monday a bill to reform land acquisition, aimed at giving farmers a better deal while helping fast-track industrialisation in Asia's third-largest economy.

Dell Inc plans to partner with China's top search engine Baidu Inc to develop tablet computers and mobile phones, targeting the Chinese market now dominated by Apple Inc and Lenovo devices.

The BSE Sensex fell 0.5 percent on Tuesday, tracking Asian peers that fell on fears that Europe's sovereign debt troubles are worsening and could trigger a second full-blown banking crisis.

Firefighters tried to contain a raging wildfire that engulfed thousands of acres of drought-stricken areas of Texas on Monday. At least 476 homes were destroyed in a massive Bastrop County fire that raged into second day after erupting on Sunday, said state officials on Monday.

China's economic growth may ease to below 9 percent in 2012, partly due to a weak global economy, a senior Chinese foreign exchange official said on Tuesday, backing market expectations that the world's No. 2 economy is set for a mild easing.

China's economic growth may ease to below 9 percent in 2012, partly due to a weak global economy, a senior Chinese foreign exchange official said on Tuesday, backing market expectations that the world's No. 2 economy is set for a mild easing.

Japan's Toshiba Corp is in discussions to buy out U.S.-based Shaw Group's 20 percent stake in nuclear power plant company Westinghouse Electric Co, the Wall Street Journal reported, in a deal that would erase all American ownership of the 125-year-old Westinghouse.

Big U.S. banks in talks with state prosecutors to settle claims of improper mortgage practices have been offered a deal that may limit their legal liabilities in return for a multibillion-dollar payment, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday.

Australian banks will need to meet new global capital rules ahead of the internationally agreed timetable under proposals made on Tuesday, although the move is unlikely to force any of them to raise any new equity immediately.

About 300,000 Internet users in Iran have been spied on last month by one or several hackers who stole security certificates from a Dutch IT firm, a report presented by the Dutch government said on Monday.

The moon has fascinated mankind for centuries and has been studied by humans for hundreds of years, but Earth's natural satellite is still shrouded in many mysteries.

Stock futures tumbled more than 2 percent on Monday in electronic trading, hit hard after European markets slumped on renewed fears the euro zone's sovereign debt crisis is worsening.