CHINA

Bank of America Corp (BAC.N) shares fell nearly 8 percent on Monday, reaching their lowest level since March 2009, as investors fretted the bank may need to raise some $50 billion of capital and worried about potential additional mortgage lawsuit payouts.

Remnants of forces still loyal to Muammar Gaddafi staged a desperate stand in Tripoli on Tuesday as rebels fought their way into the capital, but the whereabouts of the veteran leader was a mystery.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il is currently in Russia, marking his first visit to the country in nine years. The 70 year old statesman will meet with Medvedev for talks concerning an international pipeline that will run through North Korea.

Berlusconi has invited the head of the rebel government to Italy, while urging Gadhafi to give himself over to authorities.

A group of 35 Michael Jackson fan clubs have joined forces to lobby for the cancellation of a Michael Jackson tribute concert, saying the October event is doomed to fail.

During Vice President Joe Biden's visit to China, Beijing and Washington confined their brawling to the basketball court, and for now economic and political needs should keep tensions in the diplomatic arena from spiraling into fully-fledged feuds.

China will respect the will of the Libyan people and hopes for a return to stability in the war-torn country, China's Foreign Ministry said on Monday, as Libyan rebel fighters clashed with government forces in Tripoli.

Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan reaffirmed Beijing was sticking to a prudent monetary policy in remarks published on Monday, and stressed the need for banks to increase support for small firms and the agricultural sector.

Hong Kong shares had edged lower by midday on Monday, giving up earlier gains, as investors sold shares of companies that reported weak or even forecast-meeting half-year results, underscoring weak risk appetite, with more volatility expected.

China shares in Shanghai and Hong Kong fell on Monday as investors hammered companies reporting weak or forecast-meeting results, while a late jump in HSBC helped the Hang Seng index offset some of those losses and end higher.

Vice President Joe Biden said on Monday China's leaders did not seek reassurances about the weak U.S. economy, and he called Xi Jinping -- the man expected to take over as China's next president -- pragmatic and strong.

China's crude imports from Russia in July plunged 45 percent from a year earlier to 615,193 tonnes, or 144,870 barrels per day (bpd), the lowest level in several years, customs data showed on Monday.

A unit of ConocoPhillips said it has found several small oil leaks in China's northern Bohai Bay two months after an oil spill began, while the Chinese government again urged the company to halt the leak by the end of this month.

China has agreed to lend $195 million to Cambodia so it can buy Chinese military helicopters, the latest deal in a flurry of trade and investment between the two countries.

China's top online portal Sina Corp has invested between $30-$40 million in Chinese online video site Tudou Holdings , a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Monday.

Vinegar stored in plastic barrels that once contained antifreeze is suspected of killing 11 people and making 120 others sick in China's northwest Xinjiang region, state media said on Monday, in the latest deadly food safety scandal to hit the country.

Shares of Macau casino operators slumped on Monday on worries of weakening demand from wealthy Chinese consumers, the main players in the world's largest gambling market, leading investors to sell stocks that have hit record highs in the past few months.

Muammar Gaddafi was a hunted man on Monday as loyal remnants of his forces made last-ditch stands in the capital while world leaders rushed to embrace the fractious rebel movement as new masters of Libya's oil riches.

iPad 3 could hit store shelves as soon as early 2012.

Ghana's parliament will begin debating on Monday a $3 billion loan facility awarded by China Development Bank to the west African nation to finance infrastructure projects including in the oil and gas sector, a government statement said.

Could HP sell webOS to another maker? Or license it to a rival?