As violence gripped Syria's capital, the head of the Red Cross urged Russian officials to press Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad to let humanitarian-aid workers get to residents trapped by the fighting.
European markets lost ground as the lack of positive catalysts prompted a pause in the recent string of gains, while Asian stocks were mostly higher.
China has become less dependent on arms imports and, at the same time, has increased the volume of its arms exports, according to a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
According to market figures released by research firm IDC, China is bound to overtake the U.S. in smartphone shipments by the end of 2012, becoming the leading market. IDC’s latest Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker forecast that China’s smartphone market will climb from 18.2 percent in 2011 to 20.7 percent in 2012, while U.S.’ market would drop from 21.3 to 20.6 percent over the same timeframe.
Though there are signs of recovery, the debt crisis in the developed markets and rising oil prices add to the risk factors looming large over the global economy.
Estimates of the amount that the tensions between the West and Iran have added to global oil prices range from $5 to $25 per barrel, according to Capital Economics.
The U.S. radio program This American Life has retracted an episode critical of working conditions at a Chinese factory that makes iPhones and iPads for Apple Inc, saying it had contained numerous fabrications.
As China's Communist Party government continues to ramp up surveillance on political dissidents, it is becoming increasingly questionable ethically for the companies that provide it with the relevant technology and services. One such company, owned by the Mitt Romney-founded private equity firm Bain Capital, stands to profit from the country's domestic security boom.
Apple's stock market gains have been overshadowed by media exposes revealing labor violations at Apple's Foxconn supply chain in China, but some facts have been deemed as fabrications by This American Life.
Israel's foreign minister said Friday in Beijing that his country hopes to resolve a nuclear standoff with Iran through diplomatic means. China has close ties to both Israel and Iran.
China's Cinda Asset Management Corp., which was formed in 1999 to buy bad loans from Chinese banks, received 10.4 billion yuan ($1.6 billion) from four institutional investors as the state-controlled company prepares for an IPO.
Weibo, which is similar to Twitter, has become a sensitive matter for government officials as users often use the platform to criticize government policy.
China suspended approval for the purchase of 10 Airbus (EAD) jets, in a continued showdown over European Union emissions charges.
Given the lack of sufficient infrastructure and endless political instability, Sudan’s energy sector faces many monumental challenges.
U.S. delivery company United Parcel Service Inc. (NYSE:UPS) said Friday it is in constructive talks to buy Dutch rival TNT Express NV and reiterated its intention to make a formal bid by May 12.
Bo Xilai has been sacked from his position as the Communist Party Chief of Chongqing. The state-owned Xinhua News Agency’s coverage of the event was brief and unceremonious, belying its critical significance.
North Korea will launch a long-range rocket carrying a satellite into space next month. The earth observation satellite will be set into orbit between April 12 and April 16, which will coincide with the nationwide celebrations for the birth of the country's founder, Kim Il-sung.
People protesting against the dictatorial regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad have been thrust into a nightmarish world of systemic torture, says the Amnesty International.
Evolutionary biologists have forecast for years that new human species would start showing up in Asia upon a closer look at fossilized bones in the region. A recent analysis of such fossils from south-west China seems to confirm the prediction.
China's foreign direct investment in February fell for the fourth straight month as companies tightened spending amid a slowdown in the world's second-largets economy and the ongoign European sovereign debt crisis.
The pair urged support for UN special envoy Kofi Annan in his bid to gather full Security Council backing for a resolution denouncing the crackdown by Syrian government forces on the opposition anti-Assad movement.
The popular regional politician had been rumored to be in consideration for a promotion to the powerful Politburo Standing Committee ahead of a radical shake-up expected at the Communist Party's upcoming congress.
