CHINA

A total of 14.8 million passengers went on cruises in 2010, an increase of 10.3 percent over the prior year,

The World Bank warned Wednesday that the global economy is on the cusp of a new financial crisis, one similar in magnitude to the chaos following the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008.

China at one time may have been better known for fashion knockoffs than catwalk creations, but Chinese haute-couture is now finding its feet on the international stage -- even as it grows ever more popular with customers at home.

Hong Kong shares held firm on Wednesday supported by short-covering and gains by insurers, even as markets in Shanghai gave up some of the previous session's strong gains as investors turned cautious ahead of the week-long Lunar New Year holiday.

It was one of the most adorable scenes when two giant pandas from China appeared frolicking around their new home in France Tuesday.

India's bullion traders stayed away from placing fresh orders after a nearly 90 percent hike in gold import duty was announced earlier this week, while China's gold purchases slowed down ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday.

China will expand real-name registration for microblog users, the government's propaganda and information arm said on Wednesday, in its latest step to better control China's wildly popular Twitter-like websites.

Gold prices could rise to $2,000 an ounce in 2012, according to the predictions of the latest Thomson Reuters GFMS survey and GFMS Ltd's CEO Philip Klapwijk.

Veteran dissident has been indicted by Chinese authorities on charges of attempting to subvert the state for writing a poem urging people to gather to defend their freedoms, his lawyer said Tuesday, the latest in a string of indictments or trials of popular dissidents this year.

Stocks advanced on Tuesday but sharply pared gains late in the session after Citigroup's steep drop in profit gave investors a reason to unload bank shares.

European shares hit a 5-1/2-month high on Tuesday before closing above a key resistance level, boosted by automobile and mining stocks after Chinese economic data raised hopes the country would further ease its monetary policy to stimulate growth.

The start of the 2012 brought the highest January gas prices in history, and analysts warn that prices could keep climbing as the warm-weather driving seasons approaches.

Toronto's main stock index was slightly lower on Tuesday as losses from gold miners offset the impact of an early surge in commodity prices that were boosted by solid economic data from China and Germany.

The gradual shift towards big cities has been a long time in coming

A gauge of manufacturing in New York State showed growth picked up in January, rising to the highest level in nine months as new orders and employment improved, the New York Federal Reserve said in a report on Tuesday.

Aerospace group EADS batted away concerns over the financing needed to maintain a record wave of jet deliveries this year, as bumper orders from its Airbus unit and a major Japanese leasing deal provided fresh evidence of Asia's rising economic power.

Stocks were set to open higher on Tuesday as Chinese data fueled the belief the government may move to stimulate growth, overshadowing recent credit downgrades in Europe and a mixed bag of bank earnings.

China shares on Tuesday surged 4.2 percent, their biggest one-day gain in more than 27 months, after Beijing reported that the world's second-largest economy grew faster than expected in the last quarter of 2011, although at its weakest pace in 2-1/2 years.

Stock index futures rose on Tuesday as investors looked to corporate profits as earnings season picks up and Chinese data fueled the belief the government may move to stimulate growth.

Gold prices jumped Tuesday after China reported fourth-quarter gross domestic product grew more than expected.

Russia has distributed a new draft resolution, on the Syria crisis, at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). The draft was sent to the Council's 14 other members and has asked for concerned experts to meet on Tuesday to debate the provisions.