JAPAN

The yen dropped to a three-month low against the dollar on Monday after Japan intervened in the market to curb the currency's rise even as traders said more official action is needed for a sustained impact.

Stock index futures fell in lackluster volume on Monday, following four weeks of equities gains, as a spike in the U.S. dollar weighed on commodity prices and dried up bids on other risky assets.

Honda Motor Co. withdrew its annual earnings guidance in an unusual move on Monday due to uncertainty surrounding currency markets and Thailand's floods just as it was starting to recover from the March earthquake and tsunami.

Stock index futures pointed to a weaker open for equities on Wall Street on Monday, with futures for the S&P 500, the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq 100 down by between 0.6 and 0.9 percent.

Japanese electronics maker Panasonic Corp slashed its annual outlook to a $5.5 billion net loss on Monday, its worst in a decade, as restructuring costs soared and weak demand in the United States and Europe eroded income.

Honda Motor Co withdrew its annual earnings guidance in an unusual move on Monday due to uncertainties including currency markets and Thailand's floods just as it was starting to recover from the March earthquake and tsunami.

The Nikkei average edged lower, giving up sharp morning gains made after Japanese authorities intervened to curb persistent yen strength as investors locked in profits on concerns the yen won't stay down for long.

The head of Europe's bailout fund, in Asia on a tour for potential investors, said on Monday he had been reassured by Japan's top currency official that Tokyo would continue to buy its bonds.

Gold prices dropped about 2 percent on Monday, after Japan's intervention in the currency market triggered a rapid rally in the dollar, spooking precious metals investors.

Halloween, which is round the corner, is one of the most anticipated holiday in the U.S and some other parts of the world such as continental Europe, Australia, New Zealand, South America, Japan and other parts of East Asia. Children and adults alike participate in this festival by trick-or-treating, carving jack-o'-lanterns, attending costume parties, playing pranks on each other, watching horror movies, etc.

Confidence was highest in India for a seventh straight quarter but India's reading fell 5 points from the second quarter and Saudi Arabia was catching up.

Japan's Sony Corp., struggling with a loss-making television business, is considering dissolving its liquid-crystal-display joint venture with South Korea's Samsung Electronics in a bid to cut costs, sources familiar with the matter said Sunday.

Sony Corp, struggling with a loss-making television business, is in negotiations to pull out of its LCD joint venture with South Korea's Samsung Electronics in a bid to cut costs.

Red Bull set a Formula One record of 16 pole positions in a season when double world champion Sebastian Vettel lapped fastest in qualifying for the inaugural Indian Grand Prix on Saturday.

The film Land of Oblivion may revolve around victims of the Chernobyl disaster a quarter of a century ago, but Japanese audiences will see striking parallels with current-day headlines following the Fukushima nuclear crisis.

Apple sales in China and Japan reached $14.3 billion in 2011, an increase of 174 percent from a year ago. The region accounts for nearly a quarter of revenue.

Caessium-137 is a slow-decaying element which can last for three decades in the environment and produce cancer-causing radiation.

Merck & Co. announced on Friday that its net income grew to $1.69 billion from $372 million in the prior-year quarter, as gains from the company's diabetes and asthma medication offset losses from their Remicade and Simponi treatments for inflammatory diseases.

“[We] will jointly deter any additional provocations by North Korea.”

Olympus Corp risks possible lawsuits unless a planned probe of acquisitions at the heart of a scandal engulfing the endoscope maker is truly independent, the head of the Tokyo Stock Exchange warned Friday.

A 12-year-old boy, who had been trapped under the debris after Turkey's catastrophic earthquake Sunday, was pulled out alive by the rescuers Friday. The boy had been trapped for more than 108 hours, before the rescuers could get to him and get him out.