Oil prices dropped on Friday as a rising U.S. rig count stoked more concerns about global oversupply while an investigation by Chinese regulators into suspected stock market manipulation further unsettled the market.
Regions
China curbs IPOs, enlists brokers in all-out bid to end market rout
China froze share offers and set up a market-stabilization fund on Saturday, the Wall Street Journal said, as Beijing intensified efforts to pull stock markets out of a nose-dive that is threatening the world's second-largest economy.
Rubbing along with robots tackles Abe's double dilemma
Factory worker Satomi Iwata has new co-workers, a troupe of humanoid automata that are helping to address two of Japan's most pressing concerns - a shortage of labor and a need for growth.
Japan pledges $6 billion to Mekong nations as China prepares new bank
Japan said on Saturday it would extend around $6 billion in development aid to Mekong region countries, as China prepares to launch a new institutional lender seen as encroaching on the regional clout of Tokyo and ally Washington.
China brokerages pledge to buy $19.3 billion in shares to steady plunging market
China's top securities brokerages said on Saturday that they would collectively buy at least 120 billion yuan ($19.3 billion of shares in a bid to stabilize the country's stock markets after a slump of nearly 30 percent since mid-June.
Latest News
JetBlue Airways Corp said it began direct charter flights between New York and Havana on Friday, the first major U.S. carrier to fly the route following U.S. President Barack Obama's decision in December to normalize relations with the Communist-ruled island.
Russian President Vladimir Putin must be finding it hard to contain a wry smile as the European Union struggles with Greece's debt problems.
India's dominant services industry contracted for a second month in June as new business again declined, suggesting Asia's third-largest economy is struggling to maintain growth, a survey showed on Friday.
Cuba has opened 35 Wi-Fi access points nationwide, offering unprecedented online access in a country that until now has restricted use of the Internet to an elite few.
European bonds and stocks traded cautiously on Friday before a Greek referendum on EU-prescribed reforms that could determine the country's future in the euro zone and which polls suggest could go either way.
Owners of the HTC Desire Eye smartphone on AT&T with Android 4.0 and higher should finally be getting a total system update to Android 5.0 in the following days, HTC has confirmed.
Airbus (AIR.PA) signed an agreement on Thursday to set up its second plant on Chinese soil in a deal that the European planemaker hopes will lead to lucrative new plane orders.
U.S. health insurer Centene Corp will buy smaller rival Health Net Inc for $6.3 billion, underscoring the healthcare industry's rush to bulk up to negotiate better prices with suppliers and hospitals, and attract new customers.
H.J. Heinz Co on Thursday completed its purchase of Kraft Foods Group Inc, creating the third largest food and beverage company in North America and fifth largest worldwide.
