AUSTRALIA

Though the human tragedy caused by the Japan disaster is incalculable, its economic impact may be less harsh than previously thought. An analyst said on Monday there will be some near-term impact but it will not be sufficient to dent the region’s strong growth prospects this year.

While 285,000 students left the country for education in 2010 alone, there was also a 25 per cent year-on-year increase in the numbers returning home.

A A$7.3 billion ($7.1 billion) bid by the Singapore Exchange to take over its Australian rival is faltering as the Australian government, the regulator and a key opposition party are all set to reject it, the Sydney Morning Herald said.

Gold Bullion prices stalled just above $1400 per ounce for the second day running on Thursday, as crude oil rose sharply amid the near-meltdown at Japan's Fukushima nuclear reactors.

Prince William is taking a break from wedding preparations to tour areas devastated by February's Christchurch earthquake and to visit families who lost loved ones at the Pike River Mine in Greymouth.

Mergers sweeping financial exchanges are in part an unintended consequence of global financial regulatory reforms, the head of IntercontinentalExchange Inc said on Wednesday .

There are divergent views about the impact of the Japanese triple tragedy on the global economy. While some say the impact will be limited mainly to bottlenecks in the global manufacturing supply chain, others have said the Japanese disaster will have longer-term effects a wider cross section of global economy.

Private equity firm KKR & Co LP is increasing the sources of capital it taps as it gears up to raise its next buyout fund, the company said at its first ever investor day on Tuesday.

Asian financial markets rallied on Wednesday, with Tokyo stocks rebounding 5.7 percent after a steep two-day sell-off on Japan's killer earthquake and unfolding nuclear crisis.

What's your true level of risk today? No idea. But the least your fund manager, advisor or favorite financial columnist can do today is remember the lesson of 2007, and highlight the range of risks and possible fall-out which might lie ahead. Take inflation, for instance. Though small, the risk of currency devaluation and hyper-inflation in the developed West is still materially underpriced by gold bullion

Report that a containment system at the bottom of Unit 2 reactor at Fukushima Daiichi has been breached saw uranium companies' shares to tank on the bourses.

The Internet had one overwhelming message for the world from Japan on Tuesday -- we're terrified of a nuclear meltdown and desperate to get out.

Though it will take weeks or longer to determine how much was actually lost in the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, investors sold insurance shares on Monday in fear of how high the total will go.

Besides aid from countries like China, US, Britain, relief pours in for Japan from big names of the tech and entertainment world including, Apple, Google, Lady Gaga and more.

Shares in Asian companies tumbled on Monday after the massive earthquake and tsunami in Japan that likely killed more than 10,000 people.

Last week's earthquake in Japan could lead to insured losses of nearly $35 billion, risk modeling company AIR Worldwide said, making it one of the most expensive catastrophes in history -- even without expected additional tsunami losses that are not yet counted.

The unexpected nature of this week's earthquake in Japan, plus the damage from the subsequent tsunami and fires, makes estimating insured losses from the disaster especially difficult, senior executives at two top catastrophe risk modeling firms said on Saturday.

The unexpected nature of this week's earthquake in Japan, plus the damage from the subsequent tsunami and fires, makes estimating insured losses from the disaster especially difficult, senior executives at two top catastrophe risk modeling firms said on Saturday.

The unprecedented nature of Friday's earthquake in Japan, plus the damage from the subsequent tsunami and fires, makes estimating insured losses especially challenging, senior executives at two top catastrophe modeling firms said on Saturday.

As the Tsunami warnings being issued the preparation for Tsunami has become equally important. Here are few methods and sources to go about it.

A tsunami warning has been issued by NOAA's National Weather Service to the following countries with the estimated time of arrival at forecast points.