CHINA

Yum Brands Inc forecast rising 2011 labor and food costs in China and said that modestly raising prices in its top growth market would help mitigate that pressure.

Dow Chemical Co barely blinked at rallying energy costs in the fourth quarter as it tapped fixed-cost supplies from the Middle East and boosted customer pricing by 10 percent.

At least once a week during her young presidency, Dilma Rousseff has met with trusted advisers to try to solve an intractable problem -- China.

China will be more tortoise than hare in its monetary tightening in the Year of the Rabbit, barely nudging up interest rates even as inflation races to new heights.

Egypt wants freedom from the oppressive regime of President Hosni Mubarak. But as one dictator is in the process of being ousted, Egyptians should make sure that another -- like the Muslim Brotherhood or the military -- doesn't take his place.

Chinese leaders celebrated the Year of the Rabbit with visits to the drought-stricken north while ordinary citizens rocked city streets with cacophonous fireworks.

Brisk agricultural, plastic and electronic sales helped Dow Chemical Co, post a better-than-expected fourth-quarter profit, with earnings from joint ventures in the glass and energy sectors particularly strong.

Spot gold was bid at $1,328.05 an ounce at 1300 GMT, against $1,336.00 late in New York on Wednesday. U.S. gold futures for April delivery fell $3.90 to $1,328.20. Concerns over the fallout from unrest in Egypt, where six people were killed after supporters of president Hosni Mubarak opened fire on protestors overnight, have underpinned prices, but have not sparked fresh investment, analysts said.

Norway MP, Snorre Valen nominates Julian Assange's whistleblower website WikiLeaks for Noble Prize and hails it for contribution to Tunisian Revolution and the following Arab protests.

Oil prices surged past $103 on Thursday as pro-democracy protests in Egypt turned violent, while commodities markets raced even higher, adding to worries of mounting inflationary pressures could threaten the global economic recovery.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke on Wednesday criticized China for failing to honor promises to open its market and said the United States would be pressing Beijing for better results in 2011.

Asian exporters of computer and communications equipment in 2009 boosted their grip on the sector during the global financial crisis and now hold two-thirds of the trade, figures issued on Wednesday showed.

Top appliance makers Whirlpool and Electrolux are raising prices to pass soaring raw material costs on to customers, but their attempts may not pass muster with bargain-hungry shoppers.

Top appliance makers Whirlpool and Electrolux are raising prices to pass soaring raw material costs on to customers, but their attempts may not pass muster with bargain-hungry shoppers.

Standard Chartered has promoted the head of transaction banking for China to lead the same division in Africa, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Top home appliances makers Whirlpool Corp and Electrolux are raising prices to pass soaring raw materials costs onto customers and will rely on emerging markets to drive growth.

Vodafone has named outgoing Philips Chief Executive Gerard Kleisterlee as its new chairman, bringing emerging markets know-how and an ability to simplify a group to the world's largest mobile operator.

LED makers have defied the post-crisis market turmoil with off-the-charts share price gains reminiscent of the dot-com boom.

ThinkEquity has outlined its top technology stock picks for 2011. The stocks include AMD, Spansion, Entropic, Micron Technology, Nvidia, Aruba Networks, Mellanox, Stec, Google and Priceline.

Dominique Strauss-Kahn, managing director of the International Monetary Fund delivered the following speech at the Monetary Authority of Singapore on February 1, 2011.

Gold prices eased a touch in Europe on Wednesday after well received U.S. economic data and a spate of upbeat corporate earnings deflected interest away from bullion on to higher-risk, higher-yielding assets.