CHINA

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a mixed open on Wall Street on Wednesday, with futures for the S&P 500 down 0.11 percent, Dow Jones futures down 0.41 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.03 percent at 1049 GMT.

China Unicom, the country's No. 2 mobile operator, has more than halved the monthly subscription of its entry-level 3G mobile package in a bid to increase its customer base.

Private equity firm Blackstone Group is in talks to join a bid by China's Bright Food Group Co for U.S. healthcare products seller GNC Holdings Inc, a person who is familiar with the situation said on Wednesday.

Longer-term, the potential impact of the tax cuts upon the stock market and economy remain rather fuzzy, given the multitude of other issues facing investors, including perpetually high unemployment in the U.S., a seemingly never-ending sovereign debt crisis in Europe and constant friction with China over trade and currency.

The amount raised globally from initial public offerings in 2010 is on track to beat any other year on record, according to Ernst & Young, despite waves of market volatility which disrupted many planned listings.

3M Co said on Tuesday it would face headwinds, especially in the developed world, that would prevent sales from hitting internal targets in 2011, a forecast that made its stock the biggest decliner on the Dow.

One of the U.S. diplomatic cables released by Wikileaks says that Chinese government had gained access to Microsoft source code which was used to hack into USG organizations.

The Gold Price held near last night's new record highs for US, Euro and Sterling investors in London trade on Tuesday, recording an AM Gold Fix at $1426 per ounce as world stock markets gained more than 1.5%.

The council of the American Bar Association's (ABA) Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar is delaying on deciding whether to accredit foreign law schools because the matter needs more study.

U.S. equities are the cheapest major asset class and the benchmark Standard & Poor's 500 stock index will rise 20 percent in 2011, veteran money manager Martin Sass said on Tuesday.

Apple Inc's next iPad tablet will start shipping as early as the end of February from electronics maker Foxconn Electronics' factories in China, DigiTimes reported on Tuesday.

Emerging East Asian economies will grow more than forecast this year but growth will slow in the region next year, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said on Tuesday.

Global trade protectionism will accelerate in the years ahead and the tussle between the U.S. and China over trade and other issues will escalate to crisis levels as early as in 2012, according to an analyst.

In a rare show of collective security, the United States, South Korea and Japan held a trilateral meeting on Monday to send a strong message aimed at China, which is seen as shielding North Korea.

Wall Street was set to rise strongly on Tuesday as investors bet that a deal to extend tax breaks will prompt increased spending and buoy the economy.

Chinese companies are poised to acquire smaller, intellectual property-rich technology firms overseas, fueled by the country's ambitious drive to converge its television, telephone and Internet networks.

Tesco Plc, the world's No.3 retailer, said overseas markets drove a 7.2 percent rise in third-quarter sales and it was seeing a pick-up in demand in its main British market heading into peak Christmas trading.

China is likely to raise interest rates in the coming days in a demonstration of the government's resolve to tame inflation, an official newspaper said on Tuesday.

Stock index futures rose on Tuesday after President Barack Obama forged a compromise with Republicans to extend Bush-era tax breaks for two years.

The United States is expected to see weak employment prospects though employers expect the modest hiring pace to continue in the first three months of the year, a survey reported.

Global equities advanced on Tuesday after a compromise deal to extend expiring U.S. tax cuts, though the euro zone's debt crisis and speculation over a possible interest rate rise in China kept them in check. The euro rose on optimism that Irish lawmakers will pass its toughest ever budget later in the day. The single currency remained vulnerable, however, with European policymakers dithering ove...