A Google knock-off has surfaced in China to compete with the world's largest search engine, while at the same time pleading with it to stay in the country despite censorship and hacking allegations.
Global stock markets fell again on Wednesday, hitting their lowest in two months as investors fretted about a monetary squeeze from central banks around the world and also the impact of tightening U.S. banking regulation.
Asian stocks fell for the ninth straight day on Wednesday on fears that China's heightened efforts to rein in soaring credit growth could hamper the global economic recovery.
(Corrects in first line and in text that Asia stocks ex-Japan fell for the 9th straight day, not the 8th)
South Korea's LG Electronics Inc posted a higher-than-expected quarterly operating profit and forecast sales and profits would improve in the first quarter as a global recovery prompts consumers to spend more on electronics.
The Australian Dollar opens lower on Wednesday at 0.8990.
The International Monetary Fund sharply raised its global economic growth forecast, casting developing countries in a leading role while rich nations struggle with high unemployment and government debt.
China's most popular search engine Baidu has been cleared of piracy in a dispute with the music industry, the IFPI trade body for the music sector said on Tuesday.
U.S. consumer confidence in January hit its highest level in nearly a year and a half, but a closely watched housing index showed an unexpected decline in November home prices, giving a mixed picture of the economic recovery.
Japanese carmaker Mitsubishi Motors Corp said talks to deepen ties with PSA Peugeot Citroen were ongoing, but played down expectations of a capital alliance after a report that those talks had stalled.
U.S. stocks edged higher on Tuesday, as better-than-expected consumer confidence data and strong quarterly results from Travelers and Apple offset concerns about a Chinese government clampdown on bank lending.
Afghanistan's neighbours met in Turkey on Tuesday seeking a single voice before a London conference to set a timetable for handing security over to Afghans and find ways to negotiate peace with the Taliban.
A Chinese court sentenced four more people to death for their part in bloody ethnic rioting in July last year in Urumqi, the capital of far western Xinjiang region, state media reported on Tuesday.
Wall Street opened lower on Tuesday after China tightened bank lending requirements and data showed a rebound in the U.S. housing market is tenuous.
The S&P 500 continued its slide from yesterday in early trading in New York. It was trading down 3.82 points, or 0.35 percent at 9:41 a.m. EST.
U.S. stock index futures were down on Tuesday after China clamped down on lending requirements, weighing on overseas markets.
Standard & Poor's cut its rating outlook on Japan on Tuesday and China implemented a clampdown on lending, hitting investor confidence about global economic recovery.
Fears of more Chinese policy tightening spooked global markets on Tuesday after Beijing ordered some banks to comply immediately with a planned increase in reserves and a report suggested earlier attempts at curbing lending had failed.
Stock index futures pointed to a lower opening on Wall Street on Wednesday, following declines in Asia after China implemented an increase in higher reserve requirements for some lenders.
Chinese state media stepped up their war of words with the United States over Internet control on Tuesday, with a top newspaper claiming a U.S. conspiracy and saying China can live without Google.
China implemented a planned increase in required reserves for some banks on Tuesday, sources said, sparking knee-jerk selling of Asian stocks which underscored how sensitive global investors are to Beijing's tightening of monetary policy.
Asian stocks slid on Tuesday, with Taiwan suffering its worst one-day fall in six months, as fears mounted that China could impose further measures to curb soaring loan growth, potentially dampening a global recovery.
