CHINA

China's economy slowed in the first quarter to its weakest pace on record, but an improvement in data for March offered tentative signs that the worst may be over for the world's third-largest economy.

China's economy slowed in the first quarter to its weakest pace on record, but an improvement in data for March offers tentative signs that the worst may be over for the world's third-largest economy.

China's annual gross domestic product growth slowed in the first quarter to 6.1 percent from 6.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday.

The Treasury Department on Wednesday declined to label China a currency manipulator, retreating from tough talk last year when a campaigning Barack Obama said Beijing had kept its currency's exchange rate unfairly low.

The Treasury Department on Wednesday declined to name China a currency manipulator, backing down from tough talk last year when Barack Obama, then campaigning for president, said Beijing was keeping its currency unfairly low.

The Obama administration wants to ensure that legislation being crafted by Congress to fight global climate change does not violate international trade rules and backfire on U.S. exports, the top U.S. trade official said in a letter to a Republican lawmaker.

The global car industry is showing no convincing signs of recovery yet as sluggishness in developed economies has deeply dented demand, a Hyundai Motor Group vice chairman said on Wednesday.

North Korea has ordered U.N. inspectors to leave its Yongbyon complex, after saying it would quit international nuclear disarmament talks and restart the plant that makes bomb-grade plutonium.

China's muted response to North Korea's nuclear brinkmanship reflects the dilemmas dogging Beijing as it seeks to coax Pyongyang back to disarmament talks while fearing for the health of Kim Jong-il and his regime.

Turkish President Abdullah Gul called on Wednesday for a Middle East free of weapons of mass destruction, hoping that a U.S.-Russian pledge to join forces to eradicate nuclear weapons will encourage the region.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Wednesday Iran had prepared proposals to end a stalemate over its nuclear ambitions with six world powers, state television reported.

World stocks were steady to weaker on Wednesday, trading off the previous session's 3-month high, while government bonds firmed as news of job cuts at Swiss bank UBS and weak data fanned economic concerns. UBS warned of a first-quarter loss of nearly 2 billion Swiss francs and said it would cut a further 8,700 jobs, weighing on other banking shares.

Rio Tinto Ltd/Plc's first-quarter aluminum output fell a steeper-than-expected 6 percent, iron ore production was down 15 percent while refined copper rose 33 percent as the firm struggled to balance supply with global demand.

France's Total (TOTF.PA: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), China National Petroleum Corp [CNPET.UL] and Petroleos de Venezuela [PDVSA.UL] are in advanced talks about a deal to produce and refine Venezuelan oil to send to China, the Wall Street Journal reported.

World oil demand is shrinking faster than previously thought as a slowing global economy erodes consumption and keeps oil prices under pressure, OPEC said on Wednesday.

Intel Corp beat quarterly expectations and declared the worst was over for a battered tech sector, but its shares slid 5 percent after it said economic uncertainty ruled out a clear revenue forecast.

Rio Tinto Ltd/Plc's first-quarter aluminum output fell a steeper-than- expected 6 percent and iron ore production fell 15 percent as the firm struggled to balance supply with weak global demand.

World stocks fell on Wednesday, stepping back from the previous session's three-month high, and the low-yielding yen firmed as news of job cuts at Swiss bank UBS and weak U.S. and Chinese data fanned economic concerns. UBS warned of a first-quarter loss of nearly 2 billion Swiss francs and said it would cut a further 8,700 jobs, weighing on other banking shares.

Asian stocks pulled back from six-month highs on Wednesday but held up after the drop on Wall Street overnight, with hopes for more Chinese stimulus spending helping offset reports of weak first-quarter growth.

North Korea said on Tuesday it would quit international nuclear disarmament talks and restart a plant that makes bomb-grade plutonium after the United Nations chastised it for launching a long-range rocket.

North Korea ordered U.N. inspectors to leave on Tuesday after saying it would quit international nuclear disarmament talks and restart a plant that makes bomb-grade plutonium, the United Nations said.