CHINA

Swiss engineering group ABB said it had agreed to buy U.S. electrical components maker Thomas & Betts for $3.9 billion to ramp up its presence in the world's largest market for low-voltage products.

Confidence in the euro zone's economy strengthened in January for the first time since early 2011, EU data showed on Monday, but a recovery in Germany masked a deterioration in France and Italy, highlighting the bloc's diverging fortunes.

Facebook Inc., the world's largest social networking site, is getting closer to its initial public offering this week as the company is reportedly planning to file papers with the U.S. financial watchdog on Wednesday. Speculation is rife that the social media giant is aiming to raise about $10 billion, which would value the company at between $75 billion and $100 billion.

Honda Motor Co <7267.T> expects to grab at least a quarter of the world market for small business jets soon after delivering its first aircraft next year, achieving the company's long-standing goal of taking to the skies, an executive said.

China intends to establish Shanghai as the global centre for yuan trading, clearing and pricing over the next three years as part of broader plans to make the commercial hub an international financial centre by 2020.

Free Syrian Army fighting President Assad's forces withdraw from eastern suburbs of Damascus after two days of fighting.

China will make Shanghai the global centre of yuan trading, clearing and pricing by 2015, according to a specific state plan laying out the city's future as an international financial centre.

China's Premier Wen Jiabao said the nation's government debt is at an overall safe and controllable level, that funding for key projects would be ensured and that applying the brakes to the problem would be done in a way to avoid systemic risks.

Armored forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad took control Sunday of eastern suburbs of Damascus from opposition fighters after two days of bombardment and fighting with rebels, activists said Sunday night.

South Sudan has totally shut down oil output in a dispute with Sudan over export transit fees and will only restart after the two reach a deal covering border security and the disputed Abyei region, its oil minister said Sunday.

Around 2,000 Syrian troops backed by tanks launched an assault to retake Damascus suburbs from rebels Sunday, activists said, a day after the Arab League suspended its monitoring mission in Syria because of worsening violence.

Iran is considering banning all oil exports to the European Union for five to 15 years, a senior Iranian lawmaker was quoted as saying on Sunday, while the country's deputy oil minister said prices would surge should the EU stop importing Iranian crude.

A new team of U.S. trade enforcers will make countries think twice about putting up unfair barriers to American exports, President Barack Obama's top trade official said.

Awaiting the Great Transformation: Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi called on Sunday for changes to the military-drafted constitution in her first political trip since ending a boycott of the country's political system last year and announcing plans to run for parliament.

A new team of U.S. trade enforcers will make countries think twice about building unfair barriers to American exports, said President Barack Obama's top trade official, who noted the team will include intelligence officials as well as representatives of multiple agencies.

The iPad celebrated its second birthday on Friday, adding to the hype and anticipation surrounding the release of the iPad 3.

When severe snowstorms prevented life-sustaining fuel supplies from reaching the frozen Alaskan town of Nome, U.S. officials turned to a Russian company for help.

Apple Inc has never turned a blind eye to the problems in its supply chain and any suggestion it does not care about the plight of workers is patently false, Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook said in an email to employees.

International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde led a global push on Saturday for the euro zone to boost its financial firewall, saying if it is big enough it will not get used.

The building took three years to construct and involved 1,200 Chinese and Ethiopian workers.

The Arab League said on Saturday it had suspended its monitoring mission in Syria because of the critical deterioration of the situation as state security forces battled rebels holding three suburbs just outside Damascus.