CHINA

French banks and lenders exposed to Greece and other weak euro zone countries slumped on Tuesday after Greece's leader said he would put a bailout plan to a referendum, raising the risk of a disorderly default.

The Greek government faced possible collapse on Tuesday as ruling party lawmakers demanded Prime Minister George Papandreou resign for throwing the nation's euro membership into jeopardy with a shock call for a referendum.

The pace of growth in U.S. manufacturing slowed last month, though improvement in October new orders suggested stable but slow growth for the U.S. economy.

China has successfully launched an unmanned spacecraft, a small step into achieving their larger space exploration goals.

South Africa's rand weakened against the dollar on Tuesday as a Greek plan for a referendum on a bailout package raised worries that the euro zone debt crisis is far from over.

South African stocks ended sharply lower on Tuesday, extending the decline to two days as investors worldwide offloaded risky assets after Greece's shock move to hold a referendum on a rescue deal.

The indifference shown by the majority of India's deep-pocketed corporates toward Formula One has baffled team bosses who expect them to warm to the sport following the success of last weekend's inaugural Indian Grand Prix.

Singapore Airlines announced on Tuesday that its new long-haul budget carrier Scoot will takeoff in 2012.

The pace of growth in the U.S. manufacturing sector unexpectedly slowed in October, in line with trends in China, Britain and Canada in data reported on Tuesday.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy will discuss Greece's decision to hold a referendum on its bailout deal with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday afternoon and then hold an urgent ministerial meeting, Sarkozy's office said.

Prime Minister George Papandreou's call for a referendum on the latest Greek bailout plan has blown a potentially fatal hole in the Eurozone's strategy to overcome its sovereign debt crisis.

Multiple Fortune 100 companies were the victims of a coordinated series of cyber attacks dubbed Nitro, says security firm Symantec Corp. At least 48 firms - all of which are involved in the chemical and defense industries - were subject to the attack, which has been traced back to a computer system owned by a man in his twenties working out of northern China.

At least 48 chemical and defense companies were victims of a coordinated cyber attack that has been traced to a man in China, according to a new report from security firm Symantec Corp.

Oil prices fell more than $2 per barrel on Tuesday as the outlook for global growth darkened with renewed crisis in the euro zone and data suggesting economic activity in key economies was slowing more quickly than expected.

Akamai Technologies President David Kenny, who quit last week, said he has no plans to become the next CEO of Yahoo.

China's big manufacturers ran at their slowest pace in October since early 2009, purchasing managers' data shows, though signs of a bounce-back at smaller firms and a sharp fall in factory-gate prices suggest no swift change to interest rates.

French banks and other lenders exposed to Greece and other weak euro zone countries slumped on Tuesday after Greece's leader said he would put a bailout plan to a referendum, raising the risk of a disorderly default.

Credit Suisse will cut another 1,500 jobs and scale back its capital-guzzling investment banking business as it seeks to meet tough new regulations ahead of other banks after the unit reported disappointing third-quarter results.

Prime Minister George Papandreou's shock decision to call a referendum on Greece's bailout drew veiled threats from Germany on Tuesday and hammered markets edgy over the euro zone crisis.

Stock index futures tumbled on Tuesday as the deal to rescue Greece and prevent a wider sovereign debt crisis faced a new hurdle and as Asian economic data reignited fears of a slowdown in global growth.

The Chinese government slapped a $2.4 million tax notice on one of its most prominent artists; one who played a key part in the design of the National Stadium known as the Bird's Nest where the 2008 Summer Olympics were held.