IBT Staff Reporter

China's economy is headed in the right direction but the foundations of the recovery are not yet solid, a Chinese central bank official said on Tuesday, adding to a chorus of voices cautioning against expectations of a rapid rebound from the global crisis.

Europe extended a global slide in equities and oil on Tuesday while the low-yielding yen hit a three-week high against the dollar as investors grew concerned about the prospect for global economic recovery.

The U.S. Justice Department may drop a legal case aimed at forcing Swiss bank UBS AG to reveal the names of 52,000 wealthy American clients suspected of offshore tax evasion, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.

Oil steepened losses below $67 a barrel on Tuesday, after a fall of nearly 4 percent the previous day, as renewed worries over the uncertain outlook for major economies sparked a sell-off across global equity markets.

Asian stocks tumbled on Tuesday, as confidence in the recovery ebbed and falling commodity prices and a sharp drop on Wall Street spooked investors into taking profits and buying the yen for safety.

Ten-year old Yilong is already a statistic.

Rich and poor nations edged closer to a deal on proposals for reforming the global financial system, but diplomats said there would have to be changes if a U.N. conference this week is to adopt them.

The U.S. Justice Department may drop a legal case aimed at forcing UBS AG to reveal the names of 52,000 wealthy American clients suspected of offshore tax evasion, the New York Times said, citing a United States official briefed on the matter.

Signals from the flight data recorders of the Air France airliner that crashed into the Atlantic killing all 228 people on board have been located, Le Monde newspaper said on its website on Tuesday.

Toyota Motor Corp confirmed Akio Toyoda as its new president on Tuesday, promoting the grandson of the company's founder to guide the world's No.1 automaker through the worst downturn in its history.

Iranian presidential candidate Mir Hossein Moussavi and Mehdi Karroubi called upon supporters on Monday to mourn for the death of Neda Soltan.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown will unveil proposals on Tuesday to rebuild the image of parliament tarnished by a scandal over lawmakers' expenses, and in so doing seek to restore his ailing popularity.

A gunman shot dead a rival of Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud on Tuesday, dealing a potential blow to a government plan to defeat al Qaeda ally Mehsud.

Powerful tropical storm Andres churned off Mexico's Pacific coast on Monday, threatening to brush past the popular beach resort of Zihuatanejo and was expected to build into a hurricane.

The U.S. government plans to disclose that Ford Motor Co , Tesla Motors Inc and Nissan Motor Co will be among the beneficiaries of a $25 billion loan program created by Congress to help auto makers retool factories for advanced-technology vehicles, the Wall Street Journal said.

An Indonesian mother who was fined, jailed and put on trial after sending an e-mail to friends complaining about her treatment in a private hospital, has become a rallying point for reform of the country's legal system.

Iranian police broke up a protest in Tehran and the hardline Revolutionary Guards said they would help crush what they called rioters opposing the re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Asian stocks tumbled on Tuesday, after falling commodity prices and a sharp drop on Wall Street spooked investors into taking profits and buying the yen on speculation the rapid pace of recovery may not be sustainable.

President Barack Obama will throw his weight behind legislative bids to reform healthcare and cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions on Tuesday in his fourth White House press conference since taking office.

Fewer Americans believe that President Barack Obama's stimulus package will restore the nation to economic health compared to two months ago but most still approve of the job the president is doing, according to a new poll published on Monday.

Two Washington, D.C., subway trains collided during the Monday afternoon rush hour, killing six people and injuring 70 in a mass of tangled metal.

A South Korean hospital on Tuesday removed the life-support device from a 77-year-old patient, who had earlier been ruled with a right to die with dignity., the Associated Press reported.

Rain and cooler-than-usual weather so far in June may have dampened demand for summer items such as sandals, swimwear and beer for retailers already hard put to counter sales declines during the recession.

Six people died and seventy resulted injured from a Metro trains' collision in Washington D.C., on Monday during rush-hour, but the cause of the accident still unknown.

Visa Inc and MasterCard Inc, the world's largest payment networks, could face lower revenue and pressure on their stock prices amid a push for increased U.S. regulation of credit cards.

Business revenue of companies controlled by China's central government dropped 7.4% in the first five months over the same period last year, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) said on Monday.

PetroChina Company Limited announced on Sunday that it had completed purchase of 45.51% shares of refiner Singapore Petroleum Co (SPC) and would make a buyout offer for the rest of its shares in cash.

Investment in renewable energy is down and achieving oil prices that spur green-growth should be a goal for December's Copenhagen conference, the chief economist of the International Energy Agency said on Monday.

The United States and Russia started their third round talks on a new strategic arms reduction pact on Monday in Geneva.