CHINA

In the UK, some Galaxy S2 owners are finally getting their hands on the new Ice Cream Sandwich update, according to CNET UK. SIM-free devices users are now able to download the Android 4.0 software as of April 17th.

International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM), the No. 2 computer maker, reported first-quarter earnings that beat analyst estimates although revenue came in slightly lower than expected.

Nestlé SA is expected to pay at least $9 billion to U.S. drugmaker Pfizer Inc. for the U.S. drugmaker's infant-nutrition business, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.

Enraged hackers broke into the websites of drugmakers that produced pills tainted with poisons, in an attack against what they called the failure of Chinese societyi to protect citizens.

Intel (Nasdaq: INTC), the No. 1 chipmaker, reported first-quarter earnings beat estimates as sales rose much more strongly than expected.

The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday appeared to be inching toward a deal on boosting its financial firepower with Japan, Sweden and Denmark committing a total of $77 billion to help contain the euro zone debt crisis.

Reserves of the hard to extract, unconventional gas deposits could exceed 1,000 trillion cubic feet, experts now believe, ranking the UK alongside China, the U.S. and Argentina

U.S. greenhouse gas emissions increased in 2010, ending a two-year decline. The EPA attributed the increase to an upturn in the economy.

The Tibetan Buddhist leader called the self-immolations “very sad” and blamed Beijing for them.

UK Prime minister David Cameron is pushing China for a proper investigation of the death of British expatriate, Neil Heywood, which is at the center of a political scandal in China involving disgraced party boss Bo Xilai and his wife Gu Kailai.

Shintaro Ishihara may not be a household name in the United States. But in East Asia, he is often at the center of international controversy because of nationalistic-themed statements that regularly infuriate China and South Korea -- and on Monday, he did it again.

Emergency architect Shigeru Ban has designed a cardboard cathedral to replace the iconic ChristChurch Cathedral in New Zealand's quake-ravaged city.

Asia is experiencing an increase in newspaper circulation, giving hope to newspaper publications that fear their eclipse in western countries, such as the United States.

''The tests are about trying to create equality with China rather than trying to outdo it,'' an analyst at the New Delhi-based National Maritime Foundation, said, in a published report.

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO), the world's largest soft-drink maker, reported first-quarter profits that topped analysts' estimates, helped by price increases and strong demand in emerging markets.

Global growth is slowly improving as recovery in the United States gains traction and dangers from Europe recede, but risks remain elevated and the gains are very fragile, the International Monetary Fund said on Tuesday.

The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday raised its projection of growth in the U.S. gross domestic product to 2.1 percent this year and 2.4 percent next year, from 1.7 percent in 2011.

The companies whose shares are moving in pre-market trade Tuesday are: Endocyte, Comerica, Canadian Solar, Sprint Nextel, Valero Energy, U.S. Bancorp, Bank of America , China Gerui Advanced Materials Group, KIT digital, Host Hotels and Resorts and Goldman Sachs Group.

Foreign direct investment (FDI) into China continued to fall for the fifth consecutive month in March, as concerns over European sovereign debt crisis curbed investments by companies in the world’s second largest economy.

Cancellation of the bilateral agreement may also lead to North Korea seeking to conduct a third nuclear test.

Most of the Asian stock markets ended lower Tuesday after data showed that foreign direct investment (FDI) into China declined for the fifth month in a row.