Japanese stocks closed sharply higher on Wednesday but gains were overshadowed by continued losses in banks including UFJ Holdings Inc, as well as UFJ's major borrowers.
Chilean stocks closed almost flat on Tuesday, as concerns about natural gas supplies from Argentina and the future of Chile's top telephone company offset positive influence from rising markets elsewhere in Latin America.
The Swiss franc ticked slightly lower against the dollar on Wednesday, relinquishing some of its recent gains after the Swiss National Bank (SNB) signalled that it saw no risk of rising inflation despite low interest rates.
The Indian rupee was steady in deals on Wednesday but traders said the local currency could come under pressure later in the day as domestic oil importers step up their month-end dollar purchases.
The dollar was steady against major currencies on Wednesday as investors looked ahead to US employment data due next week that would give clues on the state of the economy and set a direction for the currency.
The dollar fell sharply on Tuesday as investors shrugged off mildly positive US housing and consumer confidence data, focusing instead on the impact of high oil prices on the economy.
Indonesia's rupiah steadied on Wednesday while staying close to the previous day's 19-month low and other Asian currencies rallied after a rise in the yen and in most of the region's stock markets.
The Australian dollar consolidated under its offshore high of around 71 US cents on Wednesday after bounding higher on broad weakness in the US dollar as investor concern over the impact of high oil prices on economic growth grew.
Russian construction and engineering firm Interenergoservice is to evacuate all its remaining workers in Iraq after two employees were killed in an attack early Wednesday near Baghdad, its management told AFP.
Ukraine is stretched to the breaking point in its struggle to deal with hundreds of thousands of tonnes of Soviet-era weapons and needs financial support from investors, Defence Minister Evhen Marchuk said on Wednesday.
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak is due to hold talks Friday in Moscow with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the Arab-Israeli conflict and a US initiative to push for democratic reforms in the Middle East.
The Indian air force said Wednesday it will scrap 70 MiG-21 aircraft next year and in an added step will further shrink its fleet of fighter aircraft, depleted by regular crashes.
Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili on Wednesday proposed to offer two separatist regions a special status and to negotiate on the conditions for them to remain a part of the former Soviet republic.
The United States has promised to look into protests about charges that will be levied from journalists covering the Group of Eight (G8) summit in the US state of Georgia next month, a top Russian official said Wednesday.
EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana called on Belarus Wednesday to use elections later this year to end its diplomatic isolation, as he met key opponents of the Minsk regime in Brussels.
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, bolstered by reports that he will avoid prosecution for corruption, on Sunday will unveil his revamped Gaza Strip withdrawal plan to his cabinet, where aides say he is likely to win a tight vote.
The African Union Wednesday said Malawian elections did not take place on a "level playing field", adding its voice to all other foreign observer missions which failed to endorse the polls as free and fair.
United Nations peacekeepers in eastern Congo vowed on Wednesday to use military force to crack down on thousands of Rwandan Hutu rebels who have not yet disarmed as part of efforts to end inter-militia fighting.
Saudi Arabia has deported 7,429 allegedly Nigerian nationals in the past four months for immigration-related offences and prostitution, officials of the Nigeria Immigration Service said Wednesday.
Alleged terrorist Jack Roche failed in his only attempt to recruit for an Australian al Qaeda cell before being ordered to abandon the plan by radical Indonesian cleric Abu Bakar Bashir, a court was told here Wednesday.
Malaysia should sign and ratify international laws regarding torture as testimony that it does not condone the abuse of prisoners, a rights group said Wednesday.
US President George W. Bush telephoned Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to congratulate him on taking office, White House spokesman Scott McClellan told reporters.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Wednesday was named recipient of the 2004 Philadelphia Liberty Medal, given to those demonstrating leadership and vision in the pursuit of freedom.
The United States, Russia and the UN are working to round up nuclear material across the globe to keep it out of the hands of rogue states and militants trying to acquire anything from crude "dirty bombs" to atomic weapons.
European Union states agreed on Wednesday to demand a firmer commitment from Syria renouncing weapons of mass destruction in return for signing a trade and aid pact with the Middle Eastern state, diplomats said.
Rescue workers dug through mud and debris on Wednesday for survivors and bodies as the death toll from devastating floods and landslides in the Dominican Republic and neighbouring Haiti climbed to more than 600.
Britain's Tony Blair sought on Wednesday to quash talk of a split with the United States over Iraq, saying foreign troops' operations should stay under US command once an interim local government takes over.
Afghan troops were on Wednesday hunting up to 200 suspected Taleban after 20 militants were killed by US warplanes and Afghan ground forces during a clash with militants hiding out in mountains bordering Pakistan, officials said.
Washington's global anti-terror policies are "bankrupt of vision" as human rights become sacrificed in the blind pursuit of security, a leading human rights group charged on Wednesday.
Sudan's government and southern rebels hammered out final details on Wednesday to a deal paving the way to end Africa's longest-running civil war, delaying a planned signing ceremony in Kenya.
India's former foreign secretary and high commissioner (ambassador) to Pakistan J.N. Dixit, was Wednesday appointed the country's new national security adviser, an official said.
Thai authorities have uncovered a new bird flu outbreak in the northern city of Chiang Mai at a farm attached to a university, an official at Thailand's Livestock Department said Wednesday.
The US overseer in Iraq unveiled a 25 million-dollar fund Wednesday to compensate thousands of Iraqis victimised by Saddam Hussein, which officials said was inadequate for the flood of likely applicants.
The United States fears al Qaeda is plotting a big attack inside the country or on US interests but has no plans to raise the terror threat level and no details on when, where or how it might occur, top officials said on Wednesday.
Sterling hit a six-week high against the dollar on Wednesday as persistently high oil prices and soft US data dimmed expectations the Federal Reserve would raise interest rates aggressively in the foreseeable future.
The dollar slipped to its lowest levels in over two weeks against the euro and yen on Wednesday as investor concern about high oil prices and their impact on the US economy kept the greenback on the defensive.
India's benchmark share index eased for the second straight day on Wednesday, led by tech stocks and auto makers, as investors turned cautious on the eve of the new Congress-led government's key policy announcements.
European corporate bonds crept higher on Wednesday as weaker-than-expected US economic data damped expectations for a hike in Federal Reserve interest rates, fuelling demand for fixed income securities.
European corporate bonds crept higher on Wednesday as weaker-than-expected US economic data damped expectations for a hike in Federal Reserve interest rates, fuelling demand for fixed income securities.
British blue chips closed higher on Wednesday as investors snapped up chemicals group ICI and engineering firm GKN, helping the FTSE-100 to fight back from two days of losses.
London coffee futures soared at the close on Wednesday in hefty turnover driven by fund and speculative buying, underpinned by worries over cold weather in Brazil, traders said.
France's decision to ban Bayer CropScience's Gaucho insecticide for maize could end up harming the environment and may reduce the country's crop, the French seed manufacturers' group GNIS said on Wednesday.
US oil prices fell below $41 on Wednesday on profit-taking sales, even as shrinking American gasoline inventories reinforced fears of a supply crunch in the world's biggest oil consuming nation.
London sugar futures were mixed on Wednesday amid trade and fund buying, underpinned by growing worries about rain-induced delays in the harvest in the centre and south of top grower Brazil, traders said.
NYCE cotton settled easier Wednesday on speculative and options-related commercial selling, with players looking toward a government report tomorrow to provide direction on the next move, brokers said.
Brazilian coffee exporters see China as potentially the world's biggest coffee market, saying it could be weaned from its traditional tea-drinking culture by new marketing ideas, Brazil's coffee exporters' leader said.
Gold was firmer in Europe on Wednesday as investor concern at high oil prices weakened the dollar against other currencies and highlighted gold as a hedge against economic uncertainty, dealers said.
Lead and zinc motored higher on the London Metal Exchange (LME) on Wednesday, spurred by news workers at Tara Mines, Europe's biggest zinc mine, plan to down tools for three days starting June 1 in a strike that management says will lead to the suspension
CSCE coffee futures settled higher Wednesday on heavy speculative buying by funds, although stiff producer sales sharply pared the market's rally, brokers said.
CSCE raw sugar futures ended firmer Wednesday on speculative fund buying, but producer sales capped the advance, although fund accounts may mount another probe of higher ground this week, brokers said.
Soft red winter wheat futures at the Chicago Board of Trade were higher early on Wednesday amid worries that US winter wheat may be damaged by harsh weather, traders said.
Chicago Board of Trade corn futures were lower on profit-taking at midday Wednesday after approaching three-week highs early on worries about weather damage to the US crop, brokers said.
Chicago Board of Trade soyabeans were mixed at midday Wednesday after early two-sided trade, with nearby contracts up on US export hopes, traders said.
COMEX gold stretched its recovery early Wednesday, with strength in the euro and month-end position rollovers dominating floor activity, and weak US durable goods orders giving it extra support.
At least one Sub-Inspector died and 9 other Rangers personnel, including two captains, were injured seriously, while three of them were in precarious condition, when a landmine exploded in tri-border area during mines clearing operation.
The UN Information Centre and Ministry of Foreign Affairs would jointly organise a seminar on International Day of UN Peacekeepers, May 28 at National Library Auditorium.
The Senate standing committee on religious affairs, which met here on Wednesday under the chairmanship of Senator Sami-ul-Haq, called for making all-out efforts to look after the welfare of Hajis and ensure that they do not experience any difficulty durin
Zouhair A. Khaliq, President and CEO of Mobilink claimed that the company being a market leader with 60 percent market share and having the largest coverage footprint in Pakistan, was poised to overtake the PTCL subscriber base this year.
The bodies of three Pakistani fishermen have been sent to their native villages in Keti Bandar and Shah Bandar aboard Edhi ambulances after their arrival from Mumbai, India at Karachi Airport on Wednesday.
Sardar Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India, is a Sikh. Sonia Gandhi the chairperson of the largest governing party of India, the Congress, is a Christian lady and Italian by birth.
The recent tragic massacre of innocent law-abiding citizens in Karachi's Haideri Mosque, has exposed the hollowness of this regime's claim of good governance.
Khaled Fattal, a Syrian-born businessman with US citizenship, residence in Britain and an office in Singapore, could qualify as a citizen of the world.
Webster Online dictionary defines the word "responsible" as (1) liable to be called upon to answer for one's acts or decisions: answerable (2) able to fulfill one's obligations: reliable, trustworthy (3) able to choose for oneself between right and wrong
As of now, the Finance Minister of Pakistan must be the most uneasy person in the country. With the date of budget announcement coming nearer, his worries would only increase.
NWFP Health Minister Inayatullah has asked experts for chalking out an efficient and workable plan for starting kidney transplant services in the Frontier province immediately.
The first formal meeting of the customs advisory committee was held at Customs House, Peshawar, which was presided by Collector Customs Liaquat Ally Agha.
Punjab Governor Khalid Maqbool has assured the cotton growers of the forthcoming budget will ensure development in agriculture water sector, uninterrupted power supply and credit facilities.
NWFP Chief Minister Akram Khan Durrani has informed the provincial Cabinet that Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi has promised that wheat flour supply to NWFP would continue, saying that the Frontier province will get three million tonnes of wh
Sarhad Petroleum Cartage & Dealers Association on Wednesday warned to stop illegal sale of substandard smuggled petrol in the province otherwise they would have no option other than starting the sale of same petrol at their filling stations.
The government has evolved an agriculture strategy attaching priority on solution of water shortage by construction of small dams and introducing drip and sprinkler irrigation system.
The significance of social dialogue in the field of industrial relations and relations between labour and management was highlighted at a two-day ILO, National Institute of Labour Administration Training (Nilat) and South Asia and Vietnam Project on tripa
Sukkur Chamber of Commerce & Industry, (SCCI) president Khalid Mehmood Khan strongly protested against the abrupt and sudden increase in gas tariff for Industrial, Commercial and Residential consumers by Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra).
Textile exporters have demanded immediate setting up of textile city at Faisalabad to consolidate export base and to brace up for new challenges of open competition in post quota global market.
Chief executive, Peshawar Electricity Supply Company (Pesco) Brigadier Tahir Saeed Malik has directed the company officials to make efforts for the recovery of the outstanding from government departments before end of the current financial year.
The Radio Diagnostics and Imaging Department of Civil Hospital, Karachi was formally inaugurated here on Wednesday following its upgradation with the support of Patient Aid Society and the Dow College Graduates (Dowiites) batch 1979.
Sindh Government has proposed to make amendments in the West Pakistan Motor Vehicles Rules, 1969 to provide for restriction on use of mobile telephone during driving and also compulsory fastening of belt by passengers on front seat.
NWFP Governor Lieutenant General Syed Iftikhar Hussain Shah (Retd) has hinted the intention of the federal government to allocate Rs 9 billion for the promotion of higher education in the national budget, which is almost double of prevailing allocations o
The Capital Development Authority (CDA) has sent a summary to the Ministry of Interior to remove CDA Director General Environment for sheer negligence on eve of Sultan of Brunei visit, informed sources told Business Recorder here on Wednesday.
The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Wednesday admitted a petition filed by Hamza Shahbaz Sharif, son of former Chief Minister, Punjab, and PML-N President Shahbaz Sharif, for regular hearing challenging inclusion of his name in Exit Control List (ECL), and iss
All Pakistan Moneychangers Action Committee, while rejecting the conditions imposed by State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) with respect to formation of 'B' Category exchange companies (EC-B), has said that the decision is aimed at facilitating the foreign exchan
Minister of State and Chairman Export Promotion Bureau, Tariq Ikram, inaugurated the first co-located international exhibition on Food Processing, Plastic, Printing and Packaging.
Chairman Pakistan Association of Autoparts & Accessories Manufacturers (Paapam) has welcomed the statement of federal finance minister Shaukat Aziz that auto-parts makers should further expand their capacities and production.