Beijing targets trusts to stem shadow banking risks

China is intensifying its cat-and-mouse pursuit of the 4 trillion yuan ($635 billion) investment trust industry, with credit risks on the rise as economic growth slows.

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Popular file-sharing website Megaupload shut down

One of the world's most popular file-sharing sites was shut down Thursday, and its founder and several company officials were accused of facilitating millions of illegal downloads of films, music and other content.

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Photography pioneer Kodak files for bankruptcy

Eastman Kodak Co, the photography icon that invented the hand-held camera, has filed for bankruptcy protection and plans to shrink significantly, capping a prolonged plunge for one of America's best-known companies.

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Megaupload.com site shut down, seven indicted in US

Megaupload.com, one of the world's largest file-sharing sites, has been shut down and seven people charged with copyright infringement and other crimes, US authorities announced.

Middle class in Africa grows to 34.3% on solid economic growth

Africa's middle class has tripled over the last 30 years, with fully one in three now considered above the poverty line but not among the wealthy, according to the African Development Bank (AfDB).

Battle for control of Asia’s seas goes underwater

It’s getting a bit more crowded under the sea in Asia, where Andrew Peterson commands one of the world’s mightiest weapons: a $2 billion nuclear submarine with unrivaled stealth and missiles that can devastate targets hundreds of miles (kilometers) away.

Lamborghini’s roaring decade in Singapore

Melvin Goh sells cars to people who do not intend to drive them. As his dealership EuroSports Auto celebrated a decade of officially distributing Lamborghinis last year, all Mr Goh would have needed as a progress report was a languid wave at a Lamborghini Reventon Roadster.

English Premier League finds China a struggle

English soccer’s Premier League may have to give away its television rights for free to build its fan base in China.

DBS’s disclosure on ATM security in the spotlight

Two Bugis ATMs in Nov card-skimming scam didn’t have key security feature on

Chinese New Year launch for Watertown at $1,080 psf

The residential component of Watertown, a mixed-use project in Punggol, will be hitting the market this Chinese New Year, with an indicative pricing of $1,080 per square foot (psf).

Deals to dig Down Under

The year ahead promises fierce competition for Australian mining assets, with Japanese, South Korean and US firms challenging Chinese buyers

China foreign inflows drop in December

Foreign direct investment in China rose 9.7 per cent last year to a record US$116 billion, though December’s inflow of US$12.24 billion was down 12.7 per cent versus year-ago levels, the Commerce Ministry said on Wednesday.

Prices plunge as China turns sour on top Bordeaux

Speculators and China’s super-rich have turned sour on Bordeaux’s most prestigious, investment-grade wines, causing a deep dip in prices, year-end figures have revealed.

Italian fashion house says sorry to Hong Kong

Italian clothing chain Dolce & Gabbana on Wednesday apologised to the people of Hong Kong for allegedly discriminating against them in favour of wealthy mainland shoppers.

Porsche Buyer Demands Refund, Beseiges Dealership with Protest

Porsche accused of “quality problems”, denounced by hundreds of protestors besieging showroom

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China Must Reform to Beat Shadow Lending, Loan Sharks

China must bring to heel an estimated $1.6 trillion shadow banking system if it is to deflate enormous asset bubbles fuelled by unregulated lending and stop small firms from getting forced to look to loan sharks for working capital.

How China’s model is moving from boom to bust

Even China? Could the world’s economic juggernaut, having grown an average of 10 per cent annually for three decades, face a slowdown or what for China would be a recession?

Does it have a real estate ‘bubble’ about to ‘pop’? What would be the global consequences? Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner visits China and Japan this week. These questions form a backdrop. With Europe’s slump and America’s sluggish economy, a sizable Chinese slowdown would be bad news.

Red wine may inhibit breast cancer: US study

Red wine may have some effect in inhibiting the hormone that causes breast cancer, a study has found.

What China Can Teach Europe

From the outside, China often appears to be a highly centralized monolith. Unlike Europe’s cities, which have been able to preserve a certain identity and cultural distinctiveness despite the homogenizing forces of globalization, most Chinese cities suffer from a drab uniformity.

Spectre of ‘ghost hotels’ haunts China

5-star inns rise, but there are few guests