Category: World

SHANGHAI, Dec 20, 2006 (AFP) – As children around the globe unwrap Christmas presents with “made in China” labels, some toymakers here are turning their attention to a new and potentially lucrative market — their own. For nearly 20 years, China’s 20,000 domestic factories have served as the elves of Santa Claus’s workshop, exporting a […]

LONDON, Dec 19, 2006 (AFP) – About half of the billions of dollars donated by individuals, companies and governments worldwide to help the victims of the southeast Asian tsunami two years ago has still not been spent, the BBC said on Tuesday. According to figures obtained by the broadcaster from a database compiled by the […]

HONG KONG, Dec 20, 2006 (AFP) – Asian stocks recovered from sharp falls Wednesday after Thailand’s military government backed down on imposing harsh currency controls which saw Bangkok shares lose a massive 15 percent. Elsewhere, benchmarks tended to follow local factors resulting in Tokyo closing up 1.40 percent and above the critical 17,000 points mark […]

KLADNO, Czech Republic, Dec 20, 2006 (AFP) – At a new factory here, real people are now putting together giant characters out of Lego building bricks for a world of make-believe. But they are also building a strategy in one of the toughest games in big business: toymaking The characters are being assembled for Legoland […]

SINGAPORE, Dec 20, 2006 (AFP) – Loan sharks, prostitutes, money launderers and mobsters — they’re traditionally as much a part of casinos as the punters themselves.But squeaky-clean Singapore is taking steps to make sure criminals have no place in the city-state’s two new gaming centres, which are due to open by 2010. Analysts have confidence […]

CALANGUTE, India, Dec 19, 2006 (AFP) – India’s Arabian Sea tourist resort of Goa, beloved of hippies and backpackers, plans to launch an armada of floating casinos to pull in high-roller tourists. Goa’s state government proposed the casinos as India posted a 13 percent rise in tourist arrivals to 3.91 million in the fiscal year […]

HONG KONG, Dec 19, 2006 (AFP) – Asian stocks were broadly lower Tuesday, with investors spooked by the worst ever losses in Bangkok where the military government imposed capital controls reminiscent of the 1997 Asian financial crisis. The controls, aimed at curbing a massive appreciation in the local currency, stunned the region, prompting heavy stock […]

GENEVA, Dec 19, 2006 (AFP) – More journalists were killed in 2006 than any other year, with the war in Iraq still the deadliest conflict for the third consecutive year, a media watchdog group said on Tuesday. The Geneva-based Press Emblem Campaign (PEC) said that 94 journalists lost their lives in the course of their […]

NEW DELHI, Dec 15, 2006 (AFP) – India’s real estate market is in overdrive as developers snap up land to build malls and housing enclaves, but high prices and opaque rules make it hard for first-time buyers to land a dream home. The sector, worth 12 billion dollars, is growing at 30 percent a year, […]

LONDON, Dec 14, 2006 (AFP) – Crude oil prices could head lower in 2007 after striking all-time highs above 78 dollars per barrel this year, as global production catches up with demand and geopolitical risks lessen, experts say. “This year, the main story has been the political risks story,” Global Insight oil analyst Simon Wardell […]

MANILA, Dec 13, 2006 (AFP) – Asia’s urban population is expected to grow by 70 percent to more than 2.6 billion over the next 25 years, placing severe strain on services, according to a book jointly published by the Asian Development Bank. “Development in Asia is tied to the growth of sustainable cities,” he added. […]

PARIS, Dec 12, 2006 (AFP) – For the companies and individuals inhabiting the web’s ever-evolving ecosystem, three big revolutions have taken place almost unnoticed by outside observers. The first, they argue, was the initial phase — or what they call “Web 1.0” — when corporations like the BBC, Disney and established newspapers set up virtual […]