Financial News from AFP

Wanda, a property firm owned by one of China's richest men, said Monday it would buy US cinema chain AMC Entertainment for $2.6 billion, in a sign of China's growing clout in the entertainment business.The ...

Thailand's economy posted double-digit growth in the first quarter of 2012, rebounding sharply from the fallout of last year's devastating floods, official data showed Monday.Gross domestic product (GDP) ...

High-end London-based jeweller Graff Diamonds on Monday launched the roadshow for its reported $1.0 billion initial public offering in Hong Kong, one of the biggest this year.Graff Diamonds Founder and ...

Australian flag carrier Qantas said on Monday it will axe 500 jobs in its heavy maintenance and engineering operations as part of a restructuring to cut costs, sparking an angry backlash from unions.The ...

After more than a year of tedious negotiations, struggling US Internet pioneer Yahoo! has agreed to sell its stake in Alibaba, China's top e-commerce player, for at least $7.1 billion, the companies announced.The ...

High in the Swiss alpine village of Salins, plans are afoot to build a new hotel and residence complex catering to the hordes of skiers who flock to the resort each season.Developer Jean-Marie Fournier ...

Chinese property group Wanda said it had agreed to buy US cinema chain AMC Entertainment for $2.6 billion in a deal which will create the world's largest movie theatre owner.Wanda, a private firm whose ...

Alibaba, China's top e-commerce player, will re-purchase a 20-percent state in itself from US portal Yahoo! for at least $7.1 billion, the companies announced."At the minimum price and assuming the ...

South Korea's state-run think tank Sunday cut the nation's growth forecast for this year to 3.6 percent from 3.8 percent estimated in November, citing weakening demand amid a global slowdown.The Korea ...

Spain will pick on Monday two independent auditing firms that will look at how deeply the country's banks are exposed to the collapsed real estate sector, the prime minister said on Sunday.Mariano Rajoy, ...

Facebook resumes trading on Wall Street on Monday with shares being closely watched to see how well they stand on their own after stumbling out of the gate in a historic but lackluster debut. Second-guessing ...

Iran on Sunday announced an upward revision of its annual budget, as a rise in oil prices appeared to mitigate the impact of international sanctions on its economy.The Islamic republic's Guardians Council ...

Spain's "indignant" protest movement against economic inequality and spending cuts continues to enjoy widespread support a year after it was launched, a poll published on Sunday showed.Overall ...

G8 leaders said they want debt-stricken Greece to stay in the eurozone at a Camp David summit as the group papered over deep-seated divisions about how best to tackle the eurozone crisis.With the future ...

G8 leaders expressed their wish to see Greece stay in the eurozone at a Camp David summit as the group papered over deep-seated divisions about how best to tackle the eurozone crisis.With the future of ...

Greece could be weeks from a euro exit crunch as an electoral revolt against EU austerity and a run on banks nudges the debt-laden eurozone towards a long-predicted tipping point.Politicians tired of paying ...

Vietnamese police have issued an arrest warrant for the former chairman of state-owned shipping firm Vinalines, official media said, as the scandal rocking the debt-mired company deepens.Duong Chi Dung, ...

As investors and European leaders big and small tot up the potential cost of Greece departing the euro, the European Union too stands perilously close to meltdown after six decades in the making.Weeks ...

Newly-inaugurated President Vladimir Putin has set hugely ambitious targets to catapult the Russian economy into the modern era but their realism remains in doubt despite a benign short-term outlook.Russia ...

Silenced for decades under military rule, Myanmar's workers are now daring to speak out to demand better pay and conditions after a new law gave them the right to strike.Workers in the country formerly ...

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said he did not believe that Spain's banks would need rescuing by Europe."I don't think so," Rajoy told journalists on Saturday after arriving in Chicago ...

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said cash-strapped Greece needed to implement EU and IMF-imposed austerity measures as European solidarity was "not a one-way street.""To tell ...

G8 leaders expressed their wish to see Greece stay in the eurozone at a Camp David summit Saturday, as the group papered over deep-seated divisions about how best to tackle the eurozone crisis.With the ...

G8 leaders stressed their desire to see Greece stay in the eurozone at a crunch Camp David summit Saturday, as they smoothed deep-seated divisions about how best to tackle the eurozone crisis.With the ...

More than 20,000 people on Saturday joined a march through the centre of the German financial capital Frankfurt, police said, in a protest against European austerity programmes.It was the only demonstration ...

Google on Saturday said that Chinese regulators approved its $12.5 billion deal to buy Motorola Mobility, clearing the path for the Internet titan to complete the acquisition early next week.US and European ...

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development headed into a new era Saturday after electing its first British president and approving investment for "Arab democracies" at its annual meeting.After ...

Greek political leaders reacted angrily Saturday to a suggestion, attributed to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, that the country hold a referendum on euro membership alongside an election next month.The ...

G8 host President Barack Obama declared the group "absolutely committed" to growth and fiscal reforms Saturday as leaders of the world's major economies tried to bridge divisions over the eurozone's ...

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Saturday that Germany's economic health depends on that of the European Union, even though exports to the region are at a 20-year low."We have to take advantage ...

Some 20,000 people joined a march through the centre of the German financial capital of Frankfurt Saturday, protesting against European austerity programmes, police said.It was the only demonstration of ...

G8 leaders tried to bridge divisions over how to halt Europe's rapidly-deepening economic crisis on Saturday, as host President Barack Obama backed more pro-growth policies in the face of German opposition.With ...

A South Korean joint venture in energy-rich Uzbekistan said on Saturday it had secured a $2.5 billion credit line to build a new chemical and gas production unit by 2016.The Uz-Kor Gas Chemical company ...