Legendary monetary economist Milton Friedman dies
WASHINGTON, Nov 16, 2006 (AFP) - Nobel prize-winning economist Milton Friedman, whose ideas helped power a conservative policy revolution in the 1980s, died …
World
US soft drink giant Coca-Cola opens Asian ‘cafe in a box’
SINGAPORE, Nov 17, 2006 (AFP) - US beverage giant Coca-Cola Company, in a long-term plan to diversify from soft drinks, will serve coffee and tea-making …
Sonia Gandhi outlines vision of future Indian superpower
NEW DELHI, Nov 17, 2006 (AFP) - Ruling Congress Party leader Sonia Gandhi on Friday outlined her vision of India's future, not as a traditional military …
Americans look to Asia for affordable heart, hip and other surgeries
WASHINGTON, Nov 16, 2006 (AFP) - When Wayne Steinard visited his doctor earlier this year he faced two options: either undergo open heart surgery in the US for …
Bangladesh exports set new quarterly record
DHAKA, Nov 15, 2006 (AFP) - Bangladesh exports grew a record 31.5 per cent to 3.25 billion dollars in the first quarter of the 2006-2007 financial year amid a …
China plans to expand luxury tax
BEIJING, Nov 15, 2006 (AFP) - China is planning to expand a consumption tax on luxury items and adjust upward other taxes in an effort to even out income …
Nobel laureate touts microcredit, but how does it work?
HALIFAX, Canada, Nov 14, 2006 (AFP) - Few people had heard of microcredit before a determined Bangladeshi economist called Muhammad Yunus won this year's Nobel …
Seven banks announce plan for new European stock market
LONDON, Nov 15, 2006 (AFP) - Seven big investment banks said on Wednesday that they planned to create a new pan-European platform for trading shares to rival …
Singapore to hike tax in effort to help poor
SINGAPORE, Nov 14, 2006 (AFP) - Singapore will raise its consumption tax next year to fund social programmes for its lower income households rather than turn …
Drug prices for world’s needy grow: MSF
GENEVA, Nov 14, 2006 (AFP) - Drug prices have increased in the past five years despite a commitment by the World Trade Organisation's 149 members to make them …
Saudi posted 58-billion-dollar budget surplus in 2005
RIYADH, Nov 13, 2006 (AFP) - Oil powerhouse Saudi Arabia posted a record budget surplus of 58 billion dollars in 2005 on the back of surging crude prices while …
Microcredit summit vies to drum up business for world’s poorest
WASHINGTON, Nov 10, 2006 (AFP) - What do Bill Gates, Queen Sofia of Spain, Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus and billionaire philanthropist George Soros …
Asia on brink of diabetes disaster, experts warn
PARIS, Nov 10, 2006 (AFP) - Health services across Asia could crash in the face of a worsening epidemic of obesity-led diabetes, experts warn. The more common …
Australia’s costly fees drive foreign students into sex work: study
SYDNEY, Nov 10, 2006 (AFP) - The crippling cost of studying in Australia is forcing foreign students to take up risky sex work to make ends meet, a researcher …
American in Nepal moves from royal consort to peace campaigner
November 9, 2006 (AFP) - Barbara Adams has been witness to huge change in Nepal during the 45 years she has lived in the Himalayan country. Well before …
Zimbabwe watchdog to enforce price controls
HARARE, Nov 9, 2006 (AFP) - The Zimbabwean government is to establish an official commission to monitor prices and incomes in the latest attempt to stall …
Vietnam’s farmers brace for new WTO era
HANOI, Nov 8, 2006 (AFP) - Vietnam's WTO accession will impact on the 70 percent of its people who work in agriculture by securing key export markets but also …
Sri Lanka among thousands abuse Malaysian visa deal: reports
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 8, 2006 (AFP) - A visa-on-arrival deal aimed at attracting tourists to Malaysia had allowed thousands of foreigners to overstay in the …
India’s software giant Infosys aims for Nasdaq 100 index
BANGALORE, India, Nov 7, 2006 (AFP) - Shareholders of Indian software major Infosys Tuesday approved a plan for converting 30 million local shares into its US …
Vietnamese give cautious welcome to do-or-die era of WTO
HANOI, Nov 7, 2006 (AFP) - Most Vietnamese appear to welcome their country joining the World Trade Organisation (WTO) but many also fear they must step up the …