Asian currencies buffered from global stresses

Asian currencies buffered from global stresses
PTPTN offers to turn study loan into Islamic loan
Macau gambling revenue hits record high
China state paper urges Internet rethink to silence foes
FACTBOX - Key facts about Japan's new finance minister
NEWSMAKER - Noda seen safe choice to lead quake-hit Japan
Japan PM picks relatively unknown finance minister
Mexico arrests police officer over casino attack
VIDEO: Hundreds die in South Sudan raids
VIDEO: Serb mayor's matchmaking holiday
VIDEO: Spain prepares for deficit vote
Government
S. Korea approves religious visit to N. Korea
New Japanese PM unveils youthful cabinet
Clooney opens Venice film festival with political thriller
S. Korea police break up protest against navy base
Foodie revolution brings bacon ice cream to Moscow
From heaven to hell: refugees flee Zanzibar for Mogadishu
Fears grow for Asia's endangered anteaters
Flammable liquid tossed at Melaka Tengah police HQ

Posted: 02 Sep 2011 12:36 AM PDT

Asian currencies will remain buffered from the stresses within the global economy with prudent policies in Asia and stronger underlying flows.

PTPTN offers to turn study loan into Islamic loan

Posted: 02 Sep 2011 12:35 AM PDT

The National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) has targeted to convert 800,000 study loans from the conventional system to the Islamic loan system known as "ujrah."

Macau gambling revenue hits record high

Posted: 02 Sep 2011 12:01 AM PDT

Macau's gambling revenue soared 57 percent in August to a record high, official data show, thanks to wealthy mainland Chinese gamblers who continue to flood into the world's biggest gaming hub.

China state paper urges Internet rethink to silence foes

Posted: 01 Sep 2011 11:46 PM PDT

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's Communist Party control is at risk unless the government takes firmer steps to stop Internet opinion being shaped by increasingly organised political foes, a team of party writers warned in a commentary published on Friday.

FACTBOX - Key facts about Japan's new finance minister

Posted: 01 Sep 2011 11:15 PM PDT

Following are key facts about Azumi:

NEWSMAKER - Noda seen safe choice to lead quake-hit Japan

Posted: 01 Sep 2011 10:44 PM PDT

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's new prime minister Yoshihiko Noda compares himself to an eel-like fish and admits his looks won't get him anywhere in popularity contests, but many say his calm and expertise are exactly what the nation needs at a time of crisis.

Japan PM picks relatively unknown finance minister

Posted: 01 Sep 2011 10:44 PM PDT

TOKYO (Reuters) - New Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda picked a relatively lightweight lawmaker as finance minister on Friday, signalling the fiscally conservative leader intends to call the shots on key economic policies himself.

Mexico arrests police officer over casino attack

Posted: 01 Sep 2011 10:16 PM PDT

MEXICO CITY, Sept 2 — Mexican authorities have arrested a police officer in connection with an attack last week on a casino in the city of Monterrey that killed 52 people, the attorney general's office said yesterday. The Nuevo Leon state police officer is suspected of having taken part in last Thursday's arson attack on the upmarket Casino ...

VIDEO: Hundreds die in South Sudan raids

Posted: 01 Sep 2011 10:41 PM PDT

In South Sudan, hundreds of people have been killed in a cattle raid on a remote and underdeveloped area.

VIDEO: Serb mayor's matchmaking holiday

Posted: 01 Sep 2011 10:47 PM PDT

Single men and women from a town in central Serbia have been given a free holiday to the coast to encourage them to fall in love and have children.

VIDEO: Spain prepares for deficit vote

Posted: 01 Sep 2011 10:36 PM PDT

In Spain, lawmakers are preparing to vote on an amendment to the constitution which would create a legal cap for the country's budget deficit.

Government

Posted: 01 Sep 2011 10:28 PM PDT

Every country needs a government to operate but recent history shows that the government's role and functions have been gradually degraded to non-essential.

S. Korea approves religious visit to N. Korea

Posted: 01 Sep 2011 09:59 PM PDT

South Korea has given leading Buddhist monks permission to visit North Korea, the first religious trip since ties turned icy over the sinking of a warship last year, officials said Friday.

New Japanese PM unveils youthful cabinet

Posted: 01 Sep 2011 09:58 PM PDT

Japan's sixth new leader in five years on Friday named a youthful cabinet lacking the usual political heavyweights, as he attempts to unite a divided party and safeguard a fragile post-quake recovery.

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Clooney opens Venice film festival with political thriller

Posted: 01 Sep 2011 09:57 PM PDT

(Republic of Italy-AFP) - Hollywood star George Clooney opened a star-studded Venice film festival on Wednesday with the world premiere of his political thriller "The Ides of March" based around a US presidential campaign. Images from the red carpet in Venice. Copyright (AFP RELAXNEWS/ AFPTV), 2011.

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S. Korea police break up protest against navy base

Posted: 01 Sep 2011 09:55 PM PDT

More than 1,000 South Korean riot police Friday dispersed or arrested scores of protesters who for months have blocked construction of a naval base on a scenic holiday island.

Foodie revolution brings bacon ice cream to Moscow

Posted: 01 Sep 2011 09:54 PM PDT

Whether it's learning to make bacon ice cream, sampling lamb from the Kalmyk steppes, or rustling up paella a la russe, Muscovites have embraced all things foodie in a gastronomic revolution.

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From heaven to hell: refugees flee Zanzibar for Mogadishu

Posted: 01 Sep 2011 09:52 PM PDT

It seems an unlikely choice: fleeing the palm-fringed beaches of tourist paradise Zanzibar for the bombed-out buildings of war-torn capital Mogadishu, one of the most dangerous cities in the world.

Fears grow for Asia's endangered anteaters

Posted: 01 Sep 2011 09:51 PM PDT

Tiger poaching gets the press but wildlife groups in Asia are increasingly fearful for the future of a smaller, scalier and "less sexy" creature: the pangolin.