Rebel News - Independent News and Analysis

India's economy has registered its fastest growth in more than two years in the last quarter due to an expansion in manufacturing and services, official data shows.

India's economy grew 8.8 percent in the 2010 April-June quarter compared with the same period last year, India's Central Statistical Organization said in a statement released in New Delhi on Tuesday.

The Bank of Japan is holding an emergency meeting to decide on easing monetary policy in an effort to curb a surging yen amid mounting political pressure.

"Today... the chairman of the Policy Board decided to call an unscheduled monetary policy meeting," Japan's central bank said in a statement on Monday.

Iran says it is negotiating a deal with China to launch a railway project which will link the Iranian capital, Tehran, to northwestern provinces in the country.

The project is estimated to cost between USD 1.5bn and USD 2bn and is expected to be completed within the next 2.5 years, Fars News Agency quoted Iranian Minister of Road and Transportation Hamid Behbahani as saying on Saturday.

Japan's consumer prices have continued to fall for the 17th straight month, driving stocks lower on concern that the nation's economic recovery is uncertain.

The nationwide core consumer price index dropped 1.1% from a year earlier in July while household spending increased less than forecast, data from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications showed Friday, Reuters reported.

The yen has retreated from fifteen-year highs against the US dollar amid reports of Japanese authorities' resolve to curtail the currency's climb.

The Japanese money was trading at Y84.72 against the greenback at about lunchtime in Tokyo, and has been steadily retreat since then, The Financial Times newspaper reported on Thursday.

Henan Airlines has dismissed its president and extended a public apology after 43 people were killed in a plane crash in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province.

Li Qiang was removed from his post and Cao Bo was named as the company's acting president.

Creditors of Daewoo Electronics are about to ink a deal to sell the South Korea's number 3 electronics firm to Iranian home appliance maker Entekhab Industrial Group.

The South Korean company's creditors including Woori Bank, chose in April Iran's Entekhab Industrial Group as the preferred bidder for their 97.5 percent stake in Daewoo Electronics, Yonhap news agency quoted financial sources as saying on Tuesday.

Asian markets have been showing mixed signs amid worries of a weak global economic recovery while Wall Street has closed lower over pessimism about the US economy.

Japanese shares continued losses on Monday with Japan's benchmark Nikkei falling 0.4 percent to 9,141.01 points on worries about a strong yen.

Philippine Airlines may be forced to ground its fleet permanently if it cannot boost its pilot ranks by October. Twenty-five pilots resigned abruptly last month, seeking employment elsewhere. They say bad work conditions and worsening labour disputes led to their en-masse resignation. International regulations stipulate that pilots cannot fly more than 1000 hours a year. By October, most Philippine Airlines pilots would have reached their limits. Marga Ortigas reports from Manila, the Philippine capital. [August 21, 2010]

The seemingly recession-proof smart phone is suffering from a side effect of the rough economy: Manufacturers simply can't build enough of the gadgets because chip-makers that rolled back production last year are now scrambling to play catch-up.

The chip shortage means Apple Inc.'s rivals are having trouble making enough phones to compete with the iPhone, a problem expected to persist through the holidays. It's also affecting wireless carriers, some of which are seeing delays in improving their networks, and it could even raise computer prices.