Arrow Energy Signs Agreements to Develop Coal Seam Gas Ventures in China

(Bloomberg) -- Arrow Energy NL, an Australian
producer of gas from coal seams, signed two venture agreements
with companies in China's Liaoning province as it seeks to start
production of the fuel in the Asian nation.

The accords with Shenyang Gas Co. and Liaohe Petroleum
Development Co., a unit of China National Petroleum Corp., follow
similar agreements signed over the past weeks, Brisbane-based
Arrow said today in a statement to the Australian Stock Exchange.
Arrow now has seven projects in three geographic regions in the
Asian nation, it said.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Asian Fish, Tainted With Drugs, Slip Past U.S. Inspectors, States Discover

(Bloomberg) -- Joseph Basile, an Alabama state
scientist, drops a frozen catfish filet into an industrial food
processor and pulverizes it into a fluffy white powder.

The grinding in a laboratory in Montgomery is part of a test
of imported seafood for drugs that U.S. regulators say can cause
cancer or increase resistance to antibiotics. Alabama officials
have reported finding banned medicines missed by the U.S. Food
and Drug Administration in seafood from China, Vietnam and other
Asian countries.


Read more at Bloomberg Exclusive News

China's First-Half Gold Output Rises 15 Percent, Fastest Pace in a Decade

(Bloomberg) -- China, which may surpass the U.S. to
become the second-largest gold producer this year, mined 15
percent more of the precious metal in the first half as higher
prices prompted companies to boost output.

Production rose at the fastest pace in 10 years to 122.5
metric tons in the first six months, the China Gold Association
said on its Web site yesterday. Gold output in June was 23.6
tons, it said.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

China's Stocks Advance for Seventh Day, Led by Shares of Builders, Banks

(Bloomberg) -- China's stocks rose for a seventh
day. China Vanke Co. led developers and banks higher on
speculation U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson may convince
the Chinese government to allow the yuan's gains to accelerate.

``A stronger yuan will boost profits at banks and
developers'' as investors are drawn to local assets, said Zheng
Tuo, who manages the equivalent of $790 million at Bank of
Communications Schroder Fund Management Co. in Shanghai.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

China CNPC strikes oil of commercial value in Chad

(Reuters) - China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) has struck oil of commercial value for the first time in Chad, after buying a 50 percent share of an oil exploration partnership in the landlocked African nation last year.

CNPC, China's top oil and gas producer, did not provide any estimates of oil in place or an even more useful gauge such as recoverable reserves in a news release posted on its Web site (www.cnpc.com.cn) on Monday.


Read more at Reuters Africa

China Doesn't Provide Any Subsidies to Steelmakers, Association's Luo Says

(Bloomberg) -- China doesn't subsidize steelmakers,
the China Iron and Steel Association said in response to a
Financial Times report that Chinese mills had received more than
$52 billion in subsidies over the past decade.

``China absolutely doesn't have any steel subsidies,'' Luo
Bingsheng, vice chairman of the association, told reporters today
in Beijing.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka: Asia Local Bond Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following events and economic
reports may influence trading in Asian local-currency bonds
today. Yields are from the previous session.

China: China Development Bank, a state-owned lender, will
sell 20 billion yuan ($2.64 billion) of 10-year bonds on Aug. 1.
China will maintain a tight monetary policy to prevent the
economy from ``overheating,'' Xinhua News Agency reported July
27. The government will apply ``moderate and tight monetary
policies to cool the growth pace in the economy and improve
quality and efficiency of the growth,'' Xinhua said, citing a
statement by the Chinese Communist Party's Political Bureau.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Sudan assigns Chinese CNPC offshore oil block

(Reuters) - Sudan has signed a deal with Chinese state oil firm China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) to take a majority stake in its Block 13 exploration site, off the coast of the Red Sea, a senior Sudanese oil official said on Friday.

CNPC has a 40 percent stake, 15 percent for both Indonesian state firm and Sudanese state oil firm Sudapet.


Read more at Reuters Africa

McDonald's posts loss after Latin America charge

(Reuters) - Excluding the Latin America charge, McDonald's earned 71
cents a share, in line with a better-than-expected forecast the
fast-food chain gave last week.




In April, McDonald's said it would sell about 1,600
restaurants in Latin America and the Caribbean to a franchisee
so it could focus resources on markets where it sees the
biggest opportunities for growth, such as China.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

McDonald's posts loss on Latin America charge

(Reuters) - Excluding the Latin America charge, McDonald's earned 71 cents a share, in line with the better-than-expected forecast the fast-food chain gave last week.




In April, McDonald's said it would sell about 1,600 restaurants in Latin America and the Caribbean to a franchisee so it could focus resources on markets where it sees the biggest opportunities for growth, such as China.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Rubber Falls as Yen Advances Against U.S. Dollar, China Imports Decline

(Bloomberg) -- Rubber futures in Tokyo fell for the
first day in four as the yen strengthened to its highest in more
than six weeks against the dollar and China reported imports of
the commodity declined last month.

A gain in Japan's currency damps the value of yen-
denominated contracts for commodities such as rubber, which
trades globally in dollars. China's natural rubber imports
dropped 1 percent in June to 118,417 metric tons from a year ago,
the Beijing-based Customs General Administration said today.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

UPDATE 1-Barclays gets nod to buy stake in China trust firm

(Reuters) - SHANGHAI/BEIJING, July 23 - Barclays has
won regulatory approval to buy into a Chinese trust company,
securing a foothold in the country's fast-growing asset
management sector, two sources familiar with the situation said
on Monday.




London-based Barclays Bank Plc will be allowed to buy a
nearly 20 percent stake in New China Trust & Investment Co., one
of the country's oldest trust firms, after negotiations for more
than one year between the two companies, the sources said.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Australian Dollar Set for Record Winning Streak as Commodities Prices Rise

(Bloomberg) -- The Australian dollar headed for a
12th day of gains, the longest winning streak since it was
allowed to trade freely in 1983, as the prices of raw materials
the country exports rose.

The currency traded near an 18-year high as the Westpac
Commodity Futures Index, an export weighted average of exchange-
traded commodity futures prices, advanced 4.5 percent to an all-
time high. The local dollar has surged 17 percent over the past
12 months as demand from China pushed up prices of raw materials,
which add about 14 percent to Australia's economy.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Rubber Falls as Yen Advances Against Dollar, China's Imports Fall in June

(Bloomberg) -- Rubber futures in Tokyo fell for a
first day in four as the yen strengthened to a one-month high
against the dollar and China reported imports of the commodity
declined last month.

A gain in Japan's currency damps the value of yen-
denominated contracts for commodities such as rubber, which
trades globally in dollars. China's natural rubber imports
dropped 1 percent in June to 118,417 metric tons from a year ago,
the Beijing-based Customs General Administration said today.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Dollar hits low, stocks retreat on subprime fears

(Reuters) - The weaker dollar hit Asian exporters such as Canon Inc., with overall market sentiment also soured by losses on Wall Street and caution after China raised interest rates on Friday in another attempt to prevent the buoyant economy from overheating.




Oil prices fell from near-record highs after oil producer group OPEC expressed concern about the impact of high oil prices on the global economy, which traders saw as a sign it might decide to pump more oil. Gold held on to Friday's gains, benefiting from the weak dollar and heightened market uncertainty.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

China's Yuan Advances on Speculation Currency Policy to Help Cool Growth

(Bloomberg) -- The yuan rose by the most in almost
two weeks on speculation China will pursue a stronger currency to
cool economic growth, after the central bank last week raised
interest rates for the third time since March. Bonds may drop.

A stronger yuan would curb export sales that have flooded
the financial system with cash, driving the fastest pace of
economic expansion in 12 years in the second quarter. The
currency gained 0.4 percent in June as the trade surplus widened
87 percent from a year ago to an all-time high of $26.9 billion.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

China's Exported Inflation May Signal Interest-Rate Pressures Around Globe

(Bloomberg) -- The rising cost of goods the U.S.
imports from China may be an early warning signal that central
bankers from the U.K. to India are about to pay a price for a
cause they've championed: globalization.

China, a source of cheap manufactured products for the past
two decades, may be starting to export inflation as the world
economy grows at the fastest pace in a generation.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Mexican Peso Declines After China Raises Interest Rates to Cool Expansion

(Bloomberg) -- Mexico's peso fell after China raised
interest rates, sparking speculation that demand for commodities
including oil, Mexico's biggest export, will fall.

Revenue from oil exports is Mexico's biggest source of
dollar inflows and funds almost 40 percent of government
spending. Oil for September delivery fell 0.1 percent to $76.01 a
barrel at 10:51 a.m. in New York.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Mild China rate hike seen keeping market jittery

(Reuters) - China's stock market, which rebounded on Friday after a deep correction over the past six weeks, may also be hit next week by an announcement made later that a tax on interest income would be cut.




However, signs of strong first-half corporate earnings were expected to outweigh worries about macroeconomic measures.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Yen Erases Declines Versus Euro, Dollar as Stock Futures Signal Lower Open

(Bloomberg) -- The yen erased a decline versus the
euro and dollar as futures on U.S. stock indexes fell, a sign
investors are pulling back from risky bets.

Investors who are less inclined to take risks may exit so-
called carry trades, where they borrow at Japan's low interest
rates to buy higher-yielding securities elsewhere. The Japanese
currency also dropped earlier after China raised rates to cool
economic growth, prompting speculation demand for Japanese
exports in its third-largest market will slow.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News