It seems like yesterday that women's erotica was something to be read in private under the sheets. But no more. With ebooks like Kindle and Nook enabling discreet downloading and reading, erotic novels ...

Australian marine pilots Monday called for a review of how ships pass by the Great Barrier Reef, warning of the risk of a major environmental disaster on the tourist attraction. Australian Reef Pilots, ...

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

Asian markets were mixed on Monday after last week's huge losses, with traders taking some heart from a statement by Group of Eight leaders saying they wanted Greece to remain in the eurozone. The euro ...

Oil prices recovered from multi-month lows in Asian trade Monday, as concerns over Middle East supply resurfaced, analysts said. Oil was also supported by Group of Eight (G8) leaders signalling they would ...

Embattled Australian flag carrier Qantas said Monday it will axe 500 jobs in its heavy maintenance and engineering operations as part of a restructuring to help slash costs. The move follows an 83 percent ...

Chinese property group Wanda said Monday 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 ...

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 Sunday. "At the minimum price and assuming ...

The euro gained ground in Asia on Monday, after hitting four-month lows against the dollar in New York as traders pushed down the currency on fears that Europe's fiscal troubles are far from over. The ...

Australia will sign a free trade agreement (FTA) with Malaysia this week which officials said Monday they hope will help fast-track ongoing talks with China, South Korea and Japan. Trade Minister Craig ...

Japanese shares opened mixed Monday after US stocks slumped over Facebook's keenly awaited market debut, which turned out to be disappointing. The Nikkei index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange rose 0.08 percent, ...

Workers in Algiers started laying foundations Sunday for what should become the world's third-largest mosque, a one-billion-euro project that will include a dizzyingly tall minaret. The huge building in ...

Blind Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng began his new life in the United States on Sunday after a warm welcome but in Beijing he leaves behind a diplomatic mess that may prevent him ever returning home. ...

Israel's military chief Lieutenant General Benny Gantz left for China on Sunday morning, just days ahead of a critical meeting between world powers and Iran over Tehran's nuclear programme. According to ...

All 29 Chinese fishermen kidnapped earlier this month by unidentified armed North Koreans have been freed and are on their way home, Chinese state media said on Sunday. The fishermen were working on three ...

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 ...

Chinese agencies are secretly collecting samples of the Dalai Lama's blood, urine and hair and are stepping up efforts to harm him, the Tibetan government in exile said Sunday. Citing "a variety of ...

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao vowed proactive policies to make growth a bigger priority, as the world's second largest economy showed signs of weakness, state press said Sunday. Wen made the comments during ...

Black market currency traders in Sudan put their business on hold Sunday to assess the impact of new government measures aimed at closing a wide gap between the official and unofficial forex rates. From ...

The US and Southeast Asian nations embarked on three days of talks Sunday that would include security cooperation, shortly after a Pentagon report raised concerns about China's military build-up. The Philippines, ...

Blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng was to spend his first full day in the United States Sunday after praising Beijing's "restraint and calm" as he sought to draw a line under a month-long ...

He limped painfully supported by his crutches. But when Chen Guangcheng set his foot on the asphalt of Manhattan after his arrival from Beijing, a ear-to-ear smile lit up his face. Arriving at a building ...

Blind lawyer Chen Guangcheng must get used to indefinite exile from China and diminished influence after he joined other dissidents in taking refuge far from home, fellow activists said Sunday. Chen landed ...

An Australian tug boat Sunday reached a cargo ship which had been drifting off the Great Barrier Reef, as environmentalists warned that greater shipping traffic could harm the world's biggest coral reef. ...

The Philippine fisheries chief on Sunday said he had ordered a study into a foreign species called the "knife fish" that was posing a threat to the local fishing industry at the country's largest ...

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

China's top security official Zhou Yongkang has been named a delegate to a top Communist Party meeting, despite calls for his removal amid political upheaval ahead of a 10-yearly leadership change. Zhou, ...

A steady drone of machines hum as workers assemble shoes in a Chinese-built industrial park outside Addis Ababa, the first in Ethiopia by the Asian giant deepening its presence in Africa. A handful of ...

A plan to toughen Hong Kong's copyright law has sparked protests from artists, who say it will stifle free speech, criminalise satire and threaten the city's growing status as a major arts hub. More than ...

Macau is still holding all the aces as the world's casino capital despite a slowdown in the Chinese economy, analysts said ahead of an international gaming expo in the former Portuguese colony. The three-day ...

Australian authorities were racing Sunday to secure a cargo ship drifting off the Great Barrier Reef, with one expert saying it was "sheer luck" it had not hit a reef near the World Heritage-listed ...

Blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng began a new life in the United States on Saturday, praising Beijing's "restraint and calm" as he sought to draw a line under a month-long tussle that tested ...

Blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng began a new life in the United States on Saturday, praising Beijing's "restraint and calm" as he sought to draw a line under a month-long tussle that tested ...

Blind Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng arrived in the United States Saturday on a flight from Beijing a month after escaping house arrest in China, CNN reported. One of China's best-known activists, Chen ...

Blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng flew to New York Saturday to begin a new life in the United States, drawing a line under a month-long saga that tested relations between the world superpowers. One ...

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 ...

Blind activist Chen Guangcheng and his family were due to arrive in the United States on Saturday after leaving China, ending weeks of uncertainty in a saga that has sorely tested diplomatic relations. ...

Blind activist Chen Guangcheng told a friend Saturday just before flying to the United States that he was "happy" to be leaving China but worried about the safety of relatives left behind. One ...

A miner who was buried underground for 17 days following a colliery flood in northeast China was found alive on Saturday, state media said. The survivor was in a stable condition after receiving treatment ...

Blind activist Chen Guangcheng and his family left China on a plane bound for the United States Saturday, ending weeks of uncertainty in a saga that sorely tested China-US relations. Chen was whisked to ...

China expressed Saturday its "firm opposition" to a Pentagon report that said Beijing was carrying out aggressive cyber espionage as part of a steady build-up of its military power, state media ...

China Saturday expressed its "firm opposition" to a Pentagon report that said Beijing was carrying out aggressive cyber espionage as part of a steady build-up of its military power, state media ...

A broken-down cargo ship was drifting towards the fringes of Australia's Great Barrier Reef Saturday, with fears of major damage if it were to run aground at the World Heritage-listed site. Authorities ...

Twenty people were killed in an explosion inside an under-construction expressway tunnel in central China's Hunan province on Saturday, state media said. The blast happened in Zhuzhou city when a vehicle ...

Blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng left China for the United States with his family on Saturday, the US State Department said. The departure of Chen brings to an end a month-long diplomatic incident ...

A timeline of events surrounding blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng, the 40-year-old self-taught lawyer who on Saturday left his homeland for the United States after his dramatic escape from house ...

Blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng, the "barefoot lawyer" who left Saturday for the US after escaping house arrest, gained worldwide acclaim for exposing abuses under the "one-child" ...

Blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng was believed to have departed from China with his family Saturday, after a close friend confirmed he received the passport enabling him to leave the country. The ...