US Stocks Continue Week's Plunge
on Recession Fears
US stocks swung wildly Friday amid fears of a widening global credit crunch and recession. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down more than 4 percent by early afternoon in a wild trading day on Wall Street. The Dow plunged nearly 700 points to below 8,000 within minutes of opening, but had roared all the way to its starting point about 30 minutes later amid widespread uncertainty over the state of the US economy. Read On

Europe's Stocks in Free Fall
after Wall Street Tanks 
European shares plummeted Friday as investors dumped shares on Wall Street amid fears the credit squeeze could trigger a prolonged global recession. With New York's losses quickly gaining momentum following its opening Friday, Europe's benchmark blue-chip Stoxx 50 index plunged by 10% to 2066 points. The panic selling snowballed across Europe with shares in Frankfurt and Paris spiraling down by about 12% following Wall Street's opening. Read On

• Afghanistan Security Situation may Worsen:
  US Military Chief  

Flawed Corporate Methods Fuelled Current Economic Meltdown
Archaic corporate systems failing to unearth risky business deals helped fuel the country's deepest financial meltdown since the Great Depression, a University of Illinois business law expert said Read On

• Tokyo Markets Continue Descent;
  Nikkei Plunges Below 9,000 
• Australian Stocks Follow Wall Street Down
• Netherlands Offers 20 bn Euros for Finance Sector
• Obama Seeks 30-min Ads
  as McCain Steps Up Attacks 
• Sales of Household Safes Rocket in Britain 

Nepal Jail Authorities Dismiss Sobhraj Wedding as Gimmick by Sudeshna Sarkar
A day after Charles Sobhraj's Nepali fiancée Nihita Biswas announced that she had tied the knot with the murder convict, Nepal's Central Jail authorities rejected the claim, calling it a gimmick to generate media hype.
Read On

Bush Seeks 'Common Policy' with Europe
on Finance Crisis
US President George W. Bush has called for a "common policy" between the United States and Europe to address the financial crisis that has threatened the world's economy. Bush, meeting with Slovak President Ivan Gasparovic, said Thursday that he discussed "our common desire to work with our European friends to develop a best as possible common policy". Read On

US Stocks Plummet Further;
Dow Below 9,000 Points
US stocks plummeted again Thursday and the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped below 9,000 points for the first time in five years, as a series of US and global efforts to tackle the financial crisis have failed to calm investors. Both the blue-chip Dow and broader Standard & Poor's 500 tumbled more than 7 percent. The Dow has now lost more than 35 percent of its value since reaching all-time highs above 14,000 one year ago. The S&P's seven straight days of losses mark the longest downward streak since 1996. Read On

Central Banks Slash Rates, Market Still Unhappy
A joint effort by the world's central banks to slash interest rates has been hailed as a new level of international cooperation, but failed to quell market jitters over the ongoing financial crisis. Wednesday's move came as the IMF warned that the world was on the brink of a recession, as the financial turmoil would extend well into 2009. Read On
► World is Close to Recession: IMF 

• Gulf Markets Rebound after Four Days of Mayhem
• Bank of Japan Pumps Record $40 bn into Market
• Chinese Shares Fall Despite Damage-control Efforts
• G20 Nations Meet Saturday
  to Discuss Market Crunch 

$25 bn Afghan War Cost to Hit Canada's Economy
A Canadian think-tank has warned that the extension of the country's Afghan mission till 2011 will cost another 28 billion Canadian dollars (US$25 billion), squeezing the economy as it faces recession... raising questions about its ability to afford. Read On

Pakistan Spy Chief Briefs Lawmakers
on Horrors of Taliban Threat
Taliban militants are using children as fighters and suicide bombers, Pakistan's new spy chief told lawmakers in a rare briefing on threats posed by Islamic militants in the country's North West Frontier Province (NWFP), officials said Thursday. Read On

N-deal is Done, Pranab, Rice Sign 123 Pact 
by Arun Kumar
India's External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice have signed the bilateral 123 agreement to seal the landmark India-US civil nuclear deal. The agreement bringing into reality the accord envisioned by Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and US President George W. Bush over three years ago, was signed ... Read On

Chinese, Indian Firms to Sign Contracts
Worth Millions: Minister
Chinese companies will sign trade contracts worth "millions of dollars" with their Indian counterparts here Saturday, a Chinese minister said Friday in what appears to be the first major step by the leadership in Beijing to close the yawning trade gap between the two countries. Read On
► India, China Complete FTA Feasibility Study

• Two Years After Ban,
  Tender Hands Still Scrub Pots 
• Anti-dowry Laws are Being Misused: Court
• PM's Visit: Two Killed, Many Injured
  in Srinagar Protests 
• What Policymakers, Industry, Economists
  are Saying on Global Crisis
• RBI Cuts Cash Reserve Ratio by 150 Basis Points

Indian Equities Tank Seven Percent
in Day-long Mayhem
As fears over the impact of the global financial crisis on the Indian economy escalated Friday, a key Indian equities index closed with one of its steepest losses in recent months, with interventions by the government, the central bank and the markets watchdog having little impact to lift the battered sentiments. Read On

• Pakistan's 'Justified Concerns' Addressed
  While Building Baglihar: PM
• Shutdown, Stone Pelting as PM Arrives in Srinagar
• 30 Hours On,
  Life Slips Away for Toddler Trapped in Borewell 
• India Openers Defy Aussie Pace and Imposing Total

Market Mayhem Continues Despite Liquidity Injection
Indian equities markets Friday were witnessing an unprecedented bloodbath following panic selling on extreme nervousness despite announcement of a measure by the country's central bank to inject as much as Rs.600 billion liquidity into the system. Read On

• Experts Caution Indian Policymakers
  Against 'Denial Mode'  
• Consumer Durable Sales Will Fall
  this Festive Season: Experts 
• Indian Equities Crash on Global Cues 
• Greasing Money Markets:
  Government's Efforts to Increase Liquidity 
• Bucking Trend, Infosys Net Up 30% in Second Quarter
• Weaker Rupee Forces Infosys
  to Revise Fiscal Guidance 

Telangana Back in Centrestage of Andhra Pradesh Politics by Mohammed Shafeeq
The Telugu Desam Party's (TDP) decision to support the demand for separate statehood for Andhra Pradesh's Telangana region has brought the issue back to the centrestage and is likely to put pressure on the ruling Congress party to take a similar stand ahead of the elections scheduled to be held in 5 months. Read On

Global Financial Crisis Dogs Singapore
Pravasi Bharatiya Meet by Nirmala George
The turmoil gripping world economies is dogging a global conference of overseas Indians, with leaders from Singapore and India calling for firm measures to secure the future growth prospects of the two countries and the rest of Asia. Read On

Indian Army - The New Calling for Ladakhi Youth
by Ritu Sharma
The Indian Army has become the new calling for Ladakhi youths, who are skilled mountain warriors and are unsurpassed in high altitude operations. These youths flock in large numbers to enroll in the Ladakh Scouts, which was raised in 1963 but was conferred full regimental status only in 2000 after its personnel had played a stellar role in the Kargil conflict. Read On

• Cross-border Commerce Brings Cheer
  to Kashmir Traders 
• Uddhav Thackeray asserts his Leadership of Shiv Sena
• Rioters Set Fire to Houses in Orissa
• Two Jaish Commanders Killed in Kashmir Shootout  

India Inc Appeals for Rs.1,000 bn Liquidity
A day after the Indian government admitted that the global financial meltdown had caused liquidity problems in India, leading industry lobbies appealed to policymakers to inject Rs.1,000 billion ($22 billion) into the system to help tide over the cash crunch. Read On

• IMF Predicts 7% Growth for India in 2009