Business sentiment among major Japanese manufacturers turned positive for the first time in nearly two years, a signal that companies are reacting positively to the weaker yen and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's policies to revive the stagnant economy.The Bank of Japan's closely-watched quarterly “tankan” survey for June showed that the index for major manufacturers rose to positive 4 from negative 8 in March. The survey released Monday was the first to be higher than zero since September 2011. A po

PARIS (AFP) ― Markets are heading into a stormy few months after the U.S. Fed pricked the euphoria which pushed share prices to record highs, but turbulence does not mean a return to crisis, analysts say.After elation over Japanese efforts to stimulate the economy out of two decades of deflation and stagnation sent shares soaring in May, indices in many countries tumbled about 10 percent.Yields on government debt have also risen and emerging markets have been hit by large capital outflows.“What

European Union leaders reached an outline deal Friday on the 27-country bloc's 960 billion euro ($1.3 trillion) seven-year budget, overcoming British objections to sign off on the agreement.British Prime Minister David Cameron had held out for the same financial conditions already promised him months ago, overshadowing a summit called to approve plans to deal with the continent's youth unemployment problems.However, in the end, all 27 nations backed the budget deal. EU President Herman Van Rompu

BEIJING (AP) ― China’s central bank tried Tuesday to quell fears the country faces a credit crisis by promising to support banks that face cash shortfalls. The central bank promised “liquidity support” if needed after a shortage of money in credit markets caused the interest rate that banks must pay to borrow from each other to spike last week. That caused Chinese stock markets to plunge Monday on fears the world’s second-largest economy might face a credit crisis. The bank appeared to soften it

WASHINGTON (AFP) ― The White House pressured Russia to expel fugitive U.S. intelligence leaker Edward Snowden and warned China it had harmed efforts to rebuild trust by allowing him to leave Hong Kong.As intrigue in the case mounted, Snowden vanished in Moscow, not taking a flight to Cuba on which he was booked ― possibly on a journey scheduled to end up in Ecuador.He was said by Russian officials to have spent Sunday night in a “capsule hotel” at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport awaiting his onwar

NEW YORK (AFP) ― Apple shares fell briefly below $400 Monday after an analyst said the iconic gadget maker is to slash production of its iPhones.Shares fell as low as $398, before closing at $402.34, a drop of 2.7 percent. Apple has been on a downward trend since last September when shares topped $700.A research note from the brokerage firm Jefferies said Apple is likely to cut production plans for the iPhone to between 25 and 30 million in the third quarter, down from between 40 to 45 million.I

HONG KONG (AFP) ― Asian markets mostly fell on Tuesday owing to growing concerns about a liquidity crisis in China, although Shanghai managed to claw back some ground after sinking more than five percent at one point.The dollar also lost its upward momentum against the yen after seeing a pull-back in New York following comments from U.S. Federal Reserve officials indicating the bank would not immediately wind down its stimulus program.Tokyo fell 0.72 percent, or 93.44 points, to 12,969.34, Seoul

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff on Monday proposed to earmark $25 billion for public transport following days of mass nationwide street protests, in a bid to seize the political initiative.She also suggested a referendum on broad "political reform" in response to public exasperation with substandard public services and rampant official corruption in Brazil, the world's seventh largest economy.The president also warned against any repeat of the violence and vandalism that marred Thursday's pro

More signs of distress in China's economy and rising bond yields led to a broad sell-off in stocks Monday, leaving key market indexes down more than 5 percent from their record highs last month.It was the first 5 percent decline - referred to on Wall Street as a ``pullback'' - since November.Pullbacks that occur during bull markets tend to be ``nasty and brutish'' _ but short, said John Manley, chief equity strategist at Wells Fargo Funds Management. He said it's common to get declines of 3 perc