Apple Inc. said the Fair Labor Association began auditing supplier Foxconn Technology Group’s plants in China, the first inspections in an effort to respond to criticism of conditions for workers making its gadgets. Assessments will take about two weeks and include at least four campuses in China, Louis Woo, chairman of Foxconn’s retail unit and a spokesman for the Taipei-based company, said in a phone interview Tuesday. More than 10 association representatives are now at two factories in Shenzh

NEW YORK (AP) ― Ratings agency Moody’s Investor Service on Monday downgraded its credit ratings on Italy, Portugal and Spain, while France, Britain and Austria kept their top ratings but had their outlooks dropped to “negative” from “stable.” Moody’s also cut its ratings on the smaller nations of Slovakia, Slovenia and Malta. All nine countries are members of the European Union. The agency said it took the actions due to the uncertainty over EU financial reforms, the region’s weak economic outlo

Moody’s on Monday downgraded the debt ratings of Italy, Spain and Portugal and placed negative outlooks on France, Britain and Austria, blaming the ongoing fallout from the eurozone crisis.Ratings were also cut for Slovenia, Slovakia and Malta, with Moody’s saying all nine countries were increasingl

Japan’s economy shrank an annualized 2.3 percent in the fourth quarter, more than economists estimated, as slumping exports undermine a recovery from last year’s record earthquake. The contraction compared with the median forecast for a 1.3 percent decline in a Bloomberg News survey of 26 economists. Growth was a revised 7 percent in the previous quarter, the Cabinet Office said Monday in Tokyo. Monday’s report underscores pressure on Bank of Japan officials meeting Monday and Tuesday to conside

Greek lawmakers on Monday approved harsh new austerity measures demanded by bailout creditors to save the debt-crippled nation from bankruptcy, after rioters in central Athens torched buildings, looted shops and clashed with riot police.The historic vote paves the way for Greece's European partners

LISBON (AFP) ― Hundreds of thousands protested in Portugal Saturday against austerity measures ahead of next week’s talks with international creditors, with unions vowing to keep up the pressure.Officials from the so-called Troika ― the European Union, European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund ― will next week evaluate progress on the country’s bailout program.Demonstrators arrived in Lisbon from across the country in the rally described as one of the country’s biggest in three d