BEIJING (AFP) ― For years, Wang Yulan and her husband drove their three-wheeled vehicle to an outdoor market near Beijing to sell broccoli, peppers, eggplants and tomatoes grown on their small plot of land.Now, thanks to the Web, they don’t even have to leave their living room.Two years ago the couple bought a computer and joined a growing number of Chinese farmers selling their produce online, gi

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) ― The updated version of Apple Inc.’s iPad tablet computer went on sale Friday afternoon, and was greeted by the now-familiar lines of buyers outside Apple stores.The Cupertino company opened online sales of the iPad 2 at 4 a.m. Eastern time, well before they became available in East Coast stores at 5 p.m. They were set to go on sale nationwide at the same hour, local time.Apple

INDIAN WELLS, California (AFP) ― Roger Federer says his priority in the coming months is to reclaim the No. 1 ranking, but before he can achieve that the Swiss star knows he has to start winning Grand Slam titles again.“I have really been playing well the last six months and that is what I look at, not that I didn’t make it to the final of the last four Grand Slams,” Federer said.Second-seeded Fed

LONDON (AFP) ― The Bank of England on Thursday held its key interest rate at a record low 0.5 percent, where it has now stood for two years, as it balanced strong inflation against a fragile economic recovery.“The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee today voted to maintain the official Bank Rate paid on commercial bank reserves at 0.5 percent,” the central bank said in a statement after a

Pricier oil dampens consumer spending and cuts into economic growthWASHINGTON (AP) ― Higher oil prices are slowing global economic growth, and the impact is likely to spread in coming months.Oil prices helped raise the U.S. trade deficit to a seven-month high in January, when crude prices were $87.50 a barrel. Oil is now trading at more than $100 a barrel, suggesting the gap will widen in coming m

SEATTLE (AP) ― Starbucks customers saw something new Tuesday when they sipped their coffee.The Seattle-based company rolled out its new words-free logo Tuesday on all its cups. Signs also changed at a handful of stores, and the new logo will show up on more storefronts in the future.The Associated Press first reported in January that Starbucks was updating its logo and would introduce it this mont

Nouriel Roubini, the economist who predicted the global financial crisis, said an increase in oil prices to $140 a barrel will cause some advanced economies to slide back into recession. Underlying how fragile the global economic recovery is, Roubini said the European Central Bank may be making a mistake by raising interest rates “too soon” when debt-ridden countries on the euro region’s periphery

Experts warn subsidy spree may store up trouble for the futureKUALA LUMPUR (AFP) ― As prices of food and fuel reach historic highs, Asian nations with a wary eye on Middle East uprisings are doling out subsidies that experts warn are storing up trouble for the future.Robust Asian economies largely escaped the global downturn, and are now in danger of overheating, stoked by low interest rates, dema

LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA, the world’s largest maker of luxury goods, will take a controlling stake in Bulgari SpA, the Financial Times reported, citing an unidentified person close to the deal. The Bulgari family will swap its 51 percent holding for a stake in LVMH in a deal to be announced Monday, the FT reported. LVMH will offer a “significant” premium to Bulgari’s market value of 2.3

Yang Yong-eun stays in second, seeks first title since 2009 PGA Championship PALM BEACH GARDENS, Florida (AFP) ― South African Rory Sabbatini fired a four-under par 66 on Saturday to seize a five-stroke lead after the third round of the $5.7 million U.S. PGA Honda Classic.Sabbatini, who began the day one stroke behind American Kyle Stanley, made five birdies against a lone bogey to stand on nine-u