BUSINESS

Recently, reports of Sony doing final stage of Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean for Sony Xperia S, but now it seems like the update is finally available for download and installation on your handset.

Apparently, signs of the China's economic recovery are weakening as the latest flash manufacturing PMI showed that factory activity slumped significantly in May. Data released by HSBC Holdings Plc indicated that the economic growth of the world's second economy was visibly slackening in the second quarter of the year. It seems that bad days are gathering over China's manufacturing.

Yesterday we wondered whether Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, in his speech to Congress, would come out in support of his colleagues (and the banks) or whether he'd speak with one eye on his legacy. Turns out he's managed to do both!

While the spread of H7N9 virus appears to have been brought under control in China, public healthcare experts say the bird flu outbreak has cost the country's poultry industry more than 40 billion yuan ($6.5 billion) in losses despite Beijing's swift actions to contain the outbreak.

Despite a slight rise on the open, local shares are falling by 1.3 per cent, taking the losses for the week so far to more than 3.5 per cent. If markets continue in this direction for the rest of the session, we're set to have the worst week in a year.

Ford Motor Co. is to give Australian production the brush-off as it has informed that it would stop manufacturing cars in the world's twelve largest economy.

Latest data from the China Customs Statistics Information Center had revealed that China, which feeds more than 95 per cent of the world's demand for rare earths, had exported 2,196 metric tonnes of the precious metals in April, buoyed by the prevailing low global market prices as well as improved demand from Japan.

WIth the recent inquisition of Apple's controversial tax avoidance practices, analysts take a closer look at the company's unrecognized tax benefits and what it means to company shareholders.

Rolls Royce has announced the recall of 19 of its Ghost limousines due to fuel odor. Last year, the car company also recalled units in two batches due to concern on safety features.

The bird flu strain H7N9, which had so far infected 131 and killed 36 in China, could be passed on between humans through the air and close contact.

By David Fessler, Investment U Senior AnalystSomething big is about to strike the mining industry. When it does, savvy investors have a grand opportunity on their hands.

By Greg PeelThe Dow closed down 12 points, or 0.1%, while the S&P lost 0.3% to 1650 and the Nasdaq fell 0.

HTC announced the new Desire 600 smartphone with Android Jelly Bean OS, quad-core processor and BlinkFeed feature while another handset leaked with benchmark results named HTC Desire 200.

In the midst of Ford's decision to ship out of Australia, Holden and Toyota express their intent to stay put in Australia, at least for now. Toyota is even pointing to its $330 million new engine production facility that is meant to cater locally and the whole of Asia.

Jeff Gordon, senior global online communication manager of HTC, explained that the Chinese version of its flagship phone has a microSD slot because it was designed specifically for smaller Chinese radio bands which provided more space inside the device to accommodate the slot.

Expect the buzz about the Samsung Galaxy S4 to be louder as another U.S. carrier announced the availability of the best-selling smartphone of the South Korean tech giant and amid a new TV advert that will surely catch the attention of young people.

Monstrous and never-ending gridlock like the video shown above is the bane of both Metro manila residents and foreign visitors alike. Throw in garbage and flooded streets during the monsoon season, and it is no wonder that Metro Manila despite the Philippines being a beautiful country is low in quality-of-life indices of different agencies.

The Australian sharemarket had its worst day in two months, pushed lower by Ben Bernanke's much anticipated testimony before congress last night. The All Ordinaries index (XAO) slumped by 2 per cent, adding to yesterday's 0.27 per cent losses.

Hundreds of Ford workers in Australia were in shock as the company announced its plan to shut down operations by October 2016. As the news broke out, hundreds of workers were devastated. It did not matter whether they worked there since three decades back – people will lose their jobs in three years time.

The telltale signs have already been there as early as 2012. It was just a matter of when will Ford Australia finally collect its guts to formally announce the closure of its manufacturing plants in Australia. That time came on Thursday as Ford Australia finally confirmed it is closing down and letting go 1200 jobs in the process.

The upcoming Galaxy Tab 3 7.0 is going to be sold in affordable price once it is released according to the South Korean tech giant, Samsung. However, the said device appeared on Adorama, a New-York based retailer selling the device for $199.99.

China on Wednesday announced it has discovered a gold mine in the Ili Valley in the country's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. With reserves estimated to be at 53 tonnes, the said discovery could translate to an economic value of $3.2 billion.

Joseph and Keana, an interracial couple from Virginia, are already used to getting stares from other people. However, they were shocked and outraged when a police officer suddenly appeared at their doorstep to investigate if the three biracial children were theirs as a response to Walmart security’s concern that they may have been kidnapped.

The Australian share market is being heavily sold off in early trade, following a volatile night on Wall Street.

Being a country's topmost political leader does not necessarily equate to being most powerful. In Australia, Julia Gillard may be the Prime Minister, but is it Gina Rinehart who is the most powerful woman of Australia, according to Forbes magazine's annual list of 100 most powerful women around the world.

Sony agrees to a revamp and puts spin-off proposal under evaluation.

By Tim Price"The first panacea for a mismanaged nation is inflation of the currency; the second is war.

Japan's exports sadden as they increased less than expected in April while the country's trade deficit expanded significantly in the month. The Japan's economy has a long way ahead to finally revive, but it seems that the weaker yen has not started bearing fruits yet. The disappointing results for April were mainly driven by weak demand from key trading partners, including the European Union and China.

Ford Motor Co. is having its good days and it simply wants to take advantage of growing demand for cars in North America. Thus the US-based automaker informed that it decided to increase production at its car plants located in North America, thereby cutting the summer shutdown.