POLITICS & POLICY

Secret Defense documents of Australia's most senior commander in the Middle East, Major-General John Cantwell, were contained in a USB drive that was stolen from his aide's checked in bag at Kuwait's airport on February 28, according to a report on the investigation of the incident.

British Prime Minister David Cameron announced that his government is willing to provide additional funding in the amount of £29 billion to boost the fund of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as part of its desire to save the Euro currency.

The Reserve Bank of Australia cut Friday its growth forecast for the country to 3.25 per cent from 4 per cent for 2011-12.

The Duchess of Cambridge might be known for her taste in fashion, but the future Queen also has a taste when it comes to her personal vanity items, such as make-up and hair products. Here are some of her favorites the sites where you can get them.

More Australian government agencies will shift to cloud computing services in 2012, independent technology analyst firm Ovum said Friday.

As mining firms and other companies outside China race to seize the opportunities and potential profits found in rare earth metals, only a number will actually flourish in exploring the industry due to lack of technology and expertise.

As floods continue to wreck havoc in Thailand, the death toll has now risen to 356 and more than 2 million had been affected within the 147 districts and 26 provinces still submerged by the worst natural disaster in a century in this developing Southeast Asian country.

Not just because Kate is the future Queen of England, it doesn't mean that she forgot her practical side when it comes to fashion. Here are some of her affordable picks.

As expected, leaders and financial managers of European nations were kept busy by developments in Greece during the first day of the Group of 20 Summit which was supposed to have been spent to put together strategies in enhancing economic growth and environmental concerns around the globe.

After four straight days of gains this week, the Australian sharemarket is finally recording healthy gains with the All Ordinaries index (XAO) up 2.1 pct or 90.7 pts to 4328.2. All sectors are currently higher with the miners the top performers in percentage terms.

National Australia Bank (NAB) continues to generate criticism because of its decision not to pass in full the 25 basis points key lending rate cut made by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) earlier this week.

The Duchess of Cambridge is known for her elegant-yet-practical style, and because of the huge influence she has given to the fashion world, people are always on the edge on what she will wear next.

Embattled Qantas Chief Executive Alan Joyce took responsibility for the grounding of the air carrier's planes and crew on Saturday and Sunday which stranded almost 100,000 passengers.

Events in Greece during the past two days may have spoiled the efforts of EU leaders who have been working very hard to resolve the crisis that has put most parts of Europe on the brink of economic collapse.

Rare earth minerals have suddenly flooded in the Chinese market, forcing a major plummet in prices, days after the China federal government announced the implementation and issuance of specialized invoices for its rare earth minerals sector.

Global markets extended their gains overnight, as Greece dropped voting on its financial rescue and the European Central Bank unexpectedly cut interest rates. Markets cheered the news and gains were posted across the board. The ECB surprised the markets with a 25 basis point rate cut to 1.25% to bolster economies reeling from the debt crisis. New ECB President Mario Draghi made it clear that the euro area is at risk of relapsing into a mild recession.

US ISM non-manufacturing index eased modestly from 53.0 to 52.9 in October. A reading above 50 indicates the sector is expanding. Business activity, new orders and exports remained healthy.

Labor is considering proposals to distinguish parts of the world's largest marine protected area with differing levels of environmental protection, reports said.

When the Duchess hosted a dinner event in lieu of Prince Charles, she was spotted declining glasses of champagne, does it mean that she is preparing her diet and declining alcohol for pregnancy?

The heat goes on for the debacle on Australia's controversial 30 per cent minerals resource rent tax (MRRT) as small- and mid-sized Australian mining company executives debunked the proposed mining law saying the smaller mining firms are at most risk with it.

With foreign exchange reserves going up from $749 million to $312.231 billion last month (based on Reserve Bank of India’s statistics), India is another candidate from the group of top emerging economies of Asia that could contribute to resolving the financial woes of the Euro zone.

Of all the emerging economies, China is in the best position to assist the ailing nations in the Euro zone due to its abundant financial reserves. However, it has all the right reasons not to do so in the near term.

The Australian sharemarket lost ground today for the fourth consecutive day, with the All Ordinaries index (XAO) down 0.3 pct or 13.8 pts to 4237.5. Almost all sectors lost ground, with the financials and energy stocks the biggest drag on trade.

Because of her elegant-yet-practical approach on fashion, the Duchess of Cambridge has another title under her belt: the best dressed woman in all of Britain.

Global manufacturing continued to stagnate in October, with the shaky eurozone threatening to drag other economies into recession.

Indian coal miner Coal India Ltd., struggling to meet production targets, has accelerated efforts to buy unlisted overseas firms after receiving approval from the Indian Finance Ministry.

The Arab League announced Wednesday that Syria has agreed to its proposal to defuse the political unrest in the country during a meeting of the group's ministers in Cairo, Egypt.

A high-end magazine hailed the Duchess of Cambridge as "Britain's Best Dressed" beating fashion icon Kate Moss.

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard has committed to double her government’s support for the International Monetary Fund (IMF) when she meets with Group of 20 (G-20) leaders in Cannes.