Kenya Fights Off Port Competition With $13 Billion Plan: Freight

East Africa’s biggest port at Mombasa in Kenya is fighting off competition from neighboring Tanzania by expanding railways and building new berths to tackle congestion.

China's foreign trade surges by 25 per cent in January

BEIJING: In signs of China's export markets rebounding, its foreign-bound shipments rose by 25 per cent, the fastest pace since April 2011, in January, a report said.

IMF extends zero interest loans to poor nations

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Poor countries with loans from the IMF can continue to pay no interest until the end of 2014, the Fund's board said on Friday, as their economies are still recovering from the global economic crisis.

China economy: weak and weaker

Maybe China's leaders —currently embroiled in a complex leadership transition — should worry less about politics at the moment, and more about economics.

Hillary Clinton heads to G20 talks pushing trade

WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton flew Saturday to Mexico for a session of the Group of 20 major economies where her aides said she would push for freer but fairer trade.

G-20 financial chiefs to meet on Sept. 22 in Washington

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Finance ministers and central bank governors from the Group of 20 leading economies will hold a meeting on Sept. 22 in Washington to discuss growing tensions over the sovereign debt market and the global economic outlook, conference sources said.

The meeting will be held on the sidelines of the annual general conferences of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. From Japan, Bank of Japan Governor Masaaki Shirakawa is likely to attend, along with a new finance minister who will succeed the previous holder of the post, incoming Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda.

Kingdom to host heads of Parliaments of Group- 20 states next year

JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia will host the third G20 Speakers' Conference next year. Parliamentary leaders and delegates from 26 countries and unions that met for the final day of discussions for the conference on Friday adopted a joint communique that addressed global issues.

"We are very happy to be the next host of the speakers' consultation, and we look forward to seeing you again next year. We will do our best to make the meeting as productive as it can be," Chairman of the Shoura Council of Saudi Arabia Abdullah Al-Asheikh said Friday while addressing the conference.