CAPITAL MARKETS: US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said Beijing needed to speed up financial liberalization to give its citizens better investment options and returns
China's path to prosperity lies in opening up its financial sector, US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said yesterday in a speech urging the country's business leaders to embrace Wall Street-style capital markets.

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EMERGING MARKETS: While cellphones running on a single chip offer fewer features, their lower prices have made them attractive in developing markets
Cellphones equipped with a single chip to handle all their internal workings are increasing, which may spell trouble for the companies supplying more specialized chips.

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The resignation on Wednesday of the supervisory board chairman at Carrefour SA, coupled with a major share purchase by two big-name investors, fueled speculation of a shift in strategy at the French retailer, which is struggling to meet fierce competition at home and abroad.

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International Business Machines Corp (IBM) said on Wednesday that it was introducing a US$50 million five-year initiative aimed at improving its workers' financial education and planning.

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DITCHING HARD DRIVES: The launch of the new PC would depend on how much the prices of NAND flash memory chips drop, a research report said
Apple Inc, maker of the iPod music players and Macintosh personal computers, may introduce a new laptop this year that will save data on flash memory chips instead of a hard drive, American Technology Research said.

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Exxon Mobil Corp, the world's largest publicly traded oil company, said on Wednesday it planned to begin more than 20 new global projects in the next three years, investments expected to add 1 million oil-equivalent barrels a day to its volumes.

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■ Gaming
Sony to launch virtual world
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