Lagarde says China must reform economy and yuan
International Monetary Fund (IMF) head Christine Lagarde has said that China must stop its economy being too dependent on exports and investment.
She also said the yuan could become a global reserve currency if China implemented market-oriented changes.
Ms Lagarde is on a visit to China and India that began over the weekend.
Speaking to politicians and business leaders in Beijing she said there were signs the global economy was stabilising.
Yuan changes
Ms Lagarde stressed that at the highest levels, China leadership appears to be willing to make the changes needed to ensure that the world's second-largest economy remains a main driver of global growth.
However, she said that as well as financial reforms, authorities needed to boost household incomes and make sure that the benefits of growth were reaching more people.
She backed, in principle, China's hope of turning into its currency, the renminbi, into a global reserve currency.
However, she said that would only happen if certain conditions were met.
"What is needed is a roadmap with a stronger and more flexible exchange rate, more effective liquidity and monetary management, with higher quality supervision and regulation, with a more well-developed financial market, with flexible deposit and lending rates, and finally with the opening up of the capital account," Ms Lagarde said.
"If all that happens, there is no reason why the renminbi will not reach the status of a reserve currency occupying a position on par with China's economic status."
The IMF and others have said in the past that China keeps its currency undervalued, giving its exporters an unfair advantage.
Positive outlook
As part of her short visit, Ms Lagarde met Vice Premier Li Keqiang - who is expected to become the China's premier when Wen Jiabao steps down in a leadership change - Vice Premier Wang Qishan and Zhou Xiaochuan, governor of the central bank.
She said the world economy has "stepped back from the brink, and we have cause to be more optimistic".
Last week, the IMF approved a 28bn euro ($36.8bn; £23.2bn) loan for Greece as part of second bailout by the European Union. Ms Lagarde said the US economy was also showing signs of recovery.
"We have made important steps forward," said Ms Lagarde.
However, she added a word of caution.
"The global economy may be on the path to recovery, but with not a great deal of room for manoeuvre, and certainly no room for policy mistakes."
BBC
Brazil to charge Chevron executives over fresh oil leak
Brazilian prosecutors say they will bring criminal charges against 17 executives from the US oil company Chevron and drilling contractor Transocean after a new leak of crude.
The executives have been barred from leaving the country until the investigation concludes.
Chevron halted production in Brazil after the new oil leak was found on the seabed off Brazil earlier this week.
The seepage is near a well where there was a major oil spill last November.
A Chevron spokeswoman said the company had no comment on the latest legal moves because it had not been notified of the decision.
The oil company is already facing a multi-billion-dollar lawsuit over November's spill.
Federal prosecutors' spokesman Marcelo del Negri told AP news agency that prosecutors would file charges including "environmental crimes" in a federal court next week.
The nationalities of the executives are reported to be five from the US, five Brazilians, three Australians, two French nationals, a Canadian and a Briton.
Chevron confirmed on Thursday that there was a "small new oil seepage" and that it was working to collect the crude.
In November up to 3,000 barrels of oil spilled from the well in the Frade field, which is around 370km (240 miles) off Rio de Janeiro.
Brazil's oil regulator, ANP, said the new leak appeared to be coming from cracks in the ocean floor close to the well, rather than from the well itself.
The Frade field is the largest foreign-run oil field in Brazil, producing about 60,000 barrels of crude oil a day.
China home prices continue to slide for fifth month
Property prices in most Chinese cities have fallen for a fifth consecutive month, underpinning government success in curbing speculation in the market.
In February, new home prices in 45 out of 70 cities fell compared to the previous month, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Sunday.
In January, 48 cities saw prices fall compared to the previous month.
Chinese leaders have said prices remain too high and that property controls will remain in place.
"Home prices are still far above a reasonable level," said Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao last week.
"Therefore, we must not relax tightening."
Cool down
Property prices in China rose because of a stimulus package in 2008, after the global economic crisis.
Last year, the government introduced moves to prevent asset bubbles from forming - including limits on the number of houses people can own, higher deposits and property taxes in select cities.
Analysts said these firm policies would lead to a further decline in property prices this year.
"China's property prices will likely continue their downward trend, likely going into the second half of 2012 and until policies are altered," said Mark Budden from EC Harris, an asset consultancy.
In year-on-year terms home prices declines were seen in 27 cities in February compared to 14 cities in January, the NBS said.
The ministry stopped publishing its nation-wide home price index last year. It now only provides data on specific cities.
Greece's Pasok party elects Evangelos Venizelos leader
Greece's Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos has claimed victory in the Pasok party's leadership election.
The 55-year-old ran unopposed in the contest to take over the centre-left party from George Papandreou, who resigned as prime minister in November.
Mr Venizelos is expected to stand down from government to prepare for a general election due by early May.
Analysts say voters are likely to punish Pasok for its role in passing tough austerity measures.
Pasok supported massive budget cuts that were demanded by the EU and IMF in return for a 130bn euro bailout package.
The BBC's Mark Lowen in Athens says Mr Venizelos inherits a divided and exhausted party facing historic lows in polls.
Mr Venizelos said Pasok members must now move forward together.
"The people sent a strong message that Pasok is here, that Pasok hasn't lost its soul, that our target to win the [general] election is feasible," Venizelos told party members after the vote.
Pasok members and supporters were urged to cast their vote in Sunday's nationwide ballot, even though the result was not in doubt.
After the election, the party is likely to be forced into coalition with the country's other main party, the conservative New Democracy, although leftist parties opposing the bailout measures are gaining popularity fast, our correspondent says.
French-educated and a gifted orator, Mr Venizelos challenged Mr Papandreou, son of Pasok founder Andreas Papandreou, for the leadership in 2007.
As the new Pasok leader, he has vowed to stick to the measures set out in the austerity programme and support structural reforms to slim down Greece's bloated public sector.
Red Bull creator and Thai tycoon Chaleo Yoovidhya dead
The creator of the energy drink Red Bull, Chaleo Yoovidhya, has died.
Mr Chaleo rose from humble origins to become one of Thailand's richest men, with a wealth estimated at $5bn (£3.2bn) last year.
His pharmaceutical company produced a tonic drink in the 1970s, but it became popular worldwide in the next decade when he went into partnership with an Austrian entrepreneur.
Red Bull also owns two football clubs and a Formula 1 team.
Mr Chaleo was born of poor Chinese immigrant parents in the northern province of Phichit, reportedly in 1932, local media say.
He worked as a salesman before setting up TC Pharmaceuticals in 1962.
It introduced the drink Krating Daeng, which became popular with shift workers and lorry drivers.
In 1984 he launched it as Red Bull with the Austrian marketing expert Dietrich Mateschitz, and three years later began selling it in Austria.
Red Bull is now sold in 70 countries throughout the world.
Forbes Magazine put him equal 205th in its March 2012 world billionaire list.
Syrian rebels 'in Damascus firefight'
A firefight is reported to have erupted in Syria's capital, Damascus, between the rebel Free Syria Army and the forces of President Bashar al-Assad.
Witnesses say the sound of machine-guns and rocket-propelled grenades can be heard from the district of al-Mezze.
The neighbourhood, in the centre of Damascus, is home to several security facilities and is one of the most heavily guarded parts of the capital.
In January the Free Syria Army briefly seized several Damascus suburbs.
Al-Mezze has been the scene of large anti-government protests.
"There is fighting near Hamada supermarket and the sound of explosions there and elsewhere in the neighbourhood," a resident told Reuters news agency.
"Security police have blocked several side streets and the street lighting has been cut off."
Opposition activist Amer al Sadeq told the BBC's World Today programme he had spoken to a contact in al-Mezze who reported four blasts within five minutes and then heavy gunfire.
The incident follows bomb blasts in Damascus and the northern city of Aleppo over the weekend.
On Sunday a car bomb exploded in Aleppo, killing at least two people and injuring 30 others.
A day earlier, at least 27 people were reported to have been killed and 97 wounded in two explosions in the capital.
State TV described the blasts as "terrorist" attacks.
However, activists have accused the authorities of staging incidents to discredit opposition groups.
In another development, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said security forces beat and arrested senior opposition figure Mohammed Sayyed Rassas on Sunday.
Mr Rassas, a leader of the National Co-ordinating Body for Democratic Change (NCB), had been taking part in a protest march in Damascus, the group said.
President Assad is trying to quell an increasingly armed rebellion that sprang from a fierce crackdown on peaceful pro-democracy protests a year ago.
The UN estimates that more than 8,000 people have died in the clashes.
President Assad insists his troops are fighting "armed gangs" seeking to destabilise Syria.
East Timor President Concedes Election Defeat
East Timor President Jose Ramos-Horta conceded defeat on Monday in his bid to win a second term in office.
With more than 70 percent of the ballots counted, results show Francisco Guterres, from the main opposition Fretilin party, ahead with about 28 percent of the vote. He is followed by former military chief Jose Maria de Vasconcelos with 25 percent. They will go on to a run-off election in mid-April.
President Ramos-Horta, a Nobel Peace laureate, trailed with about 18 percent. In a news conference Monday, Mr. Ramos-Horta congratulated the two candidates.
Official results are not expected until Tuesday.
In a statement released Sunday, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon commended East Timor for conducting elections in an atmosphere of order and calm.
Voters cast their ballots Saturday in the second presidential election since East Timor, one of the world's youngest and poorest nations, won independence from Indonesia in 2002.
Violence during presidential voting in 2006 nearly plunged the country into civil war, but officials reported no unrest during the latest election.
If the presidential run-off and an upcoming parliamentary vote in June run smoothly, a contingent of U.N. and Australian peacekeepers is scheduled to pull out of the country by the end of this year.
Seoul Slams North Korean Rocket Plan as Nuclear Test
South Korea accused North Korea on Monday of using a planned satellite launch to further development of a long-range missile capable of carrying a nuclear payload.
The North announced Friday that it would launch a rocket in mid-April to put a satellite into orbit for peaceful purposes.
After a meeting Monday morning of foreign and security ministers, presided over by South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, the presidential Blue House issued a statement calling the planned launch a “grave provocation.”
The statement said South Korea would work with the international community and discuss the matter with the leaders of related countries, including the United States, Japan, China, Russia and the European Union during next week's Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul.
The U.S., Russia, South Korea and Japan have all condemned the planned launch, saying it violates a U.N. ban on all North Korean launches using ballistic missile technology.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Friday that such a launch could affect plans to deliver food aid to the impoverished North.
King of Tonga Dies
Tonga's prime minister has announced the death of the Pacific island nation's King George Tupou V.
Prime Minister Lord Tu'ivakano says the 63-year-old monarch died Sunday in a Hong Kong hospital, with his younger brother and heir to the throne, Crown Prince Tupouto'a Lavaka, at his side.
King Tupou, known to the outside world for eccentricities such as being driven around in a London taxi, will be remembered by his subjects for introducing democracy to the nation of 100,000 people. He was sworn in as king in September 2006 following the death of his father, King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV.
In November 2010, the Polynesian nation held its first direct elections, which marked the end of centuries of monarchic rule in Tonga. In December, the newly elected parliament confirmed Lord Tu'ivakano as the country's first elected prime minister.
Previous prime ministers were appointed by the king.
Sachin Tendulkar scores his 100th international century for India
India's Sachin Tendulkar has become the first player to score 100 international centuries by compiling a ton in a one-day game against Bangladesh in Dhaka.
The 38-year-old completed his landmark century, his 49th in one-day cricket, with a single clipped to square leg.
After being dismissed for 114, he said: "I was not thinking about the milestone. It hasn't sunk in."
Tendulkar had twice been out in the 90s after scoring his 99th century against South Africa in March 2011.
The right-hander, who holds the record for scoring the most Test and one-day runs, has also scored 51 Test tons.
Tendulkar, whose own celebration was a little muted, was immediately congratulated by the Bangladesh players after he jogged through for the single to bring up his century, scored off Shakib Al Hasan.
The hundred was Tendulkar's first against Bangladesh in one-day cricket and he added another 14 runs before edging a Mashrafe Mortaza delivery to wicketkeeper Mushfiqur Rahim.
He added: "A year ago when I got my 99th hundred no-one spoke about it during the World Cup, then I guess it was the media who began talking about it.
"Wherever I went, to a restaurant, the house keeping, the room service, whoever I met just spoke about the 100th hundred.
"It became a little difficult mentally, because I am not playing only for my 100th hundred.
"The 99 hundreds that I scored, nobody spoke about them. Everyone had their opinion but eventually I have got to do what is important for the team.
"I have lost about 50 kilos. Enjoy the game and chase your dreams. I had to wait for 22 years for one dream, the World Cup."
England Test captain Andrew Strauss was among a host of players to offer their congratulations to Tendulkar.
He told BBC Sport: "Sachin is a player by which all others are measured over the last 10-15 years, and for him to go out and get a hundred hundreds is an amazing achievement without precedent - it's unlikely to be achieved again."
International Cricket Council chief executive Haroon Lorgat has also applauded the feat.
"On behalf of every cricket fan around the globe I congratulate Sachin on becoming the first person to score 100 centuries for his country," he said.
"This is indeed a magnificent feat and not likely to be easily emulated. The number 100 is special for a batsman and to record 100 centuries for your country is a massive statement.
"Like millions of others I have followed his career ever since he first played for India as a gifted 16-year-old and now, more than two decades later, his passion and personal records, which include more than 33,000 runs at international level, is a modern day wonder.
"Sachin is a true role model who will undoubtedly hold a special place in cricket's history."
Narayanaswami Srinivasan, the president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India said: "Ever since he made his international debut in November 1989, Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has strode cricketing arenas the world over, like a colossus.
"He has been an inspiration to billions, and an ornament to the sport. March 16, 2012 will never be forgotten by cricket-lovers."
India Prime Minister Manmohan Singh issued a statement, adding: "He has made India proud.
"Tendulkar's long career has been a triumph of class, character and courage. I wish him many more innings and feats to continue inspiring the youth."
He began his Test career as a 16-year-old in 1989 against Pakistan and scored 15 in a blood-soaked shirt after being hit in the face by a Waqar Younis delivery.
The following year he scored his first Test century, against England at Old Trafford and in 1992 became Yorkshire's first overseas signing.
Tendulkar surpassed fellow India legend Sunil Gavaskar's record of 34 Test centuries in 2005, became the highest Test-run scorer in 2008 and scored the first double century in a one-day international in 2010.
Tendulkar has scored 15,470 Test runs and 18,260 in the one-day game.