MEXICO CITY -(Dow Jones)- Reports that China is prepared to lend $100 billion to the International Monetary Fund are “purely rumor,” China’s Deputy Finance Minister Zhu Guangyao said Saturday. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a meeting of finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of 20 nations, Zhu said he was confident the euro zone’s problems can …

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Germany is easing its opposition to a bigger European bailout fund, officials said, smoothing the way for the world’s leading economies to secure nearly $2 trillion in firepower to prevent further fallout from the euro-zone’s sovereign debt crisis. Finance leaders from the Group of 20, meeting in Mexico City this weekend, are trying to build up …

China set targets for increasing production capacity at key polysilicon and solar cell makers, part of the government’s plan to ensure its companies survive a slump in prices. China wants each “leading” company to have 50,000 tons a year of polysilicon capacity by 2015 and targets 5 gigawatts for each of its top solar-cell makers, according to a five-year plan …

Asian stocks rose this week, sending the regional benchmark index to its longest-ever streak of weekly gains, as U.S. economic reports and signs of policy easing in China buoyed the outlook for Asian earnings. Shui On Land Ltd. (272) led Chinese developers higher on speculation more cities will attempt to lower restrictions on the property market amid signs the economy …

China’s economic growth may slip to 8.59 percent this year due to slowing in Europe, while inflation will ease to 3.3 percent, according to a Xiamen University and National University of Singapore joint forecast. Growth may bottom out in the second quarter, slowing to 8.35 percent before picking up again, according to the forecast released today at a forum in …

  Feb. 23, 2012 – Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) — Nathan Sheets, global head of international economics at Citigroup Inc. and former head of the Federal Reserve’s international economic division, talks about the outlook for China’s economy. Sheets speaks with Tom Keene on Bloomberg Television’s “Surveillance Midday.” (Source: Bloomberg) (Bloomberg)

Asian stocks advanced, heading for a record 10th weekly advance, and crude oil gained after U.S. jobless claims held at a four-year low and German business confidence exceeded forecasts. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index added 0.3 percent as of 9:45 a.m. inTokyo, while Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures gained 0.1 percent. The Australian dollar strengthened 0.1 percent and South …

India has proposed setting up a multilateral bank that would be exclusively funded by developing nations and finance projects in those countries, two government officials with knowledge of the matter said. The plan has been circulated to the countries in the so- called BRIC group — Brazil, Russia, India and China — as well as to South Africa, an Indian …

Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) — Asian stocks fell as reports signaled slowing global economic growth and Hewlett-Packard Co. forecast profit that missed estimates. The euro advanced for a second day, while oil declined from a nine-month high. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index declined 0.2 percent as of 3:28 p.m. in Tokyo. Euro Stoxx 50 Index futures and Standard & Poor’s 500 …

LONDON, Feb 23 (Reuters) – A controversial plan by Goldman Sachs to issue an Islamic bond has ignited a wider debate on whether conventional banks in the West should be allowed to engage in Islamic finance. At a major conference of Islamic scholars and bankers in London this week, much of the public and private discussion was devoted to whether …