China's exports and imports both fell in January 2012, raising fresh concerns about the impact of a global slowdown on its economy.

Sean Chen, the new premier, said on Monday that Taiwan needed to move beyond export manufacturing to design, research and development - products should not only be made in Taiwan, but also designed by Taiwan.

The troubled single currency also hit a one-year low against the US dollar, hitting $1.2887.

The strength of the Japanese yen as well as the ongoing European debt crisis have weighed on external demand.

The yuan halted a three-day losing streak on speculation European leaders will boost efforts to solve the region's sovereign-debt crisis.

China's manufacturing activity dropped to a 32-month low in November, renewing fears the Asian powerhouse is losing steam amid global economic woes.

South Korea's parliament has ratified a free-trade deal with the US, after years of wrangling over the issue.

Japan's exports fell for the first time in three months, indicating that the yen's appreciation and financial turmoil in Europe are slowing the nation's recovery from the March disaster.

The US Senate has voted through a bill which aims to punish China for keeping its currency artificially undervalued.

The bill would require the commerce department to use estimates of currency undervaluation when calculating so-called "countervailing duties," imposed against imports deemed to be state-subsidised.

Taiwan's dollar weakened for a fourth day, sliding to an eight-month low, on concern that slowing global growth will weaken demand for the island's exports and slow job creation. Bonds rose.

Japan's exports rose less than expected as slowing growth abroad and the strength of the yen have held back the country's economic recovery.

Japan's economy contracted more severely in the second quarter than was initially estimated, revised government data has shown. The decline came as companies cut back spending due to concerns about a slowing global economy and a rising yen.

The US's biggest industrial companies face an average bill of at least US$100m each over the next five years as they struggle to fill the skills gaps left by the looming retirement of "baby boomer" factory workers.

German exports fell by 1.8% in July, much more than expected, official figures have shown.

The US economy failed to add jobs in August.

China's Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) rose to 50.9 in August from 50.7 the previous month, up for the first time in four months.

The Japanese government has announced a new US$100 billion fund to help companies combat the strength of the yen.

New data on the US economy, including a huge drop in a regional manufacturing survey, has heightened market fears of a new recession.

Japan's industrial production rose for a second straight month in May, after falling sharply in the wake of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, but the increase in factory output was lower than the government had forecast.

Factory output rose by 1% in April from the previous month as companies worked towards dealing with problems in supply chain disruption.

A warning from a government trade council in Taiwan highlights concerns that the island has become increasingly isolated by the burgeoning network of free trade agreements connecting Asia and the rest of the world.

Taiwan's currency advanced 0.8% to NT$28.511 against its US counterpart as of 9:24 a.m. local time, according to Taipei Forex. It touched NT$28.495 earlier, the strongest level since October 1997.

A Chinese manufacturing index declined in April from March, indicating that growth may moderate in the world's second-biggest economy after the government raised interest rates and allowed faster gains in the yuan.

The driving force of Japan's economy has gone into reverse. In March exports fell 2.2% which is the first drop in almost a year and a half.

Japanese voters are critical of Prime Minister Naoto Kan's handling of the crisis at a crippled nuclear plant and support raising taxes to finance rebuilding plans after last month's earthquake and tsunami, surveys show.

The reserves increase as Beijing buys dollars and other foreign currency to restrain the rise of its yuan as export revenues and investment pour into its economy. In freer trading, that flood of cash would push up the yuan's value against the dollar, making Chinese exports more expensive abroad.

The deficit for the first three months of 2011 stood at US$1.02 billion, according to the latest data by the General Administration of Customs. China has said that it is working towards increasing domestic demand and becoming less reliant on exports to sustain its growth.

Firms across the world fear shortages of parts that used to be made in the Japanese factories now shuttered because of power and water shortages, or because of road and port closures, following the quake and the floods. And carmakers, whose products often contain some 20,000 individual parts, are expected to be among those worst hit.

The effects of the earthquake and tsunami have thrown a shadow over Japan's exports. Exports rose 9% in February 2011 from a year earlier, but those figures don't reflect the impact from the earthquake which hit on March 11.

Earlier this week, the yen hit its highest level since World War II against the US dollar, adding to fears over Japan's recovery. The yen weakened to 81.81 against the US dollar after news of the plan.

Growing global demand has fuelled a surge in US manufacturing activity, which last month (Feb. 2011) accelerated at its fastest rate in almost seven years, according to the Institute of Supply Management.

Asian currencies were set for a weekly decline, led by the Taiwan dollar and South Korea's won, as an uprising in Libya pushed up oil prices and sapped demand for emerging-market assets.

Eurozone manufacturing and service activity in February 2011 hit levels last seen in July 2006 but inflation, an increasing concern, also jumped sharply, a closely watched survey has shown.

The European Parliament has ratified a free-trade pact between the EU and South Korea - clearing the way for the deal to come into effect from July.

At its current rate of growth, analysts see China replacing the US as the world's top economy in about a decade.

German exports rose 0.5% in December to round out a year of strong growth, increasing 18.5% in 2010, figures show.

Japan's economy will emerge from a lull soon and is certain to pull out of deflation over time, a Bank of Japan policymaker said, offering a somewhat upbeat take on the outlook on budding signs of a recovery.

Taiwan's dollar rose past NT$29 against the greenback for the first time since 1997 on speculation the central bank is letting the currency strengthen as foreign funds buy the island's assets.

Singapore's exports rose at a slower pace in December, ending a year in which shipments jumped the most since 2003 as the global economic recovery boosted demand for the island's goods.