GOVERNMENT help for solar power was supposed to be a triple play: jobs at a time of dire short-term need; incubation of an American industry sure to be important on a global scale in the next few years; and a long-term reduction in climate-changing pollution.

Installed capacity in Italy is expected to reach 12.5GW by the end of the year, according to the chairman of the Italian Photovoltaic Industry Association (GIFI), Valerio Natalizia.

A Washington lobbying firm reported it did $20,000 of work for Solyndra LLC as the company approached bankruptcy, according to federal documents

A group of U.S. solar-panel makers Wednesday called on the federal government to punish Chinese rivals with extra duties for allegedly dumping their products on the U.S. market.

Germany's solar industry has endured a difficult year and the Federal Network Agency and transmission system operators (TSO) have responded accordingly by leaving the Renewable Energy Law (EEG) levy virtually unchanged at ??.3592 per kWh.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has cut its growth forecasts for Asia over worries about eurozone debt and new fears for the US economy.

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.

Some may think of the solar energy industry as new and even in need of government help, but those who have worked in it for decades say plenty of privately funded solar power companies are thriving.

Executives of the failed solar- panel maker Solyndra LLC are refusing to answer questions at a congressional hearing today, a sign that the first serious financial scandal of the Obama administration has arrived.

International regulators raised the pressure on European policymakers to shore up the continent's banks, warning the impact of the sovereign debt crisis on bank capital posed an escalating threat to financial stability.

Developers installed 69% more US solar power capacity in the second quarter than a year earlier, led by commercial and government projects.

The same market forces that doomed Solyndra, the solar cell manufacturer that received $528 million in government loans and then went bankrupt, could imperil other manufacturing ventures that have received loan guarantees from the Energy Department, energy experts warned this week.

Italy's centre-right government is turning to cash-rich China in the hope that Beijing will help rescue it from financial crisis by making "significant" purchases of Italian bonds and investments in strategic companies.

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 Chinese government continues to expand its clean energy production plans, to replace increasingly expensive coal power that is shutting down coal plants and causing power shortages of at least 16 GW.

Retailers expect a sharp rise in the cost of the traditional 60W light bulb as European-wide legislation preventing their production or import takes effect on September 1.

China is targeting 3 gigawatts (GW) of roof-mounted solar power generating capacity by 2015 and 25GW by 2020, the China Securities Journal reported on Monday, citing a government renewable energy development plan that is likely to be unveiled soon.

Moody's now holds rating for Japan at Aa3, on a par with rival agency Standard & Poor's, which rates the world's third-largest economy at AA-, the same level as China.

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

The prime minister has returned early from his holiday to discuss the unrest, which first flared on Saturday after a peaceful protest in Tottenham over the fatal shooting of a man by police.

Gold prices hit another record on August 9, slicing through the US$1,750-a-troy-ounce milestone as a massive sell-off in global equity markets drew safety-seeking investors to the metal.

Repeated and constant cyber attacks against the United States have turned the country's assessment of national security threats on its head.

Weeks of political infighting in Washington have produced a budget deal that aims to cut the US government budget deficit by US$2.4 trillion over 10 years.

Latest figures from the US Treasury Department show that the country has an operating cash balance of US$73.7 billion. Apple's most recent financial results put its reserves at US$76.4 billion.

"This means our content is getting stronger, while our supervision is getting more strict and more regulated," a state-run think tank said.

Air security is expected to tighten, particularly for international flights into the US, in light of recent intelligence that terrorists might be considering boarding flights with surgically implanted explosive devices, an American security official said Wednesday.

China's state-run media denied recent reports that the former President and Party General Secretary Jiang Zemin had died. Citing what it called "authoritative sources," Xinhua news agency labeled the reports as "pure rumor".

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.

The government also added that it is in the process of developing a policy to give preference to domestically-produced electronics goods in purchases by the government and government-linked projects.

Hackers who broke into the International Monetary Fund's computer system may have been backed by a nation state, according to security experts.

China will relax a decades-old ban on travel to Taiwan by individuals under a pilot scheme starting June 28, the government said Sunday, responding to growing demand amid a thaw between the two sides.