India

European carmakers yesterday became the latest industry grouping to ask for support when they said they would approach the European Commission about a

Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Mexico, Uruguay and Venezuela are closer to ensuring their citizens have the chance to break the cycle of poverty than many of their neighbours in Latin America and the Caribbean, according to the World Bank

Four energy utilities currently operate the electricity power lines that criss-cross the German countryside. But if proposals being considered by Berlin see the light of day this quartet could soon become a solo performance.

The ambitious proposals would see the big energy groups Eon, Vattenfall, RWE and EnBW bundle their regional high-voltage grids into a holding company.

Japan has called for emerging economies to set mid-term targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions, aimed at bringing them into a structure of binding levels to combat global warming.

Wal-Mart has told suppliers to stop buying cotton from Uzbekistan to try to end forced child labour in cotton harvesting. The world's largest retailer said it had formed a coalition representing 90 per cent of US purchases of cotton and cotton-based merchandise.

France, which holds the EU's rotating presidency, yesterday proposed watering down plans to curb greenhouse gas emissions from cars by phasing in limits up to 2015, with lower fines for narrowly missing the target.

India will mark the anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi

The first mandatory US inter-state carbon trading system will open tomorrow with the auction of carbon permits to power -stations. It will be widely watched across the country for lessons in how a nationwide cap-and-trade system could function.

European advocates of trapping and storing carbon dioxide as a means of curbing power-plant emissions received a boost on Monday when an experts