Leaders resign

Ed Miliband quit as Labour leader on Friday after his opposition party was decisively beaten at the polls by Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservatives. "Britain needs a strong Labour Party. Britain needs a Labour Party that can rebuild after this defeat so we can have a government that stands up for working people again," Miliband told a party meeting.

Senator upholds Baltimore probe

US Senator Barbara Mikulski said on Thursday that she and other members of the state of Maryland's congressional delegation support Baltimore's mayor in seeking a broad federal investigation into whether city police engage in discriminatory patterns or practices.

Nation under strain from immigrants

As a surge in immigrants from North Africa puts the country under strain, Italy's central government is struggling to make local authorities accept an arrangement for equal distribution of the new arrivals across the territory.

President changes tack amid crisis

In shaking up her entire Cabinet, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet is trying to salvage an ambitious reform package amid growing scandals, and contain a political crisis.

IN BRIEF (Page 12)

Regulatory measures put stocks into a spin

Efforts by the Chinese regulatory authorities to clamp down on alleged stock trading irregularities have dealt a serious blow to investor sentiment, triggering a sell-off that has sent the leading indicator down more than 8 percent over the past three days.

Debt cloud looms over mainland bourses

Forecasters say capital market has gone 'too far, too fast' and warn of risks, reports Bloomberg.

Waning prospects dull appetite for Alibaba's investors

E-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd will probably never have another year like 2014, when it drew global attention with its record $25 billion initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange.

Revenues soar on Lunar New Year sales

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd reported a 45 percent increase in fiscal fourth-quarter revenue as China's biggest e-commerce company capitalized on the Lunar New Year holiday shopping season.

BRICS cements its solid future in Shanghai

Work on the new office of the BRICS New Development Bank, set up by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, is fast nearing completion in Lujiazui, the financial district of Shanghai and is expected to start operations this month.

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