GM Recalls 27,000 Spark Cars in Korea to Fix Transmission Defect

A file photograph of a Chevrolet Spark car at the GM plant in Asaka, Uzbekistan.Reuters

General Motors will recall 27,051 Spark mini cars in South Korea to fix defective transmission mounts.

The affected cars were produced in South Korea between 8 June, 2013, and 12 December, 2013, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said in a statement on 4 July.

The gearbox mount could destabilise and result in a drop in transmission power, according to the ministry.

The Korea-manufactured Spark is also sold in Europe and the US.

However, a GM Korea spokesman said that cars shipped to the US will not be affected by the recall, and that the firm is mulling whether to take "proper action" in overseas markets such as Europe.

The spokesman also said that there have been no reports of crashes or injuries linked to the defect.

GM had voluntarily reported the defect to the Korean government, an official from the ministry told Reuters.

Detroit-based General Motors is battling a safety crisis involving fatal ignition switches.

The automaker has recalled over 29 million vehicles this year, mostly in the US. GM, in 2013, sold 2.8 million vehicles in the US and 9.7 million globally.

UK Drew Up 'Clandestine Plan' to Train 100,000 Anti-Assad Rebels

Rebel fighters prepare to fire a Grad rocket towards forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the countryside of the coastal city of LatakiaReuters

The UK government had secretly planned to train and equip tens of thousands of rebels to fight against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, but the move was aborted, it has been claimed.

The idea was put forth by Lord David Richards, who was the then Chief of Defence Staff, and it was actively considered by David Cameron and the National Security Council.

According to the BBC's Newsnight programme, the initiative to train up to 100,000 anti-Assad forces, which came up about two years ago, was ultimately given up as it was thought too risky.

Lord Richards had warned the Cameron administration that there were only two ways to resolve the Syrian conflict: either defeat Assad or let him win.

Under the plan, air cover was to be provided by the Western powers and Gulf allies so that the rebel army could press ahead against Assad in a "shock and awe" strategy similar to that of Iraq in 2003.

Top US officials, including General Martin Dempsey, Washington's top-most military officer, were also consulted on the matter.

The UK government has not responded to the disclosure.

Syria has been undergoing intense turmoil for the past three years as the anti-regime groups are relentlessly fighting to uproot Assad, but with little success. The crisis has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people and forced millions to flee the country as refugees.

Syrian National Coalition spokesperson Monzer Akbik was quoted as saying: "The international community did not intervene to prevent those crimes and at the same time did not actively support the moderate elements on the ground."

"A huge opportunity was missed and that opportunity could have saved tens of thousands of lives actually and could have saved also a huge humanitarian catastrophe."

The Syrian civil war has also paved the way for the emergence of extremist Islamist groups such as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isis) which is now marching ahead in Iraq capturing several key regions and establishing a hard-line Islamic caliphate.

Iraq Crisis: Kurdish President Barzani Asks Parliament for Landmark Independence Referendum

Kurdish Regional Government President Masoud Barzani speaks during an interview with Reuters in Arbil, in Iraq's Kurdistan region.Reuters

Iraq's top Kurdish leader has requested Kurdistan's parliament prepare a referendum on independence in light of the ongoing Sunni insurgency threatening to tear the country apart.

Massoud Barzani told the autonomous region's legislature to create an electoral commission in preparation for a landmark "referendum on self-determination".

"It is time to decide about our self-determination and not to wait for other people to decide about us," he said in a behind-closed-doors recording obtained by the Associated Press.

"For that reason, I consider it necessary... to create an independent electoral commission as a first step and, second, to make preparations for a referendum."

With Baghdad fraught by political instability and northern Iraq battered by a Sunni insurgency, which has seen the capture of cities such as Mosul and Tikrit, Kurds now sense the perfect moment to obtain the independence many have long sought.

Last week, Turkey's ruling party indicated that it is ready to accept an independent Kurdish state in what is currently northern Iraq following the charge of Islamist militants through the country's northern regions.

"In the past an independent Kurdish state was a reason for war [for Turkey] but no one has the right to say this now," Huseyin Celik, a spokesman for the ruling AK party, told the Financial Times.

"In Turkey, even the word 'Kurdistan' makes people nervous, but their name is Kurdistan," he added.

"If Iraq is divided -- and it is inevitable -- they are our brothers . . . Unfortunately, the situation in Iraq is not good and it looks like it is going to be divided."

Last month, Iraqi Kurdish fighters claimed to have taken full control of the city of Kirkuk after the Iraqi army fled Islamic State of Iraq and al-Shams (Isis) insurgents.

The capture of new territory by the Kurdish militia, known as Peshmerga, has added to sentiment among Kurds wanting independence from Iraq.

Syrian Refugees by the Million Bringing Lebanon to Brink of Economic Collapse

A Syrian refugee child works with his father in the south of Sidon, southern Lebanon(Reuters)

Lebanon is facing economic and political collapse as it reels from the wave of Syrians seeking refuge within the country, a Lebanese lawmaker said.

Social Affairs Minister Rashid Derbas said the total number of Syrians registered as refugees is expected to reach 1.5 million by the end of 2014, more than a third of Lebanon's entire population.

The refugee crisis has cost Lebanon around $7.5bn between 2012 and 2014, Dergas said, weighing heavily on the country's brittle economy.

The vast inpouring of refugees has strained relations in host communities, driving up rents and lowering wages as Syrians search for work.

"Unemployment doubled, especially among unspecialised or unskilled labour in those mostly poor areas," Dergas said, warning that the refugee crisis was unsustainable. It "threatens to take us to an economic, political and even security collapse."

The Syrian war has taken on an increasingly sectarian dimension and thus exacerbated sectarian tensions in its much smaller neighbour.

Syria's President Bashar al-Assad belongs to the Alawi sect, an off shoot of Shia Islam. Syrian rebel groups are predominately Sunni, while foreign jihadis seeking to overthrow Assad are also largely Sunni. What's more, the vast majority of refugees pouring over Syria's borders are also Sunni.

The violence between Sunni and Shia Muslims in Syria has been repeated in Lebanese cities, with clashes between supporters and opponents of the Syrian government erupting from Tripoli to the capital Beirut.

Moreover, the Lebanese militant Shia group Hezbollah, has fought in Syria on the government side, heightening domestic sectarian tensions further.

Lebanon currently hosts around 1.1 million Syrian refugees, more than a quarter of its total population. With the Syrian war at a bloody stalemate with no end in sight, the number of Syrians fleeing to Lebanon will increase.

"We know that we are working towards having more than 1.5 million registered refugees by the end of 2014, which amounts to more than a third of the local population," Derbas said. "We have our limits and we have gone beyond those limits now," he added.

Lebanon has taken in more Syrian refugees than any other country and the United Nations estimated that Lebanon will need $1.6bn this year to cope with the humanitarian disaster. Only 23% of that amount has been raised so far, according to the UN.

The UN's refugee commission said that while the numbers of Syrians fleeing had slowed in recent months, it predicts 3.6 million will register as refugees in the region by the end of 2014.

This article was updated July 3, 2014 16:13 PM

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Who is Maria Sharapova? Indians React After Tennis Star Asks Who's Sachin Tendulkar?

Maria Sharapova admitted she didn't know who cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar is during a post-match interview(Getty)

Tennis star Maria Sharapova managed to upset virtually the entire population of India after admitting she didn't know who cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar is.

The five-time Grand Slam winner was being interviewed at a Wimbledon post-match press conference when she was asked whether she realised which sporting stars were watching her from the Royal Box at Centre Court.

Among the superstars in attendance watching her third round victory over Alison Riske were retired footballer David Beckham and ex-cricketer Andrew Strauss.

When one of the reporters asked "Sachin Tendulkar was the other person who came in at the same time as David [Beckham]. Do you know who Sachin is?" The French Open champion replied: "I don't."

Sharapova's admission led to a mixture of outrage and humour from a country where he is regarded as a "cricketing God".

The hashtag #WhoisMariaSharapova was the top trending topic in the world, with doctored images poking fun at the tennis star going viral.

Maria sharapova may be athiest she dont know the god of cricket who is maria sharapova

— Sandeep Aenugula (@Sandeeptakeson) July 2, 2014

As part of the social media outrage, users also took to Facebook to bombard her wpage with thousands of messages about Tendulkar, some of which were just his name repeating over and over again.

(Facebook/Maria Sharapova)

(Facebook/Maria Sharapova)

While she may not know who the cricket legend is, Sharapova did have things to say about Beckham ("nice guy") and basketball superstar Michael Jordan ("it's great to meet someone like that").

For future reference Maria, here are just a few facts about Tendulkar so you're a bit more prepared next time:.

He made his Test debut for India against Pakistan on 15 November, 1989, scoring 15.

He is the only player to have scored one hundred international centuries.

He was the first cricketer to score 200 runs in a One Day International game, against South Africa in 2010.

He is only player to complete more than 30,000 runs in international cricket.

He holds the record for the most number of runs scored in a single World Cup with 673 runs in the 2003 tournament.

South Africa Police Fire Rubber Bullets at Striking Workers

Members of the National Union of Metal Workers of South Africa (NUMSA) protest on the streets of Durban(Reuters)

South African police fired rubber bullets to disperse striking workers at the entrance to Eskom's Medupi power plant in Limpopo province on Thursday, according to police.

The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa), the country's largest, organised the strike to demand higher wages. More than 220,000 workers launched an open-ended strike on Tuesday.

"A few hundred workers were blocking one of the entrances to Medupi power plant and we had to use rubber bullets to disperse them," said police spokeswoman Ronel Otto, as quoted by Reuters.

The situation had been contained by Thursday afternoon, Otto added.

Numsa is set to meet the industry's main employer body on Thursday in an attempt to resolve the dispute, which could impact on Africa's second-largest economy.

Analysts warned that the strike could badly damage the country's economy, which has been battered by a five-month long strike at platinum mines and contracted by 0.6% in the first three months of the year.

The metalworkers' walkout is cutting the country's economic output by 300million rand ($28m, £16m, €20m) a day.

Striking metalworkers and engineers demanded a 12% pay rise on Tuesday, while employers stuck to an offer of an 8% rise.

The 12% being demanded by Numsa would be almost double the rate of inflation.

India Must Avoid Fiscal Slippage: World Bank's Onno Ruhl

India must avoid fiscal slippage, says World Bank's India chief Onno Ruhl.Reuters

Inflation remains stubbornly high in India and New Delhi must steer clear of fiscal slippage as it seeks to boost Asia's third-largest economy, according to the World Bank's India director Onno Ruhl.

Ruhl also said rolling out the proposed nation-wide goods and services tax (GST) could be a game changer as it will simplify India's complex set of taxes and levies and prop up the nation's growth trajectory.

Ruhl's remarks came after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley warned of harsh measures in his first budget, to be presented on 10 July, saying "mindless populism" needs to be curbed as Prime Minister Narendra Modi's regime aims to revive growth in India, suffering its worst slowdown in over 25 years.

"It's really important to underline that it [inflation] is a long-term threat to the economy," Ruhl told Reuters.

"I wouldn't advise higher deficits ... it is very possible to stimulate growth without letting go of the deficit."

"[GST is] a big-ticket item, it will unify India as a market. It will also underpin revenues," he said, adding that a GST could even help India make up for the impact of rising oil import costs or weak monsoon rains.

Modi's Woes

Modi faces an uphill task of reviving the economy with wholesale price inflation hovering at a five-month high and retail inflation hovering above 8%.

Monsoon rainfall till 2 July has been 43% less when compared to the 50-year average. The annual monsoon accounts for 70% of India's rainfall and irrigates more than half its farmland.

The World Bank in June said the Indian economy will likely expand 5.5% in the financial year 2014-15 and 6.3% in the 2015-16.

The preceding government's interim budget, in February 2014, set a deficit target of 4.1% of GDP for the fiscal year 2014-15. The gap has already hit nearly half of the target at $40bn (£23bn, €29bn).

Uganda: US Embassy Warned of Imminent Terror Attack on Entebbe International Airport

A Qatar Airways Airbus A320 is seen at Entebbe Airport, 46 km (29 miles) southwest of Uganda's capital Kampala.Reuters

US officials in Kampala have been warned of a specific terror threat to Entebbe Airport in Uganda later today.

Intelligence sources believe that there is a threat to the airport from an unknown terrorist group, according to Ugandan police.

The US embassy in the Ugandan capital released a statement saying that the attack was planned for "today, 3 July, between the hours of 2100-2300.

"Individuals planning travel through the airport this evening may want to review their plans in light of this information," the statement read.

"US Embassy Kampala wishes to remind US citizens of the continued threat of potential terrorist attacks in the country.

"The targets for these attacks could include hotels, restaurants, nightclubs, shopping malls, diplomatic missions, transportation hubs, religious institutions, government offices, or public transportation."

The airport was the scene of a hostage rescue mission in 1976 after an Air France aircraft carrying 248 passengers from Tel Aviv was hijacked by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the German Revolutionary Cells.

More to follow...

India's Services Growth Hits 17-Month High on Narendra Modi Wave

A file photograph of Boman Kohinoor, the 91-year-old co-owner of the Britannia and Co restaurant, taking down food orders, in Mumbai.Reuters

Activity in India's services sector accelerated at its fastest pace in 17 months in June as new business poured in, according to a survey.

The HSBC/Markit Services Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) shot up to 54.4 in June from 50.2 in May, suggesting Asia's third-largest economy is gaining momentum despite inflationary pressures.

Prior to May, the services PMI had hovered below the 50 threshold, which divides growth from contracting activity, for about a year.

In addition, a gauge of new orders jumped to 54.3 in June, the highest since February 2013.

The survey's results also showed that input prices rose at their fastest pace in five months, but that companies passed on only a small portion of the increased cost to consumers.

The data underscores the growing optimism within corporate India that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's regime will roll out reforms to boost growth in India, suffering its worst slowdown in 25 years.

That optimism has fuelled a stock market rally and the nation's benchmark S&P BSE Sensex share average has surged 22.15% or 4683.27 points this year.

Modi Wave

Frederic Neumann, Co-Head of Asian Economic Research at HSBC said in a statement: "After months of subdued activity, the Modi wave has struck the service sector and lifted growth to a 17-month high. New business flows and stronger business sentiment supported the rise. Some of this is simply pent up demand being unleashed. As we move along, faster reforms due to political stability should fuel the momentum. Be sure to expect some bumps along the way, as tensions in the Middle East and the absence of monsoon clouds play spoil sport."

INR Movement.Nordea Markets, Reuters Ecowin

Nordea Markets said in a note to clients: "For the remainder of the year, we expect the INR to move sideways around 58 vs the USD. Large downside risk comes from fear of oil supply disruptions in Iraq. India imports two-thirds of its oil consumption and is highly sensitive to oil prices.

"In addition, with the sluggish growth in mind, the [Reserve Bank of India] is not interested in a large near-term gain in the INR. Lately, foreign capital has returned to India and put upward pressure on the INR. The RBI was spotted buying dollar in the market to cap further upsides in the INR."

"Newly elected Prime Minister Modi has teamed up with Arun Jaitley, the new finance minister who is committed to reviving foreign investment and reducing the fiscal deficit. Given Modi's huge election win, his administration has a sufficient mandate to push for growth-promoting reforms," Nordea added.

A separate HSBC/Markit survey on 1 July revealed that Indian manufacturing activity expanded at its fastest pace in four months in June, just as the output prices index jumped to an eight-month high, suggesting inflation could rise further.

The RBI has hiked interest rates thrice, since September 2013, to battle high inflation.

Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2014 Competition: Shortlisted Images

The Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition, run by the Royal Observatory Greenwich in association with BBC Sky at Night Magazine, is now in its sixth year and has received a record number of over 2,500 entries from amateur and professional photographers from around the globe.

The winners of the competition's four categories and three special prizes will be announced on 17 September and an exhibition of the winning images opens the following day at the Royal Observatory.

Eta Aquarid Meteor Shower over Mount Bromo by Justin Ng (Singapore). A bright meteor streaks across the magnificent night sky over the smoke-spewing Mount Bromo just one day before the peak of the Eta Aquarid meteor shower, which is caused by Halley's Comet. Mount Bromo is one of the most well-known active volcanoes in East Java, Indonesia. Also seen in the photograph are the highest active volcano, Mount Semeru (3676m), and the extinct volcano, Mount Batok, which is located to the right of Mount Bromo.

What the...! by Tommy Richardsen (Norway). A flamboyant flare-up of the aurora over Steinsvik beach, in Nordreisa, Troms, Norway. It lasted no more than ten minutes from start to finish but it lit up the entire sky and took the photographer by surprise, just as he was about to leave the shoot. The figure on the right is his brother, furiously searching for his lens cap to capture the same phenomena. It was hard for the photographer not to laugh at his brother while moving the camera left to right capturing the panorama, but luckily he stood still long enough to make the final capture.Tommy Richardsen

Cave With Aurora Skylight by Ingólfur Bjargmundsson (Iceland). This image was taken while exploring a 1300m lava cave in Iceland. In some areas the roof has caved in, so snow piles up in the winter time and creates these snow peaks. The aurora at its peak gleams through the roof of the cave and despite only taking up a small portion of the photo, it remains the focal point.Ingólfur Bjargmundsson

Oxbow Bend Reflections by David Kingham (USA). The Milky Way reflected in the Snake River at the famous Oxbow Bend in Grand Teton National Park. The galaxy is poised just above the horizon mimicking a glowing cloud.David Kingham

A Giant's Star Trail by Rob Oliver (UK). A composition of several images taken at the famed Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland. Our planet's rotation draws the stars out into circles – considered to be the most perfect shape by ancient philosophers. Separated from the sky by the stark line of the horizon, the atomic symmetries of crystallised rock display themselves in the hexagonal columns of the Giant's Causeway.Rob Oliver

NGC 6888 by Mark Hanson (USA). This colourful starscape taken from Rancho Hidalgo, New Mexico, USA reveals the searing heat of the Crescent Nebula glowing in a whirl of red and blue. The emission nebula is a colossal shell of material ejected from a powerful but short-lived Wolf-Rayet star (WR 136), seen close to the image centre. Ultraviolet radiation and stellar wind now heats the swelling cloud, causing it to glow.Mark Hanson

The Turbulent Heart of the Scorpion by Rolf Wahl Olsen (New Zealand). A spectacular display of light and shade with contrasting hues of the rarely imaged, colourful, action-packed core of the multiple star system, Rho Ophiuchi. A deep exposure showcases the full finery of the delicate whirling clouds, of an area in which the human eye would struggle to see much detail, even with the use of a telescope.Rolf Wahl Olsen

Celestial Dance by Claus Possberg (Germany). The spectacular Northern Lights pictured unfolding over a fjord, in Skjervøy, Troms, Norway. The vibrant colours are produced at various altitudes by different atmospheric gases, with blue light emitted by nitrogen and green by oxygen. Red light can be produced by both gases, while purples, pinks and yellows occur where the various colours mix and intersect.Claus Possberg

Three Planets in Conjunction by Lóránd Fényes (Hungary). The staggering colours of the sunset and flora of the African savannah afford a unique background for the planetary alignment of Jupiter, Venus and Mercury in June 2013. In the golden hues, the three planets appeared as if they were strung on an invisible thread, and the bare tree and the human figure interwoven both point to one direction: Jupiter.Lóránd Fényes

Star Trails on the Beach by Sebastián Guillermaz (Argentina). Multiple shots have been used to produce a time-lapse effect, as the Earth's rotation draws the light from the stars into long trails arcing over the beach in Mar de Ajo, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina.Sebastián Guillermaz

In-flight Entertainment by Paul Williams (UK). Resplendent aurora seen from the window of a transatlantic flight between London and New York in February 2014. The photographer balanced his camera on his backpack to capture this image of the greatest natural light show on earth from a rare perspective.Paul Williams

The Great Orion Nebula by Gray Olson (USA). The sprawling stellar nursery of the Orion Nebula situated 1,350 light years away and home to stars at diverse stages of their lives, captured by 15 year old Gray Olson. It is one of the brightest nebulae, and is even visible to the naked eye in the night sky making it a popular target for amateur astronomers.Gray Olson

Eclipse and Old Faithful by Robert Howell (USA). Visitors witness the Old Faithful geyser in Yellowstone National Park erupt as the Moon partially eclipses the Sun. The scene captures a sense of awe set against blue sky and white geyser steam, as the onlookers strain to see the joining of these two phenomena – one geological and one astronomical.Robert Howell

Centre of the Heart Nebula by Ivan Eder (Hungary). Situated 7,500 light years away in the 'W'-shaped constellation of Cassiopeia, the Heart Nebula is a vast region of glowing gas, energised by a cluster of young stars at its centre. The image depicts the central region, where dust clouds are being eroded and moulded into rugged shapes by the searing cosmic radiation.Ivan Eder

Occultation of Jupiter by Sebastián Guillermaz (Argentina). An unusual daytime view of an astronomical alignment, captured from the photographer's backyard in Los Polvorines, Buenos Aires, Argentina. The image shows the moments just before the planet Jupiter is blocked from view by the Moon. The planet can be seen as a pale dot to the right of the Moon's body.Sebastián Guillermaz

Creature by Ole Christian Salomonsen (Norway). On 30 October a CME (Coronal Mass Ejection) hit Earth, displaying multi-coloured auroras across the sky for most of the night in Kattfjordeidet, Tromsø, Norway. The old birch trees resemble arms reaching for the auroral corona appearing like a strange creature in the sky.Ole Christian Salomonsen

Father and Son Observe Comet PanSTARRS by Chris Cook (USA). A father and his young son watch the evening display of Comet PanSTARRS on First Encounter Beach, Eastham, Massachusetts, USA. The photographer had spent weeks preparing the shoot to capture the comet, which will not be seen again for over 100,000 years, in order to foster his son's interest in astronomy.Chris Cook

Geminid Fireball by Patrick Cullis (USA). The Geminid meteor shower races over the Flatirons of Boulder, Colorado, in December 2012. Here, a larger than usual fragment burns bright enough to outshine all of the planets, producing what is commonly called a Fireball. Orion can also be seen in the photograph trailing across the sky toward the Pleiades and the glow of Jupiter inside the constellation of Taurus.Patrick Cullis

Orion Nebula by Anna Morris (USA). In this view of M42, more commonly known as the Orion Nebula, the photographer has emphasised the delicate veils of dust surrounding the more familiar gleaming heart of the nebula. The image highlights the structure of the object, giving a sense of vast cavities filled with pink hydrogen gas and the blue haze of reflected starlight.Anna Morris

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India's BSE Resumes Trading After 3-Hour Outage

A man looks at a screen displaying election results on the facade of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) building in Mumbai on 16 May.Reuters

India's Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) has resumed trading after three hours of outage due to a technical glitch.

BSE's main benchmark index, the Sensex, had stopped updating along with other sub-indices and stock prices on 3 July, forcing the exchange to shut down all market operations.

The stock exchange told CNBC-TV18 that the network service vendor HCL was working to resolve the issue at the earliest.

BSE member Dipen Mehta said the decision by the bourse to shut trading was a sensible one.

"Otherwise it would create problems at the broker end," Firstbiz quoted Mehta as saying.

This was for the second time in two months that the BSE faced a technical glitch. On 11 June, the BSE could not update its Sensex details for about 20 minutes at the start of trading.

In April, the exchange introduced a new trading system. On the first day, it suffered a technical glitch and traders were unable to access the platform.

With the introduction of the new trading system, the BSE claims to be the fastest exchange in India, with trading speed improved from 10 milliseconds to 200 microseconds. The exchange plans to cut trading response time further to 20 microseconds in three years.

On 2 July, the Sensex rose to a record high on hopes the newly-elected government will announce reforms to revive the economy in its upcoming budget this month.

It opened in the green at 25875.75 points on the outage day. It is trading up 0.03% at 25848.16 as at 2:25 pm local time. Meanwhile, the National Stock Exchange's Nifty index is trading down 0.06% at 7720.85.

China's Services Sector Grows at Fastest Pace in 15 Months

China's services sector rebounds in June.Reuters

Activity in China's services sector accelerated at its fastest pace in 15 months in June, according to a survey.

The HSBC/Markit services purchasing managers' index (PMI) bounced back to 53.1 in June from 50.7 in May, well above the 50-point threshold that demarcates an expansion from contracting activity.

In addition, in a sign that the world's second-largest economy is gathering some internal strength, a gauge of new business jumped to 53.8 in June, the strongest expansion since January 2013.

"Total new work expanded at a accelerated and robust pace at service providers in June, [just as] manufacturers [witnessed] the first increase in new business for five months. Furthermore, the expansion of new orders at service providers was the strongest since January 2013. As a result, new work rose solidly at the composite level," the HSBC/Markit survey noted

"Service sector firms increased their payroll numbers for the tenth successive month in June, and at the second-fastest rate in 2014 so far... [But] staff numbers fell again at manufacturing companies, albeit at the slowest rate in three months. Consequently, employment at the composite level was little-changed from the previous month in June," it added.

Qu Hongbin, chief economist for China at HSBC, said in a statement: "The expansion in the service sector reinforces the recovery seen in the manufacturing sector, and signalled a broad-based improvement over the month. We think the economy is slowly turning around, and expect the recovery to remain supported by accommodative policies on both the fiscal and monetary fronts over the coming months. The slowdown in the property market still poses downside risks, however, and may warrant further easing measures in 2H 2014."

Cai Jin, a vice-president at the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing – which compiles the official PMI – said in a statement on the agency's official Weibo account: "We should especially note the evident rebound in services businesses related to manufacturing activities.

Big rebound

"New orders from commodity retailers showed a big rebound, indicating that the stabilising growth momentum in the factory sector is filtering into the services industry."

RBC Capital Markets said in a note to clients: "CNH was a modest outperformer. China's final service PMI came in at 55.0 (no consensus) while HSBC's final reading increased from 50.7 to 53.1, bringing the composite PMI up from 50.2 to 52.4, a 15-month high. The USD/CNY fix of 6.1581 was up 32 pips from [2 July], but lower than model predictions."

USD/CNY Volatility.Reuters Ecowin, Nordea Markets

Nordea Markets said in a note: "The current CNY depreciation is a result of PBoC intervention to discourage one-way speculation in the CNY. It has been effective, as the estimated hot money inflows in May fell sharply to $3bn.

"Given the wider trading band and Beijing's wish for a flexible currency, CNY volatility will increase from here. Uncertainty remains high in the near term."

The services sector accounted for 45% of China's GDP in 2012 and roughly half of all jobs in the world's most populous nation.

Libyan Government Regains Major Oil Terminals, Brent Dips Below $112

A line of cars wait their turn at a petrol station due to shortages in Tripoli(Reuters)

Libya's acting Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni said the newly-elected government had reached a deal to take back two major oil ports that had been in the control of rebel groups for nearly a year, bringing an end to the country's oil crisis.

The oil terminals at Ras Lanuf and Es Sider had been out of use since separatist rebels seized control almost a year ago, demanding greater autonomy for the eastern region of the country.

"We have successfully reached an agreement to solve the oil crisis. We have received today Ras Lanuf and Es Sider oil ports -- thankfully without the use of force," Thinni said from Ras Lanuf late Wednesday.

"I officially declare this is the end of the oil crisis."

Thinni said he had reached a deal with Ibrahim Jathran, the rebel leader, who told reporters at a news conference that he had handed over control of the ports as a "goodwill gesture" to the newly-elected parliament.

The return of the sizeable terminals could free up around 500,000 barrels a day of crude oil for export and boost the state's coffers significantly.

An official from the Libyan central bank said last month that the prolonged oil standoff had cost the country $30bn (£18bn, €22bn) in lost oil revenues.

Disputes over oil production have been at the centre of a number of political disputes in Libya since the former leader Muammar Gaddafi was ousted in a NATO-backed campaign in 2011.

Prior to Gaddafi's overthrow, Libya produced around 1.4m barrels of oil per day but instability has brought that number to 150,000 barrels per day at times. Crude output stood at 321,000 barrels on Tuesday.

Reports of the oil terminals' imminent handover brought the price of Brent crude futures below $112 a barrel on Wednesday.

Peugeot to Build Fourth Plant in China to Take Advantage of Rising Car Demand

PeugeotReuters

French carmaker Peugeot is expanding its business in China to take advantage of rising demand in the country by building its fourth factory there.

The company said it has received approval from the municipality of Chengdu to build a factory with local partner Dongfeng Motor Corp.

The factory in Sichuan province will have a capacity to make 300,000 sport-utility and multipurpose vehicles per year, raising the manufacturers' joint capacity to one million per year by 2016.

Production at the new plant is expected to begin "in late 2016", according to the Paris-based company. It will build vehicles under the Citroën and Peugeot and Fengshen brands.

The companies jointly operate three other factories in Wuhan that make 750,000 cars per year at present.

Peugeot and Dongfeng are targeting to sell 50,000 vehicles in 2014 in China – the world's largest car market. By 2020, the companies are planning to boost sales to 1.5 million per year.

Recently, Dongfeng became a major shareholder in Peugeot along with the French government, diluting the holding of the Peugeot family. Wuhan-based Dongfeng bought a 14% stake in Peugeot in May.

The new holding structure came after the company's €3bn ($4.1bn, £2.4bn) capital infusion to avoid a crisis amid declining sales.

Europe's second-largest car maker by volume had reported a 4.9% decline in global vehicle deliveries in 2013, hit by the deepest and longest recession in the European car industry in decades.

Growth in Asia has been a key element of Peugeot's turnaround strategy to remain competitive in the industry. China's auto sales rose 11% in the first five months of this year, with deliveries by the Dongfeng-Peugeot venture surging 18%, according to Bloomberg.

The company has another joint venture with Chinese firm Changan at Shenzhen which makes Citroen DS cars.

Other foreign automotive firms such as Volkswagen, Ford Motor, Fiat's Chrysler division and Renault are also looking to boost production in China.