Reuters - Asian stocks edged up and the yen slipped from a 15-year high on Thursday, after a small rally on Wall Street driven by successful European bond auctions gave investors an excuse to lighten up on their bets.

Reuters - Projected U.S. economic growth for the rest of this year and next was revised down for a third month in a row by a panel of about 50 economists.

Reuters - Switzerland remains the world's most competitive economy, while the United States has fallen from second to fourth, according to the World Economic Forum.

Reuters - Australia's competition regulator blocked National Australia Bank's $12 billion bid for AXA Asia Pacific for a second time, dashing NAB's efforts to cement its dominance in the world's fourth-largest wealth management market.

Reuters - Goldman Sachs has been fined 20 million pounds ($30.9 million) by the UK's financial regulator for failing to disclose it was under fraud investigation by its U.S. counterpart, the BBC reported on Wednesday.