VENTURE CAPITAL POST

Ratings agency S&P cut Russia's sovereign credit rating to junk status on Monday, bringing it below investment grade for the first time in a decade.

Most Asian share markets firmed on Tuesday and the euro clung to rare gains, relieved that European equities had weathered Greece's election outcome without too much disruption.

U.S. President Barack Obama ended a landmark day in India on Monday with a pledge of $4 billion in investments and loans, seeking to release what he called the "untapped potential" of a business and strategic partnership between the world's largest democracies.

Oil prices declined on Monday, with U.S. crude falling close to a nearly six-year low, as Saudi Arabia's new King Salman moved to assuage fears of an unstable transition and any policy change in the world's largest oil exporter.

Japan's exports grew the most in a year in December, helped by a weak yen and a pick-up in overseas demand led by the United States, an encouraging sign for the recession-hit economy even as doubts persist about the strength of global consumption.

U.S. President Barack Obama will call on Congress to expand protection of Alaska's Arctic refuge where oil and gas drilling is prohibited to 12 million acres (5 million hectares), an area that includes 1.4 million oil-rich acres along the coast.

The average price of a gallon of gasoline in the United States fell 13.3 cents in the past two weeks, falling to its lowest level since late April 2009, but the end of a months-long slide may be near, according to the Lundberg survey released Sunday.

Japan has offered to import more rice from the United States in a compromise aimed at pushing forward the Asia-Pacific regional trade talks, the Nikkei reported on Sunday.

Kia Motors is recalling 86,880 Forte sedans in the United States because a cooling fan resistor may overheat and melt, increasing the risk of a fire, according to documents filed by U.S. auto safety regulators.

Central banks have done their best to rescue the world economy by printing money and politicians must now act fast to enact structural reforms and pro-investment policies to boost growth, central bankers said on Saturday.

Honda Motor Co (7267.T) has chosen a competitor of embattled Takata Corp (7312.T) to supply air bags for the next North American version of its Accord sedan, the automaker's best-selling vehicle, two people with knowledge of the decision said.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved NPS Pharmaceuticals Inc's drug Natpara to treat a rare hormone disorder, validating a bet by Shire Plc, which recently agreed to acquire NPS for $5.2 billion.

The Federal Reserve could be key for Wall Street next week as investors get to hear from the U.S. central bank for the first time since a series of moves by its global peers, including the European Central Bank's massive stimulus plan.

General Motors Co's (GM.N) Cadillac brand is at least four years away from introducing a small sport-utility vehicle which is a critical part of expansion plans, the brand's president said on Thursday.

New world trade talks had to level the playing field between developed and developing economies on farm support and avoid being held hostage by countries unwilling to open markets, U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman said in an opinion piece to be published on Thursday.