Thailand's economy shrank 2.2 percent in the three months to March from the previous quarter — the first contraction in more than a year — as manufacturing output fell, official data showed Monday.

Many duped savers at Spanish lender Bankia are shunning a state-supervised compensation scheme in favor of expensive lawsuits, prolonging a misselling scandal and complicating efforts to restore faith in the banking system.

Swedish fashion giant H&M is considering starting production in South America and Africa, chief executive Karl-Johan Persson told the Financial Times in an interview published on Monday.

The world hydroelectric industry's decision to meet in a Malaysian state where dams have uprooted rainforests and native peoples is drawing bitter fire from environmental and tribal groups.

Corporate event planner ITE Group PLC reported a 15-percent fall in first-half profit, hurt by rising overhead costs and the absence of two key biennial events in Russia.

Asia's mobile revolution is set to transform the region's financial services industry, offering a cheap way for millions of migrant workers to send money home to their families, a report said on Monday.

Optimism about global growth pushed world shares to a near five-year high on Monday, while debate about the future of the U.S. Federal Reserve's stimulus program extended gold's longest losing streak in four years.

The dollar eased in Asia on Monday after a Japanese minister said the recent correction against the yen was nearly over, but analysts said the greenback would soon resume its climb.

Oil prices were down in Asian trade Monday as investors locked in profits from last week's gains after U.S. stocks blazed to new record levels.

Microsoft Corp. is set to make a splash this week with the eagerly awaited unveiling of its new Xbox game console, eight years after the last version, as it seeks a larger share of the US$65 billion a year global computer gaming industry.