Sheri Canier

Japan's Financial Services Agency on Friday ordered Nomura Holdings Inc. (8604.TO) to improve its operations after a string of insider trading cases that have put Japan's biggest brokerage under scrutiny over the past few months.

The gloom gathering around Japan's struggling electronics industry darkened Friday as investors spooked by Sharp Corp.'s (6753.TO) steep losses and perceived strategy fumbles sent the shares skidding to lows not seen for nearly 40 years, wiping nearly a third off the company's value.

Philex Mining Corp. (PX.PH) has suspended operations at its Padcal copper-gold mine after the mine's tailings pond was flooded in the wake of Typhoon Saola that hit northern Philippines early this week, the company said in a statement to the stock exchange Friday.

As Sharp Corp.'s (6753.TO) shares plunged as much as 30% Friday, its Taiwanese partner Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. (2317.TW) said that the company hopes to pursue a larger stake in Sharp if the struggling Japanese consumer electronics maker is willing to sell more.

Business activity in China services sector improved at a faster rate in July than in the month before on an increase in new order volumes, according to an HSBC survey released Friday.

Dragged by a weak performance from the real-estate sector, China's official non-manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index fell to 55.6 in July from 56.7 in June, likely adding to market concerns about a sharp and continuous slowdown in the world's second-largest economy.

German luxury auto maker BMW AG (BMW.XE) plans to double its annual production of engines in China, the major growth driver for global car makers and where demand for upscale vehicles continues to be strong.

Mainland Chinese shares bucked a regional decline to rise in Friday trading -- with the Shanghai Composite Index up 0.2% -- after the country's financial regulator said it is trimming some stock fees, according to reports.

BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP) said Friday it will write down the value of U.S. shale gas and Australian nickel assets by a combined US$3.29 billion, prompting Chief Executive Marius Kloppers to decline an annual bonus in the latest sign the global resources boom has lost momentum.