beyondbrics

* Blueprint for China to open up markets

* Gates attacks ‘outdated’ UN food agencies

* Meeting tests unity of Syria opposition

* India said to propose BRICS bank to finance developing nations’ projects

* Kofi Annan named UN troubleshooter to Syria

* Vitro sued by US bank seeking $311m from unpaid notes

* Ukraine opens shale gas reserves to exploration

* In China, air cheow-DAN cries foul

* Obama apologizes for Koran burning in Afghanistan

* Markets: mixed

Blueprint for China to open up markets
China should accelerate the loosening of capital controls, its central bank said, in a report outlining the path to a freely tradeable currency and more open capital markets, the FT reports.
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/bd948148-5dfd-11e1-8c87-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1n5BjPMk6

Gates attacks ‘outdated’ UN food agencies
Bill Gates, the Microsoft founder turned philanthropist, has broken a taboo in the development community by publicly accusing UN agencies of allowing infighting and inefficiency to undermine the battle against hunger, the FT reports.
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/629f3e52-5e45-11e1-85f6-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1n5BjPMk6

Meeting tests unity of Syria opposition
The Arab League, the US and other world powers will discuss the future of Syria at a conference in Tunisia on Friday that is being seen as a test of whether the country’s disparate opposition can begin to forge a united front, the FT reports.
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/caf788ec-5e40-11e1-8c87-00144feabdc0.html?ftcamp=rss#axzz1n5BjPMk6

India said to propose BRICS bank to finance developing nations’ projects
India has proposed setting up a multilateral bank that would be exclusively funded by developing nations and finance projects in those countries, two government officials with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-02-23/india-said-to-propose-brics-bank-to-finance-developing-nations-projects.html

Kofi Annan named UN troubleshooter to Syria
Former United Nations Secretary- General Kofi Annan will be a special envoy to Syria for the UN and the Arab League, seeking to broker peace in a country on the brink of civil war as President Bashar al-Assad wages deadly attacks on civilians, Bloomberg reports.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-02-23/syrians-troops-shell-homs-on-eve-of-tunisia-talks-to-discuss-ousting-assad.html

Vitro sued by US bank seeking $311m from unpaid notes
Units of Vitro, the Mexican glassmaker that defaulted in 2009, were sued by a trustee for noteholders, which is seeking to recover $311m on unpaid notes, Bloomberg reports.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-02-23/vitro-units-sued-in-new-york-by-u-s-bank-over-unpaid-notes.html

Ukraine opens shale gas reserves to exploration
Ukraine has become the latest European country to open up its shale gas reserves to exploration, a move that could help to reduce its heavy dependence on increasingly expensive gas imports from its eastern neighbour Russia, the FT reports.
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/34cda2d2-5e47-11e1-85f6-00144feabdc0.html?ftcamp=rss#axzz1n5BjPMk6

In China, air cheow-DAN cries foul
Basketball star Michael Jordan has cried foul against a sportswear chain here, saying it is improperly using the Chinese version of his name, the FT reports. Qiaodan Sports Co. has profited by illegally using his name on its marketing materials and products since the 1980s, Mr. Jordan said in a prepared statement. Qiaodan is pronounced approximately as cheow-DAN in Mandarin.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204778604577240991687647450.html

Obama apologizes for Koran burning in Afghanistan
President Barack Obama apologised on Thursday for the burning of copies of the Koran on a US base in Afghanistan as the White House sought to quell spiralling furor among Afghans while also staving off Republican criticism at home, Reuters reports.
http://in.reuters.com/article/2012/02/23/afghanistan-korans-obama-idINDEE81M0F920120223

Emerging Markets
MSCI Emerging Market Index up +0.05% at 1,060

Americas
DJIA up +0.36% at 12,985
S&P 500 up +0.43% at 1,363
Bovespa down -0.41% at 65,820

Asia
Nikkei 225 up +0.18% at 9,613
Topix up +0.49% at 833.44
Hang Seng down -0.10% at 21,360
Shanghai Composite up +0.32% at 2,417
MSCI Asia ex-Japan up +0.13% at 528.64
S&P CNX Nifty Index down -0.26% at 5,469

Currencies
€/$ 1.34 (1.34)
$/¥ 80.27 (79.96)

Commodities
Brent Crude (ICE) up +0.32 at 123.94
Light Crude (Nymex) up +0.70 at 108.53
100 Oz Gold (Comex) down -6.40 at 1,779