Tokyo - Key stock markets across Asia edged upwards on Friday, recovering slightly from record drops earlier this week, as investors cautiously ventured back into the market after a surge on Wall Street.

Indexes around the region see-sawed between small gains and losses, as investors reacted to mixed signals from Asia's economies.

Tokyo stocks climbed in early trading Friday after Wall Street's overnight surge.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average gained 129.66 points, or 1.53 per cent, trading at 8,588.11. The broader Topix index gained 2.6 per cent to 887.43.

The recovery came after Japan's benchmark index plunged 11.41 per cent Thursday.

New York - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is scheduled to attend an international conference on migration and development in late October in the Philippines, the first of four Asian countries he plans to visit, the UN said Thursday.

The Second Global Forum on Migration and Development will take place in Manila on October 29. Ban will meet with President Gloria Arroyo and receive the nation's Order of Sikatuna in recognition of his diplomatic efforts.

Kushinagar (Uttar Pradesh), Oct. 16 : The Genda Singh sugarcane breeding and research institute in Sewari in Uttar Pradesh, which was Asia’s second prominent centre for research purposes, has per researchers working there, been a victim of neglect.

It was known for making significant contribution for development and release of new sugarcane varieties, suitable for the agro-climatic zone of the eastern Uttar Pradesh and and Bihar in the early nineties.

Spread over 286.44 acre area, this research centre has developed species like COS—8432,8436, COSE—92422 and 98237.

Tokyo - Markets across Asia plummeted on opening Thursday, dragged down by US retail sales data and concerns about whether bank bail-outs would be able to rescue financial markets and avert a recession.

The Tokyo stock market plummeted in early trading after Wall Street's blue-chip Dow Jones industrials lost nearly 8 per cent overnight amid growing recession fears in the United States and worldwide.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average plunged 911.91 points, or 9.55 per cent, to 8,635.56.

Hong Kong - Phone users in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur are Asia's most enthusiastic senders of text messages, according to a survey released Thursday.

More than 97 per cent of mobile phone users in Singapore have sent text messages in the past month, followed by 96 per cent of people in Kuala Lumpur and 94 per cent of people in Seoul, the survey found.

More than 87 per cent of people in Melbourne and Sydney said they had sent texts in the past month while the region's lowest rate of text messaging were recorded by Hong Kong (85 per cent) and Bangkok (69 per cent).

The survey was conducted by the market research company Synovate, which studied the habits of more than 5,000 mobile phone users in seven Asian-Pacific markets.

Islamabad - A powerful grouping of Islamic scholars has issued a decree against suicide attacks inside Pakistan, declaring them "forbidden," media reports said on Wednesday.

However, it threatened to declare jihad (holy war) against the United States if it did not halt recently increased airstrikes in the country.

The fatwa, or edict, came on Tuesday from the Muttahida Ulema Council (United Scholars Council) which represents all schools of thought, including the minority Shiite Muslim sect.