India attained 50th place in the annual Global Competitiveness 2008-09 ranking. It was at 48th place last year. The list is compiled by the World Economic Forum with its network of Partner Institutes in various countries. 

China has improved its ranking and got 30th spot in the latest list. It attained highest rank among the BRIC economies. US topped the list of 134 countries. The country got the first rank despite financial crisis in the economy.

Beijing, Oct. 11 : A new traffic restriction went into effect in Beijing from Saturday, which is expected to help sustain the hard-won smooth traffic and good air quality during the Olympic Games.

Under the new traffic restriction, 70 percent of government vehicles, as well as all corporate and private cars, will take turns off the roads one out of the five weekdays as of Oct. 11, according to the Beijing Municipal Committee of Communications.

New York, Oct. 11: Indian software major Satyam Computer Services has reportedly been banned from doing any off-shore work with the World Bank after forensic experts and bank investigators discovered that spy software was covertly installed on workstations inside the bank''s Washington headquarters, allegedly by one or more contractors from Satyam Computer Services.

According to a FOX News report, apart from Satyam, two IP intrusions have been reported from China, and there have been six intrusions in all.

New Delhi, Oct. 10 : India and China have signed a Memorandum of Understanding on trade remedy.

The MoU is aimed at ensuring transparency and better understanding of technical and other matters related to anti-dumping and trade barriers.

Berlin  - Germany and China have resumed dialogue, with junior ministers leading talks on strategic issues, while consultations on human rights are set for next month, the German Foreign Ministry said Friday.

The resumption of the regular rounds of talks was announced in June by Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi and his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Beijing after a period of coolness over the Tibet issue.

Beijing - Shares in China's main stock market lost more than 3 per cent Friday to end the worst week on record down 12 per cent, despite government measures aimed at stabilizing financial markets.

The key Shanghai Composite Index, which tracks shares traded in local and foreign currencies, lost 3.57 per cent to close at 2,000.57 points, while the smaller Shenzhen Component Index also plunged again.