China, forecast to become the largest solar-power market this year, may abolish subsidy programs for some of its largest projects and target the money instead to smaller ones, an industry official said.

The trustee administering US$541 million in bonds from Suntech Power sent the solar company a notice of default yesterday as the deadline to redeem the notes passed, a person familiar with the matter said.

Suntech Power Holdings said it didn't make a required payment on US$541 million of bonds that matured Friday.

Xi Jinping was named China's president Thursday by the country's parliament, one of the final steps in China's once-in-a-decade leadership change.

China is over-reliant on imported goods for its semiconductor industry, and local chip companies supply only about 10% of its domestic needs as they remain in the development stage despite years of investments.

Five Wall Street investment and hedge funds have the most to lose as China's Suntech Power seeks more time to repay US$541 million of convertible debt.

Korea, China and Japan will hold three days of talks starting on March 26 on forging a trilateral free trade agreement.

Solar panel maker Suntech Power Holdings reached an agreement with some of its lenders to defer its obligations on a US$541 million loan due this Friday by two months, providing the company more time to restructure the debt.

Suntech, the solar panel maker, has forced out its founder Shi Zhenrong, in a dispute that highlights the painful contraction in the China solar panel sector.

As of today, March 5, all China-made solar modules and their main components coming into the EU must register with national customs authorities.

The European Union threatened to impose tariffs on solar glass from China to curb import competition for EU producers, heightening trade tensions over renewable energy.

Growth in the giant China manufacturing sector in February withdrew from the highest point in nearly two years despite a fourth consecutive month of expansion, a private survey showed Monday, as foreign demand remained unsteady.

Importers of inexpensive solar panels from China said on Tuesday that imposing tariffs would lead to hundreds of thousands of job losses in the EU, the biggest export market for the China-based equipment.

Trading of the Chinese yuan in Taiwan got off to a slow start Wednesday, with many traders preferring to do business in Hong Kong because of the market's greater liquidity.

China's pledge to reduce pollution after air-quality in Beijing hit hazardous levels on 20 days last month has cut financing costs for the world's biggest maker of solar wafers to a four-month low.

One in five China-based LED lighting companies may fail this year as falling prices and oversupply batter an industry that Beijing bankrolled to try to build an energy-efficient future.

In yet another wrinkle in the solar trade war with China, a consortium of European manufacturers filed an anti-dumping complaint with the European Commission against solar glass from China.

For the last four months, Chinese hackers have persistently attacked The New York Times, infiltrating its computer systems and getting passwords for its reporters and other employees.

LDK Solar Co Ltd said China Development Bank Corp approved a CNY440 million (US$69.8 million) loan, as the country's state-run banks continue to extend credit to its solar companies.

China plans to increase its goal for solar-power installations in 2015 by 67% to reduce reliance on fossil fuels blamed for greenhouse gases and as smog in Beijing reached record hazardous levels this month.

Samsung plans to invest US$1.7 billion in expanding and fitting out its operations in Kunshan, a fast-growing manufacturing hub west of Shanghai, the Xinhua news agency said on Sunday.

Japan has posted a record high trade deficit for 2012, as exports to Europe and China continued their plunge.

Apple is reportedly seeking to open a research and development facility in Beijing, as well as relocate App Store and iTunes servers to the country in order to facilitate development and distribution of online content for the Asian market, according to information posted Tuesday by Tencent, a Chinese news portal, and translated by BrightWire.

Tim Cook, making his second trip to China as Apple's CEO, predicted Friday that the world's most populous country will one day become Apple's number one customer.

China plans to more than double its installed capacity for solar electricity this year, a move that could breathe new life into China-based solar manufacturers suffering heavy losses.

Fubon Financial, one of the most aggressive Taiwanese financial firms expanding into the Chinese market, said on Thursday it will buy an 80% stake in China's Firstsino Bank for CNY6.45 billion (US$1.03 billion).

China's largest private employer has pledged to sharply curtail workers' hours and significantly increase wages - reforms that, if fully carried out next year as planned, could create a ripple effect that benefits tens of millions of workers across the electronics industry.

Bucking the industry trend and rising three places to No. 3, Qualcomm attributed its 29.6% growth to continued adoption of smartphones and the growth of 3G and LTE technology in emerging regions, such as China and India.

China opened the door to consolidation and bankruptcies among its troubled solar-products companies, steps that could help trim overcapacity in a global industry that has suffered losses and liquidations and has sparked a global trade spat.

Shares rose early on Monday after the win by Shinzo Abe, who has promised more public spending and says he will implement measures directed at weakening the yen and fighting deflation.