Beijing Formalizes Call for New Reserve Currency

BEIJING — China’s central bank reiterated its call for the creation of a new international currency that could replace currencies such as the dollar in countries’ official reserves.
In its annual report on financial stability, issued Friday, the People’s Bank of China said the country will push reform of the international currency system to make it [...]

Can ‘Made in China’ Make it for Vodka?

This week saw the launch of one of the more interesting Chinese branding efforts we’ve seen in a while. Diageo, the U.K. company behind Johnnie Walker, Smirnoff and Guinness, has teamed up with Shui Jing Fang, China’s oldest maker of the potent spirit called baijiu, to produce a premium vodka in the southwestern city Chengdu [...]

Indian gay rights march calls to legalize gay sex

(AP)Hundreds of gay rights supporters waved flags and danced past traffic during marches through three Indian cities Sunday to celebrate gay pride and call for the decriminalization of homosexuality in this deeply conservative country.
The New Delhi parade passed near the Delhi High Court, which is reviewing a law that prohibits gay sex — and can [...]

New Honduran leader sworn in

(BBC)
A new president has been sworn into office in Honduras, hours after the ousting of President Manuel Zelaya.
Congress speaker Roberto Micheletti will serve as interim president until polls are held, Congress said.
The removal of Mr Zelaya by the army came amid a power struggle over his plans for constitutional change.
Mr Zelaya, who had been in [...]

Jackson doctor did not inject painkillers: lawyer

(Reuters) – The personal physician at Michael Jackson’s side when he died told police he did not inject the singer with painkillers that friends say might be behind the King of Pop’s death on the brink of a comeback bid.
A lawyer for Dr. Conrad Murray told Reuters on Sunday that the cardiologist found Jackson, 50, [...]

Michael Jackson’s death leads to Bruno scene cut

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/michael-jackson/5649507/Michael-Jacksons-death-leads-to-Bruno-scene-cut.html
Michael Jackson’s death last night resulted in the emergency reworking of Sacha Baron Cohen’s new movie, Bruno.
By Florence Waters

Comedian Sacha Baron Cohen may be known for his tasteless humour but a scene from his movie which makes jokes at the expense of Michael Jackson has been cut out after it was deemed “in too poor [...]

Abaya gets a makeover from John Galliano and Blumarine

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/fashionnews/5655392/Abaya-gets-a-makeover-from-John-Galliano-and-Blumarine.html
Top European fashion labels, including John Galliano and Blumarine, have sent models in couture abayas down the runway in an effort to lure wealthy Muslim women.

A horsewoman in a flowing, made-to-measure Islamic gown atop a snorting steed opened the fashion show on Thursday at the George V Hotel in Paris.
Abayas are the body-covering black robes [...]

Tracy Anderson: guru by appointment to her Madge, Madonna

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/dietandfitness/5639397/Tracy-Anderson-guru-by-appointment-to-her-Madge-Madonna.html
The personal trainer Tracy Anderson claims she can give any woman, whatever her size, the same ‘teeny-tiny’ bodies as her famous clients, Gwyneth Paltrow and Madonna. Yes, says Charlotte Sanders, but at what cost?
By Charlotte Sanders

Tracy Anderson is running late. Very late. An hour after she was due to have arrived at Steps, the Fame-style [...]

The perfect picnic

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/recipes/5624044/The-perfect-picnic.html
Eating outdoors shouldn’t be grand, just great fun.
By Rose Prince

Just say the word ‘picnic’ and see faces fill with anticipation. It is an event, more than the sum of the labourer’s sandwich, yet it should never be grand. A picnic says it’s time to take a day off. To leave the usual rituals of dinner [...]

Michael Jackson’s music: the solo albums

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/michael-jackson/5652389/Michael-Jacksons-music-the-solo-albums.html
Michael Jackson’s ten solo albums map out the evolution of the hottest styles from the 1970s to the 1990s.
By Bernadette McNulty

You could argue that the reason Michael Jackson made great pop music was that he loved pop music. When Jackson heard a new sound that excited him, he would try and incorporate it into his [...]