North Korea envoy awaits chat with China's leader
BEIJING (AP) -- On a visit to repair ties with China and waiting to meet its leader, a North Korean envoy Thursday paid deference to its chief ally's hopes for renewed multinational nuclear talks....

Japanese climber, 80, becomes oldest atop Everest
KATMANDU, Nepal (AP) -- An 80-year-old Japanese man who has had four heart operations in recent years became the oldest person to climb to the top of Mount Everest on Thursday - although his record may last only a few days. An 81-year-old Nepalese man, who held the previous record, plans his own ascent next week....

Japan gyrations underline economy's vulnerability
TOKYO (AP) -- Japan's financial markets gyrated wildly Thursday, underscoring the vulnerability of its economy to a loss of investor confidence as Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attempts shock monetary easing to end two decades of stagnation....

US family leaves Singapore frustrated with inquest
SINGAPORE (AP) -- The parents of an American software engineer found dead in his Singapore apartment last year left the city-state Thursday before the end of a coroner's inquest, saying they had lost faith in the process. Their lawyer said they would push for a U.S. congressional investigation....

Markets roiled by Nikkei's 7.3 percent slide
LONDON (AP) -- Financial markets around the world were roiled Thursday after Japanese stocks suffered their biggest slide since the country was hit by a devastating tsunami more than two years ago....

Pakistan arrested American who was killed by drone
PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) -- Pakistani authorities once arrested an American citizen now known to have been killed in a U.S. drone strike in the country, but he escaped after being released on bail....

Stricken Japan nuke plant struggles to keep staff
TOKYO (AP) -- Keeping the meltdown-stricken Fukushima nuclear plant in northeastern Japan in stable condition requires a cast of thousands. Increasingly the plant's operator is struggling to find enough workers, a trend that many expect to worsen and hamper progress in the decades-long effort to safely decommission it....

Father of Afghanistan cricket captain abducted
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -- Gunmen kidnapped the father of Afghanistan's national cricket team captain near his home in an eastern city, officials said Thursday....

Heat wave causes power outages, anger in India
LUCKNOW, India (AP) -- A blistering heat wave has swept across most parts of north and western India, causing massive electricity cuts and leading angry residents to protest and even attack power company officials and property....