Striking a rare light note in the bitter White House race:

Obama ‘roasts’ Romney at big dinner

Cheered by Hollywood stars, President Barack Obama late Saturday lampooned Mitt Romney's wealth and mined a shaggy dog story about his foe, striking a rare light note in the bitter White House race. Obama used an annual star-studded dinner with White House correspondents and Hollywood A-listers, which presidents use to rip their rivals, to take a few gentle shots at Rommey, before the two rivals face off for the presidency.

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Storm clouds gather over Indian economy

India's economic star is fading fast as a spluttering economy and reform paralysis put the country's prized investment-grade rating at risk and spook foreign investors. The latest bad news came Wednesday when Standard & Poor's cut India's credit outlook to negative, saying the nation's investment grade rating faced a one-in-three chance of being downgraded to junk. It isolated “political gridlock” as a key factor behind the warning.

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Chinese tastes impact global car designs

As more and more Chinese buy cars, automakers say consumer tastes in the Asian nation have a growing influence on vehicle design the world over. China emerged as the world’s top car market in 2009, and though the sector stalled last year, with sales rising just 2.5 percent to 18.51 million, carmakers are convinced it is where the industry’s future lies. Manufacturers at this week’s Auto China 2012 exhibition in Beijing said they have started to include features that appeal to the Chinese consumer -- from large grilles and highly visible chrome fittings to luxury back seats for the in-laws. “We want to have more China elements in our design for global cars,” said Shen Li, spokeswoman for Nissan China.

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