Coal India Ltd. (533278.BY) has set aside 350 billion rupees ($6.4 billion) to acquire assets abroad and to develop its blocks in Mozambique as the state-run company seeks to secure new supply sources since coal demand in India is growing faster than output.

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA.AU) is planning a benchmark-size, sterling-denominated, 14-year covered bond, one of the banks running the deal said Thursday.

Vedanta Resources PLC (VED.LN) is offering up to US$650 million more to buy the Indian government's entire stakes in two subsidiaries Hindustan Zinc Ltd. (500188.BY) and unlisted Bharat Aluminium Co. Ltd. as the U.K.-listed mining company makes a new attempt to consolidate its metals holdings to

Europe's banks have jumped on the August market rally to sell a type of debt that had been their main source of funding before the sovereign-debt crisis, but analysts warn that the recent rush doesn't signal a return to health, with some deals struggling to attract much demand.

The manufacturing sector in China, the world's No. 2 economy, contracted at the swiftest pace in nine months in August, while manufacturing in the eurozone shrank for the seventh-straight month.

Bank of China Ltd. (3988.HK), the country's largest foreign-exchange trading bank, Thursday started the earnings season for China's major banks on a positive note after reporting that first-half net profit rose 7.6%, helped by healthy net interest margins.

Madoff firm trustee Irving Picard won approval from a judge Wednesday to make a second payment that could reach $2.4 billion to former clients of Bernard Madoff, Reuters news agency reported on its website.

China Unicom (Hong Kong) Ltd. (CHU) said Thursday its first-half net profit surged 31.9%, surpassing market expectations, due to strong growth in the number of subscribers of third-generation mobile services and data usage.

U.K. stocks advanced on Thursday, tracking European markets, while investors focused on the minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve meeting the day before, hoping for more stimulus from the agency.