Solid yearly production figures weren't enough to halt a further sell-down Wednesday in BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP) shares to their lowest point in more than three years, as investors continue to worry about falling commodity prices.

Australian oil producer Santos Ltd. (STO.AU) said Thursday second-quarter revenue rose 18% on year after it switched on new projects in Western Australia state and Indonesia and received higher prices for its natural gas.

Australian stocks rallied in early Thursday action, carrying on gains from Wall Street and reacting to some positive news in the energy sector, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 up 1.2% at 4,173.70.

Woodside Petroleum Ltd. (WPL.AU) said Thursday that the successful activation of its giant Pluto project helped second-quarter revenue grow by 23%, and has underpinned an upgrade to its annual production guidance.

Japan stocks rose sharply in early Thursday trading, with investors shrugging off a rise in the yen and instead looking to overnight gains on the Nasdaq Composite to push tech shares higher.

Sandwich chain Quiznos Corp. named Stuart K. Mathis as its new president and chief executive, succeeding Greg MacDonald, who is stepping down immediately. Mr. Mathis's appointment is effective July 30. Mr. Mathis most recently served as president of United Parcel Service Inc.'s (UPS) UPS store

Singapore Exchange Ltd. (S68.SG) said Thursday it is raising admission standards for listing on its main board, to help improve the city-state's primary stock market and draw larger initial public offerings here.

Singapore Exchange Ltd. (S68.SG) said Thursday it is raising admission standards for listing on its mainboard, to help improve the city-state's primary stock market and draw larger initial public offerings here.

American Express Co.'s (AXP) second-quarter profit was essentially flat as the pace of customer card spending slowed, though it continued to benefit from historically low loan losses.

Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP's (KMP) second-quarter earnings fell 33% as the company posted losses related to fair-value impacts tied to discontinued operations.