CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia said on Friday China had told embassy staff in Beijing they would not be allowed access to all parts of the trial of four Rio Tinto staff on charges of bribery and stealing commercial secrets. "The government's disappointment has been registered with Chinese officials in Beijing and Canberra," Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade ...

China has issued new rules on financial accounting at religious organisations, state media said Friday, in an apparent bid to increase its already tight controls on faith-based groups. China officially allows freedom of religion, but in practice, the atheist Communist Party restricts religious groups through a bureaucratic registration process that demands allegiance to the ruling party. The new rules, issued ...

China urged the United States Friday not to politicise a row over the value of its currency as it announced a top official would travel to Washington for talks on the issue and other trade disputes. As trade tensions between the two powers rise, Beijing warned of a negative impact from pending US legislation that would impose tough new penalties ...