India scrapped its 14 percent duty on the import of raw cotton and withdrew benefits on exports of the commodity effective July 8, the ministry of finance said.

LISBON, July 9 (Reuters) - The Portuguese Institute for Public

WARSAW July 9 (Reuters) - Poland sold 705 million zlotys,

UK retail prices picked up sharply in June as the cost of food continued to rise at a heady pace, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and pollsters Nielsen said.

The government said it will invite new applications to develop a new cruise terminal at the old airport site in Kai Tak, Kowloon after two shortlisted proponents failed to meet all its requirements for the project.

The following mergers and joint-venture agreements have been notified to the European Commission for regulatory clearance:

Bank of Italy governor Mario Draghi said the recent interest rate hike by the European Central Bank has started to reduce the upward trend in inflationary expectations.

rachel.armstrong@thomsonreuters.com

Oil prices bounced back higher on Wednesday, following steep falls earlier in the week, with heightened tensions over Iran's controversial missile tests providing the impetus for the move.

European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said the G7 has to look closely at the adverse effects of excessive movements in exchange rates.