PORT-OF-SPAIN, TRINIDAD (CMC):

Caribbean Star Airlines Wednesday said it would establish a new base and maintenance facility in Trinidad and Tobago, as the Antigua-based regional airline announced an expansion of its services to the Caribbean.

The airline said that from July 13, it would establish the new facility that would be home to 20 pilots and 10 flight attendants as well as a four-member maintenance crew.

It said that five aircraft would be based at the Piarco International Airport from July 13.

TOKYO (AP):

The Bank of Japan decided yesterday to leave its key interest rate at zero even as political problems engulf Governor Toshihiko Fukui with calls from opposition parties for his resignation.

The decision to keep interest on hold comes as the central bank tries to coordinate a gradual tightening of monetary policy without stifling the budding recovery of the world's second-largest economy.

The BOJ's policy board voted unanimously to keep things stable, saying current economic conditions do not yet warrant a change.

SHANGHAI (AP):

China reported yesterday that the country's spending on construction and factory equipment surged 30.3 per cent in January-May over the same period a year earlier, as central bank Governor Zhou Xiaochuan said economic fine-tuning measures were on the way.

The figure, known as urban fixed-asset investment, is one of China's key economic indicators. The continued fast growth reinforced earlier data suggesting that efforts to slow economic growth have yet to take effect.