Shenzhen

Japanese factory output and U.S. consumer confidence are among the few trading cues in the last trading week of the year, with Tokyo's Nikkei 225 on track to be one of the best-performing major stock indices globally.

The Japanese market is open from today through Dec. 20 in what is expected to be quiet trading in a holiday-shortened week.

Rescuers scrabbling through the debris of a huge three-day-old landslide Dec. 23 discovered a young man alive in the mud, as China's cabinet announced a probe into the nation's latest industrial accident.

A landslide that swept through an industrial park in southern China has buried more than 30 buildings in a sea of mud, leaving 91 people missing and triggering a gas explosion, Chinese media said Dec. 21.

A landslide at an industrial park in southern China buried more than 20 buildings and left 22 people missing on Dec. 20, state media reported, as more than 1,500 emergency workers searched the scene.

Rescuers pulled four people from the debris after the accident in the southern city of Shenzhen bordering Hong Kong, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

Chinese shares plummeted on Aug. 24, wiping out the year's gains and leading a slump across Asian equities as Beijing's latest market intervention failed to restore confidence, with concern mounting about the stalling economy.

A few weeks ago, at the height of the panic in the Chinese stock markets, a sour joke was doing the rounds: "Last month, the dog was eating what I eat. Last week, I was eating what the dog eats. This week, I think I'll eat the dog." A lot of people have lost a lot of money.

Chinese stocks rose strongly for a second day on July 10, buoyed by a barrage of government support measures, but worries persist about the long-term impact that four weeks of stock market turmoil may have on the world's second-largest economy. 

Chinese stocks stormed into positive territory in volatile trade on July 9 as Beijing launched new measures to halt a dramatic sell-off, prompting Asian markets to rebound, but dealers questioned whether the gains would last.

Chinese stocks plunged on July 8 after the country's securities regulator warned investors were in the grip of "panic sentiment" and the market showed signs of freezing up as firms scrambled to escape the rout by having their shares suspended.

Chinese shares took another tumble on July 6, defying government efforts to arrest a precipitous fall that has wiped an estimated $3.2 trillion off markets and threatens the world's number-two economy.

The government over the weekend announced a halt to initial public offerings (IPOs) and moves to pour funds into the market to end three weeks of plunging prices.