Bloomberg China’s drive to reduce overcapacity and streamline its coal industry has sent prices of the bulk commodity soaring. Efforts initially aimed at reversing a four-year collapse and help miners repay debts have pushed coal higher and faster than anyone anticipated. The fuel burned in power stations has doubled, while the coal used in steel making has more than …

  AFP Ousted Thai PM Yingluck Shinawatra doled out sacks of rice to hundreds of star-struck shoppers on Saturday, in her latest move to outshine junta efforts to support farmers hit by a price plunge. Tumbling rice prices have spread anguish across Thailand’s rural heartlands and sent the junta scrambling to roll out rescue packages and head off potential unrest. …

  AP Even for a city considered one of the world’s most polluted, the Indian capital hit a new low this past week. Air so dirty you can taste and smell it; a gray haze that makes a gentle stroll a serious health hazard. According to one advocacy group, government data shows that the smog that enveloped New Delhi was …