London  - Britain's Barclays bank said in London Friday it plans to raise some 7.3 billion pounds (11.8 billion dollars) in fresh capital from investors, mostly from the Middle East.

Barclays said the move fulfilled government regulations for raising capital and avoided a government bail-out for the bank, keeping it "strong and independent."

The investments would mostly come from state funds and the royal families in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, but also from existing shareholders and institutional investors.

There would be no dividend paid out for the end of 2008.

The bank said that preliminary results for the first nine months of 2008 were "slightly ahead" of the same period in 2007.

Tokyo  - All Nippon Airways Co (ANA) on Friday lowered its earnings forecast for the current fiscal year as it saw its second-quarter profits fall because of rising fuel prices and slow demand for air travel.

Japan's second-largest airline said its operating profit declined 18.6 per cent in the July-September period from the same quarter a year ago to 35.2 billion yen (358.48 million dollars).

Its net profit was down 2.7 per cent to 15.3 billion yen, and sales were down 5.8 per cent to 407.8 billion yen.

ANA attributed the results to slowing demand for domestic travel and severe competition with other airliners and railway transport services.

Tokyo  - Markets across the Asia-Pacific ended a roller-coaster week mixed on Friday with key bourses in Hong Kong and Tokyo down despite a much-anticipated rate cut by the Bank of Japan.

Asian markets had posted significant gains mid-week with daily surges of up to 10 per cent or even more after a rate cut in the United States, making up for similarly heavy losses at the beginning of the week.

The Bank of Japan on Friday cut its key short-term interest rate to 0.3 per cent from 0.5 per cent to help the world's second-largest economy weather the global financial crisis.

London, Oct 31 : Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay has accused soccer ace David Beckham of enhancing his “Goldenballs” with oranges for his Armani ad.

The 41-year-old chef was mocking pal Becks over his famous Armani pants adverts, reports the Daily star.

In an interview to GQ magazine, Gordon asked Becks “Did you put satsumas down your pants for the Armani adverts?”

Becks replied: “Gordon should know. He’s one of my best friends, so he should know the truth.

“He knows it wasn’t retouched. I would never ask them to change anything,” he added.

“I’ve never done pictures in my underwear before. It was a question of trying to find a good position that wasn’t too much.

Melbourne, Oct 31 : Feminists have condemned the new lingerie design equipped with GPS, calling it a 21st-century chastity belt.

The new line, known as ‘The Find Me If You Can’, was created by Lucia lorio.

It consists of a range of ace bodice, bikini bottom, and faux pearl collar, with the GPS device visibly nestled in the see-through part of the bodice next to the waist.

“The collection... is a wink to women and a challenge to men because, even if she gives him the password to her GPS, she can always turn it off,'''' the Daily Telegraph quoted Lucia as saying.

"She can be found only if she wants to.

New Delhi, Oct 31 : Pop icon Michael Jackson’s fans will attempt a new world record for dancing to his hit song ''Thriller''.