Asian countries unable to reduce poverty: ADB, UN agencies
Manila: A joint report by the Asian Development Bank and two UN agencies has said that two-thirds of the world's poorest people continue to live in the Asia-Pacific region. It said Asian countries are unable to achieve their targets of reducing poverty even as some countries like India, Afghanistan and Nepal are "catching up," although their latest status is still off the region's average.

Despite India's progress in meeting development goals, the report said the prevalence of poverty and underweight children is among the highest in the world.

The report says the region is home to three times as many underweight children and people living on less than USD one a day as sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America combined.

Prevalence of HIV-- the virus that causes AIDS-- is also on the rise in the region, which already accounts for a quarter of the world's 9 million people afflicted with the disease.

The report said two-thirds of Asians-- about 1.5 billion people-- still lack access to basic sanitation, while over 650 million have no access to safe water.
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Crude oil begins ascent as cold weather sets in US
Crude oil rose for the fourth consecutive day and was seen trading above $60 a barrel, on speculation OPEC members may agree this week to cut production and as cold weather in the U.S. Northeast increased heating demand.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries will discuss on Oct. 19 a plan to lower output by 1 million barrels a day, oil ministers including Qatar's Abdullah bin Hamad al- Attiyah said. On the other hand cold weather is setting in the US raising the demand for oil.

Crude oil for November delivery rose as much as 31 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $60.25 a barrel in after-hours trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was at $60.16 at 8:33 a.m. Singapore time. Prices have rebounded from a 10 month-low of $57.22 on Oct. 12.
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