The UK government will relax visa rules for Chinese nationals coming to the UK, Chancellor George Osborne announces during his China trade trip.

A candidate for the National Front party wins a local by-election in south-eastern France, amid signs the far-right party is gaining in strength.

Mayor Edgardo Parra of Valencia, Venezuela's third largest city, is arrested over accusations of corruption and money laundering.

The head of the International Monetary Fund warns a US default could spark a global recession, as the deadlock in Congress continues.

The Cuban-American writer Oscar Hijuelos - the first Latino to win the Pulitzer Prize - dies aged 62, after suffering a heart attack while playing tennis.

Italy says it is stepping up sea and air patrols in the southern Mediterranean following the deaths of hundreds of migrants sailing from North Africa.

The death toll after a stampede at a Hindu festival in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh rises to 109, local officials say.

The head of the team tasked with destroying Syria's chemical weapons says he is concerned about accessing some sites in rebel-controlled areas.