Chinese central bank governor Zhou Xiaochuan said growth prospects have improved in the world's second-largest economy, but its monetary policy remains prudent and neutral, the International New York Times reported on a Reuters story. Earlier this week, China published upbeat data showing its economy got off to a strong start to 2017, supported by bank lending, a government infrastructure spree and a long-sought resurgence in private investment.

Toshiba Corp.’s plan to raise more money may bring in vocal investors more willing to take an active role in the electronics maker’s affairs, Bloomberg News reported. David Einhorn’s Greenlight Capital, Daniel Loeb’s Third Point and other investors have agreed to buy 600 billion yen ($5.4 billion) worth of newly issued shares, an extra cushion of cash on top of the already-agreed 2 trillion-yen sale of the Tokyo-based company’s chips business to a group led by Bain Capital.

In attempting to head off a Bernie Madoff moment, China has set the stage for an even deeper bond market rout, Bloomberg News reported. Ten-year government note yields last week hit the psychologically important 4 percent level as investors braced for sweeping rules to curb risks in the country's $15 trillion asset-management industry.Caving into social pressure, banks in China have been bailing out wealth-management products that have gone bad. That's not going to be allowed come June 2019.

A default by Noble Group Ltd. now “appears probable,” according to Fitch Ratings Inc., which cut the Hong Kong-based commodity trader’s credit rating by two steps, adding further pressure on executives as they seek to hammer out fresh terms with their lenders, Bloomberg News reported. Fitch cut the trader to CC from CCC, deeper into junk territory, according to a statement on Friday that came just before the close of trade in Asia.

China Huishan Dairy Holdings Co Ltd, struggling under billions of dollars worth of debt, is preparing for provisional liquidation in a legal escalation of one of the most spectacular collapses of a Hong Kong-listed firm in recent years, the International New York Times reported on a Reuters story. Shares in the mainland group, once a hot property with investors, have been suspended since they plunged 85 percent without warning in March, after which it revealed missed loan payments and the disappearance of its finance director.

How does a company with $262 million in the bank and looming restructuring talks with creditors carry out an $8.4 billion takeover? Ask Noble Group Ltd. Harbour Energy Ltd., an investment vehicle in which Noble had a 75 percent stake in January, is due to present a deal within weeks offering about that much for oil and gas producer Santos Ltd., the Australian Financial Review reported Thursday without saying where it got the information, Bloomberg News reported in a commentary.

China Huishan Dairy Holdings Co., the Hong Kong-listed dairy company targeted by short sellers including Muddy Waters Capital LLC, said on Thursday that it is preparing for provisional liquidation, Bloomberg News reported. The firm had told its Cayman legal advisers to make the preparations, it said in a Hong Kong stock exchange filing. Huishan’s board earlier found that the net liabilities of its units in China “could have been” 10.5 billion yuan ($1.58 billion) as of March 31, the company said.

China’s central bank injected $47bn into its financial system on Thursday, its largest intervention in nearly a year, in an effort to calm investor fears that Beijing’s crackdown on debt-fuelled growth would put a break on the country’s rapid expansion, the Financial Times reported.

To solve the Mt. Gox bankruptcy mess, its former chief executive says he is exploring a dramatic solution – reviving the exchange so it can start generating money again, Reuters reported. Mark Karpeles told Reuters he believes Mt. Gox, which collapsed in 2014, could be resurrected under new management and ownership – at a cost of $245 million. He said he would have no role and would only receive “money for required expenses, mostly legal.” Karpeles is currently on trial in Japan, accused of embezzling money from Mt. Gox and manipulating its data, as well as breach of trust.

What a debt restructuring at Noble Group Ltd. might look like has become an even more pressing question after the beleaguered commodity trader started talks with stakeholders on potential options to address its capital structure. The company said discussions are at a preliminary stage and in line with its objectives to “manage the maturity of its borrowings,” moving it a step closer toward restructuring its borrowings, Bloomberg News reported. The coming weeks are likely to be critical for the company, which posted another $1 billion-plus loss in the third quarter.