| * Benign inflation adds to sense Chinese economy recovering * PetroChina shares halted * Alibaba prepared to scrap plans for share sale in Hong Kong and switch to New York * China will stay the course on sustainable growth says Li Keqiang * India deploys troops to quell communal clashes * Peña Nieto waters down Mexico tax reforms * Insurers back fund with focus on Asia and Africa * Dubai group makes bid for Kenya car dealer * Markets: up Benign inflation adds to sense Chinese economy recovering: Consumer prices rose 2.6 per cent from a year earlier, just a touch below July's 2.7 per cent pace, the statistics bureau said on Monday. Inflation is unlikely to pass the 3 per cent threshold in 2013, leaving it well within the government's comfort zone and beneath its official "upper limit" of 3.5 per cent. The data follow good trade figures released on Sunday that beat expectations and improving producer price inflation.
http://on.ft.com/1fOxAOH Trading in shares of China's dominant oil producer PetroChina was suspended on Monday, the second halt in two weeks, as the company said a report by the China Business News that five executives, including vice president Sun Longde and director Wang Guoliang, had been detained, was inaccurate.
http://reut.rs/17QdKzz Alibaba is prepared to scrap plans for a $60bn share sale in Hong Kong and switch its listing to New York if the senior management cannot nominate a majority of board directors, said people close to the company. Founder Jack Ma and top executives own near 10 per cent of the company and Hong Kong listing rules explicitly ban dual-class shares that give more voting power to a small group of owners.
http://on.ft.com/18MXaj4 China will stay the course on sustainable growth: Asian countries have enhanced their capabilities to fend off risks, writes Li Keqiang, premier of China -- "our economy will maintain its sustained and healthy growth and China will stay on the path of reform and opening up."
http://on.ft.com/13wgWB0 India deploys troops to quell communal clashes: Hundreds of Indian soldiers have been deployed to restore order in a restive district in the state of Uttar Pradesh where at least 26 people, including a television camera man and a police photographer, were killed in a weekend of deadly communal riots between Hindus and Muslims.
http://on.ft.com/1e5C8Vg Peña Nieto waters down Mexico tax reforms: Mexico's faster-than-expected economic slowdown forced Enrique Peña Nieto, the country's president, to dilute key tax reform plans, shying away from slapping a widely expected sales tax on food and medicine that could have intensified a wave of popular protests.
http://on.ft.com/18O3Xcn Insurers back fund with focus on Asia and Africa: Six of the world's leading insurers are to invest in a new $400m private equity fund being set up to back companies that sell financial services to individuals in developing countries. MetLife, Prudential Financial and Swiss Re are among the companies backing the second fund being put together by specialist "microfinance" house, Leapfrog Investments.
http://on.ft.com/18O41Zu Dubai group makes bid for Kenya car dealer: Dubai's Al-Futtaim Group is poised to launch a takeover offer for Kenya-based car dealership CMC Holdings as one of the Gulf's largest conglomerates seeks to expand into sub-Saharan Africa.
http://on.ft.com/15HXcbg Markets: up Emerging Markets
MSCI Emerging Market Index up +0.72% at 962.65 Americas
DJIA down -0.10% at 14,923
S&P 500 up +0.01% at 1,655
Bovespa up +2.67% at 53,749 Asia
Nikkei 225 up +2.21% at 14,166
Topix up +2.17% at 1,173
Hang Seng up +0.73% at 22,787
Shanghai Composite up +3.03% at 2,205
MSCI Asia ex-Japan up +1.04% at 524.78
CNX Nifty up +1.56% at 5,680 Currencies
€/$ 1.32 (1.32)
$/¥ 99.65 (99.10) Commodities
Brent Crude (ICE) down -0.03 at 116.09
Light Crude (Nymex) down -0.28 at 110.25
100 Oz Gold (Comex) up +1.20 at 1,388 | 
