China, Corruption | featured news

Microsoft Corp said on Tuesday it takes seriously any allegations of misconduct, after a report that the U.S. Department of Justice is investigating potential bribery by Microsoft employees in China, Romania and Italy.

Nearly a year after word leaked about an S.E.C.Nearly a year after word leaked about an S.E.C. investigation into possible corrupt practices in the China film trade, there is a still a chill over dealings between Hollywood and China.

Even among China's jaded internet users, this was big news: Li Jianguo, a Communist official operating at the very top of the party, was under investigation for corruption.

The specter of corruption continued to hound China’s leaders Friday, the second day of a week-long Communist Party congress at which the country’s next generation of top leaders are expected to be unveiled.

China's communist leadership expelled Bo Xilai from the ruling party Friday and sought to bury him with charges ranging from corruption to sexual affairs, aiming to sweep away their most damaging scandal in decades while finally scheduling their long-awaited leadership transition for November.

The Communist Party official is named to a post that is considered a steppingstone for assuming the leadership. He has a reputation for being tough on corruption and friendly toward business, even foreign companies. Unless something goes badly wrong for Xi Jinping over the next two years, it looks like a fait accompli that the 57-year-old Communist Party official, who has been groomed his entire career for leadership, will be China's next president.

Chinese officials are being told to dump their mistresses, avoid hostess bars, and shun extravagances as part of the Communist party's efforts to clamp down on the corruption that is threatening its rule and sullying its reputation.