CAIRO (Reuters) - Nine more bodies have been recovered from the Mediterranean a day after a boat carrying hundreds of migrants capsized off the coast of Egypt, officials said on Thursday, bringing the death toll to 52.

HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam is trying to raise the retirement age of both men and women to mitigate the economic impact of a rapidly aging population and take pressure off of its depleted social welfare funds.

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada and China said on Thursday they will launch exploratory talks on a free trade agreement and explore a possible extradition treaty for Chinese fugitives from Canada, even as they announced agreements on beef and canola exports to China.

NEW YORK, Sept 22 (Reuters) - Banks must turn over Sudanese funds to victims of al Qaeda's 2000 bombing of the USS Cole who had won a $314.7 million judgment, a U.S. appeals court ruled, as it rejected U.S. arguments that this could interfere with treaties and its dealings with foreign governments.

AMMAN, Sept 22 (Reuters) - A suicide bomber killed at least 12 people when he blew himself up on Thursday at the opening of a local police station in a rebel-held town in southern Syria, rebels and residents said.

Sept 22 (Gracenote) - Classification from Eneco Tour after Stage 4 on Thursday

UNITED NATIONS, Sept 22 (Reuters) - Britain should apologize for its 1917 declaration endorsing the founding of a Jewish homeland in Palestine and should recognize Palestine as a state, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Thursday.

BEIJING (Reuters) - China has conditionally lifted an import ban on some shipments of U.S. boneless beef and beef on the bone, and will also ease restrictions on Canadian beef, the Asian nation's agriculture ministry and its premier said on Thursday.

GENEVA (Reuters) - Freeports springing up around the world as more investors store and trade physical assets are coming under increased scrutiny as potential black holes for dodging taxes, laundering money or financing extremists as bank secrecy erodes.