TEL-AVIV - Israeli banking supervisors expect to issue in a few months\' time draft guidelines to banks on implementing the operational risk aspects of Basel II upgrade of international rules for bolstering bank solvency.

HONG KONG - A relatively upbeat assessment of the Chinese banking industry\'s reform progress was delivered by rating agency Standard and Poor\'s in November, particularly for the two state-owned commercial banks selected to lead the recovery.

BRUSSELS - European Union ministers in early December backed a law aimed at setting stricter standards for company auditors in the wake of the scandal of the collapse of Italian dairy products firm Parmalat.

LONDON - The financial world needs to reach a consensus on the fundamental issues before moving to a detailed drafting of a new version of the controversial IAS 39 accounting rule on valuing financial assets and liabilities, a top UK central banker said in November.

EU officials stress importance of March target date. Progress on some issues. Regulators seek to deliver comprehensive package By Melvyn Westlake

Regulators around the world are questioning the relevance of a 30-year old who-does-what agreement among supervisors. Could home-host relations be the Achilles\' heel of Basel II? By David Keefe

Sustained reforms put Kazakh banks on course for Basel II, while poor corporate governance leaves Russian banks trailing

On November 18, the European Commission invited trade associations to comment on its draft capital adequacy directive. Here\'s a summary of industry responses

UK regulators fear there\'s a risk that the bringing into effect of the Basel II bank accord in the European Union could be delayed, resulting in an \"uneven playing field\" in terms of banking supervision between the EU and other leading world economies.

Europe\'s banks lobby hard for a lead supervisor approach. But host-country supervisors are fighting to weaken the proposal By Melvyn Westlake