As of 12 p.m.

ET

DJIA 12791.62 g 1.32%

FTSE 100 5765.80 g 1.86%

Nikkei 225 9637.63 g 0.63%

Shanghai Comp. 2410.45 g 1.41% Hang Seng 20806.25 g 2.16% Sensex 17173.29 g 1.09%

S&P/ASX 200 4204.70 g 1.37%

Reinventing The Camera

PERSONAL TECHNOLOGY Page 11

OPINION: India Votes For Growth, Not Caste Page 15

KDN PP 9315/10/2012 (031275) MICA (P) NO. 030/10/2011 SK. MENPEN R.I. NO: 01/SK/MENPEN/SCJJ/1998 TGL. 4 SEPT 1998

Malaysia: RM7.00, Pakistan: Rs140.00, Philippines: Peso80.00, Singapore: S$4.50(Incl GST), Sri Lanka: Slrs180(Incl VAT), Taiwan: NT$60.00, Thailand: Baht50.00, Vietnam: US$2.50

Australia: A$6.00(Incl GST), Brunei: B$7.00, China: RMB25.00, Hong Kong: HK$20.00(Incl Macau), India: Rs30.00, Indonesia: Rp18,000(Incl PPN), Japan: Yen500(Incl JCT), Korea: Won2,500,

VOL. XXXVI NO. 131

(India facsimile Vol. 3 No. 192)

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 7, 2012

asia.WSJ.com

CIC Seeks A Stable Source of Funding

BY LINGLING WEI BEIJINGBoosted by a one-time $30 billion capital injection, China Investment Corp. is working on a system through which the sovereignwealth fund would get continued funding from the Chinese government and potentially play a bigger role in helping diversify the countrys vast foreign-exchange reserves. We very much hope for a clear [funding] mechanism just like what other, more mature, sovereign-wealth funds have, Wang Jianxi, CICs executive vice president, said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal. Mr. Wang pointed to the Government Pension Fund of Norway, which gets regular capital injections from the countrys oil profits, and Government Investment Corp. of Singapore, which draws its funding from the city-states foreign-exchange reserves. Access to regular funding would enable CIC to take advantage of opportunities as they arise; the fund used up Please turn to page 20

Facing the Voters on Super Tuesday

EU: Iran Set To Resume Nuclear Talks

BY LAURENCE NORMAN BRUSSELSThe international community is set to restart talks with Iran on its nuclear program, the European Unions top diplomat said Tuesday, opening a diplomatic channel at a time of increased tensions between Tehran and Western powers. Catherine Ashton, the EUs foreign-policy chief, on Tuesday wrote to Irans chief nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili, that the EU proposed resuming talks as soon as possible. The agreement was a response to a letter from Mr. Jalili in February asking for talks at the earliest opportunity. The announcement comes a day after U.S. and Israeli leaders met in Washington to discuss Irans nuclear-development program. The U.S. and many EU states have accused Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons, a charge Tehran has denied. Ms. Ashton said EU officials noted the message set no preconditions for talks and signaled that Tehran was willing to discuss its nuclear program. Irans deputy foreign minister for Europe and Americas, Asghar Khaji, said Tuesday that negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program must be without any preconditions by the West. I hope the European Union learns from experience and does not repeat its previous mistakes when negotiation with Iran and bases the talks on Irans potential and capabilities, Mr. Khaji said during a visit in Stockholm with Swedish foreign ministry officials, according to IRNA, the official Iranian news agency. Ms. Ashton heads up the so-called P5+1 countries, which have negotiated with Iran. They include France, Please turn to page 7 Likud officials: U.S. isnt tough enough on Iran............. 7

(Clockwise from top left) European Pressphoto Agency; Agence France-Presse/Getty Images (2); Associated Press

BIG DELEGATE DAY: In the hours leading up to GOP contests in 10 states, Mitt Romney campaigned in Hilliard, Ohio; Rick Santorum spoke in Washington; Newt Gingrich made a final push in Atlanta, Georgia; and Ron Paul appeared in Sandpoint, Idaho. Follow the results at WSJ.com.

Inside

Afghanistan Skiing Is Pretty Much All Downhill

i i i

Championship Includes Climbing on Foot and Evading Taliban

BY CHARLES LEVINSON KOH-E-BABA, AfghanistanTen Afghan men jumped out front as the second international Afghan Ski Challenge championship began here on Friday. Well conditioned to the air of central Bamiyan province, they skinned 1,500 feet (about 460 meters) up a mountain on foot, at the front of a zigzagging line of huffing contestants. At the top, they hit the downhill portion well ahead of their far more experienced Western rivals. As the Afghan racers crossed the finish line one after another, cheers erupted from villagers and government officials. Even the U.S.led military coalition put out a news release to celebrate parents and seven siblings in a one-room mud hut. Though Afghanistan has of snow-covered plenty mountains, skiing is an extreme novelty here. In Bamiyan, best known for its giant Buddha statues blown up by the Taliban a decade ago, mountainous villages with no electricity, kept warm by dung-fueled heaters, saw their first skier in early 2010. Since then, the effort to implant ski culture in Bamiyan has brought here urban hip-hop slang, donkey-leaping snowboarders, and indiscriminately urinating ski bums who offend local sensibilities. It has also brought a small but welcome trickle of tourist dollars. The effort faces many of Please turn to page 20

China has gained a foothold in the North American energy industry, investing more than $17 billion in oil and gas deals in the U.S. and Canada since 2010. In Depth ........... 16-17 Indias ruling Congress party suffered major electoral defeats in state elections. World News ............ 3

the unlikely triumph of the Afghan athletes. My brothers and sisters see me as a hero, exclaimed the champion, Khalil Reza, an illiterate 19-year-old who lives with his