SINGAPORE, Aug 21 (Reuters) - The Financial Times and the Wall Street Journal carried the following stories in their Asia print and/or Web site editions on Tuesday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

FINANCIAL TIMES (www.ft.com)

-- China's capital markets have taken a significant step towards integration with the rest of the world with Beijing announcing it would allow individuals directly to buy securities offshore for the first time.

-- General Electric <GE.N> is believed to be considering the sale of Lake, its Japanese consumer finance subsidiary, amid a shrinking market and claims from borrowers of excess interest payments.

-- Nearly two-fifths of spam e-mails offering popular medicines via the internet come from China, raising concerns about the country's role in the supply of unregulated pharmaceutical products, a study said.

-- The safety problems affecting Chinese goods spread from toys to textiles on Monday as New Zealand said it would investigate allegations that imported children's clothes contained dangerous levels of formaldehyde

-- A combined political and economic storm may mean the Bank of Japan may keep rates on hold at this week's bank policy meeting.

WALL STREET JOURNAL (www.wsj.com)

-- China said it would allow individual investors to directly trade in Hong Kong-listed securities, a major change that opens another channel through which the nation's vast savings can flow into international markets.

-- HSBC Holdings <HSBA.L> <0005.HK> said it is in talks to buy a majority stake in Korea Exchange Bank <004940.KS> in a move that would bolster the British bank's business in emerging markets and set up a new test of Korean public and government sentiment toward foreign investment.

-- The potential for the global credit crunch to crimp economic growth in the euro zone and the growing likelihood that the U.S. Federal Reserve will cut its key interest rate have many economists predicting the European Central Bank will keep interest rates steady next month, and possibly longer.

-- Macquarie Bank's <MBL.AX> Chief Financial Officer Greg Ward said the current problems in the debt markets could work to Macquarie's advantage by scaring off rival bidders such as private-equity firms that are more reliant on raising funds for purchases. "

-- Toshiba Corp. <6502.T> said it agreed to buy some of Marubeni Corp.'s stake in a Kazakhstan uranium mine, the latest in a growing group of Japanese companies that has inked deals to procure uranium from Kazakhstan.

-- Japan and Indonesia signed a bilateral agreement yesterday to boost trade and investment between them. The pact will also enable Indonesian semi-professional workers to enter Japan.

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