Stocks on the major Asian exchanges rose sharply on Monday, a day after China announced a $586 billion economic stimulus package.

Gordon Brown is to use a speech to urge world leaders to 'seize the moment' and work together on global financial reform.

World finance chiefs look to give a bigger voice to emerging nations as part of reforms to tackle the current crisis.

Reuters - Less than a month after walking away from Wachovia Corp , Citigroup Inc is in discussions to acquire another U.S. bank, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the situation.

Reuters - Oil rose more than $2 to over $63 a barrel on Monday, fueled by top exporter Saudi Arabia's plans to cut December supplies to Asia, a weaker dollar and hopes that global economies' plans to lift growth could avert recession.

Stocks on the major Asian exchanges rose sharply on Monday, a day after China announced a $586 billion economic stimulus package.

Gordon Brown says tax cuts are among things being looked at for the pre-Budget report, which is due 'in the next few days'.

Rating agency Fitch cuts its outlook on some key emerging economies because of exposure to the global economic crisis.

UK employers are becoming increasingly gloomy about job creation in the current climate, a report shows.

Britain's biggest building society, the Nationwide, sees its half-yearly pre-tax profits slip by 18% to £322m, from £394m last year.

Delays in deciding if the Post Office will retain the pension and benefit card payments contract are 'destabilising', MPs say.

HSBC's losses relating to the US housing market crisis reach $4.3bn (£2.7m) in the third quarter.

Oil prices climb more than $2 a barrel following China's multi-billion dollar stimulus package aimed at boosting its economy.

Britain's biggest building society, the Nationwide, says it expects house prices to continue to fall in 2009/10.

Reuters - Europe's biggest bank HSBC Holdings said its profit in the third quarter was ahead of a year earlier as growth in Asia helped offset almost $5 billion in bad debts on U.S. home loans and asset writedowns.

The government announced an overhaul of its rescue of A.I.G., after signs that the initial bailout was putting too much strain on the ailing insurer.

China announced plans to spend billions on a wide array of infrastructure and social welfare projects in a bold move aimed at bolstering its economy.

Stocks gained in Europe and Asia on Monday, a day after the Chinese government announced a $586 billion economic stimulus plan.

Many tenants who signed leases at a 41-story office tower overlooking Bryant Park are now trying to break them.

Insurance giant AIG gets fresh financial help from the US government, bringing the total aid package for the firm to about $150bn.

Slowing demand sees Indian car production cut back, industry figures show.

The cost of goods leaving UK factories fell 1% in October, figures show, the largest amount since records began.

Spammers get one response for every 12.5m e-mails they send and still make big profits, suggests a study.

Reuters - Stocks were set to rise on Monday with futures for the Dow Jones, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq up between 2.2 and 2.7 percent, following gains for Asian and European markets after China announced a $600 billion economic stimulus plan to boost domestic demand.

Reuters - Nortel Networks Corp reported a large quarterly loss and announced a round of sweeping cost-cutting on Monday that includes laying off 1,300 another people as the economic downturn eats away at its business and strains its balance sheet.

The record loss is the fifth consecutive quarterly loss for the mortgage insurance giant, which has been operating under a government conservatorship since September.

The electronics retailer fell victim to tighter credit terms from vendors and a loss of market share to Best Buy, Wal-Mart and other rivals.

The telecommunications equipment maker posted a third-quarter loss of $3.4 billion and announced another round of cost cuts citing the rapid deterioration of the economy.

The mail and logistics company Deutsche Post said it would close all DHL express service centers in the United States amid heavy losses.

In an election season of unlikely outcomes, Nate Silver is perhaps the most unlikely media star to emerge.

US mortgage finance firm Fannie Mae reports a third-quarter loss of $29bn in the wake of the slowing housing sector.

Spanish bank Santander unveils a 7.2bn euros share issue to raise new capital.

Emirates Airline reports a 88% drop in its net profit for half a year to 30 September on higher oil prices.

Reuters - Stocks headed for a higher open on Monday, with big exporters including General Electric , set to lead gains following China's plan of a multibillion economic stimulus to shore up the world's fourth largest economy.

Reuters - Deutsche Post will spend more than planned and cut an additional 9,500 jobs to turn around its U.S. express business, which has been hit by the global economic crisis and hurt third-quarter earnings.

Reuters - McDonald's Corp on Monday said global sales at its fast-food restaurants open at least 13 months rose 8.2 percent in October.

Stocks on Wall Street moved higher, joining those in Europe and Asia, a day after the Chinese government announced an economic stimulus plan.

While most hedge funds are sinking into red this year and unsettling the markets in the process, a handful are posting spectacular gains.

The struggling electronics retailer is one of the biggest, best-known corporate names to collapse amid the faltering economy.

Book publishers are exploring new ways to sell books in digital form.

Deutsche Post says it will cut 9,500 jobs at DHL Express in the US and scale down the operations of the US business.

Two of the UK's larger lenders join the growing group which are passing on interest rate cuts to customers.

Reuters - General Motors Corp will likely fall below its minimum cash needs of $11 billion to $14 billion in the first quarter of 2009 if the troubled automaker does not receive additional funding, said an analyst at Barclays Capital, and GM shares fell as much as 31 percent in morning trade.

Reuters - The Dow and the S&P 500 cut gains on Monday, while the Nasdaq briefly turned negative, as investors fretted about General Motors and doubts surfaced whether China's stimulus plan would avert a deep global economic slump.

AFP - US electronics retailer Circuit City said Monday it had filed for bankruptcy protection and obtained a 1.1 billion dollar credit lifeline to battle a sharp decline in sales.

Economic jitters returned to Wall Street as American markets shaved off early gains and headed into negative territory.

HSBC set aside $4.3 billion to cover bad loans at its American unit in the third quarter, more than analysts estimated, but still reported an increase in pretax profit.

Consumers worldwide who are watching their spending bought more at McDonald?s in October, leading to a larger-than-forecast rise in sales at established locations.

Two directors of a Pakistani currency company are remanded in custody over allegations that they illegally transferred millions of dollars abroad.

Reuters - Shares of General Motors Corp tumbled 24 percent to 62-year lows on Monday after analysts downgraded the automaker, citing cash levels that may fall below the minimum needed in the first quarter of 2009.

Reuters - Stocks extended losses on Monday as investors doubted whether China's deep-pocketed stimulus plan would avert a global economic slump and shares of General Motors fell to 62-year lows on worries about the carmaker's dwindling cash.

Reuters - Worldwide losses from the credit crisis will total $1.4 trillion, of which only $800 billion have been realized so far, Goldman Sachs U.S. chief economist Jan Hatzis said on Monday.

Hotels are competing for guests by offering computer lounges, Wii game consoles in exercise rooms, and remotes that control lights, blinds and the thermostat ? as well as the television.

Adding electricity from renewable sources would impose new demands on a transmission system that was never designed for large power transfers over extremely long distances, an industry report says.

Chinese banking giant Bank of China is looking at a potential bid for UK lender HBOS, BBC business editor Robert Peston reports.

Reuters - Stocks fell on Monday, as investors worried about the outlook for companies, including General Motors and Goldman Sachs , given the global economic downturn and enthusiasm for China's deep-pocketed stimulus plan faded.

Reuters - General Motors Corp said on Monday it will cut production in North America due to declining demand through the first quarter of 2009. Highlights:

The coffee chain attributed the fourth-quarter drop to the costs of closing underperforming stores and also falling sales.

Starbucks' fourth-quarter profit is almost wiped out by the cost of closing under-performing outlets and falling customer numbers.

Reuters - Stocks fell in tepid volume on Monday, as investors worried about the outlook for a raft of companies from General Motors to Goldman Sachs in a harsh economic environment, stifling early enthusiasm for a Chinese stimulus plan.

Reuters - Starbucks Corp posted lower quarterly profit on Monday on weakness in its U.S. business and began booking charges related to closing 600 domestic stores.

The Federal Reserve granted the company?s request to change its status, giving it access to low-cost financing.

The coffee chain attributed the fourth-quarter drop to the costs of closing underperforming stores and also falling sales.

The telecommunications equipment maker, which never recovered from the technology downturn early in this decade, announced the job cuts as it posted a quarterly loss of $3.4 billion.

Hotels are competing for guests by offering computer lounges, Wii game consoles in exercise rooms, and remotes that control lights, blinds and the thermostat ? as well as the television.

Shares in US car group General Motors close at a 60-year low after the struggling firm is hit by a broker downgrade.

Japanese phone firms want bigger worldwide sales

The number of UK home sales is now at least at a 30-year low, says the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors.

The annual rate of retail sales falls for the first time in three years, a report finds, the sign of recession.

Reuters - The Federal Reserve Board has approved an application by American Express Co to become a bank holding company, the central bank said on Monday.

The bank joined a growing list of financial institutions which are offering a program to help thousands meet their monthly payments.

A federal investigation into UBS concerning its sale of offshore private banking services to wealthy Americans is concentrating on senior and midlevel executives and bankers.

The example of the bailout of A.I.G. shows that regulations are needed to capture any company that becomes too significant to the financial system.

Like many businesses across the retail sector, the publishing industry has been hit by a raft of doom and gloom in the past few weeks.

The mail and logistics company Deutsche Post said it would close all DHL express service centers in the United States amid heavy losses.

Whether going through a metal detector or being asked for your ID after your fingerprints have already cleared you of being a terrorist, air travel provides for plenty of occasions to scratch your head.

Editors asked for about 100 volunteers to give up editorial staff jobs at Time, People, Sports Illustrated and a few other Time Inc. magazines.

Some small-business experts are arguing that in a slowing economy, this may be the perfect time to increase marketing budget ? and even prices.

The report from an administrative law judge at the Securities and Exchange Commission on the investigation into possible insider trading at the hedge fund Pequot Capital Management is at odds with other findings.

Midway Games, the video game maker controlled by Sumner M. Redstone, reported a wider third-quarter loss, and it forecast continued losses for the current period.

Consumers worldwide who are watching their spending bought more burgers at McDonald?s in October, leading to a big rise in sales at established locations for the fast-food leader.

The owner of newspapers including The Los Angeles Times and The Chicago Tribune said it lost $121.6 million in the third quarter as newspaper advertising revenue fell.

The meat products producer posted a quarterly profit below analysts? estimates and predicted a possible loss this quarter, setting off a decline of 10 percent in its share price.

Hotels are competing for guests by offering computer lounges, Wii game consoles in exercise rooms, and remotes that control lights, blinds and the thermostat ? as well as the television.

A psychic senses a deep connection with a flight attendant on a flight to Miami.

Reuters - American Express Co said it won approval to become a bank holding company, in a step that could cut its borrowing costs and give it more access to government money.

A visit to Mountain House, Calif., shows how the housing crisis is contributing to a broad slowdown of the economy.

President Bush indicated he might support some aid if Democrats accepted a free-trade pact with Colombia, people familiar with the discussion said.

A central component of the new package will be an effort to stop the collateral calls that have been rapidly draining A.I.G.?s cash.

The Army?s new recruiting campaign places more emphasis on connecting with young Americans on a closer, more personal level.

The clinical trial results could represent a significant step in the fight against the bacterium, which is commonly spread in hospitals and is becoming more deadly.

The conventional wisdom is that large mergers and acquisitions would be tougher under an Obama administration then they have been under President Bush. But some experts disagree.