EGYPT

Vimpelcom Chief Executive Alexander Izosimov said there was a high possibility his company would acquire telecommunications assets of Egypt's Naguib Sawiris even as disgruntled shareholder Telenor is seeking to derail the deal.

President Barack Obama on Monday proposed spending almost $110 billion on Afghanistan, signaling little let-up in the U.S. war drive despite demands for tougher spending controls at home.

U.S. stocks ended narrowly mixed as investors appeared to be underwhelmed by President Obama’s budget proposal, while unrest in the Middle East has spread to Iran and even Bahrain.

Gold rose above $1,360 an ounce on Monday on fears that Egypt's unrest could spread across the Arab world, while silver gained 2 percent on strong industrial demand driven by signs of an improving economy.

Thousands of Iranians have gathered to demonstrate in Tehran in defiance of a government ban on such assemblies.

Rumors and speculation are swirling regarding the whereabouts and health of deposed Egyptian ruler Hosni Mubarak.

Egypt's generals are asserting their command over the country following the overthrow of President Hosni Mubarak, preparing on Monday to ban strikes and to warn they will act against chaos and disorder.

Egypt's stock exchange, shut since January 27 because of political unrest, will not reopen until Wednesday, a bourse official said on Saturday.

Hundreds of anti-government demonstrators clashed with supporters of Yemen's president on Monday south of the capital, with both sides hurling rocks as protests escalated in the impoverished Arabian Peninsula state.

Bahraini police fired teargas and rubber bullets to break up protests on Monday in Shi'ite villages that ring the capital Manama, dampening a Day of Rage stimulated by popular upheaval in Egypt and Tunisia.

The Palestinian cabinet resigned on Monday, in an apparent attempt by President Mahmoud Abbas to demonstrate political reform in the wake of the popular uprising in Egypt.

Egypt's new military rulers have given indications of new moves to share power with civilians and rapidly to amend the constitution by popular referendum, opposition activists and a British minister said on Monday.

U.S. stock index futures edged lower on Monday after Wall Street posted two straight weeks of gains that drove indexes to new multi-year highs and investors worried the market is overextended.

The United States has created a Twitter account in Farsi to communicate with social media users in Iran as Iranian opposition websites renewed calls for a rally on Monday.

Egypt's military delivered an ultimatum on Monday to dozens of committed protesters in Tahrir Square, nerve centre of a movement that toppled Hosni Mubarak, to leave and let life return to normal or face arrest.

The army will need to stay on the streets until a disgraced police force recovers from the heavy damage inflicted by Egypt's turmoil -- an uncomfortable burden for a military designed to fight foreign enemies, not crime. A quick redeployment of the police, which largely dissolved in the first days of the unrest, is a priority for the military command that took control from former President Hosni Mubarak on Friday. It will not be easy.

U.S. stocks opened modestly lower on Monday as investors awaited the release of President Obama's budget.

U.S. stocks fell on Monday after posting two straight weeks of gains that drove indexes to new multi-year, although a recent pattern of buying on market declines was likely to continue.

The Egyptian stock market, which has been closed since January 28 amidst civil unrest in the country, will not re-open until at least Sunday, February 20, state-controlled television reported.

U.S. stocks were set to dip on Monday after posting two straight weeks of gains that drove indexes to new multi-year highs and some investors worried the market was overextended.

Futures on major U.S. stock indices point to a mixed opening on Monday, after indices recorded a second straight week of gains on Friday.