UNITED KINGDOM

The European unit of U.S. carmaker General Motors said it planned to spin off its German arm Opel and needed 3.3 billion euros ($4.2 billion) in state aid to avert job cuts and site closures.

Accused swindler Bernard Madoff moved $164 million from his firm in Britain to New York in the weeks before he was arrested on a charge of running the largest Ponzi scheme in Wall Street history, according to court papers.

The European unit of U.S. carmaker General Motors said it planned to spin off its German arm Opel and needed 3.3 billion euros ($4.2 billion) in state aid to avert job cuts and site closures.

General Motors' German unit Opel agreed to a restructuring plan that aims to save as many jobs and factories as possible but needs 3.3 billion euros ($4.18 billion) in state aid, GM officials said.

Governments on both sides of the Atlantic moved to tighten their grip over banks on Friday to stem a financial crisis that has pushed the U.S. economy into its deepest contraction in more than a quarter century.

Part-nationalized Lloyds Banking Group unveiled a 10 billion pound ($14.28 billion) loss for 2008 and said it had not finalized a plan to put billions of pounds of assets into a UK government-backed insurance scheme.

The U.S. government will commit to holding a common equity stake of up to 30-40 percent in Citigroup in a deal that will see most of the group's board replaced, a person familiar with the transaction said on Friday.

France, Germany and Britain are proposing extra EU sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program, the Financial Times reported Thursday but France said no such measures would be passed any time soon.

but the target and the damage were transatlantic. MILITARY NETWORKS McKinnon is accused of causing the entire U.S. Army's Military District of Washington network of more than 2,000 computers to be shut down for 24 hours. He has told Reuters he was just a computer nerd who wanted to find out whether aliens really existed and became obsessed with trawling large military networks for proof. At the...

Stocks headed for a higher open on Thursday as investors searched for beaten-down shares, with financial shares set to rebound following reassuring news from Europe on bolstering the banking sector. The government released more bleak news on the economy, however, as one report showed the number of U.S. workers continuing to claim jobless benefits notched a fresh record in the second week of Februa...

Royal Bank of Scotland reported the biggest loss in British history on Thursday and said the government's stake could rise as high as 95 percent after it stumped up billions to insure risky bank assets.

Royal Bank of Scotland reported the biggest loss in British history on Thursday and said the government's stake could rise as high as 95 percent after it stumped up billions to insure the bank's risky assets. RBS also unveiled plans to cut 2.5 billion pounds ($3.56 billion) in costs as part of a restructuring plan which will see it exit or reduce its presence in 36 of the 54 countries it operate...

The Australian Dollar opens a shade weaker today at 0.6468 but remains entrenched in its recent broad range between 0.6350 and 0.6550. The Aussie hit an overnight high of 0.6554 – a level which is proving a tough one to break. Despite further poor economic data out of the United States last night, this time in the form of a 12-year low in existing home sales, the Aussie was caught up in moves lower by the Euro and Yen.

Three potential bidders are still looking at buying a large stake in American International Group's key Asian life insurance unit, people close to the matter said on Wednesday.

Chocolate eating is on the rise in the current economic slowdown, while chewing gum is suffering, according to British confectionery giant Cadbury Plc.

Leaders of the G20 developed and emerging countries should not backtrack on their agreement last year to fight protectionism when they meet in London in April, the head of the World Trade Organization said on Wednesday.

The head of sovereign ratings at Standard & Poor's told Reuters on Wednesday he expected more sovereign ratings downgrades than upgrades this year and flagged financial markets' concern about the health of public finances.

Australian Dollar: The Australian Dollar opens higher today at US65 cents having traded between a low of 0.6388 and a high of 0.6525 over the last 24 hours.

Amazon.com Inc has established a clear lead in user preference for digital media download sites in Britain, despite a relatively late entry into the market, a survey published by Strategy Analytics said.

Even if the government took a large common equity stake in Citigroup Inc, worries would likely persist about the bank's ability to absorb soaring losses in a deepening recession. The third-largest U.S. bank by assets is in talks with federal regulators on a plan for the government to increase its stake, a person familiar with the matter said. Converting $45 billion of preferred stock, which the ...

On Monday distributors stated that various foreign press titles are set to return to the press stands this week following a 25 year absence.