UNITED STATES

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a strong gain at the open on Monday and looked set to reverse a three-day selling spree that wiped out index gains for the year as U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke edged closer to winning support for a second term.

A venture led by Tishman Speyer Properties is giving up the Peter Cooper Village and Stuyvesant Town apartment complex in Manhattan to creditors, marking the collapse of one of the largest transactions during the U.S. real estate boom.

U.S. stock index futures pointed to gain at the open on Monday after the worst 3-day slide in 10 months following fears a White House plan to curb risk-taking by banks would cut profits.

Websites run by Chinese human rights activists were hit by cyber-attacks over the weekend, highlighting increasing sophistication of efforts to censor dissident voices in China.

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a 1 percent rise on Monday after the worst 3-day slide in 10 months, which came on fears that the White House plan to curb bank risk-taking would cut profits.

Oil prices steadied below $75 a barrel on Monday, after slipping toward a one-month low on continued market unease over possible tighter Chinese monetary policy and a U.S. proposal to toughen bank trading rules.

Oil prices fell on Monday, approaching one-month lows near $74 a barrel, on continued market unease over possible tighter Chinese monetary policy and a U.S. proposal to toughen bank trading rules.

Stock index futures pointed to a rebound on Wall Street on Monday following last week's sharp sell-off, with futures for the S&P 500 up 0.82 percent, Dow Jones futures up 0.74 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.51 percent at 4:15 a.m. EST.

World stocks added to the previous week's fall on Monday, weighed down by Wall Street losses, uncertainty over U.S. bank plans and concern that Greece's debt crisis could spread.

A group led by Tishman Speyer Properties has decided to give up the sprawling Peter Cooper Village and Stuyvesant Town apartment complex in Manhattan to its creditors in the collapse of one of the most high-profile deals of the real-estate boom, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.

A group led by Tishman Speyer Properties has decided to give up the sprawling Peter Cooper Village and Stuyvesant Town apartment complex in Manhattan to its creditors in the collapse of one of the most high-profile deals of the real-estate boom, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.

President Barack Obama's proposals to split traditional banking activities from riskier areas will harm U.S. banks without international co-ordination, a prominent Swiss banker said in Monday's Financial Times.

Oil prices fell on Monday, approaching one-month lows near $74 a barrel, on continued market unease over possible tighter monetary policy in China and a U.S. proposal to tighten bank trading rules.

Asian stocks fell on Monday after Wall Street's worst three-day slide in 10 months, but moved off intra-day lows as a gain in U.S. futures signaled New York markets could recover some of last week's losses.

Asian stocks fell on Monday after Wall Street suffered its worst three-day slide in 10 months, but losses were muted, and high-yielding currencies edged up as some investor appetite for riskier assets surfaced.

Gold prices recovered in Asian trade Monday as the dollar dropped, reviving demand for the precious metal as an alternative asset. Spot gold was seen trading at $1,099.81 an ounce at 12.00 noon Singapore time while February delivery in New York was at $1,099.20 an ounce at the same time. The precious metal, which touched an all-time high of $1,226.56 last month, slumped to a one-month low of $1,081.95 an ounce on Jan. 22.

Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden claimed responsibility for the failed Dec. 25 bombing of a U.S.-bound plane in an audio tape aired on Sunday, and vowed to continue attacks on the United States.

Myanmar pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi will be freed when her house arrest ends in November, according to a government minister quoted by witnesses on Monday, but critics said that may be too late for this year's elections.

The yen and the U.S. dollar dipped on Monday while the euro and high-yielding currencies advanced, lifted by reports that Ben Bernanke was moving closer towards being confirmed for a second term as chairman of the Federal Reserve. Markets have been fretting since late last week over whether Bernanke would be approved for the job. [nN24141266]

China has every right to punish citizens using the Internet to challenge Communist Party power and ethnic policies, a senior official said Monday, pressing Beijing's counter-offensive against Google Inc.

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