UNITED STATES

The U.S. service sector in September expanded for the first time since August 2008, growing at a faster pace than expected to take the benchmark index to its highest since May 2008, according to a report released on Monday.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao is expected to hold talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il on a three-day visit he began on Sunday, when the neighbors signed a pact on China's economic aid to the impoverished North.

Kenya's coalition government rejected on Monday international donors' accusations it was not doing enough to tackle the root causes of last year's post- election violence and bring to account those behind the killing.

Stocks rose on Monday as data showed the services sector expanded after about a year of contraction and on positive broker comments on big bank stocks.

Foreign and Afghan forces launched an assault on Monday against a group of Taliban in an area of eastern Afghanistan where the militants killed eight American soldiers at the weekend, an official said.

The U.S. Supreme Court said on Monday it rejected an appeal by former Qwest Communications International Inc Chief Executive Joseph Nacchio of his insider trading conviction on the grounds that he did not get a fair trial.

The U.S. Supreme Court said on Monday it rejected an appeal by former Qwest Communications International Inc Chief Executive Joseph Nacchio of his insider trading conviction on the grounds that he did not get a fair trial.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel will travel to the United States next month and address both houses of Congress, the government said on Monday

The Obama administration wants to ensure multilateral development banks have adequate resources, but any capital increase must be tied to reforms, U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Monday.

Wealth managers around the world have learnt the hard way that they need to become more transparent but this will push up costs, prompting further consolidation in the crisis-hit sector.

Hundreds of striking workers forced U.S. auto maker General Motors Co [GM.UL] to shut its Thai assembly plant on Monday, company and union officials said, raising the stakes in a pay dispute with management.

Nighthawk Energy Plc said on Monday it expected significant contribution from its Revere project in the United States in terms of reserves, production and cash flow, sending its shares up as much as 8.8 percent.

Goldman Politics; Impressions Off the Mark; New Buyer for Volvo?

Days before the swine flu vaccine becomes available, more than half of U.S. adults say they will get the vaccine for themselves and 75 percent will get it for their children, according to a survey released on Friday.

Despite earlier health agency warnings, there is no strong evidence that the anti-smoking drug Chantix raises the risk of suicidal thoughts or depression compared to other stop-smoking products, researchers reported Thursday in the British Medical Journal.

A U.S.-led group has entered the race to buy Ford Motor Co's Volvo cars unit, the Financial Times reported, in a challenge to China's Geely Automotive which last month confirmed its interest in the loss-making Swedish carmaker.

A new compound can quickly counteract the action of an emerging class of drugs, offering a way to reverse the drugs' actions if a patient develops serious side effects, U.S. researchers said on Sunday.

Europe will this week launch a campaign to triple funding for energy research to 8 billion euros ($11.7 billion) a year in a technology race with Japan and the United States, a draft document shows.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc, legendary for its clout in Washington, has inexplicably halted its political fund-raising machine.

China and a top G77 official accused rich nations on Monday of trying to kill off the Kyoto Protocol, the U.N.'s main weapon in the fight against global warming, as nations try to craft a broader climate pact.

Rich countries should make more vaccine available to poorer nations where the H1N1 virus is starting to hit, U.N. health officials said on Sunday.