UNITED STATES

The U.S. recession presents a strong headwind to the travel industry, especially for business travel, which is declining more rapidly than leisure, the chief executives of two online travel agencies said on Monday.

On Monday, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger together with Chancellor Angela Merkel opened the major technology fair in Germany.

President Baraka Obama announced changes to the healthcare system on Monday, appointing two key officials, including a new Health and Human Services secretary.

A Belgian court fined Internet search engine Yahoo €55,000 ($69,300) on Monday for failing to hand over personal account information of users suspected of committing fraud online.

U.S. stocks slid to 12-year lows on Monday as a record $61.7 billion loss for AIG and another government bailout for the insurer heightened concerns about the extent of the damage to the financial system.

U.S. stocks slid to 12-year lows on Monday as a record $61.7 billion loss for AIG and another government bailout for the insurer heightened concerns about the extent of the damage to the financial system.

U.S. manufacturing shrank at a less severe pace last month and consumer spending bounced back in January, data showed on Monday, but the improvement was likely a blip amid a rapidly deteriorating economy.

Recent comments by U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu appear to mark a radical shift in U.S. energy policy away from its focus on OPEC and oil supply and toward an agenda of trimming petroleum demand and promoting renewable energy at home.

American International Group Inc posted a record $61.7 billion quarterly loss on Monday and got a new but not necessarily final government bailout, after officials concluded again that letting the insurer fail would threaten the world financial system.

Oil prices dropped nearly 10 percent on Monday as a deteriorating world economy threatened to cut further into fuel consumption, outweighing OPEC's strong compliance with supply curbs.

Wendy's/Arby's Group Inc., the third largest U.S. fast-food chain, said Monday it posted a quarterly loss of nearly $400 million due to recent negative trends in operating performance, the downturn in the economy and adverse stock market conditions.

Oil prices dropped more than 10 percent on Monday as a deteriorating world economy threatened to cut further into fuel consumption and made OPEC's tight compliance with supply curbs look insufficient.

HSBC launched Britain's biggest rights issue, raising 12.85 billion pounds ($18.1 billion) on Monday to help it overcome big losses in the United States and exploit the woes of weaker rivals.

International donors pledged $4.481 billion on Monday to help the Palestinian economy and rebuild Gaza after Israel's three-week offensive, insisting their funds bypass the territory's Hamas rulers.

The Nokia's XpressMusic 5800 which was on sale in the US market last week was halted by the company.

Auto sales likely hovered around 27-year lows in February as consumers mostly stayed away from buying big-ticket items, spooked by job losses, the deep recession and tight credit.

Auto sales likely hovered around 27-year lows in February as consumers mostly stayed away from buying big-ticket items, spooked by job losses, the deep recession and tight credit.

Wyeth has won approval to sell its top-selling pneumococcal vaccine Prevenar in Russia and expects to launch the product there later this year, the U.S. drugmaker said on Monday.

Brazil's benchmark stock index plunged 3%in early afternoon trade on Monday, tracking a sell-off in global markets on concerns the financial crisis is deepening after insurer American International Group posted a record quarterly loss.

International Paper Co. slashed its quarterly dividend by 90 percent to 2.5 cents on Monday to save about $100 million a year and use the extra cash to pay the debt.

The U.S. recession will be a strong headwind for the travel industry for the foreseeable future, with business travel especially feeling the pinch, the chief executive of online travel agency Priceline.com said on Monday.