IBT Staff Reporter

Stocks were little changed on Monday, as equities stayed within reach of nearly 4-year highs and after cash-rich Apple said it will begin paying a dividend and buying back stock.

U.S. stocks were poised for a lower open on Monday, indicating equities may pull back from nearly 4-year highs after cash-rich Apple said it will begin paying a dividend and buying back stock.

Apple Inc, the world's most valuable company, said Monday it will initiate a regular quarterly dividend of $2.65 a share in July and will buy back up to $10 billion of its stock starting in fiscal 2013.

United Parcel Service will pay 5.2 billion euros ($6.85 billion) for Dutch peer TNT Express in a deal that will make the world's largest package delivery company the market leader in Europe.

U.S. stock index futures slipped on Monday, indicating equities may pull back from nearly 4-year highs as investors waited to hear what Apple will do with its massive $98 billion cash stockpile.

RUSAL , the world's top aluminum maker, took a $1.4 billion hit in its 2011 financials on Monday on the value of its stake in Norilsk Nickel , whose fate is at the centre of a row between two Russian billionaire shareholders.

World share markets edged back from near eight-month highs on Monday with European banking stocks under pressure ahead of an auction to determine the payout on Greek credit default swaps, while a broadly firm dollar kept riskier currencies in check.

U.S. stock index futures slipped on Monday, indicating equities may pull back from nearly 4-year highs as investors waited to hear what Apple will do with its massive $98 billion cash stockpile.

The accounting scandal at snack maker Diamond Foods in recent months may have shocked shareholders and some California walnut farmers.

Apple Inc, the world's most valuable company, will discuss on Monday what it plans to do with its $98 billion cash hoard, raising expectations it may meet demands to pay a dividend for the first time since 1995.

TNT Express has accepted a higher cash offer of 9.5 euro per share from U.S. rival United Parcel Service, which values the Dutch freight and delivery group at 5.2 billion euros ($6.9 billion).

Swiss private bank Julius Baer said on Monday Raymond Baer will head a special committee overseeing its cooperation with a U.S. tax investigation after standing down as chairman of the bank.

Starbucks Corp will open the first store in its new Evolution Fresh juice bar chain on Monday, its biggest move outside coffee and one it hopes will boost the company's position in the $50 billion health food sector.

Some big investors have shown interest in buying foreclosed properties being sold in bulk by Fannie Mae , the largest U.S. home funding source, the Wall Street Journal said citing people familiar with the process.

Foxconn Technology Group, the top maker of Apple Inc's iPhones and iPads, said on Monday it had no plans to take legal action over a U.S. radio program about its activity in China, parts of which have been retracted.

Global economic growth will slow this year, with the United States looking much improved but risks still to the downside as Europe's financial markets remain fragile, the deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund said on Monday.

South Korean carmaker Kia Motors <000270.KS> said on Monday that it would suspend production at its U.S. plant on Monday and Tuesday, after media reported said a fire broke out at a parts supplier.

Apple Inc said it would host a conference call on Monday morning to discuss the outcome of discussions about its cash balance as investors clamor for a return from its massive holdings.

Call it spring fever. For the third year in a row, optimism is spreading that growth in the United States could be poised to accelerate and drive the economy into sunnier pastures.

Call it spring fever. For the third year in a row, optimism is spreading that growth in the United States could be poised to accelerate and drive the economy into sunnier pastures.

Mexico will include possible steps to blunt the impact of sharp capital flows on the Group of 20's policy agenda after discussions with Latin American neighbors, Finance Minister Jose Antonio Meade said on Sunday.

Investors are beginning to wonder if this Energizer Bunny of a rally can just keep going without taking a break or a fall.

Outgoing Deutsche Bank chief executive Josef Ackermann said he had no plans for further jobs besides several prominent European-based board seats such as Swedish family-run Investor and German group Siemens .

A group of 22 Chinese authors have filed a claim against U.S. technology group Apple, alleging its App Store sells unlicensed copies of their books, Chinese state media reported on Sunday.

The global economy has stepped back from the brink of danger and signs of stabilization are emerging from the euro zone and the United States, but high debt levels in developed markets and rising oil prices are key risks ahead, the IMF said on Sunday.

China cannot delay reforms to rebalance its economy and will set policies to achieve relatively fast growth and stable prices that should help total trade maintain double digit growth this year, Vice Premier Li Keqiang said on Sunday.

China's economic policy priority is to maintain relatively fast growth, but Beijing cannot lower its guard against inflation risks, the head of the country's top planning agency, the National Development and Reform Commission, said on Sunday.

Average annual home prices in China's 70 major cities remained unchanged in February from a year ago, easing from a rise of 0.5 percent in January, according to Reuters' calculation using official data published on Sunday.

A Brazilian court on Saturday barred 17 executives from Chevron and Transocean from leaving Brazil, pending criminal charges related to a high-profile oil spill last November.