IBT Staff Reporter

The euro zone avoided a credit crunch in January but banks showed scant sign of lending on the funds they snapped up at the European Central Bank's first 3-year lending operation to companies which have been starved of investment funds.

Firms and consumers continued to pull their money out of Greek banks at a rapid rate in January, European Central Bank data showed on Monday, underscoring the ongoing lack of trust the country's banking system faces.

Exxon Mobil has disclosed its plans to explore for oil in Iraq's Kurdistan in the company's annual report, breaking months of silence over the investment that has outraged Baghdad.

Channel surfers know that finding a great show to watch on television can be a daunting task, especially among the hundreds of channels available.

Japan's Elpida Memory Inc said it filed for protection from creditors on Monday with 448 billion yen ($5.55 billion) in debt, the biggest bankruptcy filing by a Japanese manufacturer.

Chinese Internet users taking advantage of temporary access to Google Inc's social networking site, Google+, have flooded U.S. President Barack Obama's page on the site with calls for greater freedom in the world's most populous country.

Chinese handset maker Xiaomi Technology is looking to raise more funds within the next year or two to boost production and sees revenue in the future coming from software applications rather than handset sales, the firm's president told Reuters on Monday.

State Grid Corp of China has had talks with U.S. power firm AES Corp about taking a controlling stake in its U.S. wind power business, three sources said, as China's cash-flush state-owned power companies go on an overseas buying spree.

HSBC Holdings Plc , Europe's biggest bank, predicted growth in Asia and other emerging markets would outweigh sluggish European economies this year as it posted a $21.9 billion profit for 2011, the best outturn by a western bank so far.

Nissan Motor Co <7201.T> said on Monday it will overhaul the way it develops cars by using common parts across different vehicle segments, cutting costs by nearly 30 percent and helping offset soaring spending to make cars safer and more fuel-efficient.

An industry alliance including the top wireless chipset provider Qualcomm will step up competition in the smartphone software market on Monday, with a new Internet-based free technology for cheaper smartphones.

Leading economies told Europe it must put up extra money to fight its debt crisis if it wants more help from the rest of the world, piling pressure on Germany to drop its opposition to a bigger European bailout fund.

Japan's Elpida Memory Inc said it filed for protection from creditors on Monday with 448 billion yen ($5.55 billion) in debt, the biggest bankruptcy filing by a Japanese manufacturer.

Germany's parliament will almost certainly endorse a Greek bailout on Monday despite growing pressure on Chancellor Angela Merkel to meet domestic calls to stop throwing money down this crazy path.

HSBC Holdings , Europe's biggest bank, made a $21.9 billion profit last year, the largest among western banks, as its strength in Asia helped it cope with a euro zone debt crisis that has plunged many rivals into huge losses.

The Oscars gave the online community a lot to talk about on Sunday, as the number of social media comments about Hollywood's biggest night more than tripled from last year in a sign that viewers connected with the show.

In 2005, Mercedes-Benz took a gamble and shipped its first batch of 200 sport utility vehicles from Germany to China, where cheap hatchbacks and black sedans ruled the roads.

Taiwan's HTC Corp has turned to advanced cameras and music functions for a new range of phones at the centre of its bid to recover from a rapid fall from grace in the tough and fickle smartphone market.

HSBC just missed analysts' expectations with a near $22 billion profit last year, which marked the biggest profit among western banks thanks to its strength in Asia and other emerging markets.

Olympus Corp tapped a company veteran as president and a former banker from its main lender as chairman on Monday, a move likely to upset big foreign investors as it tries to recover from an accounting scandal that tarnished its image and hammered its balance sheet.

China on Monday called for steps to address the euro zone debt crisis, high oil prices and volatile capital flows, adding that Group of 20 nations should focus on ensuring a global economic recovery and financial market stability.

Japan's Elpida Memory Inc plans to file for bankruptcy protection on Monday, a senior executive said, potentially lowering the curtain on Japan in a PC memory chip business it once dominated as talks stalled on a possible rescue by domestic lenders and would-be overseas equity partners.

The anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks began publishing on Monday more than five million emails from a U.S.-based global security analysis company that has been likened to a shadow CIA.

The trial to decide who should pay for the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill has been delayed by a week, to allow BP Plc to try to cut a deal with tens of thousands of businesses and individuals affected by the disaster.

Japan's Olympus Corp unveiled a proposed new board of directors on Monday in an effort to recover from a $1.7 billion accounting fraud, but the line-up could face a hostile reception from foreign investors when it goes to a shareholder vote.

Emerging economies said on Sunday that they will challenge a tradition that has placed an American at the head of the World Bank for decades, as the Obama administration shows sensitivity to the need for change at global institutions.

British oil giant BP Plc and plaintiffs suing over the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill are discussing a $14 billion settlement that is nearing completion, Bloomberg said, citing three people familiar with the talks.

British oil giant BP Plc and plaintiffs suing over the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill are discussing a $14 billion settlement that is nearing completion, Bloomberg said, citing three people familiar with the talks.

Samsung Electronics' mobile chief said it aimed to nearly double its smartphone sales in 2012 from last year, stepping up its battle with arch rival Apple Inc.