IBT Staff Reporter

Asian stocks surrendered early gains on Tuesday as investors took profits from recent gains, while the dollar was pinned near 15-month lows after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke repeated the central bank was likely to keep interest rates at very low levels for some time.

French Budget Minister Eric Woerth said on Sunday he was horrified by a publicity stunt that attracted huge crowds hoping for a cash handout and led to serious violence when it was canceled for safety reasons.

China's appliance and top TV maker TCL and Shenchao announced a joint venture that plans to invest a total 24.5 billion yuan ($3.6 billion) to set up an LCD production line using advanced 8.5-generation technology to tap future demand for flat-screen TVs.

Japan's Sanyo Electric Co Ltd said on Tuesday it plans to more than quadruple its solar cell production capacity to 1,500 megawatts by 2015 to become one of the world's top three solar cell makers.

Ford Motor's Volvo car unit will retain the rights for its licenced technologies, while its Chinese bidder Geely will get the right to use the technologies, a Geely spokesman was quoted as saying on Tuesday.

Ratan Tata, who bought the Land Rover and Jaguar brands, and Rupert Murdoch and Carlos Slim, who bought or invested in U.S. newspapers, said on Monday that they have no regrets with their purchases.

Banks' Worry; Coke's Double Aim; Berkshire's Stock bets

Billionaire investor George Soros' hedge fund reported holdings of $6.2 billion during the third quarter, an increase of $2 billion, after taking a stake in automaker Ford and boosting his holdings in communications services stocks.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York used a weak negotiating strategy that failed to wring concessions from AIG trading partners last year, allowing them to reap nearly $30 billion in payments from U.S. taxpayers, a government audit report said on Monday.

Since winning American Idol in 2005, country singer Carrie Underwood has become one of the show's highest selling graduates, but she warned the latest crop of Idol finalists to stay true to their fans if they want to find similar success.

Asian stocks rose to more than 15-month highs on Tuesday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke repeated the central bank was likely to keep interest rates at very low levels for some time, keeping the dollar pinned near 15-month lows and gold close to record highs.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York used a weak negotiating strategy that failed to wring concessions from AIG trading partners last year, allowing them to reap nearly $30 billion in payments from U.S. taxpayers, a government audit report said on Monday.

The New Moon premiere is being broadcasted live from Los Angeles Monday night on MySpace.com.

Some of the world's largest financial firms on Monday urged a top U.S. lawmaker not to pursue big bank break-up legislation, an idea attracting interest in Congress and causing alarm on Wall Street.

Former Bank of America Corp general counsel Timothy Mayopoulos was stunned to be fired as the bank was trying to wrap up its purchase of Merrill Lynch & Co, after being promised the same job at the combined company.

Coca-Cola Co unveiled goals on Monday that call for the revenue generated by the company and its bottlers to double to roughly $200 billion by 2020, with profit margins increasing.

Media conglomerate Time Warner Inc said on Monday it will spin off its AOL unit to shareholders on December 9, nine tumultuous years after one of the most disastrous corporate mergers in history.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, in a rare comment on the U.S. dollar's value, on Monday acknowledged the currency's slump was causing some prices to rise, but said other factors restraining inflation were winning the day.

Billionaire Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc on Monday revealed new investments in Nestle AG and Exxon Mobil Corp and that it has nearly doubled its investment in Wal-Mart Stores Inc .

The Federal Reserve's low interest rate policy is meant to encourage investors to move into riskier assets in order to promote economic recovery, and there are no signs currently the policy is resulting in the build-up of a U.S. asset bubble, the central bank's number-two official said on Monday.

Sina Corp , China's largest Web portal, posted a decline in quarterly sales and profit but beat Wall Street estimates as a recovering economy boosted consumer spending and advertising sentiment.

CIT Group Inc , the large U.S. consumer finance company, on Monday posted a $1.07 billion loss for the third quarter, the last full three-month period prior to its Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing.

Sina Corp. on Monday posted its third quarter fiscal report, with profits declining from $18.9 million or $0.31 per share a year ago to $16.7 million or $0.29 per share.

Sarah Palin told Oprah Winfrey that she once thought she was watching herself when comedian Tina Fey impersonated her on Saturday Night Live.

Dell previously confirmed its plans to enter the smartphone business, and China Mobile and Claro in Brazil will be the second largest PC maker's first two supporting mobile operators to sell Dell Mini 3 smartphones, Sina Tech reported on Tuesday.

Sarah Palin's highly anticipated appearance on Oprah Winfrey's show aired Monday featuring some controversial discussions including the issue of her teenager daughter's pregnancy and the baby's father Levi Johnston.

Former Bank of America Corp general counsel Timothy Mayopoulos said he was stunned to be fired as the bank was trying to wrap up its purchase of Merrill Lynch & Co, after being promised the same job at the combined company.

Microsoft is plugging social networks into Xbox 360 in an effort to bring more games, entertainment and social experiences all from a single device, the company said on Monday.

Soft drink maker Coca-Cola Co unveiled goals on Monday that call for the revenue generated by the company and its bottlers to double by 2020, with profit margins increasing.