IBT Staff Reporter

Senior U.S. housing officials and leading mortgage companies on Tuesday will make a fresh commitment to help troubled borrowers keep their homes and will promise to expand foreclosure-prevention aid, sources familiar with the plans said.

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has stepped down and handed over the governor's office to Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell on Sunday afternoon at a picnic in Fairbanks Park. About her future plans, there are a few things are known as followings:

Economic woes are taking a toll on marriages and relationships around the globe but the love lives of Americans seem to be most stressed by the recession, according to an international poll.

The electrical smell that caused a Southwest Airlines flight to make an unexpected landing Sunday was caused by a coffee maker in the back of the aircraft, a company spokesman said on Monday.

Electronics distributors from Ingram Micro to Avnet could report disappointing quarterly results as pricing pressure intensified, but analysts were cautiously hopeful that profits would rebound by year's end as corporate spending returns.

Corrects paragraph 16 to relatively weak from money-losing to show IBM's hardware division still profitable

The number of phone users in China has surpassed billion during the first half of 2009, which, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), is boosted by the launch of the third-generation (3G) network. However, most of the users are not satisfied with their current domestic operators.

Canon Inc will spend about 25 billion yen to streamline its design and product data systems in the company in 2010 and expects savings of more than 100 billion yen over three years, the Nikkei business daily reported.

Debt-laden Italian eyewear maker Safilo, which has been seeking to strengthen its balance sheet, postponed release of its first-half results on Monday after talks with private equity groups fell through.

EU antitrust regulators have not received a new proposal from Germany's Lufthansa over its plan to buy Austrian Airlines, officials said on Monday, but Austria later reported progress toward agreement.

Qualcomm Inc said on Monday that it had received a draft order apparently related to licensing terms from the Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC).

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed insider trading charges on Monday against a manager at Abu Dhabi Oil Refining Co (AORC) who made more than $450,000 profit from suspicious trades before a takeover of Nova Chemicals Corp.

Plutonic Power Corp and partner GE Energy Financial Services have been granted more time to finish a due diligence investigation into their planned purchase of a distressed wind farm project in Western Canada, they said on Monday.

Sales of new single-family homes in the United States rose more than expected in June, while the inventory of homes for sale fell to a more than 11-year low, government data showed on Monday.

Hackers have defaced the website of Australia's biggest film festival which refused to withdraw a documentary about exiled Uighur leader Rebiya Kadeer, organizers said on Monday.

U.S. regulators have begun investigating possible manufacturing violations by Mylan Inc , the world's third-biggest generic drugmaker.

With friends like these, President Barack Obama may not need enemies.

Rock legend Jimi Hendrix's first recording contract worth $1 and erotic audio and video tapes sent by Madonna to her old bodyguard went on sale in an online auction on Monday.

Electronics distributors from Ingram Micro to Avnet could report disappointing quarterly results as pricing pressure intensified, but analysts were cautiously hopeful that profits would rebound by year's end as corporate spending returns.

(Corrects 5th paragraph from the bottom to weak from money-losing, to show IBM's hardware division still profitable)

The major music labels are planning a new digital album format that will debut with a tablet-like personal computer from Apple Inc in September, people familiar with the plans said on Monday.

Stocks rose slightly on Monday in a late rally as investors rotated into financial shares, which had lagged in the recent two-week run-up.

President Barack Obama held the first day of talks with a Chinese delegation in Washington D.C. to address economic issues including energy related topics. During remarks on Monday, Obama said China and the United States have an interest in creating clean and secure energy sources, according to the Associated Press. He added that neither country profits from a dependence on foreign oil. He also said neither any will be able to fight climate change unless they work together.

Alexis Cohen, best known as a two-time American Idol contestant was killed on Saturday morning from a hit-and-run car accident.

Starbucks Corp will make voluntary matching contributions to 401 retirement plans for its 2009 plan year, Chief Executive Howard Schultz said in a memo to employees on Monday.

Congress will consider steps to curb speculation in the $39 trillion credit default swaps market and could prohibit investors from speculating on a borrower's credit quality, according to a U.S. House of Representatives Committee document obtained by Reuters.

Aphrodite and the skeletal remains of her love Temples were painted in neon and hung prominently on the broad beige wall across the lounge.

Stocks rose slightly on Monday in a late rally as investors rotated into financial shares, which had lagged in the recent two-week rally.

Stocks rose late to finish Monday's session with a small gain following two strong weeks as investors bought bank shares that had lagged in the recent rally.