IBT Staff Reporter

Gold fell slightly on Monday but held near 10-week highs as the precious metals market took a breather from last week's rally, but a weakened dollar and more bullish sentiment limited losses.

Oil fell below $77 a barrel on Monday as some funds booked profits after OPEC expressed concern over near-record prices and pledged to pump more crude if needed.

Aditya Birla group's Hindalco Industries has bought 45 percent stake in Utkal Alumina International (Utkal) from Canadian metal giant Alcan for an undisclosed sum.

The union representing Deutsche Bahn AG railway drivers and related staff began voting on Monday to decide whether to go on a nationwide strike amid a push for a 31 percent wage increase.

Hedge funds looking to allocate more cash to oil markets are a growing customer base for energy trading firms offering risk management in Asia such as Mitsui & Co, a company executive said on Monday.

The seventh and final Harry Potter book sold 8.3 million copies in the first 24 hours.

Zimbabwe's parliament opens a new session this week to debate radical plans to nationalize foreign firms and a law empowering the house to name President Robert Mugabe's likely successor without a national vote.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. said on Monday it received final approval to set up a locally incorporated bank in China, one of the latest firms given the go-ahead for possible retail operations in the country.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown pledged more funds on Monday to tackle some of Britain's worst flooding for nearly 60 years as rising waters made thousands homeless and plunged entire towns under water.

Heating and cooling systems maker American Standard Cos. Inc. said on Monday that it reached an accord to sell its bath and kitchen business to funds advised by private equity firm Bain Capital Partners LLC for $1.755 billion.

Schering-Plough Corp. on Monday said quarterly earnings more than doubled on growing demand for its Zetia and Vytorin cholesterol drugs and its treatments for arthritis and allergies.

The head of the United Auto Workers union on Monday said that a strike against the struggling U.S. auto industry remains a possibility should workers be unable to agree on terms with the three Detroit-based automakers in contract talks starting this week.

With a pair of mergers announced over the weekend, the total number of state-owned enterprises affiliated with China’s central government has dropped from 157 to 155.

Around one in eight British shoppers has bought a counterfeit watch, handbag or other product in the last year as it becomes more socially acceptable, a study by lawyers Davenport Lyons and Ledbury Research found.

Transocean Inc., the world's largest offshore driller, said on Monday it would buy GlobalSantaFe Corp. for about $17 billion in a no-premium deal, adding a fleet of shallow-water drilling rigs to its deepwater equipment. The deal includes stock, as well as pay-out to shareholders of both companies totaling $15 billion.

UAL Corp's United Airlines will ramp up its efforts to lure well-heeled business travelers by adding fully reclining seats to its international business-class cabins, the company said on Monday.

U.S. investors' overall confidence fell in July, hurt by the housing slump and rising energy costs, but a buoyant stock market provided a silver lining for individual investments, a survey showed on Monday.

Halliburton Co., the world's second-largest oil services company, said on Monday that second-quarter profit from continuing operations rose 19 percent, topping Wall Street views, helped by new international contracts.

Heavy rain and storms have triggered floods and landslides across large parts of Asia, killing hundreds of people. Here is an overview of the five Asian countries worst affected by this year's monsoon weather.

Equipment rental company United Rentals Inc. said on Monday it had accepted a $4 billion takeover bid from private equity fund Cerberus Capital Management LP.

Britain's Resolution and Friends Provident are in advanced merger talks to create a group worth almost 9 billion pounds, the two insurers said on Monday, rekindling hopes of consolidation across the sector.

Hasbro Inc., the world's second-largest toy maker, posted a lower quarterly profit on Monday due to a charge from its repurchase of $200 million in common stock from Lucasfilm Ltd.

Future residents of the Cottage Gate development in Middletown, New Jersey, may be surprised to learn their granite countertops and two-car garages were paid for by a hedge fund.Future residents of the Cottage Gate development in Middletown, New Jersey, may be surprised to learn their granite countertops and two-car garages were paid for by a hedge fund.

British bank Barclays raised its bid for Dutch group ABN AMRO to 67.5 billion euros ($93 billion) on Monday, helped by some of the biggest ever overseas investments by China and Singapore. The bid still falls short of a rival $71 billion-euro bid from a group of European banks led by Royal Bank of Scotland.

Demands for job guarantees at Siemens AG automotive electronics unit VDO moved to the centre of a takeover contest after two suitors were each reported to have bid more than $16 billion for the business.

Internet giant Yahoo! Inc. has made a strategic investment in Indian online advertising network Tyroo Media Pvt Ltd. by purchasing more than 35 percent stake in the Gurgaon-based firm for an undisclosed sum.

U.S. stocks rose Monday on strong Merck & Co. profits and news of a nearly $18 billion oil services takeover, while Treasury bonds eased as reduced fears about the subprime credit market made riskier assets attractive again.

India's success in trimming its fiscal deficit has surprised even itself but progress in the next two years will be harder as dizzying growth slows and pressure for populist spending rises before elections.

Toyota and parts maker Riken will restart partial work following last week's quake in Japan.