COMPANIES

A U.S. bankruptcy court judge opened a hearing on Tuesday morning on government-backed plans by General Motors Corp to seek approval to sell its main assets to a New GM.

Europe's biggest betting firm, OPAP, said on Tuesday it had renegotiated a binding sales agreement with sales agents in Greece, a move that will help shield it from any possible deregulation of the Greek gaming market.

Saudi Aramco and U.S. ConocoPhillips said on Tuesday they would relaunch bidding for the 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) Yanbu refinery.

Deere & Co said on Tuesday that roughly 800 employees -- more than it had expected -- took a buyout from the world's largest maker of agricultural machinery and raised the amount of the charge associated with those departures.

The discount for copper scrap has widened in recent weeks as the copper futures price remains at elevated levels and business in recycled metal slows to a crawl amid the seasonal summer slowdown.

Tengzhong's plan to buy Hummer was still being examined by concerned departments and there had been no definitive result toward approval, authorities in Sichuan Province confirmed on Monday.

A General Motors Corp bankruptcy court hearing in which the company is seeking to sell its main assets to a New GM began on Tuesday but moved to a recess almost immediately as the judge dealt with communication issues.

Mining group Xstrata confirmed its $1 billion estimate of synergies for its proposed merger with rival Anglo American after its advisors were quoted in newspapers saying the number could be much higher.

General Motors Corp cut operational ties on Monday to a northern California auto plant it had operated in a joint-venture with Toyota Motor Corp for a quarter of a century.

China's state-owned Chinalco is taking up its full entitlement to Rio Tinto's $15.2 billion share issue, media reports said on Tuesday, with trade in the rights suggesting Chinalco is far from severing its ties with the Anglo-Australian miner.

New GM. It has been the mantra General Motors Corp. has adopted since it officially determined that the once venerable American car company had to radically change its plans for the future.

The world's airlines lost more than $3 billion in the first quarter of 2009, the International Air Transport Association said on Tuesday, maintaining its estimate for full-year losses of $9 billion.

A U.S. federal jury returned a $1.67 billion verdict against Abbott Laboratories in a patent suit brought by Johnson & Johnson related to arthritis treatments, the drug companies said on Monday.

Belgium-based RHJ International is close to a deal to buy a stake in Opel after talks between parent General Motors and preferred bidder Magna International hit snags, the Financial Times reported.

General Motors Corp will end its partnership with Toyota in a joint partnership, the company announced on Monday.

China's steel giant, Ansteel, got government approval from China for an A$162.06 million ($130.69 million) share placement with Australian iron ore miner Gindalbie Metals Ltd, a spokesman with Ansteel said Last Saturday.

Ford Motor Co said on Monday it expects to gain U.S. market share in June as its sales would hold up much better than the rest of the industry and signaled its increasing confidence by raising production.

Canon Inc, the world's largest digital-camera maker, plans to bring sales of its semiconductor steppers under the same division that handles production in order to increase responsiveness to customer demands in a shrinking market, the Nikkei business daily reported.

Ford Motor Co expects its U.S. sales for June to be down 10 percent to 20 percent from a year earlier, giving it a higher share of the largest auto market amid early signs demand has begun to stabilize, an executive said on Monday.

Ford Motor Co expects its U.S. sales for June will decline by less than 20 percent, giving it a higher share of the largest auto market amid early signs that demand has begun to stabilize, an executive said on Monday.

Child pornography was downloaded from a Swiss hip-hop music website to around 2,300 computers in 78 countries, Swiss police said on Monday.

U.S. copper futures climbed to a two-week high early Monday, as investors over-looked an overnight confirmation that China has halted its red metal purchases and bid the market up in line with equities.

Onshore oilfield developer Encore Acquisition Co said it would acquire oil and gas properties in the mid-continent and East Texas from EXCO Resources Inc for $375 million in cash.

Nestle, the world's biggest food group, reiterated on Monday its target for 2009 organic sales growth at least approaching 5 percent although it said performance would be weighted to the second half.

The head of Japan's Suzuki Motor Corp (7269.T) said he has had no contact with Volkswagen AG (VOWG.DE), shooting down a report last week that the German auto giant was considering a 10 percent stake in Suzuki, a Japanese newspaper said.

Sanofi-Aventis's diabetes drug Lantus may increase the risk of cancer, according to new but inconclusive studies from experts around Europe.

Canada's alternative energy sector is showing signs of a budding recovery, as companies resurrect financing deals and public offerings that withered with the recession, but that revival remains very fragile.

Audiences worldwide flocked to the film in theaters, with a global take of $387 million. In its weekend run, it earned $112 million over the weekend, as measured from Friday to Monday.

The deterioration of the Manhattan office availability rate slowed in the second quarter, signaling the worst may be over for the market, real estate services company FirstService Williams said in a report.