COMPANIES

Budget hotel chain Red Roof Inn Inc. has defaulted on $361.4 million of mortgage debt, credit rating agency, Realpoint LLC, said on Tuesday.

Russia's Gazprom expected gas demand to pick up in Europe from April, its export chief said on Wednesday, rebuffing accusations that rigid pricing was to blame for an expected 40 percent plunge in export sales in 2009.

General Motors Corp plans to complete a 20 percent cut in its white-collar work force by October, a spokesman said on Tuesday.

A U.S. bankruptcy judge has denied a request from a small group of General Motors Corp bondholders to become an official committee in the bankruptcy case.

New orders for Chinese shipyards fell 96% in the first five months of 2009, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) released on Tuesday.

Ford Motor Co will receive nearly $5.9 billion in U.S. government loans to build fuel-efficient vehicles as the Obama administration deepened its commitment to reshaping the cash-strapped auto industry.

U.S. limousine companies are laying off workers and closing offices as the recession cuts into demand for the shiny black symbols of wealth and power.

Consumers, insurance companies and the federal government spend an extra $3.5 billion for prescription drugs every year because brand-name companies pay generic producers to stay out of the market, the head of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission said on Tuesday.

Boeing on Tuesday postponed the first test flight of its 787 Dreamliner for a fifth time, citing a structural problem that marked the latest blow to the credibility of the No. 2 planemaker and sent its shares tumbling 9 percent.

The Brazilian real estate market is booming again after fizzling at the end of last year as sales have rebounded in one of the best emerging markets, a New York-based real estate private equity investor said in an interview on Tuesday.

Borrowers in the market for office, retail and apartment buildings are beginning to come to terms with lost value in commercial real estate, portending a capitulation required for a market rebound, a top industry lawyer said on Monday.

Sales of previously owned homes in the United States rose at a slower-than-expected pace in May, an industry survey showed on Tuesday, pointing to a sluggish recovery from the severe economic recession.

U.S. chief executives took a slightly less grim view of the economy in the second quarter, but still plan to cut jobs and capital spending, according to a Business Roundtable survey released on Tuesday.

U.S. chief executives took a slightly less grim view of the economy in the second quarter, but still plan to cut jobs and capital spending, according to a Business Roundtable survey released on Tuesday.

Ford Motor Co will receive nearly $5.9 billion in U.S. government loans to spur development of more fuel-efficient vehicles, the Obama administration said on Tuesday.

A huge iron ore resource with more than three billion tons’ of proven reserves has been found in China's Benxi, Benxi Municipal Government said on Tuesday, making it one of the biggest iron ore mines in Asia.

U.S. chief executives took a slightly less grim view of the economy in the second quarter, but still plan to cut jobs and capital spending, according to a Business Roundtable survey released on Tuesday.

Commercial Metals Co posted a narrower-than-expected third-quarter loss, but the steel and metal products maker warned of difficult domestic market conditions for the remainder of 2009.

Airport fast lane security pass services gave notice to its members on Monday night that it would cease operations on its website.

India has imposed a duty of 14 percent on imports of aluminium flat rolled products from China, the finance ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

The heads of French oil major Total and Russia's second biggest gas producer, Novatek, will meet Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Wednesday, which may be a precursor to a deal between the two.

Three creditors of Protein Sciences Corp, maker of a next-generation vaccine for the H1N1 flu, have requested the company be put into bankruptcy and that a trustee be appointed to replace its management, court filings showed.

Ford Motor Co and Japan's Nissan Motor Co Ltd will receive nearly $8 billion combined in U.S. government loans to spur development of fuel efficient vehicles, the U.S. Energy Department said on Tuesday.

Boeing Corp said Tuesday it is postponing the first flight of the 787 Dreamliner jet after tests determined the need for reinforcing an area within the side-of-body section of the aircraft.

IPC, which has launched a search for a new chief executive, said it continues to recommend against the Validus offer due to the price. The two companies have held in-person discussions, but Validus is not willing to raise its $1.72 billion bid, IPC said.

India's Tech Mahindra plans to absorb its new unit Mahindra Satyam to create a top-tier Indian outsourcing firm, the vice chairman of the two outsourcing firms said on Tuesday.

American International Group Inc agreed to sell two downtown Manhattan buildings, including its headquarters, for a total of $150 million, a source familiar with the matter said.

Brazil's largest shopping mall operator BRMALLS Participacoes said on Tuesday it planned to offer 48.45 million shares in primary and secondary sales, raising cash to finance expansion and takeovers and to pay down debt.

Office Depot Inc, which has been trying to raise money to combat slumping sales, said on Tuesday it has received a $350 million investment from BC Partners, giving the private equity firm a nearly 20 percent stake.