COMPANIES

Dutch financial services group ING has agreed to buy ShareBuilder Corporation's online brokerage business for $220 million to extend its reach in the United States, ING said on Tuesday.

Fox-Pitt Kelton analyst David Trone on Tuesday downgraded Morgan Stanley shares to in-line from outperform, citing the likelihood the bank will write down asset-backed securities, collateralized debt obligations and other assets by as much as $6 billion.

IndyMac Bancorp Inc, one of the largest independent U.S. mortgage lenders, on Tuesday posted a quarterly loss more than five times larger than it had projected, hurt by mounting delinquencies and a collapse in investor demand to buy its home loans. It was IndyMac's first quarterly loss since the fourth quarter of 1998.

As a strike by Hollywood screenwriters throws dozens of television shows into production turmoil, a new series aimed at TV's target audience of young adults is headed for launch on the Web -- not television.

Hospital chain Tenet Healthcare Corp posted a smaller quarterly loss on Tuesday as in-patient revenue per admission increased.

Mattel Inc, the world's largest toymaker, has recalled 155,000 of its products made in Mexico over safety concerns, an official at the company told Reuters on Tuesday.

The world's largest hotelier, InterContinental Hotels, met market forecasts with a 22 percent rise in quarterly profit and shrugged off worries about the impact of financial market turmoil on the lodging industry.

Citigroup Inc has named veteran financial expert Richard Stuckey to head a new team that focuses on managing its subprime mortgage portfolio, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters on Tuesday.

ExxonMobil Chemical Co said on Tuesday that it will build a second petrochemical complex in Singapore after completing a detailed study.

DirecTV Group, Inc (NYSE:DTV) reports its third quarter earnings on Wednesday as it continues to face challenges from other satellite and Cable providers.

AGL Energy Limited on Monday announced to build another wind farm at South Australia costing $166 million.

Nufarm said on Monday that it has received an acquisition proposal from China National Chemical Corporation (ChemChina) for $2.75 billion.

Banks were more tight-fisted when lending money to businesses and households during the last three months as demand for loans dropped, according to a new survey.

Tokyo-Citigroup Inc. on Monday debuted on the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange opening at 4,580 yen, 250 yen higher than the value calculated from closing price from the New York Stock Exchange.

EADS, parent company of European aircraft maker Airbus, expects further costs of around 1.4 billion euros and a delay of at least 6 months.

AT&T announced on Friday the completion of the acquisition of Interwise, a leading global provider of Internet Protocol (IP) based voice, web and video conferencing services.

PetroChina Co. shares more than doubled in their Shanghai debut Monday, giving the oil giant a $1 trillion market capitalization and easily surpassing Exxon Mobil as the world's largest company.

As global banks report larger and larger losses it's becoming apparent the the subprime mess will be around longer than expected.

Time Warner Inc said on Monday Chief Executive Richard Parsons will step down on January 1 and be replaced by Chief Operating Officer Jeffrey Bewkes, stoking expectations that big changes lie ahead for the world's largest media company.

A Qatari fund has ditched plans for a 10.6 billion-pound ($22 billion) bid for British retailer J Sainsbury, blaming worsening credit markets and the cost of winning support from the firm's pension trustees.

Fear and mistrust gripped Wall Street on Monday after Citigroup's CEO quit in the wake of mounting credit losses and an influential money manager called the subprime mortgage market a $1 trillion problem.

Shares in Citigroup Inc rose 5 percent in their debut on the Tokyo Stock Exchange on Monday, a day after the U.S. bank's head resigned to take responsibility for spiraling losses on subprime-related investments.

Airbus parent EADS warned on Monday of a bigger-than-expected charge of up to 1.4 billion euros ($2.03 billion) from delay of its A400M military plane, forcing it to shelve its 2007 operating profit forecast.

Ryanair on Monday posted a 26 percent rise in second-quarter net profit broadly in line with analysts' expectations and raised full-year guidance as it pointed to brighter prospects for the winter.

Heart-failure patients given AstraZeneca Plc's Crestor and standard drugs are just as likely to have heart attacks and strokes or die of cardiovascular problems as those on standard therapy alone, researchers said on Monday.

PepsiCo announced a restructuring on Monday that will split the food and beverage company into three units -- one for food in the United States, one for U.S. drinks and one for food and drinks abroad.

Tesco, the world's third-largest retailer, has begun its long-awaited launch in the United States, opening its first store near Los Angeles.

Shares in stricken British mortgage bank Northern Rock tumbled over 6 percent on Monday amid concerns that potential bidders will steer clear as the turmoil in global financial markets deepens.

Charles Prince resigned on Sunday as chairman and chief executive of Citigroup Inc, as the bank said it may write off $11 billion of subprime mortgage losses, on top of a $6.5 billion write-down last quarter. Robert Rubin, the former U.S. Treasury Secretary who had chaired Citigroup's executive committee, was named chairman, while Sir Win Bischoff, who runs Citigroup's European operations, was named acting chief executive.