JAPAN

A massive earthquake and tsunamis killed 350 people in one Chilean coastal town, doubling the total death toll on Sunday as the government tried to get aid to hungry survivors and halt looting.

Iran launched a fierce verbal assault on the West on Monday, charging some European countries of subjecting Muslim communities to insult and violence and suggesting the United States and Europe aided terrorism.

U.S. stocks rose on Monday, boosted by several mergers, including a deal by AIG to sell its Asian life insurance unit, and as a possible resolution appeared for debt-troubled Greece in the form of European Union aid.

If Canada's dramatic overtime gold medal win over the United States marked the National Hockey League's final bow on the Winter Olympic stage, they depart to a rousing standing ovation.

China's Suning Appliance Co said it planned to open 520 stores in China this year, increasing its total number of shops by more than half in the world's third-biggest economy.

Japan's Astellas Pharma Inc offered to buy U.S. drugmaker OSI Pharmaceuticals for $52.00 a share, or about $3.5 billion, in cash to gain access to OSI's cancer drug Tarceva.

Toyota Motor Corp President Akio Toyoda apologized to Chinese consumers on Monday over the company's massive global recall, seeking to ease quality concerns in the world's biggest auto market.

The United States and Japan are expected to see the biggest rise in distressed property sales in the first quarter, as the fallout from the global property downturn intensifies, the results of a survey showed on Monday.

Payrolls could give the U.S. stock market some direction this week as investors comb through the key report on one of the economy's weakest areas.

Tsunami waves of up to 1.5 meters (5 feet) hit far-flung Pacific regions from the Russian far east and Japan to New Zealand's Chatham Islands on Sunday after a powerful earthquake struck Chile, but there were no reports of injuries or serious damage.

The death toll following Saturday's earthquake in Chile rose to 214, Chilean television reported Saturday afternoon.

An 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Chile that so far has killed 147 people triggered a tsunami warning across Hawaii, Russia, Japan and Australia Saturday morning.

One of the most powerful earthquakes in decades battered Chile on Saturday, killing at least 147 people, knocking down buildings and triggering a tsunami that rolled menacingly across the Pacific.

A massive magnitude-8.8 earthquake struck south-central Chile early on Saturday, killing at least 85 people, knocking down buildings, homes and hospitals, and triggering a tsunami.

Toyota Motor Corp's president will hold a news conference in Beijing on Monday to explain its recent recalls, Kyodo news agency reported, citing an announcement by the automaker's local unit.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Friday she was encouraged by signs that North Korea may be getting ready to return to stalled talks on its nuclear program.

A magnitude 7.3 quake hit Japan's southern island of Okinawa early on Saturday, the U.S. Geological Survey reported, and Japan's weather agency issued a tsunami warning for up to 2 meters.

A composed Joannie Rochette betrayed little of her emotional turmoil as she gracefully glided to the Olympic figure skating bronze on Thursday and then wondered what her late mother would have made of her effort.

Kim Yuna dissolved into tears after she obliterated the opposition to become the first South Korean to win an Olympic figure skating gold medal, while a grieving Joannie Rochette melted millions of hearts with a display of sheer courage.

Oil held around $78 a barrel on Friday after sliding more than 2 percent the day before as traders mulled recovery prospects for the United States, the world's top energy consumer, ahead of economic data.

U.S. stock index futures were slightly higher on Friday as investors looked ahead to a raft of data, including economic growth, homes sales and manufacturing after a disappointing week so far for the economy.