UNITED KINGDOM

Major powers are looking for new ways to draw Iran into negotiations over its nuclear program while simultaneously pushing for more U.N. sanctions, U.S. officials and diplomats said on Tuesday. Political directors from the permanent five members of the U.N. Security Council -- Russia, China, the United States, Britain and France -- as well as Germany, met in Washington on Monday to discuss how to tweak their Iran strategy.

Tata Motors is set to take over Ford Motor Co's British luxury brands, Jaguar and Land Rover, in early March, following successful conclusion of talks with the automaker's labor union in UK, Unite.

First Great Western (FGW), a subsidiary of FirstGroup Plc, has said that it had agreed a package of passenger benefits to address poor performance in relation to cancellations of train services and the contravention of the Franchise Agreement.

The FTSE 100 index finished 87.9 points up on Tuesday at 6,087.4. The rise is almost a two per cent increase on the previous session and took the index above 6,000.

Investment banks saw the amount they earn in fees rise to record levels for the fifth year in a row in 2007, despite the impact of the credit crunch on major banks.

The Fairtrade Foundation has said that retail sales of the ethical Fairtrade brand jumped 81 per cent last year to £493 million.

Google eased to the top rank after being rated as number one brand in the UK leading the nation's other 500 brands.

The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals involving European, U.S. and Asian companies were reported by 1430 GMT on Monday.

Forget Saving Humanity, The Club Shoots For Style

Thousands of Turkish troops have crossed into northern Iraq in their hunt for Kurdish PKK guerrillas, a senior military source said on Friday, in an escalation of a conflict that could destabilize the region.

The dollar slipped on Thursday, still weighed down by minutes from the Federal Reserve's January policy meeting, which affirmed expectations of further U.S. interest rate cuts.

Supermarket chain ASDA has announced it will be creating 9,000 new jobs in what it calls its biggest jobs programme in a decade. The jobs will be created through new store openings, extensions and business expansion.

A top Chinese state newspaper has lambasted Hollywood director Steven Spielberg for quitting the Beijing Olympic Games over Darfur, saying childish vanity politics lies behind Western criticism of Beijing policy.

British bank Alliance & Leicester on Wednesday suffered a double blow from the impact of financial market turmoil, warning of sharply higher funding costs to add to a big writedown on the value of risky assets. Britain's seventh largest listed bank is estimating higher funding costs as it seeks to avoid a crisis that hit rival Northern Rock last year.

European shares cut Tuesday's losses and rose as a turnaround in shares of Barclays boosted UK banks and U.S. stock futures extended gains.

A U.K based firm is planning to unveil a $195 laptop targeted at students at the end of the month, making it the least expensive laptop offering yet.

European shares rose Monday as investors rushed to buy after recent volatility and selloffs, while Asian markets were mixed and U.S market was closed for a public holiday.

The pound declined on Monday after the UK government announced a plan to temporarily nationalize struggling bank Northern Rock, leading investors to grow more concerned about the country s economy.

Shares in UK banks rose on Monday on hopes of higher dividends and after the British government decided to nationalize stricken mortgage lender Northern Rock.

Barclays Capital, the investment banking arm of Britain's Barclays Plc, has named Mark Bamford as head of global syndicate to replace Geert Vinken, who is retiring.

Swiss bank UBS AG is confident the 287 million pound ($560 million) rights issue it is underwriting for British mortgage lender Paragon will be successful, a source close to the bank said on Monday.