UNITED STATES

Australia's inexperienced men's 4x100 metres freestyle relay team provided a massive boilover on the first day of pool competition, while China completed their sweep of titles in the diving at the world swimming championships Sunday.

Wall Street futures fell, the dollar dropped and gold rallied as Washington appeared no closer on Sunday to raising the debt ceiling to avert a devastating default.

A bitterly divided Congress set the United States on a collision course with financial markets on Monday as Democrats and Republicans pursued rival plans unlikely to generate the broad support needed to avert a catastrophic and unprecedented debt default.

The United States took a step closer to losing its coveted triple-A credit rating over the weekend as a political impasse in Washington reduced hopes of an agreement to meaningfully cut the nation's budget deficit.

Superhero movie "Captain America: The First Avenger" triumphed at the U.S. and Canadian box offices with $65.8 million in weekend ticket sales as the magic faded from the final "Harry Potter" film's record-breaking debut. The strong opening for "Captain America" topped expectations in its battle against the hugely successful "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2," which saw its massive opening-weekend audience from last week shrink by 72 percent.

Bank of Japan Governor Masaaki Shirakawa said on Monday that the central bank needs to closely watch recent rises in the yen, which may hurt the country's economy by undermining exports, corporate revenue and sentiment.

A sharply divided Congress pursued rival budget plans on Sunday that appeared unlikely to win broad support, pushing the United States closer to a debt default that would reverberate around the world.

General Motors canceled the sale of its Opel and Vauxhall brands two years ago because the proposed buyers were demanding the right to sell its factories to a Russian state-owned car maker, the Times said on Monday.

Iran has accused the U.S. and Israel for the assassination of an Iranian scientist on Saturday amid growing concerns of Iranian nuclear advancements.

Superhero movie "Captain America: The First Avenger" triumphed over the U.S. and Canadian box offices with $65.8 million in weekend ticket sales, according to studio estimates released on Sunday.

President Barack Obama and Congressional leaders have missed a self-imposed Sunday deadline reach a deal to raise the U.S. federal debt limit, bringing the default deadline for U.S. obligations even closer.

Stocks slipped while the Swiss franc rose and gold hit a record high on Monday as hopes for a political deal to avert a U.S. default began to fade, though investors were mostly seeking to protect their portfolios with no signs of panic selling.

As time marches towards August 2, the day the US would presumably default if the debt ceiling isn't raised, calls are growing louder and louder for a resolution.

House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner told fellow Republicans on Sunday that he is considering a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution as part of a bill that would raise the debt ceiling, a source who heard his message said.

Iran and China are discussing using a barter system to exchange Iranian oil for Chinese goods and services, as U.S. sanctions have blocked China from paying at least $20 billion for oil, the Financial Times said.

U.S. lawmakers failed to achieve a budget breakthrough and instead worked on rival plans on Sunday in a impasse that heightened prospects for a catastrophic U.S. debt fault.

House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner on Sunday told his fellow Republicans that there is a path to cut U.S. spending and raise the debt ceiling, but it will require his party to accept sacrifices, according to two sources who heard his message.

Superhero movie "Captain America: The First Avenger" triumphed at the U.S. and Canadian box offices with $65.8 million in weekend ticket sales as the magic faded from the final "Harry Potter" film's record-breaking debut.

Debt default. A ratings downgrade. Political deadlock. Such terms, once associated primarily with the developing world, now abound in the mighty United States.

The family of Amy Winehouse sought "privacy" from the public eye on Sunday, one day after the young, beehive-haired soul singer's untimely death, which sent fans rushing to download her songs in remembrance.

The death of Amy Winehouse, marking a significant loss for music, has been beneficial for the artist's album sales, which has increased by almost 40 times and foreshadows a possible posthumous album.