UNITED STATES

North Korea has been seeking a summit between the leaders of the rival Koreas, an official in Seoul said on Sunday, marking another step in its attempts to reach out to the world after being hit by U.N. sanctions.

Pakistani forces exchanged heavy fire on Sunday with Taliban defending their heartland, a day after launching an offensive aimed at bringing the writ of the state to lawless lands on the Afghan border.

A suicide bomber killed six senior Revolutionary Guards commanders and 23 other people on Sunday in one of the boldest attacks on Iran's most powerful military institution.

Swiss bank UBS AG warned U.S. customers by registered mail their account details may be given to U.S. tax authorities, a method that could itself breach secrecy laws, a Swiss paper said on Sunday.

Sweeping rule changes meant to shed light on so-called dark pools, where stock-trading is done anonymously, could ultimately hurt the traditional investors that regulators are trying to empower, trading executives warned over the past few days.

The United States must live within its means once its economy recovers if it is to preserve global confidence in the U.S. dollar's status, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Friday.

Economy Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg expressed confidence on Saturday that Germany could address EU concerns about a sale of carmaker Opel to Canada's Magna, saying they did not put the deal at risk.

General Motors Co's bid to find an outsider to replace its chief financial officer is being complicated by pay restrictions imposed on companies that got big U.S. government bailouts, The Wall Street Journal said on Saturday.

General Motors Co's bid to find an outsider to replace its chief financial officer is being complicated by pay restrictions imposed on companies that got big U.S. government bailouts, The Wall Street Journal said on Saturday.

General Motors Co's bid to find an outsider to replace its chief financial officer is being complicated by pay restrictions imposed on companies that got big U.S. government bailouts, The Wall Street Journal said on Saturday.

Los Amigos Invisibles, the Venezuelan funk band from Caracas that relocated to Brooklyn more than eight years ago, will celebrate its 20th anniversary in 2011. But the party has already started, with the group enjoying an ever-growing following throughout Mexico, South America and its adopted home country.

Toys R Us is facing a U.S. antitrust probe over whether the toy retailer used its market clout to stifle discounting by retail competitors and force consumers to pay higher prices for baby products, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday.

Film director Roman Polanski, arrested in Switzerland three weeks ago to face extradition in a U.S. sex case, has been moved from jail for medical treatment, his French lawyer said on Saturday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised a lengthy diplomatic battle to delegitimise United Nations charges that Israel committed war crimes in the Gaza Strip, an official said on Saturday.

Pakistani forces launched a ground offensive against Taliban militants in South Waziristan on the Afghan border on Saturday, with soldiers advancing from three directions, officials said.

The United States said on Friday it would allow a senior North Korean official to visit this month, a move analysts said could be a first step toward talks between the two on ending Pyongyang's nuclear programs.

U.S. President Barack Obama lashed out on Saturday against the deceptive and dishonest efforts of health insurance companies, who he said are trying to kill healthcare reform, no matter the cost to the country.

Several international political figures have phoned President Hamid Karzai, his office said on Saturday, in what appeared to be an intense diplomatic offensive to end a row over Afghanistan's disputed presidential election.

The U.S. budget deficit hit a record $1.4 trillion in the just-ended fiscal year, the government said on Friday, as the deep recession and a series of bank rescues cut a gaping hole in public finances. The tally was $162 billion smaller than the White House had forecast in August, but it still amounted to 10 percent of total U.S. economic output, the most for any budget shortfall since World War Two.

The U.S. airline industry, finally poised for rebound after a near financial meltdown in 2008, may owe its survival to the creative minds who brought you fees, fees and more fees.

Two Bank of America directors have been asked to testify before Congress on the bank's acquisition of Merrill Lynch and ensuing fallout, a source familiar with the matter said on Friday.