MARKETS / FINANCE

Alleghany Corp is nearing a deal to buy reinsurer Transatlantic Holdings Inc for about $3.4 billion, a source familiar with the matter said.

U.S. auto parts supplier Delphi Automotive Plc is seeking acquisitions to boost its Asia-Pacific presence and expand its core businesses, the company's chief executive said in an interview to the Financial Times on Monday.

Employees at Japan's Olympus Corp are feeling shock, anger and betrayal as they watch the public humiliation of a company to which many have devoted their working lives.

Ted Forstmann, the billionaire private equity investor and philanthropist, died on Sunday of brain cancer. He was 71.

Shares in Japan's Olympus Corp jumped more than 15 percent in early trade Monday on persistent speculation that the disgraced maker of cameras and endoscopes may avoid delisting despite the accounting scandal engulfing it.

Japan's exports fell at the fastest pace in five months in the year to October and the worse than expected result signaled more weakness ahead as a strong yen and sputtering global growth weigh on the recuperating economy.

Michel Barnier, the European Union's markets commissioner, said on Sunday he was in favor of euro zone countries pooling their debt together but warned that tougher oversight of national budgets was needed first.

Japan's exports fell at the fastest pace in five months in the year to October, underscoring mounting concerns that sputtering global growth and a strong yen will take their toll on the world's No.3 economy as policymakers brace for contagion from the euro zone debt crisis.

A brutal year for global investors may get even worse this week if Congress proves yet again it is too bitterly divided to deliver on its promise to reduce the gaping U.S. budget deficit.

Wall Street is in for a volatile week as escalating problems in Europe's debt crisis continue to keep investors on their toes.

U.S. overspending on the military has diverted resources from civilian / social investments, weakening the economy, and, by extension weakening the nation. If it doesn’t substantially cut defense spending, the U.S.’s empire will likely share the fate of two other empires that overspent on the military -- the British Empire and the Soviet Union.

Wall Street is in for a volatile run this week as escalating problems in Europe's debt crisis continue to keep investors on their toes.

When Lehman Brothers collapsed in 2008 and shattered the belief that U.S. money market funds would never break the buck, Washington rushed to limit the damage.

Swiss bank UBS's strategy to slash risky assets by almost half and pay its first dividend since the financial crisis has the full backing of Axel Weber, its newly-crowned Chief Executive Sergio Ermotti said in a Swiss newspaper on Sunday.

A long-term global recession is certain to happen and China must focus on domestic problems, Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan has said.

A raft of bidders including J.P. Morgan is lining up for failed brokerage MF Global's stake in the London Metals Exchange, two sources familiar with the situation said, providing some solace for creditors.

World Gold Council's third-quarter demand report showed central bank buying going far above most analysts estimates. Analysis shows the mystery buyers to be China or India.

LivingSocial, the online deal provider, is looking to raise nearly $200 million from new and old investors, the New York Times reported on Friday.

Greece's creditors failed on Saturday to persuade the leader of the main conservative party to drop his refusal to sign a pledge that he will back austerity measures under a bailout deal aimed at saving the country from financial ruin.

Tribune Co , the owner of the Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune newspapers, has filed a third reorganization plan with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware as the media company attempts to address concerns raised by the court last month.

A top tech analyst is predicting that Amazon is likely to release its own smartphone for under $200 next year. Citigroup analyst Mark Mahaney said in a research note that Amazon may sell the smartphone for as little as $170. Citing supply-chain channel checks in Asia, he said Amazon may release its first-ever smartphone by the fourth quarter of 2012.

Unrest and anger run deep against the ruling leftist Socialist Workers Party, which is almost guaranteed to lose the election.

European Union negotiators agreed to a two percent rise in the bloc's budget for next year to 129 billion euros ($174 billion), following more than fifteen hours of talks which ended in the early hours of Saturday morning.

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda said on Saturday Asia needs to consider further steps to avoid a financial crisis as the euro zone's debt problems could spill into the region.

Switzerland could see a deal within the next three to six months to end a long-simmering dispute over how it will hand over data to the United States on wealthy Americans suspected of dodging taxes, Julius Baer Chief Executive Boris Collardi said on Saturday.

China will make the yuan more flexible in either direction and its recent reforms to make the currency more market-oriented have begun to achieve some results, Premier Wen Jiabao said on Saturday.

Because the Amazon Kindle Fire's low price of $199 makes it more accessible than its competitors, ZDNet's Jason Perlow called it the People's Tablet. But early experiences indicate the tablet, available for sale in stores such as Best Buy this week, is not all that great as a reader.

A brutal year for global investors may get even worse next week if Congress proves yet again it is too bitterly divided to deliver on its promise to reduce the gaping U.S. budget deficit.

Wall Street is in for a volatile week as escalating problems in Europe's debt crisis continue to keep investors on their toes.