IBT Staff Reporter

Exxon Mobil Corp reported a fourth-quarter profit on Monday that topped Wall Street expectations as natural gas projects boosted results at the largest U.S. oil company's exploration arm.

JPMorgan Chase and Sempra Energy may carve up commodities venture RBS Sempra, people familiar with the matter said, as pressure on U.S. banks to limit proprietary trading forces JPMorgan to rethink its plans.

U.S. manufacturing expanded for the sixth straight month in January to its highest since 2004, data showed on Monday, but U.S. consumers increased spending only slightly in December, worried by job prospects and the state of the economy.

NATO has almost met its target for extra combat troops in Afghanistan but will press allies this week to meet a shortfall of up to 2,400 people to train Afghan security forces, its secretary-general said on Monday.

Wall St rose on Monday after closing its worst month in almost a year as U.S. manufacturing expanded the most in six years and Exxon Mobil Corp beat earnings estimates.

While investors were bullish on Monday on global demand for raw materials, firms that rely on consumer spending were mixed amid a broad market recovery.

President Barack Obama on Monday projected the budget deficit would peak at a fresh record in 2010 before easing as he pushes for fiscal responsibility while battling double-digit unemployment.

Toyota Motor Corp started shipping parts on Monday to U.S. dealers who were prepared to stay open late to fix vehicles that are affected by the most damaging recall in the automaker's history.

U.S. stocks rose on Monday, following three weeks of losses, on stronger-than-expected U.S. manufacturing data and results from Exxon Mobil Corp that beat Wall Street estimates.

Chinese state media blasted the United States on Monday for a planned $6.4 billion arms package for Taiwan, while a U.S. official said Washington was committed to helping the island defend itself.

A small airplane carrying two people, one of them a reporter providing traffic reports for a Philadelphia and radio TV station, made an emergency landing on the New Jersey Turnpike, Monday morning.

The White House has dropped projected revenues from a cap-and-trade mechanism to fight climate change from its new budget, an administration official said, bowing to the possibility that the U.S. Congress may not pass it.

Consumer spending rose slightly less than expected in December as savings jumped to a six-month high, indicating that households remained too cautious to spend despite an improvement in incomes.

A measure of the manufacturing sector hit its highest level since 2004 last month, but consumer spending grew only slightly as households remained cautious on the economic recovery and any increase in jobs, data showed on Monday.

A study by British scientists found that around half of those deaths could be averted if people ate healthier food and quit smoking, and experts warned there was no room for complacency when it came to heart health risks.

Brazilian sugar and biofuel giant Cosan plans to merge its ethanol and fuel distribution units with Royal Dutch Shell in a deal worth up to $12 billion, extending a trend of growing foreign investment in the fast-growing industry.

Humana Inc reported higher quarterly profit on Monday, in line with Wall Street targets, as improved performance of its Medicare plans for the elderly offset weakness in its plans serving employers.

WikiLeaks, a whistleblower website that allows people to publish information anonymously, has suspended operations owing to financial problems.

(Corrects month in para 11 to December)Consumer spending rose slightly less than expected in December as savings jumped to a six-month high, indicating that households remained too cautious to spend despite an improvement in incomes.

British and U.S. researchers said they had grown a crystal that enabled them to see the structure of an enzyme called integrase, which is found in retroviruses like HIV and is a target for some of the newest HIV medicines.

Somalia's hardline al Shabaab insurgents have agreed to join forces with a smaller southern militia and both groups professed their loyalty to al Qaeda.

Haiti should be preparing for another major earthquake that could be triggered by the catastrophic one last month which killed up to 200,000 people and left the capital Port-au-Prince in ruins, experts say.

A female suicide bomber laden with explosives blew herself up on Monday among Shi'ite pilgrims on the outskirts of the Iraqi capital, killing at least 41 people, security officials said.

R&B diva Beyonce won six Grammys Sunday night during the 52nd Annual Grammy Award including Song Of The Year, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance, Best R&B Song, and Best Contemporary R&B Album.

Iran's top judge said Monday he would not succumb to political pressure from hardliners to carry out more executions against anti-government protesters, saying any such decision would be based on the law.

China has begun moving at the margins to withdraw excess cash from the financial system, as a spike in lending in the first few weeks of the year prompted concerns that credit growth was getting out of hand.

U.S. stocks rose on Monday, following three weeks of losses, as data showed the U.S. manufacturing sector continued to expand in January and after better-than-expected results from Exxon Mobil Corp .

Global stock markets shook off declines early in the Asian session as commodities firms lead the rally.

Construction spending fell more steeply than expected in December to its lowest level since 2003, dragged down by a sharp drop in private residential and state and local government construction, a government report showed on Monday,