IBT Staff Reporter

Financial markets were upbeat on the first trading day of 2010 on Monday, with Asian stocks hitting a 17-month high and the U.S. dollar up against major currencies on hopes U.S. job figures this week will reflect a sustained economic recovery.

The dollar edged down from a four-month high against the yen but held firm against other majors on Monday, the first trading day of 2010, as investors focus on U.S. data this week that could add to optimism about the economy. Investors are set to take cues from the U.S. December employment report on Friday as well as figures from the manufacturing and service sectors.

The Tokyo Stock Exchange launched an accelerated trading system on Monday to better compete with major global rivals in the growing field of high-speed trading.

Shares of Japan Airlines Corp jumped 36 percent to bounce back from a plunge last week after the government sought to boost the amount of funds available to the struggling carrier.

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, the world's biggest TV brand by revenue, said on Monday it sold 2.6 million TVs using light emitting diode backlight units in 2009, outperforming its earlier target.

EUR/USD opened lower trading in a limited range during the shortened holiday week. The pair made a weekly high on Tuesday trading up to 1.4457 after release of U.S. housing data from S&P/Case-Shiller showed a 0.4% rise to a seasonally-adjusted 145.36 in October. The index was off 7.3% versus October of last year, slightly worse that the market's -7% Y/Y consensus. Also on Tuesday, European Central Bank Governing Council member and Luxembourg Central Bank head Yves Mersch wrote in a New Year's me...

Human resources consulting company Watson Wyatt Worldwide Inc completed its merger with rival Towers Perrin Forster & Crosby to form a combined company called Towers Watson & Co that will make its U.S. trading debut on Monday.

The Australian Dollar opens slightly higher on Monday at 0.8980. Traders squaring up for the New Year kept the Aussie in a tight range last Thursday against its U.S. counterpart.

Former Citigroup Chief Executive Sanford Weill blamed the bank's problems on personnel decisions and faulted his successor, Chuck Prince, for letting its balance sheet balloon and taking on large risks, according to the New York Times, citing a series of recent interviews.

Lenovo Group Ltd is unveiling a new look for its classic ThinkPad line, and is including Advanced Micro Devices Inc microprocessors in the laptops for the first time.

For the first time in two years, the U.S. economy may have seen a month in which more jobs were created than destroyed.

National Bank of Egypt and Banque Misr, the country's first and second biggest banks by assets, said they had agreed to accept real estate in exchange for hundreds of millions of dollars in public sector debt.

Somali government troops are ready to launch a major offensive against insurgents and expect to drive them out of the capital by the end of this month, the country's prime minister told Reuters on Sunday.

The Galeras volcano in southern Colombia erupted on Saturday, shooting rock and ash and prompting authorities to order the evacuation of about 8,000 people.

A bomb attack in northwest Pakistan killed a former minister on Sunday, officials said, keeping up pressure on a government struggling to contain a raging Taliban insurgency and stabilise the country.

Heavy snow hit Beijing on Sunday, stranding thousands of passengers at the main airport and casting an unusual quiet over normally busy streets as people stayed out of the freezing weather.

Iraq will help victims of a 2007 shooting file a U.S. lawsuit against employees of security firm Blackwater who were accused of opening fire on civilians, the government said on Sunday.

The United States has indications al Qaeda is planning an attack against a target in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa, a senior aide to President Barack Obama said on Sunday.

The United States and Britain closed their embassies in Yemen on Sunday over security concerns about possible militant attacks after the failed bombing of a U.S.-bound plane on Christmas Day.

U.S. stocks closed out 2009 with the best performance in six years, but monthly employment figures in the first week of the new year will keep investors focused on what is likely to be 2010's reality -- the economy's struggle to recover.

The U.S. economy and job market will rebound only gradually because of ongoing constraints on lending, Federal Reserve Board Vice Chairman Donald Kohn said on Sunday.

Move over Italian dinnerware and Chinese accent armchairs. Target Corp is making room in its stores for bulk-size packages of toilet paper to lure post-holiday shoppers.

Kraft Foods is preparing to sweeten its hostile 10 billion pound ($15.9 billion) takeover bid for British confectionery maker Cadbury , reported the Sunday Times.

Top U.S. retailers will give investors the most detailed picture yet of holiday sales this week, with most expected to show better sales after an abysmal 2008 performance.

The president of Japan Airlines Corp said he is against a bankruptcy proceeding under a state restructuring plan and has no plans to completely withdraw the carrier from overseas flights, the Asahi Shimbun reported.

Nearly a quarter of Icelandic voters have signed a petition asking their president to veto a bill on repaying $5 billion lost by British and Dutch savers when the island's banks collapsed, organizers said on Saturday.

Saudi Arabia said on Saturday said Israel was the world's spoilt child and got away with what Riyadh said were violations of international law and war crimes without punishment.

Shinsei Bank and Aozora Bank may have their planned merger delayed, due to difficulty integrating systems and depending on the outcome of an inspection by Japan's financial regulator, the Nikkei newspaper said.

Italy aims to install full-body scanners at the main airports of Rome and Milan for flights considered at high risk of terrorist attacks, Interior Minister Roberto Maroni said in an interview published on Saturday.