IBT Staff Reporter

The dire economy appears to have made Americans less materialistic, with a poll showing most people would choose items from discount retailer Wal-Mart over luxury jeweller Tiffany's trademark blue boxes.

Asia's initial public offering market is booming as economies inch out of recession and equity markets improve, setting the scene for the region to emerge as the world's top spot for firms rushing to raise money.

Today America is celebrating Labor Day, here are some quotes shared by the famous in the past.

Every Thursday night, Lonnie Bishop and Lisa Case have a dinner date. For $5 each, the couple dines on fancy hot dogs served from a food truck parked outside their favorite wine shop in Los Angeles.

Shares in Uttam Galva Steels opened at a life high of 125.05 rupees on the BSE after the world's top steel maker ArcelorMittal said on Monday its unit had made an offer for a 29.39 percent stake.

Chinese machinery maker Tengzhong is still working to close a deal with General Motors Co to buy the U.S. automaker's Hummer brand after a regulatory setback, Chinese media reported on Monday.

Kraft Foods said it was determined to pursue Britain's Cadbury, which soared in value after it snubbed a $16.7 billion bid from the U.S. group, reinforcing hopes of a broader-based pick-up in merger activity.

Deutsche Telekom's subsidiary T-Mobile UK and France Telecom's Orange are set to announce they are in exclusive talks to form a joint venture, sources familiar with the situation said.

Banks in the United States need higher capital than they currently have, Alan Greenspan, former chairman of the Federal Reserve told a Mumbai conference via satellite on Monday.

Oil prices pushed toward $69 a barrel in thin trade on Monday, with sentiment buoyed by Asian and European equities and by a decision by the G20 to keep economic stimulus measures in place.

How much health benefit you get from physical exercise might depend on your gender, and your race, new research suggests.

Matt Damon stars as a whistleblower at a big U.S. agri-business company in

Punk rock singer John Lydon, formerly known as Johnny Rotten of the Sex Pistols, is re-forming his band Public Image Ltd -- or PiL -- after a 17 year hiatus with a five-date tour in December, according to media reports.

African leaders will step up calls on Monday for an end to Western sanctions against Zimbabwe and urge South Africa to plead Harare's cause within the Group of 20 rich and developing nations, officials said.

Investors jumped back into equities on Monday, sending world stocks close to their highest level for the year, while the dollar weakened against a basket of currencies as demand for risky assets rose across the board.

Tila Tequila, the MTV dating show star, went to hospital on Sunday after her boyfriend, San Diego Chargers linebacker Shawne Merriman, allegedly

A suicide bomber drove a car packed with explosives into a police checkpoint just outside Iraq's western city of Ramadi on Monday, killing nine people and wounding at least 13, police said.

Five Pakistani soldiers were killed in a land mine blast in the Taliban bastion of South Waziristan on Monday a day after forces killed 33 militants as part of a week-old campaign in the Khyber Pass, officials said.

Top executives from some of the world's leading banks will gather for a conference in Frankfurt this week as lenders seek to rebuild trust in the global financial system almost a year after Lehman Brothers collapsed.

Israel approved on Monday the building of 455 settler homes in the occupied West Bank, a move opposed by its U.S. ally and Palestinians but which could pave the way for a construction moratorium sought by Washington.

Japan's next prime minister, Yukio Hatoyama, said on Monday he would not formally announce his choices for key cabinet posts until talks on a proposed coalition with two parties were completed.

The government in China's far western city of Urumqi ordered shops to close on Monday, sending new rumors through the city despite calls for calm after reported syringe attacks that inflamed ethnic tension.

Iran's president snubbed on Monday U.S. President Barack Obama's end-September deadline to talk to world powers on its disputed nuclear program, saying in his opinion discussion on the issue is finished.

Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai has accused the United States of denouncing his friends and family in an effort to undermine his own position and make him more malleable.

Abu Dhabi's state-owned ATIC offered to buy Chartered Semiconductor for $1.8 billion, while major shareholders in Hynix began the sale of a $2.8 billion stake, kickstarting consolidation in a chip sector emerging from its worst ever downturn.

Robots that can make their own decisions have so far been confined to science fiction movies, but a child-sized figure with big eyes and a white face is trying hard to turn fiction into reality.

Oil prices pushed toward $69 a barrel in thin trade on Monday, with sentiment buoyed by Asian and European equities and by a decision by the G20 to keep economic stimulus measures in place.

Gold held broadly steady on Monday just shy of $995 per ounce, consolidating stellar gains last week that took it tantalizingly close to the $1,000 psychological level, with buyers encouraged by dollar weakness.

Chinatrust Financial said on Monday it was planning to raise more cash on top of a $1.34 billion private placement announced on Friday, but declined to comment on reports it had outbid rivals for AIG's Taiwan unit.