IBT Staff Reporter

U.S. stocks jumped on Monday, driving the S&P 500 to an eight-month closing high, after CIT Group Inc was thrown a lifeline to avoid bankruptcy, and investors bet corporate America would log another strong set of earnings this week.

Microsoft's Macintosh Business Unit on Monday released a free Office 2008 update with service packed 2 featuring improved speed, stability and compatibility, equipped with SharePoint technology.

Halliburton Co., the second largest oil services firm in the world, reported its second quarter net profit fell $262 million. Nissan said it will invest near $700 million in two plants to make batteries for EVs. Tuvalu said it will power its economy hundred percent with renewable energy sources by 2020.

U.S. stocks rallied on Monday, pushing the S&P 500 to an eight-month closing high, after CIT Group Inc was thrown a lifeline to avoid bankruptcy, and investors bet corporate America would log another strong set of earnings this week.

CDC Games, a business unit of CDC Corp, said it expects second-quarter revenue to rise 50 percent sequentially, helped by a rebound in the operating metrics of one of its games.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York has guaranteed Morgan Stanley a global coordinator's role in any initial public offering (IPO) of American International Group units, documents made public on the New York Fed website show.

McAfee Inc. on Monday introduced its new Total Protection Service, the latest SaaS security software as part of its cloud approach strategy.

The EU Commission said on Monday it would continue discussions with Deutsche Lufthansa regarding the German airline's takeover of Austrian Airlines.

To commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 landing on the moon, Google is now opening the door to everyone who wants to visit the moon virtually with its new Google Moon available on Google Earth.

Microsoft Corp. is updating its Office 2008 for Mac by offering a service pack that promises increased stability and performance along with new capabilities for PowerPoint presentations and document collaboration.

China State Construction Engineering Corp (CSCEC) said on Monday it had fixed a price range for its Shanghai initial public offering (IPO), looking to raise as much as 50.16 billion yuan ($7.34 billion).

India's leading oil producer ONGC has hired Citigroup to advise it on a bid for Kosmos Energy's stake in an oil field in Ghana in a deal that could be worth between $3 billion and $5 billion, sources familiar with the deal said.

Las Vegas Sands Corp shares rose more than 15 percent on Monday on optimism an initial public offering of the casino company's Macau assets would take place in Hong Kong.

CIT Group Inc has clinched $3 billion of emergency financing from bondholders, keeping the struggling lender out of bankruptcy, a person close to the matter said.

Liaoning Xiyang Group, a privately-owned miner in China, will develop a one-billion-ton iron ore deposit in Russia, including an onsite steel mill, beginning in April 2010, the China Securities Journal reported late last week.

Several Wall Street analysts on Monday gave a mixed 2009 outlook for Citigroup Inc (C.N) and Bank of America Corp (BAC.N), after the U.S. banks on Friday reported a surge in second-quarter loan losses despite posting profits for the period.

As unemployment rises and economic forecasts sour, the White House has delayed until August the release of its mid-year budget review, which may include a record-shattering deficit projection.

For nearly a decade, the Eagles' Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975 has been the recording industry's ultimate evergreen release, certified by the RIAA as the all-time best-selling album in the United States. But thanks to continued robust demand for Michael Jackson's catalog since his June 25 death, Thriller appears on the verge of matching Their Greatest Hits, at least in the eyes of the industry trade group.

Socks rose on Monday after CIT Group Inc was thrown a financial lifeline to avoid bankruptcy and investors bet this week's corporate earnings will reinforce recovery optimism.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration（ NASA） will provide a unique audio time capsule on Monday in observance of the 40th anniversary of the first human landing on the moon.

Any deal to sell Porsche SE's (PSHG_p.DE) sportscar business to Volkswagen (VOWG.DE) could be scuppered by potential tax liabilities, a German newspaper reported on Monday, knocking shares in the two German companies.

Political and economic logic are set to collide in the byzantine decision-making over the future of German carmaker Opel, the main European arm of fallen U.S. auto giant General Motors.

A Magna-led (MGa.TO) consortium of bidders for Opel will make a new offer for the German carmaker on Monday that includes a demand for rights to its intellectual property, a Russian newspaper reported.

Car manufacturer Nissan said on Monday it will invest almost $700 million in two plants to make batteries for electric cars in Britain and Portugal after securing financial support from their governments.

General Motors (GM) said on Monday that it had received three binding takeover offers for Opel that it would consider together with the European countries that would be affected by the deal.

A U.S. judge delayed the trial of a former Credit Suisse Group AG employee on securities fraud charges to await the return on Monday of a co-defendant who fled to Spain.

Homebuilders are getting busier. Housing starts rose 4 percent to 582,000 annualized unit pace in June, the highest six months and over 100,000 higher from the pace just two months ago.

The Pacific island state of Tuvalu set a goal Sunday of a 100 percent shift to renewable energy by 2020, hoping to set an example to industrialized nations to cut greenhouse gases it blames for rising sea levels.

Don't forget to remind potential buyers of something that is obvious to real estate professionals: Now is the time to buy, but that opportunity may be slipping away.