IBT Staff Reporter

Oil jumped more than 2 percent Monday, touching a near seven-month high as improving global factory activity bolstered expectations of an economic recovery.

Strong warnings by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration about suicide risks linked to antidepressant use in children and young adults have had a

Stocks rose sharply on Monday as strong economic data bolstered optimism the worst of the global recession was past, even as General Motors filed for bankruptcy and was removed from the Dow industrial index.

Even though U.S. pump prices are nearly half the $4 per gallon ($1.06 per liter) levels of a year ago, the legions of American fans of gas-guzzling SUVs and trucks don't have much to celebrate.

General Motors Corp will be replaced by Cisco Systems Inc in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Citigroup Inc will be replaced by Travelers Companies Inc , Dow Jones Indexes said on Monday.

The number of middle-aged and older Americans who eat right, exercise and keep their weight down has declined substantially in the past two decades, a new study finds.

General Motors Corp., which filed for for court protection under U.S. bankruptcy laws today, said it expects to spend up to three months in bankruptcy before re-emerging as a smaller, leaner company.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Monday reassured the Chinese government that its huge holdings of dollar assets are safe and reaffirmed his faith in a strong U.S. currency.

U.S. Treasury secretary, Timothy Geithner, has been questioned by the Center for Democracy in the Americas (CDA) asking the Department to launch inquiry into actions by Microsoft, and possibly other Instant Messaging (IM) providers after access to IM was cut off to Cubans and other persons living in countries under U.S. sanctions.

Global semiconductor sales rose 6.4 percent in April to $15.6 billion from March, helped by moderate improvements in a number of end-demand drivers and inventory replenishment.

U.S. stocks were poised for a sharply higher open on Monday as stronger economic data from China fueled optimism that the worst of the global recession was past, even as General Motors filed for bankruptcy.

The U.S. manufacturing sector contracted at a slower rate in May, while consumer spending fell modestly in April, according to reports on Monday that were further evidence the deep recession was easing.

Battery maker Boston Power is working to build a facility in Auburn, Massachusetts to build lithium-ion batteries for Plug-in Hybrid and electric battery vehicles, Notebook PCs and national security applications, the company said Monday.

Freddie Mac this week is offering to buy back from investors up to $30 billion principal amount of its debt to reduce its effective short-term debt, the second-largest U.S. home funding provider said on Monday.

Private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co KKR.UL posted a substantial loss in 2008 as the global economic downturn took its toll on the firm's investments.

Taiwanese display maker Prime View International will buy E Ink, a company whose pioneering electronic paper is used to make digital book readers from Amazon.com and Sony.

General Motors Corp has tens of billions of dollars in government backing, a grudging labor peace and the support of its big bondholders as it gets ready for what is intended to be a swift dash through one of the biggest bankruptcy cases in U.S. history.

Chinese chemicals maker Lumena Resources Corp began marketing a Hong Kong IPO on Monday to raise up to $190 million, according to sources familiar with the matter, testing investor sentiment for new listings in the city.

U.S. construction spending unexpectedly posted its biggest increase in eight months in April, advancing for a second straight month as the private sector put money into both residential and nonresidential projects, according to a government report on Monday.

The Federal Reserve is studying significant moves in the U.S. government bond market last week that could have big implications for the central bank's strategy to combat the country's recession.

French bank BNP Paribas raised its average U.S. crude oil price forecast for 2010 on Monday to $75 a barrel from $63.

Oil rose more than 2 percent to a seven-month high on Monday, extending its biggest monthly gain in a decade due to rallying stock markets and sustained expectations for a global economic recovery.

U.S. stock index futures rose more than 1 percent on Monday as stronger Chinese economic data lifted investor optimism that the worst of the global recession was past.

U.S. stock index futures rose more than 1 percent on Monday as stronger Chinese economic data lifted investor optimism that the worst of the global recession was past.

Goldman Sachs was on Monday selling up to about $1.9 billion worth of shares in Industrial and Commercial Bank of China at a discount of 4 percent to 6 percent to the Chinese lender's Monday closing price, according to a term sheet.

Red Back Mining Inc said on Monday it has agreed to buy Moto Goldmines Ltd for shares valued at C$513 million ($471 million) to take control of a African mining project.

Prudential Financial Inc, the No. 2 U.S. life insurer, said it plans to sell $1.25 billion of common stock after turning down U.S. aid.

Twenty years after her teenage son was shot by troops near Tiananmen Square in Beijing, Zhang Xianling is still trying to work out how many others died with him.

Israeli settlers are waging court battles to evict dozens of Palestinians from homes in an East Jerusalem neighborhood, a move threatening to widen Israel's rift with U.S. President Barack Obama over settlements.