Talks on Iran's nuclear program resumed today after a gap of more than a year, with Israel and the US threatening military strikes to prevent the Islamic Republic from developing atomic weapons.

Iran N-talks 'constructive' after 15-month breakdown

Business Standard

A Spanish minister called on the European Central Bank to do more to stem the sovereign debt crisis as the cost of insuring the country's bonds against default surged to a record.

Spanish minister asks ECB to buy bonds

The US Federal Communications Commission is seeking a $25,000 fine from Google Inc for not cooperating with an investigation of the company's collection of personal data from wireless networks.

FCC seeks $25,000 fine from Google in wireless data privacy case

A tall, muscular figure silhouetted against a palm-studded city block shoulders a rocket-propelled grenade launcher, aims and fires at a Syrian armored vehicle in the distance.

Why YouTube is an intelligence source

Sugar traders are bearish for a seventh consecutive week, the longest stretch since at least 2007, on prospects for the first supply glut in four years.

Sugar surplus prompts traders' bear streak

Toyota Motor Corp, which was overtaken by Volkswagen AG in sales last year, is striking back on the German automaker&rsquo;s home turf.

Toyota turns to BMW to power its European business 

European Union lawmakers are considering rules to protect bank depositors that may stymie two of the main funding sources for the region's lenders.

EU mulls bank rules that may choke funding 

Bank of America Corp, whose home- equity mortgage portfolio exceeds its stock market value, probably will say about $2 billion of junior loans are bad assets tomorrow, even as some borrowers are still paying on time.

BofA faces bad home-equity loans

Barclays Plc Chief Executive Officer Robert Diamond will forgo about 11 per cent of his compensation until the bank improves profitability in a bid to placate investors opposed to his pay package.

Barclays CEO to forgo 11% of pay to appease shareholders

Volkswagen AG&rsquo;s Audi will purchase Italian motorcycle maker Ducati Motor Holding SpA to add luxury two-wheelers ridden by celebrities such as Brad Pitt to the German automaker&rsquo;s portfolio.

Volkswagen's Audi buys Ducati

European banks could be forced to shed $3.8 trillion in assets through 2013 and curb lending if governments fall short of their pledges to stem the sovereign debt crisis or face a shock their firewall can&rsquo;t contain, the International Monetary Fund said.

European banks may have to shed up to $3.8 trillion: IMF

Citigroup Inc shareholders have rejected its executive pay plan, a first among the six largest US banks, amid criticism it lets Chief Executive Officer Vikram Pandit collect millions of dollars in rewards too easily.

Citigroup shareholders reject Pandit's $15-mn pay package

Infosys Ltd, which sits on the largest cash pile among India&rsquo;s computer-services providers, is prepared to spend $500 million on a single acquisition in a European market. Infosys may make another attempt to acquire a company of that size after it walked away from a plan to buy UK-based Axon Group Plc for &pound;407 million ($644 million) in 2008, Chandrashekar Kakal, the company&rsquo;s global head of business information technology (IT) services, said in a telephone interview.

Infosys may spend up to $500 mn on European deal

Oil fell a second day after the first international talks in 15 months on Iran&rsquo;s nuclear programme yielded an agreement to reconvene in May.

Oil declines for a second day after Iran nuclear talks

BlackRock Inc, the world&rsquo;s largest money manager, plans to start a bond-trading system that will allow investors to bypass investment banks.

BlackRock plans to start bond-trading system

Two years after President Barack Obama vowed to eliminate the danger of financial institutions becoming &ldquo;too big to fail,&rdquo; the nation&rsquo;s largest banks are bigger than they were before the credit crisis. Five banks &mdash; JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Bank of America, Citigroup, Wells Fargo and Goldman Sachs &mdash; held $8.5 trillion in assets at the end of 2011, equal to 56 per cent of the US economy, according to the Federal Reserve.

Banks grow despite Obama's bid to end too-big-to-fail  idea

India's steel demand is expected to grow 8 per cent this financial year, faster than last year, as demand rises for homes, offices and automobiles amid optimism interest rates will fall, a steel ministry official said. Demand is likely to expand from last year's growth of 5.5 per cent, G K Basak, executive secretary at the steel ministry's joint plant committee, said.

Steel demand to grow 8%

European officials travel to Washington this week seeking a bigger global war chest to combat the debt crisis as Spain&rsquo;s government battles to quell renewed market turmoil over its finances.

Euro area seeks bigger IMF war chest on Spanish concerns

As Hong Kong establishes itself as a hub for offshore trade and investment in China's currency, the city's family-owned banks can be acquired at some of the lowest valuations since the global financial crisis.

Hong Kong takeovers loom large with banks lending in yuan

China's decision to widen the yuan's trading band against the dollar for the first time since 2007 signals a drive toward a convertible currency that also saw overseas investors get bigger investment quotas this month.

China doubling yuan band signals drive for convertibility

Facebook Inc is acquiring the team of developers behind customer-loyalty  application Tagtile, adding to its expertise in mobile software.

Bloomberg