Britain's top share index was up 0.3 percent early on Monday, as gains in commodity stocks outweighed slight weakness in defensives like pharmaceutical and tobacco stocks. By 0912 GMT, Britain's FTSE 100 was up 16.66 points at 5,061.21 having fallen 1.8 percent on Friday, notching up its largest weekly fall, at 3.8 percent, since March.

European shares hit a four-week low on Monday, extending the previous session's sharp declines on worries that the stock market had rallied ahead of economic recovery, with banks featuring among top losers. By 0812 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares fell 0.9 percent to 968.19 points — the lowest since early October.

What's in a name? A lot if you're seeking a legal career, with a U.S. study finding that women with male names are more successful lawyers and judges than those with more traditional, feminine names. The study, led by economist Bentley Coffey of Clemson University in South Carolina, looked at the relationship between a person's

A company behind plans to open the first hotel in space says it is on target to accept its first paying guests in 2012 despite critics questioning the investment and time frame for the multi-billion dollar project. The Barcelona-based architects of The Galactic Suite Space Resort say it will cost 3 million euro ($4.4 million)

More profit-taking in risky assets expected before year-end  Asian stocks slid on Monday, with Seoul hitting a two-month low after a sell-off in banking shares slammed Wall Street, a slide viewed as a sign that investors are losing faith in the economic recovery. Worries about the U.S. financial sector resurfaced after CIT Group Inc, the

White House economic adviser Lawrence Summers will lead a high-level meeting on Monday to discuss the state of the economy, job creation and ways to achieve sustainable growth. A White House announcement said the meeting would take place at 2 p.m. EST (1700 GMT) and would include Cabinet officials from Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to

Germany's economy has not yet overcome the global downturn but the outlook is improving, Economy Minister Rainer Bruederle said in a newspaper interview published on Monday. Europe's largest economy emerged from its deepest postwar recession in the second quarter and policymakers have said growth likely accelerated in the third quarter. "We are still in the