Reuters - Martin Feldstein, President of the National Bureau of Economic Research, said in a newspaper interview published on Monday he had seen a clear reversal in U.S. monthly economic indicators since December or January.

Reuters - Oil rose on Monday, extending last week's climb that saw prices jump to a record high near $128 a barrel, as concerns over tight fuel supplies overshadowed gains in the U.S. dollar.

Who Will Fight
for Shareholders' Rights in Japan?

Japan is no longer open for business to foreigners. That was the message the government sent last week when it blocked our fund, the Children's Investment Fund, from increasing our stake in Electric Power Development Co. to 20% from 9.9%. The reasoning behind that decision raises worrying questions about the future development and efficiency of Japan's capital markets.

Tokyo has the right to block foreign purchases of companies in certain industries. J-Power, as the utility is popularly known, is an electricity wholesaler and is planning to build a nuclear power plant. The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry claim our fund's purchase would endanger "public order" and "national security," but they didn't specify how.

DETROIT -- Several General Motors Corp. plants are set to ramp up production this week after key supplier American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc. and the United Auto Workers reached a tentative agreement ending an 11-week strike.

The strike had all but crippled GM's ability to produce large pickup trucks and sport-utility vehicles, which generate hefty margins for the auto maker, and slammed its North American profit in the first quarter.

Reuters - Microsoft Corp said on Sunday it proposed an alternative deal to Yahoo Inc rather than a full acquisition, but the move was unlikely to win favor with financier Carl Icahn, a person familiar with his thinking said.

Reuters - U.S. officials investigating alleged bribes in a Saudi arms deal subpoenaed the chief executive of BAE Systems , Britain's biggest military contractor, on his arrival in the United States last week, BAE officials said on Sunday.

Reuters - Stock markets are up sharply since March. The recent batch of economic data has not looked as dire as feared. The U.S. Federal Reserve is finding fewer takers for its loan auctions. A fine-art sale drew a record $86 million price for a Francis Bacon painting.

Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters)- For David Simon, chief executive of Simon Property Group , the largest U.S. owner of malls and shopping centers, retail property may be less about dress this year and more about distress.

Reuters - American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc would cut hourly pay for unionized factory workers to $10 to $26 and offer payments of up to $105,000 for those who stay on at the lower wages, according to a summary of the proposed contract by the United Auto Workers.

Sunday, May 18, 2008; F08

U.S. stocks rose last week, sending the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index to the highest level since January, on speculation that global economic growth will drive demand for personal computers and fuel.

Intel led semiconductor companies in the S&P 500 after a Friedman, Billings, Ramsey report said that orders are improving. Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Occidental Petroleum and Halliburton hit all-time highs as crude oil surpassed $127 a barrel for the first time.