AP - When the government offered an emergency loan to insurer American International Group in September, eyebrows shot up at the $85 billion price tag. Now it looks like pocket change. The size of the AIG lifeline swelled to more than $150 billion on Monday, a record for a private company. But the head of the broader financial rescue package was cool to other companies reaching for a piece of the bailout pie.

AFP - US president-elect Barack Obama, on his way to his historic January 20 swearing-in, held his first face-to-face talks with President George W. Bush on Monday and got his first look at the Oval Office.

AP - A luxurious gold, pearl and emerald earring provides a new visual clue about the life of the elite in Jerusalem some 2,000 years ago. And its discovery was a true eureka moment for excavators.

AP - Star outfielder Matt Holliday appears headed to the Oakland Athletics in a surprising move for a franchise known more for shedding stars than adding them. Two people familiar with the proposed deal said Monday the A's and the Colorado Rockies have reached a tentative agreement. Both people spoke on condition of anonymity because the trade had not been finalized and details were still in the works.

Reuters - New York Gov. David Paterson's plan to wring $2 billion of cuts out of the Legislature could be derailed by several obstacles and may even have to be put off until new senators are sworn in next year, according to state officials.

Reuters - Circuit City Stores Inc, the No. 2 U.S. consumer electronics retailer, filed for bankruptcy on Monday just weeks before the start of the holiday shopping season, becoming the largest retailer to file for Chapter 11 since Kmart in 2002.

Reuters - The United States pledged more support for struggling insurer AIG on Monday as international action to halt the financial crisis failed to dent investor sentiment that the economy was in for a long and deep recession.

Reuters - Iraq's cabinet has drawn its conclusions on a final U.S. draft of a security pact that would require American troops to leave by the end of 2011, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's media adviser said on Monday.

Reuters - Deutsche Post AG will slash 9,500 jobs and halt U.S. domestic services at its DHL Express unit after failing for five years to gain share in a market dominated by United Parcel Service Inc and FedEx Corp.

Reuters - The government restructured its bailout of American International Group Inc, raising the package to a record $150 billion with easier terms, after a smaller rescue plan failed to stabilize the ailing insurance giant.

AFP - At least 28 people were killed, including women and schoolgirls, and dozens wounded in a triple bombing in a Baghdad market on Monday, the deadliest attack to rock the Iraqi capital in months, security officials said.

Reuters - There were fresh calls on Sunday for the Bush administration to help stalled U.S. automakers, but Democratic and Republican officials said taxpayers cannot repeatedly support business rescues.

AP - Wall Street heads into another turbulent week with investors set to pore over a government report on retail sales and earnings from Wal-Mart Stores Inc. to get a better reading on the consumer.

AP - President-elect Obama plans to use his executive powers to make an immediate impact when he takes office, perhaps reversing Bush administration policies on stem cell research and domestic drilling for oil and natural gas.

Reuters - China launched a huge stimulus plan on Sunday worth nearly $600 billion, kicking off what could be a round of big spending or interest rate cuts by leading economies to stave off a recession in many countries.

AFP - Barack Obama is looking to reverse executive orders on oil drilling and stem cell research implemented by President George W. Bush, the president-elect's transition team said Sunday.

Reuters - Rescuers at a collapsed school in Haiti are ending the hunt for survivors and will soon demolish the remains of the building, where at least 87 people were killed.

AP - The fire safety system on a brand-new Russian nuclear submarine accidentally turned on as the sub was being tested in the Sea of Japan, spewing a gas that suffocated 20 people and sent 21 others to the hospital, officials said Sunday.

AFP - Twenty people died of gas poisoning and another 22 were injured in an accident on a Russian nuclear submarine in the Sea of Japan that revived memories of the Kursk submarine disaster in 2000.

Reuters - Paloma lost its punch as it stalled over Cuba on Sunday and was downgraded to a tropical depression after coming ashore as a powerful hurricane that battered the island still recovering from two earlier storms.

AP - Bombs killed at least eight people Sunday across Iraq and wounded dozens of others, officials said. Syria's president blamed the U.S. military presence for Iraq's instability and called on U.S. troops to leave.

AP - Patriots rookie runner BenJarvus Green-Ellis had his best game as a pro, Matt Cassel had a solid one and the free-falling Bills had another bad one.

AP - Families herded into movie theaters for another trek with stranded zoo animals as the animated sequel "Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa" led the weekend with a $63.5 million debut, according to studio estimates Sunday.

AP - She's been compared to Jacqueline Kennedy, is every bit as high-powered as Hillary Rodham Clinton was and has praised Laura Bush's calm and rational approach to issues.

AP - Penn State slipped to the back of the one-loss pack Sunday in The Associated Press college football poll, while No. 1 Alabama and No. 2 Texas Tech strengthened their hold on the top spots.

Reuters - The economic crisis will not stop President-elect Barack Obama from expanding health care, overhauling education and energy policy, and passing a middle-class tax cut soon after he takes office in January, senior aides said on Sunday.

AP - People in this small, tight-knit community are reeling from the killing of a well-liked man police say was shot by his own 8-year-old son, and they will likely turn out in droves for his funeral.

AP - A city of brittle stars off the coast of New Zealand, an Antarctic expressway where octopuses ride along in a flow of extra salty water and a carpet of tiny crustaceans on the Gulf of Mexico sea floor are among the wonders discovered by researchers compiling a massive census of marine life.

Reuters - Three Indonesian militants executed on Sunday for the 2002 Bali bombings were buried by their families at ceremonies attended by thousands of supporters shouting "Allahu akbar" (God is greatest).

AP - Penn State is perfect no more, its hopes for giving coach Joe Paterno another national title given a sharp and surprising kick by Iowa.

AP - The National Hurricane Center in Miami says Hurricane Paloma has made landfall in southern Cuba as a Category 4 storm. Senior Hurricane Specialist Stacy Stewart told The Associated Press that the storm reached southern Cuba near Santa Cruz del Sur at about 6 p.m. EST. He says the storm will now spend several hours crossing Cuba on a northeasterly trek before heading into open Atlantic waters on Sunday.