Olam International Ltd (OLAM.SI) will buy Archer Daniels Midland Co's (ADM.N) cocoa business for $1.3 billion, it said on Monday, catapulting the Singapore-based commodities merchant into the top tier of the niche bean processing industry.

Standard Chartered (STAN.L) has agreed to sell its Hong Kong-based consumer finance business to a consortium that includes Pepper Australia Pty Ltd and a Chinese group, in a deal estimated between $600 million to $700 million, two people with knowledge of the deal said.

Volvo Car Corp said it will start selling vehicles online as it rolls out new models to compete with German luxury rivals such as BMW (BMWG.DE).

Argentina has taken all the required steps so far to revamp its economic data but must still meet one more deadline as it seeks to bring the quality of its statistics in line with global standards, the International Monetary Fund's board said on Monday.

U.S. manufacturing output recorded its largest increase in nine months in November as production expanded across the board, pointing to underlying strength in the economy.

Kobe Bryant eclipsed Michael Jordan on the National Basketball Association's all-time scoring list on Sunday, surpassing the legendary scorer during the second quarter of the Los Angeles Lakers' game at the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The NFL Players Association filed a lawsuit against the National Football League on Monday challenging an arbitrator's decision to uphold the league's suspension of Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson.

World number one Rory McIlroy has urged golf's rule-makers to quicken the game up at grass-roots level in order to make it more attractive to youngsters.

The last place Edmonton Oilers have fired head coach Dallas Eakins in the midst of a four-game losing skid, the National Hockey League team said on Monday.

Sy Berger, a 50-year employee of the Topps Company and the man credited with creating the look of the modern baseball card, died of natural causes at the age of 91, the company said.

United States defender DaMarcus Beasley, capped 121 times and the only American to play in four World Cups, announced his retirement from the national team on Monday.

"Birdman," the dark existential comedy about the would-be comeback of a has-been actor, scored 13 Critics' Choice Movie Awards nominations on Monday, continuing its early run as a Hollywood awards season favorite.

Brian Williams, anchor of the "NBC Nightly News" for the past decade, has renewed his contract and will continue to lead the newscast and serve as managing editor, NBC said on Monday.

A regional U.S. federal appeals court ruled on Monday that pornographic movie actors in Los Angeles must wear condoms during sex scenes, upholding a lower court decision that was challenged by the adult film industry.

Early villains have emerged in the next James Bond film "SPECTRE": hackers who stole a version of the screenplay as part of a devastating cyberattack on Sony Pictures.

Early in the film "Still Alice," the Columbia University professor played by Julianne Moore is the picture of health taking a jog through campus, until she realizes she is completely lost.

A 22-year-old South African woman, Rolene Strauss, won the Miss World 2014 beauty pageant in London on Sunday, the organizers said in a statement.

"Exodus: Gods and Kings", an action-filled epic starring Christian Bale as Biblical leader Moses, marched to the top of U.S. and Canadian movie charts, collecting $24.5 million in ticket sales over the weekend.

Researchers into the provenance of a painting dubbed the "Early Mona Lisa" reported on Monday they had identified an English noble who probably bought it in Italy in the late 18th century and a country house where it was found in 1911.

Scenes from Jerusalem and 1920s Paris are among the rare works showcasing Lithuania's Jewish artists from the last century that are going on show as a collection abroad for the first time.

Amazon.com Inc added a new feature to its website on Tuesday that allows customers to bid for lower prices on more than 150,000 items, including fine art and rare coins, sold by third-party vendors.

An online buyer from New York overcame spirited bidding to grab a painting by modern Indian artist Tyeb Mehta for $2.8 million at a Christie's auction in Mumbai, highlighting global interest in the finest works of Indian art.

Israel is proud to call itself a "Start-up Nation", with more tech firms listed on Nasdaq than any other country outside the United States and China. But two elements are often missing from that success story: women and Arabs.

Chinese developer Dalian Wanda Commercial Properties Co Ltd will likely price its Hong Kong initial public offering in the upper half of expectations, IFR reported on Monday, citing a message from underwriters to investors.

Leaked emails reveal a cultural gulf between Japan's Sony Corp and Hollywood subsidiary Sony Pictures Entertainment, highlighting the challenge of CEO Kazuo Hirai to turn around the money-losing company under the slogan One Sony.

Some staff at Amazon warehouses in Germany started a new three-day strike on Monday to press their demands for better pay and conditions as the online retailer races to ensure Christmas orders are delivered on time.

China is unhappy with the U.S. spending bill passed by the House of Representatives last week, saying it contains discriminatory clauses that violate the rules of fair trade and "send the wrong signal".

Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton are amassing vast copper holdings in a push to capture a greater chunk of the $140 billion world market, apparently aiming to squeeze out high-cost producers just as they did in the global iron ore business.

Brent crude oil hit a fresh five-year low close to $60 a barrel on Monday after producer group OPEC restated its determination not to cut output despite a global fuel glut, but the North Sea benchmark later rallied to around $63.

Federal Reserve officials will decide this week whether to make a critical change to their policy statement that would widen the door for interest rate hikes next year and effectively bet the United States will continue to shine in a gloomy global economy.