AP - A team of U.S. geologists and Pentagon officials has discovered vast mineral wealth in Afghanistan, conceivably enough to turn the scarred and impoverished country into one of the world's most lucrative mining centers, The New York Times reports.

AP - A delegation from the International Monetary Fund and the European Union is in Athens for an interim review of the country's efforts to pull itself out of a major debt crisis that pushed it to the brink of default.

AP - Most workers striking to demand higher wages returned to their jobs at a Honda plant in southern China after walking off the production line last week, Honda officials said Monday.

 AP - Companies that offer employee health insurance expect another steep jump in medical costs next year, and more will ask workers to share a bigger chunk of the expense, according to a new PricewaterhouseCoopers report.

 AP - President Barack Obama is again urging Congress to send him a package of tax breaks and other incentives to help small businesses grow and create jobs.

AP - Asian stocks rose for a third straight session Monday as improved U.S. consumer confidence, a weaker Japanese yen and easing worries over Europe's debt crisis buoyed investor sentiment.

AFP - Dell shares were trading slightly higher on Friday, a day after the US computer giant said it was setting aside 100 million dollars in connection with a fraud probe.

 Reuters - The global financial crisis appears to be in its final stages, although some countries are still experiencing a recession, Bank of Israel Stanley Fischer said at an International Monetary Fund-World Bank meeting on Sunday.

 AP - Major companies tentatively scheduled to report quarterly earnings next week: