TOKYO (Reuters) - China and Japan, the biggest buyers of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae bonds, praised Washington for its rescue of the ailing mortgage giants, but investors harbored no illusions the bailout would end the global credit market misery.
(Reuters) - Cigarette maker Altria Group Inc has agreed to buy Skoal and Copenhagen smokeless tobacco maker UST Inc for about $10.3 billion in cash, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.
EVERETT, Washington/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Boeing Co's 27,000 machinists prepared for a third day of strike action, halting production at the plane maker's Seattle-area plants in protest at Boeing's contract offer and what they see as plans to shift more jobs to non-union and foreign companies.
PERTH (Reuters) - Origin Energy Ltd , fending off an $11 billion hostile bid from Britain's BG Group Plc , has partnered U.S. major ConocoPhillips to help develop its coal seam gas through a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project.
ROME (Reuters) - Russia aims to corner energy markets, a senior U.S. official said on Monday as Vice-President Dick Cheney arrived in Italy during a tour that has taken in eastern European states which are important transit routes.
Business 
