AUTOMOTIVE

Parts strike hits 2 more GM plants

Detroit —- General Motors Corp. says the eight-week strike at American Axle and Manufacturing Holdings Inc. has forced it to cut production at two more factories. The strike has affected production at 30 GM factories.

ECONOMY

Bank of England offers lifeline

London —- The Bank of England unveiled a rescue package worth at least $100 billion for Britain's financial system on Monday, making one of the biggest moves by a central bank worldwide to shore up confidence amid the global credit crisis. The British central bank hopes its biggest-ever funding injection, to be made via a swap of assets, will increase liquidity by encouraging interbank lending —- and, in turn, ease restrictions in the mortgage market that have made home loans more expensive.

FINANCIAL

Halliburton's profit rises nearly 6%

Houston —- Increasing its global presence is paying off for oilfield services provider Halliburton Co., whose first-quarter profit rose nearly 6 percent on growing business in the Middle East, Asia and Latin America. Halliburton said Monday that it earned $584 million, or 64 cents per share, in the three months ended March 31, compared with a year-earlier profit of $552 million, or 54 cents per share. Revenue rose to $4.03 billion from $3.42 billion a year earlier.

Earnings, sales increase at Merck

Trenton, N.J. —- Merck & Co. reported Monday that it nearly doubled its first-quarter profit, with the drug maker citing a $1.4 billion payment from a partner drug company and sales up slightly from last year. The maker of allergy and asthma pill Singulair and cervical cancer vaccine Gardasil posted net income of $3.3 billion, or $1.52 per share, for the January-March period, up from $1.7 billion, or 78 cents a share, a year ago.

Slumping ad sales pound Gannett

McLean, Va. —- The nation's largest newspaper publisher, Gannett Co., said Monday that its earnings fell 9 percent in the first three months of the year as the weak economy contributed to a drop in advertising. The publisher of USA Today and 84 other daily newspapers in the U.S. reported a profit of $191.8 million, or 84 cents a share, compared with $210.6 million, or 90 cents a share, in the year-ago period.

Costs, legal fees drive Mattel to loss

Mattel Inc., the world's largest toy maker, said Monday that higher product costs and legal fees led to a first-quarter loss despite the benefit that a weak U.S. dollar had on overseas sales. The El Segundo, Calif.-based maker of Barbie dolls, Fisher-Price toys and Matchbox cars reported a loss of $46.6 million, or 13 cents per share, compared with last year's quarterly profit of $12 million, or 3 cents per share.

Hasbro earnings beat expectations

Providence, R.I. —- Toy maker Hasbro Inc. said Monday that its earnings rose 14 percent in the first quarter on growth in brands such as Transformers and Littlest Pet Shop. The results beat expectations. The company said it earned $37.5 million, or 25 cents per share, for the three months ended March 30, up from $32.9 million, or 19 cents per share, during the same quarter a year ago.

Lilly's profit surges, but misses target

Indianapolis —- Drug maker Eli Lilly and Co. said strong sales for Cymbalta and Cialis helped double its first-quarter profit, but results missed Wall Street expectations. The company said earnings jumped to $1.06 billion, or 97 cents per share, from year-ago profit of $508.7 million, or 47 cents per share, which included a hefty charge related to an acquisition.

Interest rates rise in Treasury auction

Washington —- Interest rates on short-term Treasury bills rose in Monday's auction, with six-month bills rising to the highest levels since early March. The Treasury Department auctioned $20 billion in three-month bills at a discount rate of 1.320 percent, up from 1.060 percent last week. Another $20 billion in six-month bills was auctioned at a discount rate of 1.680 percent, up from 1.380 percent last week. Separately, the Federal Reserve said Monday that the average yield for one-year Treasury bills, a popular index for making changes in adjustable-rate mortgages, rose to 1.67 percent last week from 1.63 percent.

Texas Instruments earnings rise 28%

Dallas —- Texas Instruments says its first-quarter profit rose 28 percent as strong demand for analog chips used in electronic equipment offset lower sales of cellphone chips. The company on Monday reported net income of $662 million, or 49 cents per share, including a tax gain of 6 cents per share. A year ago, the company posted a profit of $516 million, or 35 cents per share.

LEGAL

ExxonMobil loses at Supreme Court

Washington —- Exxon-Mobil Corp. suffered a defeat at the Supreme Court on Monday, as the justices refused to consider an appeal by the oil giant of a $112 million damage award in an environmental lawsuit in Louisiana. The court's decision Monday, rendered without comment, effectively ends the litigation.

Georgia munitions company indicted

Macon —- Federal authorities announced on Monday that a Byron-based munitions manufacturer is accused of selling faulty grenades to the FBI. David J. Karlson, chief executive of Pyrotechnic Specialties Inc., three employees and the company are named in the federal indictment. They are charged with conspiracy, money laundering and conspiracy to defraud the government.

TECHNOLOGY

Google rated No. 1 brand in world

Google Inc. has the most powerful brand in the world, letting it capitalize on its name to sell advertising globally, according to a study by a consulting firm. Google, owner of the world's most popular search engine, topped the list from Millward Brown, which surveyed more than 1 million consumers about 50,000 brands, the New York-based consulting company said Monday in a statement. Technology companies, including Google, Microsoft and Apple, accounted for 28 of the top 100 brands in Millward Brown's third annual survey. They represented a combined brand value of $187.5 billion. Google also ranked first in 2007. In this year's list, General Electric Co. was second, followed by Microsoft, Coca-Cola and China Mobile.

TRANSPORTATION

Air France-KLM ends Alitalia offer

Paris —- Air France-KLM says its offer to buy struggling Italian airline Alitalia is "no longer valid." Air France-KLM's offer, announced March 14, values Alitalia at 139 million euros ($220 million).