By Lauren Tara LaCapra and Emily Flitter Mon Dec 3, 2012 6:07pm EST (Reuters) - Morgan Stanley hired former Goldman Sachs trader Edward Glenn Hadden to run its Treasury bond desk last year, even though his former employer had placed the trader on paid leave for about a year following an internal inquiry, said three people familiar with the situation. The ...

By Kevin Murphy KANSAS CITY, Missouri | Mon Dec 3, 2012 6:04pm EST KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Reuters) - Kansas City Chiefs head coach Romeo Crennel said on Monday he tried to talk linebacker Jovan Belcher out of shooting himself outside the team's practice facility before the player committed suicide on Saturday. Belcher shot himself in the head in ...

By Aruna Viswanatha and Dena Aubin WASHINGTON/NEW YORK | Mon Dec 3, 2012 6:01pm EST WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Regulators on Monday charged the Chinese arms of five top accounting firms with securities violations over their refusal to produce certain audit papers for U.S.-listed Chinese companies. The Securities and Exchange Commission began...

MEXICO CITY | Mon Dec 3, 2012 5:54pm EST MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - U.S. anti-virus software guru John McAfee said on Monday he has left the tropical paradise of Belize, where police want to question him in connection with his neighbor's murder. McAfee has been in hiding since police said they wanted to question him as "a person of interest" about the murde...

By Ben Klayman and Bernie Woodall Mon Dec 3, 2012 5:38pm EST (Reuters) - Auto sales in November raced to a five-year high for that month on a rebound from storm-ravaged October and the need to replace aging vehicles, leaving industry executives optimistic about 2013. Sales in November rose 15 percent to 1.14 million vehicles, the highest level for that mo...

LONDON | Mon Dec 3, 2012 5:28pm EST LONDON (Reuters) - Scientists have unpicked the brain processes involved in teenage alcohol abuse and say their findings help explain why some young people have more of a tendency to binge drink. A study published in the Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) journal found that a gene known as RASGRF-2 play...

By Alexei Oreskovic SAN FRANCISCO | Mon Dec 3, 2012 5:15pm EST SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Facebook Inc opened the polls on Monday for its roughly 1 billion users to vote on a variety of changes to the social network's policies, including a proposal to scrap the user voting system that Facebook introduced in 2009. Facebook also said it had "clarifi...

WASHINGTON | Mon Dec 3, 2012 5:06pm EST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Supreme Court is allowing General Motors Co (GM.N) employees whose pension plans lost money to pursue their case against a State Street Corp (STT.N) unit over its management of their retirement savings plans before the automaker went bankrupt. Without comment, the court refused on Monday ...

By Genevra Pittman NEW YORK | Mon Dec 3, 2012 5:00pm EST NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A group of U.S. internal medicine doctors today recommended limiting esophageal cancer screening to people with chronic heartburn who have additional, more severe symptoms. Known as upper endoscopy, the screening procedure is often used to diagnose and manage gas...

Mon Dec 3, 2012 4:59pm EST (Reuters) - Quarterback Michael Vick has lost his starting role for the Philadelphia Eagles, the struggling National Football League team said on Monday. Vick is currently out injured but head coach Andy Reid said he would serve as the backup if and when he returns from a concussion this season.The Eagles (3-9) have lost their last eigh...

By Jonathan Spicer and Alister Bull NEW YORK/LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas | Mon Dec 3, 2012 4:48pm EST NEW YORK/LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas (Reuters) - Central bankers appear satisfied with the impact of their latest monetary stimulus, though there is some disagreement over how forcefully to continue purchasing bonds, remarks by two top policymakers on Monday...

Mon Dec 3, 2012 4:43pm EST (Reuters) - The Food and Drug Administration said it has formed a partnership with the medical device industry aimed at speeding the development and review of new device products. The nonprofit organization, called the Medical Device Innovation Consortium, will collaborate with patient support groups, academia, foundations and the Cente...

By Marja Novak and Srdjan Zivulovic LJUBLJANA/MARIBOR, Slovenia | Mon Dec 3, 2012 4:40pm EST LJUBLJANA/MARIBOR, Slovenia (Reuters) - At least 12 people were injured when police clashed with protesters in Slovenia's second city Maribor on Monday, in the latest of a series of rallies against budget cuts and graft in the financially-troubled Alpine ...

By Diksha Madhok KOCHI, India | Mon Dec 3, 2012 4:21pm EST KOCHI, India (Reuters) - Kris Gopalakrishnan, co-founder of Indian information technology giant Infosys, stares out from a wall-to-wall poster in a modern office building near Kochi, in the southern state of Kerala. A caption reads: "We started Infosys in a room about this size; it's your...

MOSCOW/BEIJING | Mon Dec 3, 2012 4:00pm EST MOSCOW/BEIJING (Reuters) - Russia and China urged North Korea on Monday not to go ahead with a plan for its second rocket launch of 2012, with Moscow saying any such move would violate restrictions imposed by the U.N. Security Council. North Korea's state news agency on Saturday announced the decision to launch...

By Michael Holden LONDON | Mon Dec 3, 2012 3:56pm EST LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's Prince William and his wife Catherine are expecting a baby, destined to be the country's future monarch, although the mother-to-be is in hospital with a type of very acute morning sickness that sometimes indicates twins. "Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess...

By Ransdell Pierson and Debra Sherman Mon Dec 3, 2012 3:35pm EST (Reuters) - Merck & Co Inc has moved to the forefront of Alzheimer's disease research by starting a mid-stage study of a drug from a new class of oral medicines that aim to shut down production of a protein associated with the memory-robbing disease. The drugmaker said on Monday it had s...

NEW YORK | Mon Dec 3, 2012 2:42pm EST NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez will likely miss the start of the 2013 Major League Baseball (MLB) season because of hip surgery, the team said on Monday. The 37-year-old Rodriguez, MLB's active home runs leader, must complete a four-to-six week pre-rehabilitation regimen before hav...

By Scott Malone BOSTON | Mon Dec 3, 2012 1:58pm EST BOSTON (Reuters) - Years of hits to the head in football or other contact sports lead to a distinct pattern of brain damage that begins with an athlete having trouble focusing and can eventually progress to aggression and dementia, a study released on Monday says. Researchers examining the brain...

STOCKHOLM | Mon Dec 3, 2012 12:14pm EST STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Swedish telecoms gear maker Ericsson has filed a request with the U.S. International Trade Commission to ban U.S. imports of products made by South Korean group Samsung, The request from Ericsson, which said on Monday the products infringe on its patents, came after it sued Samsung for patent ...

By Tom Perry and Marwa Awad CAIRO | Mon Dec 3, 2012 12:01pm EST CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's Supreme Judicial Council has cleared the way for a referendum on a new constitution which President Mohamed Mursi hopes will end a political crisis that has split the country. Some judges had called for their colleagues to shun the December 15 plebiscite, wh...

NEW YORK | Mon Dec 3, 2012 9:06am EST NEW YORK (Reuters) - Rising demand from domestic and foreign customers helped U.S. manufacturing grow in November at its quickest pace in six months, an industry survey showed on Monday, though hiring remained sluggish. Financial information firm Markit said its U.S. Manuf...

By Philip Pullella VATICAN CITY | Mon Dec 3, 2012 9:04am EST VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The secret's out. Pope Benedict's new handle on Twitter will be @pontifex, beating out other contenders that had been considered to showcase the thoughts of one of the world's most visible leaders. Benedict already has 1.2 billion "followers" in the standard sen...

FRANKFURT | Mon Dec 3, 2012 9:02am EST FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Mobile telecoms equipment joint venture Nokia Siemens Networks, which is focusing on its core business, is to sell its optical fiber unit to Marlin Equity Partners for an undisclosed sum. Up to 1,900 employees, mainly in Germany and Portugal, will be transferred to the new company, NSN said on ...

By George Georgiopoulos and Karolina Tagaris ATHENS | Mon Dec 3, 2012 8:58am EST ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece said it would spend 10 billion euros to buy back bonds at a price range that topped market expectations, boosting hopes it can cut its ballooning debt and unlock long-delayed aid. A successful buyback is central to the efforts of Greece's fo...

By Andy Bruce and Lucy Hornby LONDON/BEIJING | Mon Dec 3, 2012 8:56am EST LONDON/BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese manufacturing returned to growth in November for the first time in over a year and the deep downturn in euro zone factories eased slightly, according to business surveys on Monday. Monday's purchasing managers indexes (PMIs) suggested Chin...

By Rhys Jones and Charmian Kok LONDON/SINGAPORE | Mon Dec 3, 2012 8:55am EST LONDON/SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore Airlines (SIAL.SI) is in talks to sell its 49 percent stake in British carrier Virgin Atlantic, with sources saying Delta Air Lines (DAL.N) is among the suitors keen to access Virgin's lucrative slots at London's Heathrow airport. R...

Mon Dec 3, 2012 8:51am EST (Reuters) - The three major credit rating agencies won a fresh court victory as a federal appeals court rejected claims by five Ohio pension funds alleging that they lost hundreds of millions of dollars on risky mortgage debt because they relied on flawed ratings. The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati upheld the Sept 2011 ...

Mon Dec 3, 2012 8:45am EST (Reuters) - News Corp named Robert Thomson as the chief executive of its new publishing company. News Corp said in June it would separate its publishing and entertainment assets in response to shareholders who had pressed it to get rid of its troubled newspaper business.Thomson is currently managing editor of the Wall Street Journal and...

Mon Dec 3, 2012 8:33am EST (Reuters) - Chrysler Group LLC and Hyundai Motor Co (005380.KS) on Monday both reported strong U.S. new-vehicle sales in November as the industry rebounded from a storm-ravaged October while also benefiting from pent-up demand. The rest of the industry is scheduled to report November sales on Monday. Auto sales are an early indicator ea...

By Genevra Pittman NEW YORK | Mon Dec 3, 2012 8:17am EST NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A new study conducted using a virtual reality game suggests teens may be less likely to try to buy cigarettes at convenience stories if they aren't sold in plain sight behind the counter. Requiring stores to hide tobacco product displays is one option some states...

By Rodrigo Campos NEW YORK | Mon Dec 3, 2012 9:17am EST NEW YORK (Reuters) - The S&P 500 could rise for a fourth straight day on Monday as U.S. stocks were set to open higher on upbeat factory data from China, but concerns over budget dealings in Washington are expected to keep traders cautious. China's economy picked up in November even as a...

SOFIA | Mon Dec 3, 2012 8:13am EST SOFIA (Reuters) - Prize money for the 2013 World Match Play Championship will rise to 3 million euros ($3.90 million), Per Ericsson, president of event management for sponsors Volvo said on Monday. The figure marks a nine percent increase over the 2012 total of 2.75 million euros.Bulgaria will host a European tour event...

By Mark Lamport-Stokes LOS ANGELES | Mon Dec 3, 2012 7:09am EST LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Scheduling tournaments at the right time in the best place is one of the trickiest tasks for a global player and Ian Poulter readily admits he overplayed his hand in what proved to be an exhausting 2012 campaign. The flamboyant Englishman rebounded from a slow...

By Rick Rothacker CHARLOTTE, North Carolina | Mon Dec 3, 2012 7:08am EST CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (Reuters) - One in three U.S. consumers would consider a mortgage from retailer Wal-Mart (WMT.N) and almost half would consider one from online payment provider PayPal, according to a financial services study to be released on Monday. The results sh...

By Katharina Bart ZURICH | Mon Dec 3, 2012 6:21am EST ZURICH (Reuters) - Credit Suisse (CSGN.VX) boss Brady Dougan has outmaneuvered an internal rival with his recent revamp of the Swiss bank and management shake-up but is still on borrowed time, senior banking sources say. Dougan might have played his last hand with an overhaul that strengthens ...

Mon Dec 3, 2012 2:08am EST (Reuters) - The Orlando Magic caught fire in the fourth quarter to stun the Los Angeles Lakers 113-103 and get the better of former player Dwight Howard on Sunday. In their first meeting since trading Howard to Los Angeles in the off-season, the struggling Magic surprised the Lakers by scoring 40 fourth-quarter points to snatch the road...

Mon Dec 3, 2012 2:02am EST (Reuters) - Tony Romo threw three touchdown passes to surpass Troy Aikman's franchise record as the Dallas Cowboys beat the crumbling Philadelphia Eagles 38-33 on Sunday to keep their playoff hopes intact. Romo tossed all three of his touchdown passes in the final two quarters, where both teams traded scores, finding Dez Bryant on a six...

By Richard Cowan WASHINGTON | Mon Dec 3, 2012 1:04am EST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Watching the events of the past few weeks, you could have gotten the idea that the United States is not only going to slip from the "fiscal cliff" but jump lemming-like off it. President Barack Obama presented last week a proposal that upset Republicans with its $1.6 ...

By Patrick Rucker and Mark Felsenthal WASHINGTON | Mon Dec 3, 2012 12:46am EST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Music legend Led Zeppelin was recognized on Sunday alongside entertainers from stage and screen for their contributions to the arts and American culture at the Kennedy Center Honors, lifetime achievement awards for performing artists. The eclecti...