business - "short"

Air New Zealand has reported a six percent increase in passenger numbers for the month of May compared with the same period last year. For the financial year to date, short-haul passenger numbers in...

TEL AVIV (MarketWatch) -- Goldman Sachs Group Inc., the New York investment bank, named Lakshmi N. Mittal as an independent director, the board's 13th member. Mittal is chairman and chief executive officer of ArcelorMittal of Luxembourg, the world's largest steelmaker. He'll be the 10th independent director at Goldman and will sit on the board's audit, compensation, and corporate governance and nominating committees, the firm said in a statement on Sunday. Mittal also serves on the boards of EADS, the parent of the European aerospace firm Airbus, and of Icici Bank of India. market pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

TEL AVIV (MarketWatch) - Delek US Holdings Inc., the Brentwood, Tenn., gasoline refiner and convenience-store operator, is in talks to acquire certain distillation, retailing and marketing activities valued at $1 billion, the company's parent said. Delek Group, the Israeli holding company, said in a statement to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange on Sunday that the purchase under discussion includes a distillery, a terminal, delivery trucks, and agreements to supply as many as 450 gas stations and convenience stores. The announcement didn't identify the potential seller. The deal is conditioned on, among other things, completion of a due-diligence financial review, arrangement of financing for the deal, and receipt of certain approvals. market pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

Chen Tiezhong will likely spend the Fourth of July worrying about the future of his sprawling fireworks factory. China, where fireworks were invented, is running short of ports from which to ship the dangerous cargoes abroad. China's fireworks industry...

TEL AVIV (MarketWatch) -- MAP Pharmaceuticals Inc., the Mountain View, Calif., drug developer, reported progress with MAP0004, an inhaled medication designed to treat migraines. Data from an in-vitro study showed that MAP0004 'stimulated receptors that relieve migraine at levels comparable to' those of a version of the drug delivered intravenously. But MAP004, a proprietary inhaled version of dihydroergotamine, 'did not activate receptors associated with side effects frequently seen with' the IV-administered version, the company said in a Saturday statement. It presented the results at an American Headache Society meeting in Boston. In a Phase II efficacy study, MAP Pharma said, MAP0004 relieved pain as quickly as 10 minutes after dosing and sustained the relief for at least 24 hours.Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

My mailbox has been full of comments on recent columns about life in homeowners associations, uncertainty with short sales and deciding how much money to invest in a bathroom.

The short holiday week will be a busy one for economic data, offering new insights into whether the nation's economy is holding up or getting worse this summer. On Tuesday, the Institute for Supply Management will release its June survey of manufacturers and on Thursday will report on the service...