Crude oil prices recover following last Thursday's commodity market rout, but remain well below recent highs.

Good weather in April led to an increased number of viewings from potential house buyers, according to surveyors.

Cable theft on the railways rose 52% and caused over 6,000 hours of train delays last year, says Network Rail.

Retail sales jumped 5.2% in April thanks to the warm weather and the back-to-back long weekends, a survey suggests.

Japan's Tokyo Electric says it will seek government help in compensating victims of the Fukushima nuclear disaster.

China's trade surplus in April was nearly four times bigger than expected, as US officials press for faster appreciation of the yuan.

Microsoft is in talks to buy internet phone service Skype, the Wall Street Journal reports.

The top US Republican in Congress vows to oppose raising the government's ability to borrow unless the White House agrees to deep spending cuts.