Cisco Systems needs more help from shareholders to meet the acceptance threshold in its bid to buy Norway's Tandberg and create the global leader in videoconferencing equipment.

NBC Universal is going to integrate very nicely with Comcast, said Porter Bibb, media analyst with Media Tech Capital Partners.

Japan's Asahi Breweries said it could spend up to 400 billion yen ($4.6 billion) on acquisitions to avoid getting left behind amid a rush towards consolidation in the global food and beverage industry.

The deal between General Electric and Comcast over a majority stake in NBC Universal is complete, and there is nothing left to do but process paper, a source close to the merger told CNBC.

Time Warner Cable is eyeing a range of ways to use its cash, from buying assets to paying dividends and repurchasing stock, but cutting its debt and making it "investment grade" is the cable company's priority, its chief executive said Tuesday.

Stocks kicked off December with a rally Tuesday as Dubai fears subsided and the dollar retreated, pushing gold to a new record above $1,200 an ounce. The Dow gained 1.2 percent to close at its highest level since Oct. 2008.

Now that General Electric has reached a preliminary deal with Vivendi over the sale of its 20 percent stake in NBC Universal, it has cleared what some consider the largest obstacle in its agreement with Comcast.

Stocks kicked off December with a rally Tuesday as Dubai fears subsided and the dollar retreated, pushing gold to a new record above $1,200 an ounce.

Genzyme, the biotechnology company already reeling from problems manufacturing its drugs for rare diseases, will soon have a formidable new competitor — the pharmaceutical giant Pfizer.

A federal judge has ordered a retired Croatian seamstress to pay more than $5.7 million for her role in an insider trading ring involving two former Goldman Sachs Group employees.

Stocks kicked off December with a rally Tuesday as fears about the Dubai situation subsided but pared their gains after a lower-than-expected reading on manufacturing.

Tuesday starts with a positive outlook for stocks, helped by retreating fears over Dubai World's debt restructuring plans as well as new easing moves overnight by the Bank of Japan.

Zijin Mining Group, China's largest listed gold company, has offered $498 million for Indophil Resources, chasing the Australian miner's one-third stake in a big copper and gold lode in the Philippines.

General Electric has agreed to buy a 20% stake in NBC Universal from partner Vivendi SA for $5.8 billion, sources told CNBC.

Stocks pulled off a modest gain Monday, led by banks, after Dubai World said it would try to restructure about $26 billion of its debt. Chips also gained. But retailers finished lower.