For Boeing, $13 billion in new ordersBoeing Co. unveiled more than $13 billion in new aircraft orders during the first day of the Farnborough International Airshow outside of London, topping the $9 billion in orders reported by rival Airbus SAS, as thousands of airplane suppliers and buyers gathered at the largest aerospace trade event of the year. The flurry of orders came after two lean years for Chicago-based Boeing and France-based Airbus and signaled that a rebound in the global airline market is well underway. But the planemakers could see orders again slow if there's a double-dip recession, a worry as they face a growing threat from aircraft manufacturers in Canada, China and Russia. The planemakers traditionally kick off the air show with blockbuster sales announcements; Boeing's was for a $9.1 billion order from Emirates Airline for 30 Boeing 777-300ER jets.

Homebuilders' pessimism sinks againHomebuilders are feeling increasingly pessimistic about their industry, more evidence that the economic recovery is slowing. The National Association of Home Builders said Monday that its monthly reading of builders' sentiment about the housing market sank to 14 -- the lowest level since March 2009. Readings below 50 indicate negative sentiment about the market. The weak job market and an increasing number of foreclosed properties have prompted builders to limit construction of new homes. A modest revival in sales over the past year ended in May after federal tax credits expired at the end of April.

Court grants bail to jailed media mogul BlackConrad Black, a former newspaper magnate who lived extravagantly before his 2007 federal conviction for defrauding shareholders, may soon be released from a Florida prison after a federal appeals court granted him bail Monday. The ruling from the Seventh U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals came weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court kicked Black's fraud conviction back to a lower court. Black, who renounced his Canadian citizenship to become a member of the British House of Lords, was convicted along with three other former executives from the media empire Hollinger International of swindling the company's shareholders out of $6.1 million. He was acquitted of nine other charges.

Goldman veep asks court to toss out caseA Goldman Sachs & Co. vice president accused of shepherding a deal at the heart of civil fraud charges against the investment bank is asking the court to dismiss a case filed against him by Wall Street regulators. Fabrice Tourre filed documents Monday with the U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York asking the court to throw out the case brought against him by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Tourre denies he made any materially misleading statements or omissions, or behaved wrongly in connection with complex mortgage-linked securities called collateralized debt obligations.

Rival might seek merger with H&R BlockH&R Block Inc., the country's biggest tax preparer, may get a merger proposal from closely held Liberty Tax Service, according to Liberty founder John Hewitt. The decline in H&R Block's stock through last week under Chairman Richard Breeden makes the Kansas City, Mo. -based firm attractive, Hewitt said Monday in a phone interview. Concern about eroding market share and declining revenue helped push the market value below $4.7 billion and spurred a member of the founding Bloch family to leave. "If it goes much lower, it would be interesting to discuss a possible merger between Liberty and Block," Hewitt said.

Redbox seeking an online strategyRedbox, which became the fastest- growing U.S. video retailer with DVD kiosks and a $1-a-day rental price stores couldn't match, is developing an online strategy to stay competitive with larger rival Netflix Inc. The company, the biggest division of Coinstar Inc., may use a Web service to expand its library beyond the 200 or so titles crammed into each of its 24,000 or so DVD dispensers, President Mitch Lowe said in an interview from Redbox's headquarters in Oakbrook Terrace, Ill. "The way we look at it is: How can it help us deliver to our customers things we can't do in our kiosks?" Lowe said.

FROM NEWS SERVICES