Europe

Archaeologists who painstakingly examined the bones of some 26 men, women and children buried in the Stone Age grave site at Schoeneck-Kilianstaedten, near Frankfurt, say they found blunt force marks to the head, arrow wounds and deliberate efforts to smash at least half of the victims' shins — either to stop them from running away or as a grim message to survivors.

 Major markets in Europe and Asia made gains, while the U.S. stock market finished with a slight loss.

Officials from China's central bank defended recent moves to loosen the government's grip on its currency, saying that the yuan will eventually rebound from its recent fall. There is "no basis for persistent and substantial devaluation," said a deputy central bank governor, Zhang Xiaohui. The yuan is close to "market levels" after two days of sharp drops, Zhang said.

This was reported on Monday by the official IRNA news agency.

Hassan Rouhani, who met visiting German Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel, said he hopes Germany plays a "positive role" in improving relations between Iran and the EU, "as it played a positive role in nuclear talks."

Gabriel is heading a delegation of representatives from German companies, one of the first overt signs of a thaw following a deal with world powers over the Islamic Republic's nuclear program.

This after Greeks resoundingly rejected the notion of more austerity in exchange for aid.

With Greek banks running out of cash and facing the danger of collapse within days without new aid, the government in Athens is racing against the clock.

In an effort to facilitate negotiations on a new aid program, Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis, who had clashed with European officials in the bailout talks, announced his resignation Monday.

Greece's government appeared to be softening its stance toward its creditors, but European officials ruled out any deal before a Greek referendum this weekend.

Chubb Corp. soared 32 percent after the insurance company agreed to be acquired by Ace for about $28 billion.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 160 points, or 0.6 percent, to 17,782 as of 9:35 a.m. Eastern time Wednesday.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 16 points, or 0.8 percent, to 2,079. The Nasdaq composite climbed 45 points, or 0.9 percent, to 5,033.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 138 points, or 0.8 percent, to 17,804 as of 9:35 a.m. Eastern time Monday.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index gave up 16 points, or 0.8 percent, to 2,085.

The Nasdaq composite fell 47 points, or 0.9 percent, to 5,033.

The declines were steeper in Europe. Benchmark indexes were down 2 percent in Germany and 3 percent in France.

Nine of the 10 industry sectors in the S&P 500 index fell. The only one that rose was utilities, a traditional safe-haven play.