Business news for Mon, 24 Dec 2007 & with words eve+packaging. 2 news.

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) - U.S. stocks ended higher Monday in a shortened Christmas Eve trading session, aided by flurry of deals which included Alcoa Inc.'s $2.7 billion sale of its packaging and consumer businesses.

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Stock market futures help broadly steady ahead of a shortened Christmas Eve trading session Monday, with Alcoa Inc. among the stocks in focus after it agreed to sell its packaging and consumer businesses.