Morning Market Roundup: Greece Finalizing Austerity Cuts, German Tax Income Up, Best Buys Taps New CEO

Here’s what’s important in the business world this morning:

Greece: Greece's finance officials were working Monday to finalize €11.5 billion ($14.19 billion) in spending cuts necessary for it to continue receiving the international funding that is protecting it from bankruptcy.

Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras was meeting with his deputy ministers and Labor Minister Yannis Vroutsis to hammer out the measures for 2013 and 2014, which officials aim to have finalized in time for a visit to Athens on Wednesday by Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker, who chairs the eurozone finance ministers' meetings.

After talks with Juncker, Prime Minister Antonis Samaras will head to Berlin and Paris on Friday and Saturday for talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande.

The country has fallen behind on implementing reforms and austerity measures demanded in exchange for the rescue funds, fueling impatience in Germany - the largest single contributor to the bailouts - and other eurozone countries and speculation that Greece will have to leave the euro, the currency used by 17 European nations.

Germany: Germany's Finance Ministry says the country's tax income was nearly 9 percent higher in July than a year earlier - helped by recent wage increases and underlining the continuing strength of Europe's biggest economy.

The ministry said in its monthly report released Monday that Germany's total tax take last month was €43.13 billion ($53.2 billion) - an increase of 8.6 percent compared with July 2011. Over this year's first seven months, tax income was up 5 percent at €311.36 billion.

Many German workers have enjoyed solid pay increases after two years of strong economic growth. Unemployment is low.

Germany's momentum has slowed this year, but the country is still doing far better than many others in the debt-troubled eurozone. Its economy grew 0.3 percent in the second quarter.

Best Buy: Best Buy Co. has tapped Hubert Joly, the former head of global hospitality company Carlson and turnaround expert, as the nation's largest consumer electronics chain's new CEO and president.

The announcement, made Monday, comes after the ailing retailer said Sunday that its offer to advance talks with company co-founder Richard Schulze on his takeover bid was rejected.

Best Buy says Joly, who is French, is expected to take over as CEO in early September when his visa is secured. Carlson, which operates such businesses as Radisson and T.G.I Friday's, announced Sunday that Joly resigned from that company.

U.S. Futures: Stock futures were mixed on poor corporate earnings in the U.S. and ahead of a pivotal week in Europe.

Dow Jones industrial futures slipped 21 points to 13,226. The broader S&P futures gave up 1.5 points to 1,413.70. Nasdaq futures tacked on 1.25 points to 2,774.25.

World stock markets fluctuated. In early European trading, the FTSE-100 index of leading British companies edged 0.2 percent lower to 5,843.08 while Germany's DAX rose 0.4 percent at 7,066.17. France's CAC-40 gained almost 0.1 percent to 3,488.86.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.