The dollar gained and global equity markets surged on Monday on merger activity among drugmakers on both sides of the Atlantic, while Chinese stocks hit a seven-year high on a government plan to create a modern Silk Road trade route. Major U.S. and European indexes rallied more than 1 percent on a spate of deals as the dollar rose against other currencies on the view the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates this year. Health insurer UnitedHealth Group Inc agreed to buy Catamaran Corp in a deal worth about $12.8 billion. Also Monday, Israel's Teva Pharmaceutical Industries said it would buy U.S. biopharmaceutical ... (full story)