PRESS DIGEST - New York Times business news - July 6

July 6 (Reuters) - The following were the top stories in the New York Times business pages on Monday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

* The extreme volatility that has gripped oil markets for the last 18 months has shown no signs of slowing down, with oil prices more than doubling since the beginning of the year despite an exceptionally weak economy.

* A federal judge approved a plan by General Motors Corp GMGMQ.PK late on Sunday to sell its best assets to a new, government-backed company, a crucial step for the automaker to restructure and complete its trip through bankruptcy court.

* Bemis Co (BMS.N), a Midwestern packaging maker, said late Sunday that it had agreed to buy the American operations of Alcan Packaging, a unit of Rio Tinto (RIO.L), for $1.2 billion in cash and stock.

* Marc Andreessen, who co-founded Netscape, is announcing on Monday that he and Ben Horowitz, a longtime business associate, have raised $300 million that they intend to invest in technology companies. The venture capital firm, Andreessen Horowitz, will risk small sums, as little as $50,000, on new ideas.

* Samsung Electronics Co (005930.KS) announced quarterly earnings estimates for the first time Monday, saying it hopes to reduce market confusion and speculation about its performance.

* PartnerRe (PRE.N), a reinsurance company, said Sunday it had agreed to buy a smaller European competitor, Paris Re (PRI.PA), in an all-stock deal valued at $2 billion.

* The Chrysler Group named the five remaining members of its new board on Sunday, a group that includes a former chief executive of Northwest Airlines, investment bankers and top officials of the Italian automaker Fiat Group.

* The memory chip business has destroyed many companies with its vicious price wars. But Micron Technology Inc (MU.N), a veteran of previous battles, is hunkered down, betting that major cost-cutting and a new high-speed chip will help it survive this bloodbath.

* The third of the animated "Ice Age" films, in its first weekend in theaters, and the week-old "Transformers" each sold an estimated $43 million in tickets over the Independence Day weekend, according to box office tracking services.