Wholesale prices dropped 0.9 percent in July, and have fallen 6.8 percent over the last 12 months ? the biggest decline in more than six decades of record-keeping.

Despite a worse-than-expected housing report, Wall Street joined a worldwide rebound from Monday?s big sell-off.

An average one-third cut in rates has led to high occupancy and kept defaults low among New York hotels, at least so far.

A proposed 20-cent fee on plastic and paper bags at many retail stores in this city was headed for defeat in a voter referendum late Tuesday.

A doctor accused of falsifying a study on a bone growth product leaves his teaching position.

Greyhound buses will offer service between London and two coastal towns starting next month.

Annual profits at Qantas Airways slump 88% as it struggles with lower passenger numbers amid the economic downturn.

Electronics giant Sony announces it is cutting the price of its PlayStation 3 games console and introducing a slimmer model.

Can a new model save struggling General Motors?

Reuters - Citigroup Inc was under direct pressure from U.S. regulators to replace former chief financial officer Ned Kelly, the Financial Times said, citing parts of a confidential agreement it viewed.

Reuters - The United States economy is out of the emergency room and appears to be on a slow path to recovery,, Warren Buffett wrote in an opinion column in the New York Times.

The Shanghai Composite stock index closed down 4.3 percent, bringing its declines in the last two weeks to 20 percent ? a technical bear market.

PetroChina, Asia's largest oil company, signs a $41bn deal to develop a gas field off Australia's north-western coast.

The retail arms of the UK's main High Street banks are likely to make a loss in the second half of the year, a survey suggests.

Newspaper distribution and aviation firm John Menzies sees a drop in profits as magazine sales and cargo volumes fall.

Loss-making nationalised bank Northern Rock says it will be deferring interest payments on some of its bonds.

Reuters - Stock index futures pointed to a lower open on Wall Street on Wednesday, tracking a sell-off in Chinese shares on renewed worries the buoyant market had gone too far ahead of the economic recovery, and as oil prices dipped.

Shanghai closed down 4.3 percent, bringing its declines in the last two weeks to 20 percent, a technical bear market. Stocks are lower in Europe as well.

The largest Australian airline pointed to early signs of improved passenger volume Wednesday after reporting an 87 percent plunge in annual profit.

Nigeria's central bank threatens legal action against defaulting customers of five banks rescued in a $2.6bn bailout.

Norwegian oil firm DNO, the first to drill in post-war Iraq, says it has yet to receive payment for its oil exports from the country.

China's main stock index closes at a two-month low on concerns about the viability of the global recovery.

Douglas Fraser on oiling Libya's diplomatic wheels

Bank of England Governor Mervyn King wanted to pump more money into the economy but was outvoted by fellow policymakers.

US prosecutors charge a man with carrying out what they say is the largest case of identity theft in American history.

Sir Richard Branson has called on the US government to refuse British Airways permission to agree ticket schedules and prices with American Airlines.

Volkswagen and Porsche agree the details under which VW will merge with its German carmaking compatriot by 2011.

Reuters - Wealthy U.S. citizens using a government tax-evasion amnesty program have identified almost 10 European banks where they have accounts, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the situation.

The Shanghai index closed down 4.3 percent for the day, and the drop in Chinese shares reverberated around the world as investors took note of the rapid decline.

Pressure from Washington may force changes in drug companies? involvement with research papers.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development says its members' economies stabilised in the last quarter.

UK manufacturers are more optimistic about their production outlook than at any time in more than a year, a survey finds.

With-profits policy holders at the Aviva insurance company are given more time to accept a special payment.

UK car dealer Lookers wants the UK government's car scrappage scheme to be extended into next year.

Reuters - Stock index futures dropped about 1 percent on Wednesday as a fall in Chinese shares prompted renewed selling in global equity markets on fears stock prices have a run too far ahead of the economic reality.

Reuters - Details of a deal to settle a U.S. tax case against Swiss bank UBS AG could come as soon as Wednesday and could have far-reaching implications for other wealth managers.

Reuters - Deere & Co said on Wednesday its earnings in the latest quarter fell 27 percent as ongoing weakness in its construction and forestry equipment business offset strength in demand for its tractors and harvesters, especially in North America.

Reuters - U.S. mortgage applications rose last week, largely reflecting a jump in demand for home refinancing loans as interest rates slid to a five-week low, data from an industry group showed on Wednesday.

U.S. regulators will receive the names as part of an investigation of Americans avoiding taxes through the use of offshore accounts.

The Shanghai index closed down 4.3 percent for the day, and the drop in Chinese shares reverberated around the world as investors took note of the rapid decline.

The global economic slowdown continued to depress sales at the farm equipment maker, but the quarterly results beat expectations.

Quarterly profit dipped 4 percent from year-ago results that were boosted by a tax settlement, but the warehouse club chain beat expectations and raised its full-year profit outlook.

The US and Switzerland sign an agreement designed to end a tax evasion dispute over Swiss banking giant UBS.

Have presentations turned your office into Snoozeville?

Lloyds Banking Group is to review its decision to close all 164 branches of its Cheltenham & Gloucester subsidiary.

The former chairman of Bank of Ireland, Richie Burrows is made chairman of British American Tobacco, the world's second-biggest cigarette maker

Returns from similar pension firm investments may be used to work out compensation levels for Equitable Life policyholders.

More than 150 US customers of the Swiss bank UBS are being 'criminally investigated' for tax avoidance, court documents say.

Reuters - Stocks fell at the open on Wednesday as a drop in Chinese shares prompted renewed selling in global equity markets on fears stock prices have outpaced the economic recovery.

Reuters - Deere & Co reported a higher-than-expected third-quarter profit as improved profitability in its core agriculture machinery business helped to offset weakness in construction and forestry equipment.

AP - Tween Brands Inc., a clothing retailer for girls age 7 to 14, said Wednesday it lost $2.8 million in the second quarter as revenue slipped during the recession, especially at stores open at least one year.

An average one-third cut in rates has led to high occupancy and kept defaults low among New York hotels.

People who owe billions of dollars to troubled Nigerian banks have been given five days to pay the money, or face arrest.

Reuters - Stocks shifted gears and headed higher on Wednesday as energy shares jumped after a government oil inventory report showed a huge drop in crude oil supply last week, boosting oil futures almost 4 percent.

Reuters - Deere & Co warned on Wednesday that it would barely break even in the current quarter as continued weakness in its construction equipment business and sharp drops in overseas demand for farm equipment forced it to cut production by a third.

AP - Wells Fargo is facing a lawsuit claiming the bank illegally reduced the size of customers' home equity lines of credit.

AP - Fall lines for apparel retailer Guess Inc.'s two brands, Guess and Guess by Marciano, appear on target, an analyst said Wednesday and reiterated her 'Buy' rating on the stock.

Stock markets in the United States turned positive after an unexpected dip in crude-oil stockpiles pushed oil prices higher.

In its latest deal with a major media company, YouTube will get access to short clips from Time Warner shows like 'Gossip Girl and CNN reports.

A $41 billion deal for China to buy Australian natural gas shows recent diplomatic tensions between the two countries will not trump their commercial interests.

DuPont is accusing Monsanto of illegal anti-competitive practices, while Monsanto counters that DuPont is engaging in a covert smear campaign that borders on fraud.

Mr. Hewitt changed the course of broadcast news by creating the TV magazine show.

Officials fear that if the factories leave, so will glamorous designers, threatening the city?s image as fashion capital.

Reuters - Stocks added to gains in afternoon trading on Wednesday, pushing the Dow and S&P 500 indexes briefly up 1 percent, led by an advance in energy shares as oil prices rose.

Reuters - A former Bear Stearns Cos hedge fund manager facing an insider trading charge routinely ignored warnings of potential conflicts of interest, and was rebuffed when he tried to pledge some money toward a loan to build a luxury Florida condominium, prosecutors said.

Five years ago today, Google sold shares to the public for the first time, amid lots of skepticism about how the offering was being handled and whether the Web search company was overhyped and overvalued.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood assured car dealers they would be reimbursed for the popular ?Cash for Clunkers? program in a response to complaints over a backlog of rebates.

New cameras from Sony and Fujifilm come with redesigned sensors that mark an important step forward in personal photography.

A sharp fall in petrol prices pushes Canadian inflation lower by 0.9% in July - its largest dip in 56 years.

Reuters - Stocks rose on Wednesday, shaking off a slide in Chinese stocks, as investors responded favorably to a surprising drop in crude oil stockpiles that might suggest an improving demand outlook.

Reuters - U.S. consumers will see on Thursday the first signs of the biggest overhaul of the credit card industry in at least two decades, as companies will be forced to provide customers with more time to pay their bills and be required to give more warning of contractual changes.

The Motley Fool - Stashes of old, paid bills, expired life insurance policies, receipts for broken gadgets, and canceled checks for haircuts you got in college -- sound like your filing system?

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood assured car dealers they would be reimbursed for the popular ?Cash for Clunkers? program in a response to complaints over a backlog of rebates.

The recession has caused some angel groups to take a look at the cost of coaching entrepreneurs and listening to their pitches.

Oil prices rise by more than $3 to settle above $70 a barrel after a surprise drop in crude imports and inventories in the US.

Michelle Obama makes her debut in a list of the World's most powerful women - which is again topped by Angela Merkel

Reuters - Stocks rose on Wednesday, shaking off a slide in China's equity market, as investors responded favorably to a surprising drop in crude oil stockpiles that might suggest an improving demand outlook.

Reuters - Switzerland has agreed to reveal the names of about 4,450 wealthy American clients of UBS AG to U.S. authorities in a tax dispute settlement that pierces Swiss banking secrecy and now threatens to spill over to other banks.

Reuters - Spain's Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria is expected to win the U.S. government-run auction of Guaranty Financial Group Inc , sources familiar with the situation said on Wednesday.

Reuters - Oil surged more than 4 percent on Wednesday after U.S. government data showed a steep drop in crude imports and inventories in top consumer the United States.

Reuters - James Lockhart, who earlier this month said he would resign as the U.S. regulator overseeing mortgage finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac , will become vice chairman of a distressed investment group at Invesco Ltd , the company said on Wednesday.

AP - Specialty retailer Limited Brands, owner of Victoria's Secret and Bath and Body Works, says its second-quarter profit fell 27 percent but cost-cutting helped it earn more than Wall Street expected, and the company upped its yearly outlook.

Mitsubishi and Nissan hope to leapfrog Toyota and G.M. by focusing on battery-powered cars rather than hybrids like the Prius and the Volt.

Some auto dealers have stopped taking part because their reimbursement requests have not yet been approved, leading to cash problems at their businesses.

The agency sends warning letters when it is concerned about violations that could threaten the value of data in a trial, or compromise the rights, safety or welfare of patients.

New cameras from Sony and Fujifilm come with redesigned sensors that mark an important step forward in personal photography.

U.S. regulators will receive the names as part of an investigation of Americans avoiding taxes through the use of offshore accounts.

The chairman of the Federal Reserve will be a focal point at an annual retreat of bankers and economists in Jackson Hole, Wyo.

Stock markets in the United States turned positive after an unexpected dip in crude-oil stockpiles pushed oil prices higher.

The ruling was a win for holders of mortgage-backed securities who sued Countrywide after it agreed to modify thousands of loans.

The hope of a volunteer group called Unspam Technologies is that knowing more about data thefts and victims will help improve security.

A physician with experience in soldiers? health who was not part of the fight over regulation will lead the oversight of tobacco products.

BJ?s Wholesale Club and Limited Brands were both helped by cost controls, and both raised their full-year profit outlooks.

A program using $705 million from an economic stimulus package has been criticized as too vague.

A film took ad campaigns indelibly seared into American consciousness and examined their path to pop culture glory.

Leagues and teams at many levels have tried to restrict how their games are covered while also creating their own thriving media divisions.

Plans for a five-passenger Buick crossover, announced Aug. 6, were abandoned when consumers balked.

The farm equipment company says it still expects to make an annual profit despite dwindling demand.

Time Warner signs a deal to show short videos of all of its shows, including ?Gossip Girl? and ?Ellen DeGeneres,? on the video-sharing Web site.

The funds will back projects in transportation and water utilities ? industries that Beijing is trying to develop.

The stock market?s recovery from its March lows has buyout shops and private investors lining up to take their portfolio companies public.

Reuters - Japan's Nikkei stock average on Thursday climbed from a three-week closing low, buoyed by resource shares after crude oil surged and rekindled recovery hopes, with a rebound in Chinese shares also giving a lift.

Despite the credibility of Ben S. Bernanke, chairman of the Federal Reserve, in financial circles, he and the Fed as an institution have come under fire from lawmakers.

Chinese shares clawed back up early Thursday after a two-week sell-off, giving a boost to Asian stock indexes and commodities, but many investors were nervous that the Shanghai slide might have more room to run.

Reuters - Chinese shares clawed back up on Thursday after a two-week sell-off, giving a boost to Asian stock indexes and commodities, but many investors were nervous that the Shanghai slide may have more room to run.

Reuters - Oil was steady above $72 a barrel on Thursday, after rising more than 4 percent the previous day, buoyed by industry data showing a steep drop in crude imports and stockpiles in top consumer the United States.