This year, $135 billion, or 34 percent, of takeover deals have been linked to companies in the developing world.

Warning letters went out over claims about Gerber baby food, Juicy Juice, Dreyer?s ice cream, POM pomegranate juice and Gorton?s fish fillets.

The ad sales results for the Academy Awards illustrate that demand is holding up among marketers for ad spots during so-called big event television shows.

Asian shares eked out gains and the euro extended its rise on Thursday after Greece announced fresh austerity measures to reduce its deficit.

Keeping Meredith Vieira on the show, a major moneymaker for NBC, is a good sign for a network that needs to attend to its sagging prime-time programming.

The European Central Bank may be ready to return to competitive bidding to set the interest rate on three-month loans to banks.

Before a court that often finds for plaintiffs, stakeholders in Yukos Oil, a defunct oil company that was seized by the government of Vladimir V. Putin, will argue that Russia owes them nearly $100 billion.

The prospect of finding deals on skin care products attract impulse buyers to members-only Web sites.

Marty Hyman, a veteran school photographer, and others in his business are members of an endangered species.

Extreme weather possibly linked to climate change, as well as construction on less stable ground, have provoked unprecedented foundation failures in houses nationwide.

Stars who not long ago vied for as much as $25 million a picture have seen their upfront salaries shrink.

The Vermont Yankee nuclear reactor has many detractors across the state, but in Vernon the plant is seen as a vital part of the town.

Ali Hariri, a former vice president of Atheros, is the 10th person to plead guilty out of 21 traders, lawyers and executives accused of insider trading last fall.

Mr. Cross wrote on black empowerment, released two books of his photos of birds and once bid unsuccessfully for Harper & Row.

The report, which said economic gains were modest, dampened enthusiasm that followed an upbeat report on services industries and more takeover news.

The video game maker also said it would cut its corporate staff by 15 percent, a move that would save about $15 million a year.

AP - The Bank of England is expected to keep interest rates at a record low of 0.5 percent and take no further action on purchasing assets to boost the money supply when it announces its monthly monetary policy decision later Thursday.

AP - Asian stock markets fell Thursday after the U.S. central bank signaled recovery in the world's largest economy would be slow.

AP - Oil prices hovered below $81 a barrel after a two-day jump fueled by growing investor optimism that global crude demand is recovering.

AP - Comtech Telecommunications Corp. said Wednesday that its fiscal second-quarter profit climbed, but the communications equipment maker reported revenue below analyst expectations and cut its first-quarter guidance.

AP - Thousands of miles (kilometers) from the Siberian jail where its founder is imprisoned, representatives of the ruined Russian oil giant Yukos and the Russian government will meet face to face for the first time at the European Court of Human Rights this week as the dismantled company seeks to prove that its rights were violated.

As Greece pledged anew to rein in its budget deficit, traders weighed the risks and potential rewards posed by the debts of other European governments.

Relatives of a state trooper and his wife, killed in a sudden acceleration case, said defects caused the car to speed out of control and crash.

John G. Stumpf received $5.6 million in cash and stock, and stock awards of more than $13 million.

Sales growth overseas and higher gas prices help Costco post second-quarter earnings of $299 million.

General Growth, the target of a $10 billion takeover bid, has four more months to emerge from bankruptcy.

Easy pickings from the credit bubble?s bursting may be gone, but the activist shareholders remain a formidable bunch.

Anheuser-Busch InBev, the world's largest brewer, reports a profit $1.28bn (£850m) in the last quarter of 2009.

VT Group says it will not be making a bid for infrastructure firm Mouchel, as it seeks to fend off an offer from rival Babcock.

AP - Members of a labor union occupied Greece's finance ministry building in central Athens early Thursday, hanging a massive banner from the top to protest harsh new austerity measures designed to pull the country out of its financial crisis.

AP - The world's largest brewer and maker of Budweiser reported Thursday a fourth quarter profit of $1.28 billion, helped by cost cuts and price hikes, but said beer sales were stagnant and forecast no improvement in 2010.

AP - French utility GDF Suez SA said Thursday that profits were little changed last year and that it is well placed to benefit from the economic recovery.

Reuters - Asian shares failed to hold on to their early gains on Thursday, slipping into negative territory as worries about Greece and the outlook for the global economy made investors cautious.

Aviva says operating profits rose 3% last year with cost cuts and stronger financial markets helping its results.

Profits at media group Trinity Mirror sank 41% last year as the severe economic downturn hit advertising revenues.

UK house prices recorded their first monthly fall since June with a 1.5% drop in February, according to the Halifax.

AP - Global stock markets fell Thursday as the U.S. central bank signaled recovery in the world's largest economy would be slow and anxiety about Greece's debt crisis weighed on investors.

AP - Greece says it will issue a new 10-year bond, a sale financial markets will watch closely to gauge the depth of the country's debt crisis.

AP - Greece needs a strong vote of confidence from Germany and other European nations but hasn't sought direct financial aid and believes it can overcome its debt crisis alone, a senior Greek official said Thursday.

AP - Oil prices fell to near $80 a barrel Thursday in Asia after a two-day jump fueled by growing investor optimism that global crude demand is recovering.

The head of insurer Aviva says he will concentrate on Europe rather than Asia, despite the expansion plans of rival Prudential.

Toy manufacturer Lego has reported a 55.9% profit rise for 2009, helped by Lego Star Wars and Lego City.

The European Court of Human Rights begins hearing a complaint from collapsed oil company Yukos against the Russian government.

Can South Africa deliver financial World Cup success?

AP - Freak waves that smashed into a Mediterranean cruise ship flooded people's cabins, broke windows in a restaurant and terrified many travelers in an ordeal that claimed two lives, a passenger said Thursday.

AP - European stock markets fell modestly Thursday as investors awaited the latest policy statements from the European Central Bank and the Bank of England and digested the news that Greece is looking to raise euro5 billion ($6.8 billion) from bond markets to finance its debt.

AP - Greece launched a critical 10-year bond issue on Thursday, a day after winning approval from markets and the European Union for painful austerity measures designed to lift the debt-ridden country out of its financial crisis.

AP - A congressman who has played a key role in the long-running health care bill debate says he and 11 other Democrats will vote against the overhaul bill unless a provision subsidizing abortion is removed.

AP - Danish toy maker Lego said Thursday its profits rose 63 percent in 2009 as it managed to boost sales, mostly in Asia and Europe, despite a stagnant global toy market.

AFP - Europe's economic recovery has stalled, new data showed on Thursday, with heavyweight Germany grinding to a standstill in the fourth quarter of 2009 despite gains for France and Poland.

AP - A stronger dollar pushed oil prices down toward $80 a barrel Thursday after a two-day jump fueled by growing investor optimism that global crude demand is recovering.

Greece is offering new bonds to refinance its debt, in a move that will test the government?s ? and the E.U.?s ? credibility with investors.

Vikram S. Pandit?s testimony before the Congressional panel overseeing TARP is partly aimed at challenging critics who see Citigroup as a symbol of too-big-too-fail banks.

While consumers are starting to spend a little more, the figures are positive partly because sales in February 2009 were so awful.

New claims for unemployment benefits fell by 29,000, but the decline only partly reverses a sharp rise in claims in the previous two weeks.

Both the European Central Bank and the Bank of England remained concerned about the strength of the economic recovery.

Babcock International and VT Group are in talks about merging their companies into a support services powerhouse.

The EU's watchdog body castigates the European Commission in a row over access to letters from the German carmaker Porsche AG.

Portsmouth's administrator estimates potential owners interested in buying the club need to find £30m.

BBC Worldwide - the commercial arm of the BBC - agrees to pay £17m to secure full ownership of DVD publishing firm, 2Entertain.

Cadbury workers in Uxbridge and Bournville are consulted about plans to make up to 150 people redundant.

Faulty goods cost UK consumers £78 a year each - or nearly £5,000 in a lifetime - because people are too worried about returning them.

AP - Shoppers shrugged off the snow that hammered much of the country in February to buy spring clothing and other items, resulting in the strongest retail sales gain since November 2007, a month before the recession started.

AP - The Treasury Department has received a record $1.54 billion from the sale of warrants it received from Bank of America as part of the support it provided during the financial crisis.

AP - Stock futures rose slightly Thursday after a better-than-expected dip in initial jobless claims and improving retail sales.

AP - Wendy's/Arby's Group Inc., the fast-food chain that owns Wendy's and Arby's, said Thursday that its fourth-quarter loss narrowed, even though one-time costs continued to dragged down results.

AP - The European Central Bank left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 1 percent Thursday as markets waited to see if the bank will scale back special lending to banks introduced during the financial crisis.

Reuters - Most U.S. retailers posted better-than-expected February sales as leaner inventories resulted in more sales at full price, but record-setting snow in much the eastern part of the country curbed gains.

AP - The Russian government deliberately sought to 'destroy' the now-defunct oil giant Yukos, a lawyer for the company argued Thursday before the European Court of Human Rights.

AP - The 80th Geneva Motor Show opened its doors to the public Thursday, offering a note of optimism and fun after two difficult years for the industry.

BusinessWeek - You would think the nation's biggest homebuilders would be writhing in pain right about now. Sales of new single-family homes sank in January to the lowest seasonally adjusted rate in nearly five decades of record keeping and are now off 78% from the housing market's frothy peak in 2005.

Shares rose slightly Thursday after a better-than-expected dip in initial jobless claims and improving retail sales.

Greece should sell some uninhabited islands to cut its huge debt, political allies of the German chancellor say.

The Premier League says it will not pursue the idea of a play-off for fourth place and the final Champions League spot.

A Zimbabwean law that forces companies to sell a majority stake in their businesses to indigenous people comes into effect.

Scottish and Southern Energy will cut its gas bills for domestic customers by 4% from 29 March, the company announces.

A cheap online estate agency service is being launched with the backing of the Tesco supermarket group.

AP - Shoppers shrugged off the snow and worries about the economy to buy spring clothing and other items at the nation's malls, resulting in the strongest retail sales gain since November 2007, a month before the recession started.

AP - Stocks faltered following an early advance as pending home sales dropped unexpectedly.

AP - The European Central Bank left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 1 percent for the tenth month running Thursday and confirmed that it will keep scaling back crisis lending measures even though the economy in the 16 countries that use the euro is barely growing.

AFP - Greece launched a bond issue Thursday to raise desperately needed funds but faced stiffening German opposition to its plea for help and resistance at the European Cental Bank to a possible appeal to the IMF.

AP - Discount retailer Ross Stores Inc. said Thursday that a key sales figure rose 11 percent in February, surpassing Wall Street's expectations.

U.S. News & World Report - After its historic decline brought the global economy to its knees, the U.S. housing market is gearing up for a long-awaited recovery. Real estate experts expect home prices to hit bottom in late 2010 or early 2011 before--finally!--heading north again. But what shape will the rebound take? Are we in for another boom? Or will we have to settle for sluggish growth? Here's the outlook for home price appreciation through 2020.

AP - Natural gas prices tumbled Thursday after the government said supplies dropped less than expected last week.

Yet the improvement only partly reverses a sharp rise in claims in the previous two weeks.

Members of the Congressional Oversight Panel questioned whether the substantial support that Citigroup received could pose future risks on the financial system and the bank itself.

European markets were slightly lower as investors watch Greece?s efforts to sort out its budget problems and contain rampant debt.

Investors who lost money to Bernard L. Madoff through a fund set up by UBS cannot seek compensation directly from the Swiss bank, a Luxembourg court ruled.

Royal Bank of Scotland has begun the sale of its branches in England and Wales - originally Williams & Glyn's, the BBC learns.

AP - Facing sharp questions from bailout overseers, Citigroup Inc. CEO Vikram Pandit said Thursday the bank is 'fundamentally different' than the tangled behemoth that took more than $45 billion in government aid during the recent financial crisis.

AP - Cornerstone Therapeutics Inc. said Thursday its fourth-quarter profit fell 6 percent on higher sales costs and a tax provision.

Reuters - Two AIG units settled federal charges that they discriminated against blacks in providing home loans and will pay at least $7.1 million for restitution and education efforts, according to court documents filed on Thursday.

AFP - European Central Bank head Jean-Claude Trichet praised new Greek austerity measures Thursday but gave short shrift to a possible bid for IMF help that Athens said it had to consider.

AP - Here is how sales at stores open at least a year changed in February for selected chains in four key sectors: department stores and discount, drug and clothing chains.

AP - Natural gas prices tumbled Thursday after the government said supplies dropped less than expected last week.

By completing a long-await bond sale, Greece gave a lift to its embattled government finances and bolstered other peripheral European countries that share the euro.

Members of a government committee questioned whether the support that Citigroup received could pose future risks for the financial system.

European markets closed lower as investors watch Greece?s efforts to sort out its budget problems and contain rampant debt.

Both the European Central Bank and the Bank of England remained concerned about the strength of the economic recovery.

Greece sees strong demand for government bonds in a vote of confidence for the country's debt-ridden economy.

AP - Stocks clung to a tight range for a third day Thursday ahead of the government's February jobs report.

AP - PROFIT: For the quarter that ended Jan. 3, Wendy's/Arby's Group lost $13.6 million, or 3 cents per share. That compares with a loss of $393.2 million, or 84 cents per share, during the previous year.

AP - Greece says it has raised badly needed cash with a new bond issue, passing a key test of its ability to avoid a disastrous debt default and dig out of a financial crisis that has shaken the European Union.

Reuters - Two AIG units settled federal charges that they discriminated against black home buyers on fees for mortgages and will pay $7.1 million for restitution and education efforts, the U.S. Justice Department said on Thursday.

AP - Home decor retailer Pier 1 Imports Inc. said Thursday it expects fourth-quarter earnings to top analysts' expectations as it sold more goods at full price.

Reuters - Four top executives of Thornburg Mortgage improperly paid themselves handsome bonuses just before the mortgage lender filed for bankruptcy last year, and stole money and ideas from Thornburg to secretly launch a new firm, the bankruptcy trustee in charge of liquidating the lender alleged in a lawsuit.

AP - Chrysler Group LLC on Thursday named new heads of regulatory affairs and international product planning.

The measure, approved 217 to 201, is intended to spur job creation by granting payroll tax breaks to businesses that hire new workers.

Both the European Central Bank and the Bank of England remained concerned about the strength of the economic recovery.

The American International Group moved closer to the $15 billion sale of a second major life insurance unit on Thursday after the Internal Revenue Service indicated that it will rule favorably on a tax issue that has stymied the deal, people briefed on the matter told DealBook.

The bloc?s commissioner for energy pledged ?200 million for a pipeline that would bypass Russia and Ukraine to begin delivering gas from the Caspian Sea region by around 2015.

European markets closed lower as investors watch Greece?s efforts to sort out its budget problems and contain rampant debt.

Greece sees strong demand for government bonds in a vote of confidence for the country's debt-ridden economy.

Iceland all but gives up on a deal with the UK and the Netherlands to repay debts, forcing a referendum.

AP - Some of Michigan's targeted business tax incentives aren't effective when compared to possible broader tax-relief alternatives, according to a study released Thursday.

AP - Optimism about the government's February jobs report sent the Dow Jones industrials back into the black for 2010.

AP - Midas Inc. reported a fourth-quarter loss Thursday, the result of restructuring costs and falling sales of parts and tires at its auto repair shops, but says it has already begun to see improvement this year.

AP - Mortgages rates have dipped below 5 percent again, four weeks before a government program that is helping keep rates low is scheduled to run out.

AP - Online travel retailer Orbitz Worldwide Inc. said Thursday that it has named Martin Brand and Brad Gerstner to its board of directors, effective immediately.

AFP - Executives from defunct oil giant Yukos told Europe's top rights court Thursday that Russia had waged an illegal campaign to drive the company to bankruptcy, in a multi-billion-dollar claim.

AP - Higher prices for used vehicles and improved buyer credit are helping mitigate losses on prime auto loan asset-backed securities, Fitch Ratings said Thursday.

A vast project in Florida will be the world?s second-largest solar plant. It?s also going to be attached to the nation?s largest fossil-fuel power plant.

China is in the middle of a spectacular real estate boom. But the question is whether it is in the middle of a rapidly growing real estate bubble ? one that might threaten the global economy.

The measure, which will grant payroll tax breaks to businesses that hire new workers, was characterized as the first step in a broad legislative push to shore up the economy.

The number of first-time filings retreated from a three-month high last week, reviving hopes that the labor market was on the track to recovery.

Investors who lost money to Bernard L. Madoff through a fund set up by UBS cannot seek compensation directly from the Swiss bank, a Luxembourg court ruled.

Economists say employers probably reduced their payrolls by about 50,000 jobs last month.

Rodents are clearing land mines in Africa

BMW relies heavily on new 5-series' success

Laws could be introduced forcing pub firms to change practices blamed for stifling competition, MPs warn.

AP - State media says China expects its economy to grow 8 percent this year.

AP - Dynamic Materials Corp., which makes explosion-welded clad metal plates, said its fourth-quarter profit slid 81 percent as sales in its metalworking division fell.

Reuters - A tax question holding up American International Group Inc's sale of its foreign life insurance unit to MetLife Inc is expected to be resolved favorably, clearing the way for a roughly $15 billion deal, sources familiar with the matter said on Thursday.

Reuters - Regulators on Thursday conditionally approved TransCanada Corp's plan for a C$200 million ($194 million) pipeline, the first federally regulated shale gas transport system in Western Canada.

A vast project in Florida will be the world?s second-largest solar plant. It?s also going to be attached to the nation?s largest fossil-fuel power plant.

China is in the middle of a spectacular real estate boom. But the question is whether it is in the middle of a bubble ? one that might threaten the global economy.

While consumers are starting to spend a little more, the figures are positive partly because sales in February 2009 were so awful.

The Securities and Exchange Commission accused Sean David Morton, who said he could foretell the stock market?s direction, of swindling $6 million.

A campaign from Zappos features puppets, styled after actual company employees, interacting with customers and demonstrating their patience.

Members of a government committee questioned whether the support that Citigroup received could pose future risks for the financial system.

If a deal is reached with MetLife is reached, the sale of Aliceo would represent another big repayment on the federal government?s bailout of A.I.G.

Two Florida women who operated a language school in Miami were charged with immigration violations in connection with fraudulent applications for student visas.

The supply line would come from the Caspian Sea region and bypass Russia and Ukraine, whose bickering in the past has interrupted supplies to Europe.

The president Obama met Thursday with insurance executives and selected House Democrats, as party leaders struggled to figure out whether they can meet his timetable.

But a scientist who led the study said it was too soon to say whether the findings suggest the potential for a dangerous release of methane ? a greenhouse gas far more potent than carbon dioxide.

New numbers from the New York State Labor Department showed the city?s unemployment rate at 10.4 percent and the state?s at 8.8 percent.

The agency wants to require companies to disclose the tax games they are playing and the maximum tax hit they could take if the I.R.S. challenged them.

AP - China said Friday it will target economic growth of 8 percent this year, increase spending on social programs and direct more development money at ethnic areas.

AP - Shopping center owner Equity One Inc. said Thursday it posted a 71 percent increase in fourth-quarter funds from operations, reporting higher revenue and an income tax benefit.

AP - Citigroup Inc. CEO Vikram Pandit appeared in Washington on Thursday to tell bailout overseers that today's Citi is not the tangled behemoth that required more than $45 billion from the government to survive the financial crisis.

If Greece asks the International Monetary Fund for help, it could touch off political and financial tension in other European countries.

The presidents of the nation?s 12 Federal Reserve districts worked to buttress arguments that the Fed?s regulatory powers should stay as they are.

The number of complaints of unintended acceleration in Toyotas that have already been repaired has risen to 60.

Bid premiums are high, but the purchase prices in some recent takeovers look like bargains relative to previous stock market values.

A flavoring ingredient used in thousands of processed food is contaminated with salmonella, the Food and Drug Administration says.

Susan J. Parker is a process server, and while she has seen some people at their worst, she has also seen good manners and even relief.

Two Florida women who operated a language school in Miami were charged with immigration violations in connection with fraudulent applications for student visas.

President Obama met with insurance executives and selected House Democrats, as party leaders struggled to figure out whether they can meet his timetable.

AP - China's Premier Wen Jiabao promised strong growth this year and said the government will combat inflation and risks to banks to keep the rebound in the world's third-largest economy on track.

AP - Asian stock markets rose Friday amid optimism ahead of a key U.S. jobs report and as China said it will target economic growth of 8 percent this year.

Reuters - Crude edged up on Friday, capping two consecutive weeks of trading above $80, after China signaled it would maintain its economic stimulus, rekindling hopes for accelerating growth to drain excess oil supplies.