IBT Staff Reporter

Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing has agreed to buy British utility Northumbrian Water Group for 2.4 billion pounds ($3.9 billion) in the biggest takeover this year of a British-listed company.

New York City's event planners are gearing up for a surge in business after the Empire State embraced same-sex marriage and hundreds of couples rush to tie the knot.

Miley Cyrus has been under serious scrutiny for anything she does with her body. From pole dancing, recent pictures of her smoking a cigarette, and near naked images, the paparazzi know all about her. One thing we notice from photographs is the young star's many tattoos.

The pre-sale hype of rumors around iPhone 5 has gained some extension now that one report has claimed that Apple's next-generation iPhone will be released in October, not September.Hold your breath a little more - the iPhone 5 will be worth the prolonged wait, because the upgrade is now said to be more significant than expected.

Researchers from the Tokyo Institute of Technology have developed a robot that can think, act and adapt to a changing situation.

Toyota Motor Corp slumped to its first quarterly loss in two years after the March 11 disaster virtually halted production, and the Japanese auto giant warned the stronger yen was hobbling it in the battle against South Korean rivals.

An autopsy will be performed Tuesday on an 11-year-old girl that was found in the Connecticut River. Authorities said that the death was "suspicious" although no signs of struggle were found in her West Stewartstown, N.H. home.

Not only is the Web-search giant Google at odds with Apple, Microsoft's assault on Google in Internet search and search advertising through their own search engine 'Bing' serves as another attack on the home front and as competitive challenges in the technology industry grow.

The United States is poised to step back from the brink of economic disaster on Tuesday when a bitterly fought deal to cut the budget deficit is expected to clear its final hurdles.

Samsung Galaxy R also known as i9103BUK, which is set to replace Samsung Galaxy s II, is likely to be available in UK SIM-Free and without contract.

Miley Cyrus has definitely undergone major image transformations. The 18-year-old star has devoted great time and energy to work with various foundations and charities, but then she is caught in other issues some may consider scandalous.

Japan primed financial markets on Tuesday for currency intervention after the yen tested record highs, signaling it may try to tame the unit with a combination of yen-selling and monetary easing.

As Apple continues to maintain a tight-lipped approach toward the iPhone 5, analysts from major research firms continue to stoke iPhone 5-related expectations.

Barclays is set to cut about 3,000 jobs this year to reduce costs after a drop in bond trading and an insurance mis-selling charge cut first half profits by a third.

Consumer spending unexpectedly fell in June to post the first decline in nearly two years as incomes barely rose, a government report showed, suggesting economic growth could remain subdued in the third quarter.

Pfizer Inc reported higher quarterly earnings, as higher sales of animal health and nutritional products that the company aims to divest helped offset falling sales of its core pharmaceuticals business.

An autopsy was scheduled for Tuesday to determine the cause of death of an 11-year-old New Hampshire girl, whose body was found in the Connecticut River near her home.

Voters in Nassau County, Long Island, rejected a referendum that could have paved the way for a new hockey arena to replace the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, the current home of the New York Islanders. The referendum failed 57-to-42 percent in a vote held Monday.

Sony Corp will pull together plans this month to restructure its lossmaking television business and even consider teaming up with other firms, a senior executive said this week, days after the company cut its full-year net profit forecast.

Wall Street equity futures were lower on Tuesday as a last-minute congressional deal to raise the U.S. debt ceiling failed to ease worries about a possible U.S. credit downgrade as questions lingered over the economy's strength.

Google Inc has bought The Dealmap, expanding further into a potentially lucrative daily deals market now dominated by the likes of Groupon and LivingSocial.

Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing agreed to buy British utility Northumbrian Water Group for 2.41 billion pounds ($3.92 billion) in the biggest takeover this year of a British-listed company.

Wall Street equity futures were lower on Tuesday as a last-minute congressional deal to raise the U.S. debt ceiling failed to assuage investor concerns that a credit downgrade could be avoided.

China's central bank has halted offshore yuan borrowing by domestic companies, official media reported, a move seen as an attempt to clamp down on hot money flows at a time when the authorities are still tightening policy to battle inflation.

Italian authorities will meet on Tuesday, officials said, to discuss growing market turmoil that threatens to push the country's borrowing costs to unsustainable levels, dragging it into a full-blown fiscal crisis.

Wall Street equity futures were lower on Tuesday as a last-minute congressional deal to raise the U.S. debt ceiling failed to assuage investor concerns that a credit downgrade could be avoided.

Apple?s newly updated Thunderbolt MacBook Air has reportedly been sold out in some stores, as the thin notebook has been in high demand.

Toyota Motor Corp raised its annual profit forecast to a level well below market estimates, warning the stronger yen was hobbling it in the battle against South Korean rivals as it races to restore quake-hit production.

"Skype for iPad" app rolled out to the iOS App Store early Tuesday, starting from New Zealand, the app's debut swept across worldwide storefronts. But soon after, the app disappeared.