IBT Staff Reporter

A new government study published in the Annals of Family Medicine shows that those who drink hot tea or coffee are about twice as likely as non-drinkers to ward off methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, in their nostrils.

China on Thursday issued a second batch of quotas for exports of rare earths this year -- virtually making up for previous cuts -- after its commerce minister met with his EU counterpart to discuss this and other thorny issues between the two trading partners.

The following are highlights of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's testimony on Thursday to the Senate Banking Committee as part of his semiannual testimony on the U.S. economy and monetary policy. Bernanke repeated prepared testimony he delivered to a House of Representatives panel on Wednesday.

JPMorgan Chase & Co posted a higher-than-expected jump in second-quarter profit as it wrote off fewer bad mortgages and credit card loans.

The company plans on using established American brands to integrate itself into the culture.

Alabama's Jefferson County has finalized a plan to present to creditors aimed at settling its $3.2 billion sewer bond debt and avoiding the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history.

New York City should invest more of its pension funds in international equities and other assets as improving returns would help the city with its soaring contributions, Deputy Mayor Robert Steel said on Thursday.

The 135th and final flight in NASA's shuttle program, Atlantis has begun its final 12-day mission to the International Space Station (ISS) since July 8. Once the space shuttle comes back from space, the 30-year shuttle era will be over.

The 135th and final flight in NASA's shuttle program, Atlantis has begun its final 12-day mission to the International Space Station (ISS) since July 8. Once the space shuttle comes back from space, the 30-year shuttle era will be over.

Betty Ford's funeral, Thursday July 14, 2011.

ConocoPhillips said on Thursday it would spin off its refining and marketing operation, in hopes each arm would be worth more as a separate company.

China eased export curbs for rare earths on Thursday, restoring it to near-2010 levels in a bid to appease its trading partners, but the European Union said the measure did not go far enough to address concerns of stable supplies.

Chelsea and Luka Modric have received the clearest indication yet that Tottenham are in no mood to sell the Croat after Spurs manager Harry Redknapp out-rightly rejected Modric's written transfer request.

Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen said Groupon Inc's daily deal coupons may violate state law.

Curt Schilling was one of Major League Baseball's dominant pitchers for some 20 seasons and since retiring, his game playing has taken a new direction -- he owns a company aiming to conquer the $65 billion video game industry.

The much-speculated July 14 launch of Mac OS X Lion turned out to be a non-event.Though Lion didn't roar as of yet, its snoring may not last so long anyway - the next rumors in line suggest Lion's launch as early as tomorrow, or all the way pushed back to July 26th.

New York City should invest more of its pension funds in international equities and other assets because improving returns would help the city with its soaring contributions, Deputy Mayor Robert Steel said on Thursday.

Netflix's price increase for DVD and streaming rentals was greeted with a massive disapproval from members who were outraged with the 60 percent increase.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned Congress on Thursday that overzealous cuts to government spending could derail an already fragile recovery and said a U.S. debt default could wreak financial havoc.

The number of Americans claiming initial unemployment benefits dropped last week, but remained elevated and retail sales barely rose, suggesting the economy would struggle to regain speed in the second half.

The official teaser trailer for John Carter was released online today by Walt Disney Pictures.

Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed has been invited to ring the NASDAQ bell at 4pm on a trip to secure $1.4 million from New York Mayor's Bloomberg Philanthropies, hoping to follow Bloomberg's footsteps to initiate a government customer service help center to lower homelessness in the city.

Mila Kunis has reportedly backed out of her Marine Corps date with Sergeant Scott Moore.

It was an incredible experience that none of us will ever forget, said Michael Fishbach, who narrated his encounter with Valentina, a humpback whale entangled in a fishing net.

The al-Qaida is launching a ‘cyber jihad’ on the West and there have been increasing attempts by terrorists to ‘invade’ Facebook and other social networking sites for propaganda and to organize attacks.

Liverpool are on the verge of completing a deal for Stewart Downing after agreeing a fee with Aston Villa for the 26-year-old.

Richard Anthony Franco, 27, pleaded 'not guilty' after being arrested and caught trespassing at Oscar-winning actress Halle Berry's home. Franco, who is being held in lieu of $150,000 bail, was charged Wednesday with one felony count of stalking after allegedly showing up at Berry's Hollywood Hills home on repeated occasions.