IBT Staff Reporter

A type of fluorescent shallow-water corals found at the Lord Howe Island, 400 miles east of Australia could lend vital health-beneficial clue in the development of potential cancer-fighting drugs and may shed light to the understanding of global warming, says researcher from the University of Western Sydney.

Japan's economic growth slowed markedly in April-June and analysts predict further slowdown, adding to policymakers' difficulties as they grapple with deflation and a rise in the yen that threatens an export-reliant recovery.

The Australian Dollar has opened weaker this morning trading around the 0.8950 level after a fairly quiet US session on Friday night in which US data releases were not that bad in relation to consensus.

The Australian Dollar opens a shade lower on Monday at 0.8928 as risk aversion keeps a lid on high-yielding currencies.

Canberra stores will be banned from displaying cigarettes and other tobacco products by the end of the year. But shopping centres in the ACT can continue displaying illegal drug paraphernalia, such as bongs and ice pipes.

Health authorities reveal a worryingly high number of young girls in WA having abortions and some are as young as 12 years old.

Two Sydney University researchers claim that the country's law requiring the wearing of bicycle helmet for protection does not work and should be repealed.

Health research based on the analysis of records from an NSW sleep clinic revealed Australian are losing sleep due to their increasing waistlines

Following the deaths of at least six horses in the northern suburbs of WA due to suspected outbreak of the infection horse disease - strangles - the stables there were forced to be in a lockdown mode.

Forty-four WA girls, some as young as 12, had an abortion last year, the state's health department reported on Sunday.

After worrying about Europe for several months, economists are now turning their focus back to the United States, where high unemployment and a historic housing slump just won't go away.

U.S. and international accounting rule makers are planning to propose an overhaul of lease accounting as soon as Tuesday, in a move expected to affect some $1.2 trillion in leased assets.

U.S. stock investors will brace for further signs of weakness in the economic recovery this week as earnings from key retailers are expected.

One investor in Aviva , which recently rejected a 5 billion pound bid for its general insurance unit from RSA , said there were potential synergies in a deal of that nature.

Copper demand may outstrip supply in 2011 for the first time in four years as China, the world's biggest consumer, sustains purchases and as ore grades decline. The demand-supply gap will be the extent of 200,000 metric tons. Copper, used in pipes, tubes and wires, faces a deepening supply crunch and record prices are highly likely in the next two years, Barclays Capital said in a report on July 27. Prices for immediate delivery will average $7,763 a ton next year as a market shortage widens,...

The United States has all it needs to win the battle against oil addiction on home ground and help lead the rest of the world out of the same addiction. That's the message of NGV Global - the International Association for Natural Gas Vehicles - at an industry summit in Boston, Massachusetts.

Turkmenistan, long slow to respond to foreign efforts to enter its energy sector, is now considering tenders for development of its Caspian offshore hydrocarbon deposits. The bids are yet another sign of the dramatic changes occurring since the death of the country's mercurial autocrat, president for life Saparmurat Niyazov in December 2006.

The Yukon is home to the famous Klondike gold rush of the late 1890's. Prospectors flocked to the area some 120 years ago, following the discovery of gold on Rabbit Creek in the Klondike district by George Carmack, Dawson Charlie and Skookum Jim. When these men returned to their homes in the Pacific Northwest, carrying bags of gold, they encouraged thousands more like them to embark on a journey to the Yukon, hoping they would find riches in the Klondike, too.

Yet another problem hit the gold mining business in South Africa with four illegal miners were killed in a shooting at an abandoned gold mine owned by relatives of former president Nelson Mandela and President Jacob Zuma. Mining industry in South Africa has been reeling under safety problems for the past several months and this latest deaths are bound to create hurdles in the mining sector in South Africa.

Agricultural Bank of China said on Sunday it had fully exercised an over-allotment option for the Shanghai portion of its initial public offering, taking total proceeds from the offer to $22.1 billion, making the IPO the world's biggest.

A manager at Apple Inc has been charged in California with taking kickbacks he received after leaking corporate secrets to Asian companies that supplied iPhone and iPod accessories, court documents showed.

A manager at technology company Apple Inc has been indicted by a federal grand jury in California on charges including taking kickbacks, wire fraud and money laundering, according to court documents.

Russia plans to discuss after October 1 whether to extend a grain export ban into next year, First Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov told Reuters, after a severe drought ruined vast tracts of the country's grain crop.

Germany will stick to its target to borrow about 65 billion euros ($83.19 billion) this year despite record economic growth and billions in extra tax revenue, the country's finance ministry said on Saturday.

Dining out is a big part of most people's lives. Maybe you have to eat out frequently because you entertain clients at restaurants.

You see them all over the place these days... nutrition bars that claim to be healthy and good for weight loss or muscle building, but when you read the label, you see an endless list of chemicals, sugars, processed trans fats, and other harmful overly processed ingredients

Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan said the yen's sudden rise against the dollar had become a concern and he would continue to watch it carefully, Japanese media reported on Saturday.

Crude oil prices slumped below $80 a barrel again this week as the Federal Reserve and other official forecasters took a dimmer view of the economic recovery. Friday's closing price for the benchmark West Texas Intermediate futures contract of $75.39 a barrel marked a retreat from the contract's short-lived foray outside the $70 to $80 a barrel range it has been trapped in for months. Prices fell nearly 7% from last Friday's close of $80.70 a barrel.

NEW YORK - If you're looking to buy the classic Pink Floyd albums The Wall or Animals as digital downloads, you're out of luck.