IBT Staff Reporter

U.S. wholesalers started restocking in October for the first time in more than a year, suggesting the economy could get a lift as a long-running effort by businesses to pare inventories reaches an end.

Bank of America Corp fully repaid the U.S. government the $45 billion in aid it took during the height of the financial crisis, the company said on Wednesday.

Tiger Woods allegedly fell in love with one of his lovers, Rachel Uchitel, 34, who works as a Manhattan club hostess, In Touch Magazine reports citing an anonymous source and emails.

The bankruptcy of General Growth Properties (GGWPQ.PK) has created a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for suitors, but as they circle the No. 2 U.S. mall owner they are likely to find consummating a deal is not easy.

When Ned Hooper joined Cisco Systems Inc (CSCO.O) after the company he worked for was bought by the U.S. network equipment giant, he didn't think he would stay beyond an initial two-year commitment.

Sempra Energy (SRE.N) may join Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc (RBS.L) in selling off their entire joint commodities business, offering quick entry into a lucrative market with a diverse, global trading book.

Grupo Mexico SAB de CV (GMEXICOB.MX) said on Wednesday it completed its deal to regain control of U.S. copper miner Asarco LLC, bringing to an end Asarco's four-year bankruptcy.

Stocks ended higher on Wednesday as the U.S. dollar fell and investors' appetite for risk returned, lifting shares of financial, technology and natural resource companies.

Citigroup Inc plans to pay back TARP by raising money in an equity offering that could be announced as early as Thursday and could be some $20 billion, television network CNBC reported, citing sources.

The United States supports taking early action to liberalize trade in products that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and believes that could spur progress in broader world trade talks on environmental goods and services, a U.S. trade official said on Wednesday.

The Kardashian sisters are in New York promoting the season four of reality TV show Keeping Up With The Kardashians which starts Sunday.

Demand for executive talent at Wall Street firms has rebounded strongly, and the coming bonus season may see an exodus to overseas rivals that have no limits on pay, the CEO of the world's largest executive search firm, Korn/Ferry International Inc (KFY.N), said

Steady economic and regulatory headwinds are expected to curb the issuance of consumer debt securitizations in 2010, even after this year's revival in the U.S. asset-backed market.

The United States stands at the end of a generation when greed drove leaders and rewards became perverted, General Electric Co Chief Executive Jeff Immelt said in a speech at West Point on Wednesday.

Emails Tiger Woods sent to one of his mistresses Rachel Uchitel was published on Wednesday by In Touch Magazine, claiming that Woods fell in love with her.

Thousands of Jewish West Bank settlers and their supporters demonstrated near the official residence of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Wednesday to protest his 10-month building freeze.

Rachel Uchitel, one of Tiger Woods' alleged mistresses, described the scandal involving her alleged affair with the professional golfer as horrible according to reports from OK! Magazine.

It could be argued that 2009 was the year of the App Store, as Apple's bustling storefront for downloadable iPhone programs caught fire with consumers. The store - with more than 100,000 apps - has seen more than 2 billion downloads. It has also become one of Apple's most powerful marketing tools, leaving competitors scrambling to catch up.

Guinea's military junta chief is in a difficult condition after an assassination attempt and a return to Guinea is not imminent, a junior French minister who works on relations with African countries said on Wednesday.

NATO will step up fighting in Afghanistan next year as 37,000 more troops join the conflict, and is aware that increased civilian casualties may be the result, a military spokesman said on Wednesday

President Barack Obama's top aides promised on Wednesday robust negotiations toward a global climate change deal this month, but firmly stated the United States does not owe the world reparations for centuries of carbon pollution

Google's share of the U.S. search market grew 1.4 percent in November, with competitors like Yahoo and Microsoft Bing, left trailing behind.

The Australian Dollar opens marginally higher today at 0.9060 after another bout of risk aversion saw the unit trade as low as 0.9017 during Asian trade on Wednesday.

U.S. President Barack Obama will frame the war in Afghanistan as part of wider pursuit for peace when he accepts the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo on Thursday, a U.S. official said.

“God bless Tiger. This week we got a huge uplift.” Yahoo CEO Carol Bartz told a crowd of investors in New York on Tuesday at the UBS Media and Communications Conference.

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Stocks ended higher on Wednesday, reversing earlier losses, as a weaker dollar fueled appetite for riskier assets, boosting shares of financial, technology and natural resource companies.

In a note to clients issued Wednesday, Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster believes there is a 70 percent chance Apple may finally roll out the iPhone on the Verizon sometime next year.

Bank of America Corp fully repaid the U.S. government the $45 billion in aid it took during the height of the financial crisis, the company said on Wednesday.