IBT Staff Reporter

Dell , the world's No.3 PC brand, said on Friday that its core business of selling computers to companies was returning, after a sharp drop-off during the global downturn led to disappointing quarterly results.

European shares fell for a fourth consecutive session on Friday, with banks retreating from earlier gains and energy stocks falling after crude CLc1 prices slipped.

U.S. stock index futures were lower on Friday, a day after Dell Inc reported weaker-than-expected third-quarter sales, underlining concerns about the strength of technology sector.

*U.S. stock index futures were lower on Friday, a day after Dell Inc (DELL.O) reported weaker-than-expected third-quarter sales, underlining concerns about the strength of technology sector.

Uganda's shilling UGX= fell slightly versus the dollar on Friday due to some demand for greenbacks from the telecommunications and oil sectors, traders said.

* U.S. stock index futures pointed to a mixed open on Wall Street on Friday, with futures for the S&P 500 SPc1 down 0.04 percent, Dow Jones DJc1 futures down 0.04 percent and Nasdaq 100 NDc1 futures up 0.07 percent at 1010 GMT.

Cadbury suitors Ferrero and Hershey would likely break the UK confectioner up into separate businesses if a mooted bid for the company succeeds, an Italian newspaper reported.

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a mixed open on Wall Street on Friday, with futures for the S&P 500 down 0.04 percent, Dow Jones futures down 0.04 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.07 percent at 1010 GMT (5:10 a.m. EST).

China's government appears increasingly to be piercing U.S. government and defense industry computer networks to gather useful data for its military, a congressional advisory panel said on Thursday.

French mobile phone games company Gameloft said it and other software developers were cutting back investment in developing games and other applications for Google's Android platform.

Financial markets saw a rare breakdown in correlations on Friday with world stocks eking out modest gains after the previous sessions losses but the dollar strengthening.

Some of Goldman Sachs Group Inc's largest shareholders have asked the company to cut the size of its bonus pool and pass along more of its profits to investors, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the situation.

Italian chocolate maker Ferrero could be interested in Cadbury's gum and candy division, a unit worth about 5 billion euros ($7.4 billion), in a possible joint takeover bid, business daily Il Sole 24 Ore said on Friday.

Supermarket mogul Ron Burkle and his investment arm, Yucaipa, have purchased a large amount of U.S. luxury retail chain Barneys New York's debt, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.

New Google Inc software will start up a computer as fast as a television can be turned on, the search company said on Thursday as it showed off its Chrome operating system designed for PCs that do their work on the Web.

Asian shares slipped on Friday, but recovered some early losses, while the dollar was steady after U.S. data raised fears that a global economic recovery could lose momentum.

Police Thursday evening in a press conference announced the cause of death of slain five-year-old Shaninya Davis as asphyxiation, the Examiner reported.

Socialite Paris Hilton and her boyfriend are well known in their Los Angeles neighborhood as the couple who throw loud parties and fight constantly annoying neighbors and police.

Asian shares fell on Friday and the dollar firmed as investors took profits on riskier assets after U.S. data raised fears that a global economic recovery could lose momentum.

Google Inc on Thursday unveiled the open sourcing of the code for its Chrome operating system for personal computers, inviting developers to keep up with developments and start contributing to Chrome OS, which will hit the market by the holiday season of next year.

Progress toward tighter U.S. financial regulation faltered in the U.S. Congress on Thursday as a House committee postponed a pivotal vote and Republicans on a Senate committee aired stubborn opposition.

China's government appears increasingly to be piercing U.S. government and defense industry computer networks to gather useful data for its military, a congressional advisory panel said on Thursday.

The wireless chip industry expects smartphone market surge to continue, with British microchip designer ARM saying growth would likely even accelerate further next year.

China's government appears increasingly to be piercing U.S. government and defense industry computer networks to gather useful data for its military, a congressional advisory panel said on Thursday.

EBay Inc said on Thursday it had completed its sale of its Skype unit, as it had vowed to do before the end of the year.

New Google Inc software will start up a computer as fast as a television can be turned on, the search company said on Thursday as it showed off its Chrome operating system designed for PCs that do their work on the Web.

If AOL's announcement on Thursday of another 2,500 job cuts is anything to go by, the painful layoffs that have ravaged the media industry over the past year are nowhere near over.

More than 100 Chrysler Group LLC U.S. dealerships face possible closure if they cannot reach new financing deals with GMAC Financial Services or another lender, people involved in the process said on Thursday.

Gap Inc posted a 25 percent rise in quarterly profit as sales rebounded at its Old Navy chain and the company recorded its highest margins in a decade.