IBT Staff Reporter

The U.S. economy may have turned a corner after the deepest recession in some 70 years, but Federal Reserve policymakers appear to be in no rush to raise interest rates.

A popular website of classified ads that has given Cubans a taste of the free market has been blocked on the communist-run island, Internet users said.

U.S. securities investigators raised repeated concern over how Bernard Madoff could be running an honest business, but never followed through on the many red flags they uncovered.

Canadian auto parts maker Magna wants Herbert Demel, the head of its Austrian car development and assembly plant, to become head of Opel, a German magazine said, citing sources.

A giant silver teapot shines in the pale sun outside the Alessi factory, its scale a measure of how in the 1980s and 90s Italian kitchenware, from espresso-makers to lemon-squeezers, grew into objects of desire.

U.S. retailers are expected to post positive October sales results this week, but investors hoping for a clear signal on economic recovery could be in for disappointment, industry experts said.

President Barack Obama said on Saturday this week's positive job and economic growth figures proved that his big spending efforts to stimulate the economy were working.

- Move over Switzerland. The tiny state of Delaware beats the Alpine country in a contest for the most secretive financial jurisdiction, a tax justice rights group said on Saturday.

- Move over Switzerland. The tiny state of Delaware beats the Alpine country in a contest for the most secretive financial jurisdiction, a tax justice rights group said on Saturday.

A former top executive at hedge fund firm ValueAct Capital is one of seven people charged with trading on inside information in Acxiom Corp.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is in settlement talks with several large financial institutions to resolve investigations into the awarding of municipal investment contracts, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday.

Brazil's government is working on a broad overhaul of the country's currency laws following a strong runup of the nation's currency this year, the president of the central bank said in an interview published on Saturday.

TeleNav Inc, a Silicon Valley-based provider of voice-guided navigation services for mobile phones, filed plans with U.S. regulators on Friday to raise as much as $75 million in an initial public offering.

Banco do Brasil, Brazil's biggest bank, wants to fetch up to 10 billion reais ($5.7 billion) in a share offering in the United States to replenish its capital base, newspaper O Estado de S. Paulo reported on Saturday, citing unnamed sources.

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers said on Friday that it withdrew its application to hold a representation election for fleet service workers at Delta Air Lines Inc, a move the U.S. carrier called repugnant.

Investor Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc sold 2.9 percent of its holdings in debt ratings agency Moody's Corp this week, raising $28.7 million in the transaction, according to a regulatory filing on Friday.

President Barack Obama said on Saturday this week's positive job and economic growth figures proved that his big spending efforts to stimulate the economy were working.

The third typhoon to hit the Philippines in five weeks slammed into the main island of Luzon on Saturday, uprooting trees and toppling power lines, but there were no immediate reports of widespread damage.

Japan is preparing new aid for Afghanistan of up to $5 billion (3 billion pounds) to be used to help former Taliban fighters find jobs and build roads, a big increase from previous commitments, the Nikkei newspaper said on Saturday.

Somali pirates said on Saturday that a captured British couple had been moved on shore from a container vessel and that there was a dispute between different groups over the two Britons.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai's election rival Abdullah Abdullah will announce on Sunday whether he will take part in next week's disputed run-off vote, his campaign said after speculation mounted he will pull out.

Iranian opposition leader Mirhossein Mousavi appeared to urge his supporters on Saturday to take part in rallies on November 4 marking the 30th anniversary of the seizure of the U.S. embassy in Tehran.

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has no intention of resigning even if he were convicted in one of the trials against him, he said in an interview for a book to be published next week.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday, launching a rapid series of meetings with Palestinian and Israeli officials to keep up pressure for a new Mideast peace deal.

Permira, Bain Capital and a team of CVC Capital and Blackstone have made offers in the final round of bidding for Citigroup Inc's Japanese telemarketer Bellsystem24, seven people with direct knowledge of the deal said.

China's No. 2 nickel producer Jilin Jien's ambition to expand its Canadian footprint, is facing its biggest hurdle as investors look set to reject its final bid for early-stage miner Canadian Royalties.

Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co's discount retailer Dollar General Corp set the terms of its initial public offering on Friday, in a sign that the $750 million offering could price by mid-November.

American International Group Inc said on Friday it was no longer looking to sell two of its Japanese units, the latest sign that its new chief executive may be taking a slower approach to restructuring.

China's Geely is confident its bid for Ford Motor's Volvo car unit will be successful, chairman Li Shufu said on Friday, as it seeks to lead China's automakers onto the global stage.