IBT Staff Reporter

Distillate (including diesel) is the second largest petroleum product consumed in the United States, used for everything from fuel for trucks and trains to residential heating and even a small amount of power generation. Although still overshadowed by gasoline consumption within the United States, global trends have been rapidly increasing the demand for distillate. This is causing major changes in the United States' role in the world distillate market.

The European Union can cut carbon dioxide emissions by 30 percent from 1990 levels by 2020 at almost no cost, according to a report by climate consultancy firm Ecofys released on Wednesday.

Belgian holding company Ackermans & van Haaren and energy company Electrabel will join forces to create a new renewable energy company, the two companies said on Wednesday.

U.S. stocks tumbled in a broad sell-off on Wednesday, sending the benchmark S&P 500 lower for a fourth straight day, after weak data on new home sales heightened concerns about the pace of the economic recovery.

General Dynamics Corp reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit on Wednesday as strength in defense sales helped offset weakness in business jets.

Pfizer Inc awarded two top executives cash and stock bonuses for their roles in carrying through the recently completed $67.3 billion deal for U.S. rival Wyeth, the company said on Wednesday.

U.S. researchers have found a way to coax human embryonic stem cells to turn into the types of cells that make eggs and sperm, shedding light on a stage of early human development that has not been fully understood.

Programs in the workplace designed to get people to exercise can improve fitness, cut cholesterol levels, reduce job stress and even improve attendance, a new analysis of the medical literature shows.

Lady Gaga and former American Idol contestant Adam Lambert co worked in a song that will be featured on Lambert's album For Your Entertainment.

GMAC Inc on Wednesday launched a new government-backed bond sale ahead of a regulatory deadline next month that will test the company's capital levels and ability to absorb losses.

Sales of new U.S. homes unexpectedly tumbled in September, their first drop in six months, underscoring the hazards to an economic recovery even as businesses appeared to be stepping up investment.

Haunted vaults, voodoo witches and suicidal forests are enough to make even the most fearless travelers reconsider their trip. Put them together and you have got yourself one heck of a fright night.

The U.S. Senate's top Democrat and top Republican each voiced support on Wednesday for extending a soon-to-expire $8,000 tax credit for homebuyers, but left unclear when the chamber would act.

Hotels can offer some of the best views in the world and when it comes to accommodation with altitude, more and more hotel developers are striving to scale new heights. From skyscrapers with

U.S. stocks fell further on Wednesday and the S&P 500 briefly fell 2 percent, after disappointing new home sales data sparked worries about the strength of the economic recovery, prompting a sell-off.

The holiday season is crunch time for video game publishers, who are pinning their hopes on a slew of big releases to make up for lackluster sales this year.

Yahoo Inc said it has fixed various shortcomings that have plagued the Internet company in recent years and touted its large online audience and ties to advertisers as keys to its comeback.

Microsoft Corp is viewed as the most likely buyer or partner for IAC/InterActiveCorp's Ask.com if CEO Barry Diller decides to throw in the towel on the struggling search engine.

The Swiss government is looking to change the law on assisted suicide to make sure it is only used as a last resort by the terminally ill, and to limit so-called death tourism, it said on Wednesday.

Arab states could face political and social instability if they underinvest in the education of their young, expanding populations, a regional education report said on Wednesday.

China has told the United States that it plans to formally launch an investigation that could lead to new import duties on autos and sports utility vehicles made by Chrysler, Ford and General Motors, a U.S. industry official said on Wednesday.

Somali pirates holding two Britons captive aboard a yacht off the coast of the Horn of Africa nation warned Britain not to try to rescue the couple.

NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen hopes to secure Russian help in equipping and training Afghan security forces during a visit to Moscow in December, an alliance spokesman said on Wednesday.

Some of the nation's largest companies pushed back against U.S. Democrats' plans to deliver a government-run insurance option in a healthcare overhaul, decrying it as a step backward that would drive up costs for employers and their workers.

Some of the nation's largest companies pushed back against U.S. Democrats' plans to deliver a government-run insurance option in a healthcare overhaul, decrying it as a step backward that would drive up costs for employers and their workers.

U.S. stocks hit session lows on Wednesday and the Dow industrials briefly fell 1 percent after disappointing new home sales data sparked worries about the economic recovery.

A bill that would give the Obama administration power to impose sanctions on a broad array of companies involved in providing Iran with gasoline cleared a key congressional committee on Wednesday.

Miley Cyrus, one of Disney's hottest stars of the past three years with hit records and hit films, has been voted the worst celebrity influence of 2009 by the very people who made her a star, tweens and teens, according to an online poll on Wednesday.

A popular $8,000 tax credit for first-time U.S. homebuyers, which has helped lift the housing market out of its worst slump since the Great Depression, is set to expire on November 30.