IBT Staff Reporter

EU Commission Chief Jose Manuel Barroso said Tuesday that European economy still remains very volatile” despite some encouraging signs.

August 25, 2009 marks the eight anniversary of the death of Aaliyah Dana Haughton who died when a plane she was in crashed shortly after take-off in the Bahamas.

U.S. mortgage-backed securities risk premiums are about a half-percentage point below where they would be if it were not for massive buying from the Federal Reserve, Amherst Securities said on Tuesday.

U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday as economic data and the renomination of Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke reassured investors and offset concerns about red ink in the federal budget.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday he was seeking a formula to enable renewed talks with the Palestinians while permitting Jewish settlers to live normal lives.

Toronto's main stock index finished the session higher on Tuesday on strength in financial shares after Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO) kicked off quarterly earnings results for Canada's big banks with a surprisingly strong performance.

Energy company New Zealand Oil and Gas Ltd (NZO.NZ) reported a 45 percent fall in full year net profit on Wednesday, on the back of lower returns from its Tui oil field.

R&B singer Chris Brown was on Tuesday placed on felony probation for 5 years for assaulting his former girlfriend Rihanna.

Mexico's peso weakened on Tuesday on doubts that stock markets will keep rising because of worries about the strength of a global economic recovery. The peso MXN=MEX01 lost ground for the second straight session, weakening 0.54 percent to 13 per U.S. dollar.

Google is once again under scrutiny again for its Google Maps Street View service.

In late August's quiet trading, four troubled financial companies have accounted for a big piece of total volume on the New York Stock Exchange, in what one analyst referred to as a dash for trash.

New Zealand tourism operator Tourism Holdings Ltd. (THL.NZ) reported a 80 percent fall in full year profit on Wednesday as the global recession hit the tourist industry.

Brazilian iron ore miner Vale is not in talks with Chinese steelmakers on 2009 benchmark prices and will likely keep offering provisional prices on ore shipments, Chief Executive Roger Agnelli said on Tuesday.

U.S. President Barack Obama nominated Ben Bernanke as chairman of Federal Reserve to a second term on Tuesday.

Cash crude differentials weakened sharply Tuesday on the last day of dealing for September cargoes, as traders scrambled to unload grades. Mars sour MRS- dealt for $3.00 a barrel below West Texas Intermediate CLc1, down from -$2.00 on Monday. Light Louisiana Sweet LLS- traded for $2.00 a barrel above WTI, down from as much as +$2.90.

Germany's Linde (LING.DE) will cut up 8 percent of its workforce in Germany as part of a cost-savings programme to help weather the financial crisis, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Tuesday.

More than half the employers in a new poll say they plan to hire full-time employees in the next 12 months, according to research released on Tuesday that could spell relief for unemployed U.S. workers.

Britain's Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY.L), 43 percent owned by the UK government, will cut 200 jobs in its general insurance division by the end of January in a shake-up of back office functions, the bank said on Tuesday.

Melanie Griffith has checked into rehab, the actress' representative told Star magazine. She checked in at Cirque Lodge in Utah, a rehab center where Lindsay Lohan and Kirsten Dunst have also received treatment.

Models present creations from the Escada fall/winter 2009 collection during a fashion show at the MasterCard Luxury Week in Hong Kong August 25, 2009.

Oil prices fell 3 percent on Tuesday as dealers rushed to take profits from a rally that had culminated in a 10-month peak earlier in the day.

More than half the employers in a new poll say they plan to hire full-time employees in the next 12 months, according to research released on Tuesday that could spell relief for unemployed U.S. workers.

YouTube, the world's most popular video sharing site, said on Tuesday it will start sharing advertising cash with users who upload the most popular clips of everything from skateboarding dogs to dancing babies.

Autodealer Cliff Johnson sold 70 vehicles under the government's cash-for-clunkers program, which offered rebates of up to $4,500 to trade in older gas guzzlers.

U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday as economic data and the renomination of Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke reassured investors and offset concerns about red ink in the federal budget.

Bryce Canyon, just over an hour's drive north of our accommodation in Southern Utah, was a stunning, ridiculously enchanting locale.

U.S. President Barack Obama nominated Ben Bernanke to a second term as Federal Reserve chairman on Tuesday, aiming for continuity at a time when the U.S. economy is breaking free from a deep recession.

We spent three nights in Southern Utah, staying at a glorious holiday house about ten minute's drive from Zion National Park. The house was huge; four bedrooms, three bathrooms, a giant open plan kitchen-dining-living area with double height windows looking out onto the snow covered surroundings, two balconies, snow-covered gables, and a giant outdoor jacuzzi.

A common gene variation explains why many people are not helped by the widely prescribed blood thinner Plavix, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday in a study confirming earlier research and paving the way for tests to screen patients before they get the drug.