IBT Staff Reporter

James Lockhart, the regulator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, will soon step down after more than three years as overseer for the mortgage finance companies, an administration official said.

The studio has picked up the North American distribution rights to

The Australian Dollar opens little changed on Wednesday at 0.8440. In offshore trade the unit traded between a low of 0.8384 in early Europe and a high of 0.8450. In local economic data, retail sales fell 1.4 per cent for the month of June, but surged overall throughout the June quarter.

John Kanary shares a story in A Cup of Chicken Soup for the Soul, about Charlie Boswell. Charlie was blinded during World War II while rescuing his friend from a tank that was under fire.

Iraq is considering blocking websites deemed pornographic or that incite violence or crime, triggering fears of a return to Saddam Hussein-style state censorship and government propaganda.

The U.S. government has queried Goldman Sachs Group Inc about its compensation practices and credit derivative instruments, the firm said on Wednesday.

The two U.S. journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee released from North Korea arrived at home on Wednesday accompanied with the former President Bill Clinton who secured their release in a meeting with the reclusive state's leader Kim Jong-il.

The former U.S. President Bill Clinton expressed words of sincere apology for the journalists' hostile acts, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported Wednesday.

General Motors Co and Magna International Inc have narrowed their differences in talks over the Canadian supplier's bid for Opel and only a small number of issues are still pending, German politicians said on Wednesday.

Marsh & McLennan Cos Inc , the No. 2 global insurance broker, posted quarterly results in line with expectations on Wednesday and forecast improved profitability for its brokerage business, sending its shares up 4.3 percent.

Singer Peter Andre accepted substantial undisclosed libel damages on Friday over a newspaper claim that he was unfaithful to his now estranged wife, model Katie Price.

American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc reported a bigger-than-expected quarterly loss on Wednesday due to steep production cuts by automakers and said it remained uncertain whether it could complete a debt restructuring outside of bankruptcy.

Oil fell on Wednesday as rising U.S. crude inventories and weak economic data raised doubts about a demand rebound in the world's top energy consumer.

The United States and Switzerland are expected to reach a final settlement on Friday to end a tax row against giant UBS , but details of the deal won't be made public the same day, sources familiar with the situation said.

A blood test that detects nine compounds in blood may offer a safe way to diagnose early cases of lung cancer, Celera Corporation reported on Tuesday.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was sworn in as Iran's president on Wednesday in a ceremony boycotted by reformist leaders and parliamentarians and marred by street protests over his victory.

Stocks fell on Wednesday as weak reports on the economy's service sector and labor market raised concerns about the strength of the recovery.

The Obama administration is resisting calls to get involved with ensuring that credit ratings are reliable and said on Wednesday this would force investors to rely even more on the ratings.

Most US kids aren't getting enough vitamin D, a report in Pediatrics shows, raising their risk of weak bones and, possibly, heart disease.

Blockbuster prescription drugs used to treat rheumatoid arthritis and other conditions can increase the risk of potentially deadly cancer in children and teenagers, U.S. health regulators said on Tuesday in ordering stronger warnings on such medications.

The number of mobile users continues to rise in France with 91.8 percent of residents subscribing to wireless services as of end-June, up from 88.1 percent a year ago, the telecoms regulator said on Wednesday.

High cholesterol levels in midlife -- even cholesterol levels considered only borderline elevated -- significantly increases the risk of Alzheimer's disease 30 years later, results of a large study indicate.

Women who quickly put on pounds after starting birth-control injections seem to be at risk of significant long-term weight gain, a new study suggests.

Veterans who come home from Iraq and Afghanistan with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other mental health diagnoses are hit with a double whammy:

General Motors and Magna have narrowed their differences in talks over the Canadian supplier's bid for Opel and only a small number of issues are still pending, German politicians said on Wednesday.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said on Wednesday the government has queried its compensation practices and the use of credit derivatives. Goldman in July reported robust net earnings of $3.4 billion for the second quarter, soon after repaying a $10 billion bailout received from the U.S. Treasury's Troubled Asset Relief Program.

Demand for U.S. home loans rose last week as a decline in 30-year fixed mortgage rates to a three-week low boosted applications for refinancing, the Mortgage Bankers Association said on Wednesday.

Jarvis Cocker has written three songs for the upcoming film