IBT Staff Reporter

he International Energy Agency forecasted global oil demand will increase by 1.4 million barrels per day or 1.7 percent to 85.2 million barrels per day in 2010.Crude oil fell below $60 to $59.52 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Friday. Vestas Wind Systems announced Friday it has received two orders to deliver, install and commission a total of 38 wind turbines for two Chinese projects.

A new General Motors emerged from bankruptcy protection on Friday -- far more quickly than most industry-watchers had expected -- as a leaner automaker pledging to win back American consumers and pay back taxpayers.

The world's most powerful countries have injected momentum into long-running negotiations over a new global free trade pact by setting a 2010 deadline.

G8 leaders pledged $20 billion (12.3 billion pounds) in farm aid to help poor nations feed themselves, surpassing expectations on the final day of a summit that has yielded little progress on climate change and trade.

A 6.0 magnitude earthquake that shook southwest China's Yunnan province on Thursday has killed one person and injured 325 people, Xinhua news agency said.

U.S. stocks dropped on Friday on jitters that an economic recovery and corporate profits will be anemic, underscored by a Chevron warning about second-quarter results and a tumble in oil futures.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev warned the United States Friday that if it did not reach agreement with Russia on plans for missile defense systems, Moscow would deploy rockets in an enclave near Poland.

U.S. President Barack Obama arrived at the Vatican on Friday for his first meeting with Pope Benedict and what the White House says will be frank discussions on issues they agree and disagree on.

Moves to oust unpopular Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso will intensify if, as many expect, his ruling bloc fares badly in a key local election on Sunday that is considered a bellwether for a coming national poll.

U.S. consumer sentiment wilted in early July to the weakest since March, when confidence in the financial sector and economy were at a low ebb, the Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers showed on Friday.

Israel is ready to withdraw from areas of the Golan Heights, but it will not give up large parts of the occupied territory in any peace deal with Syria, a top aide to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.

Rivals for power in Honduras held to their conflicting and seemingly intractable positions on Friday as hopes faded for a quick negotiated solution to the crisis triggered by last month's coup.

U.S. consumer sentiment wilted in early July to the weakest since March, when confidence in the financial sector and economy were at a low ebb, the Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers showed on Friday.

Chinese riot police broke up a small demonstration by Uighurs leaving Friday prayers in a Muslim Uighur neighborhood of Urumqi, arresting several who were taken away with hands above their heads.

A new General Motors emerged from bankruptcy protection on Friday -- far more quickly than most industry-watchers had expected -- as a leaner automaker pledging to win back American consumers and pay back taxpayers.

U.S. consumer sentiment wilted in early July to the weakest since March, when confidence in the financial sector and economy were at a low ebb, the Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers showed on Friday.

The Dow industrials and S&P 500 dropped on Friday on jitters that an economic recovery and corporate profits will be anemic after Chevron warned about second-quarter results and oil futures tumbled.

Nestle's bottled water business is eyeing acquisitions in emerging markets to help end a slump which has made it the worst performer in the food giant's sales, Nestle Executive Vice-President John Harris said.

Chinese developers are commemorating the late Michael Jackson by building a scaled-down replica of his Neverland Ranch on an island off Shanghai, a state-run newspaper said on Friday.

The traditional media industry may be under fire as the weak economy crushes advertising spending, but companies and investors are scrambling to stake out territory in the new world of mobile content.

Hundreds of mourners attended a funeral on Thursday for two American Mormons murdered in a northern Mexican community by drug hitmen for denouncing cartel kidnappings, and the FBI offered to aid a police probe.

Swiss bank UBS braced on Friday for a high-stakes trial in the United States next week that could force it to reveal secret client data, as a last-minute deal remained elusive.

German-based retailer giant Metro Group will invest 80 million euros ($112.3 million) in China to open four more stores there this year, Tianle Cai, chief executive of Metro China, announced on Thursday.

Global oil demand will rebound 1.7 percent next year, led by rising consumption in emerging economies as the developed world recovers from recession, the International Energy Agency said on Friday.

The climate change and energy policy bill winding its way through the U.S. Congress shows a new federal eagerness to build a renewable energy future, but what specifically to build where is still up for debate.

General Motors Co. emerged from bankruptcy today, with chief executive officer Fritz Henderson saying the top priorities for the company will be “customers, cars, and culture.”

The Dow industrials and the S&P 500 opened lower on Friday after Chevron Corp warned about second-quarter earnings, compounding worries about the energy sector's outlook amid a drop in oil prices.

The U.S. trade gap narrowed unexpectedly to $26 billion in May, the smallest since November 1999, as exports rose and domestic demand for foreign goods slumped, government data on Friday showed.

Cisco Systems Inc is in the process of cutting between 1,500 and 2,000 jobs. according to an report from Thomas Weisel analyst Hasan Imam.