IBT Staff Reporter

China overtook the United States as the world's biggest auto market for the first half of 2009 after June sales soared 36.5% from a year earlier, according to official data released on Thursday.

As Citigroup downsizes, chief executive Vikram Pandit announced today he is installing new senior managers at the company's top ranks.

American International Group Inc , the insurer rescued by a series of federal bailouts, may have zero equity value due to the risk of more credit default swap losses and the disposal of key assets at low valuations, Citigroup said.

Citigroup Inc on Thursday announced its biggest management shake-up since the financial crisis began, replacing its chief financial officer and installing a new banking chief as it prepares to give the government a 34 percent equity stake.

The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits fell to the lowest level since January, but the seasonally adjusted data was distorted by an unusual pattern of layoffs in the automotive industry.

The Bank of England cut the pace at which it pumps money into Britain's economy on Thursday after unexpectedly deciding not to expand its 125 billion pound ($204 billion) asset buying scheme, raising fears it may stop purchases completely.

The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 rose slightly on Thursday as investors unloaded consumer staple and healthcare stocks and bought technology and commodity-related shares.

A fresh wave of cyber attacks that slowed U.S. and South Korean websites this week hit more targets on Thursday, a Web security firm said, while the South's spy agency has said the hacking may be linked to North Korea.

Coming to a living room near you -- 3D videogames.

For the first time since January, the number of Americans filing for unemployment claims fell in the past week according to reports from the Labor Department. The number of initial claims in the week ending July 4 fell 52,000 to 565,000.

A fresh wave of cyber attacks that slowed U.S. and South Korean websites this week hit more targets on Thursday, a Web security firm said, while the South's spy agency has said the hacking may be linked to North Korea.

Michael Jackson's long-time dermatologist Dr. Arnold Klein said he was aware that Jackson took dangerous drugs and warned him repeatedly about the powerful drug Diprivan which the pop star used to fall asleep.

Citigroup said there is a high probability that American International Group Inc's equity value is zero, given the risk of more credit default swap losses and the management's eagerness to dispose of key businesses at low valuations.

Michael Jackson's tear jerking memorial was watched by over 31.1 million people across 18 U.S. TV networks and cable outlets, less than Obama's inauguration but about the same as 'American Idol'.

French carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen and Japan's Mitsubishi Motors Corp denied a report on Thursday that they are working together to develop and produce parts for plug-in hybrid vehicles.

The program, which could be extended by lawmakers, is the latest of a variety of enticements offered to car buyers in the downturn.

Yang Rong, a Chinese automobile tycoon who fled the country after being accused of economic crimes, is preparing to launch an ambitious plan to make clean-tech cars in the United States, said a source.

The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits fell sharply last week but the data was distorted by an unusual pattern of layoffs in the automotive industry, which amplified the decline

June sales fell for most U.S. retailers as the plunging job market and cool, rainy weather dampened interest in summer shopping for consumers, triggering concern about the back-to-school season.

Venture capitalists believe the worst of the financial crisis is behind them but are not expecting a rapid recovery in initial public offerings and deals this year, a quarterly survey released on Wednesday showed.

Oil reversed early gains and dropped below $60 a barrel on Thursday as a downturn in U.S. equities added to pressure from high U.S. oil inventories and persistent concerns about the timing of any economic recovery.

Commodity risk management firm FCStone Group Inc swung to a quarterly loss, hurt by a bad debt provision, higher professional fees and severance charges.

The U.S. military on Thursday handed over to Iraqi authorities five Iranian officials it had detained in Iraq, and they would be transferred to Tehran shortly, Iraqi and Iranian officials said.

Iran will not back down even one step over its nuclear work, a senior adviser to the country's top authority said in remarks published on Thursday, making clear Tehran's continued defiance in a row with the West.

Israeli start-up 3GSolar says it has developed the world's first commercial-size solar energy system that uses colored dyes to turn sunlight into electricity.

China's Guilin Sanjin Pharmaceutical Co and Zhejiang Wanma Cable Co on Thursday said they would list shares on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange on Friday, the first two initial public equity offerings in the Chinese stock market since last September.

An explosion outside a school south of the Afghan capital on Thursday killed at least 25 people, including 15 students, officials said, the worst toll from a single blast in a year.

A group of companies from Europe and northern Africa will meet in Munich on Monday to map out concrete steps for a series of large-scale renewable energy projects worth 400 billion euros ($560 billion) over 40 years.

Singapore's state investor Temasek TEM.UL is in talks with a unit of Bank of China to launch a $1 billion to $2 billion investment fund to focus on fast-growing infrastructure projects across China, sources said on Thursday.