IBT Staff Reporter

Companies ranging from Eastman Kodak to Unisys are at risk of defaulting on their debt in the eyes of credit ratings agency Moody's Investors Service, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Apple Inc. is rumored to launch a netbook computer with a touch screen monitor as early as the second half of this year in time for back-to-school sales, according to Dow Jones Newswires.

Eli Broad, a former director and shareholder of AIG who joined other investors last year to hatch a plan to reclaim the insurer from federal ownership, said he has thrown in the towel.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Tuesday regulators must find a way to safeguard the entire financial system and not just its parts to prevent future crises like the one currently engulfing economies around the globe.

Oil rose above $47 a barrel on Tuesday after reports Saudi Arabia was largely maintaining its supply curbs to Asia and Europe and as analysts expected a drop in U.S. crude inventories.

Prominent banking analyst Meredith Whitney warned that credit cards are the next credit crunch, as contracting credit lines will lower consumer spending and hurt the U.S. economy.

DAR ES SALAAM - The International Monetary Fund warned on Tuesday that the world economy will likely contract this year in a Great Recession and African leaders said the financial crisis could undo hard-won social-economic gains.

Stock futures rose on Tuesday as reassuring comments from Citigroup about the bank's performance fueled a run-up in financials and investors became hopeful about Washington's efforts to revive the economy.

The Walt Disney Co said on Monday that it planned to cut carbon emissions from fuels by half by 2012, and ultimately to achieve net zero direct greenhouse gas emissions at its office and retail complexes, theme parks and cruise lines.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Monday that she supported a higher ethanol-to-gasoline blend rate as a way to reduce reliance on petroleum imports.

India is launching its own version of Google Earth for urban planning, officials said, amid worries that it could be misused after the Mumbai attacks probe showed militants had studied Google images of targets.

Western governments have overstated the role the Internet plays in the recruitment of militants, and measures to block extremist material are crude, expensive and counterproductive, a report said on Tuesday.

Citigroup Inc was profitable in the first two months of 2009 and is confident about its capital strength after tough internal stress tests, Chief Executive Vikram Pandit told staff in an open letter.

U.S. officials are examining what fresh steps they may need to take to stabilize Citigroup Inc if its problems mount, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.

Citigroup was profitable in the first two months of 2009 and is confident about its capital strength after tough internal stress tests, according to a memo from Chief Executive Vikram Pandit obtained by Reuters.

The International Monetary Fund on Monday warned that the world economy will likely contract this year in a Great Recession and African leaders said the financial crisis could undo hard-won social-economic gains.

Prominent banking analyst Meredith Whitney warned that credit cards are the next credit crunch, as contracting credit lines will lower consumer spending and hurt the U.S. economy.

World stocks rose on Tuesday after three days of consecutive declines knocked them to 6-year lows, while government bonds slipped as fears grew governments may need to issue huge debt to fund economic stimulus packages.

Apple iPhone and iPod Touch users will be able to get videos of the current 13 finalists in a confessional format, along with bios, pictures, news and other behind-the-scenes content from the reigning TV ratings leader.

The world economy is likely to shrink to below zero this year, in what many are now referring to as the Great Recession, the head of the International Monetary Fund said on Tuesday.

The recession-hit U.S. economy is proving weaker than economists expected just a month ago, but forecasters still think a recovery is in the cards for later this year, a survey released on Tuesday showed.

Asian shares outside Japan posted their best gains in a month on Tuesday while safe-haven flight to the dollar eased, but the moves were seen as only a momentary reprieve from a gloomy economic outlook.

The U.S. government's plan to strip banks of troubled assets could force some firms to record large losses, but the move would help restore confidence in the banking system, the head of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said in an interview in Tuesday's Washington Post.

Oil edged down below $47 a barrel on Tuesday, as dealers mulled OPEC output options at a meeting this weekend and ahead of weekly U.S. stocks data expected to show another fall in crude inventories.

Asian shares rebounded on Tuesday from a three-session losing streak, while the safe-haven bid on the dollar retreated in moves seen as a momentary reprieve from concerns about the weak outlook for the global economy.

Oil held above $47 a barrel on Tuesday, as dealers mulled the possibility of deeper OPEC output cuts at a meeting this weekend and ahead of weekly U.S. stocks data expected to show another fall in crude inventories.

Public health experts say that authorities and Zimbabweans themselves must take care not to spread cholera as the number of reported cases continues to rise.

Members of the Obama administration's autos task force met for the first time with the national leadership of the United Auto Workers on Monday as part of a visit to the Detroit area where they again met with executives of General Motors Corp and Chrysler.

Dow Chemical Co agreed on Monday to go through with its purchase of Rohm and Haas Co reaching a settlement after the two sides were scheduled to go to a trial over Dow's refusal to close the deal.