IBT Staff Reporter

Manchester United has moved up the league table of the world's richest football clubs, putting it just behind Real Madrid, who have held their top position for the third consecutive year.

Sony's Playstation 3 has outsold Microsoft's rival Xbox 360 for the first time since both systems have been released, according to new data surfacing late Thursday.

Sony's Playstation 3 game console will double its installed base this year according to new research, growing faster than any of its rivals and making up for ground lost on its botched debut in 2006.

Disneyland Resort will later this week partner with Microsoft, software provider Lifeware and home builder Taylor Marrison to create an attraction featuring digital home technologies of the future.

U.S. stocks dropped for the first time this week on Thursday, after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke forecasted sluggish economic growth in 2008. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 175.3 points, or 1.4 percent, to end at 12,377, with all but one of its 30 components ending in the red.

The dollar fell on Thursday against the euro after Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke signaled that policy makers were ready to lower interest rates if the U.S. economy continued to deteriorate.

Nintendo's Wii is expected to displace Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360 as the new-generation video game console with the world's largest installed base.

Crude futures climbed nearly $2 on Thursday as economic data from Japan and the U.S. diminished worries about a worldwide recession. Prices were also supported by supply concerns.

Platinum continued its record high above $2,000 an ounce on Thursday after Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd., the second-biggest producer of the metal, reported a drop in output because of power cuts in South Africa. Palladium also gained.

Gold futures edged slightly higher on Thursday as the dollar fell against major currencies Thursday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the U.S. economic outlook had worsened and urged the central bank to support growth.

For the past eight years, Wal-Mart Stores Inc's shareholders have had little reason to beam like the retailer's well-known smiley face image, as stock prices have dropped and the company has underperformed rivals like Target Corp. But the gloom may be finally lifting -- ironically thanks in part to the U.S. economy's increasing troubles.

Oscar-winning quartet George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Reobert De Niro and Tom Hanks are urging the Screen Actors Guild to quickly start its contract negotiations with Hollywood producers in order to avoid another strike.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Thursday held the door open to more interest rate cuts to help the struggling economy, but told Congress the central bank expects growth to pick up later in the year. The Fed will act in a timely manner as needed to support growth and to provide adequate insurance against downside risks, Bernanke told the Senate Banking Committee.

Google plans to enter the online music market in China for the first time, as it steps up its battle with local incumbent Baidu.com Inc, media reported on Thursday. Google is expected to announce a joint venture with Top100.cn, to allow users to listen to and download licensed music files for free, major portal Sina.com said, citing local newspaper reports based on sources close to the U.S. firm.

A leader of Myanmar's biggest rebel group was shot dead at his home in a Thai border town on Thursday in an assassination immediately blamed on troops loyal to the former Burma's military junta.

Hezbollah's chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on Thursday threatened Israel with open war after accusing the Jewish state of killing one of its top commanders. Zionists, if you want this type of open war then let the whole world hear: let it be an open war, Nasrallah told mourners at the funeral of Imad Moughniyah, a legend to Hezbollah but one of the men most wanted by Israel and the U.S. for planning attacks that killed hundreds.

For hundreds of thousands of Americans facing spiraling mortgage costs, the last hope of keeping their home may lie in a classroom in a back office of a local nonprofit group.

Swiss bank UBS has revealed $26.6 billion in exposure to risky U.S. mortgages distinct from subprime loans, increasing its vulnerability to the global credit crisis and sending its shares sharply lower. The newly unveiled exposure was for so-called Alt-A mortgages, which are of higher quality than subprime loans but also considered risky.

Yahoo Inc is in talks on a possible deal with News Corp, but analysts said an alternative was unlikely to emerge to rival Microsoft Corp's bid for Yahoo, now valued at $42.1 billion. News of the talks to combine their Web properties may involve a cash infusion from Rupert Murdoch's News Corp and an unnamed private equity fund.

Emboldened by public sector banks, State Bank of India (SBI) and Canara Bank's move of slashing prime lending rate (PLR) by 0.25 percent, India's Finance Minister P. Chidambaram has urged other state-run banks to follow suit to ensure that productive sectors of the economy are not starved of credit.

India's Planning Commission has fixed annual plan outlay for Tamil Nadu for the year 2008-09 at Rs.16,000 crore ($4 billion).

Tax payers can expect to receive rebates starting in May, after President George W. Bush today signed into law a bill authorizing payments from $300 to $1,200 to more than 130 million people. The rebates are part of $168 billion plan approved by lawmakers this month to give a booster shot to the slowing U.S. economy. The stimulus package also includes tax breaks for businesses when they invest in new plants and equipment.

One of the world's largest manufacturer of optical and magnetic storage, New Delhi-based Moser Baer India is set to invest over $1.7 billion (Rs.6900 crore) in expanding its thin film photovoltaic (PV) capacity by 565 megawatt (MW).

If you unexpectedly receive a Valentine's Day e-card, be careful, it may not be from a secret admirer, but instead may contain the 'Storm Worm' virus which could infect your computer system.

Venezuela said that the U.S was supporting Exxon Mobil's lawsuit to freeze its state-controlled oil revenue in an effort to destabilize the country.

Platinum surged to a historic high above $2,000 an ounce on continuing concerns of lower output by South Africa, the world's largest platinum producer.

Crude oil prices rose slightly on Wednesday after a government report showed an increase in U.S. retail sales, relieving fears of an economic recession and lower demand.

Gold futures edged lower on Wednesday while platinum surged to a historic high above $2,000 an ounce on continuing concerns of lower output by South Africa, the world's largest platinum producer.

In a moved to fight off a hostile takeover bid from Microsoft Corp., Internet portal Yahoo and social networking site MySpace could wind up as part of the same company if high level corporate talks come to bear fruit, according to reports.