IBT Staff Reporter

The European Central Bank kept its key interest rate steady on Thursday but the Bank of England reduced rates for the second straight month, citing inflation pressure in line with analyst expectations.

Federal Reserve officials on Wednesday expressed concern about a possible U.S. recession but warned that the central bank cannot let down its guard when it comes to fighting inflation. Right now, we're concerned about growth, Richmond Federal Reserve Bank President Jeffrey Lacker said.

Shares of Apple slid over 5 percent on Wednesday on reports that the consumer electronic maker was cutting production of its handheld devices and notebook computers.

Shares of Yahoo are trading at a nearly 7 percent discount to Microsoft's bid offer, but some analysts are contending that the world's largest software maker may raise the stakes to capture one of the Web's most recognizes brands.

Time Warner CEO told investors on a conference call on Wednesday that the company will split off AOL Internet-access service and eliminate 100 jobs.

Shares of Apple slid over 5 percent on Wednesday on reports that the consumer electronic maker was cutting production of its handheld devices and notebook computers.

Google Inc may partner with another Chinese company in an effort to capture the Chinese market after two years of operation in the region with stiff competition from Baidu.com Inc which leads the market and provides free, unlicensed music downloads.

Copper futures climbed on Wednesday as supplies of the red metal stored in London Metal Exchange warehouses fell.

Platinum futures scaled a record high above $1,819 an ounce early Wednesday on continued concerns over supplies from top producer South Africa after the country started experiencing power cuts which have hindered mining operations. Gold also rose on investor demand.

Crude oil declined more than $1 on Wednesday after weekly inventories surpassed forecasted gains, increasing worries of a slump in demand.

The launch of Atlantis shuttle to the international space station may be delayed again due to bad weather as a result of the tornadoes and thunderstorms that swept through the US on Tuesday evening and Wednesday morning.

At least 45 people confirmed dead, more than 150 others seriously injured when the tornadoes and thunderstorms struck five US states.

Cotton prices increased on Wednesday after a decline of the dollar made exports cheaper.

Corn and soybeans gained on Wednesday amid expectations that increasing global demand will reduce inventories for the two crops before next harvests.

U.S. stocks retreated after the markets single-plunge in nearly a year on Wednesday after Philadelphia Federal Reserve President Charles Plosser said he was against overly aggressive rate cuts.

After being on the market for slightly over 200 days, Apple's iPhone managed to take second place in the U.S smartphone market behind Research in Motion's venerable Blackberry, and ahead of Motorola offerings, but some experts contend the growth may shot lived unless the firm's business model changes.

It has become pretty clear that Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang does not want to merge the company he co-founded as a Stanford student with Microsoft.

A British travel company has paid 560,000 pounds ($1.1 mln) for the domain name cruises.co.uk, a price that is effectively $1 million just for the letter S since it already owns the address cruise.co.uk.

Heath Ledger died of an accidental overdose of prescription drugs, six of which were found in his body, according to results of a toxicology test released Wednesday by the New York City medical examiner's office.

The yen rose against the dollar and euro on Wednesday after Asian stocks plunged amid worries about the U.S. economy.

Time Warner Inc., the world's largest media conglomerate, reported Wednesday fourth-quarter and full-year results which were roughly in line with Wall Street's expectations, as strong gains in cable television and from the sale of AOL's online access business in Europe.

The Writers Guild of America plans to brief its members this weekend on a deal taking shape to end their 3-month-old strike, using the meetings to gauge rank-and-file support for the labor plan, union leaders said on Tuesday.

Web search leader Google Inc is planning to boost its presence in China by tying up with a Chinese online music company to provide free music downloads, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

Skeptical investors are trading Yahoo Inc shares at a 6.5 percent discount to Microsoft Corp's unofficial offer price, but some Wall Streeters expect the software giant to raise its bid.

Kenya's political rivals resumed crisis talks on Wednesday despite preparations for a meeting of east African foreign ministers which has angered opposition leaders.

France's defense minister flew to Chad on Wednesday in a show of support for President Idriss Deby who survived a weekend assault on the capital N'Djamena by rebels.

The London Organising Committee for the 2012 Olympic Games has announced British Airways as the fourth Tier One sponsor of the London Games.

Rupert Murdoch, Chair of global media giant News Corporation, has said that he would not be making a rival bid for Yahoo, in response to Microsoft's $44.6 billion offer made last week.

The good news for the environment is that U.S. consumers who bought new mobile handsets in the fourth quarter of 2007 recycled their old phones at double the rate that they did in the third quarter.