IBT Staff Reporter

South Africa's ruling ANC leader Jacob Zuma has denied allegations of corruption and vowed to fight charges laid against him in court, local media reported on Friday.

Microsoft Corp sold 4.3 million Xbox 360 video game consoles in the last three months of 2007, helped by hit titles such as Halo 3 and Mass Effect, according to company data released on Thursday. But the software giant also said it was disappointed with problems that had plagued its online gaming service for days and offered a free downloadable game to more than 8 million users.

Major automakers reported lower U.S. sales for December led by a 9 percent slide at Ford Motor Co as the industry closed out its weakest year in over a decade and faced the prospect of deeper declines in 2008.

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. or Sinopec, saw it net profit climb to 70 billion yuan ($9.6 billion) in 2007, up 38.2% from a year earlier, according to wire reports which cited a Xinhua News Agency report.

Brazilian and Mexican equities edged higher Thursday, as buyers sought bargains a day after U.S. economic worries sent stocks sharply lower.

In a move that could put more pressure on an already declining DVD market, Netflix, the online DVD rental company said Thursday they will allow users to stream movies and other programming to high definition TVs through a set top box.

Crude prices at a $100/barrel should boost major international oil companies' profits, but increasing competition from governments and suppliers for a bigger share of the bonanza will cap their gains. Shares in European oil companies opened higher on Thursday after U.S. crude hit a record $100/barrel on Wednesday.

The broader U.S. stock market was flat after an earlier rebound fizzled out on Thursday on concerns about technology spending in the new year and anxiety that Friday's payrolls data will offer fresh evidence the economy is headed into a recession.

Crude oil futures rose to a new record of $100 a barrel on Thursday after an Energy Department report showed that crude inventories fell by 4 million barrels last week, ahead of the 1.7 million barrel decline analysts had expected.

Gold futures escalated to a new 28-year high on Thursday, increasing their gains after rallying more than $20 in the previous session as investors snapped up the precious metal on record breaking oil prices and amidst concerns of further tension in Pakistan, analyst said.

Kenya's President Mwai Kibaki offered to talk to political rivals on Thursday as corpses lay in the street and smoke rose from burning slums after a day of battles between police and anti-government protesters.

General Motors Corp Chief Executive Rick Wagoner said on Thursday the No. 1 U.S. automaker expects overall 2008 U.S. auto sales to be about the same as the depressed levels of 2007, even as global sales hit a new high. There are some obvious reasons for concern, but on balance I suspect '08 will be similar to '07 in total, although likely weaker in the first half and stronger in th...

Oil prices broke above $100 a barrel for the first time on Thursday after a U.S. government report showed a steep slide in crude inventories in the world's biggest energy consumer.

You're doomed if you think those grandiose I'll never waste money or buy anything on impulse again resolutions are going to stick. They'll be gone before the leftover spinach dip if you don't whittle them down to size.

Motorola Inc, the world's third biggest cell phone maker, on Thursday introduced a mobile media player that shows live television, on-demand video clips and programming saved on digital video recorders.

China's Lenovo Group Ltd introduced its first consumer computers in the United States on Wednesday, expanding in a region it entered in 2005 with the purchase of IBM's PC business. The unveiling of three new notebook computers with advanced features is part of a broader expansion by Lenovo into the global consumer PC market. The company also plans to sell the new consumer computers in ...

Factory production shrank in December for the first time in nearly a year as tighter lending conditions and a slowing economy took their toll, according to a national survey published on Wednesday.

President Mwai Kibaki's government accused rival Raila Odinga's party of unleashing genocide in Kenya on Wednesday as the death toll from tribal violence over a disputed election passed 300.

International Business Machines Corp. said on Wednesday it had acquired XIV, a privately held storage technology company based in Tel Aviv. Financial terms were not disclosed.

China's state sports system certainly has its critics but many of those who have benefited from it are convinced it remains the secret of their country's sporting success.

Wireless chipmaker Qualcomm Inc.said on Wednesday an unfavorable ruling in a patent dispute with Broadcom Corp would hurt its business in the short term, sending its shares lower. A federal judge in California ruled on Monday that Qualcomm could sell through January 2009 some chips whose designs infringe three patents held by Broadcom, though it must pay royalties. After that, Qualcomm was permane...

National City Corp, one of the 10 largest U.S. banks, on Wednesday said it will cut its common stock dividend 49 percent and eliminate 900 jobs as it stops offering mortgages through brokers, and it plans to raise more capital to cope with weakened credit markets. The Cleveland-based company cut the quarterly dividend to 21 cents per share from 41 cents. Chief Executive Peter Raskind said the cut ...

Stocks looked set to open lower on Wednesday, with the focus on economic data for clues about the outlook for growth and the Federal Reserve's next monetary policy move. Worries about the still escalating U.S. housing crisis and its implications for the overall economy point to a subdued start to the new year, Germany's Postbank said in a daily note.

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Passengers are greeted with a new flight restriction from January 1, as the U.S. Transportation Department bars travelers from packing loose lithium batteries in checked luggage.

The storied rivalry between Jay Leno and David Letterman takes a new twist on Wednesday when the two stars of U.S. late-night television return to the air two months into a bitter strike by TV and film writers.

Pakistan plans to postpone next week's election after Benazir Bhutto's killing sparked turmoil in the nuclear-armed country, but officials put off a final announcement until Wednesday to consult parties.

A mob torched a Kenyan church on Tuesday, killing villagers cowering inside, as the death toll from ethnic riots triggered by President Mwai Kibaki's disputed re-election soared to nearly 200.

The Archbishop of Canterbury has followed the Queen's lead in posting his annual message on YouTube, where his green theme for the New Year is God doesn't do waste.