IBT Staff Reporter

Jetblue Airways will provide email and instant-messaging services, as it tests the new products one of its flights this coming Tuesday, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Major League Baseball suspended two players for 15 days on Thursday over violations of the league’s drug policies.

A key product delay will mean lower sales for device maker Palm this holiday season during its second fiscal quarter of 2008, the company said Thursday.

UnitedHealth Group Inc.'s former CEO William W. McGuire agreed on Thursday to repay over $400 million in compensation -- in addition to $200 million he previously gave up -- as part of a settlement deal with the company and government regulators over an options backdating scandal.

Copper rose on Thursday on investor speculation that the U.S. Federal Reserve will decrease borrowing costs next week to give a boost to the economy and in turn, raise demand for the metal.

Dell Inc. announced on Thursday it will begin selling PCs at more than 900 Best Buy Co. Inc. stores in an attempt to gain more of the U.S. consumer market.

Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg apologized to users on Wednesday for their controversial web-based advertising system, Beacon, which publishes information about members' off-site purchases to users’ friends.

The price of the oil rose more than $3 on Thursday after OPEC’s decision to keep its output unchanged and as a weaker dollar pushed up commodities.

Hong Kong stocks on Thursday increased for a seventh straight session after a U.S. jobs report indicated growth in the jobs market, easing worries about a recession.

A spokesman from the troubled Northern Rock bank announced today that the company had borrowed a total of around £25 billion from the Bank of England since the run on the bank caused by the credit crunch, reports Reuters.

Treasuries fell on Thursday after President George W. Bush announced a plan to help some homeowners with subprime mortgages by freezing their interest rates, discouraging investors from buying U.S. debt.

Gold futures slipped on Thursday as crude oil prices recovered and the dollar continued its recent rally which boosted demand for the precious metal.

Air France-KLM said it would make an offer for loss-making Italian carrier Alitalia, a long-awaited move that faces a serious challenge only from tiny Italian airline Air One.

The euro rose against the yen and dollar on Thursday after the head of the European Central Bank, Jean Claude Trichet, reduced speculation of a rate cut, warning about inflationary pressure.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert met top advisers on Thursday to prepare for his first meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas since the two leaders launched formal peace talks last week.

Some retailers reported stronger-than-expected November sales on Thursday, helped by a post-Thanksgiving rush and holiday discounts, but notable misses by others and a shift in the retail calendar left an unclear picture of the strength of the key holiday season.

Coca-Cola Co said on Thursday Chief Operating Officer Muhtar Kent will succeed Neville Isdell as chief executive of the world's largest soft drink company on July 1, 2008.

U.S. stocks rose steadily for a second day on Thursday, with financial shares climbing on expectations that government plan to be unveiled today may help banks’ profits by limiting subprime mortgage defaults.

Some retailers reported stronger-than-expected November sales on Thursday, helped by a post-Thanksgiving rush and holiday discounts, but notable misses by others and a shift in the retail calendar left an unclear picture of the strength of the key holiday season.

Three out of four buyers of the trendy iPhone in Britain will be new O2 customers won from rival mobile networks, according to the new head of O2 which won an exclusive deal to sell the iPhone in Britain.

Franklin Perry used to spend hours performing video game feats with his thumbs but lately he has been using the Nintendo Wii, and the rest of his body, to regain his strength after suffering a stroke.

The euro rose against the dollar and the yen on Thursday after the European Central Bank left interest rates on hold but President Jean-Claude Trichet warned of strong upward pressure on inflation.

Oil prices climbed above $88 a barrel on Thursday, recovering from six-week lows amid concern over tight inventories following OPEC's output rollover and as weakness in the U.S. dollar propped up commodities.

Stocks gained on Thursday as banks, builders and mortgage-related shares rose before a White House announcement about a plan to slow the wave of home foreclosures that has rattled investors.

Acer Inc, the world's No. 3 PC seller, said on Thursday it expected its sales to jump 50 percent or more over the next four years, as it embarks on a worldwide expansion following a recent acquisition.

Dai-Ichi Mutual Life Insurance Co aims to list its shares in 2010 and sell more than $9 billion worth of them in what is likely to be Japan's third-largest initial public offering.

Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd, India's largest drug maker by sales, expects strong growth in 2008 and would continue to look for acquisitions in India and abroad, Chief Executive Malvinder Singh said on Thursday.

The fat years may be ending for Chinese banks as bad loans increase and monetary policy tightens. After government bail-outs and reforms ended a debt crisis early this decade, bad loans could rebound because of exposure to the country's red-hot property market. But a debacle on the scale of the U.S. subprime credit crisis remains very unlikely, officials and analysts say.

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce posted an 8 percent increase in fourth-quarter earnings on Thursday as various one-time charges in its wholesale unit were largely offset by a gain in its retail business, and taxes were lower.