IBT Staff Reporter

A court in India on Friday lifted a state ban on Coca-Cola and PepsiCo drinks, which had been imposed after an environmental group said they contained unsafe levels of pesticides.

Nike Inc., the world's No. 1 sport shoe and apparel maker, on Thursday posted quarterly earnings above Wall Street targets, boosting its shares nearly 6 percent and easing some fears that pricey styles bearing its signature swoosh were losing their luster.

European Central Bank governing council member Erkki Liikanen said on Friday that vigilance was needed on inflation despite a sharp fall in oil prices.

Volkswagen and its German workers union are set to resume critical talks over planned wage cuts on Friday

New Star Asset Management said on Friday its assets under management rose 7 percent in the six months to the end of June

VAT cheats stole 12.6 billion euros, nearly 8.5 billion pounds, from the Treasury in the year to June, five times more than any other European Union country

Volkswagen and its German workers union are set to resume critical talks over planned wage cuts on Friday, overshadowed by a threat from its influential works council chief to break off the talks if no immediate progress is made.

MFI Furniture Group has agreed to sell its loss making retail operations to private equity group Merchant Equity Partners (MEP) for a nominal 1 pound

U.S. consumer products giant Procter & Gamble Co. has suspended sales of its SK-II skincare line in mainland China, pending clarification from the quality watchdog over traces of possibly harmful metals.

Rite Aid Corp., the third-largest U.S. drugstore chain, on Thursday posted a smaller quarterly loss, aided by stronger sales......

The United States and China differ on how quickly they can resolve their economic disagreements, but not on the general goals, U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said on Friday after meeting China's top two leaders.

Two months of talks between General Motors Corp., Renault SA and Nissan Motor Co. have resulted in little progress toward a possible alliance, according to the Wall Street Journal and Detroit News.

High-level executives from Japan's Sharp Corp. traveled to South Korea last week to visit LG.Philips LCD Co. Ltd., as Philips seeks a buyer for its 32.9 percent stake in the Korean LCD firm, Taiwan media reported on Friday.

Billionaire Richard Branson on Thursday committed to spending all the profits from his airline and rail businesses an estimated $3 billion (1.6 billion pounds) over the next 10 years on combating global warming.

Britain's FTSE 100 index is seen opening down 26 to 28 points on Friday, financial bookmakers said

Three quarters of parents of children eligible for a child trust fund (CTF) opened the account within the first year of the scheme's operation

The United States will not seek $1.3 billion (683 million pounds) in back oil royalties on some Gulf of Mexico drilling leases but is negotiating a deal with BP and Shell to make payments on those offshore tracts in the future

The Department for Transport announced today that Stagecoach Group Plc had been awarded the contract to run the South Western franchise

The Federation of Hong Kong Indurstries (FHKI) called on Hong Kong shoes sector to exploit domestic market and leave two ways......

China Merchants Bank shares began to trade in HKex today after yestoday's hot off-board transactions which dark-price once jumped 11 yuan yestoday and closed at 10.6 yuan - far higher than its offering price of 8.55 yuan, and the Price-Book value ratio soared 3.19 time.

Government funded energywatch today issued a statement on energy price speculation.

Prudential Plc today announced a change of its board. The Chief Executive of Prudential Corporation Asia, Mark Norbom will be leaving his position

Elf Petroleum Nigeria Limited (EPNL), a subsidiary of TOTAL, says it has encountered hydrocarbon resources in Usan field discovery in its deep water Oil Prospecting License (OPL) 222.

Global energy producer Royal Dutch Shell plc said on Thursday it purchased for cancellation of a million A shares at a price of 25.67 euros per share.

Norwich Union will be offering a new tranche of its guaranteed fund it was announced today.

Electronic Arts has become the latest game publisher to come under investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, on Thursday, as the group investigates its stock option grant practices.

U.S. stocks slid on Thursday after a report said factory activity contracted in the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region in September for the first time in over three years, prompting worries about a slowdown in the U.S. economy and corporate profits.

Dell Inc. the worlds largest personal computer manufacturer, said it would request a hearing before the Nasdaq Listings Qualifications Panel, responding to the exchanges threats of delisting.

Two Japanese investors in Russia's Sakhalin-2 liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, are negotiating to sell part of their stake in the project to Russia's state-owned Gazprom, Japanese media reported Thursday. The companies have denied the report.