IBT Staff Reporter

The NASD has two new resources to support firm's Anti Money Laundering (AML) programs. A free webcast is available at http://www.nasd.com/webcasts/aml.

Global companies extending their networks into Africa will find it a challenge to establish easy telecom links in comparison to the better established systems in the U.S., Europe or Asia. While mobile phone use is growing rapidly across the continent, fixed-line density is low and Internet access is limited.

General Motors Corp., Renault SA and Nissan Motor Co. agreed on Friday to review the benefits of a potential alliance that could change the world auto industry.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said on Friday it awarded $1.16 billion in contracts to three companies to develop equipment to scan cargo at border cities for nuclear weapons material.

The Pentagon has cleared Taiwan to take a two-stage approach to buying up to eight diesel submarines in a move that could revive the long-stalled potential multibillion-dollar deal.

Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva told Reuters on Friday he would keep conservative economic policies if he were re-elected in October and distanced himself from his former left-wing base.

The latest surge in energy prices may prove the undoing for a U.S. economy already pressured by a housing slowdown and accelerating inflation.

Google Inc. Chief Executive Officer Eric Schmidt said on Friday that his company had none of the stock option pricing problems that have been uncovered at nearly 60 other U.S.-listed companies.

Car rental company Hertz Global Holdings Inc. said on Friday it is planning an initial public offering of as much as $1 billion in common stock.

Three British former bankers extradited to the United States this week pleaded not guilty in federal court on Friday to fraud charges linked to a deal with defunct energy giant Enron Corp.

Surging energy prices helped cause unexpected drops in U.S. retail sales in June and consumer sentiment in July, reports on Friday showed, raising the prospects the Federal Reserve may be close to halting its campaign of hiking interest rates.

Electronic Arts on Thursday said it is developing six games for Nintendo's upcoming Wii video game console, whose selling point is a motion-detecting controller that allows players to simulate swinging a bat, golf club or sword.

Dell, the world's largest computer manufacturer, announced several changes to its pricing strategy today, including a move to reduce the use of mail-in rebates and short-term promotions.

U.S. retail sales unexpectedly shrank in June as energy prices bit, raising concern about growth as the Federal Reserve considers halting its two-year interest rate hike campaign.

Advanced Micro Devices, the second largest comp microprocessor company, announced that last month it began shipping processors manufactured at Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing, in Singapore.

Sales at U.S. retail stores unexpectedly shrank 0.1 percent in June, the first decline since February, pulled down by weaker sales of cars and building material, government data showed on Friday.

Oil prices topped $78 per barrel Friday and held near record highs as intensifying violence in the Middle East raised concerns of possible supply disruptions.

Since Tripoli gave up its nuclear arms programs in 2003, Libya has seen progress in the number of foreign investments being made in the country, the result of an environment that encourages market orientated reforms meant to reintegrate the country into the international economic fold.

Pepsi Bottling Group Inc., the largest Pepsi bottler, announced Tuesday that profits were up in its second quarter, attributing the growth to strong sales of its non-carbonated drinks.

Microsoft's Bill Gates made an announcement last month that marked the beginning of the end of an era. For over 30 years Gates has maintained an influential voice in shaping the company that he co-founded. It stands today as the world's largest software maker.

Leading British shares dropped 1 percent on Thursday, as escalating geopolitical tensions, record high oil prices and concerns over U.S. corporate profits sent jitters through global equity markets, while a decline in Aviva Plc shares also weighed.

The head of Honda Motor Co. said on Thursday that sales in North America were stronger than anticipated as customers flocked to its fuel-efficient cars, while demand in the lackluster Japanese market was in line with expectations.

A European fine on Microsoft Corp. will have no effect on the launch of Vista, its next-generation Windows operating system, the U.S. software giant's Japan unit said on Thursday.

Many people dream of taking a hobby and turning it into a successful small business, and many entrepreneurs are lucky and savvy enough to make it happen. But profiting from a passion still takes hard work, and hobbyists-turned-business owners often find they spend more time running the company than enjoying a pasttime.

Crude oil futures rose to record highs on Thursday, hitting European stocks and the dollar, with worries over rising tensions in the Middle East and North Korea affecting sentiment across the board.

Offering yields not seen in years, savings accounts, certificates of deposits and money market funds are enticing investors rattled by the recent gyrations in stocks and bonds.

China's Nanjing Automobile Group, which took control of Britain's collapsed MG Rover last year, on Wednesday said it would build MG-brand cars in Oklahoma, making it the first Chinese automaker to assemble vehicles in the United States.

Software giant Microsoft and South Africa's cellular group Mobile Telephone Networks (MTN) announced on Tuesday a collaboration to provide affordable internet connection services in South Africa.

Sasol Ltd. will hold negotiations in July and August with interested parties to sell several of its foreign chemical units, the company said on Tuesday.