MANAGEMENT

Private equity firm TPG Capital is willing to invest about $1 billion in Japan's Olympus Corp in a joint deal with Sony Corp or another suitor circling the scandal-hit firm, a person familiar with TPG's thinking said.

Today is Friday the 13th, known by many as the unluckiest day on the year. The unlucky day has a rocky history and confusing origins. There are many superstitions and myths surrounding Friday the 13th.

DETROIT -- Five years ago, Bob Lutz stood in front of a curious crowd at the North American International Auto Show and introduced a radical concept car to the world. Lutz, then the vice chairman of product development for General Motors, revealed the first electric plug-in concept car from a major automaker: the Chevrolet Volt. He still calls it the most important car the company has ever made.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7, which was revealed on Monday at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show (CES), is being billed as the thinnest and lightest tablet ever released by the company.

What has been further ignored is the importance of thorough mastication and regular bowel movements. Constipation, exemplified by a bloated abdomen, has been closely linked with obesity and could be avoided by means of regular habits, abdominal exercises and a high fibre diet.

Investors have approved a year-long extension of a $4.7 billion property megafund from Morgan Stanley , a company spokesman told Reuters on Friday.

As per the Mayan calendar, the 13th Baktun which falls on Dec. 21, 2012, is considered the day of the apocalypse. In the Georgian calendar, Friday the 13th is set to appear two more times this year However, whether there's any truth to the superstition can't be said with absolute conviction.

Samsung Electronics ruled out making a bid for the healthcare business of Japan's troubled Olympus Corp on Friday, though a source close to the South Korean firm said it remained open to some form of non-equity partnership.

Shares in Research In Motion climbed nearly 4 percent on Thursday on market speculation the BlackBerry maker had hired investment bank Goldman Sachs to explore strategic options.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc (NYSE: RBS), Britain's biggest state-owned bank, has became the latest major bank to succumb to the global squeeze on financial institutions trying to juggle shareholder pressure and worsening economic prospects.

In an unexpected pitch, a trio of whale conservationists proposed Thursday the previously unthinkable to protect the world's largest creatures: Put a price tag on whales to save them.

Few companies embody the highs and lows of turbo-charged modern finance better than Ferretti.

Several airlines have filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Transportation in an effort to overturn new rules regulating the industry's advertised rates.

Danish wind turbine maker Vestas (VWS.CO) will cut 2,335 jobs in a bid to restore profitability after rising costs wiped out its 2011earnings.

Europe's markets closed mixed on Thursday after a profit warning from retail heavyweight Tesco and weak U.S. retail and labor data more than offset relief from successful Spanish and Italian debt auctions.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has been monitoring many popular Web sites, including social media like Facebook and Twitter, since June 2010 as a part of a privacy compliance review, according to a report detailing the list.

The Obamas by Jodi Kantor, released on Jan. 10 by publisher Little, Brown and Company, unveils the first couple's time in the White House so far. The book delves into the difficult adjustments they had to make, particularly the first lady's acclimation to her new role.

Japan's Nikkei average fell on Thursday in profit-taking ahead of a futures settlement, as market participants fretted over key debt auctions in Europe and a European Central Bank meeting this week.

Infosys Ltd cut its full-year revenue outlook because of the debt crisis in Europe, sending down the shares of the No.2 Indian software services exporter by as much as 7.7 percent to their lowest in more than a month.

The U.S. Government needs to keep shifting more of its $80 billion annual technology budget to the cloud, reflecting President Obama’s priorities, U.S. Chief Information Officer Steven VanRoekel told International Business Times.

UBS' Americas wealth management group has hired a team of three veteran Morgan Stanley Smith Barney advisers in California, the firm said on Wednesday.