COMPANIES

A Muslim cleric from Iran has claimed that the social networking site Facebook is un-Islamic and being a member of it is a sin, the ISNA news agency reported last week.

Barclays Capital reiterated its belief that China is a big growth opportunity for Apple Inc. and could be bigger than even the U.S., within a few years.

Here are a round-up of rumors regarding specifications for each of the two...

The best of Intel computing is coming to smartphones, Otellini told his CES keynote audience.Our efforts with Lenovo and Motorola Mobility will help to establish Intel processors in smartphones and provide a solid foundation from which to build in 2012 and into the future, added the CEO, as per the report.

If it were 1992, IBM might well have been one of the biggest exhibitors at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. There would have been a huge display of IBM PCs, software and printers, even though the printer unit had been sold the year before.

The 2012 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is a spectacular event, but two major failings take away from the magic of the annual convention.

It appears that Apple has not commented on these speculations as yet.

Intel, the No. 1 chip maker, will make a major push into the smartphone sector, even as it continues its headway in the laptop and tablet market with its second-generation Ultrabook chip, CEO Paul Otellini said.

United States offshore petroleum regulators ruled this week that a Spanish rig headed to Cuban waters meets international safety standards.

Eastman Kodak Co announced a new business structure on Tuesday that divides its film group into its two other business units as the once-iconic photography company tries to refocus as a digital company to help fend off financial difficulties.

MetLife Inc. (MET), the largest U.S. life insurer, said Tuesday that it's shutting down the business of originating residential mortgages, three months after the company said it would seek a buyer for the unit. Goldman Sachs upgraded MetLife to "buy" as the company scales back to meet targets for shareholder returns.

Michael Williams, CEO of mortgage giant Fannie Mae, is resigning, the company announced on Tuesday.

At CES 2012 in Las Vegas, French company Parrot debuted its AR Drone 2.0, which can fly up to 165 feet in the air and record HD videos. The drone is completely controlled with iOS and Android devices, which let you see what the drone sees.

Withings debuted the world's first Internet-connected baby and toddler scale at CES 2012 in Las Vegas. It records the weight and height of the child and wirelessly transmits the information to smartphones and computers to help parents keep track of their child's development.

Only 48 percent of consumers in a typical week watched broadcast or cable television, down from 71 percent in 2009, according to a survey released by consulting firm Accenture.

The parents of Florida A&M band member Richard Champion said they'll sue the company that owns the bus where he was hazed before he died.

Lululemon Athletica expects profit and sales in the current quarter to top earlier forecasts after holiday shoppers flocked to its shops to snap up the trendy yoga wear that have made the company a runaway retail success story.

Consumer Electronics Association CEO Gary Shapiro Tuesday blasted the proposed Stop Online Privacy ACT (SOPA) pending in the U.S. Congress as “terrible,” a “threat to innovation” and potentially destructive legislation.

Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs said the company’s Snapdragon wireless chip is already powering tablets and smart TVs, opening the way for the company to expand its reach beyond its dominance in mobile phones.

Cops have arrested a New York City cab driver for allegedly raping a female passenger at knifepoint in May. The victim, a 26-year-old woman, had been heading to her Manhattan building from a bar in Williamsburg.

Buick, a GM brand, developed the new Encore to compete at a more upscale level than the Toyota RAV 4 or the Honda CR-V. Buick did not announce pricing for the Encore, but it is expected to be comparable with class products including the Audi Q3 and the BMW X1.

Was Apple CEO Tim Cook paid $380 million in 2011? It depends on how you look at it.

Already, Hyundai is selling all the Elantra's it can make, said John Krafcik, the company's North American CEO. But that doesn't mean Hyundai won't leverage the Elantra's Car of the Year award to the benefit of the brand. Krafcik said it's an overall boost to the company's image with consumers, particularly in the small-car segment revealing that Hyundai has top of the line products.

Tiffany & Co. (TIF) cut its full-year earnings forecast after sales growth weakened in the U.S. and Europe during the holiday season, raising fear that the economic uncertainty might be reining the demand of luxury shoppers.

Australian aircraft engineers want all Airbus A380s out of the skies after cracks were discovered in both Qantas' and Singapore Airlines' fleet.

Ford's plans for Lincoln include more than well-designed and enginneered luxury product, Farley said. The brand plans to up the ante with a more customized personal service at its Lincoln dealerships, which have been asked to invest in upgrading facilities and overall grade. Lincoln hopes to grow to 800,000 units sold annually, as a formidable foe with other luxury brands including BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi and Lexus.

The Chinese will take to the sea in style following an announcement Tuesday that Shandong Heavy Industry Group-Weichai Group will be buying a majority share of Italian yacht maker, Ferretti Group.

Shares of WebMD were down 30.68 percent to $25.46 in mid-morning trading.

Barclays Capital expects ultrabooks to take center stage at this year's Consumer Electronics Show (CES) as the thin and light concept emerges at the forefront of new product design trends.