UNITED STATES

A global labor federation plans to bring African unions together to battle the expansion of U.S. retailer Wal-Mart on the continent, a senior group member said on Wednesday.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is close to a decision to bid for the presidency in an election next year because he has doubts about his protege, President Dmitry Medvedev, senior political sources say.

South Africa's resource-heavy bourse tumbled on Wednesday with gold miners helping to drag the index down as strikes over wages loomed in the sector.

Republicans and Democrats rushed to rework rival deficit reduction plans on Wednesday, but with the fate of both proposals heavily in doubt top lawmakers pursued a behind-the-scenes compromise to avert a crippling U.S. default.

The former Libyan intelligence agent convicted of the 1988 Lockerbie bombing over Scotland made a rare public appearance on Tuesday at a rally in support of Muammar Gaddafi.

Striking workers in South Africa's petroleum sector are discussing a revised wage offer to end a three-week-old walkout as stoppages spread to the vital mining sector, threatening supplies of coal and gold.

An international rights group on Wednesday called on Uganda to stop prosecuting civilians in military courts and to immediately release 341 people under army detention.

Higher input costs and a strong rand led to a 63 percent drop in ArcelorMittal South Africa's first-half profit and the steelmaker forecast a difficult third quarter on Wednesday, sending its shares to a 28-month low.

Wall Street skidded on Wednesday as troubling signs from U.S. corporations and falling demand for long-lasting manufactured goods discouraged investors already nervous about faltering debt talks in Washington.

Osama bin Laden's death and a relentless campaign of drone attacks have weakened al-Qaeda to the point that the terror organization may no longer be capable of planning and carrying out large-scale attacks.

Depression rates are higher in countries with higher incomes, a study found. 121 million people worldwide suffer from depression and rates are disproportionately high in countries with higher incomes. Depression significantly decreases quality of life and inherently comes with distorted, irrational, and negative thinking patterns.

Spanish savings bank Bankia aims to prioritise tackling bad debts after its maiden results as a listed entity showed a rise in non-performing loans since December.

Apple's iPhone is the world's bestselling smartphone but a new survey reveals that 35 percent of U.S. consumers still want to by an iPhone 5, not yet released.

Senate Democrats' legislation to reduce the U.S. deficit and increase borrowing authority would cut $2.2 trillion from deficits, about $500 billion less than Democrats claimed, the Congressional Budget Office said Wednesday.

As of 12:30, shares are up in excess of $44/share, giving the company a market value of about $3-billion.

'History shows that even when the decision to raise the debt ceiling goes down to the wire, it does not lead to a default or a change in the perception that the US is the gold standard against which to benchmark other debt. This time around the stakes are higher.'

A British prop designer who makes replicas of the menacing Stormtrooper helmets featured in Star Wars films won a legal battle Wednesday against director George Lucas, who took him to the High Court in 2008 over copyright infringement.

The upcoming trial of Anders Behring Breivik has shined a spotlight on Norway's innovative prison system.

Netflix Inc. has reached a deal with CBS Corp allowing the video rental service to stream shows such as Californication, Dexter and Twin Peaks to audiences in Latin America and Canada.

Former Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc executives, directors, auditors and underwriters lost their bid on Wednesday to dismiss an investor lawsuit seeking to hold them responsible for losses tied to the investment bank's collapse.

Demand for long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods fell in June and a gauge of business spending plans slipped, supporting views that the economy will not emerge quickly from its current soft patch.