IBT Staff Reporter

The International Monetary Fund is running a health check of top banks in Britain, Germany and three more countries just as Europe hammers out details of its own tougher industry stress test.

Although there were no lines of eager customers forming outside computer stores in Tehran on the day that Apple's iPad was introduced to the world last year, the tablet computer -- the newest global must-have gadget -- has quietly appeared in Iranian shops, despite tightened sanctions.

American Express Co said on Wednesday that severance costs and other charges related to shutting down customer service centers would reduce fourth-quarter earnings.

Scientists have moved a step closer to creating ultra-fast quantum computers by generating 10 billion bits of quantum entanglement in silicon for the first time.

The United States and China reached agreement on export deals worth $45 billion including a major contract with Boeing, the White House said on Wednesday at the formal start of Chinese President Hu Jintao's state visit.

The two hackers arrested in connection with hacking into AT&T's database of iPad 3G email addresses will have a tough time proving they weren't acting maliciously, according ot a least one legal expert.

American Airlines parent AMR Corp posted a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss Wednesday on a 10.3 percent revenue increase, as the company held down expenses, but shares slipped as the industry faces soaring fuel costs.

US Bancorp reported higher-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings on Wednesday, aided by lower loan losses and the largest increase in new loans since the fourth quarter of 2008.

Games, social networking and entertainment are the most popular apps for iOS.

Alibaba Group, China's largest e-commerce firm, and its financing partners plan to spend up to $4.5 billion setting up a network of warehouses across the country to tap a growing appetite for online shopping.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc on Wednesday posted a decline in quarterly profit, in part reflecting declining results in fixed-income trading.

The S&P 500 was on track to post its worst day in about two months on Wednesday as disappointing results from Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo deflated hopes for strong bank earnings.

The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonpartisan Washington-based group promoting fiscal responsibility, is holding a contest on the best ways to better balance the nation’s bank account and avert an economic disaster.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc posted a 53 percent decline in quarterly profit on Wednesday, in part reflecting lower results in fixed-income trading.

Groundbreaking on new U.S. home construction fell more than expected in December to its lowest in over a year, suggesting the battered housing sector remains a major roadblock to economic recovery.

After the stock market's fourth-quarter bang, investors expected a bigger boom than they got from leading custody banks State Street and Bank of New York Mellon .

The famous adult magazine will be creating a digital version of the publication as well as a non-nude app for the iPad.

Traditional all-weather raincoats, designed for the working masses almost 200 years ago, joined the ranks of upmarket London fashion on Wednesday, when Mackintosh opened its first standalone store.

U.S. lawmakers will consider new health care insurance benefits and the cost of paying for them on Wednesday, as the House heads to a vote on whether to repeal last year's major health care overhaul law.

The text of the 14-page complaint against the iPad hackers.

A Swiss court found former banker Rudolf Elmer guilty on Wednesday of breaching strict banking secrecy for publicizing private client data and of threatening an employee at his former firm Julius Baer.

The 22-year-old Hilary Duff is pregnant, according to the Star Magazine. Duff had a wedding last August with NHL star Mike Comrie.

If anyone needed proof that cyber activists can create havoc in the real world, the last few weeks have provided evidence in megabytes.

The flag of the Palestinian Liberation Organization was hoisted above the PLO's offices in Washington, D.C. Tuesday and the new chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee quickly criticized the act.

The gaming console comes with extensive 3D capabilities.

Stocks mostly fell on Wednesday as disappointing results from Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo deflated hopes for strong bank earnings in the last quarter.

Coffee chain unveils mobile payment app for iPhones and Blackberrys.

South African mobile operator MTN and insurer Sanlam said on Wednesday they have teamed up to offer health services through mobile handsets.

German software maker SAP is preparing to restructure and has hiked sales and margin targets to prop up its sagging shares amid litigation woes, weekly Manager Magazin reported.