IBT Staff Reporter

Discount retailer Target Corp and warehouse club operator BJ's Wholesale Club Inc posted higher-than-expected quarterly earnings as consumers began to spend on more than just everyday basics.

Stock index futures were set for a lower open on Wednesday as markets were unnerved by Germany's decision to ban naked short selling of certain financial instruments and comments from its chancellor that the euro was in danger.

Interest rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages dropped in the latest week, according to real estate website Zillow.com on Tuesday, a move that bodes well for the hard-hit housing market as it copes with the absence of government support.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Wednesday that he wanted to see Europe follow through with its rescue package aimed at stemming the spread of the Greek debt crisis.

Google Inc is posing a bigger challenge to Apple Inc in the mobile world as more and more start-ups develop applications for Google's Android software, venture capitalists said on Tuesday.

(Reuters) - A drug approved to treat a range of conditions may also work to prevent lung cancer in people who have given up smoking, U.S. researchers reported on Tuesday.

(Reuters) - Male sex hormones may explain why men who suffer from the hepatitis B liver disease are more likely to develop liver cancer than women, researchers in Taiwan have found.

Lions Gate Entertainment has spoken to billionaire investor Carl Icahn a couple of times over his hostile $7 per share offer for the company, its chief executive said on Wednesday.

Samsung Electronics plans to launch the first smartphone based on its own operating system in the next few weeks, as it seeks to catch up with bigger rivals in the booming high-end market.

Twitter, the rapidly expanding microblogging service, plans to have hundreds of advertisers using its new ad system in the fourth quarter as the company ramps up plans to become a self-sustaining, profitable business.

Stock index futures fell sharply on Wednesday, with markets rattled by Germany's decision to ban naked short selling of certain financial instruments and comments from its chancellor that the euro was in danger.

The market remains under pressure as Germany's ban on short-selling activities triggered a new round of panic selling in risky assets. WTI crude oil price extends the 7th-day decline to as low as 67.9, the lowest level since September 30, 2009. The contract has plummeted more than -20% so far in May. Despite a plunge below the OPEC's preferred range of 70-80, Saudi Arabia's financial minister stress that he's not worried about the decline and the country will commit to the planned projects.

With the rapid onset of the worldwide recession in late 2008, marked by sharp drops in commodity prices that continued till 2009 marked notable implications on base metals, where the global mergers and acquisitions activities came almost to a halt.

United Nation's Food and Agriculture Organisation said global wheat crop is to fall by more than 7 million tonnes this year as poor prices turn farmers off the grain. The global wheat harvest will come in at 675m tonnes this year, below last year's level and the record 683.8m tonnes set in 2008, FAO said in a report.

Samsung Electronics plans to launch the first smartphone based on its own operating system in coming weeks, as it seeks to catch up with bigger rivals in the booming high-end market, an executive said on Wednesday.

BJ's Wholesale Club Inc posted a higher quarterly profit, helped by a jump in sales at stores open at least a year.

A Pakistani court ordered the government on Wednesday to block Facebook after press reports of a competition being held to draw the Prophet Mohammad, a lawyer said.

Stocks were set to open lower on Wednesday, adding to the previous sessions losses and mirroring weakness in Europe as worries over tighter financial regulation put pressure on equities.

According to the latest study by Australian scientists, imagining your favourite foods can increase cravings and make it difficult to work on other tasks.

Gold prices eased in Asian trade Wednesday even after reports of a tumbling euro. Gold for immediate delivery was seen trading at $ 1213.75 an ounce at 11.00 a.m Singapore time while U.S. gold futures for June delivery was at 1213.31 an ounce e at the same time.

Carmaker General Motors Co told the United Auto Workers it will no longer pay union employees to leave the company, the Wall Street Journal said.

The euro hit another four-year low on Wednesday and stocks slumped after Germany's move to ban some naked shorting and German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the euro was in danger.

A recent report reveals about 90 per cent of Australians with hepatitis C have not undergone treatment, although treatments for the condition are available.

SAANEN, Switzerland (Reuters Life!) - In a secret bunker deep in the Swiss Alps, European researchers have deposited a digital genome that will provide the blueprint for future generations to read data stored using defunct technology.

The euro fell to a fresh four-year low on Wednesday after a German move to sharpen financial regulation raised doubts about the prospect for global recovery, pulling down Asian stocks, metals and crude oil.

According to doctors, nearly half of all Australians from the ages 55 and over have elevated risk of developing a stroke or experiencing a heart attack in the next five years.

According to the Binge Listening study, about 13 per cent young Australians exposed to leisure-associated noise that goes beyond the accepted limit allowed at worksites every year

American International Group has named Henri Courpron as chief executive officer of its aircraft leasing unit, International Lease Finance Corp , the Wall Street Journal said.

Germany banned risky bets on bonds, stocks and credit protection, stunning investors and setting euro zone markets up for a rough ride on Wednesday amid fears Berlin's attack on speculation will backfire.