IBT Staff Reporter

Countries should stop blaming each other for the weak outcome of the Copenhagen climate talks and sit down together to move the process forward, the U.N.'s top climate change official said on Wednesday.

A commission created by Congress to look into causes of the financial crisis will question the chief executives of Goldman Sachs Group Inc, JPMorgan Chase & Co, Morgan Stanley and other big banks at its first public hearing next month

OGK-3 (OGKC.MM), a power unit of Russia's metals giant Norilsk Nickel (GMKN.MM), has sold a 0.4 percent stake in the miner for 2.96 billion roubles ($97 million), an OGK-3 spokesman said on Wednesday.

Barnes & Noble Inc said late Wednesday that all customers who preordered its Nook electronic reader, which was expected to miss Christmas delivery to customers

Chicago Mercantile Exchange lumber futures closed a little higher in nearbys on Wednesday as the market showed little direction going into the holiday, traders said.

Two French citizens have been charged by U.S. regulators with using inside information to buy securities of Chattem Inc before Sanofi-Aventis said it would acquire the healthcare group.

French-based Icade will buy Compagnie la Lucette, another real estate firm, from Morgan Stanley to create a entity with a portfolio of over 5.7 billion euros ($8.2 billion).

Dutch state-owned bank ABN AMRO [ABNNV.UL] will transfer some corporate client operations to Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE) to pave the way for ABN's merger with Fortis Bank Nederland, ABN AMRO said on Wednesday.

Alleged swindler Allen Stanford's lawyers and family have again asked a federal judge to order his release from prison pending trial, citing his physical and mental deterioration and inability to help prepare his defense.

Creditors of bankrupt Lyondell Chemical Co asked a U.S. judge to expand the investigation of the company's court-appointed examiner on Wednesday to ensure the petrochemicals company is fairly evaluating proposals from potential suitors.

Technology shares rose on Wednesday after solid earnings from Micron Technology and Red Hat, but an unexpected drop in new home sales kept a lid on the broader market's gains.

Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc (ARNA.O) said on Wednesday that Merck & Co Inc (MRK.N) will discontinue development of an atherosclerosis treatment that the two companies were jointly collaborating on.

The UN climate chief said Wednesday the Copenhagen Accord was vague about climate funds pledged by rich countries to help poor countries fight against climate change.

U.S. consumer spending rose in November as incomes recorded their biggest gain in six months, but a surprise drop in new home sales to a seven-month low was a reminder that the economic recovery would be bumpy.

Fifty-five financial companies failed to pay dividends in November on money they borrowed from the U.S. government, bank research firm SNL said on Wednesday.

The International Monetary Fund has approved a $1.2 billion aid payment to Pakistan after concluding a review of the country's economic performance, the fund said in a statement on Wednesday.

Sales and earnings at uniform rental company Cintas Corp. will not be as high as financial analysts expect in the coming year, says the company's chief executive officer.

She sings in a low croak and surfs wearing high heels, inside a dishwasher. Meet La Dinde de Noel, the digital turkey starring in the Bon Marche's Christmas windows.

Two French citizens have been charged by U.S. regulators with using inside information to buy securities of Chattem Inc before Sanofi-Aventis said it would acquire the healthcare group.

Technology shares rose on Wednesday after solid earnings from Micron Technology and Red Hat, but an unexpected drop in new home sales kept a lid on the broader market's gains.

Technology shares rose on Wednesday after solid earnings from Micron Technology and Red Hat, but an unexpected drop in new home sales kept a lid on the broader market's gains.

Wells Fargo & Co and Citigroup Inc repaid a total of $45 billion to the United States on Wednesday, as major banks look to reduce government influence over their affairs.

In local trade yesterday the Aussie struggled to break from a tight range between 0.8750 and 0.8780 entering offshore exchanging near the bottom of the band at 0.8755.

Ford Motor Company's exit from luxury car brands is nearly complete. The sale of Volvo Car Corp. to the parent company of Chinese automaker Geely is expected to close by June of 2010, more than three years after Ford began to dismantle its premium auto group which once included Jaguar, Land Rover and Aston Martin.

Small and mid-sized U.S. banks can hold off on repaying funds under the Treasury's Troubled Assets Relief Program, as they may escape government pressure to raise capital and face less taxpayer scrutiny over compensation practices.

If you're tired of the same old food, weather, and, ahem, people this holiday season, now may be the time for you to experience Christmas traditions from around the world. Here are five of the most unique celebrations from across the globe in plenty of time for you to make flight reservations:

A man in the UK who escaped prison and is now updating his status message on Facebook, telling the world what his life as a fugitive.

One of Osama Bin Laden's wife and six children, missing since the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan, are under house arrest in Iran, a Saudi-owned newspaper reported Wednesday, citing Omar Bin Laden, the fourth son of the al-Qaeda leader.

News that Ford expects to finalize the sale of Volvo to China's Geely in the first half of 2010 caps a year that saw China overtake the United States as the world's biggest auto market, something that would have been unthinkable only a few years ago