IBT Staff Reporter

A suicide bomber on a motorcycle detonated his explosives in a crowded area in southwest Afghanistan on Friday, killing 17 people, including a senior police official, a provincial governor said.

The upcoming debut album by British singing sensation Susan Boyle has become the largest global CD pre-order in the history of Amazon.com, the online retailer said on Thursday.

Procter & Gamble Co does not see acquisitions as a core part of its growth plan and has started to buy back shares again, Chief Financial Officer Jon Moeller said on Friday.

Hollywood watchers think vampire romance The Twilight Saga: New Moon could take a nearly $100 million bite from movie theater box offices when it debuts this weekend, and score one of the biggest openings ever for a non-summer film.

Jade Mountain, northeast Asia's highest peak and Taiwan's sole finalist for a New 7 Wonders of the World award, remains an alluring mystery due to its remoteness and tough permitting rules.

Adam Lambert may have lost the battle to be crowned American Idol but the glam rocker with soaring vocals says he got what he wanted from the TV singing contest -- an album deal, exposure and a chance to make and present music his way.

D.R. Horton Inc , the No. 2 U.S. homebuilder, reported a much larger-than-expected quarterly loss on Friday, sending its shares down nearly 7 percent even though it also said orders increased.

Oprah Winfrey, one of the most influential and highly paid women on television, will announce on Friday she is ending her popular daytime talk show in 2011.

Oil edged lower toward $77 a barrel on Friday, extending a 2 percent drop in the previous session and pressured by a stronger U.S. dollar.

Australia's parliament votes next week on Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's plan for a sweeping carbon trade scheme with hopes it will finally win approval after two years of divisive debate.

The prosecution said on Friday it would appeal a French court's decision to drop charges against a subsidiary of oil major Total over a 2001 chemical blast that killed 31 people.

Two Chinese rights activists who sought a meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama hours before he left Beijing said on Friday they were briefly detained by police, and one said Washington's sway over rights in China had eroded.

The U.S. government is having a tough time guesstimating how many small businesses failed in this recession, casting doubt on the reliability of vital data on employment and economic growth.

Nearly two-thirds of U.S. workers intend to look for new jobs next year, according to a poll released on Thursday that could indicate workers' frustration and discontent.

Banks risk becoming addicted to cheap central bank cash used to fight the financial crisis and must prepare for its eventual withdrawal, the head of the ECB warned at a Frankfurt banking conference on Friday.

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a lower open on Friday after worse-than-expected quarterly results from computer maker Dell and homebuilder D.R. Horton underscored that the road to recovery would not be smooth.

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a lower open on Friday after worse-than-expected quarterly results from computer maker Dell and homebuilder D.R. Horton underscored that the road to recovery would not be smooth.

Big shareholders at Goldman Sachs have asked the U.S. bank, which is on track to pay out the biggest bonuses in the company's history, to pass more profit to investors, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

Big shareholders at Goldman Sachs have asked the U.S. bank, which is on track to pay out the biggest bonuses in the company's history, to pass more profit to investors, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

Budget shortfalls pose a direct threat to millions of U.S. jobs, many in the private sector, as state and local governments lay off workers and cut spending on contracts and other business services, a think tank said on Thursday.

Inflation not a problem, say Fed officials; Cut bonuses, shareholders tell Goldman; PC sales growth returns at Dell

D.R. Horton Inc , the No. 2 U.S. homebuilder, reported a narrower fourth-quarter loss, mainly helped by lower charges.

Bankers and regulators should learn the lessons of the global financial crisis and drive through changes to prevent future breakdowns, financiers said on Friday.

The euro fell to a two-week low on Friday of $1.48, with dealers citing options-related selling and the dollar rallying broadly as investors cut risk positions across asset markets in favour of liquidity.

U.S. stock index futures fell on Friday, as a stronger U.S. dollar weighed on commodities and natural resource stocks and weak results from computer maker Dell and homebuilder D.R. Horton underscored the rocky road to an economic recovery.

U.S. stock index futures fell on Friday, as a stronger U.S. dollar weighed on commodities and natural resource stocks and weak results from computer maker Dell and homebuilder D.R. Horton underscored the rocky road to an economic recovery.

The dollar rose on Friday, extending the previous day's gains as investors retreated from riskier assets, taking the shine off higher-yielding currencies such as the Australian dollar.

Britain's top share index was lower at midday on Friday, with gains in defensive pharmaceutical stocks and food producers outweighed by weakness in banks and energy stocks.

As more details of Google Chrome OS came out on Thursday, people already took to Twitter and blogs to voice their complaints with the new OS and shared why they won't be using it when it launches at the end of 2010.