IBT Staff Reporter

A U.S. lawmaker said on Friday he issued a subpoena to Countrywide Financial, now part of Bank of America Corp , as part of a probe into whether the lender gave favored terms to lawmakers and other VIPs.

Major U.S. airlines have launched a $10 round-trip domestic fare increase, marking the fifth industrywide fare hike in 2009 and possibly signaling new pricing power for airlines as they claw their way out of an economic downturn.

The Italian Health Ministry reported Friday a likely case of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, the human form of mad cow disease.

People who are neurotic -- they tend to worry a lot and to have emotional ups and downs -- seem to be at increased risk of developing asthma, a new study hints. Those who suffer through a divorce or

Major U.S. airlines have matched a domestic fare increase initiated by Delta Air Lines and Continental Airlines, marking the fifth industrywide fare hike in 2009, a top fare analyst said on Friday.

The healthcare reform bill making its way through the U.S. House of Representatives will include a public insurance option, but negotiations are continuing on the details of the public plan, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Friday.

Major U.S. airlines have matched a domestic fare increase initiated by Delta Air Lines and Continental Airlines, marking the fifth industrywide fare hike in 2009, a top fare analyst said on Friday.

A Senate bill that would expand U.S. Food and Drug Administration oversight and give it the power to recall food is a step forward but it needs to be stronger, the head of the agency told lawmakers on Thursday.

Drug labels in the United States often omit information showing the severity of side effects or that a medicine is not very effective, two doctors said Wednesday.

Worried about your child's flu symptoms but don't want to risk a visit to a germ-infested waiting room?

Low-income Americans with no more than a high school education appear more likely to get vaccinated against H1N1 swine flu than people with more money and better schooling, according to a poll released on Friday.

Quarterly results from Whirlpool Corp, Fortune Brands and several other manufacturers pointed to slight improvements in the U.S. housing market, sending their shares higher.

Microsoft Corp's results smashed Wall Street expectations on Friday, sending its shares up 7 percent, as the PC market improved and sales of its Windows software and Halo video game were stronger than expected.

Oil prices fell on Friday as a stronger U.S. dollar and doubts over the pace of economic recovery halted the commodity's recent rally.

Russell Read, the former chief investment officer of Calpers, the largest pension fund in the United States, knows his trees.

U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Friday laid out his most detailed description yet of the central bank's post-crisis approach to regulation and said requiring big banks to hold more capital was under consideration.

Stocks fell on Friday as weak industrial and energy shares overshadowed robust results from technology heavy-weights Microsoft and Amazon.com.

Ingersoll-Rand PLC , which makes heating and cooling systems for homes, businesses and transport, reported higher-than-expected quarterly profit on Friday despite challenges in its markets and gave a 2010 outlook above Wall Street estimates.

Intel Corp assured Clearwire Corp it is closely guarding its investment information on the wireless-broadband company after an insider-trading scandal surfaced last week, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing Clearwire chief executive Bill Morrow.

Netbook PC pioneer Asustek aims for its notebook PC shipments to grow faster than the overall industry in 2010, its CEO Jerry Shen said on Friday, with tech demand returning as the global economy recovers.

Microsoft Corp. reported Friday its quarterly sales fell sharply from a year ago and profit that fell from year-ago results but easily beat Wall Street's forecasts.

Oracle should remove the key stumbling block to approval of its Sun acquisition by giving Sun's database MySQL to an independent, non-profit foundation, a free software group said on Friday.

Diversified U.S. manufacturer Honeywell International Inc posted a 15 percent profit drop that was far less severe than analysts had forecast, saying that cost-cutting had protected its margins.

Renewed talks to resolve Honduras' deep political crisis collapsed on Friday over whether leftist President Manuel Zelaya could return to power after he was toppled in a June coup.

U.S. stocks fell on Friday as declines in industrials, energy shares and some tech companies overshadowed strong earnings from Microsoft Corp .

General Motors Co bought all of the new shares offered by its struggling South Korean unit for $413 million and the U.S. carmaker will consider further financial aid if necessary, GM Daewoo said on Friday.

Afghanistan's Hamid Karzai said he wanted a better and cleaner presidential election run-off in November to bring stability at a time when Taliban violence is at its worst in eight years of war.

Shares in Dole Food Co Inc, the world's largest producer and seller of fresh fruits and vegetables, edged down in their debut on Friday on the New York Stock Exchange after its initial public offering priced below expectations.