IBT Staff Reporter

Pfizer Inc won U.S. and Canadian antitrust approval to buy smaller rival Wyeth on Wednesday, and will close the $66 billion deal this week, the world's largest drugmaker said.

Dow Breaks Through; Fines for Airlines; Cheap Mobile

Two former Bear Stearns Cos managers whose hedge funds collapsed early in the financial crisis lied to investors to save their bonuses and reputations, a U.S. prosecutor said on Wednesday.

Calpers said it was probing the fees outside money managers had been paying to win business with the largest U.S. pension fund, adding a new dimension to a wider review of so-called pay-to-play schemes.

The funeral of late Boyzone singer Stephen Gately, who died on the Spanish island of Majorca over the weekend, will be held in Dublin on Saturday, his bandmates said on their website on Wednesday.

Skype's founders have asked a U.S. federal court to prevent Index Ventures and one of its partners from further participating in the proposed $1.9 billion acquisition of the Web phone service, according to a court filing on Wednesday.

Oil rose above $75 a barrel to settle at a record high for the year on Wednesday as economic optimism hinted at a recovery in global energy demand.

Two victims of Bernard Madoff's Ponzi scheme filed a federal lawsuit against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday, seeking at least the $2.4 million they lost in the fraud.

The Dow industrials broke through the 10,000 level on Wednesday for the first time in a year on better-than-expected company results and U.S. retail sales data.

Use of sugar cane-based ethanol as a substitute for gasoline is among the cheapest and easiest ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to a Brazilian study published on Wednesday.

Shares in LDK Solar Co Ltd, a Chinese manufacturer for the solar power industry, fell as much as 4 percent on Wednesday, dragged down by the abrupt resignation of its head of manufacturing.

U.S. retail sales excluding auto purchases rose for a second month in September, raising cautious optimism consumer spending could support the economy's fledgling recovery from the worst recession since the 1930s.

U.S. aviation regulators proposed on Wednesday $9.2 million of combined safety-related fines against US Airways Group and UAL Corp's United Airlines , officials said.

Congress will soon probe executive compensation at companies such as American International Group Inc and Bank of America Corp receiving significant taxpayer funds, the chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform panel said on Wednesday.

The Canadian and Alberta governments said on Wednesday they will spend C$779 million ($756 million) on a carbon capture project planned by TransAlta Corp, their second such funding announcement in less than a week.

Oil hit a record high for the year above $75 a barrel on Wednesday as economic optimism hinted at a recovery in global energy demand.

Dry shipper Genco Shipping & Trading Ltd has filed plans to take a recently formed subsidiary public in an offering of up to $230 million.

The U.S. Congress will soon probe executive compensation at companies such as American International Group Inc and Bank of America Corp receiving significant taxpayer funds, the chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform panel said on Wednesday.

Early on April 20, I was getting dressed for work when I heard Dylan bound down the stairs and open the front door. Wondering why he was in such a hurry when he could have slept another 20 minutes, I poked my head out of the bedroom. 'Dyl? ' All he said was 'Bye.'

U.S. chemical makers are poised to post stronger-than-expected third-quarter earnings, but demand for their products could cool later this year as government stimulus programs unwind, industry experts say.

Nearly all U.S. working women believe that their professional appearance is crucial to success at work, and one in five female executives say they have withheld a promotion or a raise due to the way an employee dresses, according to a survey released on Tuesday.

A majority of U.S. workers do not think their bosses are honest, said a survey released on Tuesday, and one in four would fire their boss if they could.

A nearly 10 percent drop in costs and higher-than-expected revenue helped Host Hotels & Resorts post third-quarter results that surpassed expectations, and its shares rose nearly 5 percent.

U.S. aviation regulators proposed on Wednesday $9.2 million of combined safety-related fines against US Airways Group and UAL Corp's United Airlines, officials said.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc is expanding an offering of cut-price mobile services nationwide, putting further pressure on rivals such as Leap Wireless International Inc and MetroPCS .

The regulator for the largest U.S. banks said on Wednesday that 17 percent of national banks are now considered problem banks.

Many homeowners are turning into landlords -- reluctantly sometimes, when they have to move but cannot sell their homes.

Sumner Redstone plans to sell $945 million of stock in CBS Corp and Viacom Inc, two media companies he controls, to pay off loans that threatened to unravel the media mogul's empire.

Tech stocks rallied on Wednesday after bellwether Intel Corp reported quarterly earnings and a revenue forecast that blew past expectations, buoying investor hopes of a recovery.