IBT Staff Reporter

Manufacturing activity surged across Asia in September as demand picked up, although plans by Japanese manufacturers for record cuts in capital spending cast doubts on the strength of a recovery in the industrialized world.

Akamai Technologies is extending its content delivery network to the Apple iPhone as it introduces the Akamai HD Network, a system for streaming high-definition live and on-demand video to a variety of devices.

The more you think about it, the more obvious it is that an Apple tablet would specialize in reviving dead-tree media (i.e., newspapers, magazines and books). All the rumors suggest the device would be a larger iPod Touch/iPhone with a 10-inch screen. Previously Wired.com argued that redefining print would would be a logical purpose for a gadget this size, and Gizmodo today has even more details to prove that this is Apple's goal with the tablet.

Asian shares fell on Thursday after negative news on U.S. jobs and manufacturing pointed to a patchy recovery in the world's largest economy, and as dollar weakness sparked concerns for exporters around the region.

Britain's biggest pizza delivery chain Domino's Pizza UK & IRL said on Thursday it was on track to beat market expectations for the full year following strong trading in the third quarter.

Japan's largest retailer Seven & I Holdings on Thursday posted a 20 percent drop in first-half operating profit as it considers closing 16 percent of its supermarkets to cope with a sharp sales decline, and it kept a recently revised-down forecast.

Redhall Group Plc, a British engineering support services group, said it expected full-year profit to be marginally below market view due to a fall in volumes in the nuclear and chemical markets and rejigged its top executive team.

Talecris Biotherapeutics Holdings Corp priced shares in its initial public offering for $19 each, within the expected range, but increased the size of the share issue in the largest IPO by a biopharmaceuticals firm in three years.

ViaSat Inc, which provides satellite and other wireless networking systems, has agreed to buy Wild Blue Communications Inc for more than $565 million, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Sanofi-Aventis has bought French biotechnology company Fovea, specialized in eye diseases, and expanded its cancer portfolio through an exclusive worldwide drug licensing deal with Merrimack Pharmaceuticals Inc.

More private equity firms in Australia are eyeing exit strategies by floating companies in the wake of U.S. buyout group TPG'slaunch this week of Myer's $2 billion initial public offering.

Oil fell below $70 on Thursday, pulling back from the more than 5 percent gain a day ago on worries that a rise in U.S. crude and distillate stocks signals weak demand when taken along with the latest economic data.

China celebrated its ascendance with a show of goose-stepping troops, gaudy floats and nuclear-capable missiles in the nation's capital on Thursday, 60 years after Mao Zedong proclaimed its embrace of communism.

The U.S. economy is mending more quickly than anticipated, although high unemployment and growing commercial property defaults will put a drag on the recovery, the International Monetary Fund said on Thursday.

Many people who have died of H1N1 swine flu in the United States have also had bacterial infections, health officials reported on Wednesday.

Mothers who smoke during pregnancy put their children at greater risk of developing psychotic symptoms as teenagers, British scientists said on Thursday.

Nortel Networks Corp said on Wednesday it plans to sell its global GSM business, as the bankrupt telecom equipment maker continues to auction off its assets.

Asian shares fell on Thursday after a surprise drop in manufacturing in the U.S. heartland cast doubts on the strength of a global recovery, while the dollar was on the back foot against higher-yielding currencies.

Citigroup completed the sale of its Japanese brokerage Nikko Cordial Securities to Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, one more step in the U.S. bank's plans to shed non-core assets.

BofA's Lewis Out; Saturn Goodbye; Economy Stabilizing

General Motors Co will close Saturn and wind down its dealership network after a deal to sell the faltering brand to Penske Automotive Group collapsed, the automaker said on Wednesday.

Citigroup completed the sale of its Japanese brokerage Nikko Cordial Securities to Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group , one more step in the U.S. bank's plans to recoup losses from the financial crisis.

South Korea surpassed Japan and Sweden to take the top spot in an annual ranking of broadband quality, helped by its government's efforts to boost it as an IT world leader, a study showed on Thursday.

Bank of America Corp said on Wednesday six internal candidates are in the running to take over from Chief Executive Kenneth Lewis when he retires at the end of the year. All six are on the executive management team, four are long-time Bank of America staff and just one -- Tom Montag -- joined through the bank's acquisition of Merrill Lynch & Co.

JPMorgan Chase's investment bank is planning a push to win more business outside the United States by building on the group's financial ties with overseas companies, its head Jes Staley told the Financial Times.

Congressional leaders on Wednesday pressed General Motors Co GM.UL and Chrysler to resolve complaints about dealer franchise terminations the automakers pushed through during their brief bankruptcies.

Business software maker Lawson Software Inc posted a first-quarter profit that beat market expectations, helped by increased license fee revenue and expense cuts, and forecast second-quarter results in line with Wall Street view.

The U.S. government and the body in charge of assigning Internet addresses signed an agreement on Wednesday that allows for greater global participation in the Internet domain name process.

Hershey Co remains stymied in its ability to assemble a takeover offer for Cadbury Plc, leaving Kraft Food Inc as the sole bidder for the British confectioner, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.