IBT Staff Reporter

When it comes to water, it is pretty clear to investors that a growing global shortage will bring in new business opportunities.

A U.S. judge on Friday dismissed a lawsuit against Citigroup Inc brought by buyers of auction rate securities, a $330 billion market that collapsed in early 2008.

With Cadbury lacking a white knight bidder to come to its rescue in the face of Kraft's $16.1 billion bid, the two companies are set to face off on one question: How much is Cadbury really worth?

Hacker Albert Gonzalez, accused of masterminding the massive data thefts at BJ's Wholesale Club, TJX and several other retailers, pleaded guilty to some of the largest identity-theft crimes on record on Friday while leaving the federal judge wondering how to compensate his millions of victims.

Anheuser-Busch InBev NV said on Friday its American Depositary Receipts would begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Sept. 16 under the symbol BUD.

The FBI on Friday continued their search for missing Yale Student, Annie Marie Le, who was set to wed this weekend.

Improving U.S. consumer sentiment and a big drawdown in wholesale inventories on Friday built on recent evidence that an economic recovery was picking up speed.

Interest rates on U.S. 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell below 5 percent on Friday, a significant psychological level that should help the hard-hit U.S. housing market to recover, according to real estate website Zillow.com.

NASA has ordered astronauts aboard space shuttle Discovery to switch to a backup runway in California for their planned landing Friday because thunderstorms blocked its return home to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Spain's King Juan Carlos appeared to have put their dramatic public spat of 2007 well behind them when they met on Friday, even sharing a joke about the monarch's recently grown beard.

The European Union's foreign policy chief Javier Solana said on Friday that he was seeking an urgent meeting with the Iranian chief nuclear negotiator after consulting six major powers over proposals submitted by Iran.

The world's oldest person, a woman who was born in 1894 and gained a measure of fame when she voted for Barack Obama for U.S. president, died on Friday at the age of 115.

A World Trade Organization panel has found that European subsidies for Airbus injured its U.S. rival Boeing, a U.S. senator said on Friday in remarks that clashed with a colleague's description of the ruling.

Department stores will likely face a smaller sales decline in the second half of 2009 than in the first half as lower inventories make discounting less necessary to clear out merchandise, Moody's Investors Service said on Friday.

The U.S. government on Friday posted a smaller-than-expected $111.40 billion budget deficit for August, marking a record-matching 11 straight months of deficits.

Harvard and Yale, America's two richest universities, said on Thursday their endowments lost roughly 30 percent of their value last year, showing how severely the financial crisis battered even the world's best managers.

Michael Jackson was buried with one of his iconic white gloves, sunglasses and dressed with pearl beads and a large gold belt, his sister, La Toya, said in a television interview to air on Friday.

Celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz reached a deal on Friday with the art finance company behind her $24 million loan, allowing her to buy back control of her photographs, which had been put up as collateral.

In obscure corners of the U.S. stock market -- where flash orders, dark pools and other controversial practices thrive -- regulators are trying to shine a light to guard against unfair dealing.

German carmaker Volkswagen (VOWG.DE) is bolstering its presence in Asia after approving 4 billion euros ($5.84 billion) in new investments for China and mounting another effort to build cars in Malaysia.

The organizers at the U.S. Open announced Friday the pending singles matches will be completed today but not before 4:30pm EST due to the challenging rain.

General Motors Co [GM.UL] has ended temporary pay cuts for salaried workers that were put in place four months ago to preserve cash before the automaker filed for bankruptcy, a spokeswoman said.

Chinese machinery maker Tengzhong's bid to acquire the Hummer brand from General Motors Co should be viewed as a trade in technology and not an overseas investment, a top Chinese planning official said on Thursday.

A decision by General Motors Co to sell a controlling interest in its European unit, Opel, was the first major decision for GM's new board and an important test of the U.S. government's pledge to let the directors and management run the company.

Canadian automotive supplier Magna International promised on Friday to ringfence its Opel operations once it takes control of the former General Motors carmaking unit.

Although many women believe heart disease primarily affects men, the truth is women are just as vulnerable. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), heart disease is the number one killer of all women ages 35 and

BMW (BMWG.DE), the world's largest premium car maker, said on Friday its August car sales in mainland China surged 63.2 percent from a year earlier.

Does it feel like your jeans suddenly shrunk? Are you feeling bloated? Or do you suddenly feel particularly irritated by the less than courteous drivers you

Carmakers, stung by recession and unsure of their future as government support wanes, will put on a brave face at next week's Frankfurt Motor Show, promoting the green technologies they hope will be their salvation.