IBT Staff Reporter

Goldman Sachs Chief Executive LLoyd Blankfein urged policymakers keen to rebuild confidence in financial markets to refrain from creating a system designed solely around protecting us from the 100-year storm.

Oil prices rose toward $72 a barrel on Wednesday, extending gains of more than $3 the previous day as a falling dollar spurred investors to buy commodities such as oil as a hedge against inflation.

Talbots Inc posted a quarterly loss on Wednesday that was not as deep as expected, signaling that the retailer's attempts to turn around its business through cost-cutting efforts and better merchandising are paying off.

McDonald's Corp posted a 2.2 percent rise in sales at existing restaurants worldwide, disappointing some investors and sending its shares down 2 percent in premarket trading.

Ellen DeGeneres tried to make Mariah Carey confess whether she is pregnant or not on her show on Monday, but in an unusual way. She asked Carey if the rumors that she is pregnant were true. The diva who appeared on the show wearing a loose casual shirt asked her not to discuss that issue and DeGeneres agreed. Immediately she opened up a champagne bottle and offered a zip to Carey.

Trim shrubs and trees in the front yard; a homebuyer should be able to see your home's architectural features (such as that beautiful picture window). Tidy up your yard; put away hoses, trash cans, etc.

Red may be the official color of Berlin's IFA electronics fair but companies exhibiting there have chosen to show their green side as they prepare for new EU energy conservation legislation that will take effect in 2010.

U.S. mortgage applications surged last week to their highest since late May as consumers sought to take advantage of the lowest interest rates in months, data from an industry group showed on Wednesday.

Essentially, green homes (or buildings) strive to integrate into the environment, use sustainable design and construction concepts, and have a positive impact on occupant health and comfort.

Wall Street was set for a flat to higher open on Wednesday with the falling dollar likely to underpin shares of natural resource companies, including energy producers and miners.

Barrick Gold will issue $3 billion in stock to eliminate all of its fixed-price gold hedges and a portion of its floating hedges, taking a $5.6 billion hit to third-quarter earnings, the world's top gold miner said on Tuesday.

Exelon Corp's 867-megawatt Unit 1 at the Quad Cities nuclear power station in Illinois shut by early Wednesday from full power early Tuesday, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission said in a report.

India's rejection of patent applications on two life-saving HIV/AIDS drugs last week has been welcomed by health officials, who say it will ensure wider access to the medicines.

Symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are typical after deployment to a war zone, and may even represent a healthy reaction to stress, but can lead to problems with mental functioning if they persist, new research in Iraq vets suggests.

Patients who have flu-like symptoms and are having trouble breathing should get quick treatment with the antiviral drugs Tamiflu or Relenza, even before getting a flu test, U.S. officials said on Tuesday.

Titan Machinery Inc, which owns and operates agricultural and construction equipment stores, posted a 48 percent rise in second-quarter profit, helped by strong sales growth at all its segments, and reaffirmed its full-year outlook.

Catching a cold or the flu could speed memory loss in people with Alzheimer's disease, researchers reported Tuesday.

Obama's Stamp on Fed; High Stakes Health Speech; Oil Drops as OPEC Meets

More than half of European websites selling consumer electronics are misleading or cheating online shoppers, the European Union consumer watchdog said on Wednesday after checks on 369 sites in 28 countries.

China's Geely Automotive said its parent company plans to bid for all of Ford Motor Co's Volvo Car Corp, becoming the latest Chinese automaker to chase a foreign marque in a global industry shakeup.

A wave of Beatlemania struck Britain's streets on Wednesday as the Fab Four released a specially remastered edition of their albums, complete with an interactive video game for a new generation of fans.

R&B stars Mary J. Blige, Akon and Chris Brown and veterans Natalie Cole and Sister Sledge will honor the late Michael Jackson at a concert in Vienna later this month, with more stars due to be announced this week.

Fox has roped in a Western drama from Chuck executive producer Scott Rosenbaum.

NBC is back in business with producer Jerry Bruckheimer.

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club is revving back into gear with a live DVD this fall and a new album the alternative rock trio expects to release in the spring of 2010.

Aesthetic laser device maker Syneron Medical Ltd said it agreed to buy rival Candela Corp in an all-stock deal valued at about $65 million.

Any appointment at Abbey Road still involves walking over the most famous pedestrian crossing in popular music. And the history of the north London studio hangs heavy in the air when the meeting is with the engineers who have just finished digitally remastering all the original Beatles albums, from Please Please Me through Abbey Road.

Biopharmaceutical firm Xoma Ltd said it entered into a research and development deal related to its antibody technologies with a unit of Cephalon Inc.

Veteran Australian actor Ray Barrett, who became a familiar figure on British television in the 1960s and most recently appeared in the big-budget movie Australia, has died at the age of 82.