IBT Staff Reporter

New York Gov. David A. Paterson has selected Republican Kirsten Gillibrand, 42, to occupy the seat vacated by Hillary Rodham Clinton, as New York Senator, the New York Times reported early Friday.

Pfizer Inc. is in talks to buy Wyeth in a deal potentially worth more than $60 billion, according to a report. The companies have held discussions for several months but the deal wasn't imminent. Talks are specially fragile and could collapse due to the volatility in the market and the uncertainty in the economy.

General Electric announced Friday its fourth quarter profit fell 44 percent and said it expects 2009 to be a extremely difficult year.

A Chinese court sentenced two men to death and a dairy boss to life in prison Thursday for their roles in producing and selling infant formula tainted with melamine, a deadly industrial chemical added to watered-down milk in order to fool inspectors and increase profits.

On Thursday President Barak Obama signed three historical orders. 1- Closure of Guantanamo Bay prison 2- The closure of all CIA prisons 3- Banning use of torture

Top executives at Starbucks did not receive bonuses in 2008 and won't get any increases on their base salary in 2009 due to due to disappointing results for the company which has suffered in the wake of less consumer spending.

Kate Winslet sealed two Golden Globes for her work in The Reader and Revolutionary Road last week, and her Thursday she wrangled herself an Oscar nomination.

The Walt Disney Co. said Thursday it is restructuring the Disney-ABC Television group, by merging ABC Entertainment and ABC Studios, according to media reports.

Xin Yang, 22, a female Chinese graduate student at Virginia Tech University was killed Wednesday night.

The former US Senator and Northern Ireland envoy George Mitchell, the man chosen by President Obama, has been appointed as Middle East envoy by new US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Carol Bartz, the new Chief Executive Officer of Yahoo Inc. froze employees' salaries for 2009.

Hard drive maker Seagate Technology shares closed down 24 percent on Thursday marking a 52-week low as the company released worse than expected second quarter results and projected a poor quarter outlook.

On Thursday, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs confirmed at Thursday's press briefing that President Obama has held on to his beloved smart phone, though he did not provide details on what kind of BlackBerry the president is using.

Automaker Chrysler LLC will announce what it called extraordinary discounts later Thursday, part of a new incentive to sell dealer's inventories and boost sales.

Kent, 40, a five-time All-Star and the National League’s most valuable player in 2000, played 17 seasons in the major leagues and finally announced his retirement Thursday.

The Microsoft mogul is behind a $630-million push to force polio into permanent retreat. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is donating $255 million to help eradicate polio.

Supreme Court Kills Internet pornography law by refusing to resurrect a federal law that requires web sites containing material harmful to minors to implement age-based access restrictions.

On Thursday, defensive coordinator Mike Trgovac turned down the 2 years extension offered to him to remain as coach on John Fox's dwindling staff.

Google profit sank 68 percent, to $382 million in the fourth quarter, but still beat analysts estimates. he company said the fall was due to impairment charges on its investments in Clearwire Corp and Time Warner Inc unit AOL.

Beanie Babies maker Ty Inc. is selling two new $10 dolls for their TyGirlz Collection: Sweet Sasha and Marvelous Malia.

Gwen Stefani's former band, No Doubt, announced they will have a summer tour in May this year. Paramore will be their opening act.

American International Group Inc. launched the sale of its Asian life insurance unit, American International Assurance Co. yesterday, aiming to rise up to $20 billion that will help the bank repay a $60 billion debt with the U.S. government.

Did you know that President Barack Obama is left-handed?

Intel Corp. said Wednesday it plans to close some facilities worldwide which will result in up to 6,000 manufacturing job cuts as it adjusts to slumping demand for chips in the current economic recession.

PC processor maker Advanced Micro Devices Inc. reported a net loss of 1.42 billion or $2.34 a share in the fourth quarter, recording its ninth consecutive loss as the global crisis hit the PC market reducing consumer spending and demand.

Toyota Motor Corp. is considering bringing its model iQ microcar to the U.S. but did not say when.

Sarah Palin may be ready to tell her story in print, according to reports.

Venus Williams looked flat and was ousted in the second round of the grand slam tournament by up-and-coming Carla Suarez Navarro of Spain 2-6, 6-3, 7-5.

Pres. Barack Obama gets a new Sectera Edge which will be used for official communication. And keep his blackberry for exclusively personal used, forced to give up mobile e-mail device.