IBT Staff Reporter

Microsoft Corp. intensified talks with Yahoo Inc. as it may raise its original $31-a-share Friday in a last-minute effort to reach a friendly agreement, according to media reports.

Marvel Entertainment Inc's prospects are rising as investors lifted the company's stock on expectations of strong box-office results for its Iron Man film.

Stryker Corp., maker of orthopedic devices, received another warning from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration related to quality issues and false documents.

Copper futures recovered on Friday from a sell-off the previous day and but gained support by better than expected jobless data and factory orders in the United States. Prices also rose amid worries on short supplies from top exporter Chile.

Gold futures edged higher on Friday after recovering from earlier losses on a stronger dollar while posting a weekly loss of nearly $32 an ounce.

Wheat increased again for the first time in four days boosted by concerns that importers will increase purchases from the U.S.

Soybeans advanced on Friday after the Argentine government failed to lift a ban on beef exports as had been promised earlier this week, raising concerns that farmers and the government may not resolve a dispute over taxes that disrupted crop exports.

AT&T unveiled its plan to launch its new video service for cell phones before the end of this week.

U.S. stocks retreated on Friday after Sun Microsystems Inc.'s disappointing results weighted on the technology sector and surging oil prices overshadowed a better-than-expected April jobs report.

Oil prices rose after four days of declines as the U.S. government released better than expected jobs data and as Turkey attacked Kurdish rebels in Northern Iraq near a rich oil field.

Home retailer Linens Holding Co., the operator of Linens 'n Things filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Friday, blaming declines in the housing market and in consumer spending.

Viacom Inc reported that profit in the first quarter rose 33 percent on strong sales of its Rock Band video game and higher revenues from its cable networks.

Chevron Corp's net income for the first quarter rose 9.6 percent as surging oil prices offset narrower refining margins.

Murchison Metals Ltd, an Australian iron ore prospector, said on Friday it was not in talks to be taken over by Chinese firm Sinosteel Corp.

Sterling fell against the dollar yesterday as traders trimmed their bet on currency due to the strong recovery in the counterpart after the Fed decision on interest rate.

Dollar strengthened against the euro yesterday as traders took profits on the European currency amid optimism that the Federal Reserve's

Connecticut's attorney general is investigating possible conflicts of interest due to Berkshire Hathaway Inc's 20 percent ownership of credit ratings company Moody's Corp.

Lenovo Group Ltd, the world's fourth-largest personal computer maker behind HP and Dell, and Acer says it is looking to acquire other PC firms to gain market share.

The FTSE 100 share index finished unchanged on Thursday, ending as it began the day at 6,087.3 points.

Canon Inc. a Japanese manufacturer of printer and copier machines said late Friday that I will invest 60 billion yen, the equivalent to $575 million dollars to build a brand new toner cartridge in the United States.

Herbalife Ltd. Maker of nutritional supplements said its president and chief operating officer Gregory Probert resigned as it was discovered he didn't complete an academic degree.

Sony Corp. may probably report an increase of 430 percent of profit for the 2007-2008 financial year ended March 31 since demand for digital cameras, computers and other electronics increased, the newspaper Nikkei reported on Friday.

Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer outlined his options for moving forward with a Yahoo bid on Thursday and said an announcement would come very soon.

Odyssey Re Holdings Corp. the underwriter of insurance reported on Thursday its first quarter net earnings were of $250.9 million or $3.63 a share from $88.6 million or $1.20 a share in the same period last year.

Natural gas spot prices increased in all trading regions in the Lower 48 States this report week (Wednesday–Wednesday, April 23-30). During the report week, the Henry Hub spot price increased $0.48 per million Btu (MMBtu) to $10.81.

The dollar rose on Friday against an index of its largest rival currencies after U.S. economic data on Thursday raised expectations that the Federal Reserve would take a pause from its string of interest rate cuts.

The Walt Disney Co. said on Thursday it has taken ownership of 220 Disney Store chains from a subsidiary of The Children's Place Retail Stores Inc. and will close stores within North America.

MetLife Inc, the largest life insurer in the United States by assets, reported a 37 percent decline in first-quarter net income on Thursday, hurt by investment losses amid the economy's credit crunch.

Sun Microsystems Inc. said on Thursday it will cut from 1,500 to 2,500 jobs in the wake of U.S. economic weakness and delays in orders from some customers.