IBT Staff Reporter

The U.S. housing slowdown may threaten the biggest providers of loans, not just those catering to subprime borrowers.

Software giant Microsoft Corp. said on Tuesday it was investigating how two in-house training videos made by British comedian Ricky Gervais, creator of The Office television series, appeared on two Web sites.

Some 75 movie titles, including The Da Vinci Code and Chicken Little, will go on sale in Japan later this year using the next-generation Blu-ray DVD format.

Inco Ltd. on Tuesday urged shareholders to reject a C$19.35-billion ($17.4 billion) all-cash offer from Brazilian firm Companhia Vale do Rio Doce., and said it still backed a friendly offer from U.S.-based Phelps Dodge Corp.

German sports goods firm Adidas expects a turnaround in sales at U.S. subsidiary Reebok by the end of the year, a German magazine quoted the group's chief executive as saying.

A patriotic Internet game featuring heroic Chinese and designed to wean the young off their addiction to violent foreign games is still not ready for release a year after development begun, state media said on Tuesday. Unlike the more popular games, where players have to slay dragons, fight aliens or beat up bad guys, in Chinese Heroes players click on statues to learn about their experiences and carry out tasks like moving bricks, Xinhua news agency said.

German drugs and chemicals group Bayer unveiled a revamp at its agrochemicals unit after strong healthcare earnings helped the company post a 14 percent rise in second-quarter operating profit on Tuesday.

Federal investigators are examining whether BP Plc manipulated crude oil and unleaded gasoline markets, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal on Tuesday that cited lawyers and traders close to the case.

Libya's leader has reprimanded the country over its over-dependence on foreign imports and oil. He has urged the economy to improve its manufacturing sector and increase productivity.

Japan has drawn up an action plan to spearhead efforts to develop the next generation of more environmentally friendly vehicles and batteries to help reduce its reliance on oil.

Japanese electronics maker Sharp Corp. is more concerned about falling prices for flat-panel LCD television sets than it is about losing market share, the head of its European business told Reuters on Monday.

China will invest around $5 billion in energy projects in Venezuela by 2012 as part of a plan to boost Venezuela's oil output, the South American country's energy minister told state television on Monday.

The chief U.S. Treasury spokesman repeated standing policy on Monday that international currency markets should determine foreign exchange values.

Apple computer paid $100 million last week to settle a lawsuit where Creative Technology claimed that Apple's iPod music player infringed on Creative's patents.

Anglo-Dutch consumer products group Unilever NV/Plc said on Monday it agreed to sell the bulk of its frozen foods business to private equity group Permira Funds for 1.725 billion euros ($2.2 billion).

Google Inc. is making its most concerted move beyond search and advertising into the business software market, starting with a set of Web programs for e-mail, scheduling and communications, the company said on Sunday.

U.S. Treasuries slipped slightly in Asia trade on Monday, pulling benchmark yields up from five-month lows, as many investors sat tight before a slew of data and speeches from Federal Reserve officials.

Central bankers and top academics departed here on Sunday after two days of discussions on how the global economic landscape is shifting.

With soaring gas prices making alternative fuels more attractive, ethanol - a grain alcohol made from a variety of crops including corn, sugarcane, barley and wheat - has become a popular alternative.

Tax law may need strengthening to curb abuses in executive stock option compensation, the chairman of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee said on Friday.

In the spring, music executives at the E3 videogame convention predicted music would take on a greater future role as the game market grows more sophisticated. This fall, that prediction seems poised to become reality.

Government data and forecasts by companies are downbeat, and the sector has had a speculative, bubble-like growth which will take years to unwind, some investors said.

Wall Street's summer comes to a close next week with what could be a toxic mix for stocks: No major earnings, an overload of A-list economic data, a storm headed for the Gulf of Mexico and trading desks staffed with third-string dealers.

None of the options Ford Motor Co. may be considering - selling off its luxury brands, creating global alliances, taking itself private - would do much to solve the struggling automaker's basic problems, analysts said.

U.S. stocks edged higher on Thursday, with the S&P 500 getting a lift from the oil sector, but data showing a slowdown in new home sales hurt the shares of retailers and industrial companies.

Shares of Sony Corp. fell as much as 3 percent to a one-month low on Friday after Apple Computer Inc. said it would recall 1.8 million PC batteries, the second major recall involving Sony-made battery cells in 10 days.

Cellular telephones and wireless BlackBerry email devices may be addictive, but most business executives insist mobile technology has improved the balance between their work and home, a study said on Thursday.

Apple Computer Inc. will recall 1.8 million lithium-ion notebook PC batteries after nine overheated, the second major recall in the past 10 days involving battery cells made by Sony Corp..

Rising oil prices lifted European energy stocks on Friday while most financial markets were focused on an upcoming speech by U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.