IBT Staff Reporter

A federal prosecutor accused former Enron Corp. chief Kenneth Lay on Thursday of withholding key financial data from analysts and hiding his sales of millions of dollars of company stock in the months before Enron collapsed.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Thursday said for the first time the central bank could at some point pause its 22-month interest-rate rising campaign to allow time to divine the economy's path.

World sugar prices are likely to defy gravity in the next 12 months as key producing countries churn out ethanol as an alternative fuel after oil prices spiked to stratospheric highs.

Sony Corp. (6758.T) posted a 68 percent rise in annual operating profit on Thursday on investment gains and robust sales of flat TVs, but forecast a sharp fall this year because of start-up costs for PlayStation 3 (PS3).

The rebuilding of New York's World Trade Center was set to begin on Thursday, just one day after officials approved plans to erect the Freedom Tower and other buildings where the Twin Towers stood until September 11.

China took global markets by surprise on Thursday by raising interest rates for the first time in 18 months to slow a boom in credit and investment that risks destabilizing the world's fastest-growing major economy.

U.S. stock futures fell Thursday as China's central bank lifted interest rates and on caution ahead of testimony from the chairman of the Federal Reserve.

Oil fell below $72 on Thursday, deepening losses from the previous session, as worries over U.S. gasoline supplies eased slightly ahead of the summer driving season.

Jonathan Schwartz, the eloquent, pony-tailed COO of Sun Microsystems was promoted to CEO as the company's founder, Scott McNealy, stepped down this Monday after 22 years. The tech veteran will remain as chairman but even with a new leader at the helm, there is little evidence that Sun will deviate from its slow path to profitability.

Sales of new U.S. homes rose a much larger-than-expected 13.8 percent in March, the biggest one-month gain since April 1993, but prices fell sharply, a government report showed on Wednesday.

The pace of existing home sales in the United States picked up by 0.3 percent in March, defying expectations for a slowdown, due to increased buying in some less expensive markets and in part to warm weather, a trade group said on Tuesday.

Emirates, a small but increasingly influential airline, has jet maker Boeing Co. jockeying with rival Airbus SAS for a multibillion-dollar deal.

U.S. stock futures extended gains on Tuesday as quarterly results from companies including chemical manufacturer DuPont Co. fueled optimism about corporate profit growth despite near-record oil prices.

Former Enron Chairman and Chief Executive Kenneth Lay took the witness stand at his corporate fraud trial on Monday and steadfastly denied he knew of any crimes at the energy company he headed for more than 15 years.

Foreign stocks have become so popular in the United States that whole exchanges are now shopping abroad. Both the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq have been competing to buy the centuries-old London Stock Exchange.

Sun Microsystems Inc. on Monday posted a quarterly net loss due to merger- and other related charges as revenue climbed, boosted by the computer maker's acquisition of Storage Technology Corp.

Britain's leading shares were barely weaker on Monday, propped up by gains in oil companies and miners such as BG Group as prices of crude oil and some metals traded near record levels, although most heavyweight sectors such as banks and pharmaceuticals eased.

Caterpillar Inc. reported on Monday that it earned its best-ever first quarter profits and looked forward to better prospects for the rest of the year.

While financial markets may not react dramatically to the Group of Seven's charge to China to let its yuan currency rise, the events of the weekend will likely further erode faith in the U.S. dollar.

China's yuan currency can probably begin to rise more swiftly given the reforms Beijing has put in place, but gradualism is still the guiding philosophy, the head of China's central bank said on Saturday.

The dollar slid about 1 percent to three month lows against the yen in early trade on Monday after Group of Seven countries singled out China in their call for more flexibility in exchange rates. The dollar slid about 1 percent to three month lows against the yen in early trade on Monday after Group of Seven countries singled out China in their call for more flexibility in exchange rates.

Soon after you retire, you'll probably have to start withdrawing the money you assiduously deposited month after month, year after year.

The two top Internet search engine companies proved last week there is still plenty of room for advertising growth, though Google's dominance marks a major advantage over Yahoo, according to analysts.

A special 13-judge court opens high-stakes hearings on Monday, deciding if it should curtail the European Commission's role as an antitrust watchdog or endorse forcing Microsoft to change its business practices.

Finance ministers endorsed proposals Sunday intended to make it easier for international lending institutions to deal with soaring oil prices, trade gaps and other problems that threaten to derail growth.

The $70-a-barrel mark for oil, decisively breached this week, is seen by many analysts as a danger level. But some argue sustained prices of well over $60 have inflicted surprisingly little pain and done some good.

Corporate earnings news will likely determine the course of the stock market next week as investors scan profit outlooks for enough strength to propel the Dow industrials the few hundred more points the index needs for a record high.

Chinese banks will increasingly opt to list shares at home as China's financial markets mature, a senior banking regulator said on Saturday.

Chief executives of the world's top energy companies met ministers from the biggest producers on Saturday with record oil prices of above $75 a barrel speeding the race for supply investment.