Microsoft Corporation agreed to buy Skype Technologies SA for 8.5 billion US dollars in cash to gain the world’s most popular Internet calling service and its 663 million customers.
Standard and Poor's cut Greece's credit rating further into junk territory, reflecting growing doubts that the Euro zone's most fragile economy can manage its debt without imposing losses on private bondholders.
The Marine Conservation Society (MCS) has accused UK supermarkets of failing to label seafood in a way that makes it easy for consumers to select sustainable sourced fish. The allegation came as the MCS published the Good Fish guide, which is being hailed as the most comprehensive sustainable seafood advice released to date.
The mass cull of farm animals to control the spread of foot-and-mouth disease, FMD, may be unnecessary if there is a new outbreak, scientists suggest. A new analysis of disease transmission suggests that future outbreaks might be controlled by early detection and killing only affected animals.
The Australian government filed a written submission at the International Court of Justice in Netherlands calling for an end to Japan's Antarctic whaling program on the grounds that it breaches the international ban on commercial whaling. Australia made the official presentation of its case Monday at the ICJ.
The world’s largest iron-ore producer, Brazil’s Vale will double investments in Mozambique to 4 billion US dollars in the next four years, said on Monday Chief Executive Officer Roger Agnelli.
Spain’s oil company Repsol plans to sell up to 3% of YPF on the Argentine market as part of a gradual divestment of its stake in that unit, according to company sources.
Global central bankers voiced concern about recent volatility in commodity markets, saying they needed to better understand its impact on inflation at a time when some emerging economies may be overheating.
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) announced the approval of a Flexible Financing Facility (FFF) that will enable Latin American and Caribbean countries to tailor loan terms and conditions to suit their individual needs, as well as to use hedges to manage interest rate and currency risks associated with their IDB debt.
French police said a second body has been removed from the underwater wreckage of the Air France flight that crashed into the Atlantic Ocean nearly two years ago. A remote-controlled submarine raised a body that was still strapped into an airline seat some 3,900 metres to the water's surface Friday.