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Air China buys four Boeing planes for $1.2 billion

Air China Ltd. said it has agreed to buy four 777-300ER aircraft from Boeing for a total basic price of $1.15 billion to expand fleet capacity. Get the full story »

Brits hit Goldman with $27M nondisclosure fine

Britain’s financial watchdog fined Goldman Sachs Group Inc. 17.5 million pounds ($27 million) for failing to tell the regulator it was the subject of a U.S. probe, reviving disclosure headaches for the Wall Street powerhouse.

The fine — one of the biggest imposed in Britain — stemmed from Goldman’s troubled Abacus mortgage-security product, which was the focus of an investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Get the full story »

Boeing subsidiary wins appeal over CIA flights

A Boeing Co. subsidiary prevailed on Wednesday against a lawsuit alleging it had helped the CIA illegally transport prisoners to secret facilities overseas, a federal appeals court has ruled.

The 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco dismissed the lawsuit against Jeppesen Dataplan Inc, finding that rules protecting state secrets made it impossible for the litigation to proceed. The U.S. Department of Justice intervened in the case on behalf of Jeppesen. Get the full story »

Abbott completes acquisition of India’s Piramal

Abbott Laboratories Wednesday said it closed the acquisition of Piramal Healthcare Ltd.’s generic drugs unit. In May, Abbott had agreed to buy Piramal’s healthcare solutions business for about $3.7 billion, Abbott Laboratories said in a statement.

EU regulators to review Sara Lee-S.C. Johnson deal

EU regulators will review a bid by bug spray maker S.C. Johnson to purchase Sara Lee Corp.’s remaining insecticide business at the request of national watchdogs, the European Commission said on Wednesday. Sara Lee announced the $200 million deal in June as part of a strategy of focusing on selling food, coffee and tea. Get the full story »

Potash chief takes to YouTube to discuss BHP bid

From The New York Times | Potash Corp. of Saskatchewanon put up several videos of William Doyle, its chief executive, on Tuesday, to explain why shareholders are better off sticking with the company than flocking to BHP’s offer.

Chairman to leave HSBC for British ministry post

HSBC Holdings Chairman Stephen K. Green will leave the bank to become Britain’s minister of state for trade and investment, the company said Tuesday.

Green will retire from the bank by the end of the year –  HSBC did not announced a specific date — and take up his new post in 2011. Get the full story »

Date for Air Force tanker deal more in flux

The target date for the much-delayed award of a possible $50 billion U.S. Air Force refueling-plane deal just got murkier and potentially more politicized.

No longer is mid-November necessarily the moment of truth in the rematch pitting Chicago-based Boeing Co. against its European rival, Airbus parent EADS. Get the full story »

Abbott abandons plans to sell vaccines business

Drug and medical device firm Abbott Laboratories says it has abandoned plans to sell its vaccines unit, less than three months after exploring sales talks with rival companies. Get the full story »

China demands IDs for mobile phone numbers

China wants people who buy new cell phone numbers to register their personal details, joining many European and Asian countries in curbing the anonymous use of mobile technology.

Most countries that have such rules say they prevent the use of unregistered phones in terror attacks or drug crimes. In China, authorities say they have their sights on rampant junk messages — but some believe the move gives the government a new tool for monitoring its citizens. Get the full story »

Caterpillar to expand manufacturing in Brazil

Caterpillar Inc. plans to spend about $180 million to expand its manufacturing capacity in Brazil and meet growing demand in Latin America.

The world’s largest maker of construction and mining equipment said Wednesday that it had purchased an existing manufacturing plant in Campo Largo, Brazil, and over the next two years, it plans to expand its existing plant at Piracicaba, Brazil.

Daley, business leaders going to China, South Korea

Mayor Richard Daley will travel to China and South Korea next month to promote Chicago as a destination for businesses and tourists.

The Sept. 18-24 trip will be sponsored by the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce and World Business Chicago. The mayor will make stops in Shanghai, China, and in the cities of Busan and Seoul in South Korea.

Northern Trust receives Beijing branch license

Northern Trust Corp. said Tuesday it received a branch license in Beijing, allowing the bank and asset manager to directly provide client services from that office rather than from a representative office in Singapore or Hong Kong.

India says RIM to give it access to secure data

BlackBerry maker Research In Motion will give India access to secure data from Sept. 1, a government source said Monday as the country pushes RIM, Google and Skype to set up servers in India due to its security concerns.

On Monday, the interior ministry said RIM had offered India a few proposals to gain access its secure data and that the feasibility of the solutions would be assessed within 60 days. It did not give details of the solutions. Get the full story »

Economy slows, 2Q GDP revised to 1.6%

U.S. economic growth slowed more sharply than initially thought in the second quarter, held back by the largest increase in imports in 26 years, a government report showed on Friday. Gross domestic product expanded at a 1.6 percent annual rate, the Commerce Department said, instead of the 2.4 percent pace it had estimated last month. Get the full story »