Gerard J Phaneuf

Off to college? It can be a bit scary, especially if you don't know anyone at the school you plan to attend. Still, take heart; things could be worse. Girls and boys of the Okiek tribe of Kenya are ritually circumcised or excised when they're 14-16 years old. They then cover themselves in clay and

France's Schneider Electric SA (SU.FR) received two bids for its CST unit, which manufactures electronic sensors, from Singapore-based Avago Technology Ltd. (AVGO) and a consortium of private-equity funds Carlyle and PAI Partners, French newspaper Les Echos reported Friday, citing unidentified

Someday, the conventional wisdom and statistics keep telling us, we're all going to throw out our wallets and replace them with digital phones.

Exchange operator NYSE Euronext (NYX) said Friday its net profit fell to $125 million in the second quarter of the year from $154 million a year earlier due to lower trading volumes, mainly in derivatives.

*DJ Siemens Shares Trade Up 3.7% After Share Buyback Announcement FRANKFURT--Industrial conglomerate Siemens (SI) said late Thursday it will buy back as much as 3 billion euros ($3.65 billion) worth of shares and cancel around 33 million treasury shares.

Formosa Petrochemical Corp. (6505.TW) said Friday its crude run rate will likely rise gradually and reach 100% in September, as Taiwan's largest private refiner increases output while some other regional refineries are shut due to annual maintenance or accidents.

AstraZeneca PLC (AZN.LN) said Friday it purchased 437,496 ordinary shares at a price of 3042 pence per share on Aug. 2 for cancellation.

British Sky Broadcasting Group PLC (BSY.LN) said Friday that on Aug. 2 it purchased 350,000 of its ordinary shares for cancellation at an average 725.1965 pence per share.

Motorola Solutions, Inc. (MSI) said Friday it has agreed on the terms of a recommended cash offer to acquire the entire issued and to be issued share capital of Psion (PON.LN).

Vodafone Group PLC (VOD) said Friday that on Aug. 2 it purchased 10.5 million of its ordinary shares on the London Stock Exchange via Citigroup Global Markets Ltd. at prices between 189.15 pence and 186.4 pence, which will be held in treasury.