Oil field services provider Halliburton reported an 83 percent rise in profits for the second quarter, despite the disastrous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Thanks to an increase in land-based drilling activity in North America and improved business abroad, net income came in at $480 million (53 cents a share) for the three months April through June, compared with $262 million (29 cents a share) in the same quarter last year. The results beat analysts' expectations by about 15 cents.

Spanish telecoms provider Telefónica has withdrawn its bid to acquire a further €7.15 billion stake in Brazil’s leading cell phone company, Vivo, currently owned by Portugal Telecom.

Telefónica and Portugal Telecom each own 50 per cent of Brasilcel, a Dutch registered holding company which owns 60 per cent of Vivo. Brasilcel is also listed on the Brazilian stock market, where the remaining 40 percent of its stock is publicly traded.

Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner landed at Farnborough in the UK Sunday for its first appearance at an international air show. “This is the first time we've had a new airplane at an air show since the early 1990s," said Jim Albaugh, head of Boeing Commercial Airplanes.

The 787 Dreamliner is considered a revolutionary new aircraft, as it is largely built from light-weight composite material. It is now two years behind schedule, however, after delays caused by a series of hitches, and rival Airbus has been catching up with its new model, the A 350.

For the first time since 1997, domestic auto brands, collectively, have surpassed import brands as a whole in vehicle appeal, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2010 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study just released.

Germany’s Siemens AG has signed multi-billion euro deals to supply railway technologies and wind power to Russia.

Under the agreements, Siemens will modernise 22 railway switching yards by 2026 and supply Russian Railways (RZD) with 240 regional trains (a total of 1,200 coaches)over the next 10 years.

The trains will be a specialised version of the Desiro, which will be produced in Russia starting in 2012. Siemens is planning a joint venture with RZD subsidiary Aeroexpress to manufacture the trains.

10. Oliver Wyman

Oliver Wyman, a business unit of Marsh & McLennan, is an international management consulting firm. Founded in 1984, the firm adopted its current form in May 2007 through the combination of three global consulting businesses.

Calgary-based SMART Technologies Inc., a global producer of interactive whiteboards used in schools and businesses, has raised $660 million in the second-biggest initial public offering in the US this year. It is the biggest IPO by a Canadian technology company in at least a decade.

The European Commission has given the go-ahead for British Airways to enter a joint business agreement with American Airlines after the companies agreed to competition safeguards.

The approval gives the airlines immunity from anti-trust laws that would have prevented them from combining their transatlantic wings. The airlines will now pool revenues, work together on ticketing and co-ordinate schedules.

The strengthening of their Oneworld Alliance on European to North American routes allows them to better compete with rival groups, BA has argued.

Miami International Airport passengers and South Florida rental car customers now have a convenient, one-stop shop for all their rental car needs just east of MIA in the middle of Miami-Dade County.