Visa has appointed Bill Gajda, currently chief commercial officer at the GSMA, as its head of mobile. Mr Gajda's position at Visa is designed to further advance its mobile strategy, working in collaboration with the wireless and financial services industries to bring mobile payments and related services to consumers around the globe.

Fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) will be commercially launched in most regions of the world by 2014, and cumulative sales of fuel cell cars and trucks will surpass 2.8 million vehicles globally by 2020, according to a new report from Pike Research.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted marketing approval for Gilead Sciences' Cayston (aztreonam for inhalation solution) as a treatment to improve respiratory symptoms in cystic fibrosis patients with Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa).

Aegean Airlines and Olympic Air have reached an agreement regarding the merger of their respective activities, resulting in the formation of a new company that will be listed on the Athens Exchange. Olympic Handling and Olympic Engineering will become 100 percent subsidiaries of the new company.

Mazda Motor’s total domestic production volume in January 2010 increased to 69,291 units for the second consecutive month, growing 122.6 percent compared to January 2009 due to increased production of passenger vehicles.

Eli Lilly and Company, Merck (also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD) outside the US & Canada), and Pfizer have formed the Asian Cancer Research Group (ACRG), to accelerate research and ultimately improve treatment for patients affected with the most commonly-diagnosed cancers in Asia.

Morgan Stanley has appointed Jeffrey Shames, the former chairman and CEO of MFS Investment Management, as a senior advisor to Morgan Stanley Investment Management (MSIM). Additionally, Edmond Moriarty III, who previously served as a senior vice president at Merrill Lynch, has been appointed as COO of MSIM.

Oil States International, a provider of specialty products and services to oil and gas drilling and production firms, has reported revenues of $528.71m for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2009, compared to $901.05m for the same period in 2008.

Spurred by innovations in feedstocks such as waste grease, algae, and jatropha, biodiesel revenues will increase to $71 billion worldwide by 2020, up from $18.4 billion in 2010, anticipates cleantech market intelligence firm Pike Research.

Southern Air Holdings has added two Boeing 777 Freighters to its fleet. The first 777 was delivered in February 2010 and the second will be delivered in March 2010. The 777 Freighters are capable twin-engine freighters and are expected to offer a 17 to 28 percent fuel-per-ton advantage to other freighters.

IBM and Johnson Controls, a company engaged in automotive, building and power solutions, will team to provide a smart building solution that can improve operations and reduce energy and water consumption in buildings worldwide.

Microsoft has signed a patent cross-license agreement with Amazon.com. The agreement provides each company with access to the other’s patent portfolio and covers a broad range of products and technology, including coverage for Amazon’s e-reading device, Kindle, which employs both open source and Amazon’s proprietary software components, and Amazon’s use of Linux-based servers.

Novartis has received FDA approval of Menveo (Meningococcal (groups A, C, Y and W-135) Oligosaccharide Diphtheria CRM197 conjugate vaccine), a quadrivalent meningococcal conjugate vaccine, for active immunization to prevent invasive meningococcal disease caused by Neisseria meningitidis serogroups A, C, Y and W-135 in people 11 to 55 years of age.

Penske Automotive Group has reported total revenues of $2.44 billion for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2009, an increase of 13.4 percent, compared to $2.15 billion for the comparable period in 2008.

Nuclear Innovation North America (NINA), the nuclear development company jointly owned by NRG Energy and Toshiba Corporation, has reached an agreement with CPS Energy. Under the agreement, NINA will increase its ownership in the South Texas Project (STP) units 3&4 and assume full management control for the project, enabling the STP expansion to move forward.

IBM has signed a three-year E56m contract with Slovak Ministry of Finance to provide technical assistance services for the design, development and implementation of integrated finance information system for the country.

The European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has issued positive opinions for GlaxoSmithKline's (GSK's) two cancer medicines - Tyverb (lapatinib) and Votrient (pazopanib) - in the European Union.

Honda has launched a new Cub-type automatic transmission (AT) scooter model, Wave110i AT, in March 2010 through A. P. Honda Co, a Honda affiliate responsible for distribution of Honda motorcycle products in Thailand.

Pharmaceutical Product Development (PPD) has opened offices in Manila, Philippines, and Bangalore, India, expanding its Phase II-IV clinical development services in response to growing client demand in Asia Pacific.

American Airlines will expand its international presence in New York this spring with three new routes between John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) and San Jose, Costa Rica; Madrid, Spain; and Manchester, England.