UPDATE 3-Online gambling firm 888 wins $1.4 bln battle for Bwin.party
* Firms say will add scale, deliver cost and revenue benefits (Adds comment from Bwin shareholder in paragraphs 8-9)
* Firms say will add scale, deliver cost and revenue benefits (Adds comment from Bwin shareholder in paragraphs 8-9)
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - After going intergalactic with "Guardians of the Galaxy," and hanging an entire city from the sky in "Avengers: Age of Ultron," Marvel is reversing its scale but still packing the punches with an insect-sized superhero.
(Reuters) - Xerox Corp said it would revamp its healthcare IT business and record a related impairment charge of about $145 mln in the second quarter.
July 17 (Reuters) - Bahamas Prime Minister Perry Christie is moving to take control of an unfinished $3.5 billion mega resort that is weighing down his country's fragile economy.
Police in Northumbria are searching for a stolen beach towel, a force has said.
GOMA, Democratic Republic of Congo, July 17 (Reuters) - A new hydrocarbons law awaiting presidential approval in Democratic Republic of Congo imposes a much-needed structure on a haphazardly regulated oil sector but critics say its vague provisions open the door to corruption and secrecy.
Fabian Delph has performed a remarkable U-turn by leaving Aston Villa to sign a five-year deal with Manchester City.
Fabian Delph added a remarkable twist to one of the summer transfer window’s longstanding sagas when he changed his mind for the second time over staying at Aston Villa and agreed to join Manchester City today.
Fabian Delph is believed to have performed an incredible U-turn on his move to Manchester City after a picture emerged of what appeared to be the Aston Villa midfielder arriving for a medical.
The daughter of slain Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov has left Russia to work for the German broadcaster Deutsche Welle.
Suicide bombs have killed at least 64 people in multiple blasts in the northeastern towns of Gombe and Damaturu, officials said Friday, scaring people into staying home during the Muslim Eid al-Fitr celebration.
SAN ANTONIO DE LOS BANOS, Cuba (Reuters) - Acclaimed film director Francis Ford Coppola paid a visit to Cuba's International School of Film and Television and made a hearty pasta dish as he sought to inspire the country's next generation of filmmakers.
Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has branded the reports linking the club with a move to Real Madrid defender Sergio Ramos as "rubbish".
July 17 (Reuters) - General Electric Co raised its 2015 outlook for its industrial manufacturing businesses on Friday as it reported a 5 percent increase in its quarterly industrial profits, helped by stronger performance in its power division offsetting weak oil segment results.
WASHINGTON, July 17 (Reuters) - U.S. housing starts rebounded strongly in June and building permits surged to a near eight-year high, pointing to a rapidly strengthening housing market.
LONDON/BERLIN (Reuters) - In the wake of the Germanwings disaster, all airline pilots should undergo psychological screening and allow details of medical visits to be shared in a proposed European database, according to new recommendations delivered to EU officials.
BEIJING/LONDON (Reuters) - China's gold reserves stood at 1,658 tonnes at the end of June, the central bank said on Friday, up 57 percent from the last time it adjusted its reserve figures more than six years ago.
Investigators "continue to cover every possible lead" in their effort to determine what led a 24-year-old gunman to open fire at two military offices in Chattanooga, Tennessee, killing four Marines. Rough Cut (no reporter narration).
Investigators "continue to cover every possible lead" in their effort to determine what led a 24-year-old gunman to open fire at two military offices in Chattanooga, Tennessee, killing four Marines. Rough Cut (no reporter narration).
Investigators "continue to cover every possible lead" in their effort to determine what led a 24-year-old gunman to open fire at two military offices in Chattanooga, Tennessee, killing four Marines. Rough Cut (no reporter narration).
Bank of England Governor Mark Carney says the decision to raise interest rates from record lows will become clearer by the end of the year. Hayley Platt reports.
Bank of England Governor Mark Carney says the decision to raise interest rates from record lows will become clearer by the end of the year. Hayley Platt reports.
* Russian hydro, nuclear deals remain undecided (Adds CEO comments on Russian deals)
July 17 (Reuters) - Bahamas Prime Minister Perry Christie has called for liquidators to take control of an unfinished $3.5 billion resort largely bankrolled and built by the Chinese, after talks broke down in Beijing about how to complete the rest of the project.
* Friday prayers seen reflecting Supreme Leader Khamenei's views