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IRS officials thwart lawmakers' quest for answers on IRS scandal
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Three congressional hearings during the past week have allowed lawmakers to vent their anger at the U.S. tax agency for its targeting of conservative groups for extra scrutiny, but the sessions have yielded few answers about who was responsible.

Immigration bill gets Senate boost; House effort teetering
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Supporters of U.S. immigration reform are hoping that the smooth and drama-free passage of their legislation through a Senate committee - a departure from almost everything that has happened in Congress over the past four years - will boost the likelihood of the bill winning full Senate approval.

Exclusive: Glencore, Trafigura deals with Iran may have skirted sanctions - U.N.
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Metals swap deals with Iran by Switzerland-based commodities giants Glencore Xstrata and Trafigura could have been a way of skirting international sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear program, according to a confidential U.N. Panel of Experts report seen by Reuters on Wednesday.

U.S. probe of Benghazi attack focused on more than five suspects
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An investigation of the attacks on the American diplomatic mission and nearby annex in Benghazi, Libya, last year is looking at more than five potential suspects, a U.S. national security source said on Wednesday.

Chemical that sparked deadly Texas explosion found across U.S
NEW YORK (Reuters) - At least 800,000 people across the United States live near hundreds of sites that store large amounts of potentially explosive ammonium nitrate, which investigators are blaming as the source of last month's deadly blast at a fertilizer plant in West, Texas, a Reuters analysis shows.

Midwest gasoline prices expected to cool after spike
(Reuters) - Gasoline prices in the Midwest should fall in the coming days after hitting record highs in several cities last week in the run up to Memorial Day, the traditional start to the summer driving season, traders and industry analysts said on Wednesday.

CNN host Piers Morgan writing book about his career: publisher
NEW YORK (Reuters) - British CNN host Piers Morgan is writing a book about his career, his job as news show anchor and his interviews with Hollywood stars and world leaders, his publisher said on Wednesday.

U.S. acknowledges killing four Americans in overseas attacks
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. government formally acknowledged on Wednesday for the first time that it had killed four Americans in counterterrorism operations in Yemen and Pakistan, where the United States has carried out regular drone strikes.

European banks stop sending money to North Korea - aid groups
BEIJING (Reuters) - European aid groups said their banks in Europe had stopped sending money to North Korea in the wake of U.S. sanctions on Pyongyang's main foreign exchange bank, leaving them scrambling for a solution short of hand-carrying cash into the country.

FDA panel: Merck's insomnia drug effective, safe at low doses
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Merck & Co's experimental insomnia drug is safe and effective at the lower of two doses studied but not at the higher, a panel of medical experts said on Wednesday.

Health officials probe deadly respiratory illness in Alabama
BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (Reuters) - U.S. and state health authorities are investigating an unidentified respiratory illness that has killed two of 10 people hospitalized with it in Alabama since last week.

PepsiCo rethinks U.S. pricing to attract more daily buyers
(Reuters) - PepsiCo Inc said it is tweaking its drink-pricing strategy in some parts of the United States, as it aims to wean consumers off the habit of buying soda only when it is on sale.

Signs point to Krzyzewski staying as Olympic coach
(Reuters) - USA Basketball is set to name its men's coach for the next Olympic cycle and all signs point to Mike Krzyzewski, who has already led Team USA to a pair of Summer Games golds, retaining the job.

China's Lenovo buys and diversifies to outshine PC rivals
HONG KONG (Reuters) - Lenovo Group Ltd's bold acquisitions in its flagship PC business, a foray into mobile gadgets, and a relatively light debt load are setting it apart from PC rivals as industry shipments take their steepest fall in decades.

Twitter beefs up security after hacking spree on media
(Reuters) - Twitter Inc unveiled technology to boost security for its users, following a spate of attacks on accounts of prominent media outlets including the Associated Press, the Financial Times and The Onion.

Short story writer Lydia Davis wins major fiction prize
LONDON (Reuters) - American short story writer Lydia Davis won the fifth Man Booker International Prize for fiction on Wednesday for a body of work that includes some of the briefest tales ever published.

China milk powder firms court foreign cachet for domestic gains
SHANGHAI (Reuters) - The rolling green hills and gurgling blonde toddlers in the ads for Yashili International Holdings Ltd underscore how keen China's biggest milk powder producers are to appear global to emerge from the shadow of a fatal baby formula scandal.

Exclusive: Glencore, Trafigura Iran deals may have skirted sanctions - U.N.
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Metals swap deals with Iran by Switzerland-based commodities giants Glencore Xstrata and Trafigura could have been a way of skirting international sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear program, according to a confidential U.N. Panel of Experts report seen by Reuters on Wednesday.

Chicago board votes to close 50 schools
CHICAGO (Reuters) - The Chicago Board of Education voted on Wednesday to close 50 schools - including about 10 percent of all elementary schools in the largest mass school closing in the nation.

Online tool helps control blood pressure long term
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - In a new study, people with high blood pressure who could communicate with their pharmacists online had better blood pressure control a year after that service ended.