Dollar 3-month interbank lending rate steady

The cost of three-month dollar loans between banks remained steady Tuesday as the recent improvement in confidence ground to a halt after Bank of America Corp. took a bigger than anticipated bad debt provision for the first quarter of the year.

Hopes that an improvement in the global economy may emerge soon have prompted a thawing in credit markets but Monday's sharp falls on Wall Street after Bank of America took a $13.4 billion provision for credit losses reined in hopes that the banking sector had been fixed.

"There was this realisation after Bank of America's excellent results that the sector was far from out of the woods," said David Buik, …

Dowalibys decline to testify // Prosecutors focus on missing bed sheets

Defense attorneys rested their case Friday without havingCynthia and David Dowaliby testify, while prosecutors focused onsheets missing from Jaclyn Dowaliby's bed after her disappearance.

Criminal Court Judge Richard E. Neville is expected to heararguments Monday on whether there is enough evidence against thecouple to have the jury deliberate on the charges of murder andconcealing a homicide.

If so, the six-man, six-woman jury will hear attorneys' closing statements on Tuesday.

The couple is accused of strangling their 7-year-old daughterand dumping her body in a Blue Island field. The severely decomposedbody was found Sept. 14, 1988 - four days after …

Cargo spacecraft docks at orbiting station

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian Mission Control says a cargo spacecraft has docked at the International Space Station, delivering food, fuel, oxygen, scientific equipment and packages for the U.S.-Russian-Italian crew.

The unmanned Progress M-09M blasted off Friday from the Baikonur cosmodrome carrying more than 2.6 tons of supplies.

Mission Control said it docked Sunday using automatic …

Publisher shot dead in Cyprus

Police in Cyprus say the head of the island nation's largest private media group has been shot dead outside his home.

Andy Hadjicostis, the 41-year-old director of the Dias Group, was killed late Monday central Nicosia.

No other …

WHAT'S UP WITH LARRY BIITTNER

AGE: 57.

HOME: Pocahontas, Iowa.

FAMILY: Single. Sons Tom and Bob. One grandson.

OCCUPATION: Retired. Helps his brother-in-law plant and harvestcorn and soybeans.

POSITION: Outfielder, first baseman, pinch hitter.

HOBBIES: Fishing and running.

NICKNAME: Buckeye.

BASEBALL BACKGROUND: Popular with Cubs fans because of his hustleand pinch-hitting ability, Biittner was involved in a zany play in1979 when his cap fell over a batted ball while he was playing rightfield. Try as he might, he couldn't find the ball. He also pitched inrelief in 1977, giving up three home runs to the Montreal Exposbefore being fined $50 for pitching too close to …

The pressure's on!

Part II

Last month, we told you why you should wear a supplied-air system. This month, we'll tell you what to wear and how to keep your equipment in top shape.

Last month's Paint Shop showed why supplied-air respirators are required by law and described the problems that can occur from breathing isocyanates and solvents. If you are not yet convinced that a supplied-air system is a good idea for your shop, go back and read the personal experiences of painters who have learned the hard way.

In Part 2, we'll take a look at the hardware of supplied-air systemsincluding the new lightweight visorsand show you how to retrofit your existing air filtration system. …

Injured Tour de France favorite Cadel Evans braced for tough climbs in 10th stage

Cadel Evans started Monday's 10th stage of the Tour de France, which has the two biggest climbs in the Pyrenees, covered in cuts and bruises after falling the previous day.

Kim Kirchen wore the overall leader's yellow jersey, but only led by six seconds over Evans heading into the daunting Pyrenean passes of Tourmalet and Hautacam, so difficult they are beyond classification.

Evans tumbled over his handlebars in Sunday's ninth stage, cracking open his helmet as he landed and scraping skin off his shoulder, elbow, knee and thigh.

"I thought: 'Oh, no, I've lost the Tour'," Evans said Monday. "I wanted to know my body was …