ECB's Trichet: Rich countries must fix finances

Rich countries like the U.S., Japan and Britain need to move quickly to get their deficits under control, the head of the European Central Bank said Monday.

Speaking on behalf of the world's major central banks, Jean-Claude Trichet said governments' financial situation in the developed world "has to be aggressively improved."

Rich countries have seen debts and deficits rise due to the financial crisis, recession and bank bailouts. In Europe, Greece, Ireland and Portugal have needed international rescue loans to deal with their debt crises.

Bin Laden death reignites debate over CIA tactics

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The government's hunt for Osama bin Laden has left the country questioning whether the tactics used to interrogate suspected terrorists were successful and lawful. With his death, both sides of the debate have regrouped along familiar lines, claiming they were right all along.

But America's greatest counterterrorism success does not represent a victory for either camp. Rather, it paints a clearer picture of the CIA's interrogation and detention program, revealing where it was successful and where its successes have been overstated.

Locals fear loss of interest in Southern tornadoes

HARVEST, Ala. (AP) -- The Rev. Michael Katschke is worried, but not about running out of the food, diapers and other supplies he hands out to tornado victims at the Crosswinds United Methodist Church in northern Alabama.

Katschke is worried about the rest of the country just moving on.

"They're going to forget us just like they forgot about Japan," he said.

The search for bodies is still going on in parts of the tornado-ravaged South, but the country's worst natural disaster since Hurricane Katrina is already fading from the public consciousness, pushed aside first by the royal wedding and now by Osama bin Laden's death.

Italy's general strike hits mass transit

ROME (AP) -- Commuters in Italy scrambled on Friday to find the few buses and subway trains running during a one-day general strike that also affected air and rail travel, banks, public offices and schools.

The nationwide strike was called by Italy's biggest labor confederation to push for more investment in job creation and for reform of a tax system that is widely seen as penalizing salaried workers.

The mass transit walkout was set to last for four hours at morning or evening rush hours.

Flight personnel were striking from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. (0800-1200 GMT), and railway workers from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. (1200-1600 GMT). Alitalia changed departure times to ensure intercontinental service and reduced domestic and European flights.

Wal-Mart remains atop Fortune 500 list

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wal-Mart Stores Inc. remains atop the Fortune 500 list even as it struggled to keep its U.S. customers coming in the door.

The world's largest retailer held onto the top spot for the second year in a row thanks to gains at its international stores. The company's U.S. division has had seven straight quarters of declines in revenue at stores open at least a year compared with the same periods the year before.

ING reports rise in Q1 earnings, will repay state

AMSTERDAM (AP) -- ING Groep NV on Thursday reported first quarter earnings grew 12 percent on fat banking margins and improvements at its insurance business, and said it intends to pay back euro3 billion ($4.45 billion) in bailout money and penalties it owes the Dutch state.

Net profit was euro1.38 billion ($2 billion), up from euro1.23 billion in the same period a year ago.

The banking operations, which are to be split from its insurance arm as a penalty for having taken state support during the financial crisis, were up 32 percent to euro1.7 billion.

Senate Indian panel to discuss racial concerns

Geronimo: The U.S. Senate Indian Affairs Committee didn't know when it scheduled a hearing on racial stereotypes that members would have such an emotionally charged name to discuss. But the use of the Apache leader's moniker as a code name for Osama bin Laden has appalled many Native Americans and drawn calls for an apology.

The legendary warrior was known for his ability to walk without leaving footprints, allowing him to evade thousands of Mexican and U.S. soldiers, much like bin Laden evaded capture for the past decade.

Dunkin' Donuts parent co. files for IPO

NEW YORK (AP) -- It's time to take the doughnuts public.

Dunkin' Donuts made "Munchkins" something to eat rather than characters on "The Wizard of Oz." It created Fred the Baker and coined the "Time to Make the Donuts" catchphrase. President Barack Obama worked at its sister company, Baskin-Robbins, when he was a teenager.

And the next move for the company? It's going public, so it will be not just a place to get coffee but also a ticker on the Nasdaq - DNKN, if all goes as planned.

Americans yearn to talk to SEALs in bin Laden raid

SAN DIEGO (AP) -- Patrons in bars across the country are raising toasts in the air, hoping the gesture of gratitude would somehow reach the clandestine Navy SEAL team that took down Osama bin Laden. Millions of others are turning to social networks with their thoughts.

For many of them, it feels frustratingly incomplete to be deprived the chance to see the faces of those they consider heroes for killing the world's most-wanted terrorist.

Scores of people responded to the question posed by The Associated Press on its Facebook page: "What would you tell the Navy SEAL team that killed Osama bin Laden if you could convey a message?"