Despite reporting a slight increase in overall sales for November, McDonald’s financial results also showed some declines in key markets. The company’s US sales fell for the third consecutive month, while sales in China also suffered a slump after previously robust growth. McDonald’s will need to act quickly in order to ensure that these downwards trends do not become established.

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Eli Lilly and Company has announced the availability of a smaller insulin vial containing 3ml of insulin, for people with diabetes being treated in a hospital, in the US.
The new smaller vial - for the comapny’s Humalog and Humulin R-U100 - is intended to provide hospitals more flexibility when evaluating insulin storage, delivery and distribution options.

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German auto major Volkswagen intends to hire around 1,300 workers by the end of 2010 at its Chakan manufacturing facility near Pune, India, reported Bloomberg.
The manufacturing plant, established with an investment of around $860 million, reportedly employs 1,200 workers.
According to the news source, the Chakan plant had begun production of Skoda Fabia hatchback in May 2009 and will commence production of Volkswagen Polo supermini car in the near future.

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Bayer Schering Pharma has announced the enrollment of first patients in an international clinical Phase III trial to evaluate the efficacy and safety of florbetaben PET imaging in the detection of beta-amyloid deposition in the brain.
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