Global stock markets were mostly lower Wednesday as investors waited for an update on the U.S. economy from the Federal Reserve.

Investors were waiting to see if the Fed, which wraps up a two-day policy meeting later in the day in Washington, will make changes to its strategy of super-low interest rates and easy money that is helping to shore up the U.S. economy. Any change is likely to ripple through stock markets.

He was drying off his freshly washed car.

That's what the Canadian man told the Mounties when they stopped him doing 180 kilometers per hour (112 mph) south on Highway 22 south of Black Diamond, Alberta in Western Canada.

Russia's central bank has uncovered a network of shell companies that illegally funneled staggering sums of money abroad.

Outgoing central bank chief Sergei Ignatiev told lawmakers Wednesday that 173 "one-day firms" smuggled at least 760 billion rubles ($23.5 billion). So-called one-day firms are shell companies that have been a favored money-laundering technique in Russia.

The International Monetary Fund says recession-wracked Spain is making progress but is urging policymakers both within the country and in Europe to take "urgent action" to slash the country's crippling 27 percent unemployment rate.

An IMF report released Wednesday praised Spain's reforms for stabilizing the economy, particularly its public finances, but said unemployment was "unacceptably high and the outlook difficult."

A wooden beam embedded at the bottom of northern Lake Michigan appears to have been there for centuries, underwater archaeologists announced Tuesday, a crucial finding as crews dig toward what they hope is the carcass of a French ship that disappeared in the 17th Century.

Expedition leaders still weren't ready to declare they had found a shipwreck or the long-lost Griffin. The ship, commanded by the French explorer La Salle, was never seen again after setting sail in September 1679 from an island near the entrance of Green Bay, in what is now northern Wisconsin, with a crew of a six and a cargo of furs.

Mario Balotelli is so unpredictable that even his coach has trouble keeping tabs on the prized Italy striker.

Balotelli's winning goal in the Azzurri's 2-1 win over Mexico at the Confederations Cup was a prime example.

Manchester United will begin the defense of its Premier League title under new manager David Moyes with an away match at Swansea.

Moyes' first home game in charge of United comes the following weekend against Chelsea, which also has a new manager in Jose Mourinho.

Veronica Campbell-Brown's agent insists one of the cornerstones of Jamaica's wide-ranging sprint success "is not a cheat," even though the test results disagree.

While her case is being decided, the three-time Olympic gold medalist will sit out and her country will try to make sense of one of its longest-held fears: a high-profile track star getting busted for doping.

The Miami Heat beat the San Antonio Spurs 103-100 after overtime on Tuesday to square the series at 3-3 and force the NBA Finals to a decisive Game 7.

Miami's LeBron James shrugged off a poor start to get 32 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds while Ray Allen hit a 3-pointer with 5.2 seconds to play to force overtime.

Samuel L. Jackson would have been cursing up a storm.

A Texas man has pleaded guilty to smuggling snakes on several planes from South America to the United States.