EGYPT

Director of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) in Cairo tells Nature magazine that it would perhaps be in the interest of scientific pursuit in the country if Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Hany Helal continues to remain in office.

An anonymous tweeter has chosen to take the funny path with a spoof Twitter account called KennethColePR, to poke fun at the designer Kenneth Cole for his tweet on Cairo, Egypt.

U.S. stocks, after selling-off in the early session, bounced back to finish moderately higher on some positive economic news, despite continued political unrest in Egypt.

The political chaos in Egypt and floods around the world have sent cotton prices skyrocketing.

U.S. Sen. John McCain R-AZ said on Thursday that the United States had develop a new policy and needed to do a better job of encouraging democracy amid a wave of protests in Middle Eastern countries.

Mobile operator Vodafone accused the Egyptian authorities on Thursday of using its network to send pro-government text messages to subscribers, as telecom firms became further embroiled in the crisis.

Gold rose over 1 percent in choppy trade on Thursday, with a sudden jump by over $20 per ounce within minutes as large buy orders were apparently triggered in the future markets. This comes unexpected to precious metals experts, as the gold price was supposed to be kept low by the usual large Wall Street players during todays speech by Bernanke, and was set to rally on Friday, when unexpectedly bad labor market numbers will come in and drive gold prices higher.

Stocks ended near the session's highs on Thursday, with investors favoring shares of retailers after encouraging chain-store sales raised confidence ahead of Friday's jobs report.

Embattled Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said that his country would sink into chaos if he were to resign.

Tens of thousands of Yemenis squared off in peaceful protests for and against the government on Thursday during an opposition-led Day of Rage, a day after President Ali Abdullah Saleh offered to step down in 2013.

Algeria promised to end a 19-year-old state of emergency and provide more political freedoms on Thursday, concessions designed to keep out a wave of uprisings sweeping the Arab world.

Egypt's government struggled to regain control of an angry nation, inviting Islamist opponents to political talks as protesters demanding the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak battled with his supporters on the streets.

Fashion designer Kenneth Cole has sparked outrage with a tweet that appears to trivialize the ongoing political turmoil in Egypt.

An Egyptian army tank moved against supporters of President Hosni Mubarak as they hurled rocks at anti-Muburak protesters in central Cairo, prompting cheers from demonstrators battered by overnight fighting that killed six.

Retailers were a standout in an otherwise flat market on Thursday as a bigger-than-expected rise in sales at U.S. chain stores helped dispel some of the concern about the U.S. consumer.

Retail clothing stores such as Ann Taylor are leading the way so far on strong retail report by the Institute for Supply Management

U.S. stocks slipped on Thursday as concerns over increasing disorder in Egypt and signs of exhaustion in the recent market rally weighed on investor sentiment.

Egypt state TV reported that Gamal, son of embattled Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak, will not run for the country's Presidency.

Growth in the U.S. services sector in January was the fastest in more than five years, another sign the economy started 2011 on a solid footing, with measures of employment showing more strength.

Here is a collection of reaction to the latest escalation of civil unrest and violence in Egypt from around the world:

Mobile operator Vodafone on Thursday accused the Egyptian authorities of using its network to send pro-government text messages to its subscribers, without clear attribution.