UNITED STATES

BP will not pay bonuses for 2010 to the top executives whose divisions were involved in the worst-ever offshore U.S. oil spill last year, the company said in an annual report dominated by the disaster.

The suspect in the shooting deaths of two U.S. airmen at the Frankfurt airport yesterday has confessed to targeting the American military, according to German security officials.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has launched an appeal against a ruling that he should be extradited from Britain to Sweden over alleged sex crimes, his lawyer said on Thursday.

RBC Capital Markets estimates that tablets may ultimately cannibalize around 15 percent of the total PC market through 2014, which while material, doesn't deter the PC markets from seeing sustained growth over the next 5-years.

U.S. stocks advanced in early trade on Thursday after official data showed that applications for jobless benefits in the U.S. fell unexpectedly last week to reach the lowest level since May 2008, indicating an improving labor market.

Stocks rallied more than 1 percent in early trading on Thursday as crude oil prices fell and jobless claims dropped to a 2-1/2 year low.

Establishing a no-fly zone over Libya would require widespread bombings to destroy Libyan air defenses first, a top U.S. defense official said on Wednesday.

The applications for jobless benefits in the U.S. fell last week to reach the lowest level since May 2008, indicating an improving labor market in the nation.

The European Central Bank will step up its anti-inflation rhetoric and may phase out some of its crisis support measures on Thursday as it prepares the ground for an interest rate rise likely later this year.

New claims for unemployment benefits fell last week to their lowest level in more than 2-1/2 years, signaling an acceleration in job creation could be under way.

Yahoo is said to be in talks to sell its 35 percent stake in Yahoo Japan, a move that will give Yahoo the necessary cash infusion to fight against arch rival Google and Facebook.

Stock index futures rose on Thursday after the Arab League said a peace plan for Libya was under consideration, sending oil prices lower.

Futures on major U.S. indices point to a higher opening on Thursday ahead of economic data including key weekly jobless claims and non-farm productivity.

The irony can't be missed when the scion of a tiny sub-Saharan country, which has the dubious distinction for having the highest child mortality rate in the world and abysmal public health and education systems, splurges ill-gotten money on a multi-million dollar super-luxury yacht.

Consumer spending in the United States on deal-a-day offers is likely to go from $873 million in 2010 to $3.9 billion in 2015, representing a 35.1 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR), a new report said.

U.S. and Brazilian drinkers are paying more for their beer and moving to expensive brands according to Anheuser-Busch InBev , the world's largest brewer.

Global food prices hit a record high in February, the United Nations said Thursday, warning that fresh oil price spikes and stockpiling by importers keen to head off popular unrest would hit already volatile cereal markets.

Futures on major U.S. indices point to a higher opening on Thursday ahead of economic data including key weekly jobless claims and non-farm productivity.

Most Asian stock markets ended higher on Thursday, helped by upbeat U.S. jobs data and an easing of oil prices after reports of a possible peace deal in Libya.

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street on Thursday, with futures for the S&P 500 up 0.7 percent, Dow Jones futures up 0.6 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.7 percent at 5.23 a.m. EST.

Bank of America-Merrill Lynch has poached Matthew Koder, a high profile banker from Swiss bank UBS AG , to head its corporate and investment banking business in Asia in the region's first major defection after the banker bonus season.