UNITED STATES

The U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on Thursday approved a Democratic climate change bill that would require industry to cut emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases 20 percent by 2020 from 2005 levels.

Democrats in the House of Representatives scrambled on Wednesday to iron out lingering concerns over abortion in a healthcare reform bill that was headed to a close and potentially historic weekend debate.

Nearly a third of Americans who die are in the hospital at the time and their last treatments cost the U.S. economy $20 billion, according to a report released on Wednesday.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Thursday he would not seek re-election in a vote planned for January, citing stalemate in peace talks with Israel, but Palestinian officials urged him to change his mind

The United Nations said on Thursday it would evacuate hundreds of its international staff from Afghanistan for several weeks due to deteriorating security, a sharp blow for Western efforts to stabilize the country.

States and counties will be struggling to vaccinate people against the swine flu pandemic well into December and January -- long after the first peak of the virus in the United States, officials said on Wednesday.

Americans are more likely than people in 10 other countries to have trouble getting medical treatment because of insurance restrictions or cost, an international survey of primary care doctors released on Wednesday found.

Pop star Beyonce and hip hop artist Jay-Z will perform at the MTV Europe Music Awards on Thursday, being held in the German capital to mark the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Wall Street was set for a higher open on Thursday as data showed a steep pickup in productivity and a decline in applications for jobless insurance.

China should roughly halve its greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 to keep the world on a safe climate path, the head of the U.S. delegation at U.N. climate talks in Barcelona said on Thursday.

Sundance Film Festival organizers on Wednesday unveiled plans for a one-night expansion of January's event to theaters in eight U.S. cities, hoping to encourage a discussion about the role art and cinema play in people's lives.

U.S. business productivity in the third quarter grew at the fastest pace in six years and new claims for jobless aid fell to a 10-month low last week, indicating the decline in labor market may be hitting bottom.

Wall Street was set for a higher open on Thursday as data showed a steep pickup in productivity and a decline in applications for jobless insurance.

U.S. retail chains reported October sales that rebounded from the lows of a year ago but many failed to surpass Wall Street's boosted expectations as consumers spend selectively headed into the holiday season.

Central banks with trillions of dollars in reserves that are already stepping up euro and yen purchases will likely continue doing so in coming years, driven by worries over the stability of the greenback.

Time Warner Cable Inc posted a third quarter profit that beat expectations, as growth in sales of voice and Internet services overshadowed a decline in basic video subscribers, the company said on Thursday.

The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless insurance fell more than expected last week to a 10-month low, government data showed on Thursday, pointing to a gradual improvement in the labor market.

Online job postings rose slightly in October, led by growth in health care and public companies, but the monthly employment gauge remained 20 percent below year-ago levels, a private research group said on Thursday.

Beatles record label EMI is suing U.S. music website BlueBeat.com, which it said was offering unauthorized downloads of the Fab Four's tracks for sale.

The Senate vote unanimously on Wednesday to extend aid for jobless workers and broaden tax breaks for homebuyers and businesses in a bid to breathe life into the struggling U.S. economy.

The U.S. commercial real estate market, slammed by the credit squeeze and recession, is likely to hit bottom in 2010, according to a survey of industry investors, developers, lenders and consultants.