UNITED STATES

The Federal Reserve on Friday lifted an estimate of the value of Bear Stearns and American International Group assets used to secure their rescue last year, potentially reducing losses to U.S. taxpayers.

Chrysler Group LLC Deputy Chief Executive Jim Press said he plans to leave by November, ending a two-year stint at the automaker that included its slide into bankruptcy, according to two people briefed on the still-confidential discussions.

Clinical trials for the new swine flu vaccine have turned up no red flags, U.S. health officials said on Friday.

Hurricane Bill weakened slightly on Friday as it followed a path between the U.S. East Coast and Bermuda, but the tiny British territory warned its residents to prepare for dangerous surf and possible flooding.

Oil rose nearly $1 toward $74 a barrel to settle at a 10-month high on Friday as data in the United States promised economic recovery and a potential revival in energy demand.

Stocks surged to 2009 highs on Friday after a surprising increase in existing home sales offered solid evidence of a recovery and positive comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke bolstered optimism about the economy.

A former UBS banker and key informant in the U.S. tax evasion case against Swiss bank UBS AG was sentenced to three years and four months in prison on Friday for helping a billionaire hide assets from U.S. tax authorities.

A new global reserve system is needed after the global financial crisis exposed the U.S. dollar-based system as flawed and risky, Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz said on Friday.

Microsoft Corp and Yahoo! Inc are joining a group of opponents to a class action settlement that gives Google Inc the right to digitize millions of books, the companies said on Friday.

Oil rose nearly $1 toward $74 a barrel on Friday, after earlier hitting 2009 highs, as data in the United States promised economic recovery and a potential revival in energy demand.

Michael Jackson's burial has been postponed until September 3 from August 29, family representatives said on Friday, without giving a reason for the date change.

The U.S. dollar is likely to rise in the week ahead as investors seek safety amid doubts about the strength of the global recovery after a sell-off in Chinese stocks.

Chrysler Group LLC Deputy Chief Executive Jim Press has conveyed his plans to leave the automaker by November, according to a person briefed on the still-confidential discussion.

Bernanke clear on recovery, Slump seems like near end, 3 years for ex-UBS banker

Bradley Birkenfeld, a key informant in the U.S. tax evasion case against Swiss bank UBS , was sentenced to three years and four months in prison on Friday by a federal court judge in Florida.

Ryan Alexander Jenkins, the Megan Wants A Millionaire potential winner, has been charged on Thursday of murdering his 28-year-old ex-wife, Jasmine Fiore, a playboy model, according to California authorities.

J.M. Smucker Co , best known for its peanut butter and jelly, posted a higher quarterly profit that easily beat market view, driven by strong results at its Folgers coffee business, and expected its full-year profit at the top end of its outlook.

California authorities on Thursday charged a reality TV star with murder in the death of a pin-up model, as they continued a manhunt for him begun soon after the woman's body was found stuffed in a suitcase.

U.S. Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke on Friday offered his clearest signal yet that he thinks a global recovery is at hand, but warned growth would be sluggish and unemployment stubbornly high.

U.S. stocks rallied to new 2009 highs on Friday on positive comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and data showing existing home sales rose for the fourth consecutive month.

VH1 has decided to postpone all future airings of the show, Megan wants a millionaire, following the ongoing investigations of one of the contestants, Ryan Jenkins, is wanted for murder.