MARKETS / FINANCE

The number of U.S. workers filing new applications for unemployment insurance fell slightly less than expected last week, government data showed on Thursday, while the number of people still drawing benefits unexpectedly rose.

Ford Motor Co expects earnings improvement in 2011 after solid profits in 2010 as its turnaround gains traction, executives said at its annual meeting of shareholders on Thursday.

Portuguese leaders agreed tough new austerity measures on Thursday, joining a coordinated euro zone push that has so far calmed the markets' worst fears of a Greek-style debt crisis spreading.

The number of U.S. workers filing for jobless benefits fell only slightly last week, highlighting the challenges facing the labor market, while import prices pointed to tame inflation, according to government data released on Thursday.

Although price pressures are currently muted, the United States will get an uptick of inflation over the medium term, the world's biggest bond fund management company said on Thursday.

SAP's planned buy of Sybase for $5.8 billion to stay in the mobile data race with arch rival Oracle is raising concerns the German software company may be paying too much.

U.S. authorities are expanding their probes of past mortgage securities deals, with New York's attorney general opening an investigation into whether eight banks misled rating agencies, a source familiar with the matter said.

Former Lehman Brothers Asia executives, who headed the bank's structured products division and its syndicate business, have launched their maiden hedge fund investing in distressed structured credit assets, said the partners in the fund firm, Oracle Capital.

British oil major BP said the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico had cost it $450 million so far, an increase of $100 million on the figure reported earlier this week.

S&P 500 index futures edged higher on Thursday, reversing an earlier decline, as investors were cheered by a big technology-sector acquisition and Portugal moved to stem its sovereign debt problems.

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a lower start on Thursday, with futures for the S&P 500, Dow Jones and Nasdaq down 0.1-0.3 percent at 5:30 a.m. EST.

Five U.S. banks and four European lenders are being investigated by U.S. authorities, as they widen their probe of the role of banks in past mortgage securities deals, according to news reports.

U.S. stock index futures were modestly lower on Thursday with technology shares in focus after cautious comments from Cisco, as investors awaited jobless data.

The New York attorney general has begun an investigation into eight banks to determine whether they provided misleading information to agencies that rate mortgage securities, The New York Times reported on Thursday.

The makers of file-sharing software LimeWire are liable to 13 major record companies that accused the service of infringing their music copyrights, a Manhattan federal judge has ruled.

Asian stocks hit highs for the week on Thursday after new austerity steps pledged by Portugal and Spain raised hopes that Europe's debt crisis can be contained, while IBM's strong profit forecast boosted tech shares.

Microsoft Corp launched an updated version of its Office software on Wednesday, aiming to keep its grip on the hugely profitable business application market while countering the challenge of free online alternatives from Google Inc.

Germany's SAP AG said it plans to buy smaller business software maker Sybase Inc for $5.8 billion, gaining technology that allows it to deliver accounting software and other programs to smartphones.

Germany's SAP AG said it plans to buy smaller business software maker Sybase Inc for $5.8 billion, gaining technology that allows it to deliver its programs to mobile devices like the iPhone.

The Australian dollar has opened this morning close to USD0.8950 after a relatively quiet trading session overnight.

The Federal Reserve scored a victory and mortgage bankers suffered a defeat on Wednesday as the Senate took aim at bank supervision and housing finance in its sprawling Wall Street reform effort.

Spain belatedly joined the euro zone's austerity bandwagon Wednesday in response to a widening debt crisis as the European Commission sought an unprecedented right of prior review of national budgets.

The Australian dollar is weaker once again versus the Greenback starting today at 0.8945 US.

U.S. stocks capped their best three-day run in 10 months on Wednesday, lifted by technology and industrial shares after Spain unveiled an austerity plan that reassured investors Europe was addressing its fiscal ills.

AIG is reviewing its dealings with all its counterparties during the financial crisis, including Goldman Sachs Group Inc , to see if it was harmed, Chief Executive Robert Benmosche said on Wednesday.

The United States posted an $82.69 billion deficit in April, nearly four times the $20.91 billion shortfall registered in April 2009 and the largest on record for that month, the Treasury Department said on Wednesday.

Stocks rallied on Wednesday, lifted by technology and industrial shares after Spain unveiled an austerity plan that further eased investor concerns about the fiscal health of some European countries.

The trade deficit hit its widest point in 15 months in March as a broadening economic recovery boosted demand for foreign goods, with a rise in exports and imports seen as a sign of growing global demand.

U.S. stocks rallied on Wednesday, lifted by multinational technology and industrial shares after Spain unveiled an austerity plan that further eased jitters over euro-zone debt woes.