Eric Linton

Asian shares fell steeply Friday after more signs emerged of growing instability among Spanish banks and political turmoil in Greece, with the latest sluggish economic data from the United States adding to the list of risks for investors.

North Korea has resumed construction on an experimental light water reactor, a move that could extend its capacity to produce more material for nuclear weapons, Web site 38North reported Thursday.

The euro wallowed near a four-month trough versus the dollar Thursday after some banks in Athens faced emergency funding needs, compounding fears that a potential Greek exit from the euro could put more pressure on other struggling euro zone nations.

Trayvon Martin died from a single gunshot wound to the chest fired from ?intermediate range,? according to an autopsy report.

Investors who want Facebook shares when the social network goes public may have lost the opportunity. Some brokers have stopped accepting orders.

Asian shares steadied Thursday from the previous day's selloff, but investors found no reason to bet on risk amid deepening turmoil in Greece and fears of contagion to other stressed euro zone economies.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel appeared to soften her stand on Greece Wednesday night, saying she was ready to discuss stimulus programs to get the Greek economy growing again and that she was committed to keeping Greece in the euro zone.

Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, announced Wednesday he has decided against moving across the country and running for Congress in Washington state.

Mary Kennedy, wife of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is dead, an employee of the Westchester County, N.Y., medical examiner's office said Wednesday.

Home Depot Inc. (HD.N) reported weaker-than-expected quarterly sales on Tuesday after demand slowed in April following a jump in home improvement projects spurred by warm weather earlier in the year.

Coty Inc said Monday evening it is withdrawing its $10.7 billion takeover bid for Avon Products Inc, saying the world's largest cosmetics direct seller had missed its deadline to start talks.

Facebook will close the books on its $10.6 billion initial public offering on Tuesday, two days ahead of schedule and a signal that Silicon Valley's largest IPO is drumming up strong demand.

Greek leftists rejected a last-ditch proposal by the head of state on Monday to put technocrats in charge of the country, as financial markets slid on speculation that political turmoil would force Athens out of the euro zone.

Suspected drug gang killers dumped the mutilated bodies of more than 40 people on a highway near the northern city of Monterrey in one of the worst atrocities to hit Mexico in recent years.

Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives suffered a crushing defeat Sunday in Germany's most populous state, which could embolden the left opposition to step up its criticism of her European austerity policies.

Ally Financial Inc's Residential Capital unit is nearing a bankruptcy filing, sources familiar with the situation said on Sunday, in a move that could help the taxpayer-owned auto lender shed its troubled mortgage business but also spur drawn-out legal fights.

Scott Thompson is stepping down after a controversy over a fake computer science college degree on his biography, a source familiar with the situation said on Sunday.

Gunmen shot dead a top Afghan peace negotiator in the capital Kabul on Sunday, dealing another blow to the country's attempts to negotiate a peace deal with the Taliban.

Ugandan forces have captured a senior commander of Joseph Kony's Lord's Resistance Army after a brief fight with rebels near the Congo-Central African Republic border, an officer said Sunday.

Greece's president met with party leaders on Sunday in a final bid to form a coalition and avert a new election, but the talks immediately appeared doomed because of deep splits over the EU/IMF rescue plan.

Asian shares retreated Friday, spooked by JPMorgan's $2 billion loss from a failed hedging strategy, with investors warily watching political turmoil in the euro zone as they await new Chinese data for clues on its growth outlook.

Facebook's record initial public offering is already oversubscribed, a source familiar with the share listing said Thursday night, days after the world's largest social network embarked on a cross-country roadshow to drum up investor enthusiasm.

Adam Mayes, the Mississippi man accused of killing a Tennessee mother and daughter, is dead, and the two other missing daughters were found safe, authorites said Thursday night.

Asian shares retreated Friday, spooked by JPMorgan's $2 billion loss from a failed hedging strategy, with investors warily watching political turmoil in the euro zone as they await new Chinese data for clues on its growth outlook.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reached an agreement with the Kadima opposition party for a unity government, canceling an early election he had called only a day before.

Richard Lugar, the six-term senator from Indiana struggling to beat back a Tea Party-backed rival in Tuesday's Republican primary, made a last minute appeal for votes by saying his challenger will lose to a Democrat in November.

The announcement Monday that militants sought to attack an airliner with an improved underwear bomb in a plot foiled by U.S. and allied authorities shows their determination to build bombs that can pass through airport security, U.S. officials said.

Fighting between rebels and President Bashar al-Assad's forces erupted in an oil producing province in eastern Syria, residents and activists said on Sunday, the eve of a parliamentary election the authorities say shows reforms are under way.

Russian riot police beat protesters about the head with batons and detained 250 Sunday after clashes broke out at a Moscow rally by thousands of people against Vladimir Putin on the eve of his return to the presidency.