IBT Staff Reporter

New claims for unemployment benefits fell to a fresh four-year low last week, according to a government report that showed ongoing healing in the labor market.

Stock index futures edged lower on Thursday as investors awaited weekly jobless claims data for signs the economy will continue to support equities as they come off their best first quarter in 14 years.

Air China Ltd <0753.HK><601111.SS> has not cut or cancelled any Airbus orders and is sticking to the delivery plan for the aircraft, it said on Thursday, adding that it plans to expand capacity.

An angry Rupert Murdoch on Thursday declared war against enemies who have accused his pay-TV operation of sabotaging its rivals, denouncing them as toffs and right wingers stuck in the last century.

Stock index futures edged lower on Thursday as investors awaited weekly jobless claims data for signs the economy will continue to support equities, coming off their best first quarter in 14 years.

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda frequently entertains dignitaries from all over the world, but he was a touch star-struck on Thursday when he hosted a young billionaire with a whiff of celebrity: Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg.

Stock index futures pointed to a slightly higher open on Wall Street on Thursday, with futures for the Dow Jones and Nasdaq 100 both up 0.2 percent and S&P 500 futures up 0.1 percent at 0830 GMT.

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard backed a ban on Chinese telecoms firm Huawei from tendering for major government contracts on Thursday after Beijing raised concerns about fair treatment for Chinese firms.

News Corp boss Rupert Murdoch vowed to hit back hard against what his company president called baseless allegations from the BBC that a subsidiary ran a secret unit to promote piracy against pay-TV rivals.

Half a world away from Wall Street, the board of directors of embattled Goldman Sachs Group Inc were meeting in India amid reports that senior executives have talked about splitting the roles of chief executive and chairman, both held now by Lloyd Blankfein.

China has bumped up the annual long-term foreign debt quota allocated to foreign banks to $24 billion, allowing them to bring more money into the country as growth slows in the world's No.2 economy.

Apple Inc's Tim Cook, on his first trip to China as the chief executive officer, has visited an iPhone production plant run by the Foxconn Technology Group, which is being accused of improper labor practices.

China has allocated $24 billion in long-term foreign debt quotas to foreign banks for 2012 to allow the lenders to bring more money into the Chinese economy, the National Development and Reform Commission said on Thursday.

Brent crude held steady near $124 on Thursday as news of a surge in U.S. crude inventories and Western nations' talks on releasing strategic oil reserves offset supply disruption concerns over tension in the Middle East.

Tokyo Electric Power Co <9501.T>, troubled operator of the tsunami-hit Fukushima nuclear power plant, formally decided on Thursday to ask the government to inject 1 trillion yen ($12.06 billion) in tax money to stay afloat, Kyodo news agency said.

Britain's biggest construction company Balfour Beatty has warned all its 12,000 staff in the UK that their jobs are at risk, the construction industry magazine Building reported on Wednesday.

Goldman Sachs' leadership restructuring deal with a powerful union allows Lloyd Blankfein to keep both his titles of chairman and chief executive officer and present a strong public face at a time when such dual roles are falling out of favor.

An MF Global executive who has become a central figure in the desperate shifting of funds before the brokerage's collapse, refused to answer questions from Congress on Wednesday, frustrating lawmakers probing why an estimated $1.6 billion of customer money is missing.

Crude futures steadied on Thursday, trading little changed after a 1.8 percent drop the day before due to a big rise in U.S. crude inventories and talk of a release of U.S. and some European strategic reserves.

Hawker Beechcraft Inc, the aircraft manufacturer owned by Goldman Sachs Group Inc's private equity arm and Onex Corp , is preparing to file for bankruptcy protection in the next several weeks, according to several people familiar with the matter.

Regulators need to crack down on auditors who fail to warn investors and the public before corporations fail, investors told the main watchdog for U.S. auditors on Wednesday.

Hedge fund managers are increasingly nervous about getting a knock on the door from securities regulators now that a new rule requires them to register as investment advisers and provide lots of data about their inner workings as a result.

An MF Global executive, who has emerged as a central figure in the desperate shifting of funds before the brokerage's collapse, refused to answer questions on Wednesday, frustrating lawmakers probing why more than $1 billion in customer money is missing.

Daniel Loeb, chief executive of hedge fund Third Point, said he would continue to push to revamp Yahoo Inc's board of directors following Yahoo's decision to reject him as a board member.

Stocks declined on Wednesday as sliding oil and metals prices gave investors a reason to sell commodity-related shares.

Google proposed to pay Oracle a percentage of Android revenue if Oracle could prove patent infringement of the mobile operating technology at an upcoming trial, but Oracle rebuffed the offer as too low, according to a court filing late on Tuesday.

Crude futures fell on Wednesday as a jump in crude inventories in the United States and the prospect of a release of U.S. and some European strategic reserves sent oil prices into retreat.

A finance executive at MF Global Holdings Ltd invoked her right against self-incrimination as lawmakers heard from officials who played critical roles in the final days of the futures brokerage, when a huge and still unexplained shortfall in customer money surfaced.

Social-networking site Facebook is halting the sale of its shares on secondary markets effective next week as the company prepares to hold its initial public offering in May, according to a person familiar with the matter.