IBT Staff Reporter

Stocks edged higher on Thursday, putting the benchmark S&P 500 index on track for its third straight advance after data pointed to ongoing improvement in the labor market and reinforced expectations for a rally into the end of the year.

U.S. auto sales in December are expected to top 13 million on an annual rate for the fourth consecutive month, indicating uncertainty about the economy has not slowed the industry down, J.D. Power and Associates and LMC Automotive said on Thursday.

Consumer sentiment improved in December to its highest level in six months as Americans felt better about the economy's prospects for the year ahead, a survey released on Thursday showed.

With governments laboring under too much debt and banks hobbled by too little capital, 2012 is shaping up as another year of hard slog for Europe's economy that could yet test the single currency to destruction.

President Barack Obama would defeat any of the seven Republican presidential candidates in Nevada if the general election was held today, according to an 8NewsNow/Las Vegas Review-Journal poll released Wednesday.

Michael Ferro Jr., the CEO of Merrick Ventures LLC, will lead the investment group. The deal is expected to close within the next several days.

After two years of turmoil that has shattered confidence in the economics and politics of European monetary union, it would be rash in the extreme to suggest an end is in sight.

If you needed a clue that Chicago's Eye Spy Optical does brisk business in late December - the time when many healthcare flexible spending accounts expire for American employees - just take a look at its storefront in the city's Lakeview neighborhood.

Sigh. A lot of people are predicting more of the same for 2012: Another year of stock market volatility, high unemployment, banking industry upheaval, weak housing and more talk about Facebook, mobile commerce, 401 plans and taxes.

In September, German bank Eurohypo and developer Forest City Enterprises Inc were negotiating a $65 million loan for 9 MetroTech, part of a 11-building office campus in Brooklyn, New York.

Remember way back in January, when Washington was arguing about taxes, homeowners were having trouble getting refinanced and investors were dumping gold? Hmmm...that makes it seem like 2011 was an uneventful year.

Stocks edged higher on Thursday, putting the benchmark S&P 500 index on track for its third straight advance after data pointed to ongoing labor market improvement, albeit at a slow pace.

Britain, which closed its embassy in Tehran last month after it was ransacked by protesters, said on Thursday that Iranian authorities had blocked its website aimed at Iran.

The European Central Bank's offer of cheap long-term cash is an attempt to prevent a rapid bank deleveraging shock rather than U.S.-style money printing that will filter through to the real economy and leach into other markets.

News and information provider Thomson Reuters Corp said it has pulled the sale of its healthcare business, as tough economic conditions made it difficult to fetch a good enough price.

The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits hit a 3-1/2 year low last week, bolstering views the economy was gaining momentum, even though third-quarter growth was revised down.

The fulfillment center will receive, package and help distribute shipments to its final destination. Amazon will invest $135 million in each state.

Patent firm IPCom said it sued about 100 German retailers for patent infringement, saying they continued selling phones made by HTC beyond a deadline it had imposed earlier this month.

In a rare and complex legal case, a Vermont couple who married in April may be split up after the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service denied their application for a spousal green card.

If you have trouble putting a name to a face, or remembering where you ate that delicious morsel of food you are craving - and you have an iPhone -- help is now at hand.

Japanese carmaker Toyota Motor <7203.T> forecast a 20 percent jump in 2012 sales to a record 8.48 million vehicles, as it recovers from output losses caused by natural disasters in Japan and Thailand this year.

Italy's Senate passed a vote of confidence in the government of Prime Minister Mario Monti on Thursday that put the final seal on an emergency austerity budget rushed through to restore market confidence in the euro zone's third biggest economy.

Stocks edged higher on Thursday, putting the benchmark S&P 500 index on track for its third straight advance after economic data pointed to gradual improvement in the economy.

Chinese writer Chen Wei faces trial on Friday accused of inciting subversion for online essays advocating democracy, in the latest aftershock of a drive against dissent earlier this year, his wife and defense lawyer said.

Don’t miss out on a sunny vacation in the Caribbean because you’re afraid it’s too dangerous; find out which islands are the safest and which are the most dangerous.

Stocks were poised for their third straight advance on Thursday after economic data pointed to continued gradual improvement in the economy.

Four years after the banking system nearly collapsed from reckless mortgage lending, federal prosecutors have stayed on the sidelines, even as judges around the country are pointing fingers at possible wrongdoing.

Japanese chipmaker Elpida Memory Inc will start tie-up talks next month with Taiwanese rival Nanya Technology Corp, with a view to a possible merger, the Nikkei business daily said on Thursday.

New claims for unemployment benefits dropped last week to its lowest in more than 3-1/2 years, suggesting the labor market recovery was gaining speed.