IBT Staff Reporter

The world's largest brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev warned of challenging times in its biggest market, the United States, raising questions about whether it can keep hiking prices to counter sluggish sales.

Markets were set to rise on Thursday, bouncing after a sharp fall in the previous session, and boosted by forecast-beating results from Cisco .

World stocks edged up on Thursday from this week's 11-month low as higher U.S. stock futures calmed frayed investor nerves after a steep sell-off triggered by concerns about the U.S. economic slowdown and the euro zone banking system.

Italy's problem is not a high budget deficit but chronically weak growth, and forcing it to frontload austerity measures just as its economy is moving into yet another downturn may prove dangerously counter productive.

Japan sharpened its warning to currency markets on Thursday in the wake of the yen's rise near record highs against the dollar, keeping markets jittery about the possibility of a second round of intervention.

Uncertainty in global financial markets will likely take its toll on the market for mobile devices in the second half as growth slows in Western Europe, according to research firm Gartner.

Societe Generale's battered shares recovered some ground on Thursday as the French bank's boss vehemently rejected rumors that questioned its financial solidity.

Members of the infamous hacking group Anonymous have put across a message in YouTube, through a video called ?Operation Facebook,? hinting to ?kill? Facebook on Nov. 5.

The Statue of Liberty will close for a year for renovations to make its interior safer and more accessible, said officials.

French bank Societe Generale's shares traded in Frankfurt recovered ground on Thursday after the bank's CEO sought to reassure investors that rumors that wiped 15 percent off its stock were unfounded.

U.S. stock futures rose 1 percent on Thursday after a sharp drop on Wall Street overnight, limiting losses in Asian share markets, though the focus was shifting to how Europe reacts to a sovereign debt crisis that is now threatening its banking system.

U.S. stock futures rose 2 percent on Thursday after a sharp drop on Wall Street overnight, limiting losses in Asian shares, though sustained gains depended on how Europe reacts to a sovereign debt crisis that is threatening its banking system.

Societe Generale shares traded in Frankfurt recovered some ground early on Thursday after the bank's head sought to reassure investors that a host of rumors that wiped 15 percent off its stock were unfounded.

Law graduates from two of the country's biggest schools filed class action suits against their alma maters alleging that the schools were inflating employment and salary statistics to lure students.

Top chipmaker Intel Corp said computer makers Lenovo, Asustek and Acer will launch its new category of notebook computer in the third to fourth quarter, and expects to see their prices below $999 in the fourth quarter.

Bank of America Corp has held exploratory talks with the principal investment funds of Kuwait and Qatar about selling part of its $17 billion stake in China Construction Bank <0939.HK>, three sources with direct knowledge of the talks told Reuters.

LG Electronics and Sony said on Thursday that they have resolved patent disputes between the two firms spanning smartphones, TVs and Blu-ray technology, with LG adding that they have signed a cross-licensing deal.

Gold eased on Thursday from record highs struck earlier in the session after the CME Group raised margins on COMEX gold futures, but turmoil in the global financial markets and fears of slower growth will buoy sentiment.

British oil explorer Cairn Energy expects to finalise a long-awaited deal to sell control of its Indian business by mid-September, bringing to conclusion a process that has dragged on for almost a year.

India's annual industrial output growth probably slipped further in June to 5.5 percent from a nine-month low of 5.6 percent in May, indicating taut monetary policy and soaring inflation were hindering growth momentum, the median forecast in a Reuters poll showed.

The U.S. securities regulator is probing farm machine maker Deere & Co for possible violations of a law that bars American companies from bribing foreign officials, the Wall Street Journal said citing two people familiar with the matter.

LG Electronics and Sony said on Thursday that they have resolved patent disputes between the two firms spanning smartphones, TVs and Blu-ray technology, with LG adding that they have signed a cross-licensing deal.

Texas prison officials on Wednesday executed convicted killer Martin Robles for the shooting deaths of two young men nearly nine years ago who belonged to a rival street gang in Corpus Christi.

The magnitute 9 Tohoku Earthquake, which released a giant tsunami on Japan's coastal land, rattled the ionosphere, and almost reached out to space. The ionosphere is one of the highest layers of the atmosphere, and ripples were created in electrically charged particles created nearly 220 miles above Earth.

Concerns about S&P's downgrading of the U.S. credit rating and the resulting global stock sell-off are sparking urgent calls for investigations and reinvigorating ongoing efforts to reform the ratings agencies, which have been under fire since the Enron scandal of 2001.

Rupert Murdoch acknowledged for the first time publicly that his son James is not the preferred choice to succeed him as News Corp CEO, at least in the near-term.

Consumers will be able to text and send multimedia messages to 9-1-1 emergency call centers under a new plan from the top communications regulator.

The U.S. Postal Service has its eye on a digital future, if it can get through its present financial straits.

Economic fears are weighing heavily on Americans, with a large majority saying the United States is on the wrong track and nearly half believing the worst is yet to come, a Reuters/Ipsos poll said Wednesday.