IBT Staff Reporter

AT&T Inc and T-Mobile USA plan to file paperwork about their planned merger with the Federal Communications Commission next week.

Glencore, the Swiss commodity trader, named former BP Chief Executive Tony Hayward to lead a five-strong team of independent directors, as it launched a flotation that could top $12 billion.

Top commodity trader Glencore aims to raise up to $12.1 billion with a dual listing that will boost firepower for deals at the height of a resources boom and make paper fortunes for its publicity-shy partners.

New U.S. claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose last week, bouncing back above the key 400,000 level, a government report showed on Thursday.

AT&T and T-Mobile will have to prove to the Federal Communications Commission that their merger won't damage competition or stifle technological innovation.

Alcatel-Lucent may dispose of the part of the company that sells phones and telecom gear to corporate clients, three people familiar with the matter said, though it was not clear if Alcatel had mandated advisers.

Veteran money manager John Calamos, who heads funds managing assets of close to $38 billion, reckons technology stocks are a good bet for now as U.S. companies invest in innovation.

Stocks fell on Thursday after an unexpected rise in jobless claims and concerns about higher inflation overseas pushed investors toward defensive stocks.

While his relationship with Selena Gomez may be going strong, pop sensation Justin Bieber has decided to put an end to another one.

A group representing individual video game developers has accused Amazon.com Inc of setting pricing terms that could harm them in the long run and of trying to win a near monopoly selling games made on Android software.

In a frenzy to protect its interests at the start of the credit crisis, Goldman Sachs Group Inc sold mortgage-linked derivatives to clients at inflated prices and misrepresented the nature of the deals, according to documents released by a Senate subcommittee.

Hasbro Inc reported a fall in quarterly profit and sales on sluggish demand for games, puzzles and preschool toys in its seasonal weak first quarter.

U.S. regulators are probing whether some major banks colluded to manipulate a global benchmark interest rate before and during the financial crisis, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the situation.

Hasbro Inc's first-quarter profit fell almost 71 percent on higher costs and sluggish demand for games, puzzles and preschool toys in a seasonally weak period.

U.S. inflation is likely to climb higher than previously thought but the recovery will not stall as interest rates will be held down until early next year, according to the latest Reuters poll of economists.

Supervalu Inc , the third-biggest U.S. supermarket chain by sales, said Thursday that more effective promotions fueled quarterly profit that topped its own expectation, and shares surged 13 percent.

The LA Times is reporting that Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Sony Pictures have come to an agreement to partner on the next two James Bond movies. Within this agreement there is also potential to co-finance other pictures over the next five years.

Spotify, the popular European online music service, has told record labels it will cut down the free music it allows users to access without a paid subscription, according to people familiar with the plan.

Worries about higher inflation and signs of job market weakness prompted investors to sell stocks on Thursday.

A seismologist at the University of Tokyo is blasting Japanese officialdom for building seismic hazard maps based on the idea that some earthquakes could be predicted, and called on the government to admit that they can't.

Moody's Corp and Standard and Poor's triggered the worst financial crisis in decades when they were forced to downgrade the inflated ratings they slapped on complex mortgage-backed securities, a U.S. congressional report concluded on Wednesday.

Management changes, spending plans and regulatory risks will be in the spotlight when Google Inc reports its first-quarter financial results after the market closes on Thursday.

Japan's Toshiba Corp said on Thursday it expects its operations to recover in the second half of this financial year after being hit by supply chain disruptions in the wake of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

The top four lawmakers in Washington on Wednesday responded to President Barack Obama's speech on long term fiscal policy, focusing on Obama's comments on health care coverage for seniors and increasing taxes.

The interbank silver market [in Asia] is dysfunctional says one Hong Kong dealer's note. Liquidity is getting worse while the price action is getting more exaggerated as a result.

U.S. regulators are probing whether some major banks colluded to manipulate a global benchmark interest rate before and during the financial crisis, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the situation.

Former BP chief executive John Browne is on the shortlist of candidates to become chairman of mining giant Glencore , a source familiar with the matter said, confirming news reports.

In the most damning official U.S. report yet produced on Wall Street's role in the financial crisis, a Senate panel accused powerhouse Goldman Sachs of misleading clients and manipulating markets, while also condemning greed, weak regulation and conflicts of interest throughout the financial system.

Wall Street stocks were set for a lower open on Thursday as worries about higher inflation and signs of job market weakness kept investors cautious.