IBT Staff Reporter

A year that started in gloom and doom could end in cheers for U.S. corporate profits and leave the stock market positioned for a strong start to 2010.

The Bahamian lawmaker who caused a mistrial in the John Travolta extortion case escaped a contempt of court citation on Thursday when the judge ruled that his public vilification was punishment enough.

European shares were little changed in midmorning trade on Friday after sharp gains in the previous session on data showing the U.S. had emerged from recession, with firmer banks offsetting weaker energy stocks.

U.S. stock index futures dipped on Friday, a day after the market logged its best percentage gain in three months, as investors await data that will shed light on consumer sentiment.

In a year when many film festivals sharply cut operations or closed due to the recession, the large AFI Film Festival that gets under way here on Friday has found a novel way to stay open -- give tickets away for free.

Almost 15 years ago, former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl quietly circulated among his friends copies of a demo tape on which he did all the singing and played all the instruments.

U.S. stock index futures dipped on Friday, a day after the market logged its best percentage gain in three months, as investors await data that will shed light on consumer sentiment.

Actor Dennis Hopper is suffering from prostate cancer and canceling all travel plans to focus on his treatment, his manager told media on Thursday.

NYSE Euronext said on Friday it is selling a significant equity interest in its derivatives exchange NYSE Liffe U.S., as it posted a 28-percent drop in third-quarter earnings.

U.S. stock index futures dipped on Friday, a day after the market logging its best percentage gain in three months, as investors await data that will shed light on consumer sentiment.

Sanofi-Aventis raised its outlook for 2009 thanks to sales of swine flu vaccine and posted earnings per share growth that beat forecasts as competition from generics was offset by revenue growth for other drugs.

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a slightly lower open on Wall Street on Friday following the previous session's sharp rally, with futures for the S&P 500 down 0.35 percent, Dow Jones futures down 0.17 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures down 0.09 percent at 6:10 a.m. EDT.

World stocks crept higher on Friday, extending gains following the United States' jump out of recession, while the dollar drifted ahead of more U.S. data that will add fuel to the recovery debate.

Asian stocks bounced back on Friday from their worst drop in two months, with investors taking heart from the United States' return to economic growth, which gave reassurance on the recovery's staying power.

Sony Corp and Panasonic Corp signaled the worst may be over for the world's two largest consumer electronics makers as they raised their full year outlooks, helped by cost cuts.

The ChiNext stock market , China's long-awaited Nasdaq-style second board, debuted on Friday with a speculative surge that more than doubled the price of all 28 stocks during intraday trade -- a good sign for companies lining up to list on China's stock markets.

Samsung Electronics , the world's top maker of memory chips and LCD screens, gave a robust outlook, signaling bigger players are set to further widen the gap over smaller firms in a tech sector recovery.

Sony Corp posted a loss for a fourth consecutive quarter, hit by sluggish cellphone sales and as it cut prices of its PlayStation 3 game console, but it narrowed its full year loss forecast.

The ChiNext stock market , China's long-awaited Nasdaq-style second board, debuted on Friday with a speculative surge that more than doubled the price of all its 28 stocks -- a good sign for firms lining up to list on China's main stock markets.

The U.S. economy's return to growth during the third quarter shows stability has been regained but recovery is fragile and needs nurturing, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Thursday.

JP Morgan Chase & Co raised concerns about Galleon hedge fund founder Raj Rajaratnam and his associates as far back as 2001, the Financial Times reported, citing an internal company document seen by the newspaper.

Sony Corp posted a loss for the fourth consecutive quarter, hit by sluggish cellphone sales and as it cut prices of its PlayStation 3 game gear, but trimmed its full year loss forecast close to market expectations.

What do Jigsaw from Saw, Freddy Krueger, and Jason from Friday the 13th all have in common, besides serial killing? Video games, if the horror stars' latest round of promotions are to be believed.

The U.S. economy's return to growth during the third quarter shows stability has been regained but recovery is fragile and needs nurturing, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Thursday.

What do Jigsaw from Saw, Freddy Krueger, and Jason from Friday the 13th all have in common, besides serial killing? Video games, if the horror stars' latest round of promotions are to be believed.

(Corrects to remove reference in third paragraph to year-ago operating profit which was on a parent, not consolidated basis)

Samsung Electronics, the world's top maker of memory chips and LCD screens, reported on Friday its best ever quarterly net profit on a resurgent memory sector and forecast a strong 2010.

U.S. third quarter growth data was very encouraging and showed the economy has stabilized but still faces difficulties, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Thursday.