IBT Staff Reporter

Oil ticked up above $68 a barrel on Friday in relatively thin dealing as investors awaited jobs data from the United States to provide some insight into the health of the world's top economy.

Oil dropped below $68 a barrel on Friday, weighed down by a stronger dollar after U.S. data showed the unemployment rate rose by less than expected, albeit to a 26-year high.

Gold eased below $990 an ounce on Friday after a two-day rally that took the market to within a whisker of $1,000, as an uptick in the dollar index after U.S. non-farm payrolls data prompted some traders to cash in gains.

Stock index futures pointed to a flat open on Friday following data that showed U.S. employers cut fewer-than-expected jobs in August even as the unemployment rate hit a 26-year high.

Jasmine Fiore reportedly spent some time in a Southern California beach with her ex-husband Michael Cardosi before her murder.

European investors are returning to green technology stocks after switching to safer investments earlier in the recession, and companies involved in energy efficiency and biofuel production show the most potential.

Top officials from the United States, European Union and Brazil on Friday awaited a pivotal World Trade Organization ruling on subsidies to Airbus that stands to impact the global aircraft sector.

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd aims to sell at least 2 million liquid crystal display televisions that use light-emitting diodes in 2009 and at least 10 million units in 2010, an executive said.

Spanish state broadcaster RTVE has won national broadcasting rights for the 2014 winter and 2016 summer Games, the International Olympic Committee said on Friday.

Nouriel Roubini, a leading economist who predicted the scale of global financial troubles, said a U-shaped recovery is possible, with leading economies undeperforming perhaps for 3 years.

The makers of an Egyptian film exploring the subjugation of women across the Middle East say they have won widespread praise as well as deeply personal criticism since the movie was released.

Against a backdrop of flat-panel TV screens and energy-efficient washing machines, a number of nifty gadgets and chic devices stand out at the IFA consumer electronics fair in Berlin, aimed at simplifying modern life -- with style.

The U.S. government plans to accelerate the pace of processing up to $3 billion in

The Venice Lido was abuzz Thursday over

Aboriginal artist Yannima Tommy Watson is a man of few words, but his vibrant works speak volumes, drawing museum-goers at the Muse du Quai Branly in Paris and Australia's most prestigious art galleries.

The G20 will promise this weekend to keep economic support packages in place until recovery is certain and seek to reassure financial markets they have credible plans to withdraw the stimulus when appropriate.

Stock index futures turned sharply higher on Friday following a brief sell-off after data showed U.S. employers cut fewer-than-expected jobs in August even as the unemployment rate hit a 26-year high.

CHICAGO - Brazilian meat giant JBS would likely get U.S. antitrust approval if it decides to buy U.S. chicken producer Pilgrim's Pride even though the already concentrated American meat market would lose yet another player.

Michael Jackson was buried on Thursday, more than two months after he died of a drug overdose, marking the last stop for a superstar who spent most of his 50 years in the public gaze

Global carmakers are lining up to make India, home of Tata Motors' (TAMO.BO) Nano, the world's cheapest car, a base for their export operations as they try to cut costs and move to compact, fuel-efficient vehicles.

U.S. employers cut a fewer-than-expected 216,000 jobs in August, while the unemployment rate rose to a 26-year high, the government said on Friday in a report showing a still fragile labor market.

U.S. employers cut a fewer-than-expected 216,000 jobs in August, while the unemployment rate rose to a 26-year high, the government said on Friday in a report showing a still fragile labor market.

Japan's Mitsubishi Motors Corp said on Friday it has formally signed a contract for a previously announced tie-up with France's Peugeot-Citroen in electric vehicles.

Germany raised the pressure on General Motors on Friday to choose a buyer for its Opel unit, with Economy Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg telling the U.S. carmaker he expected a

Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Richard Fisher on Thursday said the United States should have a good snap-back from recession in the final months of 2009, but that future growth could be a slow crawl.

Mortgage woes dominate the business page headlines of both the New York Times and Wall Street Journal today.

Italy's antitrust agency said on Friday it was broadening its investigation into allegations that Google's Italian news website coerced Italian newspapers into posting their stories to include U.S. parent Google Inc. The competition authority launched the probe this week after the Italian Federation of Newspaper Editors alleged that any publication refusing to appear on the Google News Italia (h...

Bloated inventories and the risk of a price slide will trouble OPEC ministers when they meet in Vienna next week, but oil at close to $70 a barrel is expected to convince the group to hold output steady for now.

Stock index futures rose on Friday ahead of a report expected to show the smallest number of job losses so far this year in August as the economy advances out of a recession.