IBT Staff Reporter

The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits unexpectedly rose last week, a government report showed on Thursday, fanning worries of an anemic recovery from the worst recession in 70 years.

German politicians are drawing on the lessons of the U.S. presidential campaign by embracing the Internet and experimenting with townhall meetings, but what worked for Barack Obama seems to be backfiring here.

The crew and suspected hijackers of the Arctic Sea cargo ship arrived in Russia on Thursday after a maritime saga peppered with piracy and the hint of espionage.

Sears Holding Corp reported a surprise quarterly loss that dimmed investors' hopes that Chairman Eddie Lampert could succeed in turning around the struggling retailer.

Army-ruled Myanmar urged Western countries on Thursday to lift economic sanctions and allow the country to modernize and achieve its democratic goals.

Scotland released on Thursday a former Libyan agent jailed for life for the 1988 Lockerbie bombing that killed 270 people, most of them Americans, because he is dying of cancer.

H.J. Heinz Co posted lower quarterly profit on Thursday as the stronger dollar cut into sales overseas.

A police investigation into last month's Jakarta hotel bombings shows that militants also planned to use snipers to attack Barack Obama's convoy when the U.S. president visits Indonesia, an intelligence expert told Reuters.

Hurricane Bill weakened on Thursday, falling to a Category 3 storm with its winds dropping to 125 mph, but hurricane watchers said it had the potential to reach Category 4 status again.

Millions of Afghans went to the polls Thursday, defying Taliban threats of violence and sporadic attacks across the country to choose a president in the midst of a worsening war.

A former Libyan agent jailed for life for the 1988 Lockerbie bombing that killed 270 people, most of them Americans, is to be freed on Thursday, the Scottish government said.

Oil prices eased toward $72 a barrel on Thursday, after rising more than 4 percent in the previous session, as optimism faded about the pace of demand recovery in the world's top consumer the United States.

A safe-drive commercial video that exposes the crude details of an accident caused while a woman was texting while driving has hit the web.

Jobless Claims Still High; Electric Ambitions; Decision Nears for Opel

Stock index futures pointed to a flat open on Thursday after data showed a surprise rise in weekly jobless claims for the second week running, adding to uncertainty over the economic outlook.

Packaged food makers H.J. Heinz Co and Hormel Foods Corp both posted better-than-expected quarterly profits as consumers bought more items like ketchup and Spam as they increasingly ate at home to save money.

The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits unexpectedly rose last week, a government report showed on Thursday, fanning worries of an anemic recovery from the worst recession in 70 years.

China's top oil refiners are set to reveal a surge in quarterly earnings on the back of fuel price increases and lower oil prices, reaping the benefits six months after Beijing shifted to more liberal fuel pricing.

South Korea, one of the world's fastest growing polluters, said on Wednesday it hopes to become Asia's trading hub for carbon emission certificates and related products under its plan for a new carbon exchange from 2011.

News Corp's MySpace said on Thursday it has agreed to buy music recommendation service iLike, as the once-hot social networking site tries to reinvent itself as an entertainment portal.

Stock index futures edged higher on Thursday following a rally in Chinese equities and ahead of data expected to show a dip in jobless claims after a surprise increase in the prior period.

Stock index futures briefly turned negative on Thursday after weekly data showed an unexpected rise in first-time claims for jobless benefits.

The British tax office arrested seven people in London on Wednesday in a suspected 38 million pounds ($62.6 million) value-added tax fraud in the European market in carbon allowances, it said.

Shares in British oil services group Wellstream (WSML) fell sharply after it said its second half will be worse than expected, as funding constraints and oil price volatility force producers to delay contracts.

The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits unexpectedly rose last week, a government report showed on Thursday, as companies continued to cut payrolls amid uncertainty over the economic outlook.

China appears committed to stronger steps to contain swelling greenhouse gas emissions, the former British Prime Minister Tony Blair said after meetings in Beijing, urging practical hopes of climate treaty negotiations.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad shrugged off on Thursday the impact of any sanctions targeting Iran's gasoline imports and suggested it would soon be able to meet its own needs, Iranian media reported.

Chinese solar wafer manufacturer ReneSola is still expecting to make losses in the third quarter of the year despite announcing the launch of a new 150 megawatt project, chief executive officer Li Xianshou said.