IBT Staff Reporter

Conditions in the U.S. construction industry have improved since President Barack Obama signed the economic stimulus plan into law in February, but employment in the battered sector needs more help, an industry trade group said on Thursday.

World stocks rallied to fresh 9-1/2 month peaks on Friday as favorable corporate earnings fueled recovery hopes, while European government bonds also rose as investors grew cautious ahead of key U.S. growth data.

British Airways said on Friday it saw no improvement in bleak trading conditions and vowed to continue to cut costs, rounding off another miserable week for Europe's airlines.

Stock index futures pointed to a higher open for U.S. shares on Friday as investors awaited U.S. GDP figures and earnings from companies such as Chevron and Allergan.

British Airways said on Friday it had cut operating costs by around 6.6 percent since last October as it fights to slim down during the downturn, but it had seen no signs of improvement in trading conditions.

Asian stocks pushed higher on Friday and were poised to score double-digit gains in July as investors keep pouring funds on bets the region's growth engine will lead the global economy out of recession.

Bonuses paid to executives at nine banks that received U.S. government bailout money in 2008 were greater than net income at some of the banks, the office of New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said on Thursday.

U.S. federal regulators have raised the number of struggling banks which they have essentially put on probation, forcing them to fix their problems to avoid potential failures, the Wall Street Journal said.

Oil extended gains well above $67 a barrel on Friday, after a 5.7 percent jump in the previous session on U.S. data and earnings which renewed hopes of an economic recovery and drove up equity and commodities markets.

British Airways has cut operating costs by around 6.6 percent since last October as it fights to slim down during the downturn, while its debt-pile also fell slightly to 2.3 billion pounds ($3.79 billion).

Eyeing a better price, U.S. auto maker Ford Motor Co is slowing down the bidding process for its Volvo car unit, the Wall Street Journal said, citing a person close to the company.

Asian stocks pushed higher on Friday and were poised to score double-digit gains in July as investors keep pouring funds on bets the region's growth engine will lead the global economy out of recession.

The U.S. government's $1 billion cash for clunkers auto sales incentive program reached its funding limit unexpectedly after an avalanche of business exhausted its funds, an Obama administration official said late Thursday.

What do you get when you cross a cyborg with a set of ancient Indonesian musical instruments? GamelaTron, of course.

The U.S. government will not suspend its $1 billion cash for clunkers auto sales incentive even though confirmed sales and pending transactions neared the limit of 250,000 vehicles much sooner than expected, an Obama administration official said on Thursday night.

EBay Inc shrugged off speculation on Thursday that its planned spinoff of Skype could be in danger, given an ongoing dispute over the technology used in the online telephone unit and new plans to develop proprietary software.

Sony Corp posted a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss, helped by an improvement in its struggling flat TV business, and said it was aiming to beat its official forecast and at least break even for the full year.

After spinning off Madison Square Garden, Cablevision Systems Corp should sell its Rainbow Networks cable channels to Comcast Corp and then buy Time Warner Cable Inc's New York operations, said influential shareholder Mario Gabelli.

No. 1 U.S. trucking company YRC Worldwide Inc on Thursday reported a large loss due to plunging revenue and hefty charges, and said it was hard to say if the economy has hit bottom, sending its stock down 14 percent.

U.S. mail service provider Pitney Bowes Inc slashed its full-year forecasts and posted weaker-than-expected quarterly results.

Yahoo Gets Hard Look, Cumo's Bank Critique, Exxon Earns Less Billions

China crushed the world record in the women's 800 free relay at the FINA World Championships, beating US as No. 1, followed by U.S. and Great Britain.

One week after the apparent suicide of a Chinese factory worker accused of stealing a carefully guarded Apple iPhone prototype, one question remains unanswered: what happened to the missing phone?

Researchers have discovered a flaw within Apple's iPhone SMS feature , an exploit that could infect every iPhone through Short Message Service (SMS), or text messaging.

China's Zhao Jing smashed the world record in the women's 50 and won the second gold medal of swimming for China at the FINA World Championships, local Businesstimes reported on Friday morning. Zhao clocked a stunning time of 27.06, which crushed Anastasia Zueva's world record of 27.38.

Microsoft Corp's chief executive tried to persuade skeptical investors on Thursday that its 10-year Web search partnership with Yahoo Inc is good for both companies.

Microsoft Corp's chief executive tried to persuade skeptical investors on Thursday that its 10-year Web search partnership with Yahoo Inc is good for both companies.

Apple Inc on Thursday said it began shipping an updated Time Capsule equipped with 2TB SATA storage.

Walt Disney Co posted a 26 percent plunge in quarterly earnings on Thursday, underlining the continuing effects of the recession on advertising and consumer spending, but beat Wall Street forecasts by a hair.