IBT Staff Reporter

The biggest regulatory changes since the 1930s are bearing down on the U.S. securities and investment industry and many firms are ill-prepared, says a new study by research firm TowerGroup .

Stocks slid on Thursday as investors booked profits in the hard-charging technology sector, while analyst downgrades hurt the telecom sector and a tepid response to a government bond auction undercut sentiment.

The greenback was mixed on the Thursday session, initially sharply lower against the euro before recovering by afternoon trading.

Natural gas spot prices rose this week at almost every market location, with increases generally ranging between 10 and 30 cents per million Btu (MMBtu).

The Pentagon said on Wednesday it was seeking a $1.2 billion funding cut in missile defense spending for fiscal 2010 and set its budget request for the Missile Defense Agency at $7.8 billion.

JPMorgan Chase & Co is looking at growth opportunities through government-assisted acquisitions of troubled institutions, despite the obstacle posed by deposit caps, said Oppenheimer and Co analysts, who met JPMorgan's chief financial officer earlier this week.

Clayton Homes, the largest manufacturer of modular homes in the U.S., officially introduced its i-house (or ihome) which is perhaps the most affordable option for a low-carbon lifestyle at the moment.

BRUSSELS, May 7 - The European Commission is set to rule next week that the world's largest chipmaker, Intel Corp (INTC.O), breached antitrust rules and will fine it and order changes to how it provides rebates, sources said on Thursday.

General Motors Corp said it burned through $10.2 billion in the first quarter as it relied on a federal bailout to ride out a sharp decline in global sales that overwhelmed its cost-cutting efforts.

This week, based on indicators of improving Chinese manufacturing activity, commodity and stock markets surged in the Pacific Rim.

General Electric Co said on Thursday it plans to invest $6 billion by 2015 to help its healthcare customers cut costs, in a push the biggest U.S. conglomerate is calling Healthymagination.

All of the top 19 U.S. banks undergoing stress tests to gauge their ability to outlast an even deeper recession are solvent, and the exam results should reassure markets that banks can continue lending, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Thursday.

ST-Ericsson expects its current efforts to cut costs to be completed by the end of the second quarter of 2010, according to Alain Dutheil, head of the venture of STMicroelectronics NV and Ericsson.

Chemicals maker DuPont Co said it would eliminate another 2,000 jobs as part of its cost-cutting plan as it tries to conserve cash and operate through the worst recession in decades.

Investors braced for the release of bank stress test results that will separate the weak from the strong and force some top banks to raise billions of dollars in capital.

Growing demand, cheaper financing and wider participation are expected to double the volume of asset-backed securities issuance in the upcoming round of the Federal Reserve's TALF program in June.

Dreaming of a tropical paradise to call your own? Several Australian islands off the Great Barrier Reef are on sale, and thanks to the global recession, they're cheaper than they used to be.

The detailed version of President Barack Obama's budget unveiled on Thursday maintains a $250 billion placeholder for additional financial rescue efforts should that money be needed, an administration official told Reuters.

U.S. stocks fell on Thursday after analyst downgrades hit the telecom sector and investors booked profits in technology stocks, with enthusiasm also fading over results from bank stress tests.

Interest rates on U.S. 30-year fixed-rate mortgages rose 0.06 percentage point in the latest week, according to a survey released on Thursday by home funding company Freddie Mac.

General Motors Corp said it burned through $10.2 billion in the first quarter as it relied on a federal bailout to ride out a sharp decline in global sales that overwhelmed its cost-cutting efforts.

U.S. airlines saw a steep decline in the number of passengers they carried in April, but planes were more full, a sign that steep capacity cuts may be serving their intended purpose.

Muslims living in European countries feel far more isolated than those living in the United States, according to a survey on coexistence, with a lack of access to education and jobs reinforcing a sense of ostracism.

When Pope Benedict stops to pray at a pool of still green water here on Sunday, his visit will bolster the case that Jesus was baptized at this spot on the east bank of the Jordan River.

U.S. car maker General Motors Corp could take a stake in the company that would be created by merging its European car business with Fiat SpA's auto unit, a source close to the situation said on Thursday.

Renewed peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians must tackle core issues including Jerusalem, Middle East envoy Tony Blair said, raising the specter of a clash with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The U.S. envoy for North Korea began a swing through Asia on Thursday to seek support from regional powers to rein in North Korea, which may be preparing to rattle security with a second nuclear test.

Unilever's new star Paul Polman added sparkle to its shares on Thursday by outlining his plans to reignite volume growth and change the way executives are rewarded at the underperforming consumer goods giant.

The EU and Georgia's influential Orthodox Church leader urged political forces in the former Soviet republic to step back from the brink on Thursday after weeks of protests against the president flared into violence.