CALIFORNIA

Toyota Motor Corp will start talks to pull out of a California-based joint venture with General Motors , a Toyota executive said on Thursday.

Michael Jackson's personal physician Dr. Conrad Murray should not targeted as criminal, attorney Edward Chernoff said late Tuesday on his law firm's website.

Republican lawmakers in California have threatened to scuttle a budget deal secured by the governor and top lawmakers over a plan for prison spending cuts, but Democrats said on Wednesday a vote on the agreement will take place this week.

U.S. drug enforcement agents and Los Angeles police on Wednesday raided a Houston clinic owned by Conrad Murray, the doctor who was with pop icon Michael Jackson when he died, searching for information on the singer's use of the anesthetic, propofol.

The Nasdaq climbed on Wednesday following Apple's strong earnings, while gains in the Dow industrials and S&P 500 were curbed as top banks' disappointing results sparked renewed concerns about the financial sector's health.

The moribound U.S. job market still

Apple Inc reported higher-than-expected quarterly results, fueled by robust sales of the iPhone, sending its shares up more than 2 percent on Tuesday.

Google Inc would strengthen its mobile search service in China, the first strategic move since the company came under the Chinese government glare for providing links to pornographic sites, ChinaDaily reported on Tuesday.

No sport has quite as strong a sales pitch as surfing-a solitary rider dancing across the face of a glassy wave, seeming to master it in one moment and in danger of getting swallowed whole the next.

To me, the Northern Territory is Australia. That's not to say that the rest of the country doesn't have much going on, it certainly does, but the Northern Territory is the Australia of my boyhood.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and top lawmakers agreed on Monday to close a $26.3 billion deficit in the state's budget in a deal that includes $15.5 billion in spending cuts, they said.

California's top lawmakers said on Monday they were confident an agreement with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on a state budget that closes a $26.3 billion deficit would be reached later in the day and voted on by the legislature on Thursday.

The U.S. housing market is showing signs of stabilization, according to inventory data released on Monday by national real estate brokerage ZipRealty.

The U.S. housing market is showing signs of stabilization, according to inventory data released on Monday by national real estate brokerage ZipRealty.

Insurer UnitedHealth Group Inc is in talks to buy the U.S. Northeast operations of rival Health Net Inc, sources familiar with the situation said on Friday.

Golden Gate Capital won an auction for Eddie Bauer Holdings Inc with a $286 million cash bid and agreed to keep open most of its 370 stores, the bankrupt outdoor apparel retailer said on Friday.

Activist investor Carl Icahn spoke out in favor of a search deal between Yahoo Inc and Microsoft Corp, as talks between the two companies appeared to regain momentum.

California farmer Tom Willey was first attracted to organic farming 21 years ago after noticing how many chemicals he was using in conventional farming.

Rechargeable batteries could become the core technology for the auto industry if pure electric cars enter the mainstream -- a prospect that has carmakers racing to team up with battery makers.

New U.S. housing starts and permits jumped more than expected in June, propelled by a rise in single-family homes, a government report showed on Friday.

Even if California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and top lawmakers quickly plug a $26.3 billion deficit to balance the state's budget, the state's weak revenues signal that a new shortfall will emerge.