U.S. retail sales fall, new jobless claims up

Sales at U.S. retailers unexpectedly fell in July and the number of workers filing new claims for jobless benefits rose last week, indicating the recession-hit economy faced a bumpy recovery. Read Full Article here.

U.S. home foreclosures set another record in July

U.S. home loans failed at a record pace in July despite ongoing federal and state programs to avoid foreclosures, which have severely strained housing and the economy. Read Full Article here.

Magna Co-CEO agrees with GM to buy Opel

Magna and its Russian partner Sberbank have reached an agreement with the management of General Motors to acquire a 55 percent stake in GM's European unit Opel, Magna Co-Chief Executive Siegfried Wolf told Reuters on Thursday. Read Full Article here.

Kohl's posts lower profit, sees weakness ahead

Kohl's Corp posted a lower quarterly profit that exceeded Wall Street estimates by a penny, and the department store chain issued a dismal outlook for the rest of the year, citing higher costs. Read Full Article here.

Natural Gas inventories report

The U.S. Energy Department's Energy Information Administration will release its report on natural gas inventories. According to a Bloomberg survey, analysts expect natural gas inventories gained 66 billion cubic feet last week, a larger than average increase.

China signals long-term plans to curb greenhouse gases

China will make controlling greenhouse gas emissions an important part of its development plans, the government said, as pressure on the world's top emitter grows ahead of global talks on tackling climate change. Read Full Article here.

U.N. climate talks in Germany continue

United Nations working groups are holding climate change talks from 10 to 14 August 2009 in Bonn, Germany. U.N. officials have said a global climate deal in December will fail unless industrialized nations increase significantly promised reductions in greenhouse gas emissions for 2020.

U.S. food giants warn of sugar shortage: report

Large U.S. food companies said the country could virtually run out of sugar unless the Obama administration eased import curbs, the Wall Street Journal said. Read Full Article here.

Shell to build carbon capture, storage plant

Royal Dutch Shell is reportedly going to enter a race to build a carbon capture and storage plant in Britain, sponsored by the government of that country, according to a Financial Times report today. It would be the first large oil firm in such a race.

UBS shares climb further on U.S. tax case deal

Shares in UBS on Thursday extended gains as investors expected the settlement of a damaging U.S. tax dispute to allow the bank to focus on becoming profitable again. Read Full Article here.