BUSINESS

Most U.S. motorists surveyed acknowledged few situations in which they would not use a cell phone or text while behind the wheel although they support measures to curb both practices, data released on Thursday by the Transportation Department showed.

The following comments were made on Thursday at a House Agriculture Committee hearing to examine the bankruptcy of MF Global. It was the first hearing to bring the major players together since the firm's collapse.

U.S. securities regulators are closing a long-running investigation into allegations that two well-known hedge funds conspired to spread negative information about Toronto insurer Fairfax Financial, two people familiar with the inquiry said.

Wall Street fell on Thursday, dragged down by financial stocks, after the European Central Bank tempered hopes that policymakers were readying a financial bazooka to contain the debt crisis.

U.S. President Barack Obama said on Thursday he was very concerned about the euro zone crisis and believed the European Union had the resources to solve it if leaders could find the political will.

European Union leaders gathered on Thursday for a critical two-day summit focused on trying to find a solution to the euro zone debt crisis.

Wachovia Bank, owned by Wells Fargo & Co, agreed to pay $148 million in a settlement with state and federal authorities over allegations of bid-rigging and other abuses in the municipal bond derivatives market.

Google does not work with nor does it support Carrier IQ, the software maker which has been accused of violating millions of mobile phone users' privacy rights, Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt said on Thursday.

Need to add some flare to your new iPhone? Check out these 10 unique iPhone cases, which are sure to turn heads and raise eyebrows.

Hackers are bombarding the world's computer controlled energy sector, conducting industrial espionage and threatening potential global havoc through oil supply disruption.

The following are remarks by EU leaders at a meeting of the conservative European People's Party in Marseille, southern France, ahead of an EU summit in Brussels.

Bank stocks led a sell-off on Wall Street on Thursday after the European Central Bank tempered hopes that policy-makers were priming a much anticipated financial bazooka to tackle Europe's raging debt crisis.

Google Inc said it will invest $300 million in its Hong Kong data center, due to come online in early 2013 after the company broke ground on Thursday.

Europe's banks are being told to increase their capital by a total of 114.7 billion euros, more than predicted two months ago, to make them strong enough to withstand the euro zone debt crisis, two financial sources told Reuters on Thursday.

Stocks fell on Thursday after remarks from European Central Bank President Mario Draghi tempered hopes policymakers were priming a much-anticipated financial bazooka to tackle Europe's raging debt crisis.

New claims for unemployment benefits dropped to a nine-month low last week, a government report showed on Thursday, suggesting the labor market recovery was gaining momentum.

Iranian authorities blocked a website Wednesday hours after it was launched by the U.S. State Department to be a virtual embassy reaching out to people in the Islamic Republic.

He's wanted for contempt of court in Arizona. He is under investigation by Italian police over his connection with an international bond scandal exposed by Reuters in August and totaling at least $500 million. And he is named as a key player in one of the first criminal indictments following the collapse of Iceland's economy.

The European Central Bank acted to soften a looming recession and avert a credit crunch in the debt-plagued euro zone by cutting interest rates on Thursday as European Union leaders prepared for a crucial summit.

Stock index futures were little changed on Thursday after investors pushed up stocks for three straight sessions, betting leaders come up with a solution to euro zone debt crisis at an upcoming summit.

Former MF Global chief Jon Corzine apologized to customers, employees and investors who have suffered because of the brokerage firm's collapse, but said he does not know where missing customer money is.

Alibaba Group is seeking up to $4 billion in debt financing, sources familiar with the matter said on Thursday, in a deal expected to help the Chinese e-commerce giant buy back a 40 percent stake in the company owned by Yahoo Inc.

For Hungarian businessman Ervin Majdan, membership of the European Union used to be a one-way ticket to prosperity.

The ECB is expected to cut rates and unveil a new package of bank aid on Thursday, with markets also watching for any hint it will intensify its bond buying support for the bloc's struggling periphery, setting the stage for a critical euro zone summit.

Stock index futures pointed to a dip at the open on Wall Street on Thursday, with futures for the S&P 500 down 0.16 percent, Dow Jones down 0.17 percent and Nasdaq 100 down 0.06 percent at 5:30 a.m. ET.

Stock index futures pointed to a dip at the open on Wall Street on Thursday, with futures for the S&P 500 down 0.16 percent, Dow Jones down 0.17 percent and Nasdaq 100 down 0.06 percent at 5:30 a.m.

World stocks nudged up and the euro held its ground on Wednesday as a crucial period for the euro zone began, with investors expecting the bloc's central bank to cut rates and its leaders to agree a plan to solve the region's debt crisis.

European stocks rose while bonds and the euro were mostly steady on Thursday ahead of a European Central Bank meeting that is expected to cut interest rates, the first act in two crunch days for efforts to quell the euro zone's debt crisis.

The answer to the Final Jeopardy! question of who will be the first director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will not become known on Thursday.