UNITED STATES

Facebook Inc, preparing what would be Silicon Valley's largest IPO, has picked Nasdaq over the New York Stock Exchange for its listing in a major victory for the technology-laden U.S. bourse, a source familiar with the situation said on Thursday.

The head of Traxis Partners still believes U.S. stocks will head higher in coming months, but he's concerned about a near-term pullback as the European debt crisis intensifies and hopes for more Fed bond-buying dim.

Recent satellite images show that North Korea's preparations for the launch are moving forward, and the rocket will soon be built inside the already constructed launch tower.

The Connecticut death penalty's days may be numbered as the Connecticut state Senate voted to repeal capital punishment Thursday.

Sales of popular prescription painkillers have increased dramatically nationwide, leading experts to believe a new addiction epidemic is taking over the United States.

The commissioner of the U.S. tax-collecting Internal Revenue Service warned on Thursday of a real disaster for taxpayers next year should Congress miss a December 31 deadline to decide on billions in major tax provisions.

Gold rose on Thursday, as investors covered short positions after a sharp two-day pullback, and a crude oil rally also buoyed the precious metal that sank early this week on disappointment about further U.S. monetary easing.

So far this week, U.S. industrial giants have announced nearly $3 billion will be invested in new operations and research in Brazil, China and India three cornerstone members of the BRICS countries.

Stocks mostly traded sideways on Thursday, but the S&P 500 ended its worst week this year as growing pressure on Europe's debt markets revived concerns about the region's financial stability.

As he gathers with other movers and shakers at the White House on Thursday afternoon to witness President Barack Obama's signing of the Jobs Act, AOL Inc co-founder Steve Case is already thinking ahead to the next cause he can help champion behind the scenes: immigration reform.

April 5 - San Francisco-based start-up lender SoFi has a novel idea to revive the moribund market in student-loan bonds -- get alumni to invest in their schools.

While the movie and music industries would have you think that torrents are a threat to their business, thousands of independent artists heartily disagree. That's why more than 5000 musicians, actors, writers, filmmakers and artists have signed up to be promoted by The Pirate Bay, the world's largest torrent site.

Starbucks got a huge thank you from gay marriage supporters on Wednesday, in response to the company's policy in support of same-sex marriage.

It seems like Russia might be moving the world closer to a zombie apocalypse. Last week Anatoly Serdyukov, Russian defense minister, announced plans for a new electromagnetic weapon. Russian President Vladimir Putin confirmed that Russia has been working on mind-bending psychotronic guns that can effectively turn people into zombies.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said President Barack Obama's remarks about the Supreme Court striking down the Affordable Care Act were fully consistent with the principles of judicial review.

The embattled Wisconsin governor, who faces a recall election on June 5th, discussed his faith and how his potential ousting could affect the Tea Party movement.

Watch Tiger Woods' press conference as he talks up his chances of winning a fifth Green Jacket at Augusta National.

Watch live streaming coverage of the 2012 Masters, as Tiger Woods begins his quest for a fifth Green Jacket at Augusta National.

The head of China's national pension fund called for a bigger role for the Chinese currency in the international monetary system, saying the yuan could someday account for 10 percent of global reserves.

The U.S. economy is expected to expand at a disappointing pace in 2012, similar to the tepid 1.7 percent growth rate achieved in 2011, despite recent job gains, according to economists at HSBC, who said wages have failed to keep up.

You can see a live look at the Masters leaderboard here.