UNITED STATES

U.S. cable group Liberty Global is considering a bid for Dutch cable firm Ziggo, estimated to be worth 8 billion euros ($10.6 billion) and which is planning a stock listing, Dutch daily De Telegraaf reported on Thursday without citing sources.

Gold rose to a three-month high on Thursday and headed for its biggest one-week rally in a month, spurred on by the strength in the euro following Europe's bailout deal with Greece, ahead of an options expiry later in the day.

Sears Holdings Corp announced steps to reassure investors about its ability to pay down debt, sending its shares up 10 percent in premarket trade.

The United States at present has plenty of supply and only light demand, yet gas prices are steadily rising. Americans, while still addicted to oil, are driving more fuel-efficient cars, so why are there predictions of $5-a-gallon gas by year's end? The answer is fear -- mainly of war with Iran, a major oil producer.

Experimental obesity drug Qnexa won the backing of U.S. health advisors on Wednesday, raising hopes for approval of the first prescription weight-loss pill in 13 years.

Stock index futures pointed to a slightly higher open on Thursday after labor market data indicated the economy continued to slowly recover.

Rick Santorum and Mitt Romney duked it out at CNN's Arizona Republican debate Wednesday night, but Romney came out on top at what will likely be the final debate of the primary season.

Qnexa, a new weight loss drug produced by Vivus, received a nod of favored approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Advisory Committee on Wednesday. An official approval or rejection will be announced on April 17.

Claims for jobless benefits held at 351,000 after falling for three straight weeks and the four-week moving average continued to decline. Economists expect the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates sooner if jobless claims stay near 350,000 per week or fall substantially.

CBS News reported that the Afghan National Army soldier turned his gun on American troops in eastern Afghanistan during Thursday's demonstrations against the burning of the Quran and other Islamic objects at Bagram air base, north of Kabul, earlier this week.

The European Commission wants euro zone leaders to agree to a bigger rescue fund to nudge the IMF into backing debt-stricken European economies, despite German resistance to boosting it, the EU's top economic official said on Thursday.

Stock index futures were little changed on Thursday ahead of a report on the U.S. labor market as initial enthusiasm over solid German data waned.

Since the departure of U.S. troops in December after almost nine years of war, such attacks have escalated.

Coeur d'Alene Mines Corp. swung to a profit in the fourth quarter on increased silver production, higher selling prices and higher selling prices, the Idaho-based miner said Thursday.

Sears Holdings Corp. (SHLD) posted a fourth-quarter loss Thursday and said it will spin off its Hometown, outlet and hardware-store businesses as part of an effort to increase liquidity.

Stock index futures were little changed on Thursday ahead of a report on the U.S. labor market as initial enthusiasm over solid German data waned.

A Shanghai court has rejected a request by a Chinese technology firm that the sale of Apple Inc's iPads be halted across the affluent Chinese city, a source with direct knowledge of the ruling said on Thursday.

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street on Thursday, with futures for the S&P 500 up 0.24 percent, Dow Jones futures up 0.34 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.52 percent at 1000 GMT.

Rick Santorum and Mitt Romney duked it out at CNN's Republican debate Wednesday night in Arizona, but Romney came out on top at what will likely be the final debate of the primary season.

A commenter on the Gothamist was arrested for making online death threats targeting Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, according to the New York Post. 49-year-old Richard Strauss posted a series of comments allegedly encouraging New Yorkers to aim their sights at Kelly with a well-placed [bullet] to his thick skull.

Greece's parliament was expected to endorse a debt swap with private bondholders on Thursday that forms the core of its 130-billion-euro bailout, despite new protests against tough budget cuts demanded in return for the rescue deal.