UNITED STATES

The U.S. dollar rose to a six-month high against the euro on Thursday, on signs the Federal Reserve is more confident about a recovery, while Asian equities were on track to snap a nine-day losing streak. U.S. stock futures rose during Asian session after U.S. President Barack Obama in an address to Congress had a more moderate tone on restrictions toward U.S. banks.

Stocks rose on Wednesday after the U.S. Federal Reserve pledged to keep interest rates near zero and stock futures signaled more gains ahead after President Barack Obama struck a conciliatory tone on banks in his State of the Union speech.

President Barack Obama vowed on Wednesday to boost jobs growth and impose tough new regulations on Wall Street as he recast his agenda after suffering a devastating political setback.

Stock index futures added gains in late after-hours trading on Wednesday as investors took President Barack Obama's State of the Union speech as toning down some of the rhetoric that unnerved investors last week when he unveiled new restrictions on U.S. banks.

Zimbabwe's diamond sector is facing trouble again in the New Year with a coalition of industry-based associations and representatives in the US met the state department and demanded tough action by the Kimberley Process against the erring miners. They urged strict steps in implementing the joint work plan (JWP) designed to bring Zimbabwe into full KP compliance.

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) is seeking comments and recommendations on information needed to support analysis and increased understanding of energy markets, in support of the Energy and Financial Markets Initiative announced on September 9, 2009. A notice appeared today in the Federal Register describing topics of particular interest, as well as procedures for public comment over the next 60 days. The notice does not itself propose new EIA information collection. Comments receive...

President Barack Obama is set to deliver his first State of the Union speech at 9 p.m. EST, focusing on rekindling the U.S. economy , emphasizing his plans to restore job growth and taming budget deficits.

AT&T Inc appears to have fended off Verizon Wireless for now and retained its status as the preferred U.S. carrier for Apple Inc with a deal to support the new iPad tablet computer.

U.S. carriers United Airlines and AirTran posted better-than-expected quarterly results on Wednesday, citing improving revenue trends aided in part by returning business travelers.

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday offered a guardedly upbeat view of the U.S. economy and renewed its pledge to keep interest rates near zero despite the objection of one policy maker.

The Australian Dollar opens near a three-and-a-half week low today at 0.8925.

U.S. lawmakers on Wednesday challenged Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner's credibility after he said he was not involved with AIG's decision to withhold details on $62 billion the bailed-out insurer paid to banks.

Sales of newly built U.S. single-family homes fell unexpectedly in December as the bounce from an initial tax credit fizzled, the latest sign that the government-led housing recovery might be losing some steam.

Time Warner Cable Inc and Scripps Networks Interactive said on Wednesday they had reached multiyear deals for the second-largest U.S. cable operator to carry the Scripps-produced Food Network and Great American Country.

The S&P 500 recovered from a low of 1,083.11, downward spike that occurred minutes after the Federal Open Market Committee statement, to trade at 1,093.54, up 0.12 percent at 3:27 p.m. in New York.

Toyota Motor Corp shares dropped more than 8 percent on Wednesday in U.S. trading as concern deepened about the automaker's suspension of sales and production of some of its best-selling vehicles due to problems with faulty accelerators.

College senior Alyssa Ravasio gave up MySpace on the day she got a Facebook account and never looked back. She has already lost interest in Twitter. But how does Facebook know it can keep her loyalty?

The Federal Reserve voiced a cautious note of optimism on the U.S. economy on Wednesday as it stuck to its pledge to keep interest rates near zero for a while to ensure a sustainable recovery.

The Swiss government said it was sure it could resolve a legal impasse threatening a deal struck by the U.S. and bank UBS to hand over data on clients the U.S. suspects of dodging taxes.

Caterpillar Inc , the world's largest maker of construction and mining equipment, offered an unexpectedly guarded view of the coming year on Wednesday, sending its stock down more than 8 percent and pulling the broad market down along with it.

Toyota Motor Corp will suspend U.S. sales of eight models subject to a massive safety recall, an unprecedented move that sent its shares tumbling and raised questions about the timing of its earnings recovery.