UNITED STATES

UK stocks closed at their highest level in nearly two weeks on Monday as numbers from Vodafone boosted investor confidence at the start of a busy earnings week and concerns over the conflict in Lebanon eased slightly.

Global trade talks have been suspended indefinitely after five and a half years of discussions failed to produce results.

American Express, the travel services and credit card company, reported second quarter earnings that surpassed Wall Street expectations citing strong credit card spending.

On Monday, the California power grid operator, Independent System Operator (ISO), declared a stage 1 emergency, urging all consumers to reduce their electricity usage voluntary, following a heatwave which has swept over the state over the past few days.

USG, a leading building products company, announced an increase in earnings for the second quarter due to record shipments of its wallboard.

Leading UK shares rose 1 percent on Monday, led by British mobile giant Vodafone Group Plc after it reported upbeat numbers one day before its annual general meeting and as PartyGaming firmed.

Global free trade talks, billed as a once in a generation chance to boost growth and ease poverty, collapsed on Monday after nearly five years of haggling and resuming them could take years.

Schering-Plough Corp. on Monday reported quarterly earnings far higher than Wall Street expected, fueled by growing demand for its drugs against cholesterol, arthritis, allergies and hepatitis C.

Dell says its in trouble and the market quickly sold off shares. What's next for one of the world's top PC Makers.

After five years and very little to show for it, global trade talks meant to reduce poverty worldwide are at a crucial point.

For a self-proclaimed advocate of inflation-targeting, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke seemed remarkably unperturbed this week by recent signs that price increases in the economy are accelerating.

PartyGaming plans to expand aggressively outside the United States, but sees no risk of being dragged into the U.S. indictment of a rival for racketeering, the world's biggest online gaming firm said.

Britain's FTSE 100 index closed easier on Thursday, giving up an early advance as buyers paused after Wednesday's steep gains on easing interest rate tensions. However, support services company Capita stood out with a 9.3 percent rise after it posted a forecast-beating 24 percent jump in interim profits.

Now might be a good time to put the Apple back into the investor's cart.

The number of people filing initial claims for U.S. employment benefits last week fell 30,000 to its lowest level in a month because of fewer claims from the automobile industry, the government said on Thursday.

Yahoo Inc., the world's largest Internet media company, and Motorola Inc., the second-biggest maker of mobile phones, said late on Wednesday that Motorola will embed Yahoo services on tens of millions of phones.

Google Inc. has begun testing a new version of its search system that makes finding information on the Web easier for the blind or visually impaired, its creator said on Wednesday.

Africa needs better infrastructure in order to maintain the continent's social and economic balance, former UN ambassador Andrew Young said in an interview with the World Bank on Tuesday.

U.S. phone company AT&T Inc. said on Wednesday it began marketing its AT&T Homezone, a long-awaited service that combines high-speed Internet and satellite television in one set-top box.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke goes before Congress on Wednesday to deliver testimony on the U.S. economy that financial markets will scour for clues on where interest rates are heading.

Profits at large U.S. banks are up, but not as much as they could be. This week and next, banks are reporting their earnings as Wall Street investors cautiously note the factors that could mean lower earnings.