MARKETS / FINANCE

U.S. stocks dipped more than 1 percent on Thursday after the latest jobs and manufacturing data sparked worries about the pace of economic recovery, with technology shares leading losses.

The head of the Federal Reserve and a key U.S. lawmaker on Thursday backed away from a controversial provision of the Obama administration's financial regulation reform plan, saying new oversight by the Fed on systemic risk should be shared with other regulators.

Virtual economies set up in videogames as players trade items are being used as case studies to track and model real-world economies.

U.S. stocks fell further on Thursday, with major indexes down more than 1 percent, after data showed the manufacturing sector grew in September, but at a slower pace than anticipated.

Oil pared losses to trade above $70 a barrel after the biggest daily jump since April on the back of a hike in U.S. consumer spending and as tensions between Iran and the West lent support.

The head of the Federal Reserve adopted a new tone on Thursday over a key plank of the Obama administration's proposed plan for financial regulation reform, saying new oversight powers proposed for the U.S. central bank should be shared with other regulators.

Wall Street was set to open lower on Thursday as weaker-than-expected jobs data prompted more investors to consolidate gains after a strong third quarter.

U.S. consumer spending rose at its fastest pace in nearly 8 years in August, but the number of workers filing new claims for jobless benefits rose last week, indicating a weak labor market would weigh on recovery.

U.S. employee confidence edged up in the third quarter, with many workers saying the worst of the recession is over, but that optimism came with hopes for raises and advancement when the dust clears, a survey released on Thursday showed.

U.S. consumer spending rose at its fastest pace in nearly 8 years in August, advancing for a fourth straight month, according to a government report on Thursday that pointed to a rebound in spending in the third quarter.

Unemployment in the 16-country euro zone rose to a more than 10-year high of 9.6 percent in August and economists warned it will likely worsen further, hurting the prospects for a strong economic recovery.

A monthly gauge of online labor demand in the United States dipped slightly in September, as employers remained wary despite signs of economic recovery, a private research group said on Thursday.

Unemployment rates rose in all cities across the United States in August from a year earlier, with 16 recording jobless rates of 15 percent or higher, according to the Labor Department.

Private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co closed a long-awaited deal on Thursday to buy its Amsterdam-quoted fund, becoming a Euronext- listed company and completing the first step toward an expected move to the New York Stock Exchange.

U.S. stock index futures fell on Thursday, with investors consolidating gains after a strong quarter, and as a raft of economic data was due that could offer clues about the tone of economic recovery.

Unemployment in the 16-country euro zone rose to a more than 10-year high of 9.6 percent in August and economists warned it will likely worsen further, hurting the prospects for a strong economic recovery.

Planned layoffs at U.S. firms fell in September, showing further signs that the labor market is improving. Planned job cuts announced by U.S. employers fell to 66,404 last month, down 13 percent from 76,456 in August, according to a report released on Thursday by global outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.

U.S. stock index futures fell on Thursday as investors awaited a raft of data, including manufacturing and jobless, that could provide clues on the strength of an economic recovery. The data due out will also include pending home sales, personal income and consumption, and may offer fresh evidence on the strength of the U.S. recovery, ahead of Friday's non-farm payrolls.

Planned layoffs at U.S. firms fell in September, showing further signs that the labor market is improving. Planned job cuts announced by U.S. employers fell to 66,404 last month, down 13 percent from 76,456 in August, according to a report released on Wednesday by global outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.

U.S. stock index futures fell on Thursday as investors awaited a raft of data, including manufacturing and jobless, that could provide clues on the strength of an economic recovery.

Weakness from commodity stocks and banks outweighed gains in insurers by midsession Thursday, leaving European shares 0.3 percent weaker as nervousness about the global economy resurfaced.

Britain's top shares fell 0.7 percent by mid-session on Thursday, as weak banks, miners and energy stocks dragged the index lower, outweighing strength in life insurers.

* U.S. stock index futures point to a flat to weaker start for Wall Street on Thursday, with the Nasdaq Composite futures NDc1 down 0.3 percent after Cisco System (CSCO.O) offered to buy Norwegian Tandberg for $3 billion in cash.

Oil fell below $70 on Thursday, pulling back after the biggest daily jump since April as ballooning distillate stocks doused positive sentiment and revived the view that oil prices may have run ahead of demand.

If struggling U.S. commercial lender CIT Group Inc were to collapse it would be a drastic mistake as the small businesses that rely on it would have few alternate sources of funding, turnaround experts said at the Reuters Restructuring Summit this week.

Manufacturing activity surged across Asia in September as demand picked up, although plans by Japanese manufacturers for record cuts in capital spending cast doubts on the strength of a recovery in the industrialized world.

Oil eased toward $70 on Thursday, pulling back after the sharpest daily jump since April as ballooning distillate stocks doused positive sentiment and revived the view that oil prices may have run ahead of demand.

Stock futures pointed to a flat to weaker start for Wall Street on Thursday, with the Nasdaq Composite futures down 0.3 percent after Cisco System offered to buy Norwegian Tandberg for $3 billion in cash.

Japan's Toshiba Corp said on Thursday it has taken over Fujitsu Ltd's loss-making hard drive business as it seeks to eke out growth in notebook PC hard drives in a market dominated by bigger rivals.