MARKETS / FINANCE

The number of U.S. workers filing new jobless claims edged up by a slim 1,000 last week and a gauge of underlying labor market trends hit a nearly 16-month low, evidence the job market continues to heal.

Motorola Inc said it will sell a new inside-out Android flip-phone with a keyboard and display on the outside, and is considering joining the latest craze for tablet computing devices.

Charles Schwab Corp , the largest U.S. online brokerage, is cutting its fees by about $4 per trade, a rare pricing change that could pressure rivals to follow suit.

Charles Schwab Corp , the largest U.S. online brokerage, said on Thursday most clients will soon pay about $4 less per equity trade, a rare pricing change it said was meant to make trading more affordable.

The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless aid edged up by a slim 1,000 last week and a gauge of underlying labor market trends hit a nearly 16-month low, evidence the job market continues to heal.

The number of U.S. workers filing new applications for unemployment insurance rose less than expected last week and a measure of underlying trends hit a nearly 16-month low, government data showed on Thursday, underscoring the improving labor market tone.

The Bank of England kept the scale of its asset purchase programme unchanged at 200 billion pounds ($319 billion) on Thursday and said it would decide whether or not to extend it next month.

Bidders in Sweden, Luxembourg and the Netherlands are making last-ditch efforts on Thursday to buy General Motors -owned Saab, as the deadline for its sale loomed, threatening the Swedish car brand with closure.

The number of U.S. workers filing new applications for unemployment insurance rose less than expected last week and a measure of underlying trends hit a nearly 16-month low, government data showed on Thursday, underscoring the improving labor market tone.

The Bank of England committed to one more month of asset purchases under its 200 billion pound ($318 billion) quantitative easing policy on Thursday, as widely expected, and kept interest rates at a record-low 0.5 percent.

China's central bank surprised markets on Thursday by raising the interest rate on its three-month bills for the first time since August, intensifying its grip on liquidity a day after it promised to keep credit growth in check.

Japan's new finance minister called for a weaker yen on Thursday and said he would work with the Bank of Japan to achieve an appropriate level, prompting a sharp slide in the currency against the dollar.

Equities came off the boil globally on Thursday, after rising every day so far this year, as investors stepped back to await key U.S. economic data at the end of the week.

The labor market in the United States is improving and the economy is close to the point when the unemployment rate will start to fall, a top U.S. Federal Reserve official said on Thursday.

Japan's newly appointed Finance Minister, Naoto Kan, said he wanted the yen to weaken more and would work with the Bank of Japan to bring the currency to an appropriate level given its impact on the economy.

General Motors Co Chief Executive Ed Whitacre said on Wednesday he is not hopeful a breakthrough deal can be reached to save Saab and said GM is proceeding with the wind-down of the Swedish brand.

A former senior executive at Citigroup Inc has decided to take legal action against the company to force it to resume paying his multi-million dollar severance package that has been frozen for six months, the Financial Times said, citing people close to the situation.

AT&T Inc plans to sell seven new smartphones in the first half of this year, including two from Palm Inc and five Android handsets from vendors such as Dell Inc.

Online DVD renter Netflix Inc agreed to wait 28 days before offering new Warner Bros titles in exchange for more content that can be sent directly to customers' televisions and computers.

The rate of job losses at U.S. private employers slowed in December and the services sector showed marginal growth, according to reports on Wednesday that pointed to a steady if unspectacular recovery.

Members of the Federal Reserve worried that the winding down of the central bank's massive purchases of mortgage securities, among other factors, could snuff a fragile housing market recovery, minutes of their December meeting showed on Wednesday.

Members of the Federal Reserve worried that the winding down of the central bank's massive purchases of mortgage securities, among other factors, could snuff a fragile housing market recovery, minutes of their December meeting showed on Wednesday.

AT&T Inc said on Wednesday that it would sell five Android phones in the first half of this year, including from Motorola Inc, HTC Corp and handset newcomer Dell Inc.

Colorful dealmaker Robert Friedland, who made a fortune selling an undeveloped Canadian nickel deposit, is seeking new options for his current venture, Ivanhoe Mines , as it starts building a massive copper-gold mine near Mongolia's border with resource-hungry China.

For decades the Big Three have cast a large shadow over the Michigan economic landscape, but with the automotive industry in turmoil, a new breed of startups is emerging from the darkness.

Some Federal Reserve officials worried last month that waning government support could snuff out a fragile housing market recovery and a few believed it might be desirable to step up asset purchases.

Some Federal Reserve officials worried last month that waning government support could snuff out a fragile housing market recovery and a few believed it might be desirable to step up asset purchases.

The board of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp will meet on January 12 to consider proposing rules on compensation for bank employees, the agency said on Wednesday.

China's top search engine Baidu Inc said it plans to start a new online video channel that will provide copyrighted content to Chinese Internet users.