MARKETS / FINANCE

Google Inc could win a widely expected victory next week in Europe's top court and still face many more battles over keyword advertising, the backbone of its Internet business model.

Viacom Inc accused Google Inc of turning a blind eye to illegal video clips on its YouTube site in a bid to attract viewers, according to court documents released on Thursday.

The Australian Dollar opens marginally lower today at 0.9204 and spent most of yesterday's local session consolidating around the US92 cent mark.

Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc fired new allegations at Barclays Capital Inc on Thursday, saying the British investment bank got a $13 billion windfall profit from its deal to buy Lehman's U.S. brokerage in September 2008.

The momentum of the rally pushed the stock market to close up slightly as Thursday's data indicated that the job market is stabilizing, inflation is subdued, and the manufacturing sector is expanding.

The Dow industrials rose for an eighth consecutive session on Thursday, lifted by a rise in Boeing's stock, while a mixed group of economic figures kept the broader S&P 500 in check.

The Dow industrials advanced for an eighth consecutive session on Thursday, lifted by a rise in Boeing's stock, while a mixed group of economic figures kept the broader S&P 500 in check.

Sony is teaming up with European movie-rental firm Lovefilm to offer TV viewers in Britain instant access to films from the Web, as a land grab for space on Internet-connected televisions gets under way.

Four top Federal Reserve officials urged Congress on Thursday not to strip the U.S. central bank of the authority to supervise small banks, saying they would lose an important finger on the pulse of the economy that helps them guide monetary policy.

Labor market and consumer prices data on Thursday showed the U.S. economy is on a moderate growth path and inflation pressures are contained, backing up the Federal Reserve's vow to keep benchmark interest rates ultra-low for some time.

Google Inc accused Viacom Inc of secretly uploading its videos to YouTube even as the media conglomerate publicly denounced the online video site for copyright infringement, according to court documents made public on Thursday.

The tension level in the debate on U.S. financial reform rose on Thursday as Democrats slapped back at a Republican leader's comment about punk staffers and a pivotal vote neared in the Senate.

The stock market is nearly flat in afternoon trading despite several solid economic reports from the morning session as the financial and energy sector drag down the market.

Fresh off repaying U.S. taxpayers, PNC Financial Services Group said on Thursday it gave Chief Executive James Rohr an $18 million pay package for 2009, according to a regulatory filing.

Creditors of the owner of the Sex.com website have filed an involuntary bankruptcy petition against the company, stalling a lender foreclosure auction for the valuable website that was scheduled to begin on Thursday.

Greece raised the stakes on Thursday in its quest for EU help to tackle its debt crisis, saying it cannot achieve promised deficit cuts if its borrowing costs remain so high and may have to call in the IMF.

FedEx Corp raised its fiscal-year outlook on Thursday after quarterly profit more than doubled, with strong Asian export volumes more than compensating for flat U.S. demand.

The Dow industrials rose on Thursday on Boeing's strength, while the S&P 500 slipped after a round of economic data and corporate results.

The Federal Communications Commission plans to announce in coming weeks an agenda of proceedings stemming from the recommendations in the national broadband plan, an agency official said.

U.S. bank regulators may extend a guarantee program set up at the peak of the financial crisis, fearing that ending the program could spark liquidity failures at small banks.

Winnebago Industries posted its first quarterly profit in nearly two years as sales of its largest and most expensive motorhomes rebounded modestly.

U.S. stocks barely moved on Thursday after a report showed improvement in U.S. Mid-Atlantic business activity and companies posted some strong results.

The Philly Fed manufacturing report confirms that the labor market is stabilizing, although it also reports nascent inflationary pressures for manufacturers.

A gauge of the U.S. economy's prospects rose marginally as expected in February, pointing to a moderate improvement in economic conditions, a private research group said on Thursday.

Presidents of regional Federal Reserve banks on Thursday defended their role in supervising small banks, and said ending it would cut a link between the central bank and the national heartland.

New applications for U.S. jobless benefits fell last week and factory activity in the Mid-Atlantic region accelerated in March, suggesting the economy remained on a modest recovery path.

India-based spinners are all set to witness happy days ahead as the country's biggest competitor in yarn exports, Pakistan is said to have put a cap on the yarn exports to a maximum of 35,000 tonnes per month. According to Cotton Association of India expects spinners to realise higher prices for cotton yarn this year because of the recent decision by Pakistan.

Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank President Thomas Hoenig said on Thursday that stripping the central bank of its oversight of smaller banks was inconceivable and would hurt monetary policy.

Royal Dutch Shell PLC has estimated that its production would move up by 11% to 3.5 million barrels per day 2012 as compared to 3.15 million barrels of oil per day in 2009. Outlining the company's strategy from London, Shell Chief Executive Officer, Peter Voser, said that the company is planning to cut cost by divesting 15% of its refining capacity and 35% of its retail markets. However, he did not specify which downstream assets might be sold or when.