IBT Staff Reporter

Stock index futures fell on Thursday as renewed concerns about the euro zone's financial health pushed down the euro and European shares.

The surprise departure of PayPal President Scott Thompson from eBay Inc could seriously set back any moves to spin-off the payments business as a separate company, investors and analysts said on Wednesday.

Japan Airlines plans to raise more than 500 billion yen ($6.5 billion) ahead of re-listing its shares as early as September, a source with knowledge of the matter said, marking a sharp turnaround for the carrier following its bankruptcy in 2010.

Children's Place Retail Stores Inc lowered its fourth-quarter earnings outlook, hurt by increased discounts to clear inventory, and the kids' clothes retailer said its comparable sales would remain flat.

French borrowing costs rose slightly when the euro zone's second-largest economy sold debt for the first time this year on Thursday but demand was solid despite concerns the country could lose its AAA credit rating.

Yields on French long-term OAT bonds rose on Thursday at its first auction of the year as the threat of a cut to the country's AAA credit rating prompted investors to demand higher returns for buying the bonds.

PepsiCo Inc is considering cutting about 4,000 jobs and reducing pension contributions in order to boost its earnings, the New York Post said, citing sources close to the situation.

Elan Microelectronics Corp, a Taiwanese touch design company, said on Thursday that Apple Inc will pay $5 million as part of a settlement in a patent infringement case.

Elan Microelectronics Corp, a Taiwanese touch design company, said on Thursday that Apple Inc will pay $5 million as part of a settlement in a patent infringement case.

A March summit of European Union leaders will discuss increasing the firepower of the bloc's permanent rescue fund, the European Stability Mechanism, to cope with an upcoming glut of sovereign debt maturities, French Prime Minister Francois Fillon said on Thursday.

France was expected to draw solid demand for its 10-year bonds at an auction on Thursday, despite the lingering threat of a downgrade to its AAA credit rating, as yields offer an attractive premium to benchmark German bunds.

Concern about the appetite for Eurozone sovereign debt pushed European stocks lower and hit the single currency on Thursday, with the first French bond auction of 2012 set to test how much progress policymakers have made in easing tensions.

Concern about the appetite for euro zone sovereign debt pushed European stocks lower and hit the single currency on Thursday, with the first French bond auction of 2012 set to test how much progress policymakers have made in easing tensions.

Japan Airlines Co plans to relist its shares as early as September in a public offering that could raise up to 1 trillion yen ($13 billion), Bloomberg news reported on Thursday, marking the carrier's recovery from bankruptcy and restructuring.

Congressional investigators have stepped up their inquiry into the work of credit rating firms that examined MF Global's overly risky bets on European government bonds and whether they overlooked crucial information in their evaluations, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

The board of directors of the Finnish-based phone maker Nokia will propose Risto Siilasmaa as its next chairman after its long-time leader, Jorma Ollila, steps down in May, the Helsingin Sanomat newspaper said, citing unnamed sources.

Asian shares and the euro eased on Thursday as concerns about the ability of euro zone countries to refinance their huge public debt dampened investors' appetite for risk ahead of a French bond auction later in the day.

BP's $20 billion oil spill fund said it had resumed payments to eligible victims on Wednesday after receiving clarification from a U.S. district court regarding an escrow account set up to cover certain legal expenses incurred by the plaintiffs' lawyers.

Apple Inc has appointed Adobe Systems Inc's Todd Teresi to head its iAd mobile-advertising business, Bloomberg said, citing three people with knowledge of the matter.

Connecticut's attorney general is investigating a possible data breach in which Wells Fargo & Co may have disclosed customer Social Security numbers as part of a fraud investigation.

Boeing Co said it would close a plant in Wichita by the end of 2013 that employs more than 2,160 workers maintaining and converting planes for the military, part of a move to cut costs as the U. S. defense budget tightens.

New Jersey's Legislature has briefly delayed a vote on a bill that would legalize online gambling but Gov. Chris Christie said the state should become an epicenter for the business.

New Jersey's legislature has briefly delayed a vote on a bill that would legalize online gambling but Governor Chris Christie said the state should become an epicenter for the business.

Eastman Kodak is preparing a Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection filing in case it is unable to sell its digital patents to raise capital, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

Verizon Wireless expects to report a decline of up to 6 percentage points in its fourth quarter gross profit margins on strong sales of the Apple Inc iPhone and other devices, according to a top executive for its parent company.

Text-messaging has long been a big-time profit generator for U.S. mobile operators, but they now risk losing these profits as consumers find cheaper ways to communicate.

Blackstone Group LP will conclude fundraising for its latest buyout fund in January, raising just over $16 billion, three people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday, in a 4-year process challenged by the global financial crisis.

Blackstone Group LP will conclude fundraising for its latest buyout fund in January, raising just over $16 billion, three people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday, in a 4-year process challenged by the global financial crisis.

Yahoo Inc named PayPal President Scott Thompson as its chief executive on Wednesday, hoping the well-regarded Internet technology and e-commerce expert will replicate his success at eBay Inc and turn around the struggling company.