IBT Staff Reporter

President Barack Obama hosts Republicans and Democrats at a high-level meeting Thursday that seeks to break an impasse over how to revamp the $2.5 trillion U.S. healthcare industry.

Moody's Investors Service said on Thursday any changes in its ratings on Greece would depend on whether Athens was smoothly enacting its fiscal reform plans as promised.

The European Union economy is recovering from the deepest and longest recession in its history, but growth is still fragile although risks in 2010 are broadly balanced, the European Commission said on Thursday.

Royal Bank of Scotland posted the largest 2009 loss of its European peers but shrank from record-breaking levels, despite a sharp jump in bad debts which it says may now have peaked.

U.S. stock index futures fell on Thursday after rating agencies said they may downgrade Greece's sovereign debt, reigniting concerns over possible defaults in the euro zone that have dogged markets recently.

Cyber attacks on Facebook pages set up to pay tribute to two murdered Australian children has prompted calls for the social networking site to be more accountable for its users.

World weather agencies have agreed to band together to improve climate data, officials said on Wednesday, as scientists work to repair recent damage done to the credibility of it's discipline.

Futures for the Dow Jones industrial average, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 fell 0.4 to 0.6 percent, pointing to a weaker start for equities on Wall Street on Thursday.

Nissan Motor Co will recall 76,415 cars across 10 models in Japan due to a possible defect that may cause engine failure, a filing with the transport ministry showed.

Lehman Brothers Holdings has agreed with JPMorgan Chase & Co to settle about $7.68 billion in collateral obligations that were pending following Lehman's bankruptcy filing in 2008, court documents showed.

Toyota Motor Corp's president apologized to U.S. lawmakers and ended the day in tears, marking a potential climax to his company's safety crisis.

Software giant Microsoft Corp has won a U.S. court approval to deactivate a global network of computers that the company accused of spreading spam and harmful computer codes, the Wall Street Journal said.

World stocks, the euro and commodities fell on Thursday on concerns over a potential downgrade of Greece's debt, while borrowing costs for peripheral euro zone countries rose.

British cable TV operator Virgin Media has chosen online video publisher Brightcove to provide and support short videos for its more than 11 million monthly website visitors.

The euro tumbled to a one-year low against the yen on Thursday and Asian stocks fell on fears that a potential downgrade of Greece's debt rating will worsen Europe's outlook and imperil the global economic recovery.

A tepid rally in Asian shares faltered early on Thursday and the dollar rose after Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's reaffirmation of an extended period of low U.S. rates boosted risk-seeking but also raised some concerns about global growth.

While the Government's 'Education Revolution' aims to drive productivity, empower individuals and overcome adversity, the latest data from the Brotherhood of St Laurence's Life Chances Study indicates that reduced family income remains a major barrier to social inclusion in education.

The Australian School of Business is leading research into why some companies outperform the rest of the pack. It's now hunting for firms to take part, and gain an insight into just why they are so good.

Toyota Motor Corp President Akio Toyoda apologized to U.S. lawmakers probing the automaker's safety record and ended the day in tears.

Morgan Stanley Chairman John Mack said on Wednesday he is disappointed that decisions coming from the Obama administration are being motivated by politics.

LOS ANGELES - If Conan O'Brien's debut on Twitter is any indication Coco fever is stronger than ever.

Coca-Cola Co is close to buying most of its largest bottler, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

President Akio Toyoda apologized to lawmakers probing the automaker's safety record but ended the day in tears, worried his message went lost in translation.

Key senators pushed for a bipartisan agreement on a package of reforms to tighten rules for financial industry behavior as President Barack Obama on Wednesday blasted critics who call his policies socialism.

Nintendo will bring its latest dual-screen handheld video game system to the United States at the end of March, the company said on Wednesday.

U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress on Wednesday a weak job market and tame inflation warrant low interest rates for an extended period, curbing speculation the central bank was moving closer to raising borrowing costs.

Toyota Motor Corp chief Akio Toyoda said he took personal responsibility for the company's safety crisis and vowed to stay on to make sure customer complaints were taken more seriously.

The top communications regulator offered to pay television broadcasters to give up their rights to airwaves worth an estimated $50 billion as it looks to overcome a looming scarcity of wireless spectrum for advanced mobile phone services.

Corrects paragraph 3 to show that National Broadband Plan will be released March 16, not March 17; changes headline for space consideration