IBT Staff Reporter

Continental Airlines and Southwest Airlines results topped Wall Street estimates as more people booked flights and ticket prices rose, but the airlines said the path to recovery would be rough.

China sought to contain tension with the United States over online censorship and hacking, saying Google's dispute with Beijing should not be over-stated, ahead of a possible challenge from Washington on Internet freedom.

As lenders continue to curtail access to mortgages, credit cards and other types of loans, one area of the credit market is rapidly expanding: student loans.

The end of the Federal Reserve's program to buy mortgages backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could have a ripple effect on the market for U.S. government bonds.

President Barack Obama will propose stricter limits on financial risk-taking on Thursday in his latest populist-tinged move to crack down on banks and address the roots of the financial crisis.

Cadbury's big UK investors expect Kraft's $19.3 billion acquisition of the British confectioner will go ahead despite Kraft's top shareholder Warren Buffett saying the takeover is a bad deal.

The city of Baghdad asked foreign companies on Thursday to sign up for a project to design and build 75,000 apartments, the first phase of a $10 billion plan to rebuild the Iraqi capital's sprawling Sadr City slum.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc , which had been on track to pay employees a near-record amount, instead set aside nothing for compensation in the fourth quarter and gave $500 million to charity.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday called for global condemnation for those who carry out cyber attacks as China sought to contain tension with the United States over online censorship and hacking.

Health insurer UnitedHealth Group Inc posted better-than-expected quarterly profit on Thursday, helped by moderating flu costs and growth in its businesses serving the elderly and low-income Americans, and its shares rose 3.6 percent.

The S&P 500 turned positive and the Dow pared losses on Thursday following a rise in a gauge of the U.S. economy's prospects and a snapshot of factory activity in the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region.

Huge trading profits offset declines in banking at Goldman Sachs Group Inc in 2009 as the broader economy struggled.

The number of U.S. workers filing new applications for unemployment insurance unexpectedly rose last week as claims delayed from the year-end holidays were pushed through, government data showed on Thursday.

Former senator John Edwards admitted Thursday to fathering a child with mistress Rielle Hunter after initially denying paternity.

Xerox Corp posted quarterly results that beat expectations, as cost cutting helped to improve margins, and the provider of office document management services delivered an optimistic outlook, sending its shares up 3 percent.

Former Democratic Senator John Edwards admitted today that he fathers a girl with Rielle Hunter, a videographer that was hired during his presidential campaign.

U.S. stocks were set for a flat open on Thursday as a rise in initial weekly jobless claims offset better-than-expected earnings from several banks, including Goldman Sachs Group .

After regulators approved Oracle's proposed acquisition of Sun Microsystems this morning, the company is planning to unveil its long-term strategy at an event next week.

Google Inc is expected to deliver stellar fourth-quarter results on Thursday, but investors will be seeking insight into a disagreement with China that has cast doubt on its future in the world's largest Internet market.

Nokia is to offer free navigation on its cellphones to boost handset sales and prices, putting more pressure on satnav makers already hit by Google's assault on the market.

Fifth Third Bancorp reported a much smaller fourth-quarter loss on Thursday after it recorded fewer writedowns on mortgages and other loans.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is scheduled to deliver early Thursday a speech on internet freedom following the cyber attacks on Google in China.

China easily beat its 2009 growth target after a blistering fourth quarter performance that set the stage for further monetary tightening and put it on course to overtake Japan to become the world's second-largest economy.

Oracle Corp won unconditional European Union approval on Thursday for its $7 billion takeover of Sun Microsystems, a month after offering public pledges to sooth regulatory concerns.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc on Thursday reduced its 2009 bonus pool as it posted a better-than-expected fourth-quarter profit.

Continental Airlines posted a fourth-quarter profit on Thursday amid signs that demand for travel, especially among business travelers, was finally improving after a sluggish year.

U.S. stock index futures rose on Thursday ahead of quarterly results from Goldman Sachs Group

Starbucks Corp said it struck a deal with Swedish-Danish dairy products cooperative Arla Foods to foray into the European ready-to-drink coffee market.

Stock index futures rose on Thursday ahead of quarterly results from Goldman Sachs Group , which leads another round of earnings reports, and data on the labor market and a leading economic index.