CALIFORNIA

Militants and hate groups increasingly use social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace and YouTube as propaganda tools to recruit new members, according to a report by the Simon Wiesenthal Center.

Stocks slumped on Wednesday after retail sales data came in worse than expected, hurting shares in the sector including Wal-Mart Stores Inc and blurring the economic outlook.

Apple Inc investors may want to circle June 8 on their calendars.

A former student leader of China's 1989 pro-democracy movement has been arrested on fraud charges, his family said on Wednesday, weeks before the 20th anniversary of the June 4 crackdown on Tiananmen Square protests.

Pollution-free electric scooters and bicycles have been available for a while but nothing on the market so far has come close to providing what bikers would regard as a ride with the style and performance they crave.

U.S. foreclosure activity in April jumped 32 percent from a year ago to a record high, and should mount because temporary freezes on foreclosures ended in March, RealtyTrac said on Wednesday.

A second person pleaded guilty in a kickback scandal involving New York state's $122 billion pension fund, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said on Tuesday.

Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said on Tuesday that

Google Inc unveiled a slew of new and future features on Tuesday, including one that will allow people to better coordinate Internet searches on their cell phones and computers and another that will produce sophisticated automated research reports.

Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said on Tuesday that the seeds of a bottoming in plunging U.S. home markets were becoming visible.

Pageant owner, Donald Trump, announced on Tuesday that Miss California USA, Carrie Prejean, can keep her crown despite all the controversies that surround her regarding her view on gay marriage and her pics in underwear.

Over the following weeks 450 selected drivers will be driving the first highway legal Mini E car - the all electric zero emissions version of Mini Cooper - as part of a leasing program.

For the time being, Miss California, Carrie Prejean will be keeping her crown but not her duties as, according to pageant organizers, has violated her contract. Her fate is expected to be announced on Tuesday by Miss USA owner Donald Trump.

Southern California Edison, a utility of Edison International, is looking for approval to purchase 90 megawatts of power from a wind farm in Idaho assisted by Goshen, a firm owned by BP Wind Energy; and Ridgeline Energy LLC.

Oil prices fell marginally on Monday, pressured slightly by weaker equity markets and a firmer dollar.

Norway opened a 560 kilometer (350 mile) hydrogen highway on Monday with more than a dozen hydrogen-powered cars rallying along a scenic route between its capital city Oslo and North Sea oil hub Stavanger.

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc posted its first quarterly loss since 2001, hurt by losses on derivative contracts, a big investment in the oil company ConocoPhillips, and the weakening economy.

A stubborn wildfire has forced at least 30,000 people to evacuate their homes and destroying 75 homes in the California coastal town of Santa Barbara as the flames continued for the fourth consecutive day.

Oil rose more than 3 percent on Friday to touch a near six-month high as the results of the U.S. governments stress test for big banks and U.S. jobs data added to optimism about the economy.

A stubborn brush fire that consumed 75 foothill homes above the coastal town of Santa Barbara raged with renewed ferocity for a fourth day on Friday, forcing at least 20,000 people to flee as it advanced on the city and two nearby communities.

Natural gas provider Clean Energy Fuels Corp (CLNE.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) said it will acquire oilfield services company Exterran Holdings Inc's (EXH.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) natural gas fueling station business for $5.9 million.