PENNSYLVANIA

Amid an uproar over the huge demand for seats to pop idol Hannah Montana's tour, a U.S. federal judge on Monday barred the use of automated software to make mass ticket purchases from the leading box-office service Ticketmaster.

Two aircraft were involved in a minor collision on the ground at London's Heathrow airport on Monday. No one was injured.

Citigroup Inc, which last week forecast 60 percent declines in third-quarter earnings amid bad debt losses, said it was promoting Vikram Pandit to head banking, markets, and alternative investments, and that trading head Thomas Maheras was leaving.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc must pay an additional $62.3 million in damages to Pennsylvania workers who were forced to work "off the clock" or during rest breaks, a judge ruled on Wednesday.

President George W. Bush on Wednesday held up North Korea as a possible model for resolving the Iranian nuclear standoff and reaffirmed a U.S. offer of talks if Tehran suspends uranium enrichment.

President George W. Bush on Wednesday vetoed a measure to expand a popular children's health care program, launching the first in a series of major battles with Democrats over domestic spending. An extra $35 billion over five years would have been added to a health program for low-income children.

Middle-aged workers counting the days until they can retire may not be eager to pursue a hobby, spend time with family or even take a long holiday -- they could be depressed.

Americans stood in silence to remember the nearly 3,000 people killed in the September 11 attacks on Tuesday as Osama bin Laden resurfaced to praise the suicide hijackers who carried them out six years ago to the day.

Under a gray and drizzly sky, thousands gathered around the sprawling, reconstruction site of the World Trade Center in New York City to take part in ceremonies, view memorials and commemorate the deaths of those killed in terrorist attacks six years ago on September 11.

New Yorkers are doing all they can to preserve the way September 11 is commemorated, and with it falling on a Tuesday for the first time since 2001, the day is another trigger of tragic memories. And across the United States, September 11 will have much of the same emotional impact that has gripped the American psyche and dominated U.S. political discourse for six years, an impact that will not soon ease, analysts say.

H&R Block Inc, the largest U.S. tax preparer, said it was trying to renegotiate the sale of its Option One Mortgage Corp unit and would get out subprime lending after its quarterly loss more than doubled.

Prospects that U.S. equity markets would bounce back on Wednesday after two days of falls lifted European markets, suppressing fears about weakness in the U.S. economy and global financial system.

EarthLink Inc said on Tuesday it will cut about 900 jobs, or nearly half its staff, as part of a restructuring to reduce costs at the Internet service provider.

The pace of sales of pre-owned homes fell slightly in July but the inventory of unsold properties soared to the highest level in over 15 years as troubles in the subprime mortgage market continued to wreak havoc on the housing sector. Home sales slid 0.2 percent in July to a seasonally adjusted 5.75 million unit annual rate, according to the National Association of Realtors.

U.S. casino operator Trump Entertainment Resorts Inc. has made diversifying beyond Atlantic City, New Jersey, a priority and is closing in on its first deal, its chief executive said on Monday.

The economy has added non-farm jobs at a steady pace so far this year, but with businesses cutting back on hiring temporary workers, economists say the labor market may be on course to weaken.

A lower percentage of Latin American workers living in the United States is sending money to family members back home, a report showed on Wednesday.

Luxury home builder Toll Brothers Inc said on Wednesday that it expected to report a decline in quarterly home-building revenue as the U.S. housing crisis deepened.

Texas has the most entries on a list of the dirtiest U.S. power plants, while New England and the Pacific Coast make less carbon dioxide because they have fewer coal-burning plants, an environmental group said on Thursday.

A U.S. judge on Thursday struck down as unconstitutional a local law designed to crack down on illegal immigration, dealing a blow to similar laws passed by dozens of towns and cities across the country.

A number of U.S. states are setting up funds to help homeowners with risky subprime mortgages refinance to more affordable loans in a bid to slow the rate of home foreclosures, The Wall Street Journal reported on its Web site.