AP - Office supply retailers felt no relief from the pinch of weaker spending by consumers and small businesses, with both Office Depot and OfficeMax citing the struggling economy as they reported losses for the second quarter.

Reuters - Chrysler is in talks to lease U.S. production capacity and share retail distribution with Fiat SpA , allowing the Italian automaker to return the U.S. market for the first time in 25 years, people briefed on the talks said on Wednesday.

Reuters - A former Credit Suisse broker charged with fraud in an auction rate securities scam may have fled to his native Bulgaria, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the case.

Reuters - Most Asian stock markets rose on Thursday after a move by central banks to boost liquidity in financial markets offset a $4 rebound in oil prices, while a surprisingly strong U.S. jobs indicator kept the dollar well bid.

Reuters - Starbucks Corp posted its first quarterly loss as a public company on Wednesday and said its U.S. coffee chain would shrink in the year ahead, but investors stunned by months of uncertainty sent shares up 4 percent as it stuck by its profit target for 2009.

AP - Federal regulators on Tuesday extended through mid-August a temporary order banning a certain kind of short-selling of the stocks of mortgage finance companies Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and 17 large investment banks.

Reuters - Private employers added 9,000 jobs in July, according to a private report by ADP Employer Services released on Wednesday.

Reuters - Americans in all age and income groups have reduced credit card use and cut spending on non-essential items as oil and food prices soar, home prices sink and lenders tighten credit, a new study shows.

Reuters - Fannie Mae, the largest provider of funding for U.S. residential mortgages, on Wednesday said it grew its investment portfolio in June at the fastest annualized rate in nearly five years.

Reuters - The Nasdaq turned negative on Wednesday, while the Dow and the S&P 500 pared gains, as a rebound in oil prices and a drop in financial shares punctured Wall Street's earlier rally.

Reuters - Merrill Lynch's agreement to sell $30.6 billion of toxic securities gives away the bank's potential profits on the securities and leaves it on the hook for most of the risk, strategists at Bank of America wrote on Wednesday.