Reuters - Shares in Esprit Holdings, the world's No. 5 fashion retailer, plunged nearly a fifth on Thursday to their lowest in two years after the firm missed earnings forecasts and warned investors of tougher times ahead.

Reuters - Caterpillar Inc expects weakness in rich-country economies to persist into 2009 but its sales in China will remain strong, Jim Owens, chairman and chief executive of the U.S. construction and mining equipment firm, said on Thursday.

Reuters - Oil rose for a fourth straight day to above $119 a barrel on Thursday, on fears Tropical Storm Gustav may hit the Gulf of Mexico after it morphs into a major hurricane, crippling the heart of U.S. offshore production.

Reuters - General Motors Corp said on Thursday it would invest more than $200 million in a powertrain plant in India, as the troubled U.S. carmaker aims to double its share of a fast-growing but increasingly competitive market.

Reuters - Top executives at Starbucks Corp including Chairman and Chief Executive Howard Schultz will not be getting raises anytime soon, after the coffee chain's first-ever quarterly loss as a public company.

Reuters - Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T), the world's most profitable carmaker, cut its 2009 vehicle sales forecast by nearly 7 percent due to a severe downturn in Western markets driven by high fuel prices and a credit crunch.

Reuters - Stocks of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the largest U.S. housing finance companies, rallied for a third straight day on Wednesday as investors grew more confident their shareholdings would not be wiped out by any government intervention.

Reuters - A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit accusing the now-bankrupt mortgage lender IndyMac Bancorp Inc of inflating the appraised values of homes and misleading borrowers into paying higher closing and financing costs.

Reuters - Stocks rose on Wednesday, led by a rally in financial shares, after surprisingly strong data on durable goods orders soothed some concern about the economy.

Reuters - The Federal Reserve must be "very vigilant" amid strained financial markets while exercising patience over interest rates as it waits for inflation to ease, a top Fed policy-maker said on Wednesday.

Reuters - Apparel retailers Chico's FAS Inc and American Eagle Outfitters Inc posted better-than-expected profits on Tuesday despite taking deep markdowns to lure shoppers of all ages, sending their shares higher.

Reuters - Dutch brewer Heineken NV first-half operating profit rose 7.4 percent, and it said on Wednesday it had managed to pass on higher costs to most markets apart from the United States, despite weaker economies.

Reuters - A weakening global economy will blunt cellphone market sales growth this year, research firm Gartner said on Wednesday.

Reuters - The New York attorney general's office is probing the relationship between Fidelity Investments and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. in connection with the sale of auction-rate securities, the Wall Street Journal said, citing a person familiar with the investigation.

Reuters - Lehman Brothers has asked three private equity firms to remain in bidding for its asset management arm even though the investment bank has yet decide on whether to sell the unit, the Financial Times reported.