AFP - The London stock market slipped back Thursday as data from the US showed that new jobless claims had risen more than expected, prolonging the sense of pessimism surrounding the world's biggest economy.

Reuters - U.S. stocks sank on Thursday as escalating fears of sovereign debt problems in Europe led investors to dump riskier assets.

AP - Stocks buckled Thursday under the growing belief that the global economy is weaker than many investors expected and is likely to stop the U.S. labor market from rebounding in the coming months.

Reuters - New York's attorney general charged Bank of America Corp , former Chief Executive Kenneth Lewis and former Chief Financial Officer Joe Price with fraud for allegedly misleading shareholders about the acquisition of Merrill Lynch & Co.

AP - Americans are cutting back on luxuries, but you wouldn't know it from the shares of boat retailer MarineMax. This seller of everything from tiny Boston Whalers to 100-foot Hatteras yachts hasn't made a dime in two years, and analysts don't expect it to do so for at least another.

Reuters - Stocks mostly fell on Wednesday as Pfizer's disappointing outlook weighed on the health sector, and President Obama's pledge to complete banking and healthcare reform revived fears of increased regulation.

AP - A disappointing report on services industries halted a two-day advance in the stock market.

AFP - The leading stock exchange opened higher on Thursday ahead of the release of key US jobs figures that will indicate the strength of recovery in the world's biggest economy.

AP - World stocks retreated Thursday as a slide on Wall Street dented confidence ahead of central bank decisions in Europe and a key U.S. jobs report.

Reuters - The euro hit a seven-month low against the dollar on Thursday as concerns intensified that Greece's fiscal problems would spread to other highly-indebted euro zone countries, while European stocks followed Asia lower.

Reuters - Oil slipped toward $77 a barrel on Wednesday after U.S. data showed crude inventories in the world's largest energy consumer rose more than expected while refinery utilization rates fell again.