Stock futures rise ahead of jobless claims data (Reuters)

Reuters - Stock index futures rose for a sixth day in seven on Thursday ahead of weekly data expected to show a tick down in applications for unemployment insurance.

Web Impostors May Face Prison in California (BusinessWeek)

BusinessWeek - California Web impostors beware: You may soon be breaking the law, even if you aren't one of the perpetrators targeted by the state's "e-personation" bill.

Obama firm against tax cuts for rich (Reuters)

Reuters - President Barack Obama stood firm on Thursday in opposition to a Republican push to extend Bush-era tax cuts for the rich but stopped short of threatening to veto such a measure if passed by Congress.

Toys R Us to double U.S. store print for holiday season (Reuters)

Reuters - U.S. retailer Toys R Us, which has filed for an initial public offering, said it plans to open about 600 temporary stores in malls and shopping centers nationwide, doubling the number of store locations for the holiday season.

British MPs to grill BP CEO Hayward (Reuters)

Reuters - British Members of Parliament (MPs) will next week grill outgoing BP Plc Chief Executive Tony Hayward, as part of an investigation into risks around deepwater drilling in the North Sea.

Bank of England holds rates at 0.5 percent (Reuters)

Reuters - The Bank of England kept interest rates at 0.5 percent for the 18th month in a row and announced no new quantitative easing purchases, in a widely expected decision on Thursday.

Struggling Spain OKs labor market reforms (AP)

AP - Spain gave final approval Thursday to labor market reforms designed to shake up a listless economy and help slash a bloated deficit that has prompted European-wide worries of another Greek-style debt crisis.

Oil prices rise before US inventory data (AFP)

AFP - Oil prices rose slightly on Thursday as the market awaited key inventory data from the United States -- the world's biggest consumer of energy.

UK watchdog fines Goldman Sachs $27 million (Reuters)

Reuters - Britain's financial watchdog slapped a 17.5 million pounds ($27 million) fine on Goldman Sachs on Thursday for inadequate disclosure of a U.S. probe into the Wall Street powerhouse.

India car sales hit all-time high in August (AP)

AP - Car sales in India surged to a record for a second straight month in August on strong demand before the holiday season, despite rising prices and supply constraints.

Bank of Korea keeps interest rate near record low (AP)

AP - South Korea's central bank left its key interest rate near a record low Thursday for a second straight month as the risk of slowing global growth outweighed a buoyant outlook for the local economy.

Economists cut U.S. growth forecast again (Reuters)

Reuters - Projected U.S. economic growth for the rest of this year and next was revised down for a third month in a row by a panel of about 50 economists.

FDIC's Bair warns of government "exposure" in mortgages (Reuters)

Reuters - A key U.S. banking regulator raised concern on Wednesday about the risk of "exposure" the government is taking on in the mortgage market and urged more stringent standards for underwriting mortgages.

Obama: Democrats in trouble if election based on economy (AFP)

AFP - President Barack Obama admitted Wednesday if US voters in the upcoming midterm elections make their choices based on their opinion of the economy, his Democratic Party could be in big trouble.

Spartech posts fiscal 3Q loss, misses expectations (AP)

AP - Plastic sheet and packaging maker Spartech Corp. reported a net loss for its fiscal third quarter on Wednesday and said that despite higher revenue, the overall market recover is slower than expected.

Bankers urge government to pull plug on Fannie, Freddie (Reuters)

Reuters - The federal government should take mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac off life support sooner rather than later, the Mortgage Bankers Association urged on Wednesday.

Wall Street up as fears for European economy ease (AFP)

AFP - US stocks were slightly up on Wednesday after news of a successful Portuguese debt auction eased the previous day's concerns about the European economy.