Reuters - After more than an hour talking about how awful business has been of late, Pete Van Straten, 52, jerks a thumb at the telephone sitting on the desk behind his younger brother, George.

AFP - European stock markets pulled back slightly on Thursday as investors took profits before publication of crucial US jobless claims data, dealers said.

AFP - US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Thursday said a strong dollar was "very important" to the United States and praised China's role in the global economic recovery.

Small-capitalization companies have lost the lead over their larger brethren in recent months, in an important stock-market shift that has put the less-volatile large caps back in favor.

The Treasury has had little problem moving its short-term bonds. How will the 30-year auction fare?