European shares edged higher early on Friday in a choppy session ahead of key U.S. unemployment data, with commodities leading the risers. By 0929 GMT, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares was up 0.4 percent at 673.50 points, having been down as much as 668 points earlier in the session. The index is
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The House of Representatives approved a government bill increasing the social insurance contributions from April 2009 until 2010 in an effort to ensure the viability of the fund, which is fast shrinking into deficit. As of April 2009 and until January 1, 2039 employee and employers contributions will gradually increase by 1.3% every five years.
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Job losses in the United States likely accelerated last month and the unemployment rate probably surged to a 25-year high as recession-hit companies took drastic steps to cut costs, according to economists. They reckon that the U.S. economy, reeling from the worst financial crisis since the 1930s and stuck in recession since December 2007, will
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Asia stocks slid on Friday after a warning from General Motors' that it may need to file for bankruptcy drove Wall Street shares to 12-year lows and highlighted the severe troubles of major U.S. companies and banks. World stocks struck a six-year low as Japan's Nikkei average fell about 3 percent in early trade, with
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China still has at least 20 million unemployed migrant workers who lost their jobs because of the impact of the global economic crisis, a senior official said on Friday. But Chen Xiwen, director of the Office of the Central Rural Work Leading Group, said China had not witnessed a new wave of migrants returning jobless
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Democrats who control the U.S. Senate were unable on Thursday to round up the votes to end debate and pass a $410 billion bill to fund many government operations through Sept. 30, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said. The Senate will try again next week, Reid said. In addition to funding the departments of transportation,
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With about three months to go, U.S. regulators say some consumers are still unprepared for the television industry switch to digital broadcasting, which will affect Americans who do not receive their signals through cable or satellite. The federally mandated transition was originally set for February 17, but lawmakers postponed it to June 12 on the
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U.S. jobs figures coming out on Friday are not expected to be "good news", the White House said on Thursday, and Vice President Joe Biden warned the February figures may be worse than the previous month. "I don't expect good news," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs told a briefing when asked about the monthly jobless
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By Matthew Bigg A shy 14-year-old girl plucked from obscurity by the White House and given star treatment has come to symbolize a battle over how to fix dilapidated U.S. schools. Ty'Sheoma Bethea's story proves that one small act — in this case writing a letter to President Barack Obama — can have a big
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A top Federal Reserve official held out hope that the U.S. economy may start to recover late this year from the crippling recession that is wiping out jobs and threatening to drive General Motors over the edge. Jeffrey Lacker's forecast that the world's biggest economy will show "positive growth by the end of the year"
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