Asian stocks inched closer to two-month highs on Thursday as China's manufacturing sector picked up and foreign buying bolstered tech shares in Taiwan and South Korea.

Asian shares rose on Friday, buoyed by upbeat data on U.S. manufacturing and jobless claims that strengthened hopes for a sustainable economic recovery.

Massachusetts and Rhode Island are taking different approaches in their competition to become a leader in alternative energy.

AFP - Greece fought for months to get EU help to tackle its mounting debt crisis but it has taken only days for fresh doubts to emerge on the deal and the country's ability to put its finances in order.

Two commercials during Super Bowl XLIV that showed pantless men raised the question of networks reviewing advertisements to sidestep creative conflicts.

Security researchers have monitored a spying operation in which China-based intruders pilfered documents from the Indian Defense Ministry.

New figures show healthy sales growth last month, with American consumers starting to buy clothes, jewelry and even cars again.

China is poised to play a role in supplying the technology to build high-speed rail lines in California.

The chairman expressed confidence that the Fed?s measures had helped to avoid a panic, stabilize the economy and restore credit.

Malaysia was set to become the first Asian country to sign a voluntary agreement that would certify its timber exports to Europe had been harvested legally.

Re ?Carrots, Sticks and Lower Premiums? (Unboxed, March 28), which looked at ways for employers to pay their workers to live healthier lives:

TweetUp will organize posts according to their popularity, and it will let people bid on key words to give their posts top ranking.

The microblogging service plans to link keyword searches with advertising and show users relevant promoted posts.

An official at JPMorgan Chase said mortgage reductions could reward households for taking on more debt than they could afford and was simply unworkable.

Restaurants have begun to see signs of a recovery in the last few months, and the industry has hired thousands of additional workers.

Macarthur Coal, which has been the object of an intensifying takeover battle, has until now rejected rival offers.

Industry representatives have argued that the envisioned box-office contracts are subject to manipulation, and inherently unsuitable for exchange trading.

AP - President Hugo Chavez has announced an agreement with China that would have the Asian economic giant devote $20 billion to financing long-term development projects in Venezuela.

?Nicotine is a highly addictive drug, and to make it look like a piece of candy is recklessly playing with the health of children,? said the lead researcher of a study criticizing Orbs, a novel product from R. J. Reynolds Tobacco.

The system that was struck in a December attack controls millions of users? access to almost all of Google?s Web services, a person with direct knowledge of an investigation said.

A Brooklyn neighborhood that has traditionally welcomed Polish immigrants is attracting the film and television industry.

President Obama is likely to sound themes from his presidential campaign in a speech Thursday near Wall Street in a closing argument for regulatory overhaul.

Recent data suggest that the weak euro has helped keep the Continent's modest recovery afloat.

Cutting small expenses can make consumers feel good, but people who are living far beyond their means need to make major financial changes.

Professional caregivers are one of the fastest-growing segments of the U.S. work force, and also one of the oldest.

Skip Paul, the video game pioneer, pal of Steven Spielberg and Hollywood power broker, will guide Centerview Partners? expansion into media.

The Obama administration?s decision on a Cape Cod wind project will have implications from Long Island to Lake Erie.

What do the Goldman hearings tell us about the risks of financial 'innovations'?

As Congress prepares to debate financial reform legislation, lawmakers are keeping their distance from Goldman Sachs and its well-connected lobbyists.

Craigslist is developing a new philanthropic initiative that will, in part, contribute to organizations that address human trafficking and child exploitation.