Reuters - Policymakers and business chiefs flagged new trouble for the global economy on Thursday, with India's trade minister warning of protectionism and OPEC saying it was determined to push up the price of oil.

AFP - The dollar climbed against the euro on Thursday as dealers tracked the progress of US President Barack Obama's stimulus package to help get the recession-hit US economy back on track, analysts said.

Reuters - The European Commission signaled on Thursday it would contest a 'Buy America' provision if it is included in the final version of an $825 billion package to kickstart the U.S. economy.

AP - Orders to U.S. factories for big-ticket manufactured goods fell for the fifth straight month in December, closing out a dismal year in which demand dropped by the largest amount since the recession year of 2001.

Reuters - New orders for long-lasting manufactured goods dropped 2.6 percent in December, falling for a fifth straight month, according to a report on Thursday that underscored the deepening economic malaise.

Reuters - The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits rose 3,000 last week, data on Thursday showed, while so-called continued claims hit the highest level on record as a year-long recession chilled employment.

Reuters - The European Commission signaled on Thursday it may contest a 'Buy America' provision if it is included in the final version of an $825 billion package to kickstart the U.S. economy.

Investor's Business Daily - The Federal Reserve on Wednesday officially added another potent weapon to its economy-reviving arsenal -- buying long-term Treasuries to ease the flow of credit.

Reuters - Republicans in the U.S. Senate accepted on Thursday President Barack Obama's offer to search for a compromise on an economic stimulus bill that could end up costing around $900 billion, as long as tax cuts play a large role.

Reuters - President Barack Obama agreed in a telephone call with Japan's prime minister, Taro Aso, on the need for close cooperation on the global economic crisis, the White House said on Thursday.

Reuters - Sales of newly built single-family homes fell 14.7 percent in December, the largest monthly decline since 1994, data showed on Thursday, indicating the housing market's downward spiral was far from reaching a bottom.

AP - Sales of new homes plunged 14.7 percent in December to the slowest monthly pace on record as the hobbled homebuilding industry posted its worst annual sales results in more than two decades.

AFP - The United States may spend up to two trillion dollars to bail out banks reeling from losses amid financial turmoil and a deepening recession, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.

AFP - Signs of global economic distress multiplied on Thursday, with more companies worldwide cutting profits and jobs, and protesters swarming the streets of France in anger at the worsening crisis.

Reuters - Top U.S. manufacturers, having shed tens of thousands of jobs in the face of a severe global recession, are now cutting back capital spending in a struggle to preserve cash as economic conditions worsen.

AFP - After a failed 'charm offensive,' US President Barack Obama and his allies unleashed a hard-hitting campaign Thursday to break defiant Republicans' thus-far united opposition to his economic stimulus plan.

AFP - A new 'Buy American' push in President Barack Obama's economic stimulus plan is sparking protests about protectionism from US trading partners.

Reuters - Vice President Joe Biden said on Thursday the economic stimulus package working its way through Congress is good, but will improve and attract Republican votes.

AP - The homebuilding industry's nosedive won't let up. Sales of new homes plunged to the slowest pace on record last month and builders posted their worst annual sales results in more than two decades.

AFP - President Barack Obama's union allies unleashed a fierce campaign Thursday on a clutch of persuadable Senate critics of his economic stimulus plan, as defiant Republicans vowed to hold the line.

AP - Commercial banks boosted their borrowing over the past week from the Federal Reserve's emergency lending program, while investment firms drew less.

Reuters - The U.S. economy will still need support in two years' time from a massive fiscal stimulus currently in the works, the White House said on Thursday, signaling that it expects only a very slow recovery.

Reuters - All over North and South America, miners are losing their jobs as the recession hits demand for metals that enjoyed a boom in recent years.

AFP - A new 'Buy American' push in President Barack Obama's economic stimulus plan is sparking protests about protectionism from US businesses and trading partners.

Reuters - U.S. President Barack Obama on Thursday chastised Wall Street executives for taking big bonuses at a time when the financial system is on the verge of collapse.

AP - Week by week, the numbers that measure the economy get worse, heading toward uncharted territory.