AP - U.S. computer maker Dell Inc. announced Thursday it will slash its Irish work force and shift its European manufacturing operations to Poland in a move certain to undermine Ireland's recession-hit economy.

AP - The U.S. dollar regained a little ground against the euro on Thursday after weak economic news from Germany, and rose against the pound ahead of a British interest rates decision.

AP - Turkish officials and the International Monetary Fund began discussions on Thursday for a possible loan to limit the fallout of the global economic crisis on the country's economy.

AP - J Sainsbury PLC, Britain's third largest supermarket chain, on Thursday said third quarter sales rose 4.5 percent, with trading on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve at record levels despite the economic downturn.

AP - The European Commission proposed a euro3.1 billion (US$4.2 billion) loan Thursday to help Latvia out of its financial crisis.

AP - French President Nicolas Sarkozy hit out Thursday at financial speculators for having 'perverted' capitalism, which he said should be overhauled with a new role for governments and moral values.

AP - German automaker Audi AG said Thursday it sold a record of more than 1 million vehicles globally in 2008, up 4.3 percent from the previous year despite the global financial crisis and a tough U.S. market.

AP - Slovakia is embracing the euro with gusto, according to statistics taken by EU officials during the first week of use of the new currency in the eastern European nation.

AP - Japanese automaker Nissan said Thursday it will slash its British work force by 1,200 as it lowers production in anticipation of a grim economic year.

AP - German automaker Daimler AG said Thursday that sales in its Mercedes-Benz Cars group slipped a relatively modest 2.3 percent in 2008 as the global economic crisis erupted, with deliveries of the ultra-compact Smart car spiking amid rising gas prices.

AP - J Sainsbury PLC, Britain's third largest supermarket chain, said Thursday its third quarter sales rose 4.5 percent, with trading on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve at record levels despite the economic downturn.

AP - Britain's Financial Services Authority fined insurance broker Aon Ltd. 5.25 million pounds ($8 million) on Thursday for weak anti-bribery controls — the largest penalty of its kind.

AP - Five months after Russia crushed the Georgian army in the foothills of the Caucasus, Moscow is once again embroiled in a conflict with a former Soviet neighbor: waging an economic war with Ukraine that has disrupted natural gas delivery across Europe.