Business News - Reuters

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks gained on Thursday as a surprise narrowing in October's U.S. trade deficit suggested the economy was on a steady growth path. Full Story »

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs Group Inc plans to pay top managers their 2009 bonuses in stock, rather than cash, as it seeks to deflect outrage over a near-record pay haul months after it repaid billions of dollars in taxpayer aid. Full Story »

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits rose more than expected last week, but a surprise narrowing in the trade gap in October indicated the economy remained firmly on a steady growth path. Full Story »

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Obama administration's pay czar will announce as early as Friday his next wave of rulings as bailout recipients struggle to get out from under his thumb. Full Story »

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A new U.S. securities regulatory investigation into potential insider trading began in mid-November with the issuance of subpoenas to a number of hedge funds that may have gotten an advance word on corporate takeovers, said people familiar with the matter. Full Story »

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Shares of AOL Inc fell about 2 percent on their return to trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday, following the Internet company's spin-off from Time Warner Inc, while shares of AOL's former parent rose. Full Story »

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. economy is struggling against "headwinds" that mean the government must retain the ability to respond to unexpected crises, even as it starts to wind down emergency programs, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Thursday. Full Story »

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and French President Nicolas Sarkozy are in complete agreement on moves to tax bankers' bonuses, Brown's spokesman said on Thursday after the two leaders met. Full Story »

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc is talking with the U.S. government about paying back its bailout money, but it is not clear whether a deal is imminent, a person familiar with the matter said on Thursday. Full Story »

BOSTON (Reuters) - BlackRock Inc plans to launch a portfolio that will let wealthy individual investors access hedge funds that have boosted pension funds' and endowments' returns, the company said in a regulatory filing on Thursday. Full Story »