AP - A crane hoisted a key piece of oil spill evidence to the surface of the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday, giving investigators their first chance to personally scrutinize the blowout preventer, the massive piece of equipment that failed to stop the gusher four months ago.

AP - Eager to jumpstart the economy ahead of crucial midterm elections, President Barack Obama said Friday he intends to unveil a new package of proposals, likely including tax cuts and targeted spending, to spark job growth.

AFP - Brazil's Petrobras unveiled one of the world's biggest share offerings Friday, a sale of up to 64 billion dollars in new stock to finance oil exploration aimed at turning Brazil into a leading oil exporter of the 21st century.

AFP - The IMF and the UN labour agency are urging advanced economies not to cut government spending before 2011, warning that a move to tighten fiscal policies could hurt the global recovery.

AP - Summer is rarely a hot sales season for Campbell Soup Co., and this year's sweltering June and July made that even more true, but the company said Friday that cost-cutting and strong drink sales helped its net income climb.

AFP - European Central Bank chief Jean-Claude Trichet called Saturday for Europe to hold a united position on refomin the International Monetary Fund.

Reuters - Chinese officials have ordered state companies to meet investment bankers to explore ways to block BHP Billiton's $39 billion bid for Potash Corp, a source with direct knowledge of the matter said.

Reuters - Wall Street closed a stellar week on Friday after recent economic data, including a stronger-than-expected labor market report, bolstered optimism that the economy would not fall back into recession.

Reuters - The U.S. government is likely to take a loss on General Motors Co in the first offering of the automaker's stock, six people familiar with preparations for the landmark IPO said.

AP - BP PLC said the blowout preventer that failed to stop oil from spewing into the Gulf of Mexico was removed from the company's well on Friday afternoon.

AFP - The IMF and the UN labour agency are urging advanced economies not to cut government spending before 2011, warning that a move to tighten fiscal policies could hurt the global recovery.

AP - Summer is rarely a hot sales season for Campbell Soup Co., and this year's sweltering June and July made that even more true, but the company said Friday that cost-cutting and strong drink sales helped its net income climb.

AP - Is the global economy out of the woods? Two years after near-meltdown, with the U.S. looking sluggish, equity markets groggy and Europeans fighting a debt crisis, experts gathered in Italy offered a generally gloomy outlook — especially for the United States and much of the industrialized world.

Reuters - Campbell Soup Co posted lower-than-expected quarterly sales and forecast sales growth for the new fiscal year below its long-term target as the world's largest soup company grapples with a weak economy.

Reuters - President Barack Obama will outline new measures next week to boost the U.S. economy after August data on Friday showed again that jobs -- the central issue in November elections -- were being created too slowly.

Reuters - U.S. employment fell for a third straight month in August, but the drop was far less than expected and private hiring surprised on the upside, easing pressure on the Federal Reserve to prop up economic growth.

Reuters - Wall Street was set to close out its best week in six on Friday after recent economic data, including a stronger-than-expected jobs report, showed the U.S. economy may be in better shape than thought.

AP - Global stock markets pushed modestly higher Thursday after an upbeat U.S. housing survey as investors await payrolls figures that could well set the tone for the rest of the month.

AP - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Thursday that while the fight against corruption must be led by Afghans, the U.S. is working on new ways to prevent millions of American dollars flowing into the nation from underwriting bribery and graft.

Reuters - U.S. regulators probing the May flash crash are focusing on a trading practice known as "quote stuffing", in which large numbers of rapid-fire orders to buy or sell stocks are placed and canceled almost immediately.

AP - Stocks rose Thursday, extending their gains from the day before, after reports on housing, manufacturing and jobs all indicated that the economy continues to grow.

Reuters - Stocks rose on low volume on Thursday as data showed improvement in housing and the job market a day ahead of the critical monthly payrolls figures.

AFP - European stock markets slid on Thursday as investors took profits from recent gains amid caution before the latest interest rate decision from the European Central Bank.