Crude oil prices pared early losses but still settled lower on Thursday after a government report showed the biggest build in U.S. crude inventory in at least 14 years.

U.S. airlines on Thursday forecast enormous fuel savings in 2015 but hinted that ample consumer demand would allow them to avoid fare discounts and pass savings on to shareholders.

Starbucks Corp (SBUX.O) on Thursday said traffic to its Americas-region stores perked up during the holiday quarter, easing investor jitters about slower growth and boosting shares over 4 percent in after-hours trading.

New world trade talks had to level the playing field between developed and developing economies on farm support and avoid being held hostage by countries unwilling to open markets, U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman said in an opinion piece to be published on Thursday.

Union and oil company negotiators began talks on Wednesday for a new nationwide contract covering hourly workers at 63 U.S. refineries that account for 64 percent of national refining capacity, according to a union spokeswoman.

Worldwide child deaths will be halved over the next 15 years, polio, guinea worm and river blindness will be eradicated, and there will be a single-dose cure for malaria.

New York's Governor Andrew Cuomo announced a $142 billion state budget on Wednesday that keeps spending growth below 2 percent and promises more money for big-ticket infrastructure projects while cutting property taxes.

Microsoft Corp surprised the tech world on Wednesday with a prototype hologram visor that can bring the Minecraft video game, Skype calls and even the landscape of Mars to three-dimensional life.

EBay Inc's plans to break up into three different companies could accommodate would-be suitors, signaling a potential merger fight after the breakup.

American Express Co will cut more than 4,000 jobs this year, an executive said, after the credit card company also reported higher quarterly expenses and provisions for bad loans.