Idaho Supreme Court sides with Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson in dispute with high-end home builder

BOISE, Idaho — The Idaho Supreme Court has ruled that Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson can take the contractor of their high-end Sun Valley home back to arbitration over claims of shoddy workmanship.

Obama administration, Congress members looking to ban text messaging from the driver’s seat

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration said Thursday it will seek to ban text messaging by interstate bus drivers and truckers and push states to pass their own laws against driving cars while distracted.

Bill Clinton cheers turnout by hundreds of international investors at Haiti conference

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Bill Clinton applauded the large turnout at an investor conference in Haiti’s capital Thursday, calling it a sign of hope for economic growth and job creation in the impoverished Caribbean nation.

YRC Worldwide unit inks agreement with Minera Chinalco Peru involving copper production

OVERLAND Park, Kan. — A unit of trucking company YRC Worldwide Inc. has reached a new three-year service agreement with Minera Chinalco Peru S.A., the company said Thursday.

Obama tells Democratic governors economic turnaround not around corner

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama said Wednesday that he is committed to helping keep Democrats in governors’ offices across the country and move their states forward, starting with changes to the health care system.

Former building inspectors, reputed mob figures, charged in NYC construction corruption

NEW YORK — Six former New York City building inspectors, two reputed Lucchese crime family leaders and more than two dozen other people and businesses were indicted Thursday in a sprawling racketeering case that ranges from construction bribes to gun trafficking.

Diplomats: Iran and 6 world powers discuss holding a new round of high-level nuclear talks

GENTHOD, Switzerland — Diplomats say Iran and six world powers are considering meeting again after their present talks on Iran’s nuclear program and other issues end.

Revamped Jimmy Carter museum opens with intense focus on his life after the White House

ATLANTA — The Jimmy Carter Library and Museum reopened Thursday on the former president’s 85th birthday after an overhaul that devotes more space than any other presidential library to a commander-in-chief’s work after the White House.

Revamped Carter museum opening with intense focus on life after White House

ATLANTA — The Jimmy Carter Library and Museum reopened Thursday on the former president’s 85th birthday after an overhaul that devotes more space than any other presidential library to a commander-in-chief’s time spent after the White House.

US, Iranian diplomats meet one-on-one at high level nuclear talks in Geneva

GENTHOD, Switzerland — A senior U.S. official has met Iran’s top atomic negotiator for face-to-face talks — the first such encounter in years of big-power attempts to persuade Tehran to freeze a program that could create nuclear weapons.

British archaeologists unearth remains of ‘mini-Colosseum’ in ancient Rome’s harbor

ROME — A team of British archaeologists working in ancient Rome’s seaport has unearthed the remains of a “mini-Colosseum” — a smaller version of the monumental arena built in the center of the imperial capital.

Stocks fall further after disappointing report on manufacturing overshadows rise in home sales

NEW YORK — Stocks began the fourth quarter on a down note Thursday, falling sharply amid more signs that the economy’s recovery will be slow and bumpy.

Finnish government faces no-confidence vote in Parliament regarding funding

HELSINKI — Finland’s government faced a motion of no-confidence in Parliament on Thursday over election and party funding, and Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen’s Cabinet was expected to survive the vote with the support of his four-party governing coalition.

Construction spending rises unexpectedly in Aug. as housing jumps by largest amount since 1993

WASHINGTON — Construction spending rose unexpectedly in August on the biggest jump in housing activity in nearly 16 years, another sign the housing sector is mounting a recovery.

Shiny methods cited for keeping silver as world’s top auto paint color for 9th straight year

DETROIT — Silver in hues ranging from chrome to charcoal gray extended its reign as the most popular choice for car and truck paint across the globe this year, according to annual data collected by a leading paint maker.

Diplomats: US and Iran meet one-on-one at high level nuke talks

GENTHOD, Switzerland — The U.S. says senior American and Iranian delegates have met one-on-one on the sidelines of a high-stakes gathering on Tehran’s nuclear program.

Stock futures remain weak after mixed personal income, weekly jobs data

The stock market headed toward a lower open Thursday after two government reports suggested the economy is still poised for a slow recovery.

Sun sets on Saturn: GM kills once vaunted star brand after purchase talks fail

DETROIT — For those who expected General Motors’ once-funky Saturn brand to live on with a new owner, there has been a sad twist. Saturn, once billed as a different kind of car company, appears as dead as Pontiac and Oldsmobile.

British anti-fraud prosecutors to pursue case against BAE Systems

LONDON — British anti-fraud prosecutors intend to pursue a case against BAE Systems PLC, the world’s No. 2 defense contractor, on charges of corruption in dealings on foreign contracts worth hundreds of millions of pounds.

Stock futures head lower ahead of manufacturing, personal income data; corporate news weighs

The stock market headed toward a lower open Thursday as investors warily await a flood of key economic data.

With tanks, troops and kitsch, China celebrates 60 years of communist rule and its new power

Communist China marks 60 years with tanks, kitsch

BEIJING — Jets, tanks and missile-toting trucks thundered through Beijing on Thursday in a show of military muscle to celebrate six decades of communist rule and China’s transformation from a war-battered regional player into global economic superpower.

Deserted La. coastal town seeks post-hurricane identity; planner foresees condos, hotels

HOLLY BEACH, La. — Before two hurricanes hit in three years, a collection of modest beach houses and trailers along the Gulf known as the “Cajun Riviera” drew thousands for summer weekends of crabbing, beer drinking and kids playing in the surf.

US and Western allies talk hold high-level talks with Iran about its nuclear program

Iran meets the West in Geneva for nuclear talks

Top powers start high-stakes meeting with Iran to curb nuclear program

GENEVA — The United States and five other world powers have begun high-stakes talks with Iran to demand a freeze of its nuclear activities.

Pittsburgh police used acoustic warfare during G-20 protests, drawing legal groups’ ire

PITTSBURGH — Police ordered protesters to disperse at the Group of 20 summit last week with a device that can beam earsplitting alarm tones and verbal instructions that the manufacturer likens to a “spotlight of sound,” but that legal groups called potentially dangerous.

Construction companies ordered to pay $36.5 million to cover 2004 LA firefighting costs

LOS ANGELES — A federal jury in Los Angeles has ordered two construction companies to pay more than $36 million to reimburse the government for the costs of fighting a 2002 wildfire sparked by an electric grinder.

Senate rebuffs Obama, McCain in bipartisan embrace of additional C-17 cargo jets

WASHINGTON — In a rebuff to both President Barack Obama and his former presidential opponent, Republican Sen. John McCain, the Senate on Wednesday rejected an effort to kill $2.5 billion for 10 new C-17 cargo jets and devote the money to military readiness accounts.

Frontier Airlines set to come out of bankruptcy protection on Thursday as part of Republic

Frontier Airlines is set to exit bankruptcy protection on Thursday as part of Republic Airways, which seems determined to run an efficient airline even if it ruffles some feathers in the process.

Congress adds Postal Service fix, census funds to stopgap funding bill

Congress on Wednesday sent President Barack Obama a one-month stopgap spending bill to keep the government from shutting down with the start of the new fiscal year on Thursday. The legislation:

Military parade marking 60 years of communist rule in China stirs both pride and unease

BEIJING — China celebrated its rise to a world power over 60 years of Communist rule Thursday, staging its biggest-ever parade of military hardware with over 100,000 marching masses in a display that stirred patriotism — and some unease.