Oil falls below $60 after weak outlook on demand, anemic expectation for earnings season

NEW YORK — Oil prices sank below $60 a barrel Friday, ending a week in which crude has fallen more than 10 percent on growing pessimism about the economy and also the well-being of companies about to report second-quarter earnings.

24 killed in airstrikes in northwest Pakistan; troops arrest 40 militants in series of raids

ISLAMABAD — Pakistani fighter jets killed 24 insurgents close to the Afghan border while security forces arrested 40 militants in raids in another northwestern region, officials said Friday.

Housing and Urban Development releases $1.2 billion in stimulus funds to combat homelessness

WASHINGTON — The Housing and Urban Development Department is using $1.2 billion in stimulus money to fight homelessness in hundreds of locations across the country.

Jackson memorial drew 31.1 million viewers in United States

NEW YORK — Some 31.1 million people in the United States watched the Michael Jackson memorial on television, with millions more catching video streams on their computers.

ID, Mont. ready for first open wolf hunts in lower US after endangered status lifted

BILLINGS, Mont. — Montana and Idaho are moving to host the first open gray wolf hunts in the lower 48 states after the animal’s removal from the endangered list across much of the Northern Rockies.

Star of Oscar winning documentary lives in an impoverished condition

RAMPUR - Despite all claims and promises made to improve her life, Pinki Sonkar, protagonist of the short documentary ‘Smile Pinki’, which won an Oscar, continues to live in stark poverty in her village, Rampur.

Bangladesh MPs irked by claim they waste money

DHAKA - Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) has come under fire in parliament for its report claiming that lawmakers waste public money by arriving late or staying away, causing disruptions in the functioning of the house.

IT professionals of Bangalore have mixed feelings on budget

BANGALORE - Youngsters in India’s IT hub Bangalore, who have been hugely affected by the global economic recession due to large scale job losses and lack of newer employment opportunities, have expressed mixed feelings over Monday’s union budget.

Investors look to 2Q earnings reports, forecasts for clues about economic recovery

NEW YORK — Investors, whose optimism was recently shaken by surprisingly weak economic data, are now hoping companies can provide some clues about a recovery.

Palin hints at political future in Web posts, threatens legal action against bloggers, media

JUNEAU, Alaska — Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin didn’t wait long to give some hint of what her political life might look like after she leaves office at the end of the month.

Rare sheep perfect blood donors for diagnosing infectious disease in developing world

WASHINGTON - Scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine say that the hair sheep, a less-hirsute version of the familiar woolly barnyard resident, may be key to better diagnostic tests in developing world.

Putin says Obama is wrong to suggest he has one foot stuck in the Cold War past

MOSCOW — Prime Minister Vladimir Putin says the U.S. president is wrong to suggest he remains mired in a Cold War mindset.

Publisher releases gov from contract to write fiscal conservatism book, says decision ‘mutual’

COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford’s deal to write a book on fiscal conservatism has been terminated amid revelations about his affair with a woman from Argentina.

Neverland Ranch, abandoned by Jackson in ‘05, now seen as having ‘Graceland’ potential

LOS OLIVOS, Calif. — With Peter Pan as inspiration, Michael Jackson turned his lush Neverland ranch into a whimsical retreat with carnival rides, a chimpanzee named Bubbles and even a Disney-like train station where he could recapture his lost childhood.

Honduran president recounts horror of his ouster, vows to return home

UNITED NATIONS - During a speech at the UN General Assembly Wednesday, ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya tearfully recounted how he was bundled into a flight to Costa Rica at gun point by the security forces.

Analysis: Hopes fading for negotiated solution to Iranian nuclear impasse in wake of crackdown

VIENNA — New waves of acrimony between Iran and world powers over the Islamic Republic’s disputed presidential vote are dimming what were already modest prospects for meaningful negotiations with Tehran over its nuclear program.

Super-size deposits of frozen carbon in Arctic a growing threat to climate

WASHINGTON - A new study has estimated that the vast amount of carbon stored in the arctic and boreal regions of the world is more than double that previously estimated, which raises new concerns over the role of the northern regions as future sources of greenhouse gases.

Car bomb kills at least 27 people in crowded outdoor market in northern Iraqi city

BAGHDAD — A car bomb exploded in a crowded outdoor market in the northern city of Kirkuk on Tuesday, killing at least 27 people, police said, a deadly reminder of the challenges facing the Iraqi government even as it celebrated the withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from cities.

USDA: Cotton acreage hits lowest level since 1983, amid continued interest in corn, soybeans

NEW ORLEANS — U.S. farmers planted their fewest cotton acres since 1983 — just over 9 million — amid a continued swapping of acres for better priced and less-costly-to-produce crops such as corn and soybeans.

THE INFLUENCE GAME: What’s in a name? Catfish plan threatens trade war with Vietnam

WASHINGTON — It looks like catfish, it tastes like catfish, and it acts like catfish.

Car bomb kills at least 24 people in northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk

BAGHDAD — A car bomb exploded in a crowded outdoor market in the northern city of Kirkuk on Tuesday, killing at least 24 people, police said, a deadly reminder of the challenges facing the Iraqi government even as it celebrated the withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from cities.

Virginia official: some doctors reluctant to prescribe strong painkillers after hacker attack

RICHMOND, Va. — Some doctors are holding off prescribing painkillers after a hacker accessed more than 35.5 million of Virginia’s most sensitive prescription drug records two months ago, a state official told a legislative panel Monday.

4 US soldiers killed during withdrawal from Iraqi cities; premier says Iraqi forces capable

BAGHDAD — Four U.S. soldiers were killed in combat shortly before the American military completed a withdrawal from Iraq’s cities, and the prime minister assured Iraqis that government forces taking control of urban areas on Tuesday were more than capable of protecting the country.

Secretive uranium enrichment program gives NKorea second way to make nuclear bombs

SEOUL, South Korea — After repudiating negotiations on dismantling its plutonium-based nuclear program, North Korea admitted this month to having an even more worrying way to make bombs.

Still fans, dry taps, hassled millions - that’s Delhi

NEW DELHI - The mercury has been hovering above the 40 degrees Celsius for days now. Yet fans are still, air coolers and air conditioners remain silent, and water taps dry.

SC governor admits seeing mistress on state-funded trip was bad judgment, but was it illegal?

COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford admits he used bad judgment when he secretly visited his mistress during a state-funded trip to Argentina last year. But did he break the law?

SC gov admits seeing mistress on state-funded trip was bad judgment, but was it illegal?

COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford admits he used bad judgment when he secretly visited his mistress during a state-funded trip to Argentina last year. But did he break the law?

After admitting affair, SC gov spends time with jilted family; ethical, legal questions grow

COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford was with his family Thursday as legal and ethical questions swirled over his secret trip to see a woman in Argentina with whom he admitted an affair.

Central government ban on Maoists applicable to West Bengal: Buddhadeb

KOLKATA - West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee has said that there was no need for his government to announce a separate ban on Maoists after the Central government’s recent order.

NYPD official: Guantanamo detainee trials could hinder new terror investigations

WASHINGTON — A top New York anti-terror official said Tuesday that trials of Guantanamo Bay detainees could weaken the ability of the FBI and other agencies to chase new cases.