
The US Federal Reserve poured cold water on speculation that a surprise hike to its emergency lending rate signalled a change in monetary policy, saying borrowing costs in the economy would remain low.

Alexander Haig, the decorated four- star general and assertive aide to U.S. presidents who declared himself “in control” at the White House after Ronald Reagan was shot, has died. He was 85.

President Barack Obama has set up a taskforce to tackle the growing US budget deficit.
The body will report back by the end of the year on what steps need to be taken to get the deficit down to 3% of GDP.

The United State Federal Reserve tightened monetary policy Thursday for the first time in more than a year, raising by 0.25 percentage points the discount interest rate at which the US central bank lends directly to commercial banks.

The US government confirmed that one of its top diplomats for Latin America will participate this week in Havana in a new round of talks on immigration issues with Cuba.

The number of US workers filing new applications for jobless benefits tumbled last week, a government report showed Thursday, reversing a recent spike that had raised concerns about renewed labour market weakness.

The Federal Reserve could begin pulling back its unprecedented stimulus for the US economy by first removing some cash from the financial system and then raising interest rates, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said.

The new United States ambassador in Uruguay David Nelson anticipated good opportunities to promote business and investment between the administrations of President Barack Obama and incoming president Jose Mujica. He mentioned specifically livestock, forestry and agriculture.

China is to enforce anti-dumping duties on US chicken imports, accusing American poultry firms of exporting the meat at unfairly low prices. In just the latest in a series of trade disputes between the two countries, China's Commerce Department said the tariffs will start from 13 February.

The jobless rate in the US has dropped to 9.7%, marking a five-month low. The new figures suggest the labour market is improving, despite employers unexpectedly cutting 20,000 jobs in January.