Pfizer Inc (PFE.N) is the mystery bidder for Swedish Orphan Biovitrum AB (SOBIV.ST), the rare disease specialist which disclosed this week that a potential buyer had made a preliminary offer, people with knowledge of the situation said.

U.S. stocks, led by the Nasdaq, sold off on Thursday as Apple shares declined, and tech and biotech quarterly results disappointed.

Beijing authorities have fined U.S.-based J.R. Simplot's China processing unit, which supplies frozen french fries to McDonald's Corp, 3.92 million yuan ($632,370) for water pollution, state media and Simplot said.

The euro zone ended four months of deflation in April with consumer prices unchanged from year-ago levels, removing the threat of persistent price declines as energy costs pushed up in the month.

In the 1980s when Sony and Toshiba were setting the agenda in the global TV and memory chip markets Japan was bristling with confidence as a hub of technological innovation.

U.S. crude oil hit a five-month high on Thursday as the dollar slipped to its lowest since February and as more evidence emerged of a gradual balancing of the U.S. domestic market.

The euro rose for a third day against the dollar on Thursday, pushing above $1.12 for the first time in two months on growing concern over the U.S. economy's prospects.

General Motors (GM.N) on Thursday will announce a multibillion-dollar, multiyear investment in several U.S. manufacturing plants in a move to boost production and vehicle quality, a person familiar with the matter said.

Early adopters of the Apple Watch, Apple Inc's (AAPL.O) first new product in five years, are complaining that a number of its key functions are disrupted by their tattoos.

World stock markets and the dollar remained in a sharp sell-off mode on Thursday, having been jolted sharply lower by weak U.S. growth data and cautious comments from the Federal Reserve.