REUTERS AMERICA EVENING NEWS PLAN FOR WEDNESDAY DEC 10

LATEST AND PLANNED U.S. NEWS COVERAGE (ALL TIMES ET)

Top stories as of 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

To find stories, search by Slug or Headline Keyword in your CMS or Advanced Search in Media Express.

For story queries, please contact us.general-news@thomsonreuters.com

For photo queries use USCanada-Pictures-Editors@thomsonreuters.com

BREAKING

Pyschologist says Senate report on CIA interrogation makes false charges

WASHINGTON - One of the two psychologists who devised the CIA's harsh Bush-era interrogation program for foreign terrorism suspects said on Wednesday that a scathing Senate report on their methods "took things out of context" and made a number of false accusations. (USA-CIA/TORTURE-PSYCHOLOGIST (URGENT), moved at 4:26 p.m., 172 words)

+See also:

U.S. hands al Qaeda suspect named in Senate report into Afghan custody (USA-CIA/TORTURE-DETAINEE (UPDATE 1, PIX, TV), moved at 12:53 p.m., 300 words)

White House issues veto threat for charity tax break bill

WASHINGTON - The White House on Wednesday issued a formal veto threat for a U.S. House of Representatives bill that would make certain tax breaks for charitable donations permanent, saying the bill would add $500 billion or more to deficits over the next decade. (USA-TAXBREAKS/CHARITIES, moved at 12:54 p.m., 70 words)

Instagram crosses 300 million users, edges past Twitter

Facebook Inc's photo-sharing service Instagram said it had more than 300 million users sharing over 70 million photos and videos each day. Microblogging service Twitter has 284 million active users. Four-year-old Instagram crossed 200 million users in March. (FACEBOOK-INSTAGRAM/USERS, moved at 12:11 p.m., 50 words)

TOP STORIES

Shutdown-wary House Republicans likely to OK funding bill

WASHINGTON - Republicans in the House of Representatives on Wednesday fell in line behind a $1.1 trillion bill that would remove the threat of an imminent government shutdown while setting up new fights for early next year over President Barack Obama's immigration reforms. House Speaker John Boehner heard little opposition to the massive spending bill that was negotiated with congressional Democrats. Without fast action by Congress, federal agencies would run out of money at midnight on Thursday. (USA-CONGRESS/BUDGET (UPDATE 1, PIX), moved at 12:41 p.m., 446 words)

+See also:

Pot backers oppose U.S. spending bill banning legal marijuana in DC (USA-DISTRICTOFCOLUMBIA/MARIJUANA, moved at 12:08 p.m., 300 words)

U.S. chokehold protesters 'die-in', issue demands in NY

BERKELEY, Calif./NEW YORK - Students at medical schools around the United States planned "die-ins" to protest the chokehold death by police of an unarmed black man and New York activists demanded the city take action after a grand jury declined to indict the officer involved. In New York, a group calling itself the NY Justice League asked local officials to fire Officer Daniel Pantaleo over Garner's death. They also urged the state to name a special prosecutor to investigate the Garner case and called for clearer laws regarding police use of lethal force. (USA-NEW YORK/CHOKEHOLD (UPDATE 1, PIX, TV), moved at 12:32 p.m., 400 words)

+See also:

Chicago proposes chokehold ban in wake of U.S. protests (USA-CHICAGO/CHOKEHOLD, moved at 12:18 p.m., 300 words)

Pope urges global war on human trafficking, appeals to consumers

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis calls for a global mobilization to combat human trafficking and slavery, appealing to consumers to shun goods that may have been produced by exploited workers. (POPE-TRAFFICKING/ (PIX, TV), moved, 378 words)

Four killed in Nigeria's Kano in double suicide bomb attack

KANO, Nigeria - Four people were killed when two female suicide bombers attacked the Kantin Kwari textile market in Nigeria's second city Kano on Wednesday, a police commissioner said, less than two weeks after militants attacked its main mosque. Seven others were injured, some of them traders, added the commissioner, Adenerele Shinabad. (NIGERIA-VIOLENCE/KANO (UPDATE 1), moved at 11:47 a.m., 220 words)

WASHINGTON

Obama to Congress: give all kids chance at preschool

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama on Wednesday announced more than $1 billion in public and private investments in preschool, but called on Congress to make more money available to programs. (USA-EDUCATION/PRESCHOOL, moved at 2:41 p.m., 316 words)

FAA grants four companies permission to use drones commercially

WASHINGTON - The Federal Aviation Administration gave four companies permission to use drones commercially for aerial surveying, construction site monitoring and oil rig flare stack inspections, further opening the U.S. airspace to drone flights by businesses. (USA-DRONES/FAA (UPDATE 1), moved at 10:14 am, 230 words)

Congress will not pass IMF reforms this year

WASHINGTON - Funding for the International Monetary Fund did not make it into U.S. spending legislation this year, another setback for historic reforms aimed at giving emerging markets more say in how the world lender is run. (USA-CONGRESS/IMF, moved at 11:42 a.m., 300 words)

CFTC to probe cyber security efforts at exchanges, clearinghouses

WASHINGTON - The top U.S. derivatives regulator says that his agency plans to step up scrutiny of how exchanges and clearinghouses protect themselves from cyber attacks. (FINANCIAL-REGULATION/CFTC, moved, 209 words)

OTHER U.S. NEWS

Appeals court reverses fund managers' insider trading convictions

NEW YORK - A U.S. appeals court dealt federal prosecutors a blow in their crackdown on insider trading on Wall Street on Wednesday, overturning the convictions of two former hedge fund managers charged with making illegal trades in technology stocks. (USA-INSIDERTRADING/APPEAL (UPDATE 2), moved, 300 words)

Alleged head of Chicago branch of Mexican drug cartel arrested

CHICAGO, Dec 10 (Reuters) - The alleged head of the Chicago-area branch of a Mexican drug cartel faces federal charges with seven others for a plot that involved carrying heroin and cocaine from Mexico to the United States in passenger buses, prosecutors said on Wednesday. (USA-CHICAGO/DRUGTRAFFICKING-MEXICO, moved at 4:37 p.m., 325 words)

Comedian Bill Cosby sued for defamation by sexual assault accuser

LOS ANGELES - Comedian Bill Cosby was sued for defamation in Massachusetts by a sexual assault accuser who said he branded her a liar in public statements made through his representatives denying her allegations of abuse. (PEOPLE-COSBY (UPDATE 2, PIX), moved at 3:23 p.m., 550 words)

Kentucky declines to give tax incentives for proposed "Noah's Ark" theme park

LOUISVILE, Ky. - State tourism officials said on Wednesday they will not grant development incentives for a proposed Noah's ark theme park in Northern Kentucky, saying it violates the separation of church and state. The state Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet said in a letter that the Ark Encounter project has evolved from a tourist attraction into a ministry that seeks to advance religion. The controversial amusement park is being developed by Answers in Genesis, the organization behind Kentucky's "Creation Museum," which promotes the idea that the Earth is about 6,000 years old and that people lived at the same time as dinosaurs. (USA-RELIGION/ARK, moving shortly, 300 words)

California braces for high winds, heavy surf as winter storm bears down

LOS ANGELES - A major winter storm moved across the Pacific Ocean into Northern California on Wednesday, and was expected to pummel the state with torrential rainfall, high winds and dangerous heavy surf over the next few days, the National Weather Service said. (USA-STORM/CALIFORNIA, moving shortly, 400 words)

Los Angeles officials approve "John-shaming" plan to combat prostitution

LOS ANGELES - Los Angeles County supervisors approve a plan for shaming prostitution "Johns" on the Internet and even on billboards to battle sex trafficking in a move that could bring objections from civil liberties advocates. (USA-PROSTITUTION/CALIFORNIA, moving shortly, 400 words)

L.A. man accused of killing, eating ex-girlfriend's rabbit

LOS ANGELES - A Southern California man accused of killing, skinning and eating his ex-girlfriend's pet rabbit and saying he would do the same to her has been charged with cruelty to an animal and making criminal threats, prosecutors said on Wednesday. (USA-CRIME/RABBIT (UPDATE 1), moved, 200 words)

Demonstrations aside, it's not 1960s Berkeley any more

BERKELEY, Calif. - Gray-haired activists still hand out leaflets on Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley, but the California university town that has seen violent protests over police killings of unarmed black men is a far cry from the leftist hotbed that was the face of the anti-Vietnam War movement of the 1960s. (USA-CALIFORNIA/BERKELEY (PIX), moving shortly, 800 words)

Arrest made in San Diego rape, one of a string near college campus

A San Diego State University student has been arrested in connection with a sexual assault near campus, marking the first arrest in a string of seemingly unrelated reported rapes that have triggered protests over the school's handling of sexual violence, authorities said on Wednesday. (USA RAPE/CALIFORNIA, moved, 350 words)

Woman gives birth on flight over California

A woman and her baby are doing well after an unexpected midair birth on a Phoenix-bound plane over California shocked passengers and crew members, Southwest Airlines officials said on Wednesday. (USA BABY/AIRPLANE, moved, 220 words)

Man kills himself at MGM Grand in Vegas, forcing evacuation - police

LAS VEGAS - Several rooms at the Las Vegas MGM Grand Hotel And Casino were evacuated on Wednesday after a suicidal man barricaded himself in a room at the massive resort hotel before shooting himself to death, police said. (USA-GUNMAN/LASVEGAS, (UPDATE 1), moved, 153 words)

New York real estate scion on trial for trespassing

NEW YORK - Real estate heir Robert Durst appeared in a New York courtroom on Wednesday on charges of trespassing on property owned by his estranged family. (PEOPLE-ROBERTDURST/ (PIX), moved at 2:45 p.m., 400 words)

Graffiti "tagger" dies after being hit by police car

MIAMI - A graffiti artist who went by the nickname "Demz" died late Tuesday after being hit by a police car during a chase last week amidst the height of Miami's annual Art Week, according to his mother. (USA-MIAMI/GRAFFITI, moved at 12:26 p.m., 250 words)

Cuba detains activists in skirmishes on Human Rights Day

HAVANA - Cuban police detained several activists during peaceful demonstrations at a popular Havana square on Wednesday, an annual protest on international Human Rights Day. The skirmishes outside the popular Coppelia ice cream parlor were ongoing, and there was no reliable estimate of the number of detentions. (CUBA-RIGHTS/, moved at 12:44 p.m., 300 words)

Oakland city and police websites down, "Anonymous" claims credit

The Oakland police department and city websites were offline on Wednesday and activist hackers from the Anonymous collective who had threatened to take action over the Bay Area demonstrations claimed responsibility. (USA-NEW YORK/CHOKEHOLD-ANONYMOUS, moving shortly, 300 words)

Oklahoma court to hear arguments on disputed high school football game

OKLAHOMA CITY - An Oklahoma high school playoff football game that ended in acrimony heads to a court on Wednesday, with politicians, a famed coach and citizens in the football-crazy state debating if a legal remedy is needed to resolve a dispute from the playing field. (USA-OKLAHOMA/COURT, moving shortly, 200 words)

Detroit to exit biggest U.S. municipal bankruptcy

DETROIT - Detroit's odyssey through the biggest-ever U.S. municipal bankruptcy will officially end on Wednesday when the city's debt adjustment plan takes effect (USA-DETROIT/BANKRUPTCY (UPDATE 1, PIX), moved at 12:04 p.m., 260 words

+See also:

A history of Detroit's fiscal problems (USA-DETROIT/BANKRUPTCY (TIMELINE), moved at 12:43 p.m., 915 words)

Boater rescued south of Hawaii after 12 days adrift

HONOLULU - The Navy rescued a boater who had been adrift for 12 days off the coast of Hawaii, the Coast Guard said on Wednesday. (USA HAWAII/RESCUE, moved at 11:49 a.m., 170 words)

Los Angeles authorities probing fire that destroyed apartment block

LOS ANGELES - Los Angeles authorities probing a suspicious blaze that destroyed a massive apartment block under construction in the city were due to provide preliminary information on their probe to reporters at a news conference on Wednesday. (USA-FIRE/CALIFORNIA, moving shortly, 250 words)

U.S. couple formerly held in Qatar sues husband's ex-employer

(USA-QATAR/COUPLE (UPDATE 1), moved at 12:25 a.m., 391 words)

SPECIAL REPORT

At Stanford, VCs reach into the dorm

STANFORD - Long one of America's elite universities, Stanford has grown into the leading alma mater, by far, for entrepreneurs receiving early-stage funding from top venture capital firms. What most outsiders don't see: how early the investment community starts cultivating Stanford students, how committed the students are, and how deeply the VC culture has burrowed its way onto campus. (USA-STARTUPS/STANFORD (SPECIAL REPORT (PIX, GRAPHIC), moved, 1,800 words).

+See also:

USA-STARTUPS/STANFORD-RULES, 300 words

EBOLA

Ebola survivors, doctors named "person of the year" by Time

Time magazine named those fighting Ebola its 2014 "Person of the Year," applauding the work of medical relief teams, doctors, nurses, ambulance drivers and burial teams working in western Africa, where an outbreak of the virus has killed thousands. (PEOPLE-TIME/EBOLA, moved, 110 words)

Ebola toll climbs, fueled by spread in Sierra Leone - WHO

GENEVA - The toll in the Ebola epidemic has risen to 6,388 deaths out of 17,942 cases as of Dec. 7, its spread fuelled principally by new infections in Sierra Leone, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday. (HEALTH-EBOLA/WHO (UPDATE 1), moved at 1:25 p.m., 170 words)

Ebola survivors seen crucial to containing the epidemic

(HEALTH-EBOLA/SURVIVORS (FOUNDATION), moved, 400 words)

ENTERTAINMENT

Dark showbiz comedy 'Birdman' leads SAG film award nominations

WEST HOLLYWOOD - The cast of dark existential comedy "Birdman" led the Screen Actors Guild film award nominations on Wednesday, earning four nods from its peers in the kick-off of the Hollywood awards season. (FILM-SAGAWARDS/ (UPDATE 4, PIX), moved at 3:15 p.m., 557 words)

+See also:

FILM-SAGAWARDS/ (FACTBOX), moved)

Sony CEO ordered "The Interview" toned down

NEW YORK/SEOUL - Sony Corp Chief Executive Kazuo Hirai ordered the film "The Interview" to be toned down after Pyongyang denounced it for depicting the assassination of North Korea's leader, according to emails apparently stolen from Sony's Hollywood studio. (SONY-CYBERSECURITY/MOVIE (PIX), moved at 1:08 p.m., 300 words)

David Letterman's final 'Late Show' set for May 20

LOS ANGELES - Late night U.S. talk show host David Letterman will anchor his final broadcast on May 20 before retiring and handing the reins of the "Late Show" to Stephen Colbert, his network said on Wednesday. (TELEVISION-LATESHOW/ (PIX, TV), moved, 145 words)

NFL touts 'tougher' personal conduct policy after crisis

IRVING, Texas - National Football League owners on Wednesday unanimously endorsed what they called a tougher personal conduct policy following a spate of domestic violence cases involving players that harmed the league's reputation. (NFL-ABUSE/ (UPDATE 3, PIX), moved at 4:45 p.m., 475 words)

Panthers' Newton released from the hospital after car accident

Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton was released from a Charlotte, North Carolina, hospital on Wednesday, one day after being involved in a car accident and suffering minor back fractures. (NFL-PANTHERS/NEWTON (UPDATE 1, PIX), moved at 4:19 p.m., 283 words)

A Minute With: Lorenzo Richelmy on 'Marco Polo,' learning English

LOS ANGELES - When Italian actor Lorenzo Richelmy stepped into the lead role of Netflix Inc's historical series "Marco Polo," he faced one major hurdle. He did not speak English. (NETFLIX-MARCOPOLO/, moved, 400 words)

Hozier's "Take Me to Church" is top Spotify 2014 single

(MUSIC-SPOTIFY/HOZIER, moved, 150 words)

Former Miss America, Actress Mary Ann Mobley Dies at 75

(VARIETY (ENTERTAINMENT-FILM/OBITUARIES-PEOPLE-NEWS), moved, 90 words)

At 98, Kirk Douglas Looks Back On His Start in Hollywood

(VARIETY (ENTERTAINMENT-FILM/NEWS), moved, 492 words)

LIFESTYLE

Smoking out Texas is full-time job for first U.S. barbecue critic

BUFFALO GAP, Texas - In Texas, with its long traditions when it comes to cooking meat, it seemed inevitable that an arbiter of barbecue like Daniel Vaughn would emerge. The question is why did it take so long? Vaughn was named barbecue editor at Texas Monthly in March 2013, taking up a job that has sent him traveling across the state sampling barbecue, with pit stops at the doctor to check his cholesterol. (USA-TEXAS/BARBECUE (FEATURE, PIX), moved, 614 words)

You may already be too late for hottest holiday toys

NEW YORK - If you still have Disney's Frozen Castle and Ice Palace Playset on your holiday gift list this year, you may already be out of luck. With Christmas approaching, the $119 toy made by Mattel Inc is sold out. Of course, you can find it at resellers for about $225 and even as high as $700 on eBay. (SHOPPING-TOYS/HOLIDAYS (PERSONAL FINANCE), moved, 500 words)

Can London's Cereal Killer Cafe provide the killer cereal?

LONDON - Identical twin brothers hope they have ticked the right boxes and ordered in the right flavors for their new "Cereal Killer Cafe" in London serving only cereal, with toppings and milk. (LIFE-BRITAIN/CEREALCAFE (PIX), moved at 12:58 p.m., 300 words)

HEALTH

Dr. Phil's startup launches video visits with U.S. therapists

SAN FRANCISCO - Doctor On Demand is the latest Silicon Valley startup to bet that people will turn to mobile devices for confidential counseling. The company has launched a web and mobile service to connect people with its network of U.S. psychologists. It was founded by daytime talk show personality Dr. Phillip McGraw, popularly known as Dr. Phil. (HEALTHCARE-DRPHIL/, moved, 400 words)

Recommended shorter breast-radiation treatment catching on slowly

Many early-stage breast cancer patients don't get the recommended short course of radiation after surgery, even though it's considered just as good as prolonged treatment, a new study finds. (BREAST-CANCER/RADIATION-GUIDELINES, moved at 1 p.m., 300 words)

E-cigarette use rare in non-smokers, UK survey finds

(BRITAIN-ECIGARETTES/, moved, 220 words)

SCIENCE

Trash talk: 269,000 tons of plastic litter choke world's oceans

WASHINGTON - Plastic pollution is pervasive in Earth's oceans. Researchers unveiled the best estimate to date of the amount of plastic litter in the oceans - about 269,000 tons - based on data from 24 ship expeditions around the globe over six years. (SCIENCE-PLASTIC/ (PIX), moved at 2 p.m., 400 words)

Meek Montana plant-eater foreshadowed huge horned dinosaurs

WASHINGTON - It was a dinosaur about the length of a crow and the weight of a bunny. But Aquilops americanus, a modest plant-eater that lived about 108 million years ago in southern Montana, foreshadowed the monstrous horned dinosaurs that trod North America millions of years later. (SCIENCE-DINOSAUR/ (PIX), moved at 3 p.m., 400 words)

WORLD

Thousands gather on final evening before Hong Kong protest camp clearance

HONG KONG - Over 10,000 protesters massed at a major pro-democracy protest site on Wednesday even as authorities warned people to stay away, before the final clearance of the main 'occupy' camp the following morning. (HONGKONG-CHINA/ (UPDATE 3, PIX, TV), moved at 12:53 p.m., 400 words)

Malala, Satyarthi receive their Nobel Prizes for child campaigns

OSLO - Pakistani teenager Malala Yousafzai, shot by the Taliban for refusing to quit school, and Indian activist Kailash Satyarthi received their Nobel Peace Prizes on Wednesday after two days of celebration honoring their work for children's rights. (NOBEL-PRIZE/PEACE (PIX, TV), moved, 300 words)

Somali al Shabaab militants behead two policewomen

MOGADISHU - Al Shabaab militants have beheaded two Somali policewomen, prompting a policeman to kill five women linked to the group who were being held for a possible swap of captives, an official said on Wednesday. (SOMALIA-MILITANTS/, moved at 12:16 p.m., 140 words)

Ukraine envoy rules out new round of peace talks soon

KIEV - Ukraine's military reports a significant reduction in shelling by separatists during a declared "Day of Silence," but Kiev's peace envoy rules out any new negotiations until rebels cease fire completely. (UKRAINE-CRISIS/SILENCE (UPDATE 1), moved at 9:19 am, 410 words)

Canada's Parliament to clamp down on harassment by legislators

OTTAWA - Canada's House of Commons unveiled a new code on Wednesday to clamp down on harassment by legislators and their staff in the wake of a scandal involving parliamentarians from the two main opposition parties. (CANADA-POLITICS/HARASSMENT, moved at 11:54 a.m., 130 words)

Long-serving editor of Britain's Guardian newspaper to step down

LONDON - Alan Rusbridger, editor of Britain's Guardian newspaper, who helped break news of widespread surveillance by the U.S. National Security Agency based on the leaks of analyst Edward Snowden, will step down next summer, its parent company said on Wednesday. (BRITAIN-MEDIA/GUARDIAN, moved at 1 p.m., 150 words)

Britain calls on NATO allies to help in submarine hunt

LONDON - NATO allies send patrol planes to help Britain scour the waters off its western Scottish coast after a submarine periscope was spotted, in a search reminiscent of the Cold War, media reports. (BRITAIN-DEFENSE/, (UPDATE 1), moved at 8:35 am, 380 words)

ICC refers Libya to Security Council for not surrendering Gaddafi son

(WARCRIMES-LIBYA/, moved at 12:41 p.m., 130 words)

South Africa prosecutors will seek murder conviction against Pistorius

(SAFRICA-PISTORIUS/ (UPDATE 2, TV, PIX), moved, 350 words)

Uber driver arrested for India rape was career criminal

(INDIA-RAPE/UBER-DRIVER (UPDATE 2, GRAPHIC), moved, 360 words)

FEATURES

Venezuela's poor sour on Maduro as prices, shortages sting

CARACAS - Packing potatoes at his vegetable stand on a sun-baked street in Caracas' hillside Catia slum, Jesus Jimenez fondly recounts voting for late president Hugo Chavez. After Chavez's death last year, Jimenez voted for the leader's hand-picked protege Nicolas Maduro, a former bus driver who vowed to continue "Chavism." Now, though, he says he would readily protest against Maduro. (VENEZUELA-CHAVISTAS/ (FEATURE, PIX, TV), moved, 1,173 words)

"The Crocodile" surfaces in Zimbabwe's murky political waters

HARARE- With his appointment as official deputy to 90-year-old Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe, justice minister Emmerson Mnangagwa, a secretive hardliner known as 'The Crocodile', is well set as the eventual successor to Africa's oldest head of state. The 68-year-old is one of Mugabe's most trusted lieutenants, having served at his side through five decades of prison, guerrilla war and then post-liberation government. (ZIMBABWE-POLITICS/MNANGAGWA (UPDATE 1, PIX), moved, 650 words)

COLUMN

On shale's U.S. frontier, producers face fierce squeeze

LONDON - If the U.S. shale boom is to slow in response to the fall in oil prices, the impact will be felt hardest in just five states. Texas, North Dakota, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Colorado together account for almost 98 percent of the total rise in U.S. oil output since the beginning of 2008. Output in the rest of the union has been broadly unchanged, with small production increases from states such as Wyoming and Kansas offset by declines from Alaska and California. If shale growth is to slow to avoid potential oversupply in 2015, the slowdown must come from lower levels of drilling activity and production growth in these five states. (USA-SHALE/SLOWDOWN-KEMP (COLUMN), moved at 11:35 a.m., 800 words)

BUSINESS AND MARKETS

U.S. services data point to upward revision to third-quarter GDP

WASHINGTON - The U.S. economy likely grew at a much stronger pace in the third quarter than previously reported, as data on Wednesday showed spending on services expanding at a brisk clip. (USA-ECONOMY/SERVICES, moved, 170 words)

McDonald's to slim down U.S. menus, ingredient lists

CHICAGO - McDonald's Corp in January will cut eight food items and reduce the number of so-called Extra Value Meals on its U.S. menus in a bid to speed up service and bolster sales, Mike Andres, the company's U.S. president, said on Wednesday. The world's biggest fast-food chain, which hasn't had a monthly gain in sales at established U.S. restaurants since October 2013, also will start shortening its food ingredient lists as consumers demand simpler, more natural food. (MCDONALD'S-MENU/ (UPDATE 3), moved at 2:49 p.m., 443 words)

Ex-Madoff computer programmer gets 2-1/2 years prison for fraud

NEW YORK - A former computer programmer for Bernard Madoff was sentenced to 2-1/2 years in prison on Wednesday for helping the imprisoned fraudster carry out his multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme. (MADOFF-WORKERS/SENTENCING, moved at 4:24 p.m., 413 words)

Costco quarterly profit tops estimates

Costco reports a better-than-expected quarterly profit as increased promotions help the warehouse club operator deal with fierce competition. (COSTCO-WHOLESALE-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 2), moved, 173 words)

BP to spend $1 billion on thousands of job cuts

LONDON - BP will cut thousands of jobs cut across its global oil and gas business by the end of next year in a $1 billion restructuring program announced on Wednesday following steep falls in oil prices. (BP-RESTRUCTURING/ (UPDATE 2), moved, 300 words)

South Africa's Investec causes outcry with "I can't breathe" headline on research

A research note published by South African bank Investec with the headline "I can't breathe" caused an outcry on social media on Wednesday for its use of the dying words of Eric Garner, an unarmed black man killed in a police chokehold. (BANKING-RESEARCH/INVESTEC PLC (UPDATE 1), moved at 12:43 p.m., 250 words)

Tobacco firms sign landmark pledge to end child labour in supply chains

LONDON - Several of the world's biggest tobacco companies pledged on Wednesday to end child labour in their supply chains, a landmark agreement a rights group said could protect thousands of children from hazardous work in tobacco fields. (TOBACCO-CHILDLABOUR/PLEDGE (FOUNDATION), moved at 1:27 p.m., 300 words)

Fed seen raising U.S. rates in Q2 despite lower energy prices - Reuters poll

WASHINGTON - The Federal Reserve is likely to raise interest rates in the second quarter of next year even as falling energy prices dampen domestic inflation, a Reuters survey found. (ECONOMY-POLL/USA, moved, 300 words)

Clerk arrested for stealing 300,000 euros from Bosnia central bank

(BOSNIA-CENBANK/THEFT (UPDATE 1), moved at 11:50 a.m., 140 words)

Cheap oil, stronger economies to drive airline profits in 2015 - IATA

(AIRLINES-IATA/ (UPDATE 1), moved,350 words)

Report recommends flight tracking, airlines balk at deadline

(AVIATION-TRACKING/, moved, 400 words)

OPEC cuts 2015 demand for its oil, says low prices may slow shale

(OPEC-OIL/ (UPDATE 1), moved, 415 words)

Former Swiss banker collapses in WikiLeaks trial

(SWISS-TAX/ELMER (PIX), moved, 350 words)

*****************

For story queries, please contact us.general-news@thomsonreuters.com

For photo queries use USCanada-Pictures-Editors@thomsonreuters.com *****************