AP Executive Morning Briefing

The top business news from The Associated Press for the morning of Thursday, July 2, 2009:

June jobless rate seen rising to 9.6 percent

WASHINGTON (AP) — Out-of-work with no place to land, the legions of America's unemployed are growing. The Labor Department is scheduled to release a report Thursday expected to show the nation's unemployment rate edging closer to double digits. Wall Street economists predict the jobless rate will rise to 9.6 percent in June from 9.4 percent in May. That would mark a 26-year high.

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GM urges quick approval of sale plan

NEW YORK (AP) — Facing a July 10 government funding cutoff, General Motors Corp. is calling for quick approval of its bid to sell its "good" parts into a new company and emerge from bankruptcy protection. A bankruptcy court hearing on the sale enters its third day Thursday. On Wednesday, a GM attorney warned in closing arguments that the only option to the sale plan is the company's liquidation.

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World stocks lackluster as traders eye US job data

HONG KONG (AP) — Most Asian markets fell Thursday as investors tread cautiously ahead of a key U.S. jobs report expected to show unemployment hit a 26-year-high despite signs of recovery in the world's largest economy. European markets opened lower. Markets across Asia zigzagged in thin trade throughout the day before closing mostly lower, suggesting investors were reluctant to place bets for now. Oil prices slipped below $69 a barrel, while the dollar gained modestly against the yen and euro.

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Key Senate Democrats trim cost of health care bill

WASHINGTON (AP) — Determined to advance President Barack Obama's health care agenda, key Senate Democrats are calling for a government-run insurance option to compete with private plans, as well as a $750-per-worker annual fee on larger companies that do not offer coverage to employees. In a letter outlining the details, Sens. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., and Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., said their revised plan would cost dramatically less than an earlier, incomplete proposal, and help show the way toward coverage for 97 percent of all Americans.

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States without budgets as key deadline passes

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The finances of several states around the nation are sinking deeper into chaos as lawmakers struggle to work out budget differences amid a recession that has wiped out tax revenue and set the stage for dramatic cuts in service and pay for government workers. The start of the new fiscal year arrived Wednesday with states from California to Connecticut still without spending plans in place.

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Companies pledge more openness about Web tracking

Companies that track consumer behavior online for advertising purposes are vowing to make their practices more transparent and to give people a way to decline being shadowed. It's unclear how much of an effect the new policies will have. One consumer group said the changes don't go far enough, and that extensive profiles of people still will be collected without their complete consent.

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Manhattan apartment prices skid 13 to 19 percent

NEW YORK (AP) — Apartment prices in the typically resilient Manhattan market plunged in the second quarter by the largest annual amount in decades, data released Thursday showed. The median price fell between 13 and 19 percent from a year ago, according to four separate reports, and sales were off by half from last year's totals.

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Euro zone unemployment hits 10-year high in May

LONDON (AP) — Unemployment in the 16 countries that use the euro spiked to a 10-year high in May, reinforcing concerns any recovery will take time with so many people out of work. Eurostat, the statistics office of the EU, said Thursday the seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate for the euro zone in May stood at 9.5 percent, up from April's 9.3 percent.

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Oil slips below $69 ahead of US jobs report

SINGAPORE (AP) — Oil prices slipped below $69 a barrel Thursday in Asia as investors looked to the release of a key U.S. employment report for hints on the outlook for the world's largest economy. Benchmark crude for August delivery fell 93 cents to $68.32 a barrel by late afternoon Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. On Tuesday, it fell 58 cents to settle at $69.31.

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Hitachi to supply lithium-ion batteries to GM

TOKYO (AP) — Japanese electronics maker Hitachi Ltd. said Thursday it will supply lithium-ion batteries for hybrid vehicles to General Motors Corp. in 2010 and sharply raise production capacity to meet surging demand for gas-electric cars. Hitachi currently makes 40,000 lithium-ion batteries per month and will lift the capacity to three million units.

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Japan Markets

TOKYO (AP) — Slumping banks dragged Japanese stocks lower Thursday as investors doubted whether latest merger deal between Shinsei Bank Ltd. and Aozora Bank Ltd. would prove fruitful. The benchmark Nikkei 225 stock average lost 63.78 points, or 0.6 percent, to 9,876.15. The broader Topix index fell 0.5 percent to 924.02.

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Dollar-Yen

TOKYO (AP) — In currencies, the dollar was trading at 96.66 yen Thursday from 96.51 yen late Wednesday.

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