| | The Trump administration's top two negotiators in trade talks with China will meet on Friday with Chinese President Xi Jinping, but there has been no decision to extend a March 1 U.S. deadline for a deal, White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said on Thursday. | | | Billionaire Vincent Bollore will further withdraw from Vivendi's management at a crucial time for the French media giant, which is struggling in Italy and is weighing the sale of Universal Music Group (UMG). | | | The average U.S. tax refund under President Donald Trump's tax overhaul is down nearly 9 percent so far in this year's tax filing season, according to Internal Revenue Service data released on Thursday. | | | Amazon.com Inc abruptly scrapped plans for a new headquarters in New York that could have created 25,000 jobs, blaming opposition from local leaders upset by the nearly $3 billion in incentives promised by state and city politicians. | | | Prominent hedge fund managers sold out of Chinese technology stocks and dumped Silicon Valley giants like Apple Inc and Facebook Inc while global stock markets cratered during the fourth quarter, according to securities filings released on Thursday. | | | General Electric Co scrapped plans for a 12-story headquarters office tower on Boston's waterfront on Thursday, choosing instead to lease smaller buildings nearby and return $87 million in incentives to the state. | | | Wall Street struggled to reverse early losses on Thursday as an unexpected drop in retail sales dampened investor hopes for progress at the ongoing U.S.-China trade talks in Beijing. | | | Brazilian miner Vale's safety procedures have not worked, the company's chief executive said on Thursday, responding to questions from lawmakers after one of the company's dams collapsed last month with the loss of hundreds of lives. | | | Ford Motor Co Chief Financial Officer Bob Shanks plans to retire and is expected to stay through the end of the year, CNBC reported on Thursday, citing sources. | | | U.S. retail sales recorded their biggest drop in more than nine years in December as receipts fell across the board, suggesting a sharp slowdown in economic activity at the end of 2018. | | | | |