As Kenneth Polite steps down this month as the head of the U.S. Department of Justice's Criminal Division, he will leave behind a flurry of major corporate settlements that he told Reuters in an exit interview will hit federal court dockets soon.

Since China opened to foreign investment in 1978 under Deng Xiaoping, global firms have ploughed in hundreds of billions of dollars to buy and build factories for market access and cheap labour, bolstering the Chinese currency.

Tyson Foods said on Monday it is closing four more U.S. chicken plants in its latest effort to cut costs.

Spirit Airlines will have to ground seven Airbus' A320neo jets after the Labor Day holiday in September through the end of the year due to a snag with RTX's Pratt & Whitney engines, Chief Executive Officer Ted Christie said on Thursday.

A look at the day ahead in U.S. and global markets by Samuel Indyk

HOUSTON (Reuters) -Top U.S. liquefied natural gas exporter Cheniere Energy Inc on Thursday reported second-quarter earnings that topped Wall Street forecasts, and raised its full-year profit outlook.