Major business events and economic events scheduled for Thursday:
WASHINGTON — Labor Department releases weekly jobless claims, 8:30 a.m.
WASHINGTON — Commerce Department releases personal income and spending for July, 8:30 a.m.
WASHINGTON — Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, releases weekly mortgage rates, 10 a.m.
NEW YORK — Selected chain retailers release August sales.
BERLIN — Germany releases August unemployment figures.
MADRID — French President Francois Hollande visits Spain for talks with Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy on the economic crisis and Spain's battle to avert having to seek a sovereign bailout.
BEIJING — German Chancellor Angela Merkel meets China's top leaders as Europe financial crisis lingers on, with Beijing increasingly worried about a slowdown in its economy.
