AP - President Barack Obama delayed next week's Asian trip on Friday to seize on suddenly improved prospects for his sweeping health care legislation, as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi forecast final passage of the overhaul in days.

AP - Two suicide bombers killed 43 people in near-simultaneous blasts Friday, the fourth major attack in Pakistan this week and a clear sign that militants have the power to strike targets despite months of army offensives and U.S. missile strikes.

AP - The Iraqi prime minister's bloc said Friday it has started laying the groundwork to form a coalition government, signaling growing confidence after preliminary election results showed it winning in at least three provinces in the southern Shiite heartland.

AP - Retail sales posted a surprising increase in February as consumers did not let major snowstorms stop them from racking up purchases. The advance, the biggest since November, provided hope that the recovery from the Great Recession is gaining momentum.

AP - A federal judge says he will hold a hearing in a week to let people weigh in on a settlement that would pay up to $657 million to people who got sick after toiling in the ruins of the World Trade Center.

AP - A lesbian student who wanted to take her girlfriend to her senior prom is asking a federal judge to force her Mississippi school district to reinstate the dance it canceled.

AP - Apple is accepting pre-orders for the iPad, its new touch-screen gadget for reading books, watching video and surfing the Web.

AP - Authorities said Friday they had recovered four prescription drug bottles bearing the name of actor Corey Haim but found nothing illegal while investigating his death.

AP - The NBA has signed off on Michael Jordan's bid to buy the Charlotte Bobcats, and commissioner David Stern expects the league's board of governors to approve the $275 million purchase by the end of next week.

Reuters - Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki had a narrow lead over rival Shi'ites, partial results in Iraq's tight election race showed on Friday, but a secularist challenger remained far ahead in minority Sunni areas.

Reuters - President Barack Obama is delaying his trip to Indonesia and Australia next week to stay home and focus on his final push for a healthcare overhaul, White House officials said on Friday.

Reuters - San Francisco Federal Reserve President Janet Yellen is a leading contender to be nominated as vice chairman of the Federal Reserve, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said on Friday.

Reuters - The United States should not make a political issue out of the yuan, a Chinese central banker said on Friday, as the two countries lurched toward a potential bust-up over Beijing's currency regime.

Reuters - Israeli forces sealed off the West Bank and massed riot squads around Jerusalem's Old City and Arab neighborhoods during Muslim weekly prayers on Friday, facing down Palestinian anger over Jewish settlement expansion.

Reuters - In the latest blow to Toyota Motor Corp, a Southern California prosecutor filed the first consumer protection lawsuit against the automaker, claiming it had engaged in "fraud" by hiding evidence of dangerous vehicle defects.

AFP - Twin suicide attacks seconds apart targeted the Pakistani military Friday, killing up to 45 people in the second attack to hit security forces in the country's cultural capital this week.

AFP - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki took a slender lead over his rivals on Friday, preliminary results from the country's general election showed, as opposition blocs alleged blatant fraud.