Black Friday, the pinnacle of the U.S. shopping year, comes on a Thursday this year. And even earlier.

Desperate for consumer bucks, U.S. chain stores, some fighting for survival, are upping the ante this holiday shopping season with cutthroat discounts offered earlier than ever, and ever-longer opening hours.

The complaints started getting loud almost immediately after U.S. regulators said they were considering allowing cell phone use on airplanes.

In petitions, on social media and in press releases, the grumbling began within hours after the Federal Communications Commission said the question would be discussed at a December 12 meeting.

The European Central Bank said on Friday it is suspending early repayments by banks of the emergency funds they borrowed at the height of the eurozone crisis.

The move is aimed at keeping the markets flush with liquidity during the turn of the year.

Taiwan's Foxconn, the maker of iPhones, iPads and other electronics in China, said Thursday it would invest $40 million in the United States to ramp up manufacturing of high-end products.

The world's largest contract electronics maker will create around 500 jobs in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania as it puts $30 million into a plant to build precision tools, cables for electric cars and other advanced technologies, officials from the company and the state government said.

International credit rating agency Moody's warned Thursday that Spain's banks still face significant challenges despite nearly completing a 41-billion-euro ($55 billion) eurozone-financed bailout.

Spain announced this month it would emerge from the rescue program in January without seeking further financial aid from the European Stability Mechanism safety net.

Rules against making cellphone calls during airline flights are "outdated," and it's time to change them, federal regulators said Thursday, drawing immediate howls of protest from flight attendants, airline officials and others.

Tom Wheeler, the new chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, said in a statement that the commission was proposing greater in-flight access to mobile broadband. The proposal will be considered at the commission's Dec. 12 meeting.

Shares in Japanese electronics maker Sharp soared more than eight percent Friday on reports it was boosting production of smartphone screens bound for China, after ending part of a troubled alliance with Taiwan's Hon Hai.

Investors cheered news that the display maker was going to ramp up output of its energy-efficient IGZO panels to go in smartphones produced by Chinese telecoms giant ZTE.

The Spanish government will ease its austerity reforms over the coming two years as the economy appears to be emerging from recession, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said on Thursday.

"I think we are now in a position to say that there will not be any cutbacks as big as the ones we have adopted over the past two years," Rajoy said in an interview on national radio to mark the midpoint of his mandate.

Business activity in the 17-nation eurozone slowed again in November, adding to concerns that overall growth is softening as the bloc struggles out of recession, a key survey showed on Thursday.

Markit Economics said its Eurozone Composite Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for November fell to 51.5 points from 51.9 points in October, hitting a three-month low,

Japan's central bank has opted to keep its ultra-loose monetary policy in place, saying the economy is on track for a "moderate recovery" despite slowing growth in the past quarter.

The Bank of Japan ended a two-day policy meeting without any moves to step up bond purchases aimed at pumping some 60 trillion yen to 70 trillion yen ($600 billion to $700 billion) a year into the world's third-largest economy.