WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump on Thursday said General Motors Co's decision to shift much of its focus to electric vehicles will not succeed, and he asserted a new trade deal will make it harder for the company to move work to other countries.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The S&P 500 finished little changed after a volatile session on Thursday, as investors continued to be spooked by uncertainty on both domestic and international issues, driving up bids for defensive shares while financials and consumer discretionary stocks were the biggest drags.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Declining global economic growth rates will boost defensive stocks and could lead to opportunities in emerging market currencies and mortgage bonds in the year ahead, asset manager Pacific Investment Management Co (Pimco) said in its 2019 outlook on Thursday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. federal government ran a $205 billion deficit in November, according to data released on Thursday by the Treasury Department.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of Americans filing applications for jobless benefits tumbled to near a 49-year low last week, which could ease concerns about a slowdown in the labor market and economy.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said on Thursday he expects the White House to approve a second tranche of aid payments to farmers hurt by ongoing trade disputes, despite new Chinese purchases of soybeans.

(Reuters) - New vehicle sales in the United States are expected to drop next year as higher interest rates and rising prices could prompt customers to hold off their car-buying plans, the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) said on Thursday.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - China's meager first purchase of U.S. soybeans since its trade war with the United States began in July disappointed farmers, grain traders and a U.S. government official hoping for larger sales to lift slumping prices and absorb a huge surplus across the U.S. farm belt, they said on Thursday.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union leaders gave themselves nearly a year on Thursday to agree a new long-term budget for the bloc, confirming that hopes of an accord before elections to the EU parliament in May are not realistic.