BUSINESS

Investors feel that there is an urgent need to take measures for enhancing the growth potential of Japan’s economy.

Asian markets rose in the week amid the hope that the policymakers in Japan and China would announce stimulus measures.

The top after-market NYSE gainers Friday were Black Hills Corp, Chico's FAS, Covidien, Oxford Resource Partners and Box Ships Inc. The top after-market NYSE losers were Jacobs Engineering Group, Veolia Environnement, Tetra Technologies, D.R. Horton and LifeLock Inc.

S&P said it believes the same conditions that led it to strip the U.S. of its prized AAA rating in August of last year continue to exist.

The U.S. Navy awarded submarine contracts worth up to $4.5 billion to General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE: GD) and Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc (NYSE: HII).

The third-year quarterback has had an odd tenure with New York.

An imminent dockworkers' strike of East and Gulf coast ports has been delayed for 30 days. The two sides resolved their most contentious issue.

The euro-zone economy likely contracted further in the fourth quarter and slid deeper into recession.

Gold buying by the world's central banks accelerated in 2012, extending to four years the pattern of central banks being net gold buyers.

Three New Jersey police officers were shot early on Friday at their police station, and one was in surgery for his wounds, a hospital official said.

Newly increased government subsidies will take effect in 2013 -- helping Beijing residents counter the increasingly expensive cost of living.

Marvell Technology Group, General Electric, Nokia Corp, Siemens AG, Cisco Systems, Apple and ArcelorMittal are among the companies whose shares are moving in pre-market trading Friday.

U.S. stock index futures point to a flat open on Friday ahead of the National Association of Realtors' Pending Home Sales Index report.

Ratan Tata, who transformed Tata Group into a $100-billion worth global business group, is stepping down as its chairman.

The top after-market NYSE gainers Thursday were Media General, Genco Shipping & Trading, Tempur-pedic International, EXCO Resources and EPAM Systems, Inc. The top after-market NYSE losers were M/I Homes, Stage Stores, Inc., Kronos Worldwide, NGL Energy Partners and Navistar International Corp.

South Korea’s industrial output rose in November compared to that in the previous month.

The yen hit its lowest level in more than two years Friday, helping lift Japanese stocks to a 21-month high.

While France weathered the 2008 financial and subsequent euro zone crises relatively well, its recovery has been sluggish.

An old-fashioned Minnesota soda fountain was threatened with a $500 fine if it doesn’t stop selling candy cigarettes.

U.S. port operators and maritime shipping companies are bracing for a longshoremen's strike of facilities from Massachusetts to Texas.

Worries about the fiscal cliff weighed on consumer sentiment in December.

Single-family home sales climb 4.4 percent in November, highest rate in two and a half years.

A less volatile measure of initial jobless claims fell to its lowest level since the early days of the 2007-09 recession.

Among the top fines this year: sanctions-busting, deceiving the world on a benchmark interest rate, and even banking for drug lords.

From a potential port strike, to the massacre of South African striking miners, 2012 saw tensions rise between workers and companies.

Sales of electronics, clothing, jewelry and home goods in the two months to Christmas increased by a tad 0.7 percent.

Semiconductor Manufacturing, Marvell Technology Group, Discover Financial Services, Alcatel Lucent, Seadrill Ltd, BHP Billiton, Research In Motion and Ford Motor are among the companies whose shares are moving in pre-market trading Thursday.

The U.S. stock index futures pointed to a flat open Thursday ahead of the Department of Labor's weekly jobless claims data.

Crude oil prices slightly declined and hovered below $91 a barrel during the Asian trading hours Thursday as traders remained concerned about the fiscal cliff negotiations.