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Federal agents entered the Houston office of Stanford Financial Group on Tuesday, according to a Reuters eyewitness on the scene.

Economists and other finance experts say some U.S. banks are insolvent, adding that government may need to take a bigger role allow banks to resume the lending needed to improve the economy, according to a report from the New York Times.

The New York Times and Germany's ZDF television reported on Wednesday documents have surfaced in Egypt showing the world's most-wanted Nazi war criminal, Aribert Heim, died in Cairo in 1992.

New York Gov. David A. Paterson has selected Republican Kirsten Gillibrand, 42, to occupy the seat vacated by Hillary Rodham Clinton, as New York Senator, the New York Times reported early Friday.

In a surprising move, Caroline Kennedy stepped out of the race to replace Hillary Rodham Clinton in the U.S. Senate.

U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown unveiled a second bailout for the British financial system on Monday to revive lending in the economy.

Producers of Speed-the-Plow filed a grievance with Actors' Equity Association against actor Jeremy Piven for abruptly leaving the Broadway show citing health concerns, reported The New York Times.

President-elect Barack Obama's mother in law will be living with the first family in the White House after he takes office.

NEW YORK - President-elect Barack Obama and Congressional Democrats are considering a major expansion of government-assisted health care insurance and unemployment benefits as part of a two-year economic recovery program, The New York Times reported in its Sunday editions.

WASHINGTON - Both President-elect Barack Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden will huddle with Democratic and Republican congressional leaders on Monday to try to advance a huge economic stimulus bill that Obama hopes can be enacted quickly, despite Republican reservations.

Gold futures edged lower on Friday but managed to close the week with a gain of almost 4 percent as oil prices continued to soar and weakness in the U.S. dollar boosted the demand for a hedge against inflation.

U.S. newspaper circulation fell sharply in the six months leading through March, with the exception of the two largest national dailies, USA Today and The Wall Street Journal, as more readers turn to online sites to read the latest news.

By Bill Bonner Never did God give man such a sunny day that the authorities couldn't make it rain, writes Bill Bonner in The Daily Reckoning...As near as we can tell, nature favored Argen...

By Jon Nadler Gold maintained a resilient tone in Asian trading overnight, oscillating between $910 and $920 as stock markets gained a bit on investor confidence.Support came from a $1 ris...

Music artist Jay-Z is near to sign a contract with Live Nation for $150 million dollars, possibly one of the largest contracts awarded to a musician, reports said.

Jay Leno has nearly two years left on the clock at The Tonight Show on NBC, but rival networks and at least one TV studio are said to be quietly, unofficially, courting the comedian with offers to keep him on the late-night circuit.

Apple iPhones are being smuggled into China through word-of-mouth networks, helping to deal a blow to Apple's efforts to create official distribution channels for its popular devices, according to a report.

Time Warner Inc.'s HBO will make its content available on the internet where subscribers can download movies and television shows for free, according to news reports.

Stocks dropped on Friday as slowing consumer spending and write-downs in the financial sector sent the Dow Jones into triple digit losses. With earnings expected in coming weeks, investors are increasingly worried about how major banks and brokerages have fared in the most recent quarter after suffering losses related sub-prime mortgages.

For Johnny Depp, there are films and there are Tim Burton films. The Hollywood actor has teamed up with director Burton for the sixth time in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, a blood-spattered adaptation of Stephen Sondheim's musical that has impressed the critics.

Pakistan will not allow any country to conduct military operations on its territory, officials said on Monday, rejecting a report that said the United States was considering authorizing its forces to act in Pakistan. The New York Times said on Sunday the U.S. government was considering expanding the authority of the CIA and the military to conduct far more aggressive covert operations in Pakistan....

Apple co-founder and CEO Steve Jobs has been named as the most powerful businessman by Fortune magazine in a list which also features Lakshmi Mittal, Indra Nooyi and Ratan Tata.

The State Department's top investigator and his brother will both be asked to testify to a committee of Congress about the brother's link to the Blackwater security firm, the committee announced on Friday.

Former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto hopes to forge an alliance with Islamists and other opposition parties to launch a campaign to force military president Pervez Musharraf from power.

Merrill Lynch is resorting to its trademark bull logo to convince the world it is in good shape, despite taking its biggest quarterly loss ever.

S&P 500 and Dow industrials were little changed and the Nasdaq fell on Monday as investors looked for bargains in financial shares, while a big drop in oil prices weighed on major energy company shares.

Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Plosser, who indicated a reluctance to lower rates at the Fed's last rate-setting meeting, said it would take a drastic fall in economic growth for him to support another rate cut.

Citigroup Inc Chief Executive Charles Prince plans to resign this weekend, the Wall Street Journal said, as the widening subprime mortgage crisis deals a final blow to a reign long under attack. The largest U.S. bank by assets plans to hold an emergency board meeting on Sunday, at which Prince will step down, the newspaper said on Friday, citing people familiar with the situation.

A fox-like alien and his robot sidekick on a mission to save the galaxy could also help save sales of Sony's PlayStation 3, which has struggled to find a game so good that it gives people reason to buy the pricey console.