CHINA

Gold jumps to new record highs over $1480 US dollar per ounce on Friday as Asian demand is unstoppable. Silver is holding near its earlier 31-year high at $42.64.

Prices to Buy Silver and gold jumped at the start of Asian trade on Friday, hitting new 31-year and all-time Dollar records respectively, as Beijing reported a surge in China's growth and inflation rates.

Mattel Inc beat quarterly revenue expectations on strong demand for its mainstay Barbie dolls, and its shares rose 3 percent.

Stock index futures were little changed on Friday after Bank of America Corp said mortgage-related costs added to a drop in profit, giving investors more reason to be cautious about earnings.

China's turbo-charged growth eased just a touch in the first quarter, while its inflation jumped to a 32-month high, putting pressure on the government to do more to rein in prices and keep the economy on an even keel.

Stock index futures fell slightly on Friday after Bank of America Corp reported a sharp drop in earnings, adding to investors' caution shortly after the start of the earnings season.

China and India reported higher-than-expected inflation readings on Friday, giving fresh ammunition to central bankers and investors alike who are worried about mounting price pressures in the global economy.

Stock index futures pointed to a lower open for Wall Street on Friday, with futures for the S&P 500, the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq all down around 0.2 percent by 0819 GMT.

South African President Jacob Zuma on Friday added his voice to criticism of the United States for pursuing loose policies that he said are putting the world economy at risk.

Gold jumped to another record high on Friday after the dollar fell to its lowest since late 2009 against a basket of major currencies, taking silver to a 31-year high, while inflation pressures in China also helped lift bullion's appeal.

Faced with an uneven world recovery and uncertain outlook, finance leaders were hoping on Friday to flesh out a plan to build a global economy less prone to the booms and busts of recent decades.

China's annual gross domestic product growth eased ever so slightly in the first quarter of 2011 to 9.7 percent from 9.8 percent in the previous quarter, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Friday.

Behind every story of economic / societal development are the workers who made them happen. It was true for ancient societies like China and true for the United States in the early 20th century. Now, it's true for booming emerging market economies like China and India.

Best Buy Co Inc said it will boost its Web presence, shrink some larger stores and open more of its smaller U.S. stores to try to win back market share from the likes of Amazon.com Inc and Wal-Mart Stores.

As America and China grow more economically and financially intertwined, the two nations have also stepped up spying on each other. Today, most of that is done electronically, with computers rather than listening devices in chandeliers or human moles in tuxedos.

Best Buy Co Inc plans to boost its Web presence and open a greater number of small stores in the United States targeting mobile customers in an effort to win back market share from the likes of Amazon.com Inc and Wal-Mart Stores Inc.

Stocks slipped on Thursday as Goldman Sachs pulled financials lower and an unexpected rise in jobless claims added to bearish sentiment that put the S&P on track for its fifth day of losses in six.

Best Buy plans to boost its Web presence and open a greater number of small stores in the United States targeting mobile customers in an effort to win back market share from the likes of Amazon and Wal-Mart.

The interbank silver market [in Asia] is dysfunctional says one Hong Kong dealer's note. Liquidity is getting worse while the price action is getting more exaggerated as a result.

Wall Street stocks were set for a lower open on Thursday as worries about higher inflation and signs of job market weakness kept investors cautious.

Russian billionaire Yuri Milner, a venture capitalist and social networking investor who has invested hundreds of millions of dollars in Facebook, Groupon and Zynga, is opening an office in Hong Kong, according to a source familiar with the matter.