UNITED STATES

Optimism about the state of the world economy lifted stocks on Tuesday as well as boosting the dollar and keeping oil prices at a near 27-month peak.

Stock index futures pointed to a slightly higher open on Wall Street on Tuesday, with futures for the S&P 500 up 0.08 percent, Dow Jones futures up 0.09 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.02 percent at 0921 GMT (4:21 a.m. ET).

The number of U.S. consumers who filed for bankruptcy protection in 2010 was the highest in five years, and the figure could rise as Americans struggle with excess debt in an uncertain economy, a report issued Monday said.

Stocks began 2011 with a bang – equities leaped, powered by some strong manufacturing data in the U.S. and Europe and by a generally bullish outlook for the new year.

U.S. stocks just posted back-to-back years of strong gains, yet the small U.S. investor largely remained a spectator. Now financial advisers say investors, many of whom rode out the financial crisis in cash and bonds, are slowly regaining confidence.

The 2008 and 2009 bailout of the U.S. auto industry would not have taken place if Congress had been more specific in how then President George W. Bush could spend the money it gave him, a lawmaker tasked with government oversight said on Sunday.

Top Senate Democrats have vowed to block a wholesale repeal of the health care reform law passed earlier this year, saying millions of U.S. senior citizens would face the prospect of paying more for prescription drugs if the repeal took place.

Bill Gross of PIMCO is concerned about rising interest rates and the decline of the U.S. dollar.

To the victor go the spoils. The GOP retook the House of Representatives in the November elections and, on Wednesday, they will officially take control, with each House member – all 242 Republicans and 193 Democrats -- taking the oath of office and Rep. John Boehner, R-OH, being sworn in as Speaker.

Facebook has raised $500 million from Goldman Sachs and Russian Internet investment group Digital Sky Technologies in a deal valuing the social networking site at $50 billion, the New York Times reported citing people involved in the transaction.

A federal magistrate refused to grant bail on Monday to a California woman charged with leaking inside information about technology companies.

Steven Rattner, former head of the U.S. government's Automotive Task Force, has agreed to pay $10 million in restitution to settle kickback allegations involving the roughly $132.8 billion New York State Common Retirement Fund and resolves the two lawsuits filed by the Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo.

The number of U.S. consumers who filed for bankruptcy protection in 2010 was the highest in five years, and the figure could rise as Americans struggle with excess debt in an uncertain economy, a report issued Monday said.

The U.S. Government had doubts that the German Free Democratic Party would be a reliable partner in combating terrorism on the Internet, according to cables made public by Wikileaks, and after the elections some officials felt those doubts were vindicated

Economic activity in the U.S. manufacturing sector continued to grow for the 17th consecutive month during December, according to a survey report on Monday.

US stocks advanced in early trade on Monday, the first trading day of 2011, on speculation that the economic recovery will continue after stocks ended with double digit gains in the previous year.

Wall Street stocks surged more than 1 percent as the new trading year kicked off on Monday and the rally of late 2010 resumed on encouraging signs about the economic outlook and a seasonal effect.

The U.S. real estate market is improving, at least for foreign investment dollars, according to the Association for Foreign Investment in Real Estate, or AFIRE.

Robert W. Baird & Co. CEO Paul Purcell speaks to IBTimes about his firm's performance during the financial crisis, navigating the financial services industry after the crisis, and the advantages of being a privately-held financial services firm.

U.S. manufacturing grew at its fastest pace in seven months in December, extending a recent run of encouraging economic data and suggesting that expansion of the world's biggest economy will accelerate in 2011.

Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) is preparing for a potential onslaught of embarrassing and perhaps damaging information about the bank from Julian Assange’s WikiLeaks, according to a report in the New York Times.