ECONOMY & MARKETS

The recent U.S. housing bubble and resulting severe recession discouraged an entire generation of potential home buyers, who see ownership of a residence as far riskier than preceding generations did, a top U.S. central banker said Friday.

A closely watched index of U.S. consumer sentiment narrowly beat market expectations Friday morning, as the continuing optimism about where the economy is going was reflected in the data.

HSBC Global Connections is bullish on international business and sees some hot ideas for U.S. exporters for 2012 and beyond.

Ford Motor Co. (NYSE:F) opened its fourth automobile assembly plant Friday in China, as it seeks to expand its presence in the country.

Housing, the weakest of the three legs of the stool supporting the U.S. economy, is finally firming up, or so it seems to investors, economists, real estate agents and buildings after a string of heartening reports so far this year.

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a slightly higher open for equities on Friday, with futures for the S&P 500, the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq 100 rising 0.1 percent to 0.2 percent.

Citigroup sold its stake in Housing Development Finance Corp (HDFC) for $1.9 billion, as global banks focus on shoring up their balance sheets to meet stricter capital requirements.

The top after-market NASDAQ gainers Thursday were: Casual Male Retail Group, Internap Network Services, OmniVision Technologies, Iconix Brand Group, AXT Inc, Warner Chilcott, Intuit Inc, Dynamic Materials Corp, Sigma Designs and Clearwire Corp.

The top after-market NASDAQ loser Thursday were: Rubicon Technology, Crocs, Deckers Outdoor Corp, Celldex Therapeutics, Grand Canyon Education, MercadoLibre, PLX Technology, Infinity Pharmaceuticals, UTi Worldwide and Century Aluminum.

The top aftermarket NYSE gainers Thursday were: Kindred Healthcare, Greenhill, Exterran Holdings, Ventas, WPX Energy, Youku, EXCO Resources, CryoLife and Office Depot.

The top aftermarket NYSE gainers Thursday were: Salesforce.com, 3D Systems Corp, American International Group, Magna International, Pacific Drilling, American Equity Investment, Rackspace Hosting and Suntech Power Holdings.

Lloyds, 40 per cent owned by the government after a state bailout during the 2008 financial crisis, reported on Friday an annual loss of 3.54 billion pounds, having made a profit of 281 million in 2010.

Citigroup Inc. exited investment in India's Housing Development Finance Corp. for $1.9 billion resulting in a pre-tax gain to it of $1.1 billion and an after-tax gain of approximately $722 million.

The Bank of America Thursday said that it would no longer provide new mortgages to Fannie Mae following the escalation of disagreement over who should be bearing the cost for defective mortgages.

Shares of American International Group Inc. rose 6 percent in after hours trade on Thursday after it announced that the fourth-quarter profit jumped 77 percent, fueled by a tax benefit and an increase in the value of a stake in Asian insurer AIA Group Ltd .

Procter & Gamble, the consumer products maker, said on Thursday it would eliminate 5,700 jobs over the next year and a half as the company unveiled a plan to cut $10 billion in costs over the next four years.

Sears Holdings Corp posted a large fourth-quarter net loss of $2.40 billion compared with $374 million profit last year resulting in its statement that it would sell or spin off many of its stores to boost liquidity.

Asian shares crept higher Friday as solid U.S. data improved sentiment, but gains may be limited by concerns that rising oil prices could deal a further blow to the fragile euro zone economy and moves to take profits after recent rallies.

Lloyds will bear brunt of writedowns and restructuring costs, as it sells non-core businesses and cuts thousands of jobs.

Japan's Nikkei share average extended its rally and rose to a 6-1/2-month high on Friday above 9,600, heading for its best February performance in two decades.

Asian shares rose Friday as solid U.S. data improved sentiment, but the upside may be capped by concerns that rising oil prices could deal a further blow to the fragile euro zone economy and moves to take profits after recent gains.

General Motors Co. said Thursday it has begun shipping low-emission Chevrolet Volt models to California that qualify for a $1,500 state rebate and allow drivers to travel in the state's carpool lanes.

The United States on Thursday moved to block seven international organized crime leaders from the country's financial markets, including a Japanese yakuza godfather and key members of a gang operating in four continents.

Three economic reports lit a fire Thursday under global markets, sending U.S. stocks and many commodities higher. The S&P 500 stock index briefly topped its April 2011 peak of 1,363.61.

Republican presidential candidates revved up discussion Wednesday night of the 2008 and 2009 auto bailouts of General Motors Co. and Chrysler Group LLC during the 20th, and perhaps final, Republican debate in Arizona.

At least one large financial institution has approached the Federal Reserve Bank of New York with an offer to buy out the remaining mortgage-backed toxic waste bonds it received from AIG as collateral for a $19.5 billion bailout in 2008, according to Bloomberg News, as banks are looking to profit from what many see as an incipient turnaround in the U.S. housing market.

Geely Holdings Group Co. said Wednesday it will assemble cars for sale this year in Egypt and North Africa, a move that signals a shift to emerging markets as China's economy slows and auto makers face mounting competition in Western markets.

The euro zone area will fall back into recession this year due to the contracting economies of Greece, Italy and Spain, the administrative arm of the European Union said Thursday, abandoning its earlier prediction that recession will be avoided.

The BSE Sensex fell for a second consecutive day on Thursday as investors took profits on expiry of monthly derivatives amid concerns about high oil prices.