U.S. stocks fell on Thursday led by losses in the technology sector and on worries that China's rapid growth may lead to more aggressive measures to tackle inflation.
Mauritius private equity group Ciel Capital plans to venture into Kenya, east Africa's biggest economy, in the first half and is in talks with key players in various sectors, a senior partner said.
South African utility Eskom said on Thursday a 10-year, $1.75 billion international bond launched this week with a 5.75 percent coupon was more than 2-1/2 times oversubscribed.
Manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia area continues to expand in January with all broad indicators remaining positive and supported by a pickup in new orders and employment, the Philadelphia Fed's survey showed on Thursday.
PC giant Hewlett-Packard Co (HPQ) is preparing to launch another probe into the circumstances that led to the departure of former Chief Executive Mark Hurd, according to a recent court filing.
Los Angeles city administrative office's (CAO) reporting of job creation and retention numbers under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds could be very misleading, said Wendy Greuel, LA city controller.
Gold fell like a stone on Thursday, following three days of gains, and ignored a recovery in the euro as investment demand waned. Spot gold fell over $20 to $1,348.55 an ounce by 1426 GMT.
Futures on major U.S. indices pared earlier losses and point to modestly lower opening on Thursday after the Department of Labor reported that weekly jobless claims fell sharply last week.
The top pre-market NASDAQ stock market gainers are: Radvision, Cytori Therapeutics, Allos Therapeutics, Pharmaceutical Product Development, ICAgen, and eBay. The top pre-market NASDAQ stock market losers are: MannKind, F5 Networks, Riverbed Technology, Isle of Capri Casinos, and Skyworks Solutions.
The companies that reported earnings before the markets open on Thursday are: Morgan Stanley, Union Pacific, UnitedHealth Group Inc., Johnson Controls, Parker Hannifin, Southwest Airlines, Rockwell Collins and Huntington Bancshares.
UK manufacturing recovery is well on track, driven primarily by export orders, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said on Thursday.
China's economy recorded a 10.3 percent growth in 2010, coming back strongly from the global crisis, data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Thursday showed.
The companies which are expected to see active trade on Thursday are Google, Morgan Stanley, eBay, Seagate Technology, Advanced Micro Devices, UnitedHealth Group, Southwest Airlines and Rockwell Collins.
Amazon.com said it agreed to acquire the remaining shares in DVD rental firm Lovefilm International Limited. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Futures on major U.S. indices point to a lower opening on Thursday ahead of economic data, including weekly jobless claims and existing home sales.
The top after-market NASDAQ stock market gainers are: Orthovita, Allos Therapeutics, ICAgen, Biodel, and eBay. The top after-market NASDAQ stock market losers are: MannKind, F5 Networks, Westell Technologies, Internap Network Services, and Riverbed Technology.
The top after-market NYSE gainers on Wednesday are: Dillard's, Geo Group, Tetra Technologies, Lee Enterprises, Moneygram International, Equal Energy, Horizon Lines, Main Street Capital, Strategic Hotels & Resorts and American Oriental Bioengineering.
Private-sector lender Yes Bank posted a 51.6 percent rise in quarterly net profit in Oct-Dec, as both advances and deposits rose.
Japanese Economics Minister said on Thursday China probably has sailed past Japan to emerge as the second biggest economy in the world after the United States, according to a Reuters report.
SKS Microfinance shares rose 13 percent on Thursday, a day after a panel appointed by the Reserve Bank submitted guidelines for the microfinance sector, providing clarity for the country's embattled industry.
Food inflation eased for the second straight week in January, tracking lower fruit and vegetable prices, but accelerating headline inflation in December is likely to put pressure on the Reserve Bank to raise rates at policy review on Jan. 25
China's PICC Group, the country's top non-life insurer, plans to list within five years and double the group's revenue in that period with total assets exceeding 1.5 trillion yuan, a newspaper reported on Thursday.
China will auction eight shale gas exploration blocks in the first quarter of this year, an expanded plan for China's first such auction, which was originally expected in November, a ministry official said on Thursday.
General Electric Co chief executive Jeffrey Immelt said on Wednesday he wants the United States and China to open their borders for truly free trade between the world's top two economies, rather than hiding behind protectionist walls.
Stocks sold off as disappointing results from Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) dragged down the financial services sector, as the indices endured their worst one-day price drop since November.
“Whether you’re very bullish or bearish, you should own some oil or energy equities,” said Marc Faber, publisher of the Gloom, Boom, and Doom report.
The equity markets of mature economies will outperform those of the emerging markets this year, said Marc Faber, publisher of the Gloom, Boom, and Doom report.
Barclays Bank of Kenya, majority-owned by British lender Barclays, is cutting 200 management-level staff, or about 5 percent of its workforce, to cut costs by an unspecified amount.
South Africa's retail sales growth expanded more than expected in November as consumer demand improved, further reducing lingering hopes that the central bank might cut its key repo rate on Thursday.
Cash-rich EFG-Hermes, Egypt's biggest investment bank, said it was seeking more acquisitions after buying a 65 percent stake in Lebanon's Credit Libanais late last year.
