MARKETS / FINANCE

Asian shares jumped on Thursday, buoyed by strong U.S. earnings and increasing global recovery hopes after China's economy grew faster than forecast in the second quarter.

Bank of America Corp is operating under a secret U.S. regulatory sanction that requires it to overhaul its board and address perceived problems with risk and liquidity management, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the situation.

Asian shares jumped on Thursday, buoyed by strong U.S. earnings and global recovery hopes after China's economy grew faster than forecast in the second quarter.

CIT Group Inc, a lender to small and mid-sized businesses, said late Wednesday talks with government agencies have ended and “there is no appreciable likelihood of additional government support being provided over the near term.”

The Obama administration on Wednesday sent Congress legislation that would pry open hedge funds to wider scrutiny, requiring those with more than $30 million under management to register with the government and greatly boost disclosure.

Australian Dollar: After a quiet Asian session yesterday the Aussie dollar came to life overnight, rallying hard from 0.7950 to open this morning back above the 80 cent handle at 0.8035.

Worldwide personal computer shipments in the second quarter took a major plunge of 3 percent, according to worldwide PC tracker on Wednesday.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said on Wednesday he was hopeful a deal with lawmakers to resolve the state's budget crisis by closing a $26.3 billion shortfall was near, perhaps even by the end of the day.

U.S. Federal Reserve officials have modified their unemployment rate predictions as they expect the rate to top 10 percent above the previously forecast value of 9.6 percent.

CIT Group Inc , a major lender to small- and mid-sized U.S. businesses, said on Wednesday that talks with the government to bail out the company had ended, a development that could make bankruptcy likely.

U.S. stocks jumped on Wednesday with the S&P 500 racking up its three best days since March, sparked by results from bellwether Intel Corp that lifted hopes for a rebound in technology spending and improved corporate profitability.

Two key components of the Obama administration's bold plan to reshape U.S. financial regulation came under attack on Wednesday, with lawmakers and lobbyists engaged in a reform debate of immense scope.

U.S. Federal Reserve officials have modified their unemployment rate predictions as they expect the rate to top 10 percent above the previously forecast value of 9.6 percent. In June the nation's unemployment rate climbed to 9.5 percent, a 26-year high. The latest projections have cast a new shadow of doubt on the timing the economy will take to recover.

U.S. stocks racked up strong gains on Wednesday, sparked by results from bellwether Intel Corp that lifted hopes for a rebound in technology spending and improved corporate profitability.

Microsoft Windows 7 pre-orders promotion is soaring high causing several stores to collapse including Microsoft EU e-store.

The Obama administration on Wednesday will send Congress legislation demanding that hedge fund managers submit to new registration and disclosure rules to boost transparency and limit any risks they pose to the financial system, a senior U.S. Treasury official said.

U.S. officials are considering giving CIT Group Inc a temporary loan as part of an aid package to help the lender avoid collapse, a source familiar with regulators' thinking said on Tuesday.

U.S. stocks racked up strong gains on Wednesday, sparked by results from bellwether Intel Corp that lifted hopes for a rebound in technology spending and improved corporate profitability.

The Federal Reserve held fire on additional asset purchases at its meeting last month because of doubts about how financial markets would react to more buying, documents on Wednesday showed.

U.S. stocks racked up strong gains on Wednesday, sparked by results from bellwether Intel Corp that lifted hopes for a rebound in technology spending and improved corporate profitability.

A former Credit Suisse trader facing trial on charges of fraudulently selling $1 billion worth of mortgage-backed auction-rate securities, has been arrested after two months on the run, according to a court document made public on Wednesday.

The long-awaited bottoming of the U.S. housing market may be in sight, but a recovery could take as long as 18 months and will likely be muted, Fitch Ratings said in a report on Wednesday.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said he was reassured during a Gulf visit that the dollar will remain the region's main reserve currency and said he wanted to find ways to reduce oil-price volatility.

The U.S. recession might be loosening its grip, data released on Wednesday suggested, although analysts cautioned recovery was likely to be long and slow.

Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said that he acted appropriately in warning Bank of America Chief Executive Kenneth Lewis that top executives could be ousted if they walked away from a merger with Merrill Lynch.

U.S. regulators on Wednesday filed civil charges for insider trading against 11 people, including a 26-year-old former Goldman Sachs Group Inc investment banking analyst accused of leaking confidential merger information to his brother.

The U.S. Treasury Department wants to find a responsible way to provide government aid to troubled lender CIT Group Inc, Representative Barney Frank said on Wednesday.

Google Voice Mobile App has been released for BlackBerry and Android devices, giving users the convenience of making outgoing calls from a Google Voice number.

Shares of network equipment makers Cisco Systems Inc and Juniper Networks Inc jumped on Wednesday, helped by buy ratings by Citigroup as well as solid results from smaller rival Adtran and chipmaker Intel Corp .