MARKETS / FINANCE

The S&P 500 index was little changed on Wednesday as investors shrugged off warnings about further weakness in the euro from a lack of leadership in tackling the euro zone debt crisis.

The president of the Chicago Federal Reserve Bank said on Wednesday that a more vibrant housing market will be necessary to boost home prices and provide a lift to the overall economy.

The U.S. futures regulator on Wednesday adopted further protections for customer collateral posted in swap trades, an area of heightened importance as the search continues for hundreds of millions of dollars in missing MF Global customer money.

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U.S. stocks edged lower on Wednesday after hitting a five-month high in the prior session as a warning about further weakness in the euro kept investors jittery.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel praised Italy's new government on Wednesday for the speed with which it has launched reforms, prompting Prime Minister Mario Monti to say it was important for markets also to recognize Italian economic policy progress soon.

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The U.S. Federal Reserve should stick to its super-easy monetary policy to fight unemployment and spur a painstakingly slow economic recovery, even if doing so pushes inflation temporarily higher, a top Fed official said on Wednesday.

The European Central Bank should ramp up its buying of troubled euro zone debt to support Italy and prevent a cataclysmic collapse of the euro, David Riley, the head of sovereign ratings for Fitch, said on Wednesday.

Gold rose for a second day on Wednesday, hitting its highest in a month, as evidence of strong demand from major consumerChina helped boost the price above a key technical level, and offset the impact of a softer euro.

Ore grades will be approximately 6 percent lower in 2012 than in 2011 due to mine sequencing.

Switzerland might not name a permanent successor to Philipp Hildebrand as central bank chairman for several months, the country's finance minister said on Wednesday, adding she had full confidence in the bank's interim head.

Fannie Mae Chief Executive Michael Williams said on Tuesday he was stepping down from the government-controlled mortgage firm, which is at the center of a fight over how to reduce foreclosures.

On Dubai's busiest thoroughfare, Sheikh Zayed Road, the white, orange and blue shop front of Sharjah Islamic Bank's gleaming new branch stands out among the soaring apartment blocks, furniture shops and car dealerships that mirror the Gulf state's growing wealth.

A pullback in stocks was expected at the open on Wednesday, a day after the Dow and S&P 500 hit five-month highs, with pressure on the euro testing the recent view that U.S. equities were decoupling from Europe.

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn on Wednesday dropped his $1.73 billion hostile bid for Commercial Metals Co after failing to pick up support among the metal company's other shareholders.

Applications for U.S. home mortgages rose in the first week of the year as demand for both purchases and refinancing perked up, an industry group said on Wednesday.

Twinkies and Wonder Bread maker Hostess Brands Inc filed for bankruptcy protection for the second time in less than three years, after failing to reach an agreement with workers on pension and health benefits.

Italian market watchdog Consob is looking into two contradictory statements made by BlackRock Inc , the world's largest asset manager, over its stake in UniCredit SpA , a source close to Consob told Reuters on Wednesday.

Brigus Gold Corp. said Wednesday exploratory drilling in Ontario will result in increased resource estimates of its Black Fox Complex.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti said on Wednesday that Europe must recognize the way in which the Italian public had agreed to painful austerity measures to cut its debt.

Stock index futures dipped on Wednesday, a day after major indexes hit a five-month high, with pressure on the euro testing the recent view that the U.S. market was decoupling from Europe.

Gold traders in India, the world's biggest buyer of bullion, stepped up buying for the upcoming wedding season, as gold prices stayed near the week's trough, giving silver a boost.

Freeport McMoRan Gold & Copper Inc's Indonesia's unit said on Wednesday it continued to ramp up production at its Grasberg mine where workers on Tuesday halted a gradual return at the end of a three-month strike.

The abrupt exit of Jasjit Bhattal, the highest-ranking ex-Lehman executive at Nomura Holdings, marks a crucial juncture for Japan's top brokerage as it decides whether to replace him with an experienced global banker to foster expansion, or with an in-house local to focus on the home market.

The number of Internet users in China have crossed the half billion mark, reaching 505 million users at the end of November last year, the China Internet Network Information Center reported.

Stock index futures pointed to a slightly higher opening on Wall Street with futures for the S&P 500 up 0.1 percent, Dow Jones futures up 0.1 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures flat at 1020 GMT.

A new EU fiscal treaty is set to include an escape clause that allows the suspension of a balanced-budget rule during a period of economic downturn or other exceptional event, according to a draft of the document obtained by Reuters on Wednesday.

Strong demand from China and India as well as short covering Wednesday extended a gold price rally that has lifted the yellow metal six percent since the end of last month.