MARKETS / FINANCE

Sales of newly built homes fell for a fourth straight month to a record low in February, but another rise in new orders for durable goods offered assurance the economic recovery was on course.

The Federal Reserve has not been clear enough about how it intends to unwind its unprecedented monetary easing campaign, and some of the tools it expects to use may not work, monetary experts will tell Congress on Thursday.

The total dollar amount of settlements of U.S. class-action securities lawsuits rose 39 percent in 2009 and could rise further this year as cases stemming from the financial crisis wind on.

Despite several attempts to recapture the 92 cent level in Asia yesterday the Aussie dollar retreated and opens this morning back below 91 cents on technical support at 0.9080.

Internet domain company GoDaddy.com said it planned to stop registering domain names in China, joining Google Inc in protesting cyber attacks and censorship in that country.

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Under pressure from Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley, Bank of America Corp. on Wednesday said it would offer about $3 billion in loan forgiveness to about 45,000 troubled homeowners.

Stocks fell on Wednesday as Portugal's credit rating downgrade and a weak Treasury note auction stirred concerns about sovereign debt.

The head of Clearwire Corp said he envisions incompatible network technologies WiMax and Long Term Evolution eventually converging to form a common standard for high-speed wireless services.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc was sued for alleged bias by a former vice president, who said the Wall Street bank consigned her to a mommy track that led to her firing while she was on maternity leave.

Stocks fell on Wednesday, threatening to end a string of gains, after Fitch Ratings cut Portugal's credit rating on deficit concerns in the latest sign of worsening sovereign debt problems in Europe.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc was sued for alleged bias by a former vice president, who said the Wall Street bank consigned her to a mommy-track that led to her firing while she was on maternity leave.

Sales of newly built U.S. homes fell for a fourth straight month to a record low in February, but another rise in new orders for durable goods offered assurance that the economic recovery was on course.

World number three PC maker Dell expects revenues in China, its second largest market, to near $5 billion this year, chief executive Michael Dell said after launching a services business in the country.

U.S. stocks slipped on Wednesday after Portugal's credit rating was cut on deficit concerns, prompting a sell-off after the recent rally.

California's economy faces yet more hardship this year marked by high unemployment as its labor market struggles to recover from steep job losses, the UCLA Anderson forecast unit said on Wednesday.

Cereal maker General Mills Inc forecast full-year earnings below Wall Street expectations on Wednesday and may face more competition as consumers grow more willing to dine out, sending its shares lower.

U.S. financial reform should include some form of the Volcker rule, which would limit large financial firms' ability to engage in speculative trading, Thomas Hoenig, president of the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank said on Wednesday.

Two days after shutting its Chinese portal over censorship, Google Inc said it plans to phase out deals to provide filtered search services to other online or mobile firms in China.

Fitch Ratings cut Portugal's sovereign credit rating by one notch to AA- on Wednesday, citing budgetary underperformance in 2009 and warning that a similar outcome this year and next could cause another downgrade.

Stocks fell on Wednesday after Portugal's credit rating was downgraded on budget concerns, prompting investors to pull back after recent gains.

* COMEX April GCJ0 down $12.20 at $1,091.50 an ounce at 9:48 a.m. EDT (1348 GMT). * Ranged $1,106 to $1,087.80 - lowest since Feb. 12. * Gold pressured as dollar jumped over 1 percent against the euro and a basket of currencies .DXY. [USD/] * Weak euro, losses in equities markets drag gold lower - Peter Buchanan, senior economist at CIBC World Markets. * U.S. currency extends gains after data showed new orders for durable goods rose for third straight month in February.

Thomas Hoenig, president of the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank, said on Wednesday U.S. financial reform should include some form of the Volcker rule, which would limit large financial firms' ability to engage in speculative trading.

BRUSSELS, March 24 (Reuters) - European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso made a new call on Wednesday for countries using the euro to create a safety net to help Greece if it needs financial assistance.

Chinese imports of refined copper increased by 12% in February, 2010 over a month earlier as the inbound shipments kept rising on the back of improved demand and steadily falling scrap supplies. Analsts believed that copper prices may get a boost on the increased imports by China.

Gold refineries are facing a strange problem in India now. There is no yellow metal for them to process now. When the gold boom was at its peak in 2008 and 2009, the quantity of scrap gold used to come to the market was very high and many refiners had increased the capacity to process the scrap gold.

Gold prices look well supported at $1100 and will hit its record high of $1,227 by mid-year and $1500 by year-end, according to Jeffrey Nichols, precious metals economist and Senior Economic Advisor to Rosland Capital.. However, the market will experience continued volatility with big swings in both direction around an upward trend this year and beyond, he added.

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At a time, when gold investments have just become sluggish in yielding returns over past few months, silver is now taking the driver's seat to take the bullion traders on a ride. After touching its historical high of over USD 1200 per ounce in late November and early December 2009, gold has remained range-bound between USD 1050 to USD 1150 per ounce, giving a stagnant feeling to the investors, whereas silver has remained more volatile compare to gold during the period. The grey metal has provide...