IBT Staff Reporter

Stock index futures were little changed on Friday as a retreat in commodity prices weighed on natural resource shares after the U.S. dollar rebounded.

Stock index futures were little changed on Friday as a retreat in commodity prices weighed on natural resource shares after the U.S. dollar rebounded.

WASHINGTON - Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President Richard Fisher speaks before the CATO Institute 27th Annual Monetary Policy Conference: Restoring Global Financial Stability, 1645 EST/2145 GMT. Speech topic, audience/media Q&As TBA.

Stock futures point to a mixed start on Friday for U.S. shares, following gains on Thursday.

European equities edged lower on Friday, with the key index hovering around 1,000 points, as weaker miners offset telecom shares that rose after Telefonica (TEF.MC) offered bigger-than-expected dividends.

Britain's top shares were down 0.1 percent around midday on Friday, with falls in mining stocks just outweighing modest gains in oil majors and drugmakers during a largely directionless session.

Actress Elizabeth Taylor said on Thursday that her heart surgery went off perfectly, saying that it's like having a brand new ticker.

Inflation Fears Weigh; Home Concerns Remain; Questioning Citi's Review

U.S. President Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for giving the world hope for a better future and striving for nuclear disarmament.

Stock index futures point to a mixed start on Friday for U.S. shares, following gains on Thursday.

TSMC, the world's biggest contract chip maker, said third-quarter sales rose by a fifth from the previous three months, matching its own forecast, thanks to growing chip demand.

The dollar rose on Friday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke indicated U.S. monetary policy could be tightened as a recovery takes hold, sending crude and metal prices lower.

The U.S. Federal Reserve is contemplating accessing money market funds through clearing banks or the creation of a facility to drain cash added to the financial system, Bloomberg said, citing people familiar with the plans.

Government programs to fight the U.S. home foreclosure crisis look increasingly inadequate and should be reworked, expanded and supplemented with new ideas, a congressional watchdog said in a report on Friday.

Asian shares hit a new 14-month high on Friday on investor optimism over the global economy, while the dollar rose on short-covering following its slide earlier in the week.

The U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp is questioning the positive conclusions given to Citigroup Inc's management team in a government-mandated review in the aftermath of the financial crisis, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the situation.

China's Tengzhong may finalize a deal to buy General Motors Co's Hummer business for about $150 million on Friday, a source familiar with the deal said, China's biggest brand grab since Lenovo bought IBM's PC unit in 2005.

Asian shares hit a fresh 14-month high on Friday on optimism over U.S. earnings and the global economy, while the U.S. dollar got a reprieve after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke indicated monetary policy would have to be tightened as a recovery takes hold.

U.S. lawmakers urged regulators to investigate Google Inc's ability to block expensive calls to rural areas to slash expenses, marking the latest spat between the Internet giant and AT&T Inc.

Gestational diabetes occurs only during pregnancy, and affects about 4 percent of pregnant women, says the American Diabetes Association.

An India-made cholera vaccine that meets World Health Organization standards has proven to be safe and effective in young children in a part of India where the disease is endemic, a new study says.

One of two former Bear Stearns managers indicted for fraud over the collapse of hedge funds in 2007 feared a blow up risk to investors as early as November 2006, according to an email released on Thursday.

Bookseller Barnes & Noble Inc will soon sell its own electronic reader to rival Amazon.com Inc's Kindle, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.

James Simons, a mathematics professor who became one of the best paid hedge fund managers in the world, is retiring as chief executive of his Renaissance Technologies firm on Jan 1, a person briefed in the matter said.

Liz Claiborne Inc will move its namesake brand to JC Penney Co Inc Department Stores and take a line by celebrity designer Isaac Mizrahi off department store shelves in a strategy shift that pushed shares up nearly 33 percent to their highest level in 11 months.

Prosecutors will not be allowed to suggest to a jury in the trial of two former Bear Stearns hedge fund managers that they believe one defendant tried to hide certain email evidence, a U.S. judge ruled on Thursday.

Music producer Shelby Singleton, whose biggest hit was Harper Valley PTA in a career that spanned country and rhythm and blues, has died of brain cancer, friend Jerry Kennedy said on Thursday.

Guy Laliberte, the Canadian billionaire circus entrepreneur, flew into space with a clown nose and an idea that was literally out of this world.

Country singer Taylor Swift has proven she has nothing to fear from touring after performing to sold-out crowds, so the 19 year-old said on Thursday she will extend her Fearless Tour into 2010.