DOWN

The Academy did not like his cover version of the Burlesque song.

Nigeria's economy is expected to grow around 7 percent this year, down from 8.5 percent in 2010, with growth moderating gradually in subsequent years, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Thursday.

The BSE Sensex edged 0.2 percent higher early on Wednesday, with Tata Steel rebounding after falling initially.

Any person or authority found misusing scanned body images, produced during Transportation Safety Administration’s routine security checks on all US major airports, will be punished with up to a year in prison and a fine up to $100,000.

Sirius XM Radio Inc, home to programs by Howard Stern and NFL football, reported a net loss for the fourth quarter and forecast weaker-than-expected revenue for next year, sending its shares down 5.5 percent.

Stocks slid on Tuesday as a smaller-than-expected rise in retail sales raised doubts about a rebound in consumer spending, a vital part of an economic recovery.

(Corrects in 4th paragraph to show retail sales rose less than forecast)

President Barack Obama on Monday proposed spending almost $110 billion on Afghanistan, signaling little let-up in the U.S. war drive despite demands for tougher spending controls at home.

The top government auditor for bailouts of U.S. financial firms and automakers on Monday resigned his position as the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program winds down.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates played down the accuracy of troop figures outlined in a budget request unveiled on Monday, saying the pace of the upcoming drawdown in Afghanistan was still unclear.

Level Global Investors, one of four hedge funds raided by U.S. authorities last November in a broad investigation into insider trading, told investors on Friday it would shut down, citing the pressure of the probe and investor redemptions.

U.S. stocks rose on Friday after President Hosni Mubarak resigned, helping clear Egypt's clouded political picture and lifting investor sentiment.

The Obama administration will propose a wind-down of government-controlled mortgage buyers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, according to documents obtained by Reuters.

Kevin Warsh, the Federal Reserve's youngest-ever governor and a vocal inflation hawk skeptical of recent monetary easing efforts, said on Thursday he is stepping down from the central bank's powerful board.

Wall Street was weighed down by disappointing earnings from Cisco Systems, but stocks bounced off their lows on Thursday as investors saw weakness in the market as a buying opportunity.

Activision Blizzard Inc's first-quarter outlook missed Wall Street expectations and it said it would disband the unit that makes Guitar Hero music games, sending its shares down 8 percent.

Nissan Motor Co's <7201.T> quarterly profit fell 15 percent on a stronger yen and sliding Japanese sales, but the decline was the slimmest among local automakers as a slew of new models helped Nissan beat the sector's growth in key markets.

The number of victims of identity theft dropped by more than a quarter in the U.S. last year, the largest annual fall on record, but individual victims lost more money on average than ever before.

Mauritian holding company Ireland Blyth said it still expected improved full-year results, when posting a 68 percent fall in first-half pretax profit on Tuesday.

Kenya's East African Cables said on Tuesday that full-year pretax profit halved to 258.6 million shillings after a 203 million shilling charge related to its struggling Tanzanian unit.

The Egyptian pound fell on Sunday when trade resumed after a week-long suspension due to political unrest, but the drop was less sharp than many traders had feared as the central bank appeared to support the currency.