INVESTMENT

Gold rose toward $1,425 an ounce on Friday as U.S. February payrolls data supported expectations the Federal Reserve will hold off tightening monetary policy and as unrest in North Africa continued.

Investment bankers have been villified by the public since the financial crisis, and regulators are cracking down on their pay, but Britain's university graduates still aspire to become them. At the country's top universities, the generation of students who started their degree just as Lehman Brothers collapsed are still pursuing lucrative

Investment firm General Atlantic is investing in Facebook, valuing the leading social network at $65 billion, representing a 30 percent boost from its last big investment in January, according to a report on CNBC.

The companies whose shares are moving in pre-market trade on Friday are: Capital One Financial, Deere & Co, Chesapeake Energy, Bank of America, Apple, Massey Energy, Citigroup and Goldman Sachs.

A sweeping insider trading case that shook the hedge fund world is finally set for trial, with onetime billionaire Raj Rajaratnam fighting to stay out of prison in a courtroom drama over corporate secrets, tapped telephones and friends-turned-government witnesses.

Foreign banks have not gotten the message when it comes to helping American clients avoid paying taxes, a top U.S. tax prosecutor said on Thursday.

Goldman Sachs Group Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein has agreed to testify for the U.S. government at the upcoming trial of Galleon hedge fund founder Raj Rajaratnam, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

The top after-market NYSE gainers on Thursday are: Lsb Industries, Omega Protein, Strategic Hotels & Resorts, Cooper Companies and Radioshack. The top after-market NYSE losers are: NCR Corp, NeoPhotonics, Newcastle Investment, DCP Midstream Partners and Dynex Capital.

The School asserted on Wednesday that they would be retaining him in the post of Chairman of the board.

BP's $7.2-billion deal to jump into India's oil and gas sector with Reliance Industries is the first sign of new investment that could attract more players, helping to boost output and meet surging demand.

Yujiapu does not roll off the tongue like Wall Street, but planners in the northern Chinese port city of Tianjin hope it soon will.

Oxus Gold (OXS.L) laid the ground for a legal battle with the government of Uzbekistan over the future of its ill-fated investment in the central Asian state, wiping out more half of its market value on Thursday.

Gold fell nearly 1.5 percent on Thursday, snapping a four-day winning streak as indications the European Central Bank may raise interest rates to battle inflation dented bullion's investment appeal.

Emotion and the App Store are keys to iPad 2's likely success.

A Northwestern University human sexuality professor has defended an optional live-sex presentation he held on the campus grounds after class. But, has he gone too far?

A Tanzania business group has opposed a new U.S. law labeling all gold produced in countries neighbouring the conflict-hit Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as conflict mineral.

A new World Bank strategy for Africa unveiled on Wednesday focuses on creating jobs and making economies more competitive, while also tackling problems of climate change, disease, food shortages and conflict.

Gold and Silver Bullion prices fell sharply London lunchtime on Thursday, bouncing 1.5% and 2.3% below this week's record Dollar highs after European Central Bank president Jean-Claude Trichet said a Eurozone rate rise is possible next month.

If Yahoo decides to divest its Japanese assets, then it might look to monetize its assets in china as well, where it owns about 40 percent of the Internet company Alibaba Group.

The top pre-market NASDAQ stock market gainers are: Global Defense Technology & Systems, DUSA Pharmaceuticals, BioSante Pharmaceuticals, Nova Measuring Instruments, and Novavax. The top pre-market NASDAQ stock market losers are: Fuel Systems Solutions, Sigma Designs, YRC Worldwide, Perry Ellis International, and The Bancorp.

Yahoo is said to be in talks to sell its 35 percent stake in Yahoo Japan, a move that will give Yahoo the necessary cash infusion to fight against arch rival Google and Facebook.