INVESTMENT

Stock futures added to gains on Thursday following a report on weekly jobless claims that suggested some stabilization in the labor market.

Britain's top share index rose on Thursday, helped by gains in mining stocks on firmer metals prices and a surprise quarterly profit from U.S. aluminium producer Alcoa (AA.N).

Stock futures rose on Thursday as the latest earnings season got off to a positive start after Alcoa posted a surprise profit and as surging commodity prices underpinned a global equity advance.

Deutsche Bank began coverage of Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N) and Morgan Stanley (MS.N) with buy, and said the two U.S. banks will stay well capitalized even under the likely increased regulatory capital requirements.

Stock futures rose on Thursday as the latest earnings season got off to a positive start after Alcoa posted a surprise profit and as surging commodity prices underpinned a global equity advance.

Stock futures rose on Thursday as the latest earnings season got off to a positive start after Alcoa posted a surprise profit and as surging commodity prices underpinned a global equity advance.

Hong Kong stocks rose for a fourth day on Thursday, with HSBC (0005.HK) advancing after itresumed talks with Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS.L) over thepurchase of RBS units in Asia.

Spot gold topped $1,050 per ounce to mark a record high for the third session in a row on Thursday as the dollar's continued struggle made the precious metal more attractive to investors.

A U.S. District Court dismissed a lawsuit of former employees of Washington Mutual against JPMorgan Chase & Co to recover their retirement account losses after the collapse of the thrift.

Hype about the swine flu vaccines, pent-up demand for cash and a push by major drugmakers to boost their flagging research pipelines has helped lift biotechnology fund-raising 36 percent so far this year.

The Standard & Poor's 500 and Nasdaq indexes edged up on Wednesday with investors responding positively to early earnings results as the quarterly reporting period got under way.

The Obama administration's latest effort to boost the beleaguered housing market is likely to help mortgage insurers as lower defaults will boost their liquidity.

The Standard & Poor's 500 and Nasdaq indexes edged up on Wednesday as investors responded positively to early earnings results as the quarterly reporting period got under way.

Global investments in renewable energy technology like wind, solar and hydroelectric power have slid dramatically this year as the economic crisis limited government and private funds for new projects, the United Nations said on Wednesday.

The Dow Jones industrial average slipped while other major indexes were little changed on Wednesday as investors booked profits after two days of strong gains and turned cautious at the approach of earnings season.

U.S. securities regulators said on Wednesday it will appeal a court decision dismissing its insider trading case against Dallas Mavericks basketball team owner Mark Cuban.

Gold set record highs for a second straight session on Wednesday as investors bought the precious metal due to fears the dollar may weaken further, bringing inflation.

Julius Baer's purchase of ING's Swiss private banking assets marks the start of a consolidation wave in the wealth management industry, insiders told the Reuters Global Wealth Management summit.

U.S. financial advisors are due for upheaval as baby boomers, controlling $10 trillion in assets, reach retirement age and shift their investment priorities, said a senior executive at asset manager BlackRock Inc.

Britain expects around 100 billion pounds ($159 billion) of investment in a third round of offshore wind projects by 2020 and about 5 billion in its Pentland Firth marine energy scheme, the agency in charge of the coastal seabed said.

As the dollar's dominance fades with the emergence of a multipolar world, gold may stand to gain the most of all assets thanks to an unlikely quality -- neutrality.