Stock index futures were little changed on Wednesday, with investors cautious before retail sales data, which will be scrutinized for clues on the health of the consumer.
Gold futures tumbled sharply on Tuesday as traders cashed in profits from the precious metals after three days of steady gains.
Coffee gained on Tuesday following a decline in U.S. inventories and shipments from Brazil that prompted processors to increase the bean prices on retail brands.
A recent nationwide survey of over 60,000 households by National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER), New Delhi and Max New York Life has revealed that people in India do not plan for long-term future and keep away from investing in long-term instruments though they save for long-term goals such as emergencies, education and old age.
Treasuries rose on Monday as investors sought safer investments after another sign of trouble in U.S. financial markets.
Citigroup and Goldman Sachs are the most exposed to further writedowns from leveraged loans in the first quarter, as the value of loans and bonds created to finance leveraged buyouts plunges, Bank of America said.
A second trader questioned about massive losses at Societe Generale was released without charges by authorities on Saturday.
Hedge fund managers are backing politicians
Gold futures closed with strong gains Friday, rising as the dollar traded lower against a basket of its major foreign-exchange counterparts. Platinum Gained.
French trader Jerome Kerviel, accused by his former bank Societe Generale of causing a $4.9 billion euro ($7.2 billion) loss, is again in police custody as another trader is questioned to see if there is a link to alleged unauthorized deals. A court in Paris reversed a decision to let the 31-year old junior trader free during the investigation. The court was concerned that Kerviel could try to flee or contact any possible accomplices.
Treasuries staged a comeback as safe-haven vehicles on Friday as greater risks of a U.S. recession raised the chance of a U.S. recession.
Shares of media company CNET Networks Inc, currently battling dissident shareholders who want to expand its board, soared more than 7 percent on Friday, on speculation that Google Inc might be interested in acquiring a stake in it.
The market share for traditional open-end mutual funds owned through professional advisers such as brokers is likely to erode over the next two years, according to a new study by Cogent Research LLC.
China Investment Corporation, the Chinese sovereign wealth fund, is in talks with U.S. private equity group JC Flowers to put about $4 billion into a new fund to invest in ailing financial firms, the Financial Times said.
While talk is axiomatically cheap, the price of debt and risk are proving prohibitively high
Gold futures edged higher on Thursday, trading $912 an ounce, on speculation that central banks will mimic the U.S. by cut borrowing rates which boosted the appeal of the precious metal.
Shares of Yahoo are trading at a nearly 7 percent discount to Microsoft's bid offer, but some analysts are contending that the world's largest software maker may raise the stakes to capture one of the Web's most recognizes brands.
Platinum futures scaled a record high above $1,819 an ounce early Wednesday on continued concerns over supplies from top producer South Africa after the country started experiencing power cuts which have hindered mining operations. Gold also rose on investor demand.
Gold futures dropped sharply to end below $900 an ounce Tuesday, the lowest in more than a week, as a surge in the U.S. dollar lowered investment demand for the precious metal. Silver also declined.
U.S. stocks tumbled the most in almost a year on Tuesday after service industries contracted at the fastest pace since 2001, adding to mounting concern the economy is already in a recession.
Olivant Advisers Ltd has dropped out of the the race to take control of ailing British bank Northern Rock plc.
Billionaire Richard Branson, banker Luqman Arnold and an in-house management team are set to pitch formal offers for Britain's Northern Rock Plc on Monday, the government's deadline for bids. Branson has said his Virgin Group VA.UL will make an offer for the troubled bank ahead of the February 4 deadline, while Arnold's investment group Olivant and the in-house team have also said they will bid.
