INVESTMENT

Qatar's sovereign wealth fund has raised its stake in Xstrata Plc to a little over 5 percent, which is valued around $2.7 billion, in advance of the Anglo-Swiss miner's intended merger with Glencore International Plc.

China's love affair with American education is stronger than ever. Chinese families -- including those in the burgeoning middle class -- want to send their sons and daughters to be educated in another country, with most coming to U.S. institutions.

Russia, the world's ninth largest economy, cut its 2012 GDP forecast to 3.4 percent from 3.7 percent as investment growth is expected to decline, its economy minister said Friday.

Gold rose on Thursday, as investors covered short positions after a sharp two-day pullback, and a crude oil rally also buoyed the precious metal that sank early this week on disappointment about further U.S. monetary easing.

So far this week, U.S. industrial giants have announced nearly $3 billion will be invested in new operations and research in Brazil, China and India three cornerstone members of the BRICS countries.

Plug-in cars and hybrids are all the rage, but new information reveals that many of them don't save their owners money until decades after they are purchased.

China's auto industry will enjoy an $11.6 billion boost in the coming year, as Ford (NYSE: F) and Volvo try to increase output and market share in Asia.

Stocks were little changed on Thursday despite data showing ongoing improvement in the labor market, as a rise in Spanish bond yields renewed concerns about the euro zone's financial health.

China has further opened up its domestic share markets for foreign participation, in a bid to ease the tight controls for investments by qualified foreign institutional investors (QFIIs).

The top aftermarket NYSE gainers Wednesday were: Cinemark Holdings, Constellation Brands, E-Commerce China Dangdang, National Bank of Greece, Sprint Nextel Corp and Aviva plc. The top aftermarket NYSE losers were: Ruby Tuesday, McClatchy, CTS Corp, Standard Pacific Corp, InvenSense and MGIC Investment.

Asian shares fell Thursday after a weak Spanish bond sale heightened concerns about funding difficulties by lower-rated euro zone countries, further undermining sentiment hurt by fading expectations for more stimulus from the U.S. Federal Reserve.

Hedge fund manager Philip Falcone said in an interview on Wednesday he is seriously considering filing a voluntary bankruptcy for LightSquared, the struggling telecom startup in which his Harbinger Capital Partners is the majority owner.

Hedge fund manager Philip Falcone said in an interview on Wednesday he is seriously considering filing a voluntary bankruptcy for LightSquared, the struggling telecom startup in which his Harbinger Capital Partners is the majority owner.

Splurging on a vacation home shortly after the housing market meltdown was not an easy decision for Kathy and Dan Nikolai.

A new Federal Reserve study shows that foreign companies cross-listed on U.S. exchanges receive a disproportionate amount of investment from Americans, mostly because of greater transparency.

Two of the most iconic American brands suffered setbacks to their credit ratings on Wednesday, evidence that some of the nation's most visible economic engines could face higher borrowing costs.

Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said Wednesday it was considering slashing the credit rating of Best Buy Co. Inc. to junk status, or below investment grade.

Japan plans to build the nation's largest geothermal power plant in Fukushima Prefecture, the location of the massive earthquake and tsunami which led to last year's nuclear disaster.

A collapse in gold producers lofty valuations has sparked soul searching about an exodus of restive shareholders, forcing them to tighten operations and boost dividends to lure investors.

Stocks and commodities plunged Wednesday after the head of the European Central Bank -- a lynchpin in the euro zone's effort to contain the effects of its sovereign debt crisis -- suggested that some Greek banks will be left to collapse.

BTG Pactual, the largest independent investment bank in Latin America, said it is planning to raise up to $2.24 billion in a public offering that could signal the revival of Brazil's IPO market.