LEHMAN BROTHERS

Here's why the Dow closed above 13,000 for the first time since 2008, indicating that the stock market has finally returned to its pre-recession level.

Stock index futures fell on Monday in low volume following the S&P 500's four-year closing high last week and after the Group of 20 leading economies told Europe it must commit more money to fight the EU debt crisis before seeking broader help.

Leading economies told Europe it must put up extra money to fight its debt crisis if it wants more help from the rest of the world, piling pressure on Germany to drop its opposition to a bigger European bailout fund.

Stock index futures fell Monday in low volume following the S&P 500's four-year closing high last week and after the Group of 20 leading economies told Europe it must commit more money to fight the EU debt crisis before seeking broader help.

A rally on Wall Street will be put to the test next week, with the S&P 500 index at its highest closing level since before the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. in 2008 and the European Central Bank about to flood the financial markets with a new wave of cheap money.

The S&P 500 rose on Friday to close at its highest level since before the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. in September 2008, continuing a pattern of steady gains on apparent signs of U.S. economic recovery.

The S&P 500 rose on Friday to close at the highest level since before the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008, continuing a pattern of steady gains on signs of U.S. economic recovery.

Housing, the weakest of the three legs of the stool supporting the U.S. economy, is finally firming up, or so it seems to investors, economists, real estate agents and buildings after a string of heartening reports so far this year.

Asian shares crept higher Friday as solid U.S. data improved sentiment, but gains may be limited by concerns that rising oil prices could deal a further blow to the fragile euro zone economy and moves to take profits after recent rallies.

Asian shares rose Friday as solid U.S. data improved sentiment, but the upside may be capped by concerns that rising oil prices could deal a further blow to the fragile euro zone economy and moves to take profits after recent gains.

Q&A with Cristina Alger, author of “The Darlings.”

Real estate mogul Sam Zell's Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) has raised its minimum bid for a 26.5 percent stake in the long-running battle for control of Archstone, owner of more than 70,000 U.S. apartment units. Earlier this week, the minimum bid was raised to $1.48 billion from $1.32 billion by Bank of America Corp. and Barclays Plc, which own the minority stake in the company. The banks also extended the deadline for Equity's option to buy the stake to April 19 from Feb. 19.

Howard Lutnick's BGC Partners Inc. (NASDAQ: BGCP) has agreed to buy the commercial real estate brokerage Grubb & Ellis Company (PINK:GRBE), which will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the wake of declining revenue from the commercial real estate bust.

The Darlings tells a fictional tale about the downfall of a hedge fund and the wealthy family that owns it during Wall Street's 2008 meltdown, but many aspects of the novel are drawn straight from author Cristina Alger's reality.

If upcoming earnings from U.S. retailers are as unimpressive as the rest of the profit season has been, Wall Street could face a tough time justifying a stock market at nine-month highs.

If the coming earnings from U.S. retailers are as unimpressive as the rest of the profit season has been, Wall Street could face a tough time justifying a stock market at nine-month highs. All things considered, strategists believe the market could face resistance in a push higher.

Greece’s finance minister Evangelos Venizelos has suggested some countries in the bloc want Greece to leave the eurozone.

Shares of online dating site SNAP Interactive plunged nearly 12 percent Tuesday after the online dating site on Facebook reported a big fourth-quarter loss.

Two of Ford Motor Co.'s top executives are set to retire in April, but Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally brushed back speculation of his own retirement plans.

A new crop of companies entering the U.S. public markets, including such high-profile offerings as Facebook, are turning the clock back on the way U.S. corporations are run.

A new crop of companies entering the U.S. public markets, including such high-profile offerings as Facebook, are turning the clock back on the way U.S. corporations are run. Investors seems to be not very happy with the IPO.