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Spot gold prices touched a new record high of $1598.41 on Monday, extending the longest rally in about 40 years. The latest wind in the tail came from worsening worries of a European sovereign crisis and the painful stalemate in the US debt ceiling talks that has raised the specter of an unprecedented Treasury default.

If the Fed wades further into muddy stimulus waters, that will set the stage for a certain gold boom in the short to medium term. Historically, a dollar sell-off has been the biggest force behind a gold boom. If the Fed takes recourse to another round of easing in pursuit of its goal of propping up job creation and real growth, it will inadvertently cause a dollar sell-off and trigger, in turn, a gold super rally.

The setting is perfect for another gold boom cycle to kick in, perhaps pushing the yellow metal into a super cycle. There are several factors aiding gold's further push into higher price records, greater investment worth and long-term reign as a de facto currency. There are all sorts of classic factors supporting gold all the way, like the demand from China and India bursting at seams, continued worries for the US dollar and the worrisome prospect of sovereign default in some European countri...

Barclays Plc is appealing a judge's ruling that handed the trustee for Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc's brokerage arm about $4 billion related to the rushed purchase of the failed investment bank's North American business.

The Centerbridge hedge fund does not think Lehman Brothers Holding Inc's plan to exit bankruptcy can be confirmed by a judge and it plans to mount a fight against it, according to court documents.

Apple Inc. is expected to release new MacBook Air next week that will be powered by Mac OS X Lion operating system, along with the iPhone 5, new iPod, iPad 3 later this year in an effort to update entire product lines.

Dunkin' Brands, owner of Dunkin' Donuts, is nearing its IPO. Shares are expected to be priced between $16 and $18 per share. The stock will trade on the NASDAQ under the symbol DNKN.

Apple may launch iPhone 5 in October/November, instead of September, as the California-based technology giant is said to begin production of the next-generation iPhone in August/September.

The next and more probable date of Lion's release is July 14, according to 9to5Mac.

The combination of YouTube's user generated content and Hulu's professional content could deliver strong synergies for Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), Barclays Capital said.

The top after-market NASDAQ Stock Market gainers are: PAETEC Holding, SIGA Technologies, MYR Group, Zalicus, and Maiden Holdings. The top after-market NASDAQ Stock Market losers are: DragonWave, Quidel, Abaxis, BJ's Restaurants, and Signature Bank.

On the first day of July, Apple released a Gold Master build of Mac OS X 10.7 Lion to developers, suggesting that the official release of the new operating system in the near future.

Technology giant Apple is expected to launch only one iPhone - dubbed as iPhone 5 - in September versus rumors stating that Apple may launch two iPhones.

Apple released the gold master of its latest and greatest operating system, Mac OS X Lion, in a move that positions the company for a July roll-out.

Zynga Inc, developer of popular Facebook games like FarmVille and Mafia Wars, is all set to hit the capital market with an initial public offer (IPO). The company filed with regulators for an IPO of up to $1 billion on Friday, hopping that its close ties with Facebook will be a key to its future success.

Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc said creditors holding more than $100 billion of claims now support its reorganization plan, moving the company closer to emerging from the largest-ever U.S. bankruptcy.

The company behind Farmville, Mafia Wars, Words With Friends, Empires and Allies and many other social games has officially filed for an IPO. In doing so, it follows in the footsteps of fellow social comapny, LinkedIn, which had an impressive IPO of its own last month.

Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc said its second amended $65 billion bankruptcy liquidation plan won support from thirty institutions and affiliates, possibly setting the stage for the end of the biggest bankruptcy in U.S. history.

Barclays Capital said its checks indicate it should see Apple Inc.'s new MacBook Airs over the coming weeks -- likely with the launch of OS X Lion which is due to ship in July.

Citigroup has struck a deal with the European arm of collapsed investment bank Lehman Brothers to release over $2.5 billion worth of assets held in its custody business.

Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc filed a new $65 billion bankruptcy liquidation plan that it said has won wider support, possibly setting the stage for the end of the biggest bankruptcy in U.S. history.

Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc said it has received a wider base of support from creditors for its reorganization, and filed a new plan it hopes will help it emerge from bankruptcy and pay creditors faster.

Consumer technology giant Apple is expected to launch three iPhones, but the much-expected iPhone 5 may arrive only in 2012.

Consumer technology giant Apple could release two models of iPhone - namely iPhone 5 and iPhone 4S - this September, according to an analyst at Deutsche Bank.

Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc is preparing to sell its stake in a Manhattan building that once housed the International Toy Center to JPMorgan Chase & Co for about $700 million, the Wall Street Journal said on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Barclays Capital has addressed the reasons it believes shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) have underperformed the sector since February. Apple stock has fallen 3.82 percent between February 1 and June 24.

Federal bankruptcy court approved on Thursday a settlement between the Lehman Brothers brokerage and JPMorgan Chase & Co in which the bank will return more than $800 million of cash and securities to resolve claims brought by the Lehman trustee.

Barclays Plc is seeking to dismiss claims by Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc that the British bank owes $500 million in unpaid bonuses to employees of Lehman's former brokerage.

The top pre-market NASDAQ Stock Market gainers are: FriendFinder Networks, Achillion Pharmaceuticals, Travelzoo, F5 Networks, and SBA Communications. The top pre-market NASDAQ Stock Market losers are: Adobe Systems, Volcom, Unilife, Cree, Logitech International, Research In Motion, and Apple.