ECONOMY & MARKETS

In his semi-annual testimony before the House Financial Services Committee, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke described the myriad of tools in the Fed's arsenal to withdraw liquidity.

Europe and U.S. stock indices edged up cautiously ahead of Fed Chairman Bernanke's semi-annual testimony on monetary policy and the state of the economy at 10:00 am EST.

The recent crude oil rally, which began on February 8 2010, ran into trouble Tuesday as global sentiments turned bearish on disappointing economic reports.

The U.S. stock market tracked losses of worldwide assets as Europe and the U.S. reported gloomy data on Tuesday.

The U.S. stock market is trading down Tuesday, weighed by declines in the U.S. consumer confidence index and German business climate index.

The stock market fell in earnest after the Conference Board reported an unexpectedly sharp decline in consumer confidence. Before the report, the market was also weighed by gloomy news from Europe.

Futures on U.S. stock indices are lower Tuesday morning as global investors sentiments are dampened by discouraging developments from the Europe.

Although the S&P 500 Index was trading in the positive for most of Monday's afternoon session, it took a dive in the last hour of trading as its energy components sold off heavily.

The U.S. stock market is trading in positive territory in the afternoon session with banks leading the rally after investors shrug off concerns of global tightening.

The S&P 500 Index inched up 0.56 points, or 0.05 percent, at 1,107.31 at 3:18 pm. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 0.06 percent at 10,386.63 and the Nasdaq Composite is down 0.07 percent.

The stock market rallied modestly today as Whole Foods (NASDAQ:WFMI) gave a boost to food retailers and doubts over President Obama's healthcare reform efforts lifted the health insurance sector.

The S&P 500 Index is being lifted by its health insurance components on doubts stemming from American voters and Congressional Republicans about President Obama's healthcare reforms. Upgrades, earnings, and raised forecasts also buoyed the index.

The euro held near a nine-month low against the dollar on Tuesday, with all signs that euro zone policymakers will focus on making Greece fully implement budget cuts rather than gifting it swift financial aid.

Euro zone government bonds drifted lower on Monday with attention still on peripheral issuers before a meeting of the bloc's finance ministers following last week's pledge of support for debt-ridden Greece.

How much thought do you give to a stock's ticker symbol? One glance at one of these short alphabetical codes can tell an investor a company's name, its financial health, where it trades, and even its nationality. And in the penny stock world, it's not uncommon for tickers to get just a little tricky. Here's everything you need to know to decipher penny stock ticker symbols.

Metal mining giant Alcoa announces earnings today, a release that marks the start of earnings season. And while Alcoa's far from a penny stock with a $17 billion market capitalization, the fact is that the tone this company sets will have a supreme effect on all of the issues we're watching in the small-cap world.

Virtual worlds are the next Internet frontier. And one company is developing the next-generation technology to profit from them. Here's everything you need to know to stay ahead of the curve...

A casual comment by Doug Casey triggered my thoughts on how to get triple duty out of an atypical investment. My priorities are a little different because mothers focus on making money and being certain our families are taken care of, particularly when it comes to trifles like putting food on the table literally.

I have always taken it as a good thing that libertarians are detested by both the left and the right. To me it is proof positive that we libertarians are in the right.

2009 is finally behind us, and the New Year's in full force - as evidenced by the solid rally that stocks are starting today. Here at the Penny Sleuth, we closed the year out strong with another shot at double-digit gains in just three trading days last week.

Financial markets kicked off 2010 on an upbeat note on Monday with world stocks driven close to 15-month highs by hopes of a sustainable economic recovery.

World stocks floated below year highs on Tuesday, extending a year-end rally with Britain's FTSE rising to pre-Lehman levels.

Your roving Whiskey reporter just came back from the Big Apple last week after a short afternoon's jaunt to the Japan Society. Lest you think I'm going to tell you to invest in kimono (like carry trade sweethearts did a few years back), don't be fooled.

While investors take a break from the market - busying themselves with holiday plans and vacation days instead - the equity bubble is getting closer and closer to popping once again.

Shooter Bill Simmons wrote me: “…If things continue to muddle along into the progressively improving future as they always have in the grand scheme of things…”

With holiday consumer sentiment strong the Monday before Christmas, we could be on the verge of an end-of-2009 breakout in penny stocks. What better time then to look at four stocks getting set to move big time in the coming week. Here's a look at this week's Watchlist…

I continue to get questions about stem cell companies. This pleases me because it indicates that you, my readers, really do understand how important regenerative medicine is. I feared I was spending too much time on the subject, but will update you today on the latest.

More than 78 million baby boomers are currently living in the United States, according to recent census data. And of these millions of aging citizens, the oldest of the group - born in 1946 - is turning 64 this year.

I'm not about to challenge our fabulous Byron King for it, but I figure he won't begrudge me the title of Go-To Gal On Emerging Technologies of the XIV Dynasty through the Late XVIII Century