ECONOMY & MARKETS

Stocks fell for a second straight day on Thursday, led by declines in the Nasdaq after tech bellwether Cisco Systems Inc signaled the credit crisis was hurting demand from key customers, including banks. A late-day rebound in beaten-down financial stocks, however, pulled the indexes well off their worst levels of the day.

Technology stocks fell on Thursday as investors worried that the spillover from the credit crisis may be starting to hurt business spending.

S&P 500 and Dow stock futures rose on Thursday as shares of natural resources companies, including Alcoa Inc, gained after BHP Billiton disclosed it had made a bid for rival miner Rio Tinto.

World stocks hit a two-week low on Thursday while the dollar remained vulnerable near the previous day's record lows as Wall Street tumbled on a fresh series of negative news on the U.S. mortgage and financial industry.

The dollar teetered close to its all-time lows against the euro on Thursday as the market waited to see whether the European Central Bank would voice concern about the sharp rally in the single currency.

Misleading information which allegedly resulted from technical problems was published on Wednesday causing confusion in trading on the London Stock market.

HONG KONG, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Oil soared above $98 a barrel for the first time on Wednesday and gold rose to a 28-year high as investors sought shelter from the falling dollar, which plumbed all-time lows.

Stocks fell on Wednesday as fear of more credit market turmoil raised worry about prospects for the economy and profits. New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said his office was sending subpoenas to government-sponsored mortgage financiers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as part of a probe of the home loan industry.

The dollar dropped to record lows versus the euro on Wednesday after comments by a Chinese official stoked fears the central bank of the world's fourth largest economy would reduce its holdings of U.S. assets.

The dollar hit record lows versus the euro on Wednesday, knocking major stock markets as General Motors posted its biggest quarterly loss ever which rattled investors already concerned about the U.S. economy.

Crude oil for December delivery climbed to a record $98 a barrel in after hours trading Wednesday, adding to strong gains in the previous session that saw the energy contract into record territory Tuesday.

Nasdaq Stock Market Inc has agreed to buy the Philadelphia Stock Exchange, which operates the third-largest U.S. equity options market, for about $650 million, two people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

The dollar sank to record lows against the euro and a basket of major currencies on Tuesday as bleak warnings of more pain in the credit sphere reinforced views of a Federal Reserve rate cut in December.

Stocks rose on Tuesday as oil prices topped $97 a barrel and lifted shares of Exxon Mobil Corp and other energy producers, while optimism a day ahead of Cisco Systems Inc earnings drove another rally in technology shares. Investors hunted for bargains among beaten-down bank and financial services shares after the previous session's sell-off left the sector near two-year lows.

The dollar sank to record lows against the euro and a basket of currencies on Tuesday amid renewed credit concerns, while oil prices jumped to lifetime highs due to tight fuel stocks.

Stocks erased gains and were little changed on Tuesday as a brokerage's dour view on Microsoft Corp weighed on technology shares, while investors worried that record crude oil prices could squeeze consumers and corporations.

The economy might be edging toward a recession in the wake of mortgage-related credit woes plaguing the financial markets, bankers and analysts said on Monday.

U.S. stock index futures rose ahead of Wall Street's opening on Tuesday, with a speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke likely to take centre stage as corporate and economic data diaries look thin.

The dollar struck fresh all-time lows against the euro and a basket of major currencies on Tuesday as the market continued with its negative view of the U.S. economy.

Asian markets were volatile on Tuesday with indexes shifting between gains and losses after a turbulent Monday.

U.S. stocks fell on Monday amid continuing uncertainty over the health of the financial markets, brought into greater doubt with Citigroup’s huge write-down on losses related to mortgage-backed securities. Citi said Monday it could post as much as $11 billion in additional write-downs losses, without reassuring investors that more write-downs are on the way.

Stocks fell on Monday after Citigroup's warning of billions more in loan losses compounded fears that the credit crunch could get worse. The news sparked a sell-off in shares of other financial companies as investors questioned which among them would be the next to reveal damage from the meltdown in the U.S. housing and subprime mortgage markets.

The yen rose across the board on Monday as global stock markets fell on worries of more credit-related troubles at U.S. banks, causing investors to reduce their exposure to risky assets and unwind carry trades.

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing , the world's most highly valued exchange with a staggering $36 billion capitalization, is still an attractive investment, given its strategic value will rise as its ties with mainland China inevitably deepen.

The dollar fell to one-week lows versus the yen on Monday, weighed down by fears of major losses at financial firms from credit market turmoil, while the Japanese currency benefited from hawkish policymaker comments.

Futures on benchmark U.S. stock market indexes fell before Wall Street's opening on Monday, with the focus on Citigroup after news of CEO Charles Prince's resignation. The largest U.S. bank said it may write off $11 billion of subprime mortgage losses on top of a $6.5 billion write-down last quarter.

World stocks fell and safe-haven bonds surged on Monday after fears of major losses in Citigroup rekindled concerns about the health of financial firms hit by the credit market turmoil.

Asian stocks eased on Monday with financial shares extending their slide as persistent credit worries offset a positive U.S. employment report, which showed twice as many jobs as expected were added last month.

Investors banking on more interest-rate cuts may get some clues about what comes next from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, who testifies before the Joint Economic Committee of Congress on Thursday.