GLOBAL MARKETS

Tanzania's economy grew 6.2 percent in the third quarter of 2010 from 5.7 percent in the same period a year ago due to an improvement in construction, transport and communication sectors, data showed on Monday.

U.S. stocks rose on Monday on strong earnings and merger activity, overshadowing concerns about the possible spread of unrest in Egypt which had caused a sharp selloff in world stocks on Friday.

The most famous Egyptian in the world, actor Omar Sharif, well known for starring in film classics such as Doctor Zhivago and Lawrence of Ariabia, told a French radio station this morning that Mubarak should go.

Prime office rents in key Chinese and Brazilian cities will continue their economic growth-fuelled rise in 2011, a survey said, prompting global property investors to chase deals in those emerging markets.

Dow Jones Index was up 21.99 points, or 0.19 percent, to 11,845.69 and the S&P 500 index rose 4.54 points, or 0.36 percent, to trade at 1,280.88. Meanwhile, Nasdaq gained 0.39 points, or 0.01 percent, to 2,687.28.

Shares of Massey Energy Co. (NYSE: MEE) are rallying this morning after it was announced over the weekend that Alpha Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE:ANR) agreed to buy the metallurgical coal producer in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $8.5 billion.

Protests in Egypt sparked a sell-off in Apache Corp. (NYSE: APA) shares as investors feared disruption in operations, said an analyst at RBC Capital Markets.

The top pre-market NASDAQ stock market gainers are: NPS Pharmaceuticals, DepoMed, Xenoport, Sohu.com, and Glu Mobile. The top pre-market NASDAQ stock market losers are: Mattson Technology, Partner Communications, Savient Pharmaceuticals, Silicom, and CIENA.

Gold eased on Monday after posting its largest daily gain in eight weeks on Friday and while the market did encounter some safe-haven buying on the back of the unrest in Egypt, this was expected to be temporary.

Futures on major U.S. indices point to lower opening on Monday amid continuing political unrest in Egypt.

UBS Securities downgraded shares of carrier AT&T Inc. to neutral from buy, citing expectations for lower earnings and free cash flow growth in 2011 and 2012.

Tanzania's top-grade coffee fetched an all-time high at this week's auction as the harvest of high-quality supply dwindled, traders said on Friday.

Baselworld, the world's premier watch and jewelry show, is adopting new communication channels to promote the importance of the trade show for the luxury goods industry.

Gold surged 2 percent on Friday, gaining as much as $40 per ounce in a knee-jerk rally as fears that unrest in Egypt would spread across the Middle East prompted safe-haven buying. It's the largest one-day gain in nearly two months.

Earnings reports and acquisition announcements took a back seat to the violent unrest in Egypt today, as U.S. stocks fall.

Despite Verizon's announced intention to acquire Terremark for $1.4 billion, are down virtually across across the board amid violent uprisings in Middle East.

British Petroleum (NYSE: BP) is said to be considering spilling cash – not oil – to its public shareholders. Shareholders of the oil giant, which is infamous for being responsible for the oil spill off the Gulf coast region in June, the worst oil spill in history, are calling for the company to pay a dividend once again

Gold Bullion prices failed to rally from last night's tumble in Asian and London trade on Friday, extending the month's sharp losses and hitting to four-month lows in the US Dollar and six-month lows against the Swiss Franc and commodity currency Aussie and Canadian Dollars.

US stocks advanced slightly in early trade on Friday after government data showed that US economic activity grew at a 3.2 percent annual rate in the fourth quarter.

The China Gold Association estimates... that the demand for gold in the first half of the year will rise by 15 percent year on year, citing growing demand for alternative investments and protection against inflation, said Commerzbank in a note.

Hedge fund SHK Asset Management liquidated a U.S. gold futures position this week valued at over $850 million, more than 10 percent of the main U.S. futures market, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

Hedge-fund manager John Paulson made a profit of more than $5 billion personally last year which is likely the largest single-year gain in investing history, says a media report.

The companies that reported earnings before the markets open on Friday are: Ford Motor, Chevron Corp., Honeywell International, Dominion and Dover.

The companies whose shares are moving in pre-market trade on Friday are: Sara Lee, Micron Technology, Bank of America, Amazon, Ford Motor and Carnival Corp.

Egyptian stocks plunged more than 10 percent on Thursday, the second biggest one day drop in its history, following two days of clashes between police and anti-government demonstrators which left six dead.

The companies which are expected to see active trade on Friday are: Microsoft, Amazon, Ford Motor, Chevron, Honeywell International, Dominion Resources and American Electric Power.

The top after-market NASDAQ stock market losers are: PMC-Sierra, Thoratec, Amazon.com, Digital River, Amedisys, Werner Enterprises, Tessera Technologies, LTX-Credence, PSS World Medical, and Patterson-UTI Energy.

The top after-market NASDAQ stock market gainers are: Terremark Worldwide, Oplink Communications, TeleNav, Coherent, SAVVIS, Lattice Semiconductor, Internap Network Services, ScanSource, Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates, and Equinix.

The S&P 500 index surpassed the 1300-point level twice today, the first time the index reached that plateau since August, 2008, as U.S. stocks finished slightly up today on mixed earnings reports.