Consumer sentiment inched up in early September, but Americans remained gloomy about the future with a gauge of expectations falling to the lowest level since 1980, a survey released on Friday showed.
Stocks were set to open little changed on Friday after equities notched four days of gains and as European policymakers gathered to discuss the region's debt crisis, while BlackBerry maker Research in Motion weighed on the technology sector after a weak earnings report.
Here are comments from euro zone officials and finance ministers meeting in the Polish city of Wroclaw on Friday.
Citigroup Inc said it will start charging a monthly fee of $10 on checking and savings accounts with combined balances of less than $1,500, joining a growing list of banks seeking to recoup revenue lost under new financial industry regulations.
The European Union will decide in the coming months whether to start stockpiling raw materials that are critical for the bloc's industrial and high-tech production, an EU spokesman said on Friday.
Stocks were little changed on Friday as investors booked profits after a four-day rally, but optimism European leaders were on the right track in tackling the region's debt problem kept losses in check.
British police charged UBS trader Kweku Adoboli with fraud on Friday, a day after the Swiss bank said it had lost about $2 billion in unauthorized trades, plunging it into crisis.
Citigroup Inc said it will charge fees for deposit and checking accounts that are small or inactive, joining a growing list of U.S. banks altering their consumer banking operations as the industry adapts to new regulations.
The good news for Congressional Republicans is that President Barack Obama's approval rating is hovering at a term-low 40 percent. The bad news is that the GOP's approval rating is at 19 percent.
Volatility in equity markets is burning smart-money players, and even experienced traders are finding it hard to keep up.
Reinsurers Allied World Assurance Co Holdings Ltd and Transatlantic Holdings Inc called off their merger on Friday in the face of overwhelming opposition, leaving the fate of Transatlantic uncertain amid two larger, unsolicited offers.
Consumer sentiment inched up in early September, but Americans remained gloomy about the future with a gauge of expectations falling to the lowest level since 1980, a survey released on Friday showed.
Silver and platinum may lag other precious metals in the coming months, according to analysts studying both their price movements and the broader economy.
Stock index futures were lower on Friday after equities notched four days of gains and as European policymakers gathered to discuss the region's debt crisis, while Research in Motion weighed on the technology sector after a weak earnings report.
Swiss bank UBS came under increasing pressure to shrink or sideline its investment bank business -- source of a $2 billion rogue trading loss -- as ratings agencies warned lax risk management could prompt downgrades.
Continued losses in the investment bank arena could lead to more restructuring and another round of job cuts to be unveiled in November.
Stock index futures were lower on Friday after equities notched four days of gains and as European policymakers gathered to discuss the region's debt crisis, while Research in Motion weighed on the technology sector after a weak earnings report.
Gold prices rebounded Friday, along with other safe-haven investments, literally hours after dropping sharply on word that the world's biggest central bankers were jointly moving to protect the eurozone's commercial financial institutions.
Stock index futures were lower on Friday after equities notched four days of gains and as European policymakers gathered to discuss the region's debt crisis, while Research in Motion weighed on the technology sector after a weak earnings report.
Speculation is growing in markets that Greece will be unable to avoid a full-blown default, despite two international bailouts and pledges of support from the eurozone's biggest economies.
EU regulators are still undecided whether Google dominates in Internet search and if it has abused rivals in breach of competition rules, the EU's antitrust chief said on Friday.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc is shuttering a well-known hedge fund that relies on computer-driven trading strategies after the portfolio rang up a hefty loss this year.
Diamond producer De Beers said on Friday it had signed a new 10-year contract for the sorting, vaulting and sales of the diamond production of Debswana, its joint venture with the government of Botswana.
Swiss bank UBS came under increasing pressure to shrink or sideline its investment bank business -- source of a $2 billion rogue trading loss -- as ratings agencies warned lax risk management could prompt downgrades.
Stock futures pointed to a weaker open for equities on Wall Street on Friday after strong gains in the previous session, with futures for the S&P 500, for the Dow Jones and for the Nasdaq 100 down 0.4-0.7 percent.
A strike involving thousands of workers at Freeport McMoRan's Indonesian copper mine and port has delayed around 133,000 tonnes of copper ore concentrate shipments, industry officials said on Friday.
The idea is out there: Republicans on Capitol Hill considering a ceiling for defense cuts mandated by the deficit-reduction super committee. If it becomes a reality, however, it would not exceed $150 billion over 10 years.
Foreign investors are bullish in pursuing mining ventures in the Philippines, with few signs of a slowdown in mineral demand from Asian neighbors such as China, but policy bottlenecks are hampering a faster flow of investments to the sector.
China has set its first national standard for gold at 99.999 percent purity, state media Xinhua reported on Friday, citing the National Gold Standardization Technical Committee.
South Africa's main mine workers union said on Friday separate wage talks with Exxaro Resources and Impala Platinum , the world's second-largest platinum producer, had deadlocked but strike action was not imminent.
