Growth in U.S. retail sales stalled in August after a pitched battle over spending in Congress led consumer confidence to crumble, data showed on Wednesday.
BlackRock Inc Chief Executive Laurence Fink said beaten-down European equities and stocks that pay dividends are still a good bet during current tumultuous markets.
Gold extended its losses Wednesday after Italian lawmakers approved a major austerity program, the latest in a string of signs that Europe's debt crises may be finally getting the attention they deserve.
The head of the World Bank said the world had entered a new economic danger zone and that Europe, Japan and the United States all need to make hard decisions to avoid dragging down the global economy.
Rio Alto Mining Ltd. said Wednesday that first-quarter pre-production at its La Arena gold oxide mine in Peru was 9,385 ounces of gold.
Moody's cut the credit ratings of two French banks on Wednesday because of their exposure to Greece's debt, highlighting growing risks to Europe's financial sector from a deepening euro zone sovereign debt crisis.
Stocks fell on Wednesday as optimism faded over comments about possible new euro zone bonds to help ease the region's debt crisis, and lackluster data on U.S. retail sales gave investors pause.
Shares of China-focused Silvercorp Metals slipped again on Wednesday, a day after more short-sellers publicized a string of allegations against the company.
Gold fell by nearly 1 percent on Tuesday after European leaders appeared to take a fresh step toward quelling the euro zone debt crisis, which dented other safe-haven assets, in spite of more data highlighting the fragility of the U.S. economy.
Chances the United States will lapse into another recession rose over the past month to nearly one in three as the economy faces a number of road blocks that could derail already weak growth, a Reuters poll showed on Wednesday.
Stocks fell on Wednesday, with the Dow and S&P 500 extending losses and the Nasdaq turning negative after an Austrian parliamentary committee failed to approve the European Financial Stability Facility upgrade.
Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's government won a confidence vote on Wednesday in the lower house of parliament on a 54-billion-euro austerity package aimed at staving off financial crisis in Italy.
Stocks pared gains on Wednesday, with the Dow and S&P 500 turning negative after a weaker-than-expected reading on business inventories.
Growth in retail sales stalled in August, hurt by a pitched battle over spending in Congress and raising fresh questions about the country's ability to steer clear of a double-dip recession.
In the latest Bloomberg National Poll, most Americans say the economy is on the wrong track and they are more-pessimistic about its prospects -- something that doesn't bode well for President Barack Obama and Congressional Democrats in the next election, if economic conditions don't improve in the quarters ahead.
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Wednesday tried to shore up confidence in Europe's ability to solve its escalating debt crisis, saying they had the financial and economic capacity to do so.
Stocks opened higher on Wednesday after the head of the European Commission said it will present options for joint euro zone bonds, a tool that investors view as a step forward to addressing the region's debt crisis.
Italy's parliament is expected to approve a much revised austerity plan on Wednesday as Rome struggles to stem a debt crisis threatening the entire euro zone.
Top French bank BNP Paribas plans to sell 70 billion euros ($96 billion) of risk-weighted assets to ease investor fears about French bank leverage and funding as its main rivals were hit by ratings downgrades.
Workers at Peru's Cerro Verde mine, which accounts for about 2 percent of global copper output, started an indefinite strike for better pay and benefits on Wednesday, a union leader said.
Growth in retail sales stalled in August after a pitched battle over spending in Congress undermined faith Washington could steer the country clear of a double-dip recession, data showed on Wednesday.
Republican Bob Turner's victory in the special election for Anthony Weiner's New York congressional seat is being interpreted across the political spectrum as a possible rebuke to Democrats, particularly President Barack Obama.
Large U.S. corporations are pressuring Congress and the White House to exempt overseas corporate profits from taxes, a policy shift that critics say would hurt the economy and increase the federal deficit.
U.S. stocks were set for a higher open on Wednesday after the head of the European Commission said it will present options for joint euro zone bonds, a tool that investors view as a step forward to addressing the region's debt crisis.
Gold prices fell Wednesday as stock markets in Europe posted gains from European Commission plans to push euro zone bonds and China's premier expressed support for struggling European countries.
Growth in retail sales stalled in August after a pitched battle over spending in Congress led consumer confidence to crumble, data showed on Wednesday.
S&P 500 index futures pared gains but remained headed for a higher open on Wednesday after August retail sales came in weaker than expected.
Republican Bob Turner and New York voters delivered a sharp blow to Democrats and President Barack Obama on Tuesday, as Turner won a special House election in New York in a district where Democrats outnumber Republicans three to one.
Stock index futures rose on Wednesday after the head of the European Commission said it will present options for joint euro zone bonds, a tool that might help resolve the region's debt crisis.
Republican leaders have flatly rejected President Barack Obama's proposal to finance his jobs plan with a tax increase on job creators. But is it really? It depends how you define job creators.
