MARKETS / FINANCE

Fears that the huge Gulf of Mexico oil spill was spreading through ocean currents flared on Tuesday after tarballs were found on Florida's Key West, while energy giant BP Plc worked to capture more of the leaking crude.

Exchanges are expected to introduce new trading curbs known as circuit breakers for large U.S. stocks over a six-month pilot program, as regulators move to avoid a repeat of the severe market plunge on May 6, two people familiar with the talks said on Tuesday.

Greece received a 14.5 billion euro ($18 billion) loan from the European Union on Tuesday and can now repay its immediate debt, but still faces a mammoth task to claw its way out of recession.

Fidelity National Information Services Inc confirmed that talks regarding the sale of the company have ended, and the payment processor plans to borrow heavily to buy back shares.

A discovery of tar balls on Florida's Key West fanned fears on Tuesday that a massive Gulf of Mexico oil spill was spreading through ocean currents, as energy giant BP Plc worked to capture more of the crude leaking from its gushing deep-water well.

More than 80 independent oil and gas producers have sued units of Goldman Sachs Group Inc and BP Plc , alleging they conspired with SemGroup LP to defraud the plaintiffs of money owed for oil and gas delivered prior to the energy trader's 2008 bankruptcy.

Producer prices eased in April and costs excluding food and energy remained contained, suggesting inflation is not a near-term concern for officials at the Federal Reserve.

Housing starts rose more than expected in April to touch their highest level since October 2008 likely on the back of a home buyer tax credit, but permits hit a six-month low, a government report showed on Tuesday.

Fidelity National Information Services Inc confirmed that talks regarding the sale of the company have ended, and the payment processor will now go for a leveraged recapitalization with a substantial share buyback.

Greece received a 14.5-billion euro ($17.9 billion) emergency loan from the European Union on Tuesday and will use some of the money to fully repay an 8.5-billion euro bond maturing the next day, officials said.

German investor sentiment fell sharply in May on concern growth will be stifled by a 750-billion-euro ($930 billion) rescue package designed to calm market fears of a wave of Greek-style debt crises.

Google is buying Oslo-listed Global IP Solutions for $68 million to build its real-time audio and video Internet capabilities, the two companies said in a joint statement on Tuesday.

Greece will receive 14.5 billion euros ($17.9 billion) in aid from the European Union at around 1000 GMT (6 a.m. ET) on Tuesday, a central bank official said, in time to pay an 8.5 billion euro bond the next day.

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group , Japan's largest bank by assets, returned to profit in the latest quarter due to the absence of big losses on its stock portfolio but its growth forecast for this year is below market expectations.

Euro zone finance ministers are working on ironing out wrinkles in the 750 billion euro ($925 billion) plan they hatched a week ago to calm markets and stem fears of serial Greek-style debt crises in the currency area.

U.S. regulators and exchanges are considering market-wide circuit breakers that would temporarily stop trading when it falls five percent, two sources familiar with the talks said on Monday.

Japanese manufacturers turned optimistic for the first time in two years in May, a Reuters poll showed, providing further evidence of the economy's continuing recovery led by Asian demand.

Calpers, the largest U.S. public pension fund, has voted for a shareholder proposal to separate the roles of chairman and chief executive at JPMorgan Chase & Co , roles currently held by veteran banker Jamie Dimon.

An informant for U.S. regulators probing fraud claims against Goldman Sachs has urged Australia's markets watchdog to also investigate the U.S. bank, a newspaper said on Tuesday.

A panel advising U.S. market regulators will meet on May 24 to discuss the mysterious market plunge, the Securities and Exchange Commission said on Monday.

Google Inc could face inquiries from German and U.S. officials following the company's disclosure it had mistakenly collected sensitive data sent by consumers over wireless networks, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday.

U.S. money manager Waddell & Reed Financial Inc said an internal analysis of trading activity indicates it was not the cause of the flash crash that briefly wiped out $1 trillion in market capital earlier this month.

The U.S. government has recovered about half of the initial $4 billion in bailout money that was extended to Chrysler Group under the Bush administration, the Treasury said on Monday.

The pace of the U.S. economic rebound may be slowing, manufacturing data suggested on Monday, as concerns grow about the impact of Europe's debt crisis on global growth.

Foreigners bought a record $140.5 billion of long-term U.S. securities in March, the Treasury Department said on Monday, and more than doubled purchases of U.S. government bonds.

Microsoft Corp will pay $200 million to VirnetX Holding Corp and obtain a patent license to settle litigation accusing it of infringing two patents for communicating over the Internet.

U.S. credit card delinquencies fell for the fourth straight month in April, the latest indicator that Americans are recovering from the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.

Washington Mutual Inc proposed an amended plan of reorganization on Monday that would return $7 billion to creditors, but it was unclear if the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp would support the plan.

Hedge fund firm Man Group PLC has agreed to buy rival GLG Partners for $1.6 billion as it seeks to boost flagging growth, while creating a new giant in an industry reshaping after the financial crisis.