MARKETS / FINANCE

World stocks put in modest gains on Wednesday after recent declines, while oil prices also rebounded as investors sought fresh opportunities to bet on risky assets.

JPMorgan Chase & Co is expected to post an increase in first-quarter profit of more than 50 percent on Wednesday, as the bank weathers a slowdown in trading and fewer borrowers default on credit card loans.

Brent crude rose above $121 on Wednesday, halting a two-day decline, as traders focused on the stalemate in Libya and a sharp fall in U.S. gasoline stocks ahead of peak demand season, while global agencies warned high prices could erode demand.

Japanese Economics Minister Kaoru Yosano said on Wednesday that the effects of last month's devastating earthquake and tsunami would be relatively short-lived, with the economy expected to recover toward the end of the year.

The judge overseeing the liquidation of Bernard Madoff's investment firm on Tuesday rejected requests by banks to keep secret the names of current and former employees mentioned in lawsuits seeking to recover alleged improper profits tied to the imprisoned Ponzi schemer.

A senior U.S. Treasury Department official said on Tuesday the G20 expects to make progress on guidelines for identifying economic imbalances this week and soon will be able to list countries with problems.

The world's biggest economies hope to make progress this week on a plan to identify countries that put the global economy at risk, while China warned against any moves that would curb its red-hot growth.

Hedge fund founder Raj Rajaratnam's trial defense on Tuesday tried to deflect prosecution evidence that he traded on inside information about Wall Street's most influential bank, Goldman Sachs Group Inc, at the height of the 2008 financial crisis.

The G20 hopes to make progress on developing guidelines to identify economic imbalances this week and will soon be able to list countries with the biggest problems, a senior U.S. Treasury official on Tuesday.

Tenet Healthcare Corp shares retained a takeover premium on Tuesday, a day after it lobbed a legal grenade at unwanted suitor Community Health Systems , suggesting that investors still believe a deal between the two rivals could happen.

The March 11 Japan earthquake and tsunami are likely to have caused up to $34 billion in losses for the global insurance industry, catastrophe modeling company RMS said on Tuesday.

Hedge fund founder Raj Rajaratnam's trial defense on Tuesday tried to deflect prosecution evidence that he traded on inside information about Wall Street's most influential bank, Goldman Sachs Group Inc, at the height of the 2008 financial crisis.

The world's biggest economies will struggle this week to make headway on a plan to identify countries that put the global economy at risk with China opposed to any attempt to curb its growth.

Senators John Kerry and John McCain introduced a tough new privacy bill on Tuesday that would require companies to notify consumers in clear language when their data is being collected and oblige them to keep that information safe from hackers.

Big banks like Bank of America Corp and Citigroup Inc should be reclassified as government-sponsored entities and have their activities restricted, a senior Fed official said on Tuesday.

General Motors Co said on Tuesday it will invest $100 million in a New York parts plant that the company and union officials say was kept from closing because workers there agreed to second-tier wage levels designed to keep U.S. automakers competitive.

U.S. imports and exports fell in February, prompting analysts to cut again their forecasts for U.S. economic growth in early 2011 and showing signs of a slowing in the global recovery.

Senators John Kerry and John McCain introduced a tough new privacy bill on Tuesday that would require companies to notify consumers in clear language when their data is being collected, and oblige them to keep that information safe from hackers

U.S. stocks dropped on Tuesday on worries falling oil prices could set off a reversal in the high-flying energy sector, while Alcoa's leaner-than-expected revenue disappointed.

The man in charge of Canada's largest chain of newspapers, Paul Godfrey, is reshaping his titles for the digital age in a cost-cutting drive that will bring extensive retraining and more job cuts.

IntercontinentalExchange Inc and Nasdaq OMX have no reason to boost their takeover bid for the New York Stock Exchange parent company because their joint offer is already superior, ICE's chief executive said on Tuesday.

Senators John Kerry and John McCain introduced a tough new privacy bill on Tuesday that would require companies to give clear notice when consumers' data is being collected and to keep it safe from hackers.

Energy companies, airlines and other end-users would be mostly exempt from having to put up costly collateral when using uncleared swaps to hedge their business risks, under a proposal issued by U.S. bank regulators on Tuesday.

A leading corporate governance body has urged shareholders in Barclays to oppose executive pay at the bank, calling its disclosure opaque and its design overly complex.

Stock indexes dropped 1 percent on Tuesday, hit by a sharp fall in oil prices and after Alcoa's lighter-than-expected revenue started the earnings season on a dour note.

The European Central Bank's interest rates are very low and a scaling down of its support measures is warranted, a senior ECB policymaker said on Tuesday but another played down the risk from inflation.

Stock indexes slid 1 percent on Tuesday as oil prices sank and Alcoa's leaner-than-expected revenue started the earnings season on a disappointing note.

EBay Inc will buy most of the stake it does not already own in a Turkish auction website, in its latest move to strengthen its main marketplaces business.

Allied Irish Banks aimed to put the collective madness of a homegrown property bubble behind it on Tuesday with a jaw-dropping annual loss of 10.4 billion euros and a plan to axe over 2,000 jobs.