MARKETS / FINANCE

Standard & Poor's stripped Ireland of its last 'A' rating on Friday, citing future risks to bondholders, but the one notch cut was less severe than feared and gave the thumbs up to the state's bank bill.

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Friday as employment notched a second straight month of solid gains while the unemployment rate fell to a two-year low.

Japan plans to take control of Tokyo Electric Power Co, the operator of the country's stricken nuclear plant, in the face of mounting public concerns over the crisis and a huge potential compensation bill, a newspaper reported on Friday.

Ireland's big bang banking plan failed to convince investors on Friday it can shoulder its soaring debt burden given grim prospects for growth and a lack of expected extra support from the European Central Bank.

U.S. stock index futures were higher on Friday ahead of an employment report expected to show that the economy continued to add jobs.

Stock index futures pointed to gains on Friday, rebounding from the previous session's falls, as optimism gathered pace that a key labor market report will confirm the view that the economy was on a solid path to recovery.

Employment likely posted a second straight month of solid gains in March, marking a decisive shift in the labor market that should help to underpin the economic recovery.

For Fumihiro Shimizu and his family-owned auto parts plant in this company town, being a second-tier supplier for Japan's top car makers has never been easy.

The number of unemployed people in eurozone fell in February, after remaining unchanged in the past two months.

Portugal sold 1.65 billion euros in an extraordinary sale of short-term bonds on Friday, but analysts said its high cost of borrowing was still likely to force it into an international bailout within months.

Factories in China and India bumped up production in March as manufacturers drew in more new orders, keeping price pressures intact and making further monetary tightening necessary.

Portugal will seek to sell up to 1.5 billion euros of bonds at an extraordinary auction on Friday, testing investor appetite for its debt after its president on Thursday called a snap election for early June.

World stocks rose and the euro weakened slightly against the dollar on the opening day of the second quarter, ahead of U.S. jobs data expected to give further impetus to those investors betting on improving world growth.

World stocks rose and the euro weakened slightly against the dollar on the opening day of the second quarter, ahead of U.S. jobs data expected to give further impetus to those investors betting on improving world growth.

The heads of bailed-out mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were paid fat salaries without proper written procedures or analysis, according to a report published by the Inspector General of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA-OIG).

Morgan Stanley , Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase & Co will soon join Citigroup and Bank of America Corp in allowing shareholders to vote on executive compensation, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.

Plans for nuclear power investment in the United States will be sidelined but not derailed by the problems Japan is having with the Fukushima nuclear plant, experts said in a panel discussion on Thursday.

Japan will take control of Tokyo Electric Power Co <9501.T>, the operator of a stricken nuclear plant, in the face of mounting public concerns over the crisis and a huge potential compensation bill, a local newspaper reported on Friday.

Chinese authorities found three companies linked to Google Inc broke tax rules and are investigating possible tax avoidance, a Chinese state-run newspaper said on Thursday, raising the risk of fresh pressure on the Internet search giant.

Chinese authorities found three companies linked to Google Inc broke tax rules and are investigating possible tax avoidance, a Chinese state-run newspaper said on Thursday, raising the risk of fresh pressure on the Internet search giant.

Japanese business morale improved slightly in the three months to March, the Bank of Japan's closely watched tankan survey showed, but the devastating earthquake earlier this month and a subsequent nuclear crisis are seen hurting confidence in coming months.

Japanese manufacturers' business sentiment improved slightly in the three months to March, the Bank of Japan's closely watched tankan survey showed, but analysts anticipate a downturn in confidence this quarter following last month's devastating earthquake and tsunami and subsequent nuclear crisis.

Japanese business morale improved slightly in the three months to March, the Bank of Japan's closely watched tankan survey showed, but the devastating earthquake earlier this month and a subsequent nuclear crisis are seen hurting confidence in coming months.

Europe may offer Ireland concessions on its bailout if weak economic growth prevents Dublin from meeting its targets under an EU-IMF bailout, central bank governor Patrick Honohan said on Thursday.

Japan will take control of Tokyo Electric Power Co <9501.T>, the operator of a stricken nuclear plant, in the face of mounting public concerns over the crisis and a huge potential compensation bill, a local newspaper reported on Friday.

Ally Financial has filed to offer shares to the public in a first step for the U.S. government to sell down its majority stake in the former General Motors credit arm.

Former Berkshire Hathaway executive David Sokol's trading in Lubrizol shares as he pitched the company to Warren Buffett is a blurring of personal and professional profit-seeking that could attract a hard look from regulators.

Planemaker Boeing received at least $5.3 billion of illegal U.S. subsidies, the World Trade Organization said on Thursday in a dispute that shows no signs of an end to years of inconclusive wrangling.

Raj Rajaratnam did not pick stocks alone. He had a team of researchers at his Galleon Group hedge fund to grind through the rumor mill and anticipate a good bet.