MARKETS / FINANCE

Asian shares dropped after a massive earthquake hit Japan, including the capital Tokyo, darkening an already bleak mood caused by weak economic data and unrest in Saudi Arabia.

A British man pleaded guilty on Thursday to committing mail and wire fraud in an investment scam selling worthless stocks of dormant and sham U.S. companies that bilked investors of more than $40 million.

Clearwire Corp CEO Bill Morrow has resigned in a wider management shake-up as the wireless operator tries to resolve a dispute with majority owner Sprint Nextel and fights to close a funding gap of billions of dollars.

A federal judge limited the potential financial liability facing the operator of LimeWire, a once-popular file-sharing service found liable for copyright infringement, at an upcoming damages trial.

American International Group offered on Thursday to buy back, for $15.7 billion cash, mortgage-backed securities the U.S. government had taken off the bailed-out insurer's hands during the financial crisis.

American International Group offered on Thursday to buy back, for $15.7 billion cash, mortgage-backed securities the U.S. government took off the bailed-out insurer's hands during the financial crisis.

The head of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said she wished the SEC's former top lawyer had removed himself from the agency's work on the epic Bernard Madoff fraud.

Newly revealed missteps by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in its handling of the epic Bernard Madoff fraud undermined its pleas for more funding on Thursday before a trio of congressional panels.

The U.S. trade deficit widened much more than expected in January as higher oil prices and surging imports of capital goods and cars overpowered record exports in a signal of strengthening domestic demand.

Corrects attribution of ninth paragraph quote to Representative Cummings, not Schapiro, as earlier sent

Illinois Governor Pat Quinn signed a bill into law on Thursday aimed at expanding the collection of sales taxes on items bought over the Internet.

The U.S. government posted a record monthly budget deficit of $222.5 billion in February as spending growth outstripped revenue gains crimped by tax cuts enacted late last year, the Treasury Department reported on Thursday.

Goldman Sachs Group said it is part of a creditor group that may file an alternative plan for dividing up billions of dollars of Lehman Brothers' Holdings assets.

YouTube, the popular video site owned by Google Inc, said on Thursday it is adding 200 jobs, boosting its staff by more than 30 percent in its biggest hiring year.

A disgraced former McKinsey & Co partner told jurors he leaked secrets about the elite consulting firm's clients in exchange for $1.75 million in hidden payments from onetime friend Raj Rajaratnam, the main defendant in the biggest U.S. insider trading trial in years.

New missteps in response to the epic fraud of Bernard Madoff threatened to undermine the Securities and Exchange Commission's pitch for more money before a trio of congressional committees on Thursday.

Fears about the economy and unrest in Saudi Arabia darkened the outlook for equities on Thursday, pushing major indexes below key technical levels.

Octogenarian gaming magnate Stanley Ho, chairman of Macau's biggest casino operator SJM Holdings <0880.HK>, said he had resolved a high-profile dynastic tussle played out via a worldwide web audience since January.

A disgraced former partner at McKinsey & Co told jurors he leaked stock tips about the elite consulting firm's clients to Raj Rajaratnam, in dramatic testimony at the biggest U.S. insider trading trial in years.

Fears about the economy and unrest in Saudi Arabia darkened the outlook for equities on Thursday, pushing major indexes below key technical levels.

Shares of private equity-backed hospital operator HCA Holdings Inc rose nearly 4 percent in early trading in a strong stock market debut on Thursday, even as the broad market sank.

Jurors for the first time heard the voices of accused hedge fund manager Raj Rajaratnam and some of his high-placed friends discussing stocks in wiretapped conversations that authorities argue show he traded illegally on company secrets.

Fears about the economy and unrest in the Middle East sent indexes skidding below key technical levels on Thursday as the near-term outlook for stocks grew cloudy.

Jurors for the first time heard the voices of accused hedge fund manager Raj Rajaratnam and some of his high-placed friends discussing stocks in wiretapped conversations that authorities argue show he traded illegally on company secrets.

The S&P 500 fell on Thursday below its 50-day moving average for the first time since November 30, highlighting the benchmark's loss of upward momentum.

EU regulators are likely to take a long, hard look at Deutsche Boerse's planned takeover of NYSE Euronext, the EU's antitrust chief said, while a top NYSE executive said talks with authorities globally are so far going well.

Stocks extended losses on Thursday, with the S&P 500 hitting session lows as traders cited anxiety over Saudi police firing on protesters.

Facebook not only made household names out of its founders thanks to the movie The Social Network -- it has also minted the latest crop of the richest people on the planet.

Shares of private equity-backed hospital operator HCA Holdings Inc were up 4 percent on Thursday in a strong stock market debut, even as the broad market sank.