MARKETS / FINANCE

Gold prices have once again climbed to record levels of $1264 last week before correcting on profit taking thereby cementing the appeal of the yellow metal as a safe haven for investors. China announced its move toward a more flexible currency exchange rate mechanism which has improved the investor sentiments in general but the softening of the dollar has helped the recent surge in gold prices to record levels.

U.S. film studio Spyglass Entertainment has emerged as the leading contender to run debt-ridden Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Asian stocks retreated on Tuesday as investors booked profits a day after China's weekend decision to give its currency more flexibility triggered a risk rally.

Google Inc and Twitter Inc have asked an appeals court to overturn a lower court's decision to bar Theflyonthewall.com from issuing immediate news on analyst research from several Wall Street banks, court documents showed.

China pulled back the veil on its new currency regime a little further on Tuesday, appearing to engineer a fall in the yuan to make clear its vow of flexibility did not include one-way bets for appreciation.

Communications regulators are holding a series of closed-door meetings with phone, cable and Internet lobbyists in an effort to hammer out a deal over how broadband should be regulated, a senior official said on Monday.

China's yuan jumped on Tuesday to its highest level since the currency was revalued in 2005 as the central bank signaled it would tolerate yet further gains to make good on its vow for more foreign exchange flexibility.

Asian markets waited with bated breath Tuesday to see how far Beijing would go in allowing its currency to strengthen, a litmus test of just how flexible the Chinese authorities are prepared to be to meet U.S. demands.

New Jersey Democratic legislators on Monday failed to gather enough votes to extend a tax on millionaires that would have been used to provide property tax relief for senior citizens and the disabled.

The AUD has opened lower this morning currently trading around USD0.8765 as profit taking entered the market following the announcement from the Chinese central bank regarding the Chinese Yuan.

The Supreme Court said on Monday it would hear JPMorgan Chase & Co's appeal over a lawsuit accusing the bank of violating federal law by failing to notify credit card holders before raising interest rates due to late payments or defaults.

Press release service Business Wire said on Monday it will no longer accept releases by email after it inadvertently distributed a hoax statement involving a small pharmaceutical company, days after its main rival was burned in a similar fashion.

Connecticut's attorney general will lead a multi-state probe of whether Google Inc broke the law when it siphoned personal data off wireless networks around the world, which the Internet search leader has said was inadvertent.

Commodity currencies rallied on Friday, with the Aussie advancing to a new monthly high reaching 0.8712 USD.

China's surprise move to relax currency controls ahead of this weekend's G20 summit buoyed global markets and sent the yuan to a five-year peak on Monday, but caution returned as analysts questioned how far Beijing's new currency flexibility would go.

Stocks once again succumbed to late-day selling in light trading on Monday as hopes China's newfound dedication to yuan flexibility turned to doubts about the speed and magnitude of Beijing's intentions.

U.S. securities regulators on Monday accused New York financial services firm ICP Asset Management and its founder of defrauding investors in a series of complex collateralized debt obligations for their own benefit.

Connecticut's attorney general will lead a multi-state probe of whether Google Inc broke laws when it siphoned personal data off wireless networks around the world, which the Internet search leader has said was inadvertent.

BP is eyeing relatively modest new bank lending lines and is not planning bond sales or new increases in asset sales to fund its Gulf of Mexico oil spill clean-up, sources familiar with the company's thinking said on Monday.

Stocks rose on Monday but were off early highs as investors digested China's vow to allow a flexible yuan currency.

China's yuan hit a five-year peak on Monday after Beijing suddenly relaxed controls ahead of this weekend's G20 summit, sparking stock gains around the world and questions about just how far China's new currency flexibility would go.

European Central Bank policymakers pressed governments on Monday to follow stricter budget rules and open their books to external monitoring as they urged a new carrot-and-stick approach to fiscal policy.

China's yuan surged to a five-year peak on Monday, sending stocks higher across the globe as Beijing signaled ahead of this weekend's G20 summit that it would deliver on pledges of greater currency flexibility.

Barclays Plc's top two executives will tell a New York court this week that the British bank did not receive an unfair windfall from a deal for parts of Lehman Brothers in a case that shows the need for banks to draw up living wills.

Stocks rose on Monday as China's vow to allow a flexible yuan currency reassured investors about the global recovery and improved the profit outlook for many U.S. multinational companies.

A federal judge agreed to give Goldman Sachs Group Inc more time to respond to a lawsuit filed by U.S. securities regulators accusing the Wall Street bank of fraud.

Diversified food maker Ralcorp Holdings Inc agreed to buy American Italian Pasta Co for about $1.2 billion in cash to further expand its product portfolio, and forecast a weak third-quarter profit.

The Supreme Court said on Monday it would hear JPMorgan Chase & Co's appeal over a lawsuit that says the bank violated federal law by failing to notify credit card holders before raising interest rates due to late payments or defaults.

Caterpillar Inc (CAT.N), the U.S. machinery giant that sells billions of dollars of earth-moving equipment and other products to China each year, said on Saturday it was heartened by China's move to gradually make the yuan more flexible, saying it would help lift U.S. exports.