Housing starts fell to a five-month low in May but industrial output rose, evidence of an uneven recovery that has kept inflation at a minimum.
Chief executives of United Airlines and Continental Airlines braced on Wednesday for the strongest political headwinds that their proposal to create the world's biggest airline will likely face.
FedEx Corp reported a quarterly profit on Wednesday that beat analyst expectations, but said costs would constrain its 2011 earnings, sending its shares down in premarket trading.
Stocks were set to fall at the open on Wednesday as FedEx warned about higher costs, housing starts fell to a five-month low and new concerns surfaced over Spain's fiscal problems.
Housing starts fell more than expected in May to a five-month low as a homebuyer tax credit expired while plunging energy costs pushed producer prices lower, buying time for the Federal Reserve to maintain its ultra-low interest rate policy.
The EU and International Monetary Fund on Wednesday denied a report that they and the U.S. Treasury were drawing up a safety net for Spain including a credit line of up to 250 billion euros ($335 billion).
Thousands of creditors owed up to $22 billion by bankrupt U.S. investment bank Lehman Brothers will be offered earlier cash payments if they are willing to take a cut in their claim valuations.
Housing starts fell more than expected in May to their lowest level in five months, a government report showed on Wednesday, as a popular homebuyer tax credit that had buoyed construction activity over the past two months expired.
The European Commission on Wednesday denied a report that the European Union, the IMF and the U.S. Treasury were drawing up a liquidity plan for Spain including a credit line of up to 250 billion euros ($335 billion).
Stock index futures fell on Wednesday, a day after Wall Street jumped more than 2 percent, on new concerns about Spain's fiscal problems, while investors awaited data on producer prices and housing.
Stock index futures fell on Wednesday, a day after Wall Street jumped more than 2 percent, on new concerns about Spain's fiscal problems, while investors awaited data on housing and producer prices.
After suffering more than a year of abuse over its role in the financial crisis, the U.S. Federal Reserve is poised to emerge with its powers relatively intact as lawmakers finalize a sweeping overhaul of financial regulations.
World stocks hit a one-month high on Wednesday and the euro briefly hit a two-week peak as strong gains on Wall Street and the relative success of this week's European debt auctions encouraged fresh risk-taking.
Stock index futures pointed to a lower open on Wall Street on Wednesday following the previous session's strong rally, with futures for the S&P 500 down 0.5 percent, Dow Jones futures down 0.4 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures down 0.4 percent at 0944 GMT.
A modest economic recovery is taking shape in the euro zone but its countries face two major challenges: reducing their deficits and reinforcing growth, European Central Bank Governing Council member Guy Quaden said.
The economy of Belgium will grow by 1.3 percent this year, slightly more than previously forecast, and by 1.7 percent in 2011 after contracting by 3.0 percent in 2009, the country's central bank said on Wednesday.
Asian shares rose on Wednesday, led by electronics makers and resource stocks, after successful European debt auctions boosted hopes for global growth and lifted commodity prices.
Gold firmed on Wednesday on bargain hunting driven by persistent worries that debt problems in Europe were worsening, but rising stock markets could still spur a shift to riskier assets.
The euro steadied near a two-week high against the dollar on Wednesday, as investors in Asia hesitated to chase its short-covering rally further, while higher yielding currencies stalled after rallying alongside stocks.
Electronics hardware makers on Tuesday showed off snazzy new devices enabling motion-sensing play and 3D effects, intensifying a battle to introduce video-gaming to a new generation of casual users.
Oil rose above $77 on Wednesday to reach the highest level since mid-May, tracking a recovery in global stock markets as risk appetite returns with easing concern about Europe's economy.
Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) and the World Gold Council (WGC) have launched The Palm edition of the prestigious 'Visions of Dubai' (VoD) gold coin series. The coin features the image of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, on the front and The Palm Jumeirah, one of Dubai's iconic landmarks, on the reverse.
Gold prices eased in Asian trade Wednesday after an overnight rise near one percent on Europe debt concerns.
Gold for immediate delivery was seen trading at $1232.69 an ounce at 11.30 a.m Singapore time while US gold futures for August delivery was at $1,233.3 an ounce.
Low-rated U.S. companies may struggle to refinance more than $1.7 trillion in debt that comes due between 2011 and 2014 as growing economic concerns make banks and investors more reticent to lend, Standard & Poor's said on Wednesday.
Shares of CBOE Holdings Inc jumped 12 percent in their market debut as investors flocked to the last major North American financial exchange to go public and a potential takeover target.
The Federal Reserve scored a political victory on Tuesday as Democrats mulling financial reform backed off measures that would expose monetary policy to audits and make the head of the New York Fed bank a political appointee.
Credit-rating agencies like Moody's and Standard & Poor's dodged a bullet on Tuesday as lawmakers decided to strip out a provision in the Wall Street reform bill that would have upended their business model.
The Federal Reserve scored a political victory on Wednesday as Democrats mulling financial reform backed off measures that would expose monetary policy to audits and make the head of the New York Fed a political appointee.
The Australian Dollar has continued to push higher overnight following a positive lead from equity markets.
Fewer Americans fell behind on their credit card bills in May, signaling that consumers are closer to getting their debt levels under control even if the economy remains sluggish.
