IBT Staff Reporter

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange made a brief appearance in a London court on Tuesday and will return next month for a full hearing on Sweden's efforts to extradite him for questioning over alleged sex crimes.

Euro zone finance ministers are likely to consider next week the option of raising the effective lending capacity of the euro zone rescue fund as part of efforts to calm sovereign debt markets, euro zone sources said.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc , responding to pressure from shareholders, regulators and others, said it will disclose more information about how it makes money.

Traders are talking about buying dips again, concurs a Hong Kong dealer, noting that Asia physical market remains very tight for Gold Bars. Reuters says the Hong Kong premium for wholesale Gold Bars over benchmark London prices today held at $3 per ounce, a near 30-month high.

Shares of Advanced Micro Devices Inc slumped after the unexpected resignation of its chief executive underscored doubts about the company's strategy.

News Corporation's MySpace is slashing its staff by nearly half, as the former Internet social networking leader recalibrates its operations as an entertainment website.

Topics of this interview include Scott Carter highlighting the global dynamic of today's interest in gold, and how macro-economic trends continue to drive the decade long bull market of the precious metals. We also evaluate the possibility of seeing QE3 in 2011.

Lennar Corp , the third-largest U.S. homebuilder, reported quarterly results that beat Wall Street estimates and said it expected a profitable 2011, boosting its own shares and those of its rivals.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc pledged to be more open about how it makes money and to put clients' interests ahead of its own, eager to rebut criticism that it acts more like a hedge fund than a bank.

Smartronix announced the launch of the new Treasury.gov web site and the migration of four other agency sites to Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud, marking the first time a cabinet level agency has moved its Web sites to AWS.

Media has been set abuzz with the expectations that the Verizon's Tuesday, 8 a.m. announcement in New York will be the news that the iPhone will be available on its network. Here are some factors on how Verizon-iPhone tie-up would affect consumers and competition

Alaska's main oil pipeline was still expected to restart this week with plans to bypass a leaking section that forced the line to shut down on Saturday, idling 12 percent of U.S. oil production, a source familiar with its operations said on Tuesday.

U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday after several fourth-quarter earnings reports and outlooks came in higher than expected, putting the S&P 500 index on course to snap three straight sessions of declines.

Google has appointed Rajan Anandan, previously managing director of Microsoft's India unit, as head of its India operations effective immediately.

Newell Rubbermaid Inc's chief executive will retire later this year, and the consumer products maker is looking for a replacement.

Portugal's central bank predicted the economy would shrink this year, painting a gloomier outlook just as the government sought on Tuesday to quash persistent talk of a bailout.

BAE Systems has canceled plans to sell part of its U.S. commercial aerospace unit, deciding instead to keep the unit after reviewing the business' performance.

BAE Systems Plc will cancel the auction of its Platform Solutions unit and keep the division after months of talks with potential buyers resulted in no agreement, the company said on Tuesday.

Britain now intends to focus on growth as Prime Minister David Cameron urged the importance of trade to the country's business ambassadors. Cameron urged the ambassadors to 'sell Britain' to the rest of the world, and emphasized on the importance of growth.

U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday after several fourth-quarter earnings reports and outlooks came in higher than expected, putting the S&P 500 index on track to snap three straight sessions of declines.

Not to be left behind in the fight for 4G space, AT&T has introduced three phones on its network from Motorola, HTC and Samsung at the recently concluded CES 2011 in Las Vegas, and made sure it has the arsenal to make up for the iPhone loss, courtesy, Apple launching an iPhone for Verizon.

U.S. wholesale inventories unexpectedly fell in November as wholesale sales outstripped forecasts, a government report showed on Tuesday, suggesting optimism about the sustainability of demand.

Soft games, hardcore gaming, linear or 3D effect, motion gaming has changed the way we look at the virtual world - Kinect or Move - take your pick

Japan promised on Tuesday to buy euro zone bonds this month in a show of support for Europe's struggle with a seething debt crisis.

Alaska's main oil pipeline was still expected to restart this week after a spill on Saturday forced it to shut down, idling 12 percent of U.S. oil production, a source familiar with its operations said.

Considered an indication of what to expect at the Oscars, True Grit and 127 Hours find no mention along with the ladies in the DGA list

The holiday shopping season still delivered a few surprises on Tuesday, both naughty and nice, showing that the U.S. economic recovery is not strong enough to lift all retailers.

Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates attempted on Tuesday to put a floor under persistent talk that his country will seek an international bailout, saying there are no such plans and that the 2010 budget gap was lower than its goal.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will argue he should not be extradited from Britain to Sweden over alleged sex crimes because he could end up in the United States facing the death penalty, his lawyers said on Tuesday.