IBT Staff Reporter

Futures for the Dow Jones industrial average, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 were little changed at 0757 GMT (3:57 a.m. EDT), pointing to a flat open on Wall Street on Friday.

Amid slowing down economic growth in the country, the Chinese iron ore imports may further get a dent as the Indian government is reported to be considering a ban on iron ore exports so as to safeguard its domestic industry. In a latest statement from the steel secretary, Atul Chaturvedi, it was proposed that a ban should be imposed on exports of iron ore so as to preserve the non-renewable energy resource for local industry.

China's lukewarm response to copper imports has hit the commodity's prices in the London market. This week copper traded a bit low in London as China reported a drop in copper imports for the third straight month in June, leading to caution on the demand outlook by the key buyer of the metal.

China will stick with the policies that cooled economic growth last quarter and will keep faith with the euro despite Europe's debt problems, Premier Wen Jiabao said on Friday.

Global oil prices remained under $77 in highly volatile Asian trade as equity markets fell across the region while concerns over potential storms on the east coast of US helped the black gold. Light sweet crude for August delivery was seen trading at $ 76.71 a barrel at 11.30 a.m Singapore time while ICE Brent for September, the front-month contract after August expired on Thursday, gained 1 cent to $76.10 on the Comex.

It seems the fate of gold is depended on central banks across the world. Till now, economic crisis looming over the global economy has been the biggest boost for gold prices as more and more people rushed to buy gold as a safe haven option.

Gold prices gained in Asian trade Friday mainly on a weak dollar while fragile US and China economic growth data boosted its appeal as an alternative asset. Gold for immediate delivery was seen trading at $ 1208.87 an ounce at 12.00 noon Singapore time while U.S. gold futures for August delivery were at $1,209.30 per ounce.

Vietnam's decision to allow gold imports evoked mixed response among gold traders and consumers. Vietnam Gold Business Association said the decision helped boost gold trade and helped prices to ease in comparison with global prices.

Citigroup Inc said in a letter to the U.S. securities regulator it had unintentionally classified as much as $9.2 billion of repurchase agreements as sales at one point, when they should have been shown as borrowings.

Agricultural Bank of China's $19.3 billion IPO limped across the finish line on Friday after a hectic three-month sprint, its modest Hong Kong debut gains reflecting valuations concerns and tough markets.

Top global cellphone makers are set to report a disappointing quarter, hit by euro zone debt problems and the roaring success of smartphone heavyweight Apple, and new launches may determine how they fare in the year's second half.

The dollar hovered near a 2- month low and the Nikkei slumped amid weak Asian stock markets as the outlook for the U.S. economic recovery worsened.

The first new prescription weight-loss pill in more than a decade failed to win backing from U.S. health advisers, who said safety concerns about the drug outweighed its ability to help obese patients shed pounds.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc agreed to pay $550 million to settle civil fraud charges over how it marketed a subprime mortgage product, ending months of negotiations that rattled the bank's clients and investors.

Chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices Inc posted better-than-expected results and estimated revenue growth of up to 10 percent in the current quarter on stronger demand for its new notebook chip set.

Hot on the heels of the FOMC downgrade of U.S GDP softer than expected Chinese data triggered a selloff of higher yielding Currencies in Asia as concerns over the potential slowdown in global growth resurfaced.

The AUD has opened slightly stronger this morning as ongoing concerns about the recovery in the US economy weakened the USD.

U.S.-listed shares of BP Plc jumped 7.6 percent on Thursday after a company executive said no oil was leaking from its blown-out well into the Gulf of Mexico for the first time since late April.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc on Thursday agreed to pay $550 million to settle civil charges that it misled investors in a subprime mortgage product, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced on Thursday.

The first new prescription weight-loss pill in more than a decade failed to win backing from U.S. health advisers, who said safety concerns about the drug outweighed its ability to help obese patients shed pounds.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc agreed to pay $550 million to settle civil fraud charges over how it marketed a subprime mortgage product, ending months of negotiations that rattled the bank's clients and investors.

British Columbia launched North America's first government-run online casino on Thursday, aiming to take a cut of the big dollars its residents are already gambling over the web.

Advanced Micro Devices Inc posted better-than-expected second-quarter results as corporate spending on tech hardware strengthened, sending its shares up 6.6 percent after hours.

Hopes sank that the first new prescription weight-loss pill in more than a decade would be approved for sale when a key federal advisory panel rejected the drug on Thursday amid lingering safety concerns.

U.S. health advisers narrowly rejected Vivus Inc's experimental weight-loss pill, saying there was not enough data to merit approval.

The long-anticipated U.S. stock debut of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co proved a disappointment on Thursday as investors shied away from the private equity firm that made its name with the leveraged buyout of RJR Nabisco in 1988.

A patent infringement lawsuit filed on Wednesday against Amazon.com was a procedural move and not a new lawsuit, according to Discovery Communications Inc, which filed the complaint.

A U.S. judge dismissed a lawsuit against General Electric Co on Thursday that accused the largest U.S. conglomerate of failing to warn investors of the 2008 profit drop that marked the beginning of a two-year downturn for the company.

The Congress on Thursday approved the broadest overhaul of financial rules since the Great Depression and sent it to President Barack Obama to sign into law.