IBT Staff Reporter

Platinum soared to its 14th consecutive record high on Tuesday as investors continue to purchase the precious metal on persisting stockpile concerns from South Africa, the metals top producer.

The dollar fell on Tuesday amid continuing speculation that the Federal Reserve will lower interest rates, and minutes from the Reserve Bank of Australia indicating that it had wanted to raise its interest higher than it did earlier this month.

U.S. stocks gained on Tuesday for the first time in three days after Wal-Mart Stores Inc. released higher-than-expected fourth quarter results and energy stocks climbed led by oil which surpassed $98 a barrel.

Credit Suisse has written $2.85 billion off the value of its asset-backed investments and found mismarking and pricing errors on its books, it revealed on Tuesday, sending its shares plummeting. The bank said the write-downs would wipe $1 billion from its first-quarter net income, after taking into account tax credits and cancelling some staff bonuses, but it still expected to stay in profit in the quarter, despite the charge.

High-yielding currencies, led by the Australian dollar, rose on Tuesday as investors added to risky trades amid strong gains in commodity prices and expectations of further interest rate increases in Australia.

European shares cut Tuesday's losses and rose as a turnaround in shares of Barclays boosted UK banks and U.S. stock futures extended gains.

Platinum set a lifetime high for the 14th straight day on Tuesday on strong speculative buying on the back of severe output problems in top producer South Africa.

The promise of a solid open on Wall Street after Wal-Mart signaled the U.S. consumer is still keen to spend helped set aside worries about hefty bank writedowns on Tuesday while oil and metal prices rose unabated.

Wal-Mart Stores posted better-than-expected quarterly profit on Tuesday as penny-pinching U.S. shoppers scoured its discount stores for low prices on necessities like food to offset tough economic conditions. We know that the economy remains a critical factor in this new fiscal year, said Lee Scott, CEO of the world's largest retailer, in a statement. Customers were more cautious in their spending in January.

Canadian electronic publisher Thomson Corp won conditional permission from the European Commission on Tuesday to buy Reuters, a deal that will create the world's leading provider of news and data for professional markets.

NiSource Inc said electricity and gas utility Unitil Corp agreed to buy two of its units for $160 million in a deal expected to strengthen Unitil's gas utility operations and expand the company's customer base by 40 percent.

Actor Jude Law will appear as Heath Ledger's character, along with Johnny Depp and Colin Farrell, in the unfinished film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, Law's spokeswoman said on Monday.

For weeks, Britons Daniel Day-Lewis and Julie Christie have looked like sure bets to win the coveted best actor and actress Academy Awards, but in the days ahead of Sunday's gala ceremony, momentum has shifted.

Plans for sweeping government bailouts and wholesale rewriting of mortgage terms are gaining traction as other efforts fall short.

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf's opponents won a big election victory on Tuesday after voters rejected his former ruling party, raising questions about the future of the U.S. ally who has ruled since 1999. Counting was continuing with results still awaited in less than 20 seats, but no party was expected to win a majority in the 342-seat National Assembly.

This stuffing was hot, but not in the roasted turkey sense. Police have arrested a 32-year-old man they accuse of stealing 217 cases of Pepperidge Farm stuffing mix.

A U.K based firm is planning to unveil a $195 laptop targeted at students at the end of the month, making it the least expensive laptop offering yet.

Copper jumped to a four month high today as stockpiles on the London Metal Exchange had their biggest drop since October 17 and a report showed higher demand in China.

In the wake of Research in Motion's recent outage that left millions of users without access to their data and email, Vodaphone UK has announced that it will use a third-party solution to guarantee Blackberry service.

Apple iPhones are being smuggled into China through word-of-mouth networks, helping to deal a blow to Apple's efforts to create official distribution channels for its popular devices, according to a report.

Europe's major powers and the United States said on Monday they recognized Kosovo's new independence, as Serbs reacted with anger and some states warned that its secession from Serbia set a dangerous precedent.

Microsoft Corp does not expect sales of its Xbox 360 game console to suffer if Toshiba Corp discontinues HD DVD technology, Microsoft said in a statement on Monday.

The Walt Disney Co, the second-largest U.S. media company, said on Monday it will pay $203 million to raise its stake in India's UTV Software Communications Ltd from 14.9 percent to 32.1 percent.

European shares rose Monday as investors rushed to buy after recent volatility and selloffs, while Asian markets were mixed and U.S market was closed for a public holiday.

Qatar is buying shares of Credit Suisse and will spend as much as $15 billion over the next year on European and U.S. bank stocks, the prime minister said Sunday night, according to a report.

Crude rose on Monday for a fourth day as Venezuela's dispute with Exxon Mobil Corp. and comments from an Iranian OPEC official increased concern of a shortage of oil supplies in the United States.

Platinum surged over $2,100 an ounce for the first time, gaining more than 20 percent since late January after South Africa, the largest producing nation, continues to be hard hit by power cuts that forced mines to shut down operations. Gold remained steady.

The pound declined on Monday after the UK government announced a plan to temporarily nationalize struggling bank Northern Rock, leading investors to grow more concerned about the country s economy.

An impending end to a format war over next-generation DVDs boosted shares in both victorious Sony, in the Blu-ray corner, and Toshiba, in the losing HD DVD camp, on Monday as consumers cheered an end to confusion over which discs will carry high-definition movies.