S&P

Sony Tablet S and Tablet P are about to receive Android 4.0 - Ice Cream Sandwich - updates, the Japanese electronics giant announced on its online community forum.

Mukesh and Anil Ambani buried the hatchet in a five-year battle that split the business empire inherited from their father, but family watchers were sceptical that the reunion would result in renewed business ties.

The pipeline will carry Russian gas under the Black Sea into Europe.

Stocks fell about 1 percent on Wednesday on concerns about the economy in early 2012 while the euro hit a fresh 11-month low against the dollar before a key auction of long-dated Italian debt on Thursday.

Home prices in 20 major U.S. cities fell 3.4 percent in October compared with the previous year, signaling continued weakness in the housing market, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices.

The S&P 500 turned positive for the year on Friday as equities rallied again on a run of better-than-expected economic data, though volume continued to be seasonally weak.

Wall Street stocks rose on Friday as the S&P 500 rallied for a fourth straight day and turned positive for the year after a run of better-than-expected economic data.

Goldman Sachs recovered quickly Thursday from a rumor that the company's corporate debt was being downgraded by Standard and Poor's, extending the day-long rally the firm's stock had been experiencing prior to the non-event.

Stocks rose on Thursday, putting the S&P 500 on the cusp of finishing out the year higher as another decline in jobless claims pointed to further improvement in the labor market.

According to Bloomberg, Goldman Sachs' corporate credit rating was downgraded to AA-, from A+

Stocks edged higher on Thursday, putting the benchmark S&P 500 index on track for its third straight advance after data pointed to ongoing labor market improvement, albeit at a slow pace.

Technology shares slumped on Wednesday and pushed the Nasdaq down 1 percent after Oracle reported results that cast doubts on the sector's health, even as broader markets closed mostly flat in a thinly traded day.

Standard and Poor's, one of the top credit rating agencies in the world, announced today it was lowering the sovereign credit ratings on the Republic of Hungary, slashing that government's debt to 'junk' debt status. The agency also assigned the nation's debt with a 'recovery rating' of 3, meaning it expects investors to be able to obtain from 50 to 70 percent of the country's bonds face value in the event of a default.

By mid-day the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) was down 80 points, to 12,023.28, while the NASDAQ was down 2 percent, to 2,550, and the S&P 500 was off three-quarters of a percent fo 1,232.

S&P 500 stock buybacks increased for the ninth consecutive quarter. As share count begins to decline, some earnings-per-share impacts are expected for the fourth quarter.

The top aftermarket NYSE losers Tuesday were: Jabil Circuit, SAP AG, FelCor Lodging Trust, iSoftStone Holdings, TRC Companies, PVH Corp, Sealed Air Corp, Talisman Energy, Yingli Green Energy Holding and Frontline Ltd.

The death of Kim Jong-il, North Korean leader, would not immediately affect South Korea's A rating, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said Monday. However, the event has raised security risks on the Korean peninsula and could have negative rating implications if these risks increase.

At least 133 people in India are dead and 327 others hospitalized after drinking moonshine, health officials have said.

Stock index futures added to gains on Thursday after data showed weekly jobless claims dropped to their lowest level since May 2008, suggesting the labor market recovery was gaining speed, while a gauge of manufacturing in New York State showed growth accelerated in December.

Standard & Poor's on Tuesday said there is a greater number of sovereign and banking bonds at risk of ratings downgrades as a result of its recent warning that it might cut the credit ratings on 15 euro zone nations.

Standard & Poor's Ratings Services downgraded five more North American banks late Tuesday, a move to better reflect a recalibration of its view of the banking sector. The downgrade is a result of the application of the revised bank criteria published on Nov. 9, rather than any sudden and striking changes in creditworthiness.