DOW JONES

The Dow finished the week with solid gains Friday, edging closer to the 13000 mark which could be another indication of improvement in the U.S. economy.

Prompted by a delay in a big trade of a popular exchange-traded fund, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is taking a closer look at a possible connection between high-frequency traders and hedge funds jumping in and out of ETFs, among other areas, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The major U.S. indices floated close to yearly highs Friday, but extremely low volumes of trading, divergences in the behavior of important sub-indices and various other technical indicators suggested U.S. equities might be in for a price-slashing correction soon.

Stock index futures were little changed Friday as investors were set to take a breather from a rally that pushed the S&P 500 to a nine-month high in the previous session.

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development released a report Tuesday calling on Germany to raise its property taxes dramatically. The group has also called on Denmark, Norway, and the U.K. to do the same.

Robust economic data and European Central Bank support for Greece energized U.S. stocks Thursday, as investors ignored possible bank downgrades and lifted equities to a nine-month high.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.76 percent to 12,884.75 by early afternoon trading, while the Nasdaq rose 1.01 percent to 2,945.17. The S&P 500 rose 0.83 percent to 1,354.37.

Wall Street stocks rose on Thursday, with the Dow rebounding from its sharpest loss of the year, but gains were limited despite signs of an improving U.S. economy.

Wall Street stocks were set to open little changed on Thursday as concerns about a possible downgrade of global banks by Moody's were offset by upbeat U.S. data on the labor and housing sectors.

Stock index futures fell on Thursday after a Moody's warning of a possible downgrade of global banks and a further holdup in a bailout for debt-laden Greece.

Stock index futures fell on Thursday as a Moody's warning of a possible downgrade of global banks and a further holdup in a bailout for debt-laden Greece kept investors nervous.

According to a statement by the Tokyo District Public Prosecutor's Office, the former Olympus Corp. Chairman Tsuyoshi Kikukawa was arrested by Japanese prosecutors in one of the biggest ever financial scandals to hit Japan.

Stocks gave up gains on Wednesday as the S&P 500 hit a technical barrier near a nine-month high and Apple shares erased a 3 percent advance.

U.S. stocks gave up gains on Wednesday as the S&P 500 hit a technical barrier near a nine-month high and Apple shares erased a 3 percent advance.

A spokesman for Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Affairs announced this week that ExxonMobil would be barred from the country's fourth round of oil and natural gas auction.

The economic output of the 17-nation Eurozone declined by 0.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011 when compared to the previous quarter, a more-optimistic-than-expected data point that is raising hopes Europe will be able to avoid falling into a technical recession.

Stock index futures rose Wednesday, buoyed by comments from China's central bank chief that the country would keep investing in euro zone debt and better-than-expected data from Germany and France.

Stock index futures pointed to a higher open for equities on Wall Street on Wednesday, with futures for the S&P 500, Dow Jones and Nasdaq 100 rising 0.5 to 0.6 percent.

Avon Products Inc. (NYSE:AVP), the cosmetics maker, hired consultant McKinsey & Co. to cut costs in its American operations in the wake of a fourth quarter loss, Bloomberg reported.

A European finance minister, in Washington for a panel on global business and economics, sent up a flare to U.S. officials Monday afternoon, saying he hoped the U.S. would be more involved in playing a key role to solving the ongoing sovereign debt crisis in Europe.

Stock index futures edged up Tuesday after upbeat data from Germany offset ratings agency Moody's downgrade of six euro zone countries.