FTSE

Nairobi Securities Exchange has launched two stock indexes in conjunction with FTSE Group, and said on Tuesday it planned to start one for Treasury bonds next year.

Asian shares wiped earlier gains and fell anew Tuesday, weighed by concerns that surging bond yields could stifle debt-ridden Italy's fund-raising ability and throw the euro zone deeper into financial turmoil, while Greece struggled to pick a new leader.

The FTSE 100 hit a 2-1/2-month closing high on Wednesday, with defensive stocks doing well as investors awaited the outcome of a European Union summit to resolve the two-year-old sovereign debt crisis.

Britain's top share index was steady Wednesday, with investors keeping largely to the sidelines as the prospects for a comprehensive deal to tackle the euro zone debt crisis at a summit looked slim.

Reuters - Gains in defensive stocks helped the FTSE 100 higher on Wednesday, with markets set to remain reactive to snippets leaking out of a European summit where investors hope the continent's leaders will agree a plan to tackle the debt crisis.

European and British stock markets have suffered their worst quarterly performances since 2002, as fears of a crippling Eurozone debt crisis and risks of another global recession have battered equities in Britain, Germany and France.

Kraft Foods (KFT.N) boss Irene Rosenfeld is the most powerful woman in U.S. business, Fortune magazine said on Thursday, bumping PepsiCo Inc (PEP.N) chief Indra Nooyi into second spot after five years on top.

Britain's top share index slipped back on Wednesday, weighed down by concerns over Greece's ability to stave off a default, as investors focused on the possibility of further economic stimulus from the U.S. Federal Reserve.

Gold prices fell Wednesday as stock markets in Europe posted gains from European Commission plans to push euro zone bonds and China's premier expressed support for struggling European countries.

European index futures rose and the euro edged off a seven-month low on Tuesday after a report that Italy may get financial support from China sparked a bout of short-covering but did nothing to ease fears that Europe is sliding into another banking crisis.

European shares fell again Tuesday morning, hitting a fresh two-year low for the second straight session as investors worried policymakers had no plan to stem the euro zone debt crisis, which could see Greece default.

Gold closed lower Monday after investors sold their holdings in the yellow metal to generate cash, while others took profit and a third group bought the surging U.S. dollar as a safe haven.

Prices for platinum and palladium, which are key metals used in making automobile catalytic converters, fell 1 percent Monday in U.S. futures trading as a strong dollar and profit-taking dragged down all precious metals.

European index futures tumbled on Monday, following a slide in Asian equities, and the euro slumped to a 10-year low against the yen after the resignation of a top European Central Bank official cast further doubt on the region's ability to tackle its worsening sovereign debt crisis.

In a flight to safety, the 10-Year Treasury yield has fallen below 2.00 percent, while gold futures are slightly higher.

Asian shares fell and U.S. Treasury yields dropped to the lowest levels in at least 60 years on Tuesday on fears that Europe's sovereign debt troubles are worsening and could trigger a second full-blown banking crisis.

European stocks got hammered on Monday and the euro tumbled as well, as investors moved into safe assets. Rising fears over Europe's sovereign debt crisis and economic growth concerns in Europe and the U.S. is driving the move away from equities. The yield on the benchmark 10-year German government bond fell to well below two percent -- a new record. The Stoxx Europe 600 index fell 4.1 percent Monday, closing at 223.45.

Autonomy's founder and chief executive Mike Lynch, who owns an 8.2 percent stake in the company, could walk away with £582-million ($960-million).

Gold prices rallied more than 2 percent to a record highs on Friday as investors sought refuge from a second day of hefty losses on the stock markets, hurt by deepening concerns over slowing economic growth and the outlook for euro zone banks.

Fears are spiraling that Italy may need a bailout as the yield on the country’s government bonds have surged to 5.4 percent.