HSBC

Banks are shedding jobs worldwide as stricter regulations and a tough six months for trading income take their toll on investment banking units.

HSBC's China fund venture said it would broaden its product line over the next five years to meet rising demand for cross-boarder investment, betting internationalization would be a new engine of growth for the country's stagnant mutual funds industry.

Gold prices rode a roller-coaster this week, topping a peak midweek when the settled at $1,799.20 before plunging 2.2 percent over the next two days on fears Italy had lost control of its finances and was threatening the Eurozone's survival.

The banking sector, enduring rounds of deep job cuts, faces the grim prospect of having nowhere to turn to for immediate employment in the industry, as nearly all branches of finance have pulled back on hiring.

India's industrial output growth probably slowed to an annual rate of 3.5 percent in September, weighed down by slower growth in infrastructure output and higher domestic borrowing costs.

The slowdown which began at the end of 2010 now looks more like a prolonged soft patch, the Commission said.

China's imports surged in October as exports grew at their slowest rate in months, suggesting efforts to tilt the economy toward domestic demand may be offsetting the external weakness that has dragged on economic growth this year.

Asian stocks fell around 3 percent on Thursday after soaring Italian borrowing costs stoked fears that the debt crisis in the euro zone's third biggest economy will overwhelm its financial defenses, raising the risk of a break-up of the currency area.

HSBC gave its starkest warning to date that new regulations might force it to leave Britain and said its U.S. bad debts had jumped as more homeowners stopped payments on their mortgages.

European stocks were lower at midday Wednesday as mounting concerns over Italy's debt kept investors on edge, following an early rally sparked by Silvio Berlusconi's pledge to step down as Italy's prime minister.

HSBC Holdings cited a dire outlook for the global economy as it reported a larger-than-expected drop in third-quarter profits, hit by lower investment banking income and a rise in bad debts in the United States.

Jones Lang LaSalle, one of the world's largest real estate services companies, reported revenue of $903 million in the third quarter, up 28 percent from the previous year.

Standard Chartered Plc said on Wednesday that operating profit before tax in the first nine months grew at a double-digit rate, helped by a strong showing in markets including Hong Kong and putting it in line for a ninth straight year of record earnings.

China's big manufacturers ran at their slowest pace in October since early 2009, purchasing managers' data shows, though signs of a bounce-back at smaller firms and a sharp fall in factory-gate prices suggest no swift change to interest rates.

China's big manufacturers ran at their slowest pace in October since early 2009, purchasing managers' data shows, though signs of a bounce-back at smaller firms and a sharp fall in factory-gate prices suggest no swift change to interest rates.

The China unit of investment bank JP Morgan has won approval to become a trading member of the Shanghai Gold Exchange, the eighth foreign financial institute to obtain such membership, said the exchange on its Web stie (www.sge.com.cn).

European shares extended the previous session's rally Friday, with investors still buoyant over a deal struck by euro zone leaders early Thursday to help end the bloc's two-year-old debt crisis.

Russian miner Polymetal will price new London-listed shares at the lower end of their indicated range, raising up to 446.2 million pounds ($710 million), as global market turmoil weakens investor sentiment, two sources close to the deal said.

The late-night rescue package agreed by euro zone leaders to cool their dangerous debt crisis will at least allow investors to look at other things for a while.

South African stocks closed at their highest level in nearly three months as demand for resources firms rose with hope that European Union leaders will agree on a solution to their region's debt woes later this week.

Brent crude oil rose above $110 a barrel on Monday after stronger Chinese manufacturing data suggested China's economy may not be in as much danger as feared, supporting fuel consumption and outweighing fears over weak European data.