INVESTMENT

Morgan Stanley likely broke a string of three straight losses in the third quarter, while chief rival Goldman Sachs Group Inc extended its dominance.

Mistras Group Inc, a provider of technology to evaluate the structural integrity of infrastructure, rose slightly in its first session following an initial public offering that priced below expectations.

Britain's Lloyds Banking Group said it was still assessing ways to exit or reduce its participation in a state scheme to insure its toxic assets, after reports it plans to raise 25 billion pounds.

HSBC has resumed talks with Royal Bank of Scotland over the purchase of the remaining retail and commercial units that bailed-out RBS owns in Asia, sources said on Thursday.

After retreating to the safety of yen deposits in the wake of the financial crisis, Japan's wealthy investors are slowly regaining their appetite for risk and are eyeing foreign currencies and bonds for higher returns.

UK fund house Threadneedle said on Thursday it has hired Campbell Fleming as its new head of distribution, with responsibility for wholesale and institutional business as well as marketing and product development.

Stocks headed for a higher open on Thursday as a surprise profit from Alcoa Inc boosted the start of the earnings season and surging commodity prices underpinned a global equity advance.

Stock futures added to gains on Thursday following a report on weekly jobless claims that suggested some stabilization in the labor market.

Britain's top share index rose on Thursday, helped by gains in mining stocks on firmer metals prices and a surprise quarterly profit from U.S. aluminium producer Alcoa (AA.N).

Stock futures rose on Thursday as the latest earnings season got off to a positive start after Alcoa posted a surprise profit and as surging commodity prices underpinned a global equity advance.

Deutsche Bank began coverage of Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N) and Morgan Stanley (MS.N) with buy, and said the two U.S. banks will stay well capitalized even under the likely increased regulatory capital requirements.

Stock futures rose on Thursday as the latest earnings season got off to a positive start after Alcoa posted a surprise profit and as surging commodity prices underpinned a global equity advance.

Stock futures rose on Thursday as the latest earnings season got off to a positive start after Alcoa posted a surprise profit and as surging commodity prices underpinned a global equity advance.

Hong Kong stocks rose for a fourth day on Thursday, with HSBC (0005.HK) advancing after itresumed talks with Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS.L) over thepurchase of RBS units in Asia.

Spot gold topped $1,050 per ounce to mark a record high for the third session in a row on Thursday as the dollar's continued struggle made the precious metal more attractive to investors.

A U.S. District Court dismissed a lawsuit of former employees of Washington Mutual against JPMorgan Chase & Co to recover their retirement account losses after the collapse of the thrift.

Hype about the swine flu vaccines, pent-up demand for cash and a push by major drugmakers to boost their flagging research pipelines has helped lift biotechnology fund-raising 36 percent so far this year.

The Standard & Poor's 500 and Nasdaq indexes edged up on Wednesday with investors responding positively to early earnings results as the quarterly reporting period got under way.

The Obama administration's latest effort to boost the beleaguered housing market is likely to help mortgage insurers as lower defaults will boost their liquidity.

The Standard & Poor's 500 and Nasdaq indexes edged up on Wednesday as investors responded positively to early earnings results as the quarterly reporting period got under way.

Global investments in renewable energy technology like wind, solar and hydroelectric power have slid dramatically this year as the economic crisis limited government and private funds for new projects, the United Nations said on Wednesday.