NEW YORK CITY

The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is likely to be the first foreign firm allowed to list on the Chinese stock market, a Chinese financial website reported on Monday.

Citigroup downgrades PetroChina from Hold to Sell, saying an earnings disappointment is coming. Citi reduced PetroChina's earnings per share estimate for 2008 by 15.4 percent and for 2009 by 5.5 percent.

U.S. stocks dropped for the first time Wednesday in four days as an unexpected tumble in February factory orders sparked concerns over the economy while the outlook for bank profits worsened.

American International Group Inc on Thursday posted its biggest-ever quarterly loss, missing Wall Street expectations after being hurt by a write-down of derivatives exposed to bad mortgage investments. The world's largest insurer said its fourth-quarter loss was $5.29 billion, or $2.08 a share, compared with a profit of $3.44 billion, or $1.31 a share, in the year-ago quarter.

U.S. stocks nose-divided in the final hour of Tuesday trading on rising consumer debt, higher oil prices, and traders grew bearish on weak housing economic data.

U.S. stocks jumped the most in three weeks on Friday,

Nikko Cordial Corp., a major Japanese brokerage firm and the holding company for Nikko Cordial Securities and other subsidiaries, announced on Wednesday that it has obtained shareholder approval to become a wholly owned subsidiary of Citigroup Inc., a major U.S. bank through an equity swap under a triangular merger.

U.S. Stocks rose Tuesday as investors economic worries were consoled with the European Central Bank's $500 billion injection along with profit gains at Goldman Sachs and Best Buy.

U.S. stocks lowered sharply in late afternoon trading, ending lower than at the start of Wednesday trading, erasing a 272-point rally in the Dow Jones Industrial average.

U.S. stocks dipped during Tuesday afternoon trading following the Federal Reserve's decision to cut its benchmark interest rate by a quarter-point to 4.25 percent.

Lehman Brothers said on Tuesday it would buy assets from Dutch specialist market maker Van der Moolen Holding including its New York Stock Exchange portfolio.

U.S. stocks rebounded during Tuesday mid-day trading following news that Abu Dhabi Investment Authority's would invest $7.5 billion in Citigroup Inc, raising investor confidence in the bank.

Stocks declined further in a skittish session on Thursday as investors fretted about the likelihood of more credit losses at big financial services companies. Caution also weighed on the market following an upsurge in volatility that has tended to rock stocks around the close of trading in recent days.

Citigroup Inc and Japanese brokerage Nikko Cordial said on Wednesday they have altered clauses in a stock-swap deal to make Nikko a wholly-owned unit in the wake of a recent slide in Citigroup's share price.

U.S. stocks snapped a four-day losing streak on Tuesday with Nasdaq notching its biggest gain in more than four years after news that Apple Inc was in talks to offer iPhones in China sent investors bargain hunting among battered technology stocks. years after news that Apple Inc was in talks to offer iPhones in China sent investors bargain hunting among battered technology stocks.

Stocks rose on Monday, rebounding from last week's heavy losses as investors hunted for bargains in financial services and other sectors.

S&P 500 and Dow industrials were little changed and the Nasdaq fell on Monday as investors looked for bargains in financial shares, while a big drop in oil prices weighed on major energy company shares.

A downgrade of Citigroup Inc's nearly pristine credit ratings will not impede its thriving business, new acting Chief Executive Win Bischoff wrote in an internal memo to employees sent on Saturday.

Citigroup said Thursday its former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Charles Prince, will retire from the firm with a roughly $40 million retirement package.

American International Group Inc shares fell on Wednesday as investors grew increasingly nervous before third-quarter earnings were reported after the close and a takeover premium evaporated.

The former top executive at Citigroup’s wealth management division Todd Thompson said tensions with now departed chief executive Charles Prince were the underlying cause for his departure from the firm in January.