DEUTSCHE BANK

Chinese exports and imports registered weaker growth in December than in November, signaling economic growth in the world's second largest economy is losing steam on account of sluggish demand and a thaw in the real estate market. Data

Bank of America-Merrill Lynch is cutting around a fifth of its managing directors across its Asia investment banking division, sources said Monday, in a bid to cut costs as the outlook sours in a once-booming region.

Gold recovered from lows on Monday, lifted by gains in the euro versus the dollar after French and German leaders said there had been progress on the region's fiscal integration, but its rise was capped by caution after the metal's hefty losses last month.

European stocks were essentially flat on Monday at mid-day in choppy trade, bouncing from last week's sharp pull-back, with gains in defensives limited by a drop in banking shares led by Unicredit following its rights issue.

Japan's Nikkei share average slipped more than 1 percent on Friday, backing further away from its 25-day moving average as investors fretted over the euro zone debt crisis and weakness in the single currency.

The deteriorating global growth outlook has meant the underperformance of the platinum group metals relative to gold, although supply disruptions could provide some relief to weaker demand. Of the PGM group, palladium is more likely to outperform in 2012, given its stronger links to U.S. and Chinese demand.

Deutsche Bank said Friday negative real interest rates, central bank buying, dollar weakness and prospects for a European Central Bank balance sheet expansion augur well for gold prices to achieve a 12th consecutive annual gain.

Japan's Nikkei share average slipped more than 1 percent on Friday, backing further away from its 25-day moving average as investors fretted over the euro zone debt crisis and weakness in the single currency.

A brewing crisis in the Middle East is causing an almost daily uptick in oil prices but early signs of a rebound in the U.S. economy is indeed offering substantial tailwind to crude too.

As Wall Street anxiously awaits the Labor Department's monthly employment report due on Friday, a decent bet has emerged. Odds are, the government will say it underestimated recent job gains.

New claims for jobless benefits rose last week but the underlying trend pointed to an improving labor market, while regional factory data showed the economy gaining momentum as the year ended.

European shares tracked Wall Street into the red in light trade on Wednesday, with auto makers the steepest fallers as investors cashed in on a recent rally.

The consensus among investment bankers and many traders is that gold prices will continue to climb in 2012.

Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan ate his words as the Charlotte, N.C.-based bank once again resorted to non-investor-friendly measures to raise capital, despite saying the bank would not take such actions.

European shares were slightly higher on Friday at mid-day amid thin trading as miners tracked rising metal prices, offset by lingering concerns over the Eurozone debt crisis and reservations ahead of U.S. inflation data.

Sony is launching Vita in Japan on Saturday, hoping the company's first new handheld video game system in seven years will get the company's game business going again now that many consumers have turned to Apple's iPhone, the world's bestselling smartphone, for entertainment.

Deutsche Bank AG has launched the sale of a large chunk of its global asset management business, with a price tag seen between 2 billion euros ($2.6 billion) and 3 billion, two financial sources familiar with the sale process said on Friday.

World stocks rose on Friday after upbeat U.S. data and corporate results, while concerns over the European banking sector and nervousness about potential ratings downgrades in European sovereign debt underpinned German government bonds.

Fitch Ratings, the third-biggest of the major credit rating agencies, downgraded seven global banks based in Europe and the United States, citing "increased challenges" in the financial markets.

Morgan Stanley's announcement that it is slashing 1,600 jobs is only the latest in a late-year blizzard of pink slips being floated among people at the heart of American high-finance. Bonuses are also down sharply. Is the economy Grinch stealing Wall Street's Christmas?

India's economic gloom deepened on Wednesday as figures showed a record low rupee is adding to Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) inflation headache and an adviser to the prime minister said there was little that could be done to check the currency's slump.