After a weak start, Europe’s stock markets have risen with investors taking heart from the European Central Bank saying that the region’s commercial banks are not having to borrow so much – a sign that they are no longer facing liquidity problems.

The market also reacted positively to a short-selling ban on financial shares by France, Italy, Spain and Belgium

Read full story (w/ video): http://www.euronews.net/2011/08/12/ban-on-short-selling-shares-spurs-tentative-recovery/

 

 

The U.S. economy unexpectedly added 117,000 jobs in July, the U.S. Labor Department announced Friday -- well above the Bloomberg consensus estimate of 75,000.

Also, the nation's unemployment rate dipped to 9.1 percent from 9.2 percent. The better-than-expected July jobs report is qualified somewhat by the fact that 193,000  adults dropped out of the work force, which means they're no longer longer officially counted as "unemployed."

Continue reading > http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/193041/20110805/jobs-unemployment-labor-department-unemployment-rate.htm

Asian markets have tumbled following the global plunge over concerns about Europe's debt crisis and US economic growth.

Tokyo shares plunged 4.09 per cent in early trade on Friday, following a sharp selloff on US and European markets.

The Nikkei index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange dropped 395.09 points in eight minutes to stand at 9,264.09, before the initial sharp plunge stopped.

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Russian search engine Yandex has seen its second quarter revenue leap by 57 per cent to $164 million.

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Courtesy of Kraft Foods

U.S.-based Kraft Foods hired young people to rap about TUC crackers and hand out samples on Moscow streets.

Soviet women washed dishes with soda and salt for decades, while men never heard of deodorant and teens scrubbed their pimples with soap and water.

Not anymore.

Western consumer goods companies have flooded what remains in many aspects a virgin market, spending tens of millions of dollars to research consumer habits and conduct increasingly elaborate marketing campaigns aimed at selling products that many Russians never imagined needing.

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(Reuters) - Stocks dropped for a third straight day on Wednesday, with the Nasdaq off 2 percent, as a political deadlock over the debt ceiling and a decline in durable goods orders kept investors away from risky assets.

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Individuals investing in stocks let their emotions guide them more than facts, often to their financial detriment, a new UC Davis study finds.

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Growth in the UK economy slowed in the three months to 30 June, partly because of the extra bank holiday in April.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 0.2% in the second quarter, according to the Office for National Statistics, down from 0.5% in the previous quarter.

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Microsoft confirmed record Q4 revenue of $17.37 billion for the quarter ending June 30, 2011 - an 8% increase from the same period last year.

For the fiscal year, Redmond reported revenue of $69.94 billion, a 12% increase from the prior year.

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WASHINGTON/SAN FRANCISCO: Larry Page should put in a call to Bill Gates. Microsoft Corp's famous founder may know better than anyone else what the Google Inc chief executive would face if he engages in a protracted legal battle against US antitrust regulators.

Google said on Friday that the Federal Trade Commission has started a formal investigation into its business, raising concerns among investors about a lengthy, distracting probe and potential legal action.

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HONG KONG: the Hang Seng index closed down 315.6 at 22960.6.

SINGAPORE: the Straits Times index closed down 27.2 at 3136.5.

Source: GO >

Photo: http://moneycontrol.com GO >

Photo / AP

Deals by cash-rich corporations and strong earnings out of the U.S. helped propel Asian markets higher Wednesday.

Oil prices hovered below $104 a barrel after a report showed U.S. crude supplies rose more than expected last week, suggesting demand growth may be faltering. In currencies, the dollar was stronger against the yen and the euro...

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OTHER SOURCES:

Yahoo>

May 10 (Bloomberg) -- Microsoft Corp. agreed to buy Skype Technologies SA for $8.5 billion in cash to gain the world’s most popular Internet calling service and its 663 million customers...

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Skype-Microsoft deal: what the experts say

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Apple passes Google as most valuable brand in the world



2011 Top 10 Most Valuable Global Brands:

* 1. Apple
* 2. Google
* 3. IBM
* 4. McDonald's
* 5. Microsoft
* 6. Coca-Cola Company
* 7. AT&T
* 8. Marlboro
* 9. China Mobile
* 10. GE

Thanks to the iPhone and iPad, Apple bumped Google in this year's list of Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands, the first time that Apple has held first place. Google has been the No. 1 brand for the last four years in a row...

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OTHER SOURCES:

MSNBC>>

Bing>>

Google>>

The Dow and S&P 500 fell on Thursday after a weak labor market report fueled new fears about the strength of the economic recovery and as energy shares tumbled with the price of oil...


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