Britain's top shares edged lower early on Friday as miners and financials clipped some of their strong gains made in the previous session, while defensive stocks helped stem losses. By 0858 GMT, the FTSE 100 was down 5.03 points, or 0.1% at 5,762.53. The index soared up 125.06 points, or 2.2% on Thursday, a second
More
. FIFA has put to bed the thorny subject of World Cup hosting for the foreseeable future and will now have time to ponder its own path forwards after a tumultuous couple of months. Having voted to send the 2018 World Cup to Russia and the 2022 tournament to Qatar, it may be another 10
More
. This year is set to be among the three warmest since records began in 1850 and caps a record-warm decade that is a new indication of man-made climate change, the United Nations said on Thursday. "The trend is of very significant warming," Michel Jarraud, head of the World Meteorological Organization, told a news conference
More
The dollar steadied on Friday and stocks edged higher ahead of payroll data that could show more evidence of a strengthening U.S. recovery and give investors a reason to push more money into riskier assets. The FTSEurofirst 300 index of leading European companies rose 0.1% in early trade, echoing a slightly firmer tone in Asia,
More
Firefighting aircraft from four countries flew into Israel on Friday to help battle a huge forest fire close to the northern city of Haifa that has killed at least 40 people and forced mass evacuations. Badly needed assistance also was due to arrive from several other states during the day as Israel struggled to contain
More
European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said on Friday that he did not think that austerity measures in euro countries would drive them into recession. Asked if austerity measures would push euro zone countries into recession, he said "I don't think so," in an interview with French radio RTL He added that the euro currency
More
China will switch to a prudent monetary policy from a moderately loose stance, the Communist Party's top leaders decided on Friday, a change that could pave the way for more interest rate increases and lending controls. At the same time, the Politburo elected to maintain China's proactive fiscal policy, an indication that the government wants
More
Samsung Electronics promoted its chairman's son, Jay Y. Lee, as president in a move that tightens the founding family's grip over the world's biggest memory chipmaker as it battles slower growth. Shares in Asia's most valuable company, with a market capitalisation of $120 bln, ended up 4.1% at a record on hopes the change may
More
Japan's Nikkei share average held onto recent gains on Friday as U.S. retail and housing data raised hopes for a swifter recovery in the world's biggest economy while concerns about Europe's debt crisis eased. Stronger-than-expected November same-store sales from U.S. retailers, a sharp jump in pending home sales, and a better labour market became the
More
Japan's farm ministry on Friday confirmed the country's first outbreak of the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of bird flu at a poultry farm since 2007. Chickens which died on the farm in western Japan this week had the strain, which differs from a far less virulent type of the virus last found in poultry in
More