Recent trading patterns broke at least temporarily on Wednesday with both the dollar and world stocks slipping, the latter weakened particularly by falling emerging markets. Crude oil dropped as well, sitting below $79 a barrel and pulling further away from its recent one-year peak. Despite this, the day's gainers were to be found in gold

Britain's leading shares were flat in early trade on Wednesday, after losses in the previous session, supported by gains in oil majors and food retailers. At 0830 GMT the FTSE 100 was down 8.95 points at 5,234.44, after closing 0.7 percent lower in the previous session when it hit a fresh high for the year

Demand for computers from large companies is likely to pick up by as soon as mid-2010 as a result of Microsoft's launch this week of its Windows 7 operating system, a senior Dell executive said on Wednesday. Dell was also looking to the services capability and virtualisation software sectors for future acquisition possibilities, the company's

Apple Inc rolled out a new line of redesigned Mac computers on Tuesday, hoping to build up sales momentum for its biggest business heading into the all-important holiday season. Sporting new features such as touch-based mice and edge-to- edge glass, Apple hopes to sustain the fast-growing sales of its computers. Allaying initial worries about its

European shares drifted higher on Wednesday to trade near one-year highs, boosted by banks and oils, with investors awaiting more corporate results from companies such as Morgan Stanley and Boeing. The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares rose 0.2 percent to 1,023.59 points by 0710 GMT after dropping 0.5 percent in the previous session.

Barnes & Noble Inc unveiled its electronic reader in a challenge to Amazon.com Inc's Kindle, featuring a color screen and the same $259 price, ahead of the key holiday shopping season. The device will use AT&T for wireless and Google Inc's Android mobile platform. Barnes & Noble said it would allow its users to share

 Profit taking in the technology sector weighed on Asian stocks on Wednesday, though they stuck close to a 15-month high, while some stability in the U.S. dollar and a rise in inventories pushed oil below $79 a barrel. A recovery in demand for IT-related products has been unmistakable and so far earnings for the sector

President Barack Obama chastised Wall Street firms on Tuesday for resisting tighter regulations of their industry and said they had not done enough to boost lending to small businesses. Lashing out at the "reckless speculation" and "shortsightedness" he said were behind the 2008-2009 financial crisis, Obama expressed frustration at criticism he has taken over the