Stocks News

It took some work, but investors managed to turn Wall Street's best performance this year into a two-day advance.

Madoff pleaded guilty to running a worldwide fraud that prosecutors said went back at least 20 years.

The Federal Reserve is keeping Wall Street's big rally alive _ and giving the Treasury market a boost as well.

A judge is ordering Bank of America to disclose information about bonuses given to employees at Merrill Lynch just before BofA bought the brokerage company.

The U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday, in a surprise move, said it will buy up to $300 billion worth of longer-term U.S. government debt over the next six months and expand purchases of mortgage-related debt to help ease credit market conditions.

Some of the billions of dollars the government paid to bail out American International Group Inc stand to benefit hedge funds that bet on a falling housing market, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter and reviewed documents.

Asian markets rose modestly Wednesday after an overnight surge on Wall Street boosted sentiment across the region, while Tokyo shares were buoyed by fresh support for the wobbly financial system from the Japanese central bank.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index led the region, gaining 239.08 points, or 1.9 percent, to 13,091.03, while Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei 225 stock average added 23.04 points, or 0.3 percent, to 7,972.17.

The Japanese central bank said it was increasing its purchase of government bonds to keep ample cash in the monetary system following a two-day meeting where it also decided to keep its key interest rate at 0.1 percent. The Bank of Japan also said it was considering providing loans to commercial banks as an option to shore up their capital bases.

EUROPEAN Central Bank president Jean-Claude Trichet said on Wednesday that 2010 'could be the year of a moderate recovery' for global economic growth if confidence returned to markets and the economy.

You know things have changed on Wall Street when the housing industry saves the day.

Citigroup's chief economist is being tapped for a job at the short-staffed Treasury Department, which is at the center of the Obama administration's efforts to battle the financial crisis.