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Hedge funds and other speculators added to bullish gold bets as the metal slumped into a bear market and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. warned the retreat is accelerating after the longest rally in nine decades. The investors increased net-long positions

Almost one in five U.K. companies favor Britain pulling out of the European Union because it would have a positive impact on their business, according to a survey. The British Chambers of Commerce said today its polling of 4,387 companies showed 18

Gold futures tumbled by more than $90 on Monday, deepening their descent after entering bear-market territory last week, while prices for industrial metal copper also slumped following economic data from China that fell short of expectations. Gold

Gold has fallen 8.5% to $1,416 an ounce, its lowest level in two years, as fears of high inflation recede. Gold is traditionally bought by investors to protect against inflation, which erodes the value of cash investments. But investors are now

Gold tumbled below $1,400 an ounce, falling the most since 1980, after dropping into a bear market last week as optimism that a U.S. recovery will curb the need for stimulus cut demand for a protection of wealth. Silver, platinum and palladium

The Dow and S&P 500 set another round of records last week but enthusiasm for stocks on Main Street remains muted, at best. Oh sure, there are plenty of stories about retail investors “rushing” back into the market but such analysis fails to put the

There was a major sell-off across the financial markets today. First the scoreboard: Dow: 14,599, -265.5 pts, -1.7% S&P 500: 1,552, -36.4 pts, -2.3% NASDAQ: 3,216, -78.4 pts, -2.3% And now the top stories: Just before 3:00 PM ET, there were at least

It is just 11 months since France elected François Hollande as its first Socialist president since 1995, spurring a wave of expectation on the European left that he would lead a pro-growth offensive against the cheerleaders of austerity. When his

Cyprus is no longer center stage. Nicosia has agreed a 10 billion euro bailout deal with its euro zone partners and the International Monetary Fund. A visible bank run has been averted by stringent capital controls. International markets, which only

European bank stocks are officially in bear market territory, now down over 22% from their highs with today's drop closing the index at seven month lows. Financial stocks have played catch down to credit's early warning weakness but still have more

Distrust of the Federal Reserve and concern that U.S. dollars may become worthless are fueling a push in more than a dozen states to recognize gold and silver coins as legal tender. Lawmakers in Arizona are poised to follow Utah, which authorized

Key points Users are reminded that the figures within this release are estimates and are on a seasonally adjusted basis. Both production and manufacturing fell in February 2013 when compared with February 2012 by 2.2% and 1.4% respectively. There are

Europe is a wreck, but for the most part, people these days are talking about crises of democracy and growth, rather than sovereign debt. Borrowing costs for several nations (ones that have been bailed out and ones that haven't) have come in sharply

The "troika" of lenders at the EU, the ECB, and the IMF are back in Greece, and the Greek stock market is up 5.4 percent today. On Sunday, the troika and the Greek government froze a plan to merge Greece's two largest banks, National Bank of Greece

U.S. wholesale inventories dropped 0.3% in February and were revised down for January, a sign that companies stopped stockpiling goods as rapidly, perhaps in anticipation of slower sales. Wholesale sales jumped 1.7%, however, the Commerce Department

Bruce Bartlett held senior policy roles in the Reagan and George H.W. Bush administrations and served on the staffs of Representatives Jack Kemp and Ron Paul. He is the author of “The Benefit and the Burden: Tax Reform – Why We Need It and What It

Gold prices steadied above $1,570 an ounce on Tuesday as renewed strength in stock markets and a weaker tone to the dollar lent support, but the metal struggled for traction after plumbing 10-month lows last week. A positive start to US earnings

World shares edged up to their highest level in a week on Wednesday after Chinese trade data pointed to a steady recovery of the world's second largest economy. China reported a mild trade deficit of $884 million in March as a 14.1 percent

Just when you thought it was safe to go out and sell that 17-member single currency, all things turn pear-shape for the remaining ‘bear’ as the EUR takes on a new big figure level with gusto, touching $1.31 for the first time since mid of last-month