Asian stocks extend global rally on economy hopes

Asian stocks extended a global rally Thursday amid investor optimism that the U.S. economy may grow more than previously expected this year.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.8 percent to 8,881.27 while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 1.2 percent to 20,585.44 and Seoul’s Kospi added 1.4 percent to 1,985.82.
Signs of an improving U.S. economy have helped bolster […]

Stocks headed for best January since 1997

The stock market appeared headed Tuesday for its best January finish since 1997. Stocks climbed because of hopes that Greece was finally close to resolving its debt problem, then lost ground after an unexpected drop in consumer confidence.
The Dow Jones industrial average was down two points at 12,652 just before 10:30 a.m. EST. The Standard […]

Costa offers $14,460 per person for ruined cruise

Costa Crociere SpA is offering uninjured passengers euro11,000 ($14,460) apiece to compensate them for lost baggage and psychological trauma after its cruise ship ran aground and capsized off Tuscany when the captain deviated from his route.
Costa, a unit of the world’s biggest cruise operator, the Miami-based Carnival Corp., also said it would reimburse passengers the […]

Dutch minister warns of forced Greek debt losses

The Dutch finance minister says Greece’s private creditors may be forced to take losses if they can’t reach a deal to cut the country’s massive debt pile voluntarily _ the first eurozone finance minister to do so.
Jan Kees de Jager said Monday that “we’ve never said it (the debt restructuring) must be voluntary. Our goal […]

Disney CEO Iger’s pay up 12 pct in 2011

Walt Disney Co. has awarded CEO Bob Iger a 2011 pay package valued at $31.4 million, up 12 percent from a year ago. That’s according to an Associated Press analysis of data disclosed to regulators on Friday.
The Burbank-based company says Iger merited a boost in compensation for excellent management in a tough economic environment.
Disney generated […]

Unions: Nigeria strike over fuel resumes Monday

Two major labor unions in Nigeria say a paralyzing nationwide strike will resume Monday after negotiations with the government failed.
The Nigeria Labor Congress and the Trade Union Congress issued a joint statement Sunday confirming strikes would continue.
The strikes began Jan. 9 over spiraling gasoline prices following the removal of an estimated $8 billion in fuel […]

Vietnam Signals Cuts in Interest Rates as Asia

Vietnam signaled that it may cut policy interest rates to

Troubled Kodak creates new business structure

Struggling Kodak is seeking to simplify its structure and cut costs by reducing the number of its business segments from three to two. Shares shot up 34 percent in premarket trading.
Eastman Kodak Co., once a photography pioneer, was pummeled by consumers’ switch to digital. Its fortunes deteriorated further last year, and it said in November […]

Private hiring soars; seasonal issues cloud gain

The U.S. jobs recovery gathered pace as a measure of private-sector hiring surged in December and claims for unemployment benefits fell, suggesting the battered labor market may continue to strengthen in 2012.
The ADP National Employment Report’s December job tally of 325,000 surprised economists who had expected a gain of roughly half that size. It […]

Egypt forces storm offices of pro-democracy groups

Egyptian security forces stormed the offices of 10 human rights and pro-democracy groups on Thursday, including several based in the U.S., accused by the country’s military rulers of destabilizing security by fomenting protests with the help of foreign funding.
The raids on 17 offices throughout Egypt are part of the ruling generals’ attempt to blame “foreign […]