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Move echoes that of Fitch Ratings earlier in the week.

US home loan giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are to cease trading on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

Industrial and technology stocks pulled the market sharply higher Tuesday after Boeing Co. said it was boosting production and an industry group forecast that demand for computers would increase.

Despite intense last-minute lobbying by major Hollywood studios, talent guilds and others, the first futures contract based on movie boxoffice results was approved Monday and are expected to start trading this year.

As President Obama headed to the Gulf Coast on Monday, BP is searching for a way to satisfy both the United States government and its shareholders.

BP shares sunk Thursday in London as U.S. politicians pressed the British oil company to halt its dividend payments and fork out greater compensation for American workers.

U.S. stocks edged higher, bolstered by U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's comments that the economy is unlikely to slide into a second recession, but worries about European finances persisted after Fitch Ratings warned that the U.K. faces budget challenges.

Stocks plummeted across the Asia-Pacific region on Monday and the euro hit fresh four-year lows on renewed fears that the European debt crisis may be spreading.

Stocks tumbled Friday after the Labor Department said hiring remains weak and Hungary became the latest European country to report its economy is in crisis.

The stock market rebounded Wednesday after a stronger-than-expected increase in pending home sales restored investors' optimism about the economy.