TRADE TAX FREE

Connecticut's attorney general sued Moody's Investors Service and Standard & Poor's over ratings the pair issued on risky investments.

Derivatives have become a dirty word. The complex financial products helped blow up the U.S. housing market. They all but sank AIG. Now European officials want to crack down on a derivative called a credit default swap.

Treasurys traded lower Wednesday morning ahead of a government auction of $21 billion in 10-year notes.

Citigroup's launch of preferred securities on Wednesday is a potentially major test of market sentiment, one year after prices of bank bonds and stocks plunged to multi-year lows, analysts said.

Fitch Ratings on Wednesday lowered ratings for apartment building owner BRE Properties Inc. to just above junk-bond territory on concerns that weak rental income will hurt the company's finances.

Government debt is growing, as is the deficit. The economy is struggling to get out of recession and there is talk of spending cuts or higher taxes. The unions are on edge. And the currency is plummeting.

The Massachusetts Senate approved a bill Tuesday allowing the city of Lawrence to float up to $35 million in municipal bonds to balance its budget after rejecting a GOP amendment to immediately place the city under a state-appointed finance control board.

Greece is a financial basket case, begging for international help. Is America heading down that same road? Many of the same risky financial practices that now imperil the Greeks were at the center of the all-too-recent U.S. meltdown.

Lenders to Dubai World will get a range of options including full repayment once Abu Dhabi decides how much additional support it will provide its debt-strapped neighbor, sources close to the discussions said.

Bonanza Goldfields Corp announced today that it has paid the required bond with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management . This bond allows us to begin work on our BRB Claim which is currently comprised of two unpatented placer claims on BLM ground in the southern part of the Vulture Mining District, Maricopa County Arizona on the northeastern flank of the Belmont Mountains.

Brazil's president plans an active role in world diplomacy during his final months in power, saying he will visit the Middle East to seek peace and prevent a possible conflict over Iran's nuclear program.

VANCOUVER----Klondex Mines Ltd. announced today an update on permitting for its underground development program focused on bulk sampling and exploration drilling.

DENVER----Royal Gold, Inc. today announced that its Board of Directors has declared its second quarter dividend of $0.09 per share of common stock. The dividend is payable on April 16, 2010 to shareholders of record at the close of business on April 1, 2010.

Oil prices jumped Wednesday, after a closely-watched report showed a smaller than expected increase in oil supplies and a dip in gasoline inventory.

DUBLIN----Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "Primary Metals Manufacturing" report to their offering.

HOUSTON----The development of natural gas resources from around the world will play an important role in the future global economy, Tom Walters, president of ExxonMobil Gas & Power Marketing Company, said today at a plenary session during the CERAWeek 2010 conference in Houston, Texas.

Denbury Resources completed its buyout of Encore Acquisition, the oil and gas company said Wednesday, one day after receiving approval from shareholders.

Independent crude oil and natural gas producer Carrizo Oil & Gas Inc. said Wednesday its fourth-quarter loss narrowed as revenue rose 3.6 percent to partially offset hefty one-time charges.

Stocks are continuing their slow trek higher after the government's report of a drop in companies' inventories during January.

Following a brief pullback on Tuesday, oil prices jumped Wednesday after a government report showed that crude stockpiles grew less than analysts had predicted, raising hopes that demand for oil and gas is picking up.

A total of 30 states and Washington, D.C., reported rising unemployment rates in January, down from the number in the previous month, according to a government report released Wednesday.

It looks like ice -- but this ice could one day be used to heat your home.

The number of chief executives who left their posts surged in February to the highest level since September 2008, when the economy was rocked by the financial crisis.

Another big employer is hanging out the "Not Hiring" sign.

Federal programs will dole out more than $500 billion a year over the next decade based on data collected through the 2010 Census, according to a study released Tuesday.

Taxpayers may still be able to deduct last-minute donations to Chile earthquake relief from their 2009 taxes, if a bipartisan bill introduced in the House on Tuesday is signed into law.

America's millionaires are making a comeback, according to a report released Tuesday.

Most employers are still cautious when it comes to hiring, planning neither to add nor cut jobs from their payrolls this spring, according to a staffing firm survey released Tuesday.

Erin and Robert Smith had no problem handling the $2,000 monthly payment on their home ... until they lost their jobs.

Best Companies like the Scooter Store and DreamWorks notched some impressive job growth last year and are showing no signs of slowing down.

Following a brief pullback on Tuesday, oil prices jumped Wednesday after a government report showed that crude stockpiles grew less than analysts had predicted, raising hopes that demand for oil and gas is picking up.

The dollar gave back some gains Wednesday as a big jump in Chinese exports last month suggested global demand for goods is rising, while Portugal's successful bond sale helped calm some worries over budget problems facing several European countries.

The New Zealand dollar extended the rally from earlier this week and is the best performing currency against the greenback on Wednesday, while the Japanese Yen weakened across the board and retraced the two-day rally against the U.S. dollar.

The Dow slipped into negative territory at midday on Wednesday, while the Nasdaq and S&P 500 pared gains as a rise in financial shares was offset by declines in energy shares.

Shares of Navistar International fell Wednesday morning, a day after the truck and engine maker reported a sharply lower fiscal first-quarter profit, missing Wall Street targets.

Harbin Electric said Wednesday its fourth-quarter profit and sales tripled with help from an acquisition of another Chinese electric-motor maker, and company shares rose 16 percent in midday trading.

Ten years ago today, before the dot-com bubble burst, the Nasdaq composite index hit a record 5,132.52 points -- a peak that the technology-heavy market shows no sign of scaling again any time soon.

Shares of InterMune Inc. rose at a blistering pace Wednesday, a day after a federal advisory panel voted in favor of approval for its experimental lung disease treatment.

In September 2008, as Lehman Brothers was breaking into a million pieces, a young investment bank was pushing up through the rubble.

An RBC Capital Markets analyst raised his rating on shares of Alphatec Holdings Inc. Wednesday, saying the spinal device maker's sales will surge over the next few years due to upcoming products.

Among the premarket stories for Wednesday, March 10, from AP Financial News: -- American Eagle Outfitters Inc.'s closing of its Martin+Osa stores is not a surprise and will help the clothing retailer focus more on its core namesake brand, analysts said.

Shares of Edison International are undervalued, a Jeffries & Co. analyst said Wednesday as he raised his rating on the California utility's stock.

New marketing and better weather should help drive-in restaurant operator Sonic Corp., an analyst said Wednesday as he upgraded his rating on the stock.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The leader of the House of Representatives -- a persuasive arm twister and deal maker -- faces her toughest challenge yet: getting 216 votes to pass final legislation revamping the U.S. healthcare system.

LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Gordon Brown said on Wednesday he believed Britain would maintain its coveted top credit rating and announced a pay freeze for senior civil servants and military officers to help tame a record deficit.

RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) - Vice President Joe Biden publicly scolded Israel on Wednesday over a Jewish settlement plan, saying it was undermining peace efforts after Palestinians agreed to U.S.-mediated talks.

DETROIT (Reuters) - Federal regulators said they were looking into a report of another runaway Toyota Prius, this one in Westchester County, New York, where police said a woman pulling out of a driveway zoomed across a busy street and into a stone wall.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Initial results from Iraq's national election are likely to be released by Thursday, Iraqi and U.N. officials said on Wednesday, as further signs emerged of a strong showing for Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Pennsylvania woman has been charged with plotting to kill a Swedish man and trying to recruit fighters via the Internet to commit violent attacks overseas, the U.S. Justice Department said on Tuesday.

JOS, Nigeria (Reuters) - Sporadic shooting rang out overnight in the central Nigerian city of Jos and witnesses said at least one person was killed by soldiers enforcing a curfew days after attacks on three nearby Christian villages.

KABUL (Reuters) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Defense Secretary Robert Gates traded barbs on Wednesday during briefly overlapping visits to Afghanistan, where Washington has troops at war but Tehran has growing clout.

REYKJAVIK (Reuters) - Iceland's opposition turned up the heat on the center-left government on Wednesday to hold out for a tough new "Icesave" debt accord with Britain and the Netherlands, after a referendum rejection of its previous deal.

OSLO (Reuters) - A record 237 people and organizations have been nominated for the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize, with interest boosted by last year's award to President Barack Obama, organizers said on Wednesday.