Gold Climbs as Deepening Equity Losses Spur Safe-Haven Demand

Gold climbed to the highest in more than a week and investors boosted holdings in bullion-backed funds as global market turmoil spurred demand for a haven. The metal rose as much as 1.9 percent in New York as commodities dropped and a gauge of world equities teetered on the brink of a bear market. Citigroup Inc. raised its forecast for gold prices this year, while cutting the outlook for crude oil and base metals. The cost of living...

Oil Tumbling Most in Four Months Deepens Gloom for Producers

Crude sank the most in more than four months, dragging down shares of oil and gas producers to the lowest in almost seven years. Futures fell as much as 8 percent to the lowest since May 2003. Royal Dutch Shell Plc, the first global major oil company to report fourth-quarter earnings, said Wednesday it expects profit to drop at least 42 percent. Markets could “drown in oversupply,” sending prices even lower as oil demand growth slows...

U.S. Stocks Sink With Markets Around the World as Rout Deepens

U.S. stocks fell, with the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index reaching at 21-month low, following a renewed selloff across stocks worldwide as skepticism about the strength of the global economy intensified. Equities staged a late-day rally paced by health-care and small-cap shares that briefly erased a drop of 3.7 percent in the Nasdaq Composite Index. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 cut their worst losses by more than...

U.S. Stocks Sink With Markets Around the World

U.S. stocks tumbled, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropping more than 500 points, following a renewed selloff across stocks worldwide as skepticism about the strength of the global economy intensified. Commodity shares remained at the forefront of the selloff, with energy companies sinking further into five-year lows and on pace for their worst monthly slump since 2008. Chevron Corp. slid 7.2 percent. International Business ...

Europe Stocks Fall to 15-Month Low as Oil, Results Stoke Concern

European stocks slid to a 15-month low as falling oil prices and results from companies including Zurich Insurance Group AG and Royal Dutch Shell Plc exacerbated investor concern about global growth. Zurich Insurance slid 11 percent after predicting a second straight quarterly loss for its biggest unit. Shell lost 7.3 percent after saying quarterly profit plunged as the slide in oil prices deepened. Seadrill Ltd. plummeted 29 percent...