NEW YORK, July 24 (Reuters) – U.S. stock futures fell and
gold hit a new record on Sunday as Washington was no closer to
raising the U.S. debt ceiling to avert a devastating default.

The decline in equity futures points to a poor open for U.S.
markets and shows investors are getting increasingly worried
about the failure of legislators to coalesce around one approach
that will resolve the stalemate that is unnerving investors.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Wall Street futures fell and the dollar dropped as Washington appeared no closer to raising the debt ceiling in order to avert a devastating default.

S&P 500 futures fell at the open of electronic trading as investors grew increasingly worried at the lack of progress. The benchmark S&P was down 1 percent, or 14 points, to 1326.00.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Spreadtrum Communications Inc (SPRD.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) shares fell sharply on Tuesday, but later rebounded after noted short-selling researcher Muddy Waters said it was shorting the stock, claiming a “high risk” of misstatements in the Chinese semiconductor maker’s financials.

Unlike other firms targeted by Muddy Waters, Spreadtrum’s sell-off has not been as harsh.

NEW YORK, June 21 (Reuters) – The spectacular collapse of
Sino-Forest, a Canadian-listed Chinese company, raised pressure
on North American regulators to stem the tide of accounting
scandals that has engulfed investors eager to tap into Chinese
growth.

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission head Mary Schapiro
said on Tuesday that it is exploring ways to address investor
concerns about shoddy accounting that has caused numerous
Chinese companies to restate earnings as their share prices
have plummeted.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – A prominent short-seller of Chinese shares raised questions about Harbin Electric’s (HRBN.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) management on Thursday, sending its shares reeling.

Citron Research, run by Andrew Left of Los Angeles, had raised questions early in June about a $400 million credit agreement between Harbin’s CEO and China Development Bank to finance a buyout of Harbin.

NEW YORK, June 15 (Reuters) – China-Biotics Inc (CHBT.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz)
said on Wednesday it will not file its annual report on time
due to “serious issues” raised by its auditors, making it the
latest U.S.-listed Chinese company to disclose accounting
issues.

The Shanghai-based manufacturer and seller of probiotics
products said it delayed the filing because its auditor, BDO
Limited, told the company that it had “identified certain
serious issues as part of its ongoing audit work and would need
the company to take certain actions and provide additional
information.”

NEW YORK, June 9 (Reuters) – Regulators scrambled to warn
of the risks surrounding Chinese companies that have listed in
the U.S. through reverse mergers, though critics said the
intervention was too little, too late following a series of
accounting scandals.

Brokerages also continued to crack down by preventing
investors from borrowing on margin to buy many Chinese stocks
amid concerns about whether they were overvalued.

NEW YORK, June 8 (Reuters) – A Chinese company operating a
website for children, which plans to sell shares in an initial
public offering on Wednesday night, has disclosed its auditors
found major gaps in its internal controls.

The admission from Taomee Holdings Limited (TAOM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), in its
offering prospectus under the risk factors section, comes at a
time when heightened scrutiny of many U.S.-listed Chinese
companies and the reliability of their accounts has caused
investors to flee their shares.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – July is normally when Wall Street bond traders take a break to soak up some sun — but not this year.

The showdown over the federal debt ceiling in Washington threatens to trigger a default on Treasury debt — however temporary — and may keep trading desks staffed throughout the month, said Jim Caron, Morgan Stanley’s global head of interest rate strategy.

TORONTO/NEW YORK, June 3 (Reuters) – A damning
short-seller’s report accusing Sino-Forest Corp (TRE.TO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) of
theft and fraud put the skids under the Canadian-listed company
on Friday, even as it denied there was a problem.

Sino-Forest, which operates forest plantations in China,
denied that its financial filings had exaggerated the company’s
holdings and told investors to exercise “extreme caution” in
assessing the report, issued by research firm Muddy Waters.