The FINANCIAL -- President Nicolas Sarkozy has gained ground in the French presidential race, but Socialist rival Francois Hollande still holds a strong lead four days ahead of Sunday's runoff, a new poll showed Wednesday.

The FINANCIAL -- Nearly one in four investors expect the Swiss National Bank to raise its euro floor over the next three months, a survey by U.K. bank Barclays showed Wednesday.

The FINANCIAL -- The euro suffered heavy losses against other major currencies Wednesday after economic indicators underpinned fears of a deepening slump in euro-zone growth, contrasting unfavourably with the previous day's robust U.S. manufacturing data.

The FINANCIAL -- Marathon Petroleum is exploring the possibility of reversing a major pipeline to bring oil from the Midwest to the Gulf Coast refining belt, a company executive said Tuesday.