A former New York City stock trader has pleaded guilty to stealing $16 million he had promised to invest for friends and clients.

Medical test maker Sequenom struggled to reassure Wall Street about the future of its Down syndrome blood test Thursday, as the company’s stock plunged 75 percent after Sequenom said employees mishandled study data and results.

Stock futures are paring their early gains following a worse-than-expected reading on first-quarter GDP.

The manager of General Motors’ employee stock fund has sold off all remaining shares of the troubled auto maker, which is closing plants and slashing costs in a bid to avoid bankruptcy.

Shares of Microsoft Corp. jumped more than 10 percent Friday, the first trading session since the software maker said sinking personal computer shipments pushed sales and earnings down significantly from a year ago.

Stock futures are higher as orders for big-ticket manufactured items fall less than expected in March.

Stock futures pointed to a moderately higher open Friday after Ford Motor Co. posted better-than-expected results for the first three months of the year.

Stock futures are little changed as investors await details on how the government is evaluating the health of the nation’s largest banks.

Mike Edwards earned his first win of 2009, outrunning Pro Stock points-leader Jeg Coughlin at the rain-delayed Summit Racing NHRA Southern Nationals on Monday morning.

Stock futures tumbled early Monday as investors began a busy week of quarterly earnings reports that could test the stock market’s six-week rally.