March volumes on the Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange (DGCX) almost doubled from last year, pushing first quarter volumes past the three million contract mark. Q1 2013 volumes rose 112% from Q1 2012 to reach 3,281,234 contracts while volumes in March 2013 surged 95% from the same month last year to total 1,072,052 contracts. Currency volumes in March were up 102% from the previous year driven by brisk trading in Indian Rupee futures, which maintained a strong growth momentum across the first quarter.

SEOUL, March 31 (Yonhap) -- South Korean listed companies' dividend payouts to their shareholders will decline sharply from this year due to the amendment of a related law, sources said Sunday. The government has revised an article of the Commercial Law to prohibit listed companies from covering their future losses with "unrealized" profit, which experts say will inevitably lead to a tumble in listed firms' dividend payments. Unrealized profit, also called paper profit, refers to profit which has been made but not yet realized through a transaction.

By Alistair Smout LONDON (Reuters) - The FTSE 100 fell on Friday after a three-day rally, as investors backed away from riskier sectors and U.S. GDP figures came in below expectations. Material and energy stocks, which are sensitive to optimism over the global economic outlook, took 26 points off the FTSE 100, dragging the index into negative territory.

NEW YORK, March 8 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures jumped on Friday after data showed U.S. employers stepped up hiring in February, pushing the unemployment rate to a four year-low. S&P 500 futures rose 6.1 points and were above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures gained 116 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures NDc1 added 9.5 points.