Quantum Fund co-founder George Soros had it right on Monday, when he said the U.S. recovery would be held back by “basically bankrupt” banks and companies.

Kenneth D. Lewis There are many ways to view Kenneth Lewis’ eight-year reign as Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) chief executive, but two seem to hold the most landscape.

Pop quiz: what happened a year ago today?

Last week, Vickers Weekly Insider Report noted that corporate insiders are dumping shares like there’s no tomorrow. Insiders sold 6.31 shares for every share they bought. Contrast that with the seemingly brilliant move insiders made at the market low in March, buying three shares for every share they sold. Some analysts are saying there is only one interpretation to this recent turn in insider activity: The market is due for a spill. But not so fast…

Gold was steady on Monday after briefly falling below $990 an ounce, as the euro trimmed some losses versus the dollar, but bullion looked vulnerable to a long liquidation after it failed to stay above $1,000 an ounce.

World stocks hit a 12-day low on Monday, depressed by recent weak U.S. economic data and failing to find support from the G20 summit, while the yen attracted fresh flows to hit an eight-month high against the dollar.

U.S. stocks jumped on Monday as more merger and acquisition activity in the last days of the third quarter encouraged investors following three sessions of losses.

Oil traded around $66 a barrel on Monday, steadying after an earlier decline which extended last week’s 8.4 percent slide, as the U.S. dollar lost ground and stock markets moved higher.

Asian economies are recovering faster than previously thought and will lead the charge out of the worst global downturn since the 1930s, according to new forecasts by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) – a Manila-based institution that promotes economic and social progress in the Asia-Pacific region.

The U.S. dollar slid to a 1-year low against the euro on Tuesday near $1.48 as deteriorating sentiment on the U.S. currency encouraged selling ahead of a Federal Reserve meeting and Group of 20 summit this week.