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FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) -- The Ifo Institute's German business climate index jumped to 109.6 in February from a reading of 108.3 in January, news reports said Thursday. Economists had forecast a reading of 108.8. The monthly index is based on a survey of around 7,000 German firms in the manufacturing, construction, wholesale and retail sectors. The euro extended a gain versus the dollar following the data and remains up 0.6% at $1.3316.Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

TEL AVIV (MarketWatch) -- Commerzbank AG, the Frankfurt banking firm, reported that fourth-quarter net income rose 23% and said it would increase its core tier 1 capital. Earnings were €316 million ($419.6 million) compared with €257 million in the year-earlier quarter. Revenue from interest on loans fell 3.8% to 1.62 billion. Pretax operating profit declined 36% to €163 million. Operating expenses fell 18% to €1.77 billion. In the quarter, Commerzbank wrote down the value of its Greek sovereign bonds by €700 million. To lift its capital position, Commerzbank entered an agreement under which Goldman Sachs would acquire from non-U.S. investors certain debt and other securities and swap them for Commerzbank shares. Commerzbank said it planned to lift its capital by just under 10%. Commerzbank shares were off 3.8% in early trading.Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

MADRID (MarketWatch) -- European stock markets opened mostly flat on Thursday, with banks on the decline, led by shares of Commerzbank AG off 7% after announcing the bank reported results and said it would lift its capital. Credit Agricole SA fell 3.4% and Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC fell 1.7% as each reported wider losses. The Stoxx Europe 600 index was flat at 264.32. The French CAC 40 index fell 0.1% to 3,441.61 and the German DAX 30 index was flat at 6,848.48. The FTSE 100 index was flat at 5,918.87. Among other movers, Edenred rose 3% after posting a jump in profit and British American Tobacco PLC fell in the wake of full-year results.Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

TEL AVIV (MarketWatch) -- Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC, the U.K. financial-services group, swung to a fourth-quarter loss from a year-earlier profit on 17% lower revenue. The loss was £1.8 billion compared with profit of £12 million in the year-earlier quarter. Revenue fell to £5.92 billion from £7.14 billion. Core operating profit fell 36% to £1.06 billion from £1.67 billion. Operating expenses fell 7.5% to £3.33 billion. The core tier 1 capital ratio at Dec. 31 was 10.6% against 10.7% a year earlier.Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

MADRID (MarketWatch) -- Cigarette maker British American Tobacco PLC on Thursday reported a 7.5% rise in profit for the year ended 2011 and said that despite an unsettled economic climate, it's upbeat for the year ahead. Net profit rose to 3.1 billion pounds ($4.86 billion) against 2.88 billion in the year-ago period. Revenue rose 3% to 15.4 billion pounds, and rose 7% on an organic basis. Its four key global brands saw volume growth of 95%. The company is recommending a final dividend of 88.4 pence, with the total dividend for 2011 up 11%. BAT also said it would continue its share buybacks up to 1.25 billion pounds. Chairman Richard Burrows said 2011 was a "very successful year" and the group carries "momentum in market share growth and margin improvement into 2012."Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- China built 4.32 million public-housing units last year, according to figures by the statistics bureau released Wednesday, offering the first tangible results of an ambitious plan unveiled in 2011 to complete 36 million subsidized apartments for low-wage workers by the end of 2015. Construction of approximately 7 million apartments is slated to get underway this year, while about 5 million are expected to be completed by year's end. However, some reports said there were doubts on the actual completion rates, as some municipalities are believed to be overstating the number of public-housing apartments they are building by relabeling some private projects already underway.Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

TEL AVIV (MarketWatch) -- Credit Agricole SA, the Paris financial-services group, reported a wider fourth-quarter loss, reflecting impairment charges, on about 4% lower revenue. The loss was €3.07 billion compared with €328 million in the year-earlier quarter. Revenue for the latest period was €4.66 billion. A survey of analysts by FactSet Research produced a consensus estimate of a loss of €2.7 billion. In a Thursday statement, Credit Agricole said it recognized goodwill impairment of €1.3 billion, plus €1.2 billion of impairment to the value of minority holdings and other matters. The board determined not to declare a dividend for 2011, Credit Agricole said. Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- The U.S. dollar slipped against the euro and some other currencies during Asian hours Thursday to give back some of the previous day's gains ahead of a data release on German business conditions. The common currency was fetching $1.3260 from $1.3246 in late North American trade Wednesday. The dollar held its ground against the Japanese yen after strong recent appreciation, and was unchanged at ¥80.24, while the British pound climbed a tad to $1.5675 from $1.5673. The ICE dollar index , which measures the greenback's performance against a basket of six global rivals, was at 79.149, down from 79.207 in the U.S. on Wednesday.Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Credit Suisse warned in a note Thursday against investing Chinese banks, maintaining its underweight recommendation on the sector, on concerns that recent plans to allow banks to rollover loans extended to local governments' financing vehicles will backfire on equity holders. The analysts said the plan would lead to lower returns, less transparency and reduced likelihood of a central-government-led "carve-out" of troubled loans. They said that property-related lending remained the biggest risk in 2012, as a potential meltdown would affect between 40% to 50% of banks' loan books.Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Hong Kong stocks opened solidly lower Thursday, with the Hang Seng Index down 0.8% at 21,378.88, and Hang Seng China Enterprises Index losing 0.7%. The Shanghai Composite traded flat. Real-estate stocks were among the worst performers, after Shanghai's housing bureau denied reports that it was easing restrictions on second-home purchases. Mainland Chinese developer Agile Property Holdings Ltd. fell 1.7%, while among Hong Kong real-estate names, Cheung Kong Holdings Ltd. dropped 2.6%, and Henderson Land Development Co. fell 2%. Banks also suffered after U.S. financials lost ground in reaction to weak euro-zone business-activity data. HSBC Holdings PLC dropped 1.7%, China Merchants Bank Co. gave up 1.6%, and Agricultural Bank of China Ltd. fell 1.1%.Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.