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ROME, Feb 8- The final opinion polls published before a two-week blackout ahead of Italy's election on Feb. 24-25 show the centre-left set to win a majority in the lower house but in need of allies to hold the Senate.

NEW YORK, Feb 15- Paulson& Co, a top shareholder in MetroPCS Communications Inc, became the second big investor in a week to criticize the wireless service provider's plan to merge with T-Mobile USA, potentially signaling trouble for the deal.

*Facebook says it is victim of "series of attacks'. Feb 15- Facebook Inc said on Friday that it been the target of a series of attacks by an unidentified hacker group, but it had found no evidence that user data was compromised.

*JPMorgan, Wells Fargo provide $14.1 bln debt financing. Feb 15- If Warren Buffett and Brazilian investment group 3 G Capital back away from their proposed $23 billion acquisition of H.J. Heinz Co., they'll have to pay up. J.P. Morgan Chase& Co and Wells Fargo& Co committed to $14.1 billion in debt financing, according to the filing.

Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe pleaded with lawmakers on Wednesday not to block the financially strapped Postal Service from moving ahead with plans to end Saturday first-class mail delivery.

Feb 15- Shares of Wal-Mart Stores Inc fell 2.1 percent on Friday after Bloomberg quoted a mid-level executive's email as saying the world's largest retailer had the worst sales start to any month in seven years in February. Wal-Mart executives blamed the poor sales performance on increased payroll taxes as well as delayed tax returns, Bloomberg said.

Unless passengers suffered major injuries or other losses due to negligence by the cruise operator, they would be better off accepting compensation from Carnival Corp, they said.

*Lender Processing Services in non-prosecution agreement. Feb 15- The mortgage servicing company Lender Processing Services Inc has agreed to pay $35 million to resolve a federal criminal investigation into foreclosure fraud, the U.S. Department of Justice said on Friday.

The S&P 500 ended up 0.1 percent for the week, recovering from a late sell-off on Friday after a Bloomberg report about slow February sales at Wal-Mart triggered a slide in the retailer's shares.

NEW YORK, Feb 15- David Einhorn reiterated his arguments Friday that a judge should block a shareholder vote on Apple Inc's proposal to eliminate its ability to issue preferred shares without investor approval, days before a court hearing.

Britain chairs the Group of Eight forum this year and has said tax compliance will be a major focus when the leaders of the major economies meet in Northern Ireland in June.

NEW YORK, Feb 15- Gold prices finished nearly 1.8 percent lower on Friday, extending a week-long trend when several bearish factors, including a rising dollar ahead of the G20 meeting, conspired to push prices below key chart support levels to lows last seen in August.

NEW YORK, Feb 15- U.S. securities regulators on Friday sued unknown traders over suspected insider trading in H.J. Heinz Co call options ahead of the announced buyout of the company.

NEW YORK, Feb 15- Hedge fund billionaire Steven A. Cohen is feeling the pinch from the federal government's insider trading probe as outside investors in his SAC Capital Advisors submitted a request to withdraw $1.68 billion from the firm by year's end.

NEW YORK, Feb 15- The yen slid against the euro and dollar on Friday after investors piled on bearish bets, while U.S. and European stocks edged higher on surprising U.S. consumer sentiment and optimism that a surge in dealmaking suggests valuations aren't too pricey.

Feb 12- Dell Inc's third-largest shareholder, T. Rowe Price Group, on Tuesday joined a growing number of investors putting pressure on Michael Dell and his partner Silver Lake to sweeten their $24.4 billion buyout offer for the PC maker.

*Judge says Netflix did not materially mislead shareholders. Feb 14- Netflix Inc won the dismissal of a shareholder lawsuit accusing the dominant U.S. video rental and streaming company of inflating its share price by concealing its rising costs, even as insiders like Chief Executive Reed Hastings sold millions of dollars of stock.

*Wall Street wans as it consolidates after recent highs. Treasury official voiced support for Japan's efforts to boost growth and end deflation. Wall Street and world equity markets were little changed in light volume as a lack of major economic news gave investors little reason to push stocks higher, for now.

Feb 13- Inventors based in the United States led the world in nanotechnology patent applications and grants in 2012, according to a new study by law firm McDermott Will& Emory.