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British Treasury chief urges climate agreement

AP - SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2009 1:25 A.M.

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland (AP) -- British Treasury chief Alistair Darling has urged the world's top finance officials to reach an agreement on bearing the cost of fighting climate change before a UN summit on global warming next month....

Pa. governor: Philly transit strike could end soon

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 9:38 P.M.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- A tentative contract agreement has been reached that could end the public transit strike that has idled Philadelphia's subways, buses and trolleys for four days, Gov. Ed Rendell said late Friday....

Democrats clear impasse blocking health care vote

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 9:26 P.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Capping months of months of struggle, House Democrats cleared an abortion-related impasse blocking a vote on sweeping health care legislation late Friday and officials expressed optimism they had finally lined up the support needed to pass President Barack Obama's top domestic priority....

Banks in Ga., Mich., Minn., Mo., Calif. closed

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 7:11 P.M.

CHARLOTTE, N.C (AP) -- Regulators on Friday shut banks in Georgia, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, and California, bringing the number of bank failures this year to 120 amid the struggling economy and a cascade of defaults on loans....

Berkshire Hathaway says 3Q profit triples to $3.2B

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 5:31 P.M.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) -- Paper gains on derivative contracts helped Berkshire Hathaway Inc. triple its third-quarter profit as its insurance businesses did well, but Warren Buffett's company said Friday that many of its other operating businesses struggled....

Oil settles lower after US unemployment report

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 4:39 P.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Oil prices tumbled Friday after the government said the U.S. unemployment rate topped 10 percent for the first time since 1983....

Consumer borrowing drops $14.8B in September

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 4:38 P.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Consumers borrowed less for a record eighth straight month in September amid rising unemployment and tight credit conditions. Economists worry the declines in borrowing will drag on the fledgling recovery....

Freddie Mac loses $6.3B in 3Q

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 4:35 P.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Freddie Mac's losses narrowed to $6.3 billion in the third quarter, but the government-controlled mortgage finance company didn't need a federal cash infusion....

Obama signs bill assisting homebuyers, jobless

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 3:56 P.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama signed a $24 billion economic stimulus bill into law Friday, giving tax incentives to prospective homebuyers and additional jobless benefits to those idled by the business slump....

What recovery? Unemployment shoots past 10 percent

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 3:39 P.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Just when it was beginning to look a little better, the economy relapsed Friday with a return to double-digit unemployment for only the second time since World War II and warnings that next year will be even worse than previously thought....

Stocks post modest gains as job losses slow

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 3:10 P.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Investors undaunted by a surprisingly weak jobs report found enough positive news to nudge stocks higher Friday....

Perot pledges $6.1M to Army college in Kansas

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 1:13 P.M.

FORT LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (AP) -- Texas billionaire and two-time presidential candidate Ross Perot has pledged $6.1 million to a private foundation to pay for programs at the Army's Command and General Staff College in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas....

GM says Europe chief Forster to leave post

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 12:04 P.M.

DETROIT (AP) -- Carl-Peter Forster, the chief executive of General Motors Europe who runs its struggling Opel unit, will leave the company, GM said Friday....

AIG posts 2nd consecutive quarterly profit

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 11:57 A.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- AIG said Friday it was profitable for the second straight quarter as its core insurance operations continue to stabilize after the company's bailout by the government last year....

New `Call of Duty' could set entertainment record

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 11:55 A.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- This holiday season's biggest entertainment blockbuster likely will be a sequel to a popular franchise, with jarring depictions of war and an intricate story of good versus evil. It could easily rake in more than last year's record $155 million opening weekend for "The Dark Knight."...

Defense asks jury to clear ex-hedge fund managers

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 11:51 A.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Two former Bear Stearns hedge fund managers charged with lying to investors always were honest about the risks of investing in securities linked to the volatile subprime mortgage market, a defense lawyer told a jury on Friday....

Obama will push health bill in Saturday Hill visit

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 10:33 A.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama still expects to have a health care overhaul bill to sign by year's end and plans to personally lobby for it in a visit to Capitol Hill on Saturday, the White House said....

Deja vu: Wal-Mart, Amazon, Target in DVD price war

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 9:41 A.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- First it was books. Now it's DVDs....

Fla. yacht broker gets 2 months prison in UBS case

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 9:37 A.M.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) -- A Florida yacht broker who admitted filing a false U.S. tax return and concealing millions of dollars in a secret account at Swiss bank UBS AG was sentenced Friday to two months in prison....

Obama: Gov't working to ease pain of joblessness

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 9:02 A.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama said new figures released Friday showing national unemployment has hit the double-digit mark are a sobering reminder of the challenges still facing the U.S. economy....

Wholesale inventories fall, sales grow in Sept.

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 7:15 A.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Businesses cut inventories at the wholesale level for a record 13th consecutive month in September, but sales rose for a sixth straight time....

German orders up 0.9 percent in September

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 7:01 A.M.

BERLIN (AP) -- German industrial orders increased again in September thanks to strong foreign demand, official figures showed Friday, offering another sign that Europe's biggest economy is gaining momentum....

Report: Fla. investment agency under investigation

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 4:24 A.M.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) -- The Florida agency that manages $132 billion in pension and local government investments is under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission....

British Airways posts H1 loss of $346 million

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 3:33 A.M.

LONDON (AP) -- British Airways PLC on Friday reported a net loss of 208 million pounds ($346 million) in the six months ending in September as the global economic downturn continued to take its toll on revenues....

World markets rise ahead of key US jobs data

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 3:32 A.M.

LONDON (AP) -- Stock markets rose Friday ahead of the release of key U.S. jobs data, which markets use to gauge the health of consumer spending in the world's largest economy in the run-up to the year-end holiday season....

China criticizes US over pipe duties

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 3:23 A.M.

BEIJING (AP) -- China criticized Washington for imposing anti-dumping duties on Chinese-made steel pipes and launched a probe Friday of imported U.S. autos, adding to trade tensions two weeks before President Barack Obama visits Beijing....

Hannover Re posts 3Q net income of $235 million

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 3:02 A.M.

FRANKFURT (AP) -- German reinsurance company Hannover Re AG reported net income of euro159 million ($235 million) in the third quarter from a loss a year ago, as a result of an increase in premiums and a one-off profit related to a recent acquisition....

Royal Bank of Scotland posts $3 billion Q3 loss

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 2:59 A.M.

LONDON (AP) -- Government-controlled Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC on Friday reported a net loss of 1.8 billion pounds ($3 billion) despite an improvement in underlying profits and said lending to small- and medium-sized companies increased 5 percent....

THE INFLUENCE GAME: Jobless aid helps business

AP - FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2009 1:13 A.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Emergency help for out-of-work Americans will be a huge windfall to Realtors, homebuilders, mortgage bankers and others, and that's no accident....

South Korea OK's India free trade agreement

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 9:14 P.M.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- South Korea on Friday ratified a free trade deal with India that promises to slash tariffs on goods and services between two of Asia's biggest economies....

World unemployment up despite economic recovery

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 9:10 P.M.

PARIS (AP) -- Despite signs of an economic revival gathering pace around the globe, the millions of people laid off during the worst recession in 70 years are unlikely to see relief any time soon as joblessness is still climbing in many of the world's largest economies....

Taxpayers risked trillions at height of crisis

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 9:08 P.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Government officials put trillions of taxpayer dollars on the line to guarantee risky bank assets - a strategy that could cause permanent and costly market distortions, a government watchdog says....

CBS show sales help offset drop in 3Q ad revenue

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 5:40 P.M.

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- The sale of popular TV shows partly offset a drop in third-quarter advertising revenue at CBS Corp. but the company said ad trends are improving in the final three months of the year....

Fannie Mae seeks $15 bln in US aid after 3Q loss

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 4:33 P.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Fannie Mae is asking for an additional $15 billion in government aid after posting another big loss in the third quarter as the taxpayer bill from the housing market bust keeps rising....

Citi files plans to spin off Primerica in IPO

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 3:16 P.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Citigroup Inc. filed plans for an initial public offering of its Primerica Inc. life insurance unit late Thursday, and said it will sell the rest of the unit after it goes public....

Fannie Mae offers borrowers option to foreclosure

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 2:48 P.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Can't pay the mortgage? You still might be able to stay in your home. Government-controlled mortgage company Fannie Mae is going to give borrowers on the verge of foreclosure the option of renting their homes for a year....

Hyatt Hotels, Ancestry.com jump in market debuts

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 2:44 P.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Two well-known companies surged in their market debuts Thursday despite what has recently been a difficult market for initial public offerings....

Negotiators scale back UN climate pact ambitions

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 2:33 P.M.

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) -- With the U.S. Congress still struggling to agree on sharp cuts in greenhouse gases or how to fund them, European officials said Thursday they were now striving for a political agreement instead of a new treaty to allow the U.S. and other rich nations to make commitments that are not legally binding....

October sales offer relief to merchants

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 2:27 P.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- October's retail sales results, the best performance since April 2008, show that Americans are spending a little more. But will they be willing to pay full price this holiday season?...

Banks borrow more from emergency Fed program

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 1:58 P.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Banks borrowed slightly more from the Federal Reserve's emergency lending program over the past week, while reducing their use of other credit programs designed to ease the financial crisis....

Starbucks says more customers visit, spending more

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 1:56 P.M.

CHICAGO (AP) -- More people visited Starbucks Corp. coffee shops in the fourth quarter this year than last, and they spent more money when they did, an executive said Thursday....

Feds seize computers, cash at Fla. lawyer's office

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 1:54 P.M.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) -- Federal agents seized computers, bank and investment records, cash and even the key to a Ferrari during an all-night search at the office of an attorney suspected of operating a massive fraud scheme....

CVS Caremark 3Q profit up but loses big contracts

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 1:49 P.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- CVS Caremark disclosed more multibillion dollar contract losses in its pharmacy benefits management business and said the head of the unit will depart....

DirecTV shows subscriber gains, as rivals see loss

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 12:37 P.M.

Satellite TV operator DirecTV Group Inc. was one of the few pay-TV companies to gain subscribers in the third quarter, though earnings stayed steady because of the higher costs it incurred attracting and serving those new customers....

Hyatt Hotels rises from IPO price in debut on NYSE

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 12:01 P.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Shares of Hyatt Hotels Corp. rose sharply Thursday in the iconic hotel chain's first day on the New York Stock Exchange, with investors appearing to dismiss concerns about infighting among its founder's heirs and tepid hotel reservations around the world....

Time Warner Cable 3Q profit falls 11 percent

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 11:49 A.M.

Time Warner Cable Inc., the nation's second biggest cable TV operator, said Thursday its profit fell 11 percent in the third quarter, weighed down by heftier interest expenses after piling on debt to separate from its parent, Time Warner Inc....

GM boss: US aid can be used to fix Opel if needed

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 11:42 A.M.

DETROIT (AP) -- General Motors Co.'s top executive said Thursday that the automaker could tap some of its $50 billion in U.S. government aid to help restructure GM's European Opel unit. The statement came as thousands of Opel workers walked off their jobs across Germany in protest of GM's decision to abandon the unit's sale to new owners....

IMS Health to be bought for $4 billion by TPG, CPP

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 11:27 A.M.

NORWALK, Conn. (AP) -- Health care data company IMS Health Inc. said Thursday it is being bought by investment funds TPG Capital and CPP Investment Board for $4 billion, in a move to help the company restructure its business amid the shifting health care arena and sluggish economy....

Feds: 14 charged in insider trading case

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 11:18 A.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Criminal charges have been filed against 14 people, including attorneys and Wall Street professionals, in a widening $53 million insider trading case that has already snared one of the richest men in America, federal prosecutors said Thursday....

Doctors' group supports House health care bill

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 10:34 A.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The American Medical Association says it supports the House Democratic health care bill, but it can't give a full endorsement yet....

Seniors' lobby endorses House Dem health care bill

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 8:38 A.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The AARP has officially endorsed the House Democratic health care bill, a major boost for the legislation two days before a historic vote....

Senate Democrats advance climate bill without GOP

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 8:26 A.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Senate Democrats sidestepped a Republican boycott Thursday, pushing a climate bill out of committee in an early step on a long and contentious road to passage....

Congress set to expand homebuyer tax credit

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 8:10 A.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Buying a home is about to get cheaper for a whole new crop of homebuyers - $6,500 cheaper....

Democrats' plan to help 'uninsurables' questioned

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 7:46 A.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- You're afraid your cancer is back, and a health insurance company just turned you down....

Jump in productivity puts job creation in doubt

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 7:26 A.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Companies across the economy are finding ways to do more with fewer workers, dimming hopes that hiring will take off anytime soon....

3 injured, home destroyed in Texas gas line blast

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 7:21 A.M.

BUSHLAND, Texas (AP) -- A natural gas pipeline exploded in the Texas Panhandle on Thursday, shaking homes, melting window blinds and shooting flames hundreds of feet into the air, authorities said....

European, British central banks leave rates alone

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 6:26 A.M.

FRANKFURT (AP) -- The European Central Bank and the Bank of England kept interest rates at record lows Thursday as their economies struggle to emerge from recession....

Wendy's/Arby's earns $14.7 million in 3Q

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 6:19 A.M.

CHICAGO (AP) -- Fewer customers gulped down Arby's roast beef sandwiches at the third quarter, as more and more fast-food diners stayed home because of the recession, Wendy's/Arby's Group Inc. said Thursday....

Thomson Reuters posts drop in 3Q earnings

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 6:04 A.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- News and information provider Thomson Reuters Corp. said Thursday its third-quarter net income tumbled 60 percent from a year ago, as revenue in its legal and market divisions fell....

Sara Lee 1Q profit rises 23 pct though sales fall

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 5:32 A.M.

DOWNERS GROVE, Ill. (AP) -- Food maker Sara Lee Corp. said Thursday cost-cutting, solid sales of new products and a decline in commodity costs drove its fiscal first-quarter profit up 23 percent....

Nasdaq OMX Group 3Q profit rises on cost cuts

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 4:52 A.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Global exchange operator Nasdaq OMX Group Inc. said Thursday its profit rose as it cut costs and recorded fewer special charges during the third quarter....

BoE adds 25 billion pounds to monetary expansion

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 4:51 A.M.

LONDON (AP) -- The Bank of England said Thursday it will pour another 25 billion pounds ($41 billion) into the British economy to get the country out of recession as it kept its main interest rate at a record low of 0.5 percent....

Opel workers in Germany stage protests

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 4:35 A.M.

RUESSELSHEIM, Germany (AP) -- Thousands of Opel employees walked off their jobs to attend a rally at the automaker's headquarters Thursday, protesting General Motors Co.'s decision to abandon the unit's sale to new owners the workers hoped would preserve jobs....

Unilever reports 36 percent fall in Q3 profit

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 3:44 A.M.

AMSTERDAM (AP) -- Unilever NV, maker of Dove soaps and Ben & Jerry's ice cream, saw net profit fall 36 percent for the third quarter, mostly because earnings in the same period a year ago benefited from the sale of operations....

Insurer Cigna's 3Q profit grows 92 percent

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 3:24 A.M.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Managed care company Cigna Corp. said Thursday its third-quarter profit soared 92 percent, as improving equity markets spurred a big turnaround in a business segment that hurt the insurer last year....

'Clunker' data show pickup-for-pickup trades

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 3:20 A.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Billed as a way for the government to put more fuel-efficient vehicles on highways, the popular $3 billion Cash for Clunkers program mostly involved swaps of old Ford or Chevrolet pickups for new ones that got only marginally better gas mileage, according to an analysis of new federal data by The Associated Press....

Panasonic begins tender offer for Sanyo takeover

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 3:09 A.M.

TOKYO (AP) -- Panasonic Corp. said Thursday it has started its bid to take over smaller rival Sanyo Electric Co. for an estimated 402 billion yen ($4.4 billion), moving closer to create one of the world's biggest electronics makers....

Microsoft CEO: Windows 7 Japan sales 'fantastic'

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 3:08 A.M.

TOKYO (AP) -- Sales of Microsoft Corp.'s new Windows 7 operating system have been "fantastic" in Japan since its launch last month, CEO Steve Ballmer said Thursday....

Cisco forecasts first revenue growth in a year

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 3:05 A.M.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Cisco Systems Inc. doesn't want Wall Street to interpret its forecast for its first quarterly revenue growth in a year as evidence that the U.S. and other economies are roaring back....

Toyota surprises with profit, boosts forecast

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 2:37 A.M.

TOKYO (AP) -- Toyota Motor Corp. announced Thursday a surprise profit last quarter and trimmed its projected red ink for the year, underlining the gradual recovery under way for Japan's giant automakers....

Statoil partners with China in Gulf of Mexico

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 1:40 A.M.

OSLO (AP) -- Norwegian oil company Statoil ASA agreed last month to sell part of its interests in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico to the China National Offshore Oil Corporation, a company spokesman said Thursday....

Deutsche Telekom Q3 net income up 7 pct

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 1:08 A.M.

BERLIN (AP) -- Deutsche Telekom AG reported third-quarter net income rose 7 percent as it remained focused on controlling costs and developing key markets in the U.S., Britain and Poland....

Wet weather delays harvest from Midwest to South

AP - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2009 1:03 A.M.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Hartwell Huddleston returned the extra combine he bought to help harvest what looked to be one of his best soybean crops ever....

Australia launches probe into massive oil spill

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 9:39 P.M.

SYDNEY (AP) -- Australia launched an investigation Thursday into an oil rig leak that dumped thousands of barrels of fuel into the Timor Sea over more than two months before being plugged this week....

JPMorgan settles SEC 'pay-to-play' charges in Ala.

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 7:28 P.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- JPMorgan Chase & Co. has agreed to pay $75 million in fines and forfeit $647 million in fees to settle federal regulators' charges that it made unlawful payments to friends of public officials to win municipal bond business in Jefferson County, Ala....

Chrysler aims to pump life into struggling lineup

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 6:19 P.M.

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP) -- Chrysler hopes to make billions of dollars to repay government loans and revamp all of its cars and trucks with an ambitious plan that hinges on doubling sales in five years....

Ohio casinos to hit Mich., Ind. gambling taxes

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 5:33 P.M.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Ohio voters have approved the opening of casinos in Toledo and three other cities, leaving officials and gambling interests in neighboring Indiana and Michigan worried that millions of dollars in gambling revenues - and taxes - are at risk....

Valley in Washington state prepares for flood

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 4:40 P.M.

AUBURN, Wash. (AP) -- On a sunny fall Saturday, friends and neighbors gathered at Bobby Kendall's place to help him build a 2-foot barrier of sandbags around his suburban Seattle home. Such get-togethers have become a familiar ritual on the block in recent weeks as people lend a hand to neighbors to barricade homes....

News Corp. 1Q up but online paper fees delayed

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 4:22 P.M.

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Media conglomerate News Corp. posted a surprise increase in quarterly profit Wednesday, but Chief Executive Rupert Murdoch said the company might not meet its goal of charging fees for online versions of its newspapers by next summer....

Hindus, yoga teachers question Mo. sales tax

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 4:04 P.M.

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Yoga practitioners are criticizing a Missouri sales tax that applies to yoga classes, claiming they should be exempt because the lessons include spiritual elements....

Qualcomm fiscal 4Q profit slips 9 percent

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 3:43 P.M.

SAN DIEGO (AP) -- Qualcomm Inc. says its fiscal fourth-quarter profit slipped 9 percent as revenue from the mobile phone technology it licenses and mobile-phone chips it makes declined....

Prudential posts 3Q profit on market, sales gains

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 3:33 P.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Prudential Financial Inc., an insurance and investment company, on Wednesday posted its second straight quarterly profit, buoyed by market gains and strong sales of its investment products....

Fed again pledges to hold rates at record-lows

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 2:11 P.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Federal Reserve pledged Wednesday to keep a key interest rate at a record low for an "extended period," signaling that the weak economy remains dependent on government help to grow....

NY joins the antitrust effort against Intel

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 1:29 P.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- New York's attorney general hit Intel Corp. with an antitrust lawsuit Wednesday, claiming the company used "illegal threats and collusion" to dominate the market for computer microprocessors....

Microsoft lays off 800 more workers worldwide

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 1:08 P.M.

REDMOND, Wash. (AP) -- Microsoft Corp. says it is cutting 800 more jobs. That's in addition to the 5,000 layoffs it announced in January....

Wall Street Journal launches San Francisco edition

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 1:08 P.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- The Wall Street Journal says its new San Francisco Bay Area edition will launch Thursday, with a weekly section devoted to local news....

Former HP CEO Fiorina targets Boxer's Senate seat

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 12:54 P.M.

GARDEN GROVE, Calif. (AP) -- Former Silicon Valley executive Carly Fiorina announced Wednesday she is running for the chance to seize liberal stalwart Barbara Boxer's U.S. Senate seat, depicting the three-term Democrat as a Capitol Hill do-nothing who penned novels while jobs vanished and government spending soared....

Oil: back to $80 per barrel as dollar slides

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 12:41 P.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Crude prices bounced above $80 per barrel once again on Wednesday, a level that even OPEC leaders have said is too high given the fragile state of the global economy....

Comcast 3Q profit up 22 pct, but growth slows

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 11:26 A.M.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Comcast Corp. reported a 22 percent increase in third-quarter earnings, buoyed by an investment gain and a lower tax rate as it stepped up promotions on its bundled video, phone and Internet plans....

Commercial pigs in Ind. test positive for H1N1

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 11:14 A.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Wednesday that pigs in a commercial herd in Indiana have tested positive for swine flu, making it the first time the virus has been found in such hogs....

Dubai delays debut of tallest tower to early 2010

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 10:46 A.M.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) -- Visitors will have to wait until early next year for the opening of the world's tallest building in Dubai....

Time Warner 3Q profit drops, boosts outlook

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 10:22 A.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Media conglomerate Time Warner Inc. reported a 38 percent drop in third-quarter profit Wednesday after being hurt by declines at its AOL and publishing segments....

GMAC Financial Services 3Q loss narrows

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 9:32 A.M.

NEW YORK (AP) -- GMAC Financial Services, the main lender for General Motors Co. and Chrysler Group LLC, said Wednesday its loss narrowed to $767 million in the third quarter, as its auto lending unit made money while its home mortgage unit reported another loss....

FDA launches plan to curb accidental overdoses

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 9:07 A.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Food and Drug Administration is launching a program to try and prevent millions of accidental drug overdoses that occur each year due to medication errors, misuse and other problems....

House panel votes to give SEC more money, power

AP - WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 8:32 A.M.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House Financial Services Committee voted Wednesday to give federal regulators more power and money to police major players in the stock market, four months after Bernard Madoff was sentenced for the biggest investment scam in history....