Business and Finance news

A federal judge has denied Farmers Branch’s request to have its latest ordinance banning home and apartment rentals to illegal immigrants declared constitutional, according to The Associated Press.
That ruling came as U.S. District Judge Sam A. Lindsay issued a permanent injunction on the Dallas suburb’s first attempt to ban rentals to illegal […]

The U.S. will file a complaint at the World Trade Organization today over tariffs the European Union imposed on computer monitors, cable converter boxes and printers, people familiar with the case said.
The U.S. Trade Representative's office plans to say that the EU is undermining a decade-old agreement to eliminate duties worldwide on technology […]

Denmark's government cut its forecast for economic growth this year and next as a labor shortage crimps production while falling house prices weigh on demand.
The economy will grow 1.2 percent this year and 0.7 percent in 2009, the finance ministry in Copenhagen said in a statement published on its Web site today. That […]

The pace of consumer spending in the U.S. probably slowed as property values and confidence sank, economists said before reports this week.
Purchases were up 0.2 percent in April after increasing 0.4 percent the prior month, according to the median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News before the Commerce Department's May 30 report. […]

When you think about stocks, you remember the times when stock indexes hit record highs – as the S&P/TSX composite index did this week, pushing through the 15,000 level. But long-term investors make most of their money from dividends – not from capital gains when stock prices go up.
In a 2002 book, Triumph of the […]

The Catawba Valley Medical Center has applied for regulatory approval to expand and renovate its Hickory campus. The projected investment is $79 million for construction and equipment.
The project calls for a three-story building, according to a certificate-of-need filing in Raleigh.
"We've grown from a community hospital into a regional medical center," […]

At its annual meeting Wednesday, Fort Worth-based AMR Corp. officials said that high fuel costs will bring additional fees - including a $15 charge for travelers’ first bag - thousands of layoffs and retirement of more than 75 aircraft from its American Airlines fleet.
The new baggage fee is effective for tickets purchased […]

Raytheon Co. received a four-year, $76 million contract extension of its U.S. Army contract to supply a field artillary data system used in the Iraq war.
Raytheon’s Advanced Field Artillery Tactical Data System is the Army’s key defense against death by friendly fire in Iraq. The system plans, coordinates and controls all mortars, close-air […]

Westpac Banking Corp Ltd (WBC.AX: Quote, Profile, Research), which has bid $17.6 billion for St George Bank (SGB.AX: Quote, Profile, Research) in the biggest banking takeover ever in Australia, is bracing for rival offers to emerge that could push the price tag even higher.
Speaking to Australia Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) television on Sunday, Westpac […]

Honolulu’s Waikiki Beach recently was named to the Forbes Traveler 25 most-visited U.S. tourist attractions list.
The beach was ranked No. 18 on the list, tied with New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. Both attractions are visited by about 4.5 million tourists a year.
Times Square in New York City was […]