Business and Finance news

Stocks edged between small gains and losses Friday afternoon as traders scrutinized a plan to contain Europe’s debt crisis that sent the market soaring a day earlier.
The Dow Jones industrial average ended up nearly 23 points at 12,231. The Dow surged 339 points the day before, its biggest gain since Aug. 11. The Dow is […]

EU finance ministers neared agreement Saturday on forcing banks to raise just over euro100 billion ($140 billion) to make sure they have enough reserves to weather further losses on their Greek debt holdings and market turmoil, a European official said.
Finance ministers from the 17 nations that use the euro decided Friday that banks must take […]

The protesters at the heart of the Occupy Wall Street movement were planning a day of rest Sunday, a day after rallies across the globe drew thousands who marched and chanted and, in some cases, grew violent.
In New York City, the group that insists on being leaderless had nothing on its agenda save its nightly […]

MONTREAL

Revolutionary fighters are shelling Moammar Gadhafi’s hometown of Sirte ahead of a renewed push on the city, one of the last bastions of support for the fugitive leader.
Anti-Gadhafi forces have pushed to within less than half a mile (kilometer) from loyalist fighters dug in around the Ouagadougou conference center and Green Square in the heart […]

Stocks are closing sharply higher for a third straight day after U.S. retailers reported stronger September sales and the European Central Bank moved to support that region’s lenders.
Target, Nordstrom, Macy’s and other retailers reported sales that beat Wall Street’s expectations. Analysts said the results suggested the U.S. was not in another recession.
In Europe, investors cheered […]

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is reiterating that Congress should not cut spending sharply while the economy is weak.
Bernanke tells the Joint Economic Committee that lawmakers face a delicate challenge: They must avoid making deep spending cuts that could impede the recovery. But he says they must also eventually cut spending more deeply than the […]

Chrysler says its U.S. sales jumped 27 percent in September on strong demand for its cars and SUVs.
Chrysler sold 127,334 new vehicles, including 8,709 new Chrysler 200 sedans.
Jeeps also did well. Sales of the Jeep Compass more than tripled, while Wrangler sales surged 47 percent. Demand for the Dodge Ram pickup rose 45 percent one […]

Federal health officials said Wednesday more illnesses and possibly more deaths may be linked to an outbreak of listeria in cantaloupe in coming weeks.
So far, the outbreak has caused at least 72 illnesses _ including up to 16 deaths _ in 18 states, making it the deadliest food outbreak in the United States in more […]

Investors in Asia dumped stocks Friday as weak economic indicators from major nations intensified fears of a new global recession, although a joint call to action by the Group of 20 nations helped calm markets in Europe.
Oil prices stabilized near $81 a barrel after diving to a near seven-week low on Thursday. The dollar was […]