Business - Page 5

Reuters - U.S. lawmakers introduced legislation on Wednesday aimed at overhauling the patent system by weeding out bad patents and reining in excessive litigation while preserving the rights of inventors. More Info...  

Reuters - Self-confessed BlackBerry addicts experienced both a sense of panic, and relief, as the mobile e-mail device's network stalled overnight and cut communications for many of its millions of subscribers.

Reuters - Retailer J.C. Penney Co. Inc. on Wednesday raised its quarterly profit outlook and said it expects new stores and other improvements to drive a compound annual growth rate of 16 percent in earnings per share over the next few years. More Info...  

AFP - European stock markets dropped in opening deals on Wednesday, as the euro and sterling raced to multi-year highs against the dollar.

Reuters - The U.S. House of Representatives approved legislation on Tuesday that would require the government to notify taxpayers of unauthorized use of their Social Security numbers as a protection against identity theft and tax fraud. More Info...  

Reuters - Chrysler Group is set to unveil plans to build two new factories in Michigan as part of a planned $3-billion investment in more fuel efficient vehicles, according to state and company officials.

Reuters - International Business Machines Corp. , the world's largest technology services company, said on Tuesday that quarterly profit rose 8 percent on higher sales of software and computer services.

Business

Reuters - Yahoo Inc. reported on Tuesday an 11 percent fall in quarterly profit, missing Wall Street estimates as a new advertising system aimed at clawing back market share from Google has yet to take hold.

Reuters - Intel Corp. posted a higher quarterly profit on Tuesday, boosted by a tax item and the No.1 microchip maker raised its full-year margin forecast as new chips gave it an edge over rival AMD .

AP - High-profile investors like Carl Icahn have helped define the image of activist shareholders by storming into companies and pushing for change. A less visible type of activism exists among some mutual funds, one that employs quiet diplomacy to press for change and boost a stock. More Info...  

AFP - Britain's biggest retailer Tesco reported a 20-percent rise in net profits on Tuesday, saying growth was driven by soaring sales of food and other goods at home and abroad.

AFP - Japan is considering a merger of its stock, commodity and other financial markets to boost their competitiveness in an increasingly fierce global environment, an official said Tuesday.

Reuters - U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson urged European aid ministers in a weekend meeting to hold off on judging World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz until after the bank's 24-nation board decides on his future, European sources said on Monday.

Business

Reuters - Google Inc.'s $3.1 billion purchase of DoubleClick Inc. will create a new powerhouse in digital advertising that could spur a wave of takeovers in the online marketing sector.

Investor's Business Daily - Individual investors tend to overestimate how much impact they have on the stock market. More Info...  

Reuters - A federal jury ruled against Allstate Corp. in a "wind versus water" case that awarded a New Orleans area man more than $2.8 million for damage to his home from 2005's Hurricane Katrina.

Reuters - Sallie Mae, a student loan company under fire from regulators and lawmakers, said on Monday it had accepted a $25 billion takeover bid from two private equity funds, JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Bank of America Corp.

Reuters - Citigroup Inc. and Wachovia Corp. , the first major U.S. banks to report quarterly results, posted higher-than-expected profits on Monday, helped by keeping operating costs down.

Reuters - A recent poll conducted by a critic of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. showed that more consumers had a favorable view of the world's largest retailer than a year ago.

Reuters - Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. said it will take a first-quarter charge of $24.9 million, or 10 cents a share, for expenses from its failed bid for the London Stock Exchange . More Info...