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Filed at 9:36 a.m. ET
NEW YORK (AP) — The Washington Post Co. reported a 69 percent jump in third-quarter profit Friday as its newspapers trimmed their losses and its cable TV and education divisions held steady.
The company, which owns Newsweek magazine, Kaplan education services and television properties along with The Washington Post newspaper, earned $17.1 […]

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A U.N. report forecasts a return to growth in Asian economies and trade in 2010. But U.N. economists recommend Asian governments increase trade within the region and become less dependent on markets such as the United States and Europe. The report by the U.N. Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific says Asia’s […]

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Norway on Wednesday became the first European country to raise interest rates since the onset of the financial crisis, citing a nascent rebound in the global economy and inflationary pressures in its petroleum-exporting economy.
Inflation has been higher than expected and unemployment is “considerably lower than previously projected,” the Norges Bank governor, Svein Gjedrem, said […]

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WARREN, Ohio — Bruce Gump and his neighbors feared for their retirement checks when the federal government took over the pension plans at Delphi, the big auto parts maker where they once worked.
But four months later, Mr. Gump finds himself in a far more perilous condition than his neighbors.
On his street, he […]

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Newspaper sales moved sharply lower this year, falling about 10 percent in the six months ended Sept. 30 compared to the same period last year, according to figures released on Monday by the Audit Bureau of Circulation.
Circulation has been sliding since the early 1990s, but in the last few years, the pace of the decline […]

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LOS ANGELES — Hugh Hefner leaned back on a red loveseat, the saggy one in the study of his infamous mansion here, and interlocked his fingers behind his head. A visitor had asked — more like shouted, since he has trouble hearing — a question about mortality.
At 83, does he think about it?
In a word, […]

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WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of newly laid-off workers filing claims for jobless benefits rose more than expected last week, after falling in five of the last six weeks, as employers remained reluctant to hire even with the economy showing signs of recovery.
The Labor Department saidThursday that new jobless claims rose to a […]

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NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. stocks fell on Friday, with the Dow slipping below the 10,000 mark as industrial companies' weak results overshadowed robust earnings from tech heavy-weights.
The energy and materials sectors suffered as a stronger U.S. dollar hit commodity prices, while an analyst's comments on a major railroad stock hurt the transportation sector.
[…]

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Stocks fluctuated in early trading Thursday as investors sorted through a disappointing reading on the labor market and another pile of earnings reports.
The market is trying to rebound a day after a late-session sell off pushed major indexes lower. Lingering concerns over whether investors had been overly optimistic about an economic rebound in pushing the […]

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Shares on Wall Street began the day trading higher Wednesday as third-quarter earnings reports once again set the tone for the market.
Investors continue to look for clues about consumers’ habits and the economy’s health.
Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo & Company and US Bancorp all reported better results for the third quarter. However, the three financial firms […]

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NEW YORK, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Pfizer Inc reported higher third-quarter profit as aggressive cost-cutting helped offset unfavorable foreign currency exchange rates and declining sales of drugs, including those facing competition from cheaper generics.
The world’s biggest drugmaker, which completed its $67.3 billion acquisition of Wyeth last week, posted a net profit of $2.88 billion, or […]

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(Reuters) – Blackstone Group (BX.N) is finding it difficult to raise money for a new leveraged buyout fund, the New York Post said, citing people familiar with the matter.
The private equity firm, which hoped to raise a fund as large as $20 billion, has raised $9 billion at most since fundraising began in early […]

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SAN FRANCISCO – In an Oct. 14 story about Clorox Co.’s executive compensation, The Associated Press reported erroneously that CEO Don Knauss received more than $1 million under the company’s mortgage subsidy program over three fiscal years. The amount was slightly less than $1 million and reflected total relocation-related benefits, which included the mortgage subsidy […]

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PARIS — Anheuser-Busch InBev, the world’s largest beverage company, said Thursday that it would sell its operations in Eastern and Central Europe to a private equity firm in a deal that may be worth more than $3 billion.
The sale is the latest in a series of divestments that the company, based in Leuven, Belgium, set […]

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NEW YORK (Reuters) – Wall Street was set for a lower open on Friday after General Electric Co (GE.N) a 42 percent drop in quarterly earnings and Bank of America Corp (BAC.N) posted a quarterly loss before the open.
S&P 500 futures fell 2.90 points and were below fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing […]

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BRUSSELS — The European Union and South Korea took a major step Thursday toward a free trade deal aimed at generating billions of euros in new trade flows.
With the global trade talks deadlocked and amid concerns over a rise in protectionism, analysts said that the deal could send a powerful signal to other nations, […]

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HONG KONG (Reuters) – Asian shares rose to 14-month highs on Thursday as upbeat retail sales and surprisingly bullish earnings reports in the United States buoyed risk appetite, pushing the U.S. dollar to a 14-month low.
Shares in Japan jumped more than 2 percent as investors bought exporters who might benefit from rising U.S. demand […]

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(Reuters) – Major U.S. banks and securities firms are on track to pay employees about $140 billion in total compensation and benefits this year, the Wall Street Journal said, citing an analysis of securities filings for the first half of 2009 and revenue estimates through the end of the year.
The paper said employees at […]

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HONG KONG — American International Group, the U.S. insurance giant that received a massive government bailout to avert a collapse last year, announced on Tuesday that it had agreed to sell its Taiwan life insurance unit to a Hong Kong investor group for $2.15 billion.
The sale of Nan Shan is the largest so far […]

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HONG KONG (Reuters) – The dollar edged further away from 14-month lows on Monday as investors trimmed bets against the beleaguered U.S. currency, while South Korean stocks dragged down other Asian markets on worries third-quarter earnings may not live up to expectations.
Activity was limited due to a holiday in Japan and with most U.S. […]

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