AT&T Inc., the largest U.S. phone company, beat analysts’ estimates for third-quarter profit as a crimped supply of iPhone 5 devices reduced the need for handset discounts given to customers who sign up for contracts.

Netflix Inc., the world’s largest online video service, fell the most in almost three months after reducing its forecast for domestic growth and predicting larger losses from international expansion.

Facebook's stock is seeing its biggest single-day gain since it began trading in May -- a sign that the social media company's complicated relationship with Wall Street has finally hit a bright spot.

The Federal Reserve said Wednesday that the U.S. economy is improving only moderately and still needs its support to help lower unemployment.

Americans bought new homes in September at the fastest pace in two years, another sign the industry whose decline was at the heart of the recession is bouncing back.

Purchases of new U.S. homes rose in September to the highest level in more than two years as the industry that helped bring on the recession forged its way toward recovery.

The Paris appeals court on Wednesday ordered former Societe Generale trader Jerome Kerviel to spend three years in prison and pay back a staggering (euro) 4.9 billion (about $7 billion) in damages for one of the biggest trading frauds in history.

Mortgage bankers and Realtors are warning that it could become even harder for borrowers to qualify for a home loan early next year as the industry faces a barrage of new rules.

The dollar gained versus the euro as the Federal Reserve maintained asset-purchase programs without suggesting it’s closer to boosting stimulus, reducing concern additional measures will debase the currency.

(Bloomberg) -- Boston Properties Inc. and Hines formed a joint venture to develop San Francisco’s tallest office building, a 61-story tower to be built adjacent to a new transit center in the South of Market area.

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. house prices rose 0.7 percent in August from July as buyers competed for a dwindling supply of property listings, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said.

The steep losses finally stopped Wednesday as the stock market turned calm, a day after one of its biggest sell-offs of the year. Major indexes wavered between slight gains and losses in afternoon trading.

A billionaire hedge fund manager pledged $100 million Tuesday to the private organization that maintains Central Park in partnership with New York City.

(Bloomberg) -- Donald Trump, the U.S. billionaire real-estate developer, is seeking to put his name on hotels in Argentina and Brazil as he expands his brand in Latin America.

Churchill Downs has completed its approximately $141 million acquisition of a Mississippi casino and hotel.

The price of oil fell Wednesday after the U.S. reported an unexpectedly large increase in crude supplies.

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Oil fell for a fifth day, heading for the longest losing streak in five months, after U.S. inventories rose more than expected and fuel demand dropped.

Financial markets edged higher Wednesday, recovering from a heavy sell-off the day before and as upbeat economic indicators from China offset the impact of dire ones from Europe.

U.S. sales of new homes jumped last month to the highest level in more than two years, further evidence of a sustained housing recovery that could help lift the lackluster economy.

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock futures rose, indicating the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index will rebound from a seven-week low, as Chinese manufacturing shrank at a slower pace and investors awaited a report that may show American home purchases rose to the highest in two years.

Billionaire investor Warren Buffett says the global economy is definitely slowing because of continued problems in Europe and the decline in Asia, but the U.S. economy is still improving modestly.

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Mortgage applications in the U.S. fell last week by the most in a year as interest rates climbed.

ATHENS, Greece (AP) _ Greece's Finance Minister said the country has been granted a long-sought extension to meet the terms of its bailout program -- but the claim was swiftly shot down as “speculation” by the European Central Bank and lead lender Germany.

A report comparing the current housing market to the situation four years ago says the picture is noticeably bleaker in Utah's Salt Lake County.

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- A gauge of U.S. corporate credit risk was little changed as German business confidence declined before a report that may show U.S. new home purchases rose to a two-year high.

Consumer products company Kimberly-Clark net income rose 20 percent, helped by cost cuts and lower costs for commodities like fiber and other raw materials.

SEI Investments Co. said Wednesday that its third-quarter earnings rose 3 percent as strong results at the company's investment advisory business helped offset a smaller operating profit at its private banking business.

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Italy’s government is considering tax rebates for export goods to help Fiat SpA with its strategy of building cars in the country to sell in North America, three people familiar with the matter said.

Nasdaq OMX Group Inc. said Wednesday its third-quarter net income fell 19 percent, hurt by a trading slowdown during the summer

Cigarette maker Lorillard Inc. said Wednesday its third-quarter net income rose 6 percent, as higher prices helped offset a decline in the number of cigarettes sold.

Corning said Wednesday that it will likely cut costs, which may include “modest” job cuts, to support profit in a weakening economy.

Shares of Avery Dennison Corp. jumped Wednesday after the office products maker reported better-than-expected results for the third quarter and raised its annual net income guidance.

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Gasoline fell, heading for the longest losing streak since the start of New York futures trading in 1986 as fuel supplies surged to the highest level in almost two months.

Lockheed Martin Corp. said Wednesday its third-quarter net income rose 4 percent, as lower pension-related costs helped offset a drop in revenue.

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Wall Street banks are marketing $2.1 billion in commercial-mortgage bonds amid a surge in sales of the securities as investors seek riskier assets.

Boeing said on Wednesday that it will hit its delivery targets -- 585 to 600 commercial planes this year, up from 477 last year. That includes 70 to 85 of a mix of 787s and 747-8s, with about half being 787s. This week Boeing said it has boosted production of its profitable, long-haul 777 to 8.3 per month.

Shares of chipmaker Silicon Laboratories Inc. jumped more than 12 percent Wednesday after the company announced record third-quarter revenue.

Altera tumbled in afternoon trading Wednesday after the chipmaker gave a disappointing fourth-quarter revenue forecast.

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Facebook Inc., the biggest social networking site, posted a record surge after reporting sales that topped analysts’ estimates, allaying concerns over its ability to make money from mobile ads.

Battered shares of Zynga Inc. soared in after-hours trading Wednesday after the social gaming company posted stronger-than-expected revenue for the third quarter and said it will enter the gambling business.

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Yelp Inc., a U.S. website that lets users review businesses ranging from plumbers to pet shops, surged the most in two months after announcing an acquisition to expand in Europe and reporting sales that topped estimates.

Wynn Resorts Ltd. says its profit fell nearly 12 percent in the third quarter, as a debt-related loss boosted expenses for the casino operator.

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- A regular dose of aspirin may keep colon cancer from killing patients whose tumors contain a particular gene mutation, according to a study that shows how modern gene science can guide use of old drugs.

Trucking company Knight Transportation Inc. said the third quarter was tougher than expected, as high fuel prices and a weak economy hurt demand for freight-shipping, resulting in flat earnings.

Automatic Data Processing Inc. is making some changes to its monthly U.S. employment report, including adding more industry categories.

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- The euro weakened for a second day against the dollar and yen after reports showed services and manufacturing in the region shrank in October more than economists predicted as the debt crisis stifled growth.

The flow of customers into AT&T's wireless stores slowed further in the latest quarter, putting the company far behind rival Verizon Wireless.

Delta Air Lines Inc. says its third-quarter profit nearly doubled mostly due to the increasing value of its fuel contracts.

Drugmaker Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. says it lost $711 million in the third quarter as U.S. sales hemorrhaged due to new generic drug competition and it took a big charge for failed research.

Eli Lilly's third-quarter earnings climbed 7 percent, as a drop in expenses and a payment from a former partner helped offset an 11 percent slide in revenue, but it still fell short of expectations and shares edged lower in premarket trading.

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Coca-Cola Femsa SAB, the largest Coke bottler in Latin America, reported third-quarter net income of 3.5 billion pesos in a filing to Mexico’s stock exchange.

by the end of 2014, a move that will result in 4,500 direct job losses and 5,000 more among subcontractors.

Cooks, cleaners and dozens of other female workers in Britain have won a key equal pay ruling.

Nike has found a buyer for its Umbro brand, known for its soccer jerseys, in Iconix Brand Group Inc. The clothing licensing company is purchasing Umbro for $225 million in cash.

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Brent crude rose on evidence of a stronger economy in China, the world’s second-largest oil consumer, and signs that previous price declines were overdone.

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Treasuries snapped a gain from yesterday before a government report that economists said will show U.S. new home sales increased in September, damping demand for the safest securities.

Confused by Windows 8? Best Buy hopes it can help.

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Job growth in the U.S. solar industry, fueled by falling panel prices, will outpace employment in wind energy, which faces the looming expiration of a federal credit, according to a report from CleanEdison Inc.

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Visa Inc., the world’s largest payments network, named Charles Scharf, the former head of retail banking at JPMorgan Chase & Co., to succeed Joseph W. Saunders as chief executive officer.

Texas put $3 billion on the table to prove it was serious about fighting cancer, but it will take more than money to convince scientists that's still the case.

Google and its street-view cameras already have taken users to narrow cobblestone alleys in Spain using a tricycle, inside the Smithsonian with a push cart and to British Columbia's snow-covered slopes by snowmobile.

Jurors are deliberating for a third day as they consider whether a conservative woman rejected for jobs at the University of Iowa law school is the victim of political discrimination.

It's a relatively obscure budget provision, but in Virginia and a few other places, sequestration has become a key issue in the November elections.