Microsoft Corp. unveiled a new version of its software for smartphones today, redoubling an effort to regain market share lost to Apple Inc. and Google Inc.

Oct. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Oil fell for a second day in New York and headed for the lowest close in three months after oil refiners reduced operations on the U.S. East Coast because of post-tropical cyclone Sandy.

Daniel Patrick Moynihan, the senator and Harvard University professor, observed that academic politics are so vicious precisely because the stakes are so small.

Eight days before the election, President Barack Obama switched from campaigner to hands-on commander of the federal response to Hurricane Sandy as the sprawling storm roared menacingly toward the Eastern Seaboard. Republican Mitt Romney scaled back his appearances and urged supporters to “do your very best” in donating to relief efforts.

Remember when President Grover Cleveland ran for a second consecutive term, Jack the Ripper spread terror in London and Kaiser Wilhelm II became German emperor?

Microsoft launched a new version of its Windows Phone software with broad support from smartphone makers, cellphone carriers and app developers as the software company tries to position new Windows gadgets as strong alternatives to Apple and Android devices.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Chrysler Group LLC, boosted by demand for 200 sedans and Jeep Grand Cherokee sport-utility vehicles, said its third-quarter net income rose 80 percent to $381 million from a year earlier.

The U.S. Supreme Court signaled interest in a case that could shield lenders from many race-bias lawsuits, asking the Obama administration for its views on clash over the demolition of a predominantly minority New Jersey neighborhood.

Airlines canceled thousands of flights and stranded travelers. Insurers braced for damages of up to $5 billion. Retailers expected shrunken sales.

Google is cramming a few more gadgets on to already crowded holiday shopping lists.

Strong U.S. sales powered Chrysler to a healthy third-quarter profit.

Supreme Court justices on Monday weighed copyright protections for publishers, creative artists and manufacturers in a global marketplace in a case that has attracted the interest of Costco, eBay and Google. The outcome has important implications for consumers and multibillion dollar annual sales online and in discount stores.

Power utility PG&E Corp. said Monday its third-quarter net income jumped 81 percent, helped by easy comparisons to a prior-year quarter weighed down by hefty one-time costs.

Markets started the week on a downbeat note as investors fretted over the cost of a mammoth storm that was heading towards the eastern U.S. and prompted the closure of Wall Street on Monday.

You have to hand it to Mitt Romney and his team. Starting in the first debate, he pivoted almost effortlessly to the center, which is where elections are won. If he beats President Barack Obama, it will be because he Etch-A-Sketched his earlier positions and convinced enough people that he would be a moderate president.

A number of major U.S. companies postponed quarterly earnings reports scheduled for Monday, as Hurricane Sandy barreled into the East Coast and caused the first unplanned shutdown of financial markets since 2001.

Spain has no immediate need to ask for outside aid to help deal with its debts, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy insisted Monday.

PayPal says it is cutting 325 full-time jobs in a move to streamline the business.

UPS expects to deliver 527 million packages between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year, surpassing last year's record high by 10 percent.

Verizon Wireless, the largest cellphone carrier in the U.S., says it will sell a Nokia phone for the first time in years, lending support to the embattled Finnish company's turnaround effort.

Panama's government said Friday it will cancel plans to sell state-owned land in a duty-free zone on the Panama Canal following a week of sometimes violent protests in which a 10-year-old boy and two adults died.

Burger King's net income fell 83 percent in the third quarter as the world's second biggest hamburger chain sold off more of its restaurants to franchisees as part of a turnaround push. But the company's adjusted results topped Wall Street expectations.

Oil prices fell Monday as a gargantuan storm headed to the heavily populated U.S. East Coast.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Consumer spending in the U.S. rose 0.8 percent in September, more than forecast, after a 0.5 percent gain the prior month, a Commerce Department report showed today in Washington. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of 71 economists called for a 0.6 percent gain. Incomes rose 0.4 percent, compared with a 0.4 percent gain median forecast in the Bloomberg survey.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Consumer spending in the U.S. climbed more than forecast in September as incomes grew, a sign the biggest part of the economy was picking up as the quarter drew to a close.

Compass Minerals International Inc. said Monday its third-quarter net income tumbled 73 percent, hurt by a steep drop in demand for deicing products at its salt business.

Harris posted a fiscal first-quarter loss Monday as the communications and information technology company booked hefty impairment charges from discontinued operations in broadcast communications and cloud-computing data services.

Alabama is still waiting on more than $70 million in payments from the Federal Emergency Management Agency linked to the deadly tornado outbreak of April 27, 2011.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Consumer spending in the U.S. climbed more than forecast in September, a sign the biggest part of the economy was picking up as the quarter drew to a close.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Apple Inc.’s iPad mini will now take about two weeks to ship to customers who order it from the company’s online store, suggesting the product may be temporarily sold out.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Loews Corp. Chief Executive Officer Jim Tisch said that his company’s hotels are able to exceed clients’ lowered expectations as Hurricane Sandy barrels toward the U.S. East Coast, causing travel delays and office closures.

Japanese brands are the top performers in Consumer Reports' annual rankings of vehicle reliability.

Online brokerage TD Ameritrade moved up the release of its earnings report to Monday afternoon because of concerns about the hurricane headed for New York.

Hurricane Sandy could complicate Friday's release of the October U.S. jobs report, the final snapshot of employment before the presidential election.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Investors betting on a high-yield telecommunications stock in a market so far sheltered from Europe’s debt crisis -- and a potential wireless network deal -- helped Telefonica SA’s German unit complete the largest initial public offering in Europe this year.

Anadarko Petroleum Corp. reported net income of $121 million for the third-quarter, as a jump in sales volume helped it recover from a loss a year ago.

Anderson Cooper's daytime talk show will be wrapping after two seasons.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Hurricane Sandy probably will have a “no more than moderate” effect on the oil market, RS Platou Markets said today in an e-mailed report. Product tankers may feel the most effect from the storm, according to the report.

Settlements have resolved a Louisiana recording company's trademark claims against two T-shirt vendors and a restaurant over rights to the phrase “Who Dat?”

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Facebook Inc. was sued by Kickflip Inc., which does business as Gambit, over claims the social- networking company broke antitrust laws in the virtual-currency market.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Google Inc. announced a new lineup of mobile devices, using alliances with Korean electronics makers Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc. to step up a challenge to Apple Inc. in the market for tablets and smartphones.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Apple Inc. said Scott Forstall, the company’s head of mobile software, and John Browett, who leads retail operations, are leaving.

LOS ANGELES (AP) _ Internet radio company Pandora is adding more functionality to its mobile apps _ showing lyrics and artist information and making it easier to share self-crafted stations with friends -- as the race to grab a larger share of mobile advertising dollars heats up.

Forecasters say Hurricane Sandy is continuing to move quickly and should make landfall by early Monday evening in southern New Jersey or Delaware.

Nutrition and weight loss company Herbalife Ltd. said Monday that its profit grew 9 percent in the third quarter as sales of supplements sales in North America, Asia and other regions improved.

Diversified chemical company FMC Corp. said Monday that its third-quarter net income rose almost 4 percent, boosted by strong results at its agricultural products business.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Goldman Sachs Group Inc. surrounded its headquarters with sandbags, and JPMorgan Chase & Co. closed flood-prone offices as water driven by Hurricane Sandy lapped into Manhattan.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Hurricane Sandy, the Atlantic’s Ocean’s biggest-ever tropical storm, slammed into southern New Jersey after wreaking havoc on the U.S. East Coast and causing flooding from the beaches of Maryland to the narrow streets of New York’s Financial District.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Copper dropped to a seven-week low in New York on speculation Hurricane Sandy may disrupt the U.S. economy, adding to concern that a global slowdown is undermining prospects for demand.

The projected storm surge from Hurricane Sandy is a “worst case scenario” with devastating waves and tides predicted for the highly populated New York City metro area, government forecasters said Sunday.

An unmanned Dragon freighter carrying a stash of precious medical samples from the International Space Station parachuted into the Pacific Ocean on Sunday, completing the first official shipment under a billion-dollar contract with NASA.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Gold swung between gains and losses in New York amid signs of improving physical demand and as a stronger dollar curbed demand for an alternative investment.

Clean Harbors is buying Safety-Kleen for $1.25 billion in cash as it looks to enter smaller markets and expand its waste treatment capabilities.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Treasuries rose, pushing 10-year note yields to almost a two-week low, amid concern that Hurricane Sandy will disrupt business and hurt the U.S. economic recovery.

Hurricane Sandy grounded thousands of flights in the U.S. northeast Monday and upended travel plans across the globe, stranding passengers from Hong Kong to Europe. The massive storm threatens to bring a near halt to air travel for at least two days in a key region for both domestic and international flights.

Thousands of baseball fans took to the streets of San Francisco to celebrate the Giants World Series victory, with revelers gathering on corners, in parks and at watering holes as car horns blared long into the night.

Here was Chas Kaufmann's life before the Great Recession: $28,000 in restaurant tabs in a year, cruises, house parties with fireworks. His Mr. Gutter business was booming in the Pennsylvania Poconos.

Pearson PLC will merge its Penguin Books division with Random House, which is owned by German media company Bertelsmann, in an all-share deal that will create the world's largest publisher of consumer books.

The Hain Celestial Group closed on its acquisition of Premier Foods PLC's lineup of packaged grocery brands for about $321 million in cash and stock, the natural and organic food company said Monday.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Hurricane Sandy strengthened on its path toward New Jersey, where it is predicted to make landfall today while bringing a life-threatening storm surge as it whips a region of 60 million people with high winds and rain.

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- The U.K. and the euro zone are in a recession, the U.S. economy is teetering, and a hard landing is unfolding in China. Softness in these three paramount economies is dragging down the rest of the world. So why do most investors seem totally unconcerned over the unfolding global contraction?

Google is canceling its press event in New York on Monday because of Hurricane Sandy.

Americans increased their spending in September at twice the rate that their income grew, a sign of confidence in the economy. Still, consumers made up the difference by saving less for a third straight month, a troubling trend.

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney curtailed his campaigning Monday as Hurricane Sandy churned closer to the Eastern Seaboard and urged supporters to donate to the Red Cross or other relief agencies gearing up to help millions expected to become victims of the powerful storm.