| Business News |
Oil slumps on easing storm worry and dollar
(Reuters)
 Reuters - Oil tumbled more than $5 on Tuesday,
pushing losses so far this week to about $10, as forecasters
said an Atlantic hurricane would steer clear of offshore oil
platforms and the greenback gained against other currencies.
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Alcoa's profit off but tops forecasts
(Reuters)
 Reuters - Aluminum producer Alcoa Inc on
Tuesday posted a smaller-than-expected drop in second-quarter
profit, lifting its shares, as higher aluminum prices and sales
volumes offset higher costs.
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Anheuser-Busch sues InBev over takeover attempt
(Reuters)
 Reuters - Anheuser-Busch Cos Inc sued
InBev NV in an effort to stop its Belgian-Brazilian
suitor from taking any more steps to replace the U.S. brewer's
board of directors, which had rejected a $46.3 billion takeover
offer from InBev.
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Stocks rise on banks and lower oil
(Reuters)
 Reuters - Stocks rose in another turbulent
session on Tuesday as a pullback in oil prices eased worries
about consumer and business spending, while financial shares
gained after the Fed chairman said he may keep open a lifeline
for banks.
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Traders plead guilty to foreign exchange scam
(Reuters)
Reuters - Two currency traders pleaded guilty on
Tuesday to defrauding investors, admitting their firm engaged
in almost no trading and that they misappropriated money from
investors and used it to buy luxury homes and cars, federal
prosecutors said.
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Paulson says U.S. home foreclosures to stay high
(Reuters)
 Reuters - U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry
Paulson said on Tuesday that home foreclosure starts may hit
2.5 million this year, many of them the borrowers' own fault
for taking out loans they couldn't afford.
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| Wal-Mart profit up, but shares fall - 13, May 2008 |
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wal-Mart Stores Inc, the world's largest retailer, reported a 7 percent rise in quarterly profit on Tuesday as discounts drew U.S. shoppers looking for bargains on necessities like food and pharmacy items.
While Wal-Mart said the year was off to a "solid start," it indicated results for the current quarter could miss Wall Street estimates as it faces a tough economic environment, higher transportation costs and customers who are running out of money between paychecks.
"Customers are faced with results of a tougher economy, higher gas prices, food inflation and the increase in the overall cost of living," said Eduardo Castro-Wright, head of Wal-Mart's U.S. operations, on a recorded call.
"The 'paycheck cycle' is more pronounced as things get tighter for customers toward the end of the month," he added.
Wal-Mart shares, which through Monday were up 22 percent year to date, fell 3 percent in early trading.
Net income rose to $3.02 billion, or 76 cents per share, in the first quarter ended on April 30, from $2.83 billion, or 68 cents per share, a year earlier.
The results matched the analysts' average forecast, according to Reuters Estimates.
Consumers are seeking out Wal-Mart's low prices, especially for basic items like groceries, shampoo and cleaning supplies, as the U.S. economy falters and prices of food and fuel soar.
The economic downturn comes as Wal-Mart has gotten back to the basics, trumpeting its low prices and slowing its aggressive expansion plans, to improve results at its existing U.S. stores.
(c) 2008 Reuters
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| Other news from Business category: |
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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Texas energy tycoon T. Boone Pickens on Tuesday called for a massive switch to natural gas as a transportation fuel and a boost in wind power in a plan aimed at reducing U.S. foreign oil dependence by a more than a third.
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NEW YORK/PASADENA, California (Reuters) - IndyMac Bancorp Inc said on Tuesday depositors were withdrawing cash at an "elevated" pace after a key U.S. senator questioned the big mortgage lender's ability to survive the U.S. housing crisis.
More
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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Tuesday the U.S. central bank might keep open a lifeline to financial firms, while the latest data showed distress in the housing and retail sectors continues.
More
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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks rose in another turbulent session on Tuesday as a pullback in oil prices eased worries about consumer and business spending, while financial shares gained after the Fed chairman said he may keep open a lifeline for banks.
More
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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil tumbled more than $5 on Tuesday, pushing losses so far this week to about $10, as forecasters said an Atlantic hurricane would steer clear of offshore oil platforms and the greenback gained against other currencies.
More
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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Drug wholesaler Cardinal Health Inc said on Tuesday it would eliminate 600 jobs and consolidate its businesses to cut costs.
More
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LONDON (Reuters) - Oil tumbled to below $137 on Tuesday, dropping by about $9 this week, as the dollar gained and concern eased over an Atlantic hurricane.
More
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DETROIT (Reuters) - General Motors Corp is developing plans to cut costs and improve its "cash and funding position," Chief Executive Rick Wagoner said in an e-mail to the automaker's managers and team leaders.
More
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FRANKFURT (Reuters) - German industrial conglomerate Siemens AG plans to cut around 4 percent of its workforce worldwide as part of an overhaul and as a result of the global economic downturn, Siemens said on Tuesday.
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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Tuesday said the U.S. central bank might keep open a lifeline to financial firms as it fights to keep the credit crisis from wreaking further havoc on the struggling economy.
More
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| Software News |
EA says has complied with FTC request on Take-Two
(Reuters)
 Reuters - Video game publisher Electronic
Arts Inc said on Tuesday it complied with a
regulator's request for more information on its Take-Two
Interactive Software Inc bid, moving a step closer to
buying its rival.
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VMware shares plunge on CEO change, slowing growth
(AP)
AP - VMware Inc. abruptly replaced co-founder Diane Greene as chief executive Tuesday and lowered its sales outlook, triggering alarms that pounded the business software maker's shares to their lowest depths since the company's lucrative public offering 11 months ago.
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Microsoft Sets Hosted-services Pricing, Irks Partners
(PC World)
PC World - Some Microsoft partners are less than thrilled by the company's push into a software-plus-services model, which will compete...
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Irrigation Systems Soak up Top Prizes in Software Contest
(PC World)
PC World - An irrigation automation system, developed by a team of Australian students, won Microsoft's Imagine Cup programming contest.
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VMware warns on revenue, replaces CEO
(Reuters)
Reuters - Business software maker VMware Inc
warned on Tuesday that 2008 revenue growth will fall short of
expectations and said it has replaced its chief executive,
sending its shares tumbling 30 percent.
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New Yahoo board might lure Microsoft back into talks
(USATODAY.com)
USATODAY.com - Microsoft threw its weight behind investor Carl Icahn's effort to oust Yahoo's board next month, saying Monday that a successful rebellion would encourage the software maker to renew its takeover bid for Yahoo or negotiate another deal.
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