Business News Headlines

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Clearwire Corp said on Wednesday its special committee and its board of directors approved majority shareholder Sprint Nextel Corp's revised offer to take over the company and advised investors to vote for the deal. Wireless service provider Clearwire announced the decision just a day after Sprint raised …

By Jessica Wohl (Reuters) - Target Corp cut its full-year profit forecast on Wednesday while turning in a weak first quarter with disappointing sales, as a chilly start to spring kept shoppers from buying seasonal items like clothing. Target warned in April its first-quarter results would be weaker than anticipated, and …

(Reuters) - It is too soon to determine whether to dial down the Federal Reserve's massive bond-buying program, and the economic picture may not be clear enough to make that decision for another three or four months, an influential U.S. central bank official said. New York Fed President William Dudley, a close ally of Chairman …

(Reuters) - Toll Brothers Inc posted a 46 percent rise in quarterly profit as the largest U.S. luxury homebuilder sold more homes at higher prices, indicating that the housing recovery is spreading across the industry. Record-low interest rates and rising rents have encouraged people to buy homes. Ground-breaking to build …

By Matt Scuffham LONDON (Reuters) - State-backed British lenders Lloyds Banking Group and Royal Bank of Scotland have agreed plans to shore up their capital with the financial regulator, removing a barrier to the government offloading its shares. The regulator said on Wednesday it had finalized capital requirements for …

By Tom Bergin LONDON (Reuters) - Apple's ability to shelter billions of dollars of income from tax has depended on an unusual loophole in the Irish tax code that helps the country compete with other countries for investment and jobs. A U.S. Senate investigation revealed Tuesday that Apple, maker of iPhones, iPads and Mac …

WASHINGTON (AP) — Chairman Ben Bernanke is telling Congress that the U.S. job market remains weak and that it is too soon for the Federal Reserve to end its extraordinary stimulus programs.

NEW YORK (AP) — Lowe's Cos. said Wednesday that its first-quarter net income rose nearly 3 percent, but results fell short of expectations as rainy weather hurt spring gardening sales.

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are opening slightly higher as investors watch for the latest moves from the Federal Reserve.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Treasury Department's No. 2 official told Congress on Wednesday that his agency played no role in the Internal Revenue Service's targeting of conservative groups.

NEW YORK (AP) — Target Corp. reported a 26 percent drop in first-quarter profit as cool temperatures and financial pressures limited customers' appetite for spending.

DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit automakers are largely forgoing the traditional two-week summer break at their factories and speeding up production to meet buyers' growing demand for new cars and trucks.

ROME (AP) — An Italian judge has ordered the captain of the Costa Concordia cruise ship to stand trial for manslaughter in the vessel's shipwreck off the coast of Tuscany, which killed 32 people.

LONDON (AP) — Investors were edgy Wednesday ahead of the appearance of U.S. Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke before lawmakers in Congress.

REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) — Progressive Party leader Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson has been chosen as Iceland's new prime minister.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Now that tech darling Apple Inc. has been dragged front and center into the debate over the U.S. tax code, lawmakers are hoping that the spotlight on such a high-profile company could be the catalyst for Congress to take action to close loopholes or reform the law.

Frank Lloyd Wright may have died in 1959, but his architecture is alive and well. A recent story in the Wall Street Journal revealed the cost to upkeep some of his historic homes may be more than buyers bargain for, but others clamor to invest in history.        

The judge presiding over the lawsuit against Martha Stewart and J.C. Penney ruled on Friday allowing the sale of Martha Stewart merchandise in J.C. Penney stores.