Business - Industries

WASHINGTON - A House committee asked the Obama administration Friday to release documents on the federal bailouts of General Motors Co. and Chrysler Group LLC, seeking more details on decisions that led to the auto industry bankruptcies.

BILLINGS, Mont. - Stillwater Mining Co. is asking a federal bankruptcy judge to reverse a move by General Motors to cancel its precious metals contracts with the Montana company.

Deal mania continues to sweep through the pharmaceutical industry, generating riches for investors who make the right bets at the right time. Case in point: On July 2, Johnson & Johnson formed a $1 billion joint venture with biotech player Elan Corp. to develop an Alzheimer's drug. The news sent Elan's stock up 19%, to 8.30, before the market opened.

GENEVA (AFP) - Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis has said its first half net profit fell 12 percent to 4.019 billion dollars (2.857 billion euros), hurt by a negative currency impact and financing costs in acquiring eyecare group Alcon.

DUBAI (AFP) - UAE telecoms giant Etisalat posted first half profits of 4.593 billion dirhams (1.25 billion dollars) on Saturday hailing it as evidence the company had weathered the global economic slowdown.

All hail Verizon, the champion of change -- right? After all, the cellular company has caved into government pressure and agreed to loosen its grip on exclusive rights to sell popular mobile handsets. That's a major step. At least, it might seem that way until you read beyond the headline.

NEW YORK - The possible collapse of a key lender is sending panic through the retail industry, threatening to hang up deliveries of back-to-school clothing and other merchandise and throw holiday ordering into disarray.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - With only 160 shopping days left, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas in some stores.

WASHINGTON - Regulators on Friday shut two banks in California and two smaller banks in Georgia and South Dakota, boosting to 57 the number of federally insured banks to fail this year.

NEW YORK - The big banks are making big money again, but they won't be back to health as long as they have to deal with a recession and customers defaulting on mortgages and credit cards.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Former CBS News anchor Walter Cronkite, whose authoritative delivery of news events from the John F. Kennedy assassination to the Apollo moon landing and Vietnam War, made him "the most trusted man in America," died on Friday at age 92.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Audiences are voicing snap judgments on movies faster and to more people than ever before on Twitter, and their ability to create a box office hit or a flop is forcing major studios to revamp marketing campaigns.