Thursday, October 25, 2012

Yahoo! News: Health News

Yahoo! News: Health News

Wall Street turns negative as early gains fade

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 08:44 AM PDT

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock ExchangeNEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks erased early morning gains and turned negative, weighed down by declines in the materials and telecom sectors. The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 21.92 points, or 0.17 percent, to 13,055.42. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index lost 1.81 points, or 0.13 percent, to 1,406.94. The Nasdaq Composite Index shed 2.31 points, or 0.08 percent, to 2,979.38. (Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Jan Paschal)

Business investment stalls as 'fiscal cliff' looms

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 08:10 AM PDT

Job seekers stand in line to meet prospective employers at a career fair in New York CityWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Business investment showed signs of stalling in September, an indication that worries over a possible sharp tightening in the federal budget are already weighing on the economy. Other data on Thursday showed the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell last week, a fresh sign the labor market is slowly healing. New orders for capital goods outside of defense and excluding aircraft -- a proxy for business spending plans -- was unchanged last month at $60.3 billion, Commerce Department data showed. ...

Pending home sales rise modestly in September

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 07:21 AM PDT

New housing construction is seen in Poolesville MarylandWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Contracts to buy previously owned homes rose far less than expected in September, an industry group said on Thursday, but the data continued to point to an improving tone in the housing market. The National Association of Realtors said its Pending Home Sales Index, based on contracts signed in September, gained 0.3 percent to 99.5. Economists polled by Reuters had expected signed contracts, which become sales after a month or two, to rise 2.1 percent after declining 2.6 percent in August. ...

Procter & Gamble soars past profit expectations

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 08:11 AM PDT

Boxes of Tide detergent, a Procter & Gamble product, sit on a shelf at a store in Alexandria(Reuters) - Procter & Gamble Co's profit rose more than expected, indicating that the world's largest household products maker is making progress after coming under pressure from activist investor William Ackman, and its shares soared to the highest level in four years. Rival Colgate-Palmolive Co , meanwhile, said it plans to cut about 6 percent of its workforce over the next four years as it strives to operate more nimbly as economies slow in many countries. Its quarterly profit matched expectations. ...

Microsoft unveils Windows 8, Surface tablet

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:11 AM PDT

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer holds a tablet before the launch of Windows 8 operating system in New YorkNEW YORK (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp launched its new Windows 8 operating system and Surface tablet on Thursday in a bid to revive interest in its flagship product and regain ground lost to Apple Inc and Google Inc in mobile computing. "We've reimagined Windows and we've reimagined the whole PC industry," Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer told Reuters Television early Thursday ahead of the launch. Windows 8 devices and the company's new Surface tablet, which aims to challenge Apple's popular iPad head on, go on sale at midnight on Thursday. ...

New York Times misses revenue forecast, shares tumble

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 08:40 AM PDT

Vehicles drive past the New York Times headquarters in New York(Reuters) - The New York Times Co reported worse-than-expected results on Thursday as advertisers cut spending on both print and digital outlets, sending shares down 12 percent. The newspaper company said that revenue was up almost 1 percent to $449 million. Still, the result missed the analysts' consensus estimate of $479.23 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. Adjusting for severance costs and other special items, the company reported a quarterly loss of 1 cent per share, well below expectations of earnings of 8 cents per share. The slight uptick in revenue was due to a 7. ...

Analysis: Americans to face tougher 2013 on rising prices, taxes

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 04:25 AM PDT

File photo of shopper walking down aisle in newly opened Walmart Neighborhood Market in ChicagoNEW YORK (Reuters) - Consumers will have to dig deeper into their pockets next year to pay for costlier healthcare, more expensive grocery bills and higher taxes, an extra drag on the country's already slow-moving economy. The additional outlays look set to test the resilience of consumers, whose spending accounts for around two-thirds of the U.S. economy. "We think it's going to be a difficult six to nine months," said Scott Hoyt, senior director of consumer economics for Moody's Analytics. "If anything, conditions are likely to get worse, particularly at the start of the year. ...

Conoco quarterly profit dips, but beats estimates

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 06:10 AM PDT

A Conoco Phillips gas station in Boulder(Reuters) - ConocoPhillips reported a lower third-quarter profit on Thursday that beat analysts' estimates, as it produced more crude than expected from high-margin fields such as the Eagle Ford and Bakken. Shares of the U.S. oil and gas company rose 2 percent to $57.11 in premarket trading. Conoco and other large oil companies like Exxon Mobil Corp have been investing more heavily in North American shale formations like the Eagle Ford in south Texas and the Bakken in North Dakota in a bid to boost higher-priced oil production. ...

Friend of UBS "rogue trader" saw Kerviel parallels

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:10 AM PDT

Former UBS trader Kweku Adoboli arrives at Southwark Crown Court in LondonLONDON (Reuters) - A friend of accused UBS fraudster Kweku Adoboli told him in 2008 she hoped never to read articles about him in the press like those she had read about a "rogue trader" at France's Societe Generale , a London court heard on Thursday. Adoboli, who is accused of losing UBS $2.3 billion in 2011, was expected to start giving evidence in his defense at his trial on Thursday but that was delayed by last-minute legal arguments. The 32-year-old British-educated Ghanaian denies two charges of fraud by abuse of position and two of false accounting. ...

Ford deepens European cuts, sees $3 billion losses

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:29 AM PDT

The logo of Ford Motor Company is seen between barbed wire at the Ford assembly plant in GenkLONDON/DETROIT (Reuters) - Ford unleashed a second volley of European job cuts and plant closures on Thursday to try to halt regional losses it expects to total $3 billion over two years. A day after announcing the closure of a major car plant in Genk, Belgium, Ford told British unions it would scrap its Southampton van factory and an associated stamping facility in Dagenham next year, slashing 1,400 jobs. ...

Microsoft CEO hails imminent release of Windows 8

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:15 AM PDT

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is celebrating the imminent release of the company's Windows operating system after two years of work.

Microsoft kicks off Windows 8 campaign at NY event

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:26 AM PDT

FILE - In this Tuesday Oct. 23, 2012, file photo, a Chinese man tries out the new Surface tablet computer made by Microsoft at a show in Shanghai ahead of the launch of the operating system on Oct. 26. With the release of Windows 8, PC makers are doing their best to blur the boundaries between the PC and tablet with an array of devices that mash keyboards and touch screens together in different ways. (AP Photo) CHINA OUTMicrosoft kicked off a campaign for its newest operating system, Windows 8, at a five-hour event at New York's Pier 57. Designed to run on both PCs and tablet computers, Windows 8 heralds the biggest change to the industry's dominant operating system in at least 17 years.

Stocks climb, breaking out of a weeklong slump

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 08:24 AM PDT

In this Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2012, photo, Specialists Jay Woods, left, and Donald Himpele work at the post that handles Bank of America on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Stock futures edged higher Thursday, Oct. 25, with some positive numbers coming out of the manufacturing sector and potentially more evidence of an improving jobs picture. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)Stocks climbed Thursday on Wall Street, aiming for their first significant advance in more than a week, on the busiest day for quarterly corporate earnings reports.

Weekly US jobless aid applications fall to 369K

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:29 AM PDT

In this Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2012, photo, job applicants are interviewed by Florida Marlins staff at Marlins Park in Miami. Weekly applications for U.S. unemployment aid fell last week to a seasonally adjusted 369,000, a level consistent with modest hiring. The Labor Department said Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012, that unemployment benefit applications dropped by 23,000, from a revised 392,000 the previous week. (AP Photo/Alan Diaz)Weekly applications for U.S. unemployment aid fell last week to a seasonally adjusted 369,000, a level consistent with modest hiring.

Sales contracts to buy US homes rose last month

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:30 AM PDT

The number of Americans who signed contracts to buy homes rose only slightly, suggesting sales may level off in the coming months after solid gains in the past year.

Durable orders show business investment still weak

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:26 AM PDT

In this Monday, Sept. 10, 2012 photo Brian Gibson, top right, and his wife Elizabeth Gibson, below right, both of Framingham, Mass., examine stoves at a Lowe's store location in Framingham. U.S. companies remained cautious in September and held back on orders for long-lasting manufactured goods that signal investment plans. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)U.S. companies remained cautious in September and held back on orders for long-lasting manufactured goods that signal investment plans. Weak business investment has contributed to slower economic growth.

Procter & Gamble 1Q beats expectations

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 08:43 AM PDT

FILE - In this Monday, July 16, 2012 file photo, Dawn, a Procter & Gamble product, is displayed at Target in Durham, N.C. Procter & Gamble's cost-cutting plan helped its fiscal first-quarter results beat Wall Street expectations on Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012. That comes as a much-needed boost for CEO Bob McDonald, who has been criticized for not doing enough to turn around the world's largest consumer products company. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)Procter & Gamble's fiscal first quarter net income fell 7 percent on a stronger dollar and costs related to restructuring, but its results beat Wall Street expectations in a sign that a turnaround plan that it started in the spring is beginning to work.

United Continental reports smaller 3Q profit

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:08 AM PDT

It was a rough third quarter for United Airlines.

Ford to shut more plants as Europe losses grow

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:23 AM PDT

A security guard locks a gate after workers left the Ford Transit Assembly Plant in Southampton, England after being told that the site will close with the loss of up to 1,500 jobs Thursday Oct. 25, 2012. Ford, which expects to lose more than $1 billion a year in Europe, has been pursuing plant closures and layoffs. Fears were mounting that the axe may also soon fall in Britain as trade unions at Ford's Southampton plant have been called in for a meeting with management on Thursday. (AP Photo/Chris Ison/PA) UNITED KINGDOM OUTFord pressed ahead Thursday with its plan to slash production in Europe, announcing another plant closure and 1,500 more job cuts, as it warned that annual losses in the region will exceed $1.5 billion this year and next.

Marlboro maker Altria 3Q profit falls on charges

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:00 AM PDT

In this July 17, 2012 photo, Marlboro cigarettes are displayed in Montpelier, Vt. Marlboro maker Altria Group Inc.'s third-quarter net income fell 44 percent on charges for a loss on early extinguishment of debt. But it sold more cigarettes at higher prices and expanded its industry-leading share of the U.S. market. The owner of the nation's biggest cigarette maker, Philip Morris USA, on Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012, reported net income of $657 million, or 32 cents per share, for the three-month period ended Sept. 30, down from $1.17 billion, or 57 cents a share, a year earlier. (AP Photo/Toby Talbot)Marlboro maker Altria Group Inc.'s third-quarter net income fell 44 percent on charges for a loss on early extinguishment of debt. But it sold more cigarettes at higher prices and expanded its industry-leading share of the U.S. market.

Weekly US jobless aid applications fall to 369K

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:29 AM PDT

In this Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2012, photo, job applicants are interviewed by Florida Marlins staff at Marlins Park in Miami. Weekly applications for U.S. unemployment aid fell last week to a seasonally adjusted 369,000, a level consistent with modest hiring. The Labor Department said Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012, that unemployment benefit applications dropped by 23,000, from a revised 392,000 the previous week. (AP Photo/Alan Diaz)Weekly applications for U.S. unemployment aid fell last week to a seasonally adjusted 369,000, a level consistent with modest hiring.

Ford deepens European cuts, sees $3 billion losses

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:29 AM PDT

The logo of Ford Motor Company is seen between barbed wire at the Ford assembly plant in GenkLONDON/DETROIT (Reuters) - Ford unleashed a second volley of European job cuts and plant closures on Thursday to try to halt regional losses it expects to total $3 billion over two years. A day after announcing the closure of a major car plant in Genk, Belgium, Ford told British unions it would scrap its Southampton van factory and an associated stamping facility in Dagenham next year, slashing 1,400 jobs. ...

Durable orders show business investment still weak

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:26 AM PDT

In this Monday, Sept. 10, 2012 photo Brian Gibson, top right, and his wife Elizabeth Gibson, below right, both of Framingham, Mass., examine stoves at a Lowe's store location in Framingham. U.S. companies remained cautious in September and held back on orders for long-lasting manufactured goods that signal investment plans. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)U.S. companies remained cautious in September and held back on orders for long-lasting manufactured goods that signal investment plans. Weak business investment has contributed to slower economic growth.

Skinny Minnie: Disney fave gets Barneys makeover

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:25 AM PDT

This undated artist rendering released by Barneys New York / Disney shows Disney character Minnie Mouse featured in the Barneys New York Madison Avenue holiday window. The upcoming holiday display will feature classic Disney characters on the runway in front of an audience of animated versions of industry bigwigs. The short film that will be shown in the retailer's windows in all of its flagship stores and will feature Minnie's dream sequence of walking the runway in a hot-pink, ruffle-covered Lanvin dress. (AP Photo/Barneys New York / Disney)Did Minnie Mouse do a catwalk cleanse?

Ford to shut more plants as Europe losses grow

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:23 AM PDT

A security guard locks a gate after workers left the Ford Transit Assembly Plant in Southampton, England after being told that the site will close with the loss of up to 1,500 jobs Thursday Oct. 25, 2012. Ford, which expects to lose more than $1 billion a year in Europe, has been pursuing plant closures and layoffs. Fears were mounting that the axe may also soon fall in Britain as trade unions at Ford's Southampton plant have been called in for a meeting with management on Thursday. (AP Photo/Chris Ison/PA) UNITED KINGDOM OUTFord pressed ahead Thursday with its plan to slash production in Europe, announcing another plant closure and 1,500 more job cuts, as it warned that annual losses in the region will exceed $1.5 billion this year and next.

Stocks fade, extending a weeklong slump

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:20 AM PDT

In this Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2012, photo, Specialists Jay Woods, left, and Donald Himpele work at the post that handles Bank of America on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Stock futures edged higher Thursday, Oct. 25, with some positive numbers coming out of the manufacturing sector and potentially more evidence of an improving jobs picture. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)A weak showing in home sales and more disappointing earnings reports are sending stocks lower on Wall Street, extending a weeklong slide.

News Summary: Report details Medtronic tactics

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:16 AM PDT

SPIN DOCTORS? Medical device maker Medtronic Inc. helped write and edit medical journal articles attributed to outside physicians, which downplayed the risks of the company's best-selling bone graft, according to Senate investigators.

Revenue at French retailer PPR grows 16 percent

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:15 AM PDT

French retailer PPR is seeing its revenue continue to grow as it doubles down on its luxury brands and jettisons struggling retail operations.

Microsoft CEO hails imminent release of Windows 8

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:15 AM PDT

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is celebrating the imminent release of the company's Windows operating system after two years of work.

Microsoft kicks off Windows 8 campaign at NY event

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:26 AM PDT

FILE - In this Tuesday Oct. 23, 2012, file photo, a Chinese man tries out the new Surface tablet computer made by Microsoft at a show in Shanghai ahead of the launch of the operating system on Oct. 26. With the release of Windows 8, PC makers are doing their best to blur the boundaries between the PC and tablet with an array of devices that mash keyboards and touch screens together in different ways. (AP Photo) CHINA OUTMicrosoft kicked off a campaign for its newest operating system, Windows 8, at a five-hour event at New York's Pier 57. Designed to run on both PCs and tablet computers, Windows 8 heralds the biggest change to the industry's dominant operating system in at least 17 years.

Microsoft trumpets imminent release of Windows 8

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:12 AM PDT

Microsoft is celebrating the imminent release of its revamped Windows operating system after two years of work.

Mexico's Iusacell needs $800 million over three years: Televisa

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:12 AM PDT

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Top Mexican broadcaster Televisa's joint mobile telephone venture with Grupo Salinas will require $800 million in investments in the coming three years, Televisa's executive vice president said on Thursday. Iusacell could either issue debt or Televisa and Grupo Salinas could split the investment evenly, executive vice president Alfonso de Angoitia said on a conference call with investors. "We estimate Iusacell will have additional capital needs of approximately 800 million dollars in total within the next 3 years. ...

Microsoft unveils Windows 8, Surface tablet

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:11 AM PDT

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer holds a tablet before the launch of Windows 8 operating system in New YorkNEW YORK (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp launched its new Windows 8 operating system and Surface tablet on Thursday in a bid to revive interest in its flagship product and regain ground lost to Apple Inc and Google Inc in mobile computing. "We've reimagined Windows and we've reimagined the whole PC industry," Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer told Reuters Television early Thursday ahead of the launch. Windows 8 devices and the company's new Surface tablet, which aims to challenge Apple's popular iPad head on, go on sale at midnight on Thursday. ...

Friend of UBS "rogue trader" saw Kerviel parallels

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:10 AM PDT

Former UBS trader Kweku Adoboli arrives at Southwark Crown Court in LondonLONDON (Reuters) - A friend of accused UBS fraudster Kweku Adoboli told him in 2008 she hoped never to read articles about him in the press like those she had read about a "rogue trader" at France's Societe Generale , a London court heard on Thursday. Adoboli, who is accused of losing UBS $2.3 billion in 2011, was expected to start giving evidence in his defense at his trial on Thursday but that was delayed by last-minute legal arguments. The 32-year-old British-educated Ghanaian denies two charges of fraud by abuse of position and two of false accounting. ...

Oil little changed as early gains evaporate

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:09 AM PDT

The price of oil is up slightly after earlier gains of more than 1 percent evaporated.

United Continental reports smaller 3Q profit

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:08 AM PDT

It was a rough third quarter for United Airlines.

UK police: 300 potential Savile abuse victims

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:06 AM PDT

FILE - This is a March 25, 2008 file photo of Sir Jimmy Savile, who for decades was a fixture on British television. A year after he died, aged 84 and honored as Sir Jimmy, several women have come forward to claim he was also a sexual predator and serial abuser of underage girls. The child abuse scandal that has enveloped the BBC, one of Britain's most respected news organizations, is now hitting one of America's, as the incoming president of The New York Times is on the defensive about his final days as head of the BBC. Mark Thompson was in charge of the BBC in late 2011 when the broadcaster shelved what would have been a bombshell investigation alleging that the late Savile was a serial sex offender. (AP Photo/ Lewis Whyld/PA, File)British police say 300 potential victims of a disgraced BBC entertainer, the late Jimmy Savile, have come forward so far since details emerged earlier this month that he was among the country's most prolific sex offenders.

Precision Drilling profit halves as gas drilling slows

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:05 AM PDT

(Reuters) - Precision Drilling Corp , Canada's largest drilling contractor, reported a 53 percent slide in quarterly profit as gas firms cut drilling in the face of weak demand and sliding gas prices. Natural gas prices in the third quarter fell 29 percent from last year, pushing the number of rigs drilling for gas in the United States to a 13-year low this month. (http://r.reuters.com/dyb62s) A pause in the rapid growth of drilling for oil in the North Dakota Bakken also hit earnings, Precision CEO Kevin Neveu said in a statement. ...

Germany orders recall of some Novartis flu shots

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:03 AM PDT

German authorities ordered a recall Thursday of some batches of Novartis flu vaccine as a precautionary measure, after the company reported the appearance of small particles in the manufacturing process.

Marlboro maker Altria 3Q profit falls on charges

Posted: 25 Oct 2012 09:00 AM PDT

In this July 17, 2012 photo, Marlboro cigarettes are displayed in Montpelier, Vt. Marlboro maker Altria Group Inc.'s third-quarter net income fell 44 percent on charges for a loss on early extinguishment of debt. But it sold more cigarettes at higher prices and expanded its industry-leading share of the U.S. market. The owner of the nation's biggest cigarette maker, Philip Morris USA, on Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012, reported net income of $657 million, or 32 cents per share, for the three-month period ended Sept. 30, down from $1.17 billion, or 57 cents a share, a year earlier. (AP Photo/Toby Talbot)Marlboro maker Altria Group Inc.'s third-quarter net income fell 44 percent on charges for a loss on early extinguishment of debt. But it sold more cigarettes at higher prices and expanded its industry-leading share of the U.S. market.
Posted by Harshad at 9:38 AM

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