Service industries in the United States expanded more slowly than forecast in October, indicating that consumers spooked by mounting job losses are making a limited contribution to the recovery entering the fourth quarter.

Stocks erased most of a 156-point rally in the Dow Jones industrial average after a House bill to curb credit-card rates spurred concern about bank earnings, outweighing the Federal Reserveís plan to keep interest rates at a record low.

Attorneys for a Minnesota businessman accused of operating a massive Ponzi scheme are highlighting recordings made by a government witness in which company officers appear to wonder how much he knows about the alleged scam.

It doesn't have to be a downer when the weak economy forces small businesses to scale back their holiday parties from the big catered or restaurant affairs they held in the past. These events can still be opportunities to build teamwork and boost morale.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- With the recession apparently over, the Federal Reserve held a key interest rate at a record low and again pledged to keep it there for an "extended period" to foster the fragile economic recovery.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Sarah Palin's book tour is a gift for her base.

LONDON -- The U.K. services sector grew at a faster pace in October, continuing a six-month trend of rising optimism, the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply said. The survey was treated with some caution, however, because recent results have been out of synch with official data confirming a continuing contraction.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The government's latest count of stimulus jobs significantly overstates the effects of the $787 billion program under a popular federal preschool program, raising fresh questions about the process the Obama administration is using to tout the success of its economic recovery plan.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Shares of Blackboard Inc. jumped to a 14-month high Wednesday, a day after the educational software developer said its third-quarter profit rose nearly quintupled.

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- Shares of Kraft Foods Inc. fell on Wednesday after the company reported disappointing third-quarter revenues.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Media conglomerate Time Warner Inc. reported a 38 percent drop in third-quarter profit Wednesday after being hurt by declines at its AOL and publishing segments.

NEW YORK (AP) -- New York's attorney general hit Intel Corp. with an antitrust lawsuit Wednesday, claiming the company used "illegal threats and collusion" to dominate the market for computer microprocessors.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Navigational device maker Garmin Ltd. reported a 24 percent increase in third-quarter profit as lower costs offset a drop in sales.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Shares of Vivus Inc. fell sharply Wednesday after the drug developer reported a third-quarter loss, though analysts maintained their focus on the company's potential obesity treatment Qnexa.

MILWAUKEE (AP) -- Brewer Molson Coors said Wednesday its third-quarter profit rose 37 percent as consumers bought less of the company's beer but paid higher prices for it.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Crude prices bounced above $80 per barrel once again on Wednesday, a level that even OPEC leaders have said is too high given the fragile state of the global economy.

HOUSTON (AP) -- Baker Hughes Inc. said Wednesday its third-quarter profit fell 87 percent on continuing price decreases, discounting and extra costs in a company reorganization.

REDMOND, Wash. (AP) -- Microsoft Corp. says it is cutting 800 more jobs. That's in addition to the 5,000 layoffs it announced in January.

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP) -- Chrysler plans to revamp its struggling Dodge car brand under a new turnaround plan and says the company's cash has grown by nearly $2 billion since it exited bankruptcy protection in June.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- JPMorgan Chase & Co. has agreed to a settlement worth more than $700 million over federal regulators' charges that it made unlawful payments to friends of public officials to win municipal bond business in Jefferson County, Ala.

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Two siblings of BetOnSports founder Gary Kaplan have been sentenced to 10 months of house arrest.

NEW YORK (AP) -- The U.S. service sector grew for a second straight month in October, but at a slower pace than in September, as a broad economic recovery creeps along.

The multimillionaires who take their hacks in the batter's box like to claim that hitting a baseball is the most difficult thing to do in professional sports.

MIAMI (AP) -- A high-profile South Florida lawyer suspected of orchestrating a multimillion-dollar fraud sent his partners a text message from overseas apologizing and calling himself "a fool."

It's too late, too timid, and comes with too many questions attached. Even so, the U.K. government deserves some credit for finally moving to break up a bloated, failed banking industry.

NEW YORK (AP) -- The dollar declined ahead of an expected announcement from the Federal Reserve this afternoon that interest rates are likely to remain near zero.

Tuesday, Warren Buffett called Berkshire Hathaway Inc.'s deal to buy the part of Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. that it doesn’t already own an “all-in wager on the economic future of the United States.”

TOKYO (AP) -- Toyota is pulling out of Formula One racing.

OSLO (AP) -- Norwegian oil company Statoil ASA posted a 5 percent rise in third-quarter profits, saying gains on currency values helped offset sagging oil and gas prices.

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) -- Despite living in one of the nation's most heavily taxed states, Maine voters on Tuesday soundly rejected proposals that would have reduced automobile excise taxes and put limits on future increases on state and local government spending and taxes.

TULSA, Okla. (AP) -- Poultry giant Tyson Foods Inc. cared more about preserving its public image than protecting a million-acre watershed from environmental pollution, attorneys for the state of Oklahoma claimed Tuesday.

NEW YORK (AP) -- A late-day slump left stocks mixed Wednesday as investors couldn't hold on to their optimism after the Federal Reserve gave an encouraging assessment of the economy. A House vote to speed up the effective date of limits on credit card companies took bank stocks sharply lower in the last hour of trading.

GARDEN GROVE, Calif. (AP) -- Former Silicon Valley executive Carly Fiorina announced Wednesday she is running for the chance to seize liberal stalwart Barbara Boxer's U.S. Senate seat, depicting the three-term Democrat as a Capitol Hill do-nothing who penned novels while jobs vanished and government spending soared.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Google Inc.'s quarterly lobbying expenses eclipsed $1 million for the first time during the summer as the company tried to build on its dominance of Internet search and expand into other markets.

NEW YORK (AP) -- GMAC, the main lender for GM and Chrysler customers and dealers, reported another quarterly loss Wednesday as bad loans continued to haunt its mortgage lending unit.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House Financial Services Committee has voted to give federal regulators more power and money to police major players in the stock market.

LONDON (AP) -- World stock markets rose Wednesday after a batch of upbeat earnings reports and ahead of the latest economic update from the U.S. Federal Reserve.

Nov. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Jackie Liu and his girlfriend gave up on Hong Kong Disneyland after one visit, even though it will be years before ground is broken on another Disney park in Shanghai.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The most common deals under the government's $3 billion Cash for Clunkers program, aimed at putting more fuel-efficient cars on the road, replaced old Ford or Chevrolet pickups with new ones that got only marginally better gas mileage, according to an analysis of new federal data by The Associated Press.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Toyota Motor Corp. released misleading information about an investigation into problems with stuck gas pedals that led to a massive Toyota recall, the government said Wednesday, stressing the issue is still under review by federal safety regulators.

GAITHERSBURG, Md. (AP) -- Federal health advisers on Wednesday rejected an implant from Zimmer Holdings saying it's unclear how effective or safe the device would be for treating a painful spinal condition.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Standard & Poor's warned Wednesday that Warren Buffett's bid for Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. could sap the liquidity and capital position of the legendary investor's insurance operations at Berkshire Hathaway Inc., jeopardizing the company's AAA rating.

NEW YORK (AP) -- A sharp drop in losses from storms and other catastrophes helped Allstate Corp. move to a third-quarter profit from a year-ago loss.

MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Pushing for a link between student test scores and teacher pay, President Barack Obama on Wednesday dangled $5 billion in federal grants to states willing to undertake a top-to-bottom overhaul of their schools in support of the White House's priorities.

NEW YORK (AP) -- The dollar declined after the Federal Reserve held its benchmark interest rate at a record low near zero and again pledged to keep it there for an "extended period" to foster the fragile economic recovery.

NEW YORK (AP) -- The Wall Street Journal says its new San Francisco Bay Area edition will launch Thursday, with a weekly section devoted to local news.

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- Whole Foods Market says its business has officially turned the corner as profit and revenue for its stores grew in the fourth quarter.

Nov. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Qualcomm Inc., the worldís biggest maker of mobile-phone chips, forecast profit that may top analysts’ estimates, a sign that demand for handsets is returning to levels before the economic slump.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Bond insurer Ambac Financial Group Inc. said Wednesday it posted a profit of $2.19 billion in the third quarter, reflecting significant unrealized mark-to-market gains in its credit-derivatives portfolio and gains from reinsurance cancellations.

Nov. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Apple Inc.ís Chinese partner sold fewer iPhones than analysts anticipated in the product’s debut last week, raising concerns the price is too high to attract customers in the world’s biggest mobile-phone market.

Nov. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Pulte Homes Inc., the U.S. builder that bought competitor Centex Corp. in August, reported a wider third-quarter loss due to costs related to the purchase and as rising unemployment reduced demand for new homes.

Nov. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Pfizer Inc. must pay about $75 million in punitive damages to an Illinois woman who developed cancer after taking one of the drugmakerís menopause treatments, people familiar with a sealed verdict in the case said.

Nov. 4 (Bloomberg) -- The slump in U.S. housing prices is unlikely to end before the middle of next year, and statistics portraying rising values are misleading, according to Pacific Investment Management Co.

Nov. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Comcast Corp., the largest U.S. cable-television company, posted a 23 percent jump in third- quarter profit, bolstered by subscriber gains, higher monthly bills and lower capital spending.

Nov. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Hyatt Hotels Corp.ís initial public offering of as much as $1.14 billion in stock was moved to today, according to two people familiar with the matter, after two U.S. IPOs were postponed in the past week.

Nov. 4 (Bloomberg) -- The Federal Reserve repeated it will keep interest rates near zero for “an extended period” and specified for the first time that policy will stay unchanged as long as inflation expectations are stable and unemployment fails to decline.