UNITED STATES

Deere & Co reported a stronger-than-expected quarterly profit on Wednesday, and raised its full-year outlook, citing improving business conditions including a recovery in the hard-hit market for construction equipment.

Internet gambling should be legalized and taxed in the United States to raise $42 billion in revenue over a decade and legitimize gamers who bet online, backers argued before a congressional panel on Wednesday.

Consumer prices fell for the first time in a year last month and the closely watched core inflation rate posted its smallest annual gain since 1966, pointing to a lack of price pressure as the economic recovery gathers steam.

The Federal Reserve raised its forecasts for economic growth and debated eventually selling mortgage debt, according to minutes of an April meeting that offered no hints of imminent changes in monetary policy.

General Electric Co expects to post a higher profit this year, resume share buybacks and say by the end of the year whether it will raise its dividend, its CEO said on Wednesday.

The Federal Reserve raised its forecasts for U.S. economic growth and discussed strategies for eventually selling mortgage assets at their last meeting in April, minutes of the gathering released on Wednesday showed.

General Electric Co sees upside to its 2010 financial framework, which calls for profit to be roughly flat with last year, and expects to resume opportunistic share buybacks by the end of this year.

Discount retailer Target Corp and warehouse club operator BJ's Wholesale Club Inc posted higher-than-expected quarterly earnings as consumers began to spend on more than just necessities.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Between 1 and 2 percent of children in the U.S. and Canada may have allergies to peanuts or tree nuts, with the U.S. rates seemingly on the rise, two new studies suggest.

Drugmaker Novartis AG must pay $250 million in punitive damages to more than 5,000 current and former women employees, a jury ruled on Wednesday, two days after finding a U.S. division of the company discriminated against women over pay, promotion and pregnancy.

Europe's debt crisis shows the risks for the United States if it does not get its budget deficits under control, former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker said on Tuesday.

Stocks fell on Wednesday as Germany's decision to ban naked short-selling of certain financial instruments fueled investor worries about exposure to riskier assets and about the global economy.

(Corrects name in 4th paragraph to Ruskin, instead of Raskin)

Senior Senate Democrats clashed on Tuesday over the last disputed pieces of a sweeping Wall Street reform bill headed for final passage within days.

Toyota Motor Corp, the world's biggest automaker, said it plans to recall four models of its Lexus luxury car in Japan due to steering problems, its latest move in a series of massive recalls.

Deere & Co reported a stronger-than-expected quarterly profit on Wednesday, and raised its full-year outlook, citing improving business conditions including a recovery in the hard-hit market for construction equipment.

U.S. stocks fell on Wednesday as Germany's decision to ban naked short-selling of certain financial instruments fueled investor worries about exposure to riskier assets and about the global economy.

Fewer than 2 percent of mobile users in the United States and western Europe used their phone to download music in the first quarter, showing the uphill task facing Apple iTunes challengers like Nokia.

Italy has started an investigation into Google Inc's Street View web service, a local watchdog said on Wednesday following the U.S. group's announcement it had accidentally collected personal data over wireless networks.

Persuading Beijing to let its yuan currency rise in value is not simply an issue for the United States but one that should interest the whole world, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Wednesday.

Demand for loans to buy U.S. homes shriveled to a 13-year low last week, following the expiration of federal tax credits, while near-record low mortgage rates stoked refinancing, the Mortgage Bankers Association said on Wednesday.