UNITED STATES

Health Bill Advances; Tax Boost Delayed; Cisco's Buy

China's super-rich have bounced back from the financial crisis with a vengeance, and China now has more known dollar billionaires than any other country bar the United States, according to a new report released on Tuesday.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton failed to win specific pledges from Moscow on tougher sanctions against Iran during a visit to Russia on Tuesday but hailed progress in other areas such as arms control.

U.S. stocks weakened on Tuesday as disappointing sales from Johnson & Johnson stirred jitters about the strength of earnings, snapping the S&P 500's six-day winning streak.

China Mobile, the world's largest mobile carrier by subscribers, will next year introduce eight OPhone smartphone models from U.S. phone maker Motorola, a company official told Reuters.

Oil prices rose to a seven-week high above $74 a barrel on Tuesday after OPEC raised its 2010 demand forecast and the dollar weakened, boosting demand for commodities.

Walmart.com wants to be the first place U.S. consumers go to when making an online purchase, and its announcement on Tuesday that it will sell health and beauty products will help it reach that goal, its chief executive officer said in an interview.

Nokia said on Tuesday that Best Buy would sell its first netbook computer for $299 to customers who sign up for a $60-a-month mobile service plan with AT&T Inc.

Country ingenue Taylor Swift and dead pop star Michael Jackson led the contenders for the 37th annual American Music Awards, and will both vie for the artist of the year prize, organizers said on Tuesday.

Two prospective jurors who wrote comments about wrongdoing and bending the rules on Wall Street were rejected by a U.S. judge on Tuesday for the trial of two former Bear Stearns Cos hedge fund managers on fraud charges.

U.S. stocks weakened on Tuesday as disappointing sales from Johnson & Johnson stirred jitters about the strength of earnings, threatening to break the S&P 500's six-day winning streak.

Crude oil rose to a seven-week high above $74 a barrel on Tuesday after OPEC raised its 2010 demand forecast and the dollar weakened, boosting demand for commodities.

U.S. retail gasoline demand last week rose 2.8 percent from the same period last year, but dropped 2.4 percent week-on-week, according to a MasterCard SpendingPulse report released on Tuesday.

President Barack Obama remains committed to ending unfair loopholes and tax breaks for international corporations, but congressional tax writers and others doubt that will happen without broader reforms, such as cutting the top corporate tax rate.

Executives from two of the United States' biggest home mortgage lenders said the nation's housing market is still in a tenuous state despite signs of stability over the summer months.

Major U.S. defense contractors, braced for restrained U.S. spending and higher pension costs, are likely to forecast flat or slow growth for 2010, while commercial aerospace firms could offer more evidence that economic conditions are firming.

The United Auto Workers and Ford Motor Co have reached a tentative agreement on contract changes the automaker wants to bring labor costs in line with U.S. rivals, the union and company said on Tuesday.

Johnson & Johnson posted weaker-than-expected quarterly revenue on Tuesday as sales of prescription drugs and heart stents disappointed, sending its shares down 2.5 percent.

Crude oil rose to a seven-week high near $74 a barrel on Tuesday after OPEC raised its 2010 demand forecast and the dollar weakened, boosting demand for commodities.

President Barack Obama remains committed to reforming international corporate taxation to end unfair loopholes, although congressional tax writers and others doubt that will happen without broader reforms such as cutting the top corporate tax rate.

Cisco Systems Inc plans to buy wireless telecommunications equipment maker Starent Networks Corp for $2.9 billion, betting that demand for advanced wireless equipment will grow as more consumers download videos and access the Web from mobile phones.