IBT Staff Reporter

Stocks rallied for a second day on Wednesday as investors bought beaten-down financial shares and unloaded gold, but tech stocks could fall on Thursday after late news about Apple's Steve Jobs stepping down as CEO.

Chipmaker Applied Materials projected a dismal fourth quarter, mirroring concerns that slowing chip sales and a glut in the solar cell market is hurting growth, and said it will clip capacity in the near term, in line with suppressed demand.

Hopes are rapidly dwindling that there will be even modest growth in technology spending during the second half of 2011. And 2012 may be no better.

Google Inc has agreed to pay $500 million to settle a criminal probe into ads it accepted for online Canadian pharmacies selling drugs in the United States, the U.S. Justice Department said on Wednesday.

In a week that saw other worldwide rulers being run out of their palaces, it was pretty clear that Jay-Z and Kanye West would be keeping their jointly held throne. And, sure enough, the rappers' collaborative album dominated the Billboard/SoundScan album chart for a second week, even with a 59 percent decline in sales.

If you need to hire Reid Weingarten, your career has probably hit a rough patch.

The Writers Guild of America, West, has signed its first-ever deal for web newswriting.

Bids for Hulu are due on Wednesday from a collection of tech and satellite giants -- with Yahoo, Google, Amazon and DirecTV among the likely contenders.

Trust Company of the West CEO Marc Stern asked his legal team to monitor the emails of ex-employee and star bond fund manager Jeffrey Gundlach after growing suspicious of his intentions to start a new firm, the CEO testified on Wednesday.

Redmond O'Neal, the troubled son of the late Farrah Fawcett and Ryan O'Neal, pleaded no contest to drug and weapons charges on Wednesday and was ordered to spend a year in a live-in rehabilitation program.

Former first lady Nancy Reagan is fine despite stumbling at an event in southern California where she was caught by Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, a spokeswoman said on Wednesday.

A 7-month-old baby boy who authorities say was pushed from the fourth story of a Southern California hospital parking structure by his mother died of his injuries on Wednesday.

Former first lady Nancy Reagan is fine despite stumbling at an event in southern California where she was caught by Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, a spokeswoman said on Wednesday.

Apple announced Wednesday that Steve Jobs is resigning as Chief Executive Officer (CEO), effective immediately.

Starbucks Corp Chief Executive Howard Schultz on Wednesday said that more than 100 U.S. business leaders have signed on to his call to withhold political contributions from lawmakers until they strike a bipartisan debt deal.

Monster Worldwide isn't looking so monstrous lately.

Hurricane Irene is heading right for Northeast. It remains unclear when and where the storm will break.

Even if Irene reaches New York as a weakened Category 1 or Category 2 hurricane, it could still wreak havoc because the city is simply not prepared to handle such storms the way Florida or the Gulf Coast are. In a worst-case scenario, here are the top five threats New York City would face from a major hurricane.

A U.S. judge said parts of a false advertising lawsuit can proceed against online coupon distributor Groupon, according to one attorney who attended a court hearing on Wednesday.

The heads of a U.S. Congress deficit super committee said on Wednesday most members were reviewing budget-balancing studies of recent years in a sign the panel was unlikely to try to reinvent the wheel.

Gold futures fell more than $100 on Wednesday, one of the steepest falls ever, as strong U.S. economic data and expectations of more Federal Reserve stimulus accelerated profit taking from the safe-haven record high of a day ago.

Creative Artists Agency, the largest talent representation firm in Hollywood, is considering opening an office in Silicon Valley to expand ties with the technology community, according to two people familiar with the firm's plans.

Large U.S. banks defending themselves against a mass of state and federal mortgage probes face a difficult tactical decision following New York state's exit from settlement talks on Tuesday.

Bank of America Corp shares rose as much as 10 percent on Wednesday after analysts said the bank's capital needs were not as dire as some had feared.

Botox, an Allergan, Inc.-made injection drug, was approved Wednesday by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat those with urinary incontinence and neurologic conditions such as spinal cord injury and multiple sclerosis who have overactivity of the bladder.

Sprint Nextel will start selling the next version of the Apple iPhone in mid-October, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal that cited unnamed sources.

A sweeping U.S. budget deal has brightened the country's fiscal outlook but its gains could evaporate if Congress extends tax breaks in coming years, nonpartisan congressional forecasters said on Wednesday.

New orders for long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods rose in July, offering hope the ailing economy could dodge a second recession even though a gauge of business spending fell.

The co-chairmen of a U.S. congressional super committee on deficit reduction said on Wednesday they are discussing rules and a schedule of meetings for the 12-member panel, but offered no immediate details.