PENNSYLVANIA

The Dow and S&P 500 rose on Wednesday after better-than-expected regional factory data lifted hopes that the recession is moderating and prompted investors to buy some shares of manufacturers such as United Technologies and 3M Co .

The Dow and S&P 500 rose on Wednesday after better-than-expected regional factory data lifted hopes that the recession is moderating and prompted investors to buy some shares of manufacturers such as United Technologies and 3M Co .

U.S. banks have been told to keep quiet for now about results of a sweeping regulatory checkup into their health, raising questions about whether investors are being wrongly kept in the dark.

Sales at U.S. retailers unexpectedly fell 1.1 percent in March after rising for two straight months, government data showed on Tuesday, dimming hopes the 16-month-old recession was close to hitting bottom.

Former Qwest International Inc Chief Executive and convicted insider trader Joseph Nacchio appears headed for prison on Tuesday after a years-long legal battle marked by a litany of appeals and verdict reversals.

If Wells Fargo's strong first-quarter preliminary performance is any sign, stocks could rally further this week on any reassuring news when three other big banks post quarterly results.

If Wells Fargo's strong first-quarter preliminary performance is any sign, stocks could rally further this week on any reassuring news when three other big banks post quarterly results.

If Wells Fargo's upbeat first-quarter performance is any sign, Wall Street could rally further next week on any reassuring news from three other big banks due to post quarterly results.

Moody's Investors Service cut its credit ratings on Berkshire Hathaway Inc from Aaa, the top rating, saying the recession and investment losses at insurance operations of investor Warren Buffett's holding company reduced its ability to support funding needs.

Aluminum giant Alcoa Inc continued to grapple with the economic downturn in the first three months of 2009 as its measures to stem losses bore fruit, reporting a deficit half as small as the previous quarter.

Don't look now, but the U.S. stock market may be headed for another royal smackdown with fears that first-quarter results will fail to show signs of an upturn for Corporate America.

As the effects of the receding economy hit aluminum giant Alcoa Inc hard with a $1.2 billion loss late last year, the biggest announcement for metal producer in the first three months of the new year was its plan to substantially reduce costs and raise cash by 2010.

Student loan company Sallie Mae plans to move its overseas operations back to the United States, creating 2,000 domestic jobs, in what analysts called an attempt to curry favor with the Obama administration.

Representatives from at least 15 U.S. states discussed with a federal regulator the possibility of using their pension funds to buy troubled loans and securities, or toxic assets, the Bergen County Record in New Jersey reported.

The U.S. unemployment rate soared to 8.5 percent last month, a 25-year high, as employers slashed jobs and cut workers' hours to the lowest level on record, the government said on Friday.

The U.S. unemployment rate soared to 8.5 percent last month, a fresh 25-year high, as employers slashed 663,000 jobs and cut workers' hours to the lowest level on record, the government said on Friday.

U.S. corporate profits plunged a record $120.1 billion in the fourth quarter as the economy shrank at its fastest pace since 1982, depressed by a slump in consumer spending and exports, government data showed on Thursday.

The American Civil Liberties Union sued a Pennsylvania prosecutor on Wednesday over his threats to charge three teenage girls with child pornography for allowing themselves to be photographed partly clothed with cell phone cameras.

The American Civil Liberties Union sued a Pennsylvania prosecutor on Wednesday over his threats to charge three teenage girls with child pornography for allowing themselves to be photographed partly clothed with cellphone cameras.

A judge in Denver on Friday set aside her previous order that former Qwest Communications International Chief Executive Joseph Nacchio report to prison on Monday after his attorneys petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn his 2007 insider trading conviction.

Hundreds of people in the United States are under investigation for financial scams, many involving Ponzi schemes, a U.S. regulator said on Friday, calling the phenomenon rampant Ponzimonium.