The head of the U.S. futures regulator said Tuesday that mandatory real-time reporting of swaps trades, a key measure to promote market transparency, could begin as early as September 2011.
Gary Gensler, Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, has been reluctant to provide details or a timetable for new rules to oversee the swaps markets until recently, but his latest remarks offered some early insight on the agency’s direction. Get the full story »
If you’ve ever wished celebrities such as actress Demi Moore or skateboarder Tony Hawk would follow you on Twitter, now’s your chance — but you’ll have to cough up some cash for the privilege. Get the full story »
Clorox Co., maker of household cleaning products and other consumer goods, said it struck a deal to sell its auto-care brands to private equity firm Avista Capital Partners for $780 million in cash. Get the full story »
The Vatican said Tuesday that it is “perplexed and surprised” by a money laundering probe after police seize euro23 million.
The ANSA news agency says Italian financial police seized the $30 million from an account in the Vatican bank in the money laundering investigation. Get the full story »
Home construction increased last month and applications for building permits also grew. But the gains were driven mainly by apartment and condominium construction, not the much larger single-family homes sector. Get the full story »
Targeting distractions behind the wheel, the Obama administration proposed Tuesday to bar truck drivers from sending text messages while hauling hazardous materials.
The requirements would complement separate rules being finalized by the Transportation Department that prohibit commercial bus and truck drivers from sending text messages on the job and restrict train operators from using cell phones and mobile devices on duty. Get the full story »
Foodmaker ConAgra Foods Inc. says tight competition, inflation and a sluggish retail environment pushed first quarter net income down 12 percent. Get the full story »
From Crain’s Chicago Business | Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, hit by declining endowment income and expansion costs, will get a $45 million bailout from the college and other sources.
Oil prices slipped to near $74 a barrel Tuesday in Asia as traders looked to a key U.S. central bank meeting later in the day for possible new polices to help boost economic growth.
Benchmark crude for October delivery was down 59 cents, to $74.27, a barrel at late afternoon Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose $1.20, to settle at $74.86, on Monday. Get the full story »
An experimental weight-loss drug made by Vivus Inc. helped obese people lose more than 10 percent of their weight after two years in a clinical trial, but safety details were scant for the drug, which in July was turned down by a panel of U.S. experts.
The company said Tuesday that the second year of a clinical trial found that patients taking the highest dose of its drug, Qnexa, lost an average of 26 pounds, or 11.4 percent of their body weight. Patients taking a placebo had weight loss of 2.5 percent. Get the full story »
AquaBounty salmon, rear, have an added growth hormone gene from the Chinook salmon to a normal Atlantic salmon, front, that results in a transeni salmon that grown to market size in about half the time as a normal salmon. (AquaBounty/MCT)
Genetically engineered salmon that grows twice as fast as the conventional fish appears to be safe, an advisory committee told the Food and Drug Administration Monday. But they argued that more testing may be needed before it is served on the nation’s dinner tables.
Shares of the new United Continental Holdings Inc. will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “UAL,” the two airlines that will become one said Monday.
Discover Financial Services reported a higher-than-expected quarterly profit on Monday as charge-offs fell and consumers spent more on their credit cards, sending its shares up about 3 percent.
The credit card lender and transaction processing network reported profit of $260.6 million, or 47 cents per share, well above analysts’ average expectations of 38 cents per share. Get the full story »
BHP Billiton CEO Marius Kloppers visited the home city of Potash Corp. on Monday but failed to win the support of the provincial premier for its $39 billion offer to take over the world’s largest fertilizer supplier.
Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall said he still has concerns about BHP’s proposal after meeting with Kloppers, who sought to bolster the chances that Canada would approve the bid by winning the province’s support. Get the full story »
