NEW YORK (Reuters) - Countrywide Financial Corp, the largest U.S. mortgage lender, said on Wednesday that foreclosures and late payments rose in December to the highest on record, sending its shares tumbling for a second day to their lowest in nearly 13 years.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Aluminum producer Alcoa Inc said on Wednesday that fourth-quarter net profit rose 76 percent on favorable restructuring and tax benefits, offsetting lower aluminum prices.
ATLANTA (Reuters) - Target Corp said on Wednesday that Bob Ulrich would retire as the discount retailer's chief executive as of May 1 and remain chairman through the end of the 2008 fiscal year.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Wednesday and the Nasdaq broke an eight-day losing streak, as talk of recession pushed investors into health care and other defensive sectors seen as resistant to a slowdown.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs on Wednesday said it expects the U.S. economy to drop into recession this year, prompting the Federal Reserve to slash benchmark lending rates to 2.5 percent by the third quarter.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - News Corp has not seen signs of a business slowdown due to U.S. economic weakness and the company is in good shape to withstand the Hollywood writers strike, its chief operating officer said on Wednesday.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Newspaper revenue and earnings declines are likely to accelerate in a recession, making the troubled media sector even more vulnerable in 2008, Goldman Sachs said on Wednesday.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Teen clothing retailer American Eagle Outfitters Inc said on Wednesday earnings for its fourth quarter ending on February 2 would be lower than expected because of a weaker sales environment.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Restaurant chain Ruby Tuesday Inc posted a quarterly net loss, versus a year-ago profit, and said it could default on its debt, sending the company's stock down more than 3 percent in after-hours trade.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - MBIA Inc , the world's largest bond insurer, slashed its dividend by 62 percent on Wednesday and said it would sell $1 billion of debt to preserve capital and the "triple-A" ratings it needs to operate normally in a mortgage market under siege.
