Post date: Oct 15, 2010 11:5:44 AM
Summary of top business headlines: Google easily beats forecasts despite higher costs; Yahoo rises on takeout speculation; Verizon joins AT&T with iPad plans; Wall Street dips on foreclosure worries.
USA-USCLOSE - Third-quarter revenues at Google easily exceeded forecasts as the search giant continues to benefit from a recovery in the online ad market. Profits were also better-than-expected with paid clicks up by double-digits from a year ago.
Meanwhile, private equity investors are looking at Yahoo as a possible takeover target, according to a source. That news sent shares of Yahoo up by about 4-1/2 percent.
Verizon Wireless, the top mobile service provider in the U.S., will start selling the Apple iPad before the end of this month. The announcement raises speculation Verizon may soon start selling the iPhone, breaking the long-held exclusivity held by AT&T Wireless. By the way - AT&T will also start selling the iPad later this month.
The latest economic updates gave investors a reason to pause. Bank repossessions of U.S. homes cracked a total of more than 100,000 in one month, hitting a new record in September, according to RealtyTrac. Inflation at the wholesale level ticked higher last month, but businesses are not likely to pass on higher prices to fragile consumers. First-time unemployment jumped more than expected last week. And a record number of Chinese imports sent the U.S. trade deficit higher in August.
Banks, however, led Wall Street lower on worries about the growing foreclosure crisis, though losses were minimal.
Sellers also took the lead in Europe, but markets there ended mixed.
Conway Gittens, Reuters