Economy

Sales rise 2 percent at France's Pernod Ricard
French beverage company Pernod Ricard says its revenue rose 2 percent in the last quarter, as sales in the United States offset difficulties in Europe ...
Asia stocks mixed after US durable goods falls
Asian stocks rose Thursday as mixed U.S. corporate earnings and a slump in orders for U.S. durable goods convinced investors that central banks would ...
AP Source: Fiat mulls IPO after buying Chrysler
Italian automaker Fiat is considering a plan to hold a public stock offering after the company buys 100 percent of Chrysler, according to a person ...
Novartis posts profit gain thanks to new drugs
Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis AG reported a 6.7 percent increase in profit for the first quarter Wednesday, boosted by new products and ...
Cost-cutting gives Credit Suisse a huge Q1 lift
Swiss bank Credit Suisse Group said Wednesday that its cost-cutting efforts helped it record a huge jump in first-quarter profits compared with a year ...
Italy's Eni 1Q earns down 57 percent
Italy's largest energy company, Eni SpA, says that its first-quarter profits dropped 57 percent, partly because conflicts in Nigeria and Libya led to ...
European recession hits major car makers
Europe's stubborn recession cut deeply into profits at major automakers Ford, Volkswagen and Daimler, first-quarter results showed Wednesday as the ...
Barclays returns to profit in Q1
Barclays PLC on Wednesday reported a return to profit in the first quarter, as it tries to restructure and get past recent scandals. In the three ...
Renault 1st quarter sales slide on weak Europe
Renault says that sales of its cars slumped 12.6 percent in the first quarter as Europe's sliding economies hit automakers across the continent.
ECB: worth reconsidering 500 euro ($650) note
A top European Central Bank official says it is "worth discussing" whether the 17-nation currency zone should abolish its 500 euro ($650) note, which ...
Nordea's profit up despite soft corporate sector
Nordea AB says first quarter net profit rose 3 percent to 796 million euros ($1 billion) compared to the same period a year ago despite slow activity ...
GSK: reforms on track as Q1 profit falls a quarter
Pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline has reported a 26 percent drop in profits in the first quarter compared to a year ago, as it restructures its ...
VW earnings lower as Europe weighs on revenue
Volkswagen AG reaffirmed its full-year earnings outlook Wednesday even after it reported a 38 percent fall in first-quarter profit as sagging demand ...
Ericsson Q1 profits dive on restructuring costs
Wireless equipment maker Ericsson said Wednesday that a 2 percent gain in sales in the first quarter was not enough to prevent an 86 percent slump in ...
Lloyds deal to sell branches to Co-op collapses
Lloyds Banking Banking Group says a mulitmillion pound deal to sell hundreds of branches to Co-operative Group has unraveled. Part-nationalized Lloyds ...
German business optimism falls more than expected
A key measure of German business optimism fell in April, suggesting Europe's biggest economy might not be rebounding as expected and likely putting ...
Daimler profits slide in Q1 on European struggles
Daimler AG warned Wednesday that profits this year would be lower than last year's as it reported a 60 percent slide in first-quarter earnings amid ...
Peugeot Citroen blames Europe for Q1 sales slump
PSA Peugeot Citroen said Wednesday crumbling automobile markets across Europe lay behind a steep drop in its first quarter sales. The parent company ...
Heineken says full year sales growth not as strong
Heineken NV says its sales and profits rose in the first quarter, due to recent acquisitions. The Dutch brewer blamed austerity policies for weak ...
Lawyer: Inspectors clear US horse slaughterhouse
The attorney for a proposed horse slaughterhouse in southeastern New Mexico says a federal inspection Tuesday went well and the plant hopes to be in ...
Correction: Michelin sales story
In a story April 22 about Michelin, The Associated Press misstated the dollar equivalent of Michelin's first quarter sales. It was $6.36 billion, not ...
Stora Enso posts Q1 loss amid falling paper demand
Nordic paper maker Stora Enso said Tuesday it slid to a first-quarter net loss of 16 million euros ($21 million) amid poor demand for its products, ...
Bailed-out Portugal puts focus on growth policies
After two years of relentless austerity and steep recession, bailed-out Portugal's government is adopting new measures to spur growth. The government ...
EU probes planned merger of Greek airlines
The European Commission has opened an in-depth antitrust investigation of the proposed takeover of Greece's Olympic Air by its domestic rival Aegean ...
Poland's Boeing 787s to resume flight in June
Polish national airline LOT said Tuesday its Boeing 787s, which had been grounded for months due to battery problems, will resume flying in June and ...