Associated Press Wire

Corporate deals help to give stock market a lift
NEW YORK (AP) -- A flurry of corporate deals is helping to lift the stock market after six weeks of declines....

Wendy's agrees to sell Arby's to equity firm
NEW YORK (AP) -- The marriage of square burgers and roast beef sandwiches is about to end....

VF buying Timberland for more than $2.2B
NEW YORK (AP) -- Clothing and footwear maker VF Corp., whose brands include Wrangler, Nautica and The North Face, said Monday it will buy boot and clothing maker Timberland Co. for more than $2.2 billion as it seeks to expand its outdoor offerings....

AP data show states' budget challenges differ
The country is pulling out of the Great Recession, but an Associated Press review of 50 balance sheets shows state budgets ravaged by declining tax revenue and bank accounts far leaner than they were when the downturn took hold....

Oil falls to near $98 on Saudi crude output boost
Oil prices fell to near $98 a barrel Monday, extending a big loss from Friday after a report said Saudi Arabia plans to boost its crude production....

Partial results show defeat for Berlusconi
MILAN (AP) -- Italians voters have dealt Premier Silvio Berlusconi a serious political blow, overturning laws passed by his government to revive nuclear energy, privatize the water supply and help him avoid prosecution....

Seniors face Medicare cost barrier for cancer meds
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Facing a life-and-death struggle with kidney cancer, Rita Moore took her prescription for a new kind of chemotherapy pill to her local drugstore....

Icahn nominates 4 candidates to Forest Labs board
NEW YORK (AP) -- Forest Laboratories Inc. said Monday a fund affiliated with billionaire investor Carl Icahn plans to nominate four directors to Forest's board....

Obama pushes jobs in trip fraught with politics
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Bedeviled by a bleak employment picture, President Barack Obama is pushing for more private sector hiring while seeking to protect his own job during a two-day domestic trip that aims to raise his political profile in two key states and with an important Hispanic constituency....

Report finds Chinese consumers choosier, web-savvy
SHANGHAI (AP) -- Chinese consumers are becoming increasingly sophisticated in their tastes and expect a wider range of better products, according to a report released Monday that says local companies lead foreign ones in using e-commerce to expand sales....