US banks try to clean up remaining mortgage mess

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. banks have taken another step to clear away the wreckage of the 2008 financial crisis by agreeing to pay $8.5 billion to settle charges that they wrongfully foreclosed on millions of homeowners.The deal announced Monday could compensate hundreds of thousands of Americans whose homes were seized because of abuses such as "robo-signing," when banks automatically signed off on...

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Exclusive: Disney looks for cost savings, ponders layoffs - sources

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Walt Disney Co started an internal cost-cutting review several weeks ago that may include layoffs at its studio and other units, three people with knowledge of the effort told Reuters, in an early sign that big companies may not be finished tightening their belts.Disney, whose empire spans TV, film, merchandise and theme parks, is exploring cutbacks in jobs it no longer needs...

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Exclusive: SEC probes Ernst & Young over audit client lobbying

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating whether auditing company Ernst & Young violated auditor rules by letting its lobbying unit perform work for several major audit clients, people familiar with the matter told Reuters.The SEC inquiry began shortly after Reuters reported in March 2012 that Washington Council Ernst & Young, the E&Y unit,...

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US drone strike in Pakistan kills influential Taliban commander

Key Pakistani Taliban commander Maulvi Nazir – considered a "good" Taliban by some among the Pakistani military – died in a US drone strike that left at least six dead on Thursday, according to local reports.According to Pakistan's Dawn newspaper, Taliban and local government officials confirm that Mr. Nazir and at least two of his deputies were killed when a US drone hit their vehicle in South Waziristan,...

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Russia plans biggest war games since Soviet era

The Russian navy has announced that it will hold its biggest war games since Soviet times in the Mediterranean and Black seas later this month.The ambitious exercises, which will involve ships from all four major Russian fleets, are a sign of growing confidence on the part of Russia's military as it begins to enjoy the benefits of President Vladimir Putin's huge budget allocations for renewing and...

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Taiwan undersea oil plans raise neighbors' eyebrows

Taiwan, a normally quiet claimant to portions of the disputed South China Sea, plans to explore for undersea oil there, a move likely to test fragile relations with China and upset major Southeast Asian nations.Ringed by China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia and others, the waters are believed to hold as many as 213 billion barrels of oil but competing claims from the six bordering nations have...

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Target ad campaign puts food in the spotlight

NEW YORK (AP) — Is Target's grocery aisle ready for its close up?Target is pushing its food, laundry detergent and other groceries in a national ad campaign that pokes fun at high-fashion advertising by featuring models interacting with everyday products.In one ad, a model in a white dress and high heels struts by blueberry muffin and cake mix boxes that explode in different colors. Then she crushes...

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Stocks gain, pushing the S&P 500 to 5-year high

The Standard & Poor's 500 closed at its highest level in five years Friday after a report showed that hiring held up in December, giving stocks an early lift.The S&P 500 finished up 7.10 points at 1,466.47, its highest close since December 2007.The index began its descent from a record close of 1,565.15 in October 2007, as the early signs of the financial crisis began to emerge. The index...

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US job market shrugs off fears of 'fiscal cliff'

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. job market proved resilient in December despite fears that a budget impasse in Washington would send the economy over the fiscal cliff and trigger growth-killing tax hikes and spending cuts.Employers added 155,000 jobs last month, roughly matching the solid but unspectacular monthly pace of the past two years.The gains announced Friday weren't enough to reduce unemployment,...

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Red Hat shares up on acquisition and 3Q results

Red Hat Inc.'s shares jumped Friday on the software company's solid third-quarter results and plans to acquire cloud-based software company ManageIQ.THE SPARK: Red Hat said late Thursday that it would buy privately held ManageIQ for $104 million in cash.The Raleigh, N.C., company also reported that it earned 29 cents per share for its fiscal third quarter on an adjusted basis, up a penny from the...

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