Strong sales of drugs, vaccines, propel Merck in 3Q

KENILWORTH, N.J. (AP) — Drugmaker Merck boosted its third-quarter profit by 55% and blew past Wall Street expectations, due to slightly higher sales, restrained spending and a small, one-time gain. The Kenilworth, New Jersey, company said it's making progress on three efforts to combat the coronavirus...

As pandemic depresses demand, Caterpillar muscles through 3Q

Caterpillar’s sales fell 23% in the third quarter as the pandemic throttled demand for construction equipment and a trade war with China continues to create headwinds. The company still managed to top Wall Street expectations, despite rising COVID-19 infections that hamper almost all sectors, including...

Asia Today: Thailand: Woman probably infected in quarantine

BANGKOK (AP) — Health officials in Thailand said Tuesday that it is likely that a French woman who earlier this month tested positive for the coronavirus became infected when she stayed under quarantine at a hotel near Bangkok. The 57-year-old woman tested positive after she and her family flew on Oct. 15...

AMD buys Xilinx for $35B, creating Silicon Valley chip giant

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — AMD is buying Xilinx for $35 billion in an all-stock deal that will combine the two Silicon Valley chip makers. The deal announced Tuesday puts AMD in a place it wants to be; competing more fiercely with Intel. Xilinx stockholders will receive 1.7234 shares of AMD stock for each...

Pfizer tops 3Q earnings views, makes progress on COVID shot

Drugmaker Pfizer saw its third-quarter profit plunge 71%, mainly due to an $8.1 billion gain a year earlier from selling its consumer health care business to a GlaxoSmithKline joint venture, but managed to top Wall Street expectations. Meanwhile, the New York-based company on Tuesday said disruptions from the...

Spain tries to reverse economic slump as unemployment rises

MADRID (AP) — The Spanish government plans to increase taxes on big corporations and the wealthy and use 27 billion euros ($31.8 billion) in European grants as it tries to reverse one of the deepest coronavirus-related slumps among developed economies. The country is grappling with a resurgence of the...

The Latest: Iran hits record single-day virus death toll

TEHRAN — Iran has again hit a record single-day COVID-19 death toll, reporting 346 new deaths. That brings the country’s total virus deaths to 33,299, the highest virus toll in the Mideast. Iran Health Ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari also said Tuesday that daily new coronavirus cases have also...

Lilly misses profit projects as sales of diabetes drug slow

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Eli Lilly and Co. is reporting third-quarter net income of $1.21 billion. On a per-share basis, the Indianapolis company said it had profit of $1.33. Earnings, adjusted for asset impairment costs, were $1.54 per share. That's far short of the per-share earnings of $1.76 that Wall Street...

AMD acquires Xilinx in $35 billion deal to create massive Silicon Valley chip maker

Here's why Ant Group is about to shatter IPO records

HONG KONG (AP) — Stella Su, who lives and works in Shanghai, has used an ATM only once in the past year. Instead of cash, in recent years she has done almost all her business using the digital wallet Alipay –- shopping in a mall, buying stuff online or transferring money to friends. “Now when...