Topic: Conglomerates

My dinner with Reagan

Prepping for a speech to a full ballroom, he acknowledged his nervousness.

Apple earnings will report this evening; stocks rise

Apple earnings for the first quarter will be reported after the close of the stock market Tuesday. In anticipation of he Apple earnings report, Apple stock has fallen sharply.

Kurt Vonnegut: unpublished work released through Kindle

A Vonnegut novella titled 'Basic Training,' about a young man visiting an eccentric relative, is available through Kindle only.

Bullish on jobs? These 10 cities are.

Our list of the 10 metro areas that saw the most job growth in 2011 might surprise you.

U.S. stocks fall as hopes for Europe falter

U.S. stocks closed with steep losses amid reports that a key meeting of Europe's finance ministers was canceled. The Dow fell 207 points to 11706 as poor corporate earnings felled U.S. stocks.

Six ways the rich really do get richer

“Class warfare:” Lately this old term has been taking on new life as political theater, a way to rebuke Wall Street protestors, and, predictably, fodder for Fox News. According to Google, in just the last month alone, 3,870 articles have been published containing these words. Another way to express the concept of rich vs. not-so-rich is the expression, “The rich get richer and the poor get poorer.” It’s been around for a long time: According to Wikipedia, William Henry Harrison went there in 1840: “I believe and I say it is true Democratic feeling, that all the measures of the government are directed to the purpose of making the rich richer and the poor poorer.” I’m not going to take a stand on either side of the “class warfare” debate by saying that the rich do or don’t take unfair advantage of the rest of society. This is America, where we all have the potential to become rich. But I will say this unequivocally: The rich do get richer, or at least have the potential to. Let’s count the ways:

Gridlock over raising debt limit weighs on stocks

The Dow fell 92 points, the S&P 500 fell 5, and the Nasdaq fell 3, as the debate continued in Washington over whether to raise the debt ceiling

Election 101: Rick Santorum makes a bid for the White House

Rick Santorum’s 16-year career in politics can be charted through his rigorous positions on hot-button issues: welfare, abortion, gay rights. His boldness has made Mr. Santorum a politician that people either really like or don’t just as deeply.

Top 5 on Forbes rich list? Bill, Warren ... and Carlos!

Forbes came out with its annual ranking of the world's richest people Thursday. This year's Top 5 billionaires made their money in software, luxury goods, investments, and telecommunications. But the No. 1 has pulled far ahead of his rivals. Here's how the Top 5 stack up:

Carlos Slim: Poor nation billionaires high on Forbes rich list

Carlos Slim retained the top spot on the Forbes rich list for the second year in a row. Of the 11 richest men in the world, here are the top five who come from emerging economies in Latin America and Asia.

F-35 jet a waste of taxpayers' dollars, say McCain, Gates

F-35 jet: Defense Sec. Robert Gates, the Pentagon, the White House and Sen. John McCain all say development of a second F-35 jet engine is a waste of taxpayer dollars.

American Innovation: 13 Born-in-the-USA inventions

There is a long history of innovation in America's relatively short existence; from lone inventors experimenting in garages to collaborating and competing with international scientists. Many of the following 13 inventions have become fixtures in daily life.

R&D spending: Here are the Top 10 firms

Apple, Google, and 3M may top Bloomberg’s list of the world’s most innovative companies, but they’re not the biggest research and development spenders – not even part of the Top 20. Out of 1,000 publicly traded companies with the highest R&D spending in 2009, here are the Top 10, according to a survey by management-consulting firm Booz & Co.:

On Day 1 of India visit, Obama showcases trade deals with US firms

President Obama visited Mumbai, India, Saturday and made a forceful case for free trade. He announced deals totaling nearly $10 billion in new US exports that are expected to create 50,000 new jobs.

Hello financial television, I’m a mid cap!

What am I, chopped liver?

Naked Cowboy for president: Top celebrities (past and present) who aimed for the White House

Forget the midterm elections, President Obama's competition in the 2012 election is growing.

On Oct. 6 Robert Burck announced his candidacy for president for the 2012 elections. You know him better as the "Naked Cowboy," a famous New York City attraction in Times Square. Burck's announcement comes on the heels of another celeb gone potential presidential candidate: Donald Trump.

Donald Trump, in a round of TV interviews Tuesday, said he was "seriously" considering running for president in 2012. "For the first time in my life, I'm actually thinking about it," Trump, who declared himself a Republican, told Fox News Channel.

Though they are the most recent, Burck and Trump are by no means the first celebrities to aim for the White House.

GE shows 16 percent profit growth, ending a streak of decline

GE reported a 16 percent rise in profit, topping analysts' expectations and ending a streak of decline, on strong demand for health care and oil and gas equipment.