Business News

Wall Street investors reacted cautiously Monday to reports that two of the nation's biggest department-store retailers, Federated Department Stores Inc. and May Department Stores Co., are discussing a possible merger.

Nokia, the world's largest cell phone maker, said Tuesday that its sales will fall more than expected in the first quarter but that its profit may rise more than previously forecast.

The slump in air travel will continue for another year, the Federal Aviation Administration said Tuesday in its annual forecast for the industry.

Drugstores around the nation are threatening to stop serving Medicaid patients, close or reduce hours if cash-strapped states follow through on plans to cut the amounts paid to pharmacies for filling Medicaid prescriptions.

For the first time, worldwide sales of new cell phones dipped last year as wireless carriers reduced subsidies for new phones and many consumers held off on upgrades, tech consultants Gartner Dataquest report.

Researchers at the University of Georgia say they have completed the first comprehensive molecular map of the peanut plant - a breakthrough that could lead to advances for farmers.

The airline industry won't recover from the terrorist attacks for another year, the government says, but growth later in the decade will overwhelm the air traffic system if it isn't improved.

It was tough to sell people on paying $10 a month to add music channels to their cable television a decade ago, but not any more.

Shareholders of Conoco Inc. and Phillips Petroleum Co. are expected to approve the companies' proposed $15.6 billion merger.

The Justice Department wants to impose sweeping new restrictions on cigarette manufacturers, including banning the terms ``low-tar'' and ``light'' and eliminating cigarette vending machines.