Damian Bagarozza
Trader Damian Bagarozza, center, works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange Thursday, Sept. 18, 2014. U.S. stocks rose today and the Dow Jones industrial average and Standard & Poor's 500 index finished at record highs.
(Associated Press/Richard Drew)
Stock market update:
Stocks rose today and the Dow Jones industrial average and Standard & Poor's 500 index finished at record highs. The Dow Jones closed up 109.14 points to a new all-time high of 17,265.99, the S&P 500 index added 9.79 points and closed at a record-high of 2,011.36 and the Nasdaq Composite finished up 31.24 points to end at 4,593.43. (USA Today)
Europe's stock markets have risen, boosted by hopes the Federal Reserve will keep its monetary policy loose and expectations that Scotland will vote to stay part of the United Kingdom. (Sky News)
Gold futures stabilized as today's session wore on due to profit-taking and short covering, bouncing from the lowest level since early January after overnight selling in the wake of a U.S. Federal Open Market Committee meeting. (Kitco News)
Walmart said today it will add 60,000 seasonal workers, up 10 percent compared to last year but less than its competitors are adding.
Business news:
Walmart said today it will add 60,000 seasonal workers, up 10 percent compared to last year but less than its competitors are adding. (CNN Money)
Jobless claims dropped in the latest weekly tally, signaling employers are laying off very few workers, according to government data released today. (MarketWatch)
Strong stock market gains and higher home prices boosted Americans' net worth in the April-June period to a record high, a trend that could encourage more spending. (Associated Press)
The credit card breach at Home Depot first reported earlier this month put credit card information for 56 million cards at risk, the company said today. (USA Today)
U.S. exports of petroleum products reached a record in August for the month as refiners boosted rates, the American Petroleum Institute said. (Bloomberg Businessweek)
A federal grand jury in Detroit has indicted seven executives from Japanese auto suppliers Mitsubishi Electric and Hitachi Automotive Systems for their alleged roles in a conspiracy to fix auto parts prices. (Automotive News)
Russia approved a fragile budget today that promises to cover generous social spending and control borrowing, but relies on high oil prices and reserves to try to overcome the economic damage of Western sanctions. (Reuters)
Technology news:
In round two of its previously announced planned layoff of 18,000, Microsoft is cutting another 2,100 people today. (CNET News)
Oracle's Larry Ellison stepped down as CEO of the software maker he founded, making way for a new generation of executives and ending one of the most profitable runs for a leader in business history. (Bloomberg Businessweek)
The scores of new features in Apple's software update for mobile devices can be boiled down to one word: unity. (Associated Press)
Alibaba Group Holding's corporate structure is "dangerous," and shareholders will have no legal recourse should problems emerge at the Chinese e-commerce giant, an influential emerging-markets fund manager cautioned today. (MarketWatch)