Viacom’s profit beat Wall Street forecasts on Thursday helped by a double-digit growth in fees paid by cable, satellite and phone companies for its stable of networks, including MTV and Nickelodeon. Fiscal first quarter net income from continuing operations fell 5 percent to $591 million from $620 million in the year-ago

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Qualcomm delivered quarterly results and an outlook for the current quarter that beat analysts’ expectations on Wednesday, sending its shares higher in after-hours trading. The company, which makes chips used in cellphones and other wireless devices, posted fiscal first-quarter earnings excluding items

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International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned of a 20-30% oil price spike if Iranian exports are disrupted. The IMF warned that if the West imposed financial sanctions on Iran, it would be tantamount to an oil blockade, and the shock to the

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The pace of the US service sector’s growth picked up in last month, according to a new report. The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) said its services index rose to 52.6 last month from 52 in November. A reading above 50 indicates expansion. The ISM survey of US services covers industries ranging from

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Samsung Electronics has said it expects to report a big jump in profits for the final three months of last year, thanks largely to record smartphone sales. The South Korean firm said it expects operating profits for the period to be $4.5bn, 73% higher than a year a earlier.

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Chinese oil firm Sinopec has agreed a $2.2bn deal with Devon Energy, giving it access to shale deposits in the US. Sinopec will get a one-third stake in five new shale projects, with the firms expecting to drill 125 wells this year.

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US consumer confidence rose for the second month in a row, to an eight-month high in December, new data suggests. The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index rose almost 10 points to 64.5 in December, up from a revised 55.2 in

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Sears Holdings, the department store group which owns the two major retail chains, blamed falling sales. In the eight weeks to Christmas Day, sales at Kmart fell 4.4% and by 6% at Sears. The company, which has 2,200 outlets in the US, says

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Stores may have attracted shoppers early with fat discounts last week, but the shopping bonanza came with a price, according to data released by a research firm late Thursday. ShopperTrak, a Chicago-based firm, said more customers shopped

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Massachusetts is suing five major banks alleging “illegal” and “deceptive” conduct in the way they seized homes during the financial crisis. Bank of America, JP Morgan, Wells Fargo, Citigroup, and GMAC must pay for the “harm” caused, the writ says.

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