Brazilian hospitals and health clinics are drawing strong interest from global buyout firms after the government recently decided to allow foreign ownership of those facilities, although the suitors may find only a few promising targets.
Industry
Energy cost plunge pulls down euro zone producer prices in January
Euro zone producer prices fell by more than expected in January, pulled down by plunging costs of energy, data from the European Union's statistics office Eurostat showed on Tuesday.
U.S. small-business borrowing down in January: PayNet
U.S. small businesses pared borrowing in January after a record prior month, according to data released on Tuesday. The Thomson Reuters/PayNet Small Business Lending Index fell to 120.9 from an upwardly revised December reading of 133.5, the highest since the index's launch in January 2005.
Bitcoin Price 2015 hits $518?
How high could bitcoin climb? Bitcoin has been rising like crazy over the last few days, and looks like the price of bitcoin may be rising to a certain peak.
Reality hits North Dakota's pricey apartment market; rents drop
It is getting cheaper to rent an apartment in North Dakota's oil patch. Prices, which only last year rivaled levels in New York City and Geneva, have slipped about 15 to 20 percent in the past two months as dozens of new apartment buildings opened in Williston, Watford City and other oil hub cities.
Latest News
U.S. economic growth braked more sharply than initially thought in the fourth quarter amid a moderate increase in business inventories and a wider trade deficit, but strong domestic demand brightened the outlook.
The dollar index slipped on Friday, pegged back by month-end selling, but was still on track for its eighth straight month of gains on better data and comments from Federal Reserve officials that bolstered bets for a rate rise this year.
Barnes & Noble Inc (BKS.N) said it would spin off its college books unit and keep its Nook tablets and e-book business, instead of spinning off a combination of the two.
U.S. consumer prices fell over the past year for the first time since 2009 as gasoline prices continued to tumble, which could allow a cautious Federal Reserve more room to hold off on raising interest rates.
Japanese households cut spending further and retail sales fell for the first time in seven months in January, data on Friday is likely to show, a sign the central bank's radical stimulus has yet to convince consumers that inflation will take hold.
An inflation-busting wage deal for Germany's biggest labor union agreed on Tuesday looks set to boost household spending this year after consumer activity propelled strong growth in Europe's largest economy at the end of 2014.
HSBC (HSBA.L) reported a 17 percent fall in annual pretax profit and cut its profitability target, saying allegations its Swiss business had helped customers to dodge taxes had brought shame on the bank.
Across the U.S. Midwest, the plunge in grain prices to near four-year lows is pitting landowners determined to sustain rental incomes against farmer tenants worried about making rent payments because their revenues are squeezed.
Apple Inc (AAPL.O) said it would spend 1.7 billion euros ($1.9 billion) to build two data centers in Europe that would be entirely powered by renewable energy and create hundreds of jobs.
