TOP STORIES
CABLE GIANT FORMING AFTER $55 BILLION DEAL
Charter Communications agreed to buy Time Warner Cable for $55
billion, giving cable mogul John Malone the prize he has been
chasing for two years.
U.S. STOCKS SHARPLY LOWER
Stocks sank after a mixed bag of U.S. economic data underscored
investor unease with the recent pace of economic growth.
DURABLE ORDERS SLIP, BUT BUSINESS SPENDING FIRMS UP
Demand for big-ticket manufactured goods fell last month, but
underlying figures suggest business investment is slowly starting
to pick up.
GREECE READY TO PAY NEXT IMF TRANCHE
Greece will make its next payment to the International Monetary
Fund on June 5 as the country will have reached an agreement with
its creditors by then, Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis said.
U.S. NEW-HOME SALES CLIMB 6.8% IN APRIL
Sales of newly built homes rebounded in April, a sign the
housing market may be slowly warming up.
HOME PRICES CONTINUE TO CLIMB
Home prices continued their unremitting climb in March,
underscoring concerns of some economists over whether the strong
price gains are sustainable.
U.S. CONSUMER CONFIDENCE EDGES UP TO 95.4 IN MAY
Consumers turned slightly more upbeat this month after taking a
dimmer view of the economy in April. The Conference Board's index
of consumer confidence increased to 95.4 for May from a revised
94.3 in April.
TD BANK TO BUY NORDSTROM U.S. CREDIT-CARD PORTFOLIO
Toronto-Dominion Bank will acquire Nordstrom Inc.'s U.S. Visa
and private-label consumer credit card portfolio as part of a
long-term deal to become the retailer's exclusive U.S. credit card
issuer.
EMC TO ACQUIRE VIRTUSTREAM FOR $1.2 BILLION
EMC reached a deal to acquire privately held Virtustream for
$1.2 billion, a move that may suggest a corporate breakup isn't
looming.
DEADLY FLOODING HITS TEXAS AND OKLAHOMA
Record rainfall and heavy flooding in Texas and Oklahoma killed
at least six people and displaced thousands. About a dozen people
were missing from a two-story house near Austin, Texas.
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Asia News
CHINA TO EXPAND NAVY AMID U.S. TENSIONS
China outlined plans to shift its armed forces' focus toward
maritime warfare and accused foreign countries of "meddling" in the
South China Sea, setting the stage for a tense confrontation
between senior U.S. and Chinese defense officials at a security
conference this weekend.
Europe News
CAMERON, JUNCKER START TALKS ON U.K. IN EU
British Prime Minister David Cameron and European Commission
President Jean-Claude Juncker have met ahead of negotiations on
Britain's position in the European Union and a referendum on its
membership.