Paris Suspends Oil Drilling Off French Guyana

Citing environmental concerns, France suspended offshore-oil exploratory-drilling permits in its overseas district of Guyana.

In Gupta Trial, Prosecution and Defense Trade Parting Shots

Jurors in the insider-trading trial of Rajat Gupta heard diametrically opposing views of the evidence against him: Prosecutors said it powerfully shows the former Goldman Sachs director acted as a "pipeline" for inside information, while defense lawyers accused the government of deceitfully fostering "an illusion" about crimes that never occurred.

Malaysian Palm-Oil Firm Raises $3.13 Billion

Malaysian palm-oil company Felda Global Ventures raised $3.13 billion in the world's second-largest initial public offering this year.

Emerging Markets Boost Inditex

Spain's Inditex, the owner of fast-fashion pioneer Zara, posted a jump in net profit for its first quarter thanks to the company's continued rapid growth in emerging markets.

Rising Italian Bond Yields Pressure Monti

Rising Italian bond yields are casting doubt on the ability of Prime Minister Mario Monti and his technocrat cabinet to extract the country from the escalating euro-zone debt crisis.

Blue Chips Drop 77 Points

Worries about Europe and weak U.S. data eclipsed earlier optimism about financial stocks' outlooks.

Saudis, Iran Reach Deal on OPEC Output

Ministers from Saudi Arabia and Iran, the leaders of rival factions within OPEC, agreed to maintain the current limit on output of 30 million barrels a day, according to OPEC delegates.

African Carrier Readies Takeoff

Airline entrepreneur Stelios Haji-Ioannou's easyGroup has taken a key step toward launching the first pan-African low-cost carrier, dubbed Fastjet, to tap growing demand for international travel in the continent.

Chinese Banks to See Profit Squeeze

China's move toward a more flexible interest-rate regime is expected to drain some of the supercharged profit growth of the nation's banks, and pose fresh challenges to smaller institutions, analysts say.

Top Two Leaders At Esprit Resign

Esprit's chairman stepped down Wednesday, a day after its chief executive said he would resign and less than a year after the fashion retailer embarked on a plan to revitalize its fading brand.

Euro Zone Industrial Output Falls

Factory output in the euro zone fell in April, an early indication the 17-nation economy may shrink again later this year after it narrowly escaped recession in the first quarter.

Shareholder Unrest in U.K. Hits WPP

WPP shareholders rejected CEO Martin Sorrell's $10.6 million pay package, the latest in a string of investor revolts against British companies over compensation packages.

Retail Sales Decline

U.S. retail sales slipped in May, reflecting lower gasoline prices and cautious spending elsewhere. Separately, wholesale prices fell by the most in nearly three years.

Dimon Delivers Contrition, Criticism

U.S. lawmakers interrogated J.P. Morgan CEO Dimon in a much-anticipated and sometimes-heated exchange after the bank registered more than $2 billion in derivatives losses.

GM Plans to Close German Factory

General Motors said it would stop producing cars after 2016 at an aged factory in Bochum, Germany, the first closing of a major German auto factory since World War II.

China to Loosen Reins on Insurers

China plans to allow insurers to make a broader range of investments, according to draft rules circulated by the country's insurance regulator

Dell to Cut $2 Billion Over 3 Years

Dell spelled out plans to trim costs by $2 billion over the next three years, along with growth initiatives that include boosting businesses beyond personal computers.

Barnes & Noble's Riggio Settles Shareholder Suit

Barnes & Noble Chairman Leonard Riggio settled a shareholder lawsuit over the book retailer's 2009 purchase of a college bookstore chain from Mr. Riggio and his wife.

Yahoo, CNBC Form Alliance

Yahoo and business-news channel CNBC formed a strategic alliance in which the two will share their business news content on each other's platform.

U.S. Probes Cable for Online-Video Limits

The Justice Department is conducting an antitrust probe into whether cable companies are acting improperly to quash nascent competition from online video.