Business Today: Wall Street ends sharply higher after Fed minutes

	Click to View in Browser 04/9/2014 Wall Street ends sharply higher after Fed minutes NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks finished sharply higher on Wednesday after minutes from the Federal Reserve's latest policy meeting showed a more supportive central bank than previously expected. Fed officials fretted about hawkish 'dots' forecasts: minutes WASHINGTON/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Federal Reserve policymakers fretted last month that investors would overreact to published forecasts that suggested a more aggressive cycle of interest rate increases was coming down the pike than they planned. Energy firms to Fed: Hands off banks' commodity trading NEW YORK (Reuters) - Energy companies are mounting a last-ditch effort to prevent the Federal Reserve from cracking down on physical commodity trading by major Wall Street banks, saying more restriction may further damage liquidity and raise hedging costs. HP pays $108 million to settle foreign bribery probes WARSAW/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Hewlett-Packard agreed to pay $108 million to resolve wide-ranging U.S. government investigations into whether some of its foreign units bribed government officials to obtain lucrative contracts, U.S. officials said on Wednesday. Fannie, Freddie shareholders lobby against U.S. housing reform bill WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A coalition of investors in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac on Wednesday launched an effort to stop Congress from moving ahead with a U.S. housing finance reform bill, arguing it would deny them a fair share in any remaining value in the two companies. Global PC shipments fall for eighth straight quarter SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Global personal computer shipments fell in the first three months of 2014, the eighth straight quarter of decline, although the industry got a boost from companies replacing aging computers, according to two market research firms on Wednesday. P&G selling pet food brands to Mars for $2.9 billion (Reuters) - Procter & Gamble Co is selling the bulk of its pet food business to Mars Inc for $2.9 billion to focus more on its personal care and cleaning brands, the companies said on Wednesday. BofA to pay $727 million to consumers over credit card practices WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Bank of America agreed to pay nearly $800 million in fines and restitution to settle allegations of deceptive marketing and unfair billing involving credit card products, U.S. regulators said on Wednesday. Fairfax's Watsa says BlackBerry a good long-term investment TORONTO (Reuters) - Struggling smartphone maker BlackBerry Ltd is a good long-term investment that is being unfairly punished by the stock market, the chief executive of the company's top shareholder said on Wednesday. U.S. House panel to look at aluminum prices, warehousing WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. congressman on Wednesday urged the U.S. commodity regulator to take a tougher stance on the London Metal Exchange as it struggles to resolve a year-long controversy over inflated prices and distorted supplies of aluminum. Related Video Merkel still cautious despite rosy outlook on economy Greece eyes markets despite more strikes Economic News Fed officials fretted about hawkish 'dots' forecasts: minutes Fed still missing on goals, should be 'aggressive': Evans A daily digest of breaking business news, coverage of the US economy, major corporate news and the financial markets. Register Today   The latest Reuters articles on M&A, IPOs, private equity, hedge funds and regulatory updates delivered to your inbox each day. Register Today   » MORE NEWSLETTERS - 3 Times Square New York, NY 10036 USA © Copyright 2010 Thomson Reuters Ensure delivery of Reuters Newsmails, add mail@nl.reuters.com to your address book. Details Subscribe to other Reuters newsletters. Unsubscribe from this newsletter. Follow us on Twitter Friend us on Facebook Forward to a friend