Bank of America profit falls 77%; loan-loss reserve bolstered

Date: Mon, 21 Apr 2008 21:06:04 (GMT)

Bank of America profit falls 77%; loan-loss reserve bolstered

Bank of America Corp.'s first-quarter profit falls 77% as credit-loss
provisions jump $4.78 billion.

Yahoo battle steps up rivalry between Microsoft, Google chiefs

The intense rivalry between tech chiefs Steve Ballmer and Eric Schmidt
has drawn greater attention with Microsoft's bid to take over Yahoo
Inc., a bold move that many believe would make the software giant more
competitive against Google. .

Shares of Novartis rise as first-quarter profit tops forecast

Novartis posts a forecast-beating 10% increase in first-quarter profit,
a reflection of the Swiss pharmaceutical giant's tight lid on costs as
well as the benefit to be derived from the weaker dollar.

Bank of England seeks to thaw frozen U.K. mortgage market

The Bank of England said it will swap up to 50 billion pounds worth of
Treasury bills for high-rated mortgage-backed securities with commercial
banks in an effort to unthaw frozen credit markets and ensure lower
interest rates are passed on to consumers.