After 4-month surge, gas prices falling

NEW YORK (AP) - The worst appears to be over. Gasoline prices are going down.

PG&E tops nation in solar installations

Benefits for little ones cause big stink

Sometimes I am just blown away by the reaction I get to a column. I write what I think is the most innocuous and non-controversial answer to someone's question about Social Security benefits - and then, out of the blue, my email inbox is flooded with letters. Some of them have an inquisitive "this can't possibly be true" tone, while others are downright angry.

Google's ex-CEO gets $101M pay package in new job

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Shifting from Google's CEO to executive chairman proved to be lucrative career move for Eric Schmidt.

Disney studio chief quits after 'John Carter' bomb

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Disney movie studio boss Rich Ross stepped down on Friday, taking the fall for at least a couple of over-budgeted bombs as Hollywood shies away from taking risks on big blockbusters.

Crises make automakers rethink lean parts supplies

DETROIT (AP) - For the first time in more than 20 years, U.S. automakers are questioning a pillar of manufacturing: The practice of bringing parts to assembly lines right before they're used.

UP net income up 35 percent in 1st quarter

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - Strong earnings reports from two of the nation's biggest freight railroads show that the U.S. economy is continuing its long, slow recovery.

Doritos tacos put sizzle in Taco Bell's US sales

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - Taco Bell's new take on the taco, featuring orange Doritos dust, has helped put the sizzle back in its U.S. sales after a nearly yearlong slump stemming from a short-lived lawsuit that caused the chain some queasiness.

Microsoft's Windows propels pleasant 3Q surprise

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Microsoft produced a surprisingly strong quarter to start the year, pleasing investors looking forward to even bigger things from the software maker's much-anticipated overhaul of Windows operating system next fall.

Rumors swirl of smaller iPad, it’s something that Jobs detested

CUPERTINO (AP) - Apple generates more gossip than the Kardashians.

Bank of America bad-loan provisions at 2007 level

NEW YORK (AP) - Bank of America said Thursday that it set aside less money to cover bad loans in the first three months of the year than it has since before the 2008 financial crisis.

Consumers gobble up Taco Bell, KFC, Pizza Hut as sales soar 73%

\LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - Yum Brands Inc., owner of the Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and KFC chains, said Wednesday its first-quarter net income rose 73 percent due to a successful combo - continuing strong overseas sales packaged with a rebounding U.S. performance led by its once-struggling Taco Bell business.

Food stamps, federal pensions face GOP cuts

WASHINGTON (AP) - The White House weighed in sharply Wednesday against a House GOP move to break last summer's budget pact by cutting the annual budgets for nondefense programs funded through annual appropriations bills.

EBay posts higher 1Q net income and revenue

NEW YORK (AP) - EBay's first-quarter net income grew 20 percent thanks to higher revenue from its PayPal business and brisk sales at its e-commerce websites. The results beat Wall Street's expectations and investors sent the company's stock higher in after-hours trading.

Verizon to auction spectrum worth billions

NEW YORK (AP) - Verizon Wireless on Wednesday said it will auction a parcel of radio frequencies, which could be worth billions of dollars in an industry scrambling to offer consumers more cellular broadband.

Train accidents stir worries about crude rail transport

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) - At least 10 times since 2008, freight trains hauling oil across North America have derailed and spilled significant quantities of crude, with most of the accidents touching off fires or catastrophic explosions.

Trade ban has Russia’s knickers in a twist

MOSCOW (AP) - A trade ban on lacy lingerie has Russian consumers and their neighbors with their knickers in a twist.

4 apps to follow events, athletes

NEW YORK (AP) - Welcome to the Mobile Olympics.

Verizon shake-up to affect about 3,000 workers

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - About 3,000 Verizon Wireless workers will have to transfer to different offices or find new jobs as part of a shake-up that will close five of the company's customer call centers.

Nokia touts video recording in new Lumia smartphone

NEW YORK (AP) - Nokia is selling a new Windows phone that promises enhanced video-recording capabilities.

Kraft Singles going more natural

NEW YORK (AP) - Kraft is removing artificial preservatives from its most popular individually wrapped cheese slices, in the latest sign that companies are tweaking recipes as food labels come under greater scrutiny.

Creator says game over for maddening Flappy Bird

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) - The young Vietnamese creator of hit mobile game Flappy Bird has removed it from the App Store and Google Play saying it ruined his life.

FDA looks at heart safety of pain pills

WASHINGTON (AP) - Federal health experts are taking a second look this week at the heart safety of pain medications used by millions of Americans to treat arthritis and other everyday aches and pains.

Senator to drug stores: Don’t sell cigarettes

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Sen. Richard Blumenthal is calling on other drug stores to follow CVS's lead and stop selling tobacco products.

Coca-Cola will let people make drinks at home

NEW YORK (AP) - Coca-Cola is looking to tap into a new market, with plans to let people make its sodas and other drinks at home.

Finding those uninsured Americans

WASHINGTON (AP) - Wanted: Millions of uninsured Americans willing to give President Barack Obama's health care law a chance.

Growth worries: Twitter stock dips

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Twitter beat Wall Street's earnings and revenue expectations in its first quarter as a public company. But investors were looking for more - including faster user growth - and the company's stock fell more than 17 percent in after-hours trading Wednesday.

10 states eye Internet gambling bills

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) - At least 10 U.S. states are considering bills to legalize or expand Internet gambling this year, according to a group that tracks gambling-related legislation worldwide.

Subway removing chemical from bread

NEW YORK (AP) - Subway says it's in the process of removing a chemical from its bread as part of an ongoing effort to improve its recipes.

Report: Immigration agency should seek EB-5 project help

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) - The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services should get help from the Department of Commerce to oversee projects funded by the federal EB-5 investment-for-green-cards immigration program, a Washington think tank says in a report released Wednesday.