Month: April 2013

NEW YORK (Reuters) – The S&P 500 posted its worst day in more than four months on Monday, as big drops in the price of gold and other commodities triggered a broad selloff in equities. The three major U.S. stock indexes extended declines in afternoon trading after reports of explosions near the finish line of the Boston Marathon. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 265.86 points or 1.79 percent, to end unofficially at 14,599.20. The S&P 500 lost 36.48 points or 2.30 percent, to finish unofficially at 1,552.37. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 78.46 points or 2. …

By Dave Warner PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) – A city medical examiner described fetal body parts stored in pet food containers during his testimony on Monday at a murder trial that has drawn a national spotlight after anti-abortion groups complained that it was being ignored. The graphic testimony came in the fifth week of the murder trial of Dr. Kermit Gosnell, 72, who faces the death penalty if convicted of charges he killed seven infants and a female patient at what a grand jury described as his squalid abortion clinic in urban West Philadelphia. …

By Lawrence Hurley WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Supreme Court justices on Monday signaled reluctance to issue too broad a ruling about patents on human genes, and some indicated they might seek a compromise distinguishing between types of genetic material. The biotechnology industry has warned that an expansive ruling against Myriad Genetics Inc could threaten billions of dollars of investment. …

By Bill Berkrot and Susan Kelly NEW YORK (Reuters) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc on Monday agreed to buy Life Technologies Corp for $13.6 billion in a deal that would make it one of the top two companies in the hot field of genetic testing. The pact values Life Tech at $76 per share, a 12 percent premium, and is one of the year's biggest corporate takeovers. …

By Toni Clarke WASHINGTON (Reuters) – An experimental treatment for smoking-related lung damage received a better-than-expected initial review from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, potentially paving the way for a recommendation in favor of approval when an outside panel of experts meets to review the drug later this week. The drug, Breo, is an inhaled treatment for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a condition that includes emphysema, chronic bronchitis or both. COPD is the third leading cause of death in the United States, according to federal data. …

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Stocks extended losses on Monday, with the S&P 500 down more than 2 percent, following reports of two explosions near the finish line of the Boston Marathon and sharp declines in commodity prices. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 214.45 points or 1.44 percent, to 14,650.61, the S&P 500 lost 32.57 points or 2.05 percent, to 1,556.28 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 76.72 points or 2.33 percent, to 3,218.22. (Reporting by Rodrigo Campos and Caroline Valetkevitch; Editing by Jan Paschal)