SAN JOSE, Calif.--Apple Inc.'s (AAPL) case against Samsung Electronics Co. (005930.SE) moved closer to its final stages Friday, as the iPhone maker presented its final witnesses to argue that it had not infringed the Korean tech giant's patents.

Brazilian investment bank BES Investimento do Brasil SA, controlled by Portugal's BES Investimento SA and by Brazilian retail banking giant Banco Bradesco SA (BBD, BBDC4.BR), intends to reinforce its infrastructure investment operations after the announcement of a new concessions program by

New tests confirm that damage last year to some corn fields in western Illinois was caused by rootworms that have developed resistance to a Monsanto Co. (MON) genetically modified trait, a University of Illinois researcher said.

Natural gas prices nudged lower Friday on concerns about excess supply on a quiet day with low trading volumes.

Technology heavyweights Dell Inc. (DELL) and Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) will report their latest quarterly results next week, giving further insight into how the companies are coping with soft personal-computer sales and changing industry trends.

SANTIAGO, Chile--Production at Chilean copper mine Escondida, controlled by global diversified miner BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP, BHP.AU), rose 18% year-on-year in the first half of 2012 to 533,242 metric tons, the company said Friday.

Brazil's economy enjoys sound fundamentals for sustainable growth, with an economic expansion likely to pick up speed in the next few quarters, Central Bank President Alexandre Tombini said at a business conference Friday.

It was a shot that hurt around the world. In August 2007, France's biggest bank froze withdrawals from three of its investment funds, blaming the "complete evaporation" of liquidity in certain parts of the U.S. securitization market. BNP Paribas couldn't fairly value the mortgage-backed securities

Oil futures finished higher Friday as some upbeat U.S. economic data boosted expectations for energy demand.

LIMA, Peru--The sprawling Yanacocha mine in northern Peru is currently expected to produce an average of about 1 million ounces of gold a year over the next five years before production drops off sharply, the chief executive of the company operating the mine said.