Swedish network equipment vendor Ericsson (ERIC) Wednesday reported a bigger-than-expected drop in second-quarter earnings, with profits stunted by a high number of low-margin sales in Europe and slow demand in some markets, but said it expects improvement towards the end of the year.

========================================================== U.S. Housing Starts June May ! Consensus: ! Total Starts: +6.9% -4.8% ! +5.2% ! Single-Family: +4.7% +2.2%r ! Actual: ! ! +6.9% ! ========================================================== By Sarah Portlock and Alan Zibel WASHINGTON--U.S.

With the economy stuck in neutral, do what you can to keep your car running smoothly today and save money for tomorrow.

As part of the July 13 settlement -- which must still be approved by a federal court -- Visa and MasterCard and major banks agreed to drop requirements that retailers charge the same price for cash and credit purchases.

Iranian officials have offered accident insurance coverage worth a maximum of $1 billion for Iranian tankers shipping Iranian crude oil to South Korea, a Hyundai Oilbank official, who declined to be named, said Wednesday.

Groundbreaking on new U.S. homes rose by a better-than-expected 6.9% in June to its fastest rate since October 2008, but permits to build new homes fell 3.7%, missing expectations.

W.W. Grainger Inc.'s (GWW) second-quarter earnings climbed 12% on stronger U.S. and Canada sales and as the industrial-goods supplier benefited from acquisitions. For the current year, the company raised the low end of its guidance by a dime to earnings between $10.50 and $10.80 a share, while

Bank Indonesia Wednesday said it has issued new bank ownership rules, a move which may allow DBS Holdings Group Ltd. (D05.SG) to purchase a majority stake in PT Bank Danamon (BDMN.JK) in what would be the largest ever acquisition in Indonesia.

Abbott Laboratories' (NYSE:ABT) profit dropped in the second quarter. Earnings and Revenue The company's EPS topped estimates and revenues came in line with Wall Street's expectations. The company reported adjusted net income of $1.23 a share versus the $1.21 a share estimate and revenues of $9.81