Reuters - Top executives at three big U.S. oil companies defended record profits on Sunday as necessary to finance future investment, and one cautioned that summer gasoline pump prices could go higher with hurricane season underway.

Reuters - Microsoft Corp. picked two well-respected technical minds to fill the void from founder Bill Gates' pending departure in two years, but it also identified a next tier of leaders charged with reinventing the software giant to compete against younger, agile rivals.

Reuters - When a 76-year-old pensioner recently told Jill Schlesinger he wanted to put 10 percent of his $100,000 portfolio into gold, the financial adviser knew the latest investment craze would likely end badly, and soon.

Reuters - The situation at German carmaker Volkswagen is serious, a senior executive said, although he denied a report that the company could cut an extra 10,000 jobs at its core VW brand.