In Brief
WASHINGTON
Fed to buy $600 billion
in government bonds
The Federal Reserve will sink
$600 billion into government bonds in a bold plan that it hopes will drive interest rates even lower than they already are and start the chain reaction that finally creates jobs and invigorates the economy.
The Fed said Wednesday that it would buy the bonds at a rate of about $75 billion a month through the middle of next year. The idea is to encourage people to spend more money and stimulate hiring, both ways of accelerating economic growth.
The program is smaller than what Fed policymakers called their "shock and awe" approach to fighting the 2008 financial crisis. At that time, the Fed bought $1.7 trillion worth of securities.
This new program, including money that the Fed plans to reinvest from the portfolio of mortgages it has bought, should ultimately total $850 billion to $900 billion.
DETROIT
October is strongest sales month of year for carmakers
U.S. auto sales put in their strongest performance of the year in October as buyers grew more confident in the economy and new models lured them into dealerships.
Every major automaker but Toyota chalked up better results last month. Overall industry sales climbed 13.4 percent to 950,165.
October's seasonally adjusted annual sales rate, which shows what sales would be if they stayed at the same rate all year, was 12.26 million vehicles. That's the best monthly rate since August 2009, when "Cash for Clunkers" spurred Americans to buy more cars and trucks.
Chrysler, Ford, Honda and Nissan all had double-digit jumps in sales compared with last October. Sales for General Motors Co., which is preparing for an initial stock offering later this month, rose 3.5 percent.
WASHINGTON
Service sector expands faster in October than in September
The service sector, which employs about 80 percent of Americans, grew faster in October than in the previous month, a trade group said. It also posted its 10th straight month of expansion.
A separate report Wednesday showed that orders to U.S. factories rose broadly in September.
Business spending on big-ticket goods such as airplanes and heavy machines produced most of the demand for factory orders, the Commerce Department said.
However, consumer spending also rose 1 percent, after running flat in August.
Shares of Wynn Resorts Ltd.
rebound from low point
Shares of Wynn Resorts Ltd. rebounded Wednesday, rising from their low of about $108 in active premarket trading following decisions by analysts to downgrade the company's stock.
Wynn Resorts' shares opened down 3.35 percent to $108.80, from their close Tuesday of $112.57.
The company's stock on Wednesday closed down $1.43, or 1.27 percent, to $111.14 on heavy volume of 5 million shares traded on the Nasdaq National Market.
Sterne Agee research analyst David Bain downgraded Wynn Resorts to "neutral" from "buy." His target price for Wynn Resorts shares was $109.
Hudson Securities analyst Robert Shore, meanwhile, downgraded Wynn Resorts to "hold" from "buy." He raised his target price to $121 from $110.
The analysts' downgrade came less than 24 hours after the casino operator reported a loss of $22.5 million, or 27 cents per share, for the third quarter, compared with a profit of $34.2 million, or 28 cents a share, a year earlier.
"With little on the growth horizon in the intermediate term ... and the unclear timing of a true Las Vegas recovery, we see few catalysts not yet priced-in to pull valuation higher than current levels," Bain said.
DETROIT
General Motors forecasts profits, readies for offering
General Motors Co. is forecasting that it earned as much as $2.1 billion from July to September, a strong financial performance as the company prepares for an initial stock offering on Nov. 18.
The third-quarter earnings, which GM will report next week, bolster the company's contention that it is leaner and more profitable since restructuring under a government-funded bankruptcy last year.
GM earned $2.2 billion in the first half after it cut brands, cut debt and offered popular new models of vehicles. Last month, it announced moves to reduce what it owes its pension plans.
LOS ANGELES
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer files
for bankruptcy protection
Hollywood studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc., the home of James Bond, filed for bankruptcy protection on Wednesday in a plan that had the backing of its lenders and put funding of its half of "The Hobbit" back on track.
The "prepackaged" bankruptcy plan, more than a year in the making, should go quickly. MGM is to restructure and be managed by the co-CEOs of Spyglass Entertainment.
Prepackaged bankruptcies are Chapter 11 reorganization plans prepared with creditors' cooperation.
MGM lenders will trade about $4 billion in debt for stock in the new company, valued at around $2 billion.
NEW YORK
Looking for bargains? You can get them with Facebook Deals
If you use Facebook to "check in" to your favorite restaurants or shops, you can expect to see rewards and discounts from companies looking to drum up business and lure in loyal customers.
Facebook is looking to bridge online advertising with people's offline behavior as it announced a service called "Deals" on Wednesday. It's an extension of Places, the check-in feature the company unveiled this year. Services based on people's location help them find coupons, earn quirky merit badges or tell friends where they are.
Facebook said it is launching a test version of Deals with 23 companies.
