Bloomberg Wal-Mart Stores Inc. increased its annual earnings forecast after second-quarter results topped analysts’ estimates, a sign the world’s largest retailer is pulling business away from rivals such as Target Corp. Sales at U.S. Wal-Mart stores open more than 12 months rose 1.6 percent last quarter, which ended July 31, the Bentonville, Arkansas-based company said in a statement Thursday. The ...

AFP Singapore Telecom said on Thursday it will spend $1.8 billion to take a stake in Thailand’s Intouch and raise its share of India’s Bharti, boosting its access to fast-growing Asian and African mobile markets. SingTel, Southeast Asia’s biggest telecom group by revenue, will acquire 21 percent of Intouch and an additional 7.39 percent in Bharti Telecom from state-linked investment ...

  Bloomberg Chinese home prices gained in fewer cities as local governments joined some of the nation’s largest hubs in imposing residential property curbs to quell soaring real estate values. New-home prices excluding government-subsidized housing gained in 51 cities last month, from 55 in June, among the 70 the government tracks, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday. Prices ...