In a recent episode of HBO’s sitcom “Silicon Valley,” a lawyer tries to extort money from a struggling startup by threatening to sue it for patent infringement. The troll, who understands nothing about the underlying technology, owns a patent so broad as to be unenforceable, but knows that the victims of his perfectly legal extortion scheme lack the financial resources …

Bloomberg US stocks opened higher and the dollar and Treasuries were largely steady as investors held tight before the release of the latest Federal Reserve minutes. European stocks advanced amid growing optimism over the region’s economy. Oil headed for its first gain in three days and base metals railled. Markets are settling down after a tumultuous few days spurred by …

DUBAI / Reuters Most Middle Eastern stock markets rose on Wednesday, with Egypt ending a six-day losing streak, but trading volumes were thin in the absence of major new catalysts for investors. The Dubai index rose 0.3 percent as GFH Financial , the most active stock, climbed 2.9 percent. It had plunged 12.9 percent over the previous two days as …