Bloomberg Apple Inc. has stepped up its battle with Australia’s banking industry over the future of mobile payments, accusing an industry consortium of attempting to “delay or even block” the expansion of Apple Pay into the country. In its latest submission to the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission, Apple said it was concerned banks are seeking to “delay the …

  DUBAI / Reuters Strong corporate earnings in Egypt and Dubai buoyed those markets on Tuesday, while Kuwait continued pulling back on profit-taking after a bullish run last month. Cairo’s Palm Hills Development soared 9.2 percent to 3.08 Egyptian pounds after it reported fourth-quarter consolidated net profit after minority interests of 235 million pounds ($12.7 million) versus 169 million pounds …

  Bloomberg U.S. stocks climbed on Tuesday as investors assessed data on the country’s trade deficit and continued to sift through earnings reports for clues on the economy’s health. The S&P 500 Index added 0.3 percent to 2,299.32 at 9:45 a.m in New York, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 100 points to an intraday record of 20,149. The …