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AMSTERDAM (AP) – Royal Ahold NV, the Dutch owner of U.S. supermarket chains Stop & Shop and Giant, says first quarter sales rose but earnings declined in the first quarter, mostly due to the timing of the Easter holiday. Net profit was 282 million euros ($352 million), down from 291 million euros in the same [...]

JAKARTA, Indonesia – Indonesia’s economy grew 6.3 percent from a year earlier in the first quarter, withstanding headwinds from Europe and the U.S. as industries such as agriculture and forestry expanded. The Central Statistics Agency said Monday that growth was driven by increases in the agriculture, livestock, forestry and fishing sectors. The economy grew 1.4 [...]

MILAN – Italy’s largest energy company Eni SpA says first-quarter profits rose 42 percent on increased production in Libya and higher prices. Eni on Friday said net profit for the first three months of 2012 was 3.62 billion euros ($4.78 billion), up from 2.55 billion euros in the same period last year. Oil and natural [...]

SEOUL, South Korea – LG Electronics Inc. posted its first profit in three quarters, beating expectations thanks to a revival in its mobile business and demand for high-end TVs. The South Korean company Wednesday reported net profit of 243 billion won ($215 million) for the January-March period. It had a loss of 15.8 billion won [...]

GENEVA – Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis AG reported an 18 percent drop in earnings for the first quarter Tuesday, citing strong competition in the generic drugs market and manufacturing problems at a plant in the United States. Net profit fell to $2.33 billion from $2.82 billion in the same period last year, while sales dipped [...]

GENEVA – Swiss food and drinks giant Nestle SA has reported first-quarter sales of 21.389 billion Swiss francs ($23.34 billion), up more than 5 percent from comparable sales a year ago. The Vevey, Switzerland-based company had reported first-quarter sales of 20.26 billion Swiss francs ($22.64 billion) a year ago. It said the first-quarter sales in [...]

LONDON – Britain’s economy shrank by more than anticipated in the fourth quarter of last year as households reined in their spending, official figures showed Wednesday. The Office for National Statistics said Britain’s economy contracted by a quarterly rate of 0.3 percent between October and December, up from the previous estimate of a 0.2 percent [...]