Benchmark U.S. crude oil fell 1.4 percent to $62.21 a barrel in New York. Brent crude dipped 1.4 percent to $72.13 a barrel in London. Wholesale gasoline was little changed at $1.69 a gallon and heating oil was also little changed at $2.19 a gallon. Natural gas remained at $3.56 per 1,000 cubic feet.___
Facebook blocks 115 accounts ahead of US midterm elections
Facebook said it blocked 115 accounts for suspected “coordinated inauthentic behavior” linked to foreign groups attempting to interfere in Tuesday’s U.S. midterm elections. The social media company shut down 30 Facebook accounts and 85 Instagram accounts and is investigating them in more detail, it said in a blog post late Monday.
___
Amazon considers New York, Virginia amid reports of HQ split
NEW YORK (AP) — New York and Virginia are among the finalists in Amazon’s search to build another headquarters, according to people familiar with the talks. After a yearlong search for a second home, Amazon is now reportedly looking to build offices in two cities instead of one. Sources, who were not authorized to discuss the negotiations and spoke on condition of anonymity, say the online retail giant is considering a site in New York’s Long Island City neighborhood and Crystal City in northern Virginia.
___
Closed bank, mothballed planes: Iran mocks US sanctions list
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — The “largest-ever” U.S. sanctions list targeting Iran drew mockery from Iranian officials on Tuesday for including mothballed Boeing 747s, a bank that closed years earlier and a sunken oil tanker that exploded off China months ago. However, the new list of sanctions, which also aims to cut Iran’s vital oil industry off from international sales, also included for the first time its state airline and its atomic energy commission, further highlighting the maximalist approach of President Donald Trump’s administration.
___
Facebook admits not doing enough to prevent Myanmar violence
NEW YORK (AP) — Facebook is admitting that it didn’t do enough to prevent its services from being used to incite violence and spread hate in Myanmar. Facebook has gotten heavy criticism for permitting itself to be used to inflame ethnic and religious conflict in the country, particularly against minority Rohingya Muslims.
___
Toyota quarterly profit rises on growing sales, cost cuts
TOKYO (AP) — Toyota Motor Corp. reported a 28 percent surge in its net profit in the last quarter, helped by growing sales in Europe, Asia and the Americas, and raised its earnings forecast for the full year.
___
Russia tightens control of anonymous messenger apps
MOSCOW (AP) — Tightening its control over popular anonymous chat apps, the Russian government has approved regulations that would identify users by their cellphone numbers. The measures signed Tuesday by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev are part of Russia’s moves to clamp down on smartphone messenger services, such as Telegram, that authorities claim are used by criminals and terrorists.
___
Fox’s Hannity speaks onstage at Trump campaign rally
NEW YORK (AP) — Sean Hannity spoke from the stage of President Donald Trump’s last midterm election rally on Monday, after Fox News Channel and its most popular personality had insisted all day that he wouldn’t. Hannity appeared on the podium in a Missouri arena after being called to the stage by Trump. Another Fox News host, Jeanine Pirro, also appeared onstage with the president. “By the way, all those people in the back are fake news,” Hannity told the audience. It was an extraordinary scene after the news network had worked Monday to establish distance between Hannity and the campaign.
___
Economy was key to Brazil win, but will he deliver?
SAO PAULO (AP) — Key to President-elect Jair Bolsonaro’s recent victory was the support of Brazil’s business community, which coalesced around him because he promised to overhaul Latin America’s largest economy and address its worrying budget deficit. But the president-elect has been stingy with the details, and many wonder if he’ll stick to his recent conversion to market-friendly reforms or if the dormant nationalist might reappear.
___
China grants Trump family 18 trademarks in 2 months
SHANGHAI (AP) — The Chinese government granted 18 trademarks to companies linked to U.S. President Donald Trump and his daughter Ivanka Trump over the last two months, Chinese public records show, raising concerns about conflicts of interest in the White House on the eve of national elections. In October, China’s Trademark Office granted provisional approval for 16 trademarks to Ivanka Trump Marks LLC, bringing to 34 the total number of marks China has greenlighted this year, according to the office’s online database.
___
CVS Health tops 3Q earnings forecasts, backs 2018 outlook
WOONSOCKET, R.I. (AP) — Lower taxes and a jump in prescriptions helped CVS Health beat analyst expectations for the third quarter. The drugstore chain and pharmacy benefit manager said Tuesday that its net income climbed 8 percent to $1.39 billion, while revenue rose 2 percent to $47.27 billion.
__
Industrials, tech lead US stocks higher ahead of elections
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks rose Tuesday as industrial and technology companies recovered some of the big losses they took over the last month. Strong company earnings also contributed to the gains, but stocks stayed calm as traders waited for results from the midterm elections in the U.S.
____
The S&P 500 index climbed 17.14 points, or 0.6 percent, to 2,755.45. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 173.31 points, or 0.7 percent, to 25,635.01. The Nasdaq composite jumped 47.11 points, or 0.6 percent, to 7,375.96. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks finished with a gain of 8.59 points, or 0.6 percent, to 1,556.10.