AP - Economic growth could reach 2.5 percent this year, a German minister said in remarks published Sunday, among the most optimistic forecasts yet for Europe's largest economy.

McDonald's Corp. shares jumped to a new six-year high Wednesday after the world's largest fast-food chain raised its annual dividend 49 percent, part of efforts to return more cash to shareholders.

Among 327 general surgeons responding to a national on-line survey conducted in summer 2006, only 4% said they were not frustrated about practicing medicine in today’s healthcare marketplace. More than a third (36%) of respondents to the physician r...