Apple Inc., maker of Macintosh computers and the iPhone, reports fiscal second-quarter earnings Wednesday after the closing bell. The following is a summary of key developments related to that period.

OVERVIEW: In January, Apple ( AAPL - news - people ) founder Steve Jobs addressed the matter of his increasingly gaunt appearance - twice. He first said it was caused by an easily treatable hormone imbalance, and that he would remain at the helm. The next week, Jobs, a cancer survivor, revealed the problem was more complicated and said he would take a medical leave of absence until the end of June. Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook is running the company in his absence.

n March, Cupertino, Calif.-based Apple updated its line of desktop Macintosh computers, called iMacs, and released an even tinier version of its tiniest music player, the iPod Shuffle. It also showed off upcoming changes to the iPhone software, including the ability to copy and paste text, which was missing from earlier versions.

While Windows PC makers slashed prices in the face of a worsening economic crisis, Apple held the line. Its quarterly U.S. computer shipments fell about 1 percent from a year ago, better than the 3 percent decline in the U.S. overall, according to research group IDC.

BY THE NUMBERS: Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect Apple to earn $1.08 per share on $7.9 billion in sales.

ANALYST TAKE: Opinion varied as to the extent the downturn has affected Apple sales.

Kaufman Bros. analyst Shaw Wu wrote in a research note Monday that sales of Macs seemed stronger than he had expected in the quarter, while iPod and iPhone sales met the high end of his estimates. Wu rates the stock a "Buy."

And Doug Reid, an analyst for Thomas Weisel, wrote in an April 17 note that Quanta Computer Inc., the Taiwan-based company that makes many of Apple's computers, said its average selling price rose 5 percent in February and March. That suggests brisker business selling Apple's higher-priced Macs in the quarter.

Suncor Energy Inc. will acquire Petro-Canada in a US$15.5 billion deal that will unite two of Canada's biggest oil companies, the companies announced Monday.

The move is expected to yield savings in operating costs of over CA (nyse: CA - news - people )$300 million (US$244 million) year, and annual capital efficiencies above CA$1 billion (US$812 million), the companies said.

Under the deal, Petro-Canada (nyse: PCZ - news - people ) common shareholders will receive 1.28 common shares of the expanded company for each share of Petro-Canada, while Suncor shareholders will receive new shares on a one-for-one basis.

The share exchange represents a 25 percent premium for Petro-Canada shares, based on a 30-day weighted average of the share price. Based on the closing price Friday, the deal values Petro-Canada at CA$19.12 billion (US$15.5 billion)

Petro-Canada shareholders will hold 40 percent of the enlarged company and Suncor shareholders will hold 60 percent. Both companies are based in Calgary.

Monday's announcement marks the creation of the largest oil and gas company in Canada by market cap, though the merged entity will be smaller than other global heavyweights such as Exxon Mobil (nyse: XOM - news - people ) and ConocoPhillips (nyse: COP - news - people ), which boast market capitalizations of US$326.6 billion and US$55.97 billion respectively.

"This merger creates a made-in-Canada energy leader with the assets, cost structure and financial strength to compete globally," said Rick George, president and chief executive officer of Suncor, who will continue in those roles in the new company.

Connecticut's attorney general says documents turned over to his office by American International Group Inc. shows the company paid out $218 million in bonuses, higher than the $165 million previously disclosed.

Attorney General Richard Blumenthal's office received the documents late Friday after issuing a subpoena.

Blumenthal says the documents show that 73 people received at least $1 million apiece, and five of those got bonuses of more than $4 million. The financially ailing insurance giant has been under fire for giving bonuses after receiving more than $182.5 billion in federal bailout money.

AIG (nyse: AIG - news - people ) spokesman Mark Herr declined to comment Saturday.

Blumenthal said the newly revealed number will "further fuel the justified anger and revulsion that people feel."

Apple says it is expanding iPhone features

Apple Inc. is broadening the ways that third-party software programmers can sell content on the iPhone.

Apple (nasdaq: AAPL - news - people ) says software developers now will be able to create applications that have items for sale within them, such as electronic books or additional levels of a video game.

he company unveiled the new tools along with the third generation of software for its iPhone during an event for journalists at its headquarters in Cupertino.

Apple launched the most recent iPhone last summer. The company sold 13.7 million iPhones in 2008.

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A would-be challenger to Google Inc. said Tuesday it is suing the Internet search leader for alleged abuses that include illegally rigging its prices to thwart potential competitive threats.

In a 38-page page complaint, TradeComet.com LLC accused Google (nasdaq: GOOG - news - people ) of manipulating its system for setting ad rates to make it too expensive for a specialty search engine called SourceTool to promote itself within Google's vast online marketing network.

In a press release, TradeComet said it filed its antitrust lawsuit in a New York federal court.

Google said it hadn't reviewed the allegations as of late Tuesday, but the Mountain View-based company reiterated its belief that there are plenty of other online advertising options, including networks run by rivals Yahoo Inc. (nasdaq: YHOO - news - people ) and Microsoft Corp. (nasdaq: MSFT - news - people )

"As we have consistently made clear, the advertising market in which Google operates is highly competitive, and advertisers have a huge range of choices," Google said in a statement.

TradeComet's lawsuit is the latest legal action to allege Google has used its widening market power to create a monopoly that enables it to bully rivals or squeeze out Web sites that it doesn't like.

Google processes nearly two-thirds of the Internet search requests in the United States and sells an even larger chunk of the text-based ad links that appear alongside search results and other content on millions of Web pages served up each day.

Charter Communications Inc. said Friday that it is beginning discussions with its bondholders about financial options to improve the cable operator's balance sheet.

"We believe engaging in discussions with our bondholders, aimed at improving our capital structure and enhancing our financial flexibility, is in the company's and our customers' best interests," said President and Chief Executive Neil Smit in a statement.

Last month, Charter reported it narrowed its third-quarter loss as customer sign-ups for new lines of service surged 50 percent.

But the St. Louis-based company, which is controlled by Microsoft Corp. (nasdaq: MSFT - news - people ) co-founder Paul Allen, has continued to struggle with its debt burden. It reported interest expenses of $478 million in the third quarter, eclipsing its $208 million in operating income.

As of Wednesday, Charter said it had more than $900 million of cash on hand and cash equivalents available to pay operating costs and expenses.

Charter is the nation's fourth largest cable TV operator behind Comcast Corp. (nasdaq: CMCSA - news - people ), Time Warner Cable (nyse: TWC - news - people ) Inc. and Cox Communications.

Charter's financial adviser is Lazard LLC. Charter's shares were roughly unchanged at 16 cents in morning trading.

Google Inc. is shifting its Web browser out of test mode just 100 days after its debut, an unusually quick transition for a company known for keeping the "beta" tag on some products for years.

Thursday's removal of the test label from Google (nasdaq: GOOG - news - people )'s browser, called Chrome, underscores its importance to the Internet search leader.

Google is trying to lure Web surfers away from the leading browsers, Microsoft Corp. (nasdaq: MSFT - news - people )'s Internet Explorer and the Mozilla Foundation's Firefox.

In the process, Google hopes Chrome makes it easier to gather insights about users' preferences and extends the popularity of its online applications, which are supposed to run more smoothly and quickly in Chrome.

Since its Sept. 2 introduction, Chrome has attracted more than 10 million active users around the world, according to a Google blog posting that announced the browser's upgrade.

Chrome still has a long way to catch up to Internet Explorer, which has about 70 percent of the market, depending on the differing estimates from various market researchers. Firefox held about 20 percent, while Apple Inc. (nasdaq: AAPL - news - people )'s Safari was third with less than 10 percent. Chrome has less than 1 percent.

Google said it decided to take Chrome out of beta because of improvements to the browser's stability and security. Among other things, Chrome now does a better job of playing video and audio than it was first introduced, loads pages even more quickly and offers more controls over bookmarks and privacy, according to Google.

Among the sector activity stories for Wednesday, Dec. 10, from AP Financial News:

CHICAGO (AP) - Shares of the nation's office suppliers rose Wednesday after Office Depot Inc. (nyse: ODP - news - people ) said it would eliminate 2,200 jobs and close 112 stores in a cost-cutting effort.

NEW YORK (AP) - An FBR Capital Markets (nasdaq: FBCM - news - people ) analyst said Wednesday that Apple Inc. (nasdaq: AAPL - news - people )'s production cutbacks appear to be slackening, in a welcome sign for the company's parts suppliers.

NEW YORK (AP) - Airlines stocks fluctuated Wednesday as the broader markets rose but oil prices also increased.

NEW YORK (AP) - Shares of online travel companies Orbitz Worldwide (nyse: OWW - news - people ) Inc. and Expedia Inc. (nasdaq: EXPE - news - people ) edged lower Wednesday as an analyst said deteriorating travel trends and poor visibility are concerns for both online travel companies.

NEW YORK (AP) - Shares of drybulk shipping companies rose strongly Wednesday on signs that ships may be moving again and rates for the vessels are rising.

NEW YORK (AP) - Shares of credit-card lenders and processors moved slightly lower Wednesday as analysts worried about recent data indicating consumers are pulling out the plastic less frequently as the economy continues to weaken.