Business Highlights

NEW YORK (AP) — Bank of America Corp. was not liable for fraud and subject to a penalty of over $1.2 billion for its actions before the economy collapsed in 2008 despite a jury's finding to the contrary, a federal appeals court ruled Monday.

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeal in Manhattan said there was insufficient evidence for a jury to conclude at a 2013 trial that mail and wire fraud was committed by the bank's Countrywide Financial unit in late 2007 and 2008 when it passed along mortgages to government housing agencies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Without a board seat on theater chain National Amusements Inc., which controls 80 percent of the voting stock of Viacom and CBS, or a trustee seat in the trust which will receive the chain's assets when Redstone dies, his position as Viacom's CEO is in jeopardy.

Though a closely watched survey of business activity pointed to waning economic growth following a strong start to the year, another report pointed to consumer confidence holding up, crucial for the region's prospects over the coming months.

The European Medicines Agency's ruling could boost sales of Champix, the drug's name in Europe, by reassuring doctors and would-be ex-smokers that the prescription medicine doesn't have dangerous psychiatric side effects.

The EMA's decision, announced Monday by New York-based Pfizer Inc., comes after an 8,144-patient, 16-country study found users had no elevated risk of suicides, suicide attempts or suicidal thoughts.

DUBLIN (AP) — European budget carrier Ryanair has posted record full-year profits and passenger figures, and expects both to hit new highs this summer amid rapid growth and declining fares.

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union's borderless single market is expanding only sluggishly into cyberspace, amid consumer concerns about security and whether it's possible to return unwanted purchases, according to a new report published Monday.

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