Business Beat for Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2014

UPS predicts 11 percent hike in December packages

UPS expects to deliver more than 34 million packages on the busiest day of the holiday season, double the amount on a normal day.

Abbott buys Topera, enters new heart-treatment market

Abbott Laboratories is moving into a new area for heart treatments with the purchase of medical device company Topera Inc.

United is replacing headrest screens with tablet holders

United Airlines is redesigning seats so passengers may prop up a tablet and still have room on their tray-table for a meal, Slashgear.com reports.

Express Scripts says AbbVie drug could displace Sovaldi on formulary

AbbVie’s hepatitis C drug may quickly become the preferred treatment of Express Scripts, the nation’s largest pharmacy benefits manager, Reuters says.

One determined Starbucks fan

A Michigan woman will accept $250 to end a two-year legal battle over Starbucks’ decision to stop making discs for the single-serve coffee machine she owns.

Motorola president: Apple’s high-end focus leaves ‘huge vacuum’ for us

Rick Osterloh tells CNET he thinks Motorola today is in a similar position to Apple in the late ’90s — just before its historic run.

ADM spends $3 billion to make healthy food taste better

The company paid $3 billion for Wild Flavors to get technologies and add scientists working on ways to make healthy foods tasty, Bloomberg reports.

Fed keeps rate at record low, ends bond buying

The Federal Reserve plans to keep a key interest rate at a record low to support a U.S. job market that isn’t fully healthy.

Stocks slip after Fed statement; dollar gains

U.S. stocks closed slightly lower Wednesday after the Federal Reserve said it was shutting down a bond-buying program.

Chipotle workers sue, say they aren’t paid for all their time

Chipotle workers claim the company routinely makes hourly employees work ‘off the clock,’ CNN Money reports.

SodaStream to move its West Bank factory in 2015

Israeli drink maker SodaStream will close a West Bank factory that has been targeted by boycott activists and move it to a location inside Israel.

Comcast settles lawsuit over overcharging cable TV subscribers

Comcast Corp has reached a $50 million settlement in a decade-old lawsuit accusing it of overcharging cable television subscribers, Reuters reports.

Ford recalls 205,000 SUVs for fuel tank leaks

Ford is recalling about 205,000 SUVs in cold-weather states and parts of Canada to fix gas tanks that can rust, leak and cause a fire.

Chrysler recalls over 566,000 trucks, SUVs

Chrysler says malfunctioning fuel heaters can cause fires or a software glitch can disable the electronic stability control.

EEOC sues Honeywell over medical testing policy

The EEOC is suing Honeywell Inc. over a health care policy that requires employees and their spouses to take medical tests or face monetary penalties.

Orbital Sciences’ stock plummets after explosion

Orbital Sciences shares tumbled Wednesday after the company’s unmanned rocket bound for the Space Station exploded after liftoff.

Hyatt 3Q results hurt by climbing expenses

Hyatt Hotels Corp. said Wednesday its third-quarter net income dropped 42 percent, hindered by rising expenses.

Airbus to make larger jet at its first U.S. factory

Airbus plans to start production at its first U.S. factory with the larger A321 jetliner because of demand for the bigger jet, Reuters reports.

LG Electronics profit surges on smartphone sales

South Korea’s LG Electronics Inc. said Wednesday its third-quarter profit jumped 87 percent over a year earlier as smartphone sales set a record high.

Drugmaker Sanofi ousts CEO over management style, sales drop

French drugmaker Sanofi sacked its CEO Wednesday after a boardroom rift over his way of handling one of France’s largest publicly traded companies.

Fiat Chrysler to spin off sports car maker Ferrari

Spinning off Ferrari is part of a plan to raise capital to support the new merged carmakers’ future growth.