WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Federal Reserve’s monetary stimulus is helping the economy recover but the central bank needs to see further signs of traction before taking its foot off the gas pedal, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Wednesday.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Hewlett-Packard Co raised its 2013 earnings outlook after beating low expectations, as CEO Meg Whitman’s turnaround plan helped to shore up profits and offset shrinking personal computer sales with enterprise computing services.

DETROIT/TOKYO (Reuters) – A team including former General Motors Co executive Bob Lutz and China’s largest parts maker is looking to buy Fisker Automotive for $20 million, a fraction of the “green” car company’s estimated worth almost a year and a half ago.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Home resales rose in April to the highest level in nearly 3-1/2 years and prices surged, offering the economy a buffer from the stiff headwinds posed by belt-tightening by Washington.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Stocks fell on Wednesday with the S&P 500 posting its biggest decline in three weeks, after minutes from the latest U.S. Federal Reserve meeting showed some officials were open to tapering large-scale asset purchases as early as at the June meeting.

(Reuters) – Starbucks Corp executive Michelle Gass, who was instrumental in the world’s biggest coffee chain’s post-recession U.S. turnaround, is leaving after more than 16 years to become chief customer officer at retailer Kohl’s Corp .

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Many Federal Reserve officials earlier this month wanted to see more evidence that the economy was recovering before shifting toward a tapering of their bond purchase program, the Fed said on Wednesday.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Europe edged closer to lifting banking secrecy on Wednesday after Austria said it was ready to share data on foreign depositors but Vienna’s support could fade should efforts to strike a similar deal with Switzerland fail.