U.S. OCTOBER BUDGET DEFICIT JUMPS TO $100.5 BILLION

The federal government recorded a deficit of $100.5 billion in October, a big increase from a year ago that was primarily caused by quirks in the calendar.

The Treasury Department said Tuesday that the deficit shot up 59 percent from the same month a year ago. Last year’s October deficit was smaller because the government paid $48 billion in benefits in September because Oct. 1 fell on the weekend.

The government has run a deficit in every October going back to the early 1950s. The new report begins a budget year in which the federal deficit is expected to soar above $1 trillion.

Nigerian ISP’s configuration error disrupted Google services.

BOSTON» A Nigerian internet service provider said Tuesday that a configuration error it made during a network upgrade caused a disruption of key Google services, routing traffic to China and Russia.

Prior to MainOne’s explanation Tuesday, there was speculation that Monday’s 74-minute data hijacking might have been intentional. Google’s search, cloud hosting and G-Suite collaborative business tools were among services disrupted.

The type of traffic misdirection involved can knock essential services offline and facilitate espionage and financial theft.

Johnson Controls selling power solutions unit for $13.2B.

Johnson Controls International PLC is selling its power solutions division to Brookfield Business Partners LP for $13.2 billion.

The power solutions business, which makes and distributes advanced battery technologies for various vehicles, posted $8 billion in revenue in fiscal 2018.

IMF: Mideast oil producers buoyed by higher prices, for now.