FDA ORDERS CALORIE LABELING ON MENUS

washington Diners soon will know how many calories are in that bacon cheeseburger at a chain restaurant, the pasta salad in the supermarket salad bar and even that buttery tub of popcorn at the movie theater.

The Food and Drug Administration announced long-delayed calorie labeling rules Tuesday, requiring establishments that sell prepared foods and have 20 or more locations to post the calorie content of food and beverages “clearly and conspicuously” on their menus, menu boards and displays. Companies have a year to comply.

Companies interested in Aereo’s assets.

Aereo Inc., the online TVstreaming service that sought bankruptcy protection last week, said it’s drawing interest from large Internet firms and a few Fortune 500 companies that want to buy its assets.

Companies that provide video have expressed interest in the assets, Aereo CEO Chet Kanojia said.

He said non-disclosure agreements prevented him from naming specific companies Aereo was negotiating with.

Paul Allen-backed groups sue U.S. over coal leasing

billings, mont. » Conservation groups have sued the government to force federal officials to undertake the first environmental review of the government’s coal-leasing program in decades.

Friends of the Earth and theWestern Organization of Resource Councils filed the lawsuit Tuesday in U.S. District Court inWashington, D.C.

It’s being paid for by the philanthropic foundation of Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen.

Supporters of the lawsuit said there hasn’t been a comprehensive review of the government’s coal program since 1979.

That’s before climate-changing gases produced by burning coal emerged as a significant concern.

Apple’s value briefly surpasses $700 billion B

san francisco » Apple’s market value surpassed $700 billion in Tuesday trading, an unprecedented milestone among U.S. companies.

Shares backtracked in the afternoon, closing down $1.03 at $117.60— leaving Apple up 47 percent this year with a still-staggering market value of $690 billion. ExxonMobil Corp. is a distant second with a market value of about $400 billion.

DOJ investigating HSBC leak to hedge fund

london » The U.S. Justice Department is investigating allegations that an employee of HSBC Holdings PLC leaked confidential client information to a major hedge fund, according to people familiar with the matter, a new twist in a cross-border government probe into misconduct in the foreign-exchange market.

U.S. prosecutors are interviewing HSBC traders about the alleged event, which is believed to have taken place in March 2010, as part of their broader criminal investigation into improprieties in the currencies markets.

Bitumen processing to use less water.

Oil-sands producers pledged to lower by half the amount of fresh water used in bitumen processing as the industry counters criticism that it pollutes too much. Members of Canada’s Oil Sands Innovation Alliance aim to lower the amount of fresh water used to process bitumen to 0.2 barrels per barrel of bitumen by 2022 from 0.4 now. Bitumen is the heavy petroleum in oil sands.