ASML Holding, the Dutch microchip equipment maker whose machines are so high tech that the U.S. limits what it can sell to China, on Wednesday reported worse-than-expected orders and a sharp drop in profit as the company works through what it calls a transition year.
The number of Americans who applied for unemployment benefits in the week before the Thanksgiving holiday dipped to a seven-month low in a sign of strength for a steadily expanding U.S. economy.