A former executive at Procter & Gamble Co. has been elected to the board of directors of Foster Wheeler AG, the Switzerland-based engineering and construction firm said Wednesday.

As CEO and primary shareholder of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK), Warren Buffett, the world's most famous investor, has developed a well-known reputation of buying big stakes in companies he believes in. When Buffett buys shares of a company for BRK, the markets translate his moves as a vote of confidence for a firm's continued success. Although Berkshire Hathaway's holdings change, the company's most recent SEC filings* reveal where the Oracle of Omaha is most heavily invested. Here are the 15 publicly traded stocks, by value, that are the biggest holdings of Berkshire Hathaway.

Consumer products earnings by the numbers:

By Jessica Wohl

The Procter & Gamble Co. sees budget-conscious consumers around the globe responding to price cuts and new products that promise to give them more for their money.

Procter & Gamble said on Thursday profit dropped slightly in its first quarter, as consumers around the world kept tight reins on spending for such household items as laundry detergent and shavers.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Procter & Gamble Co <PG.N> posted a quarterly profit well ahead of analysts' forecasts and said it has modestly higher expectations for growth in the industry even as consumers continue to remain cautious.

The Procter & Gamble Co. sees budget-conscious consumers around the globe responding to price cuts and new products that promise to give them more for their money.

What follows is a roundup of corporate earnings reports for Thursday, Oct. 29.

Procter & Gamble Co., the world's largest consumer products maker, reports earnings for its first quarter before the market opens Thursday. The following is a summary of key developments and analyst opinion related to the period.

Naomi Campbell's new perfume deal doesn't pass the smell test, a cosmetics-marketing company said in a lawsuit accusing the supermodel of cutting longtime associates out of their share of profits from her lucrative fragrance lines.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration sent a warning letter Friday to Procter & Gamble Co. saying the company was illegally marketing two Vicks cold and flu medicines containing vitamin C.

Signs of an improving economy might be in your kitchen or bathroom cupboards.

Investors who capitalized on the market's amazing six-month run are now going to want to find a way to protect their profits.

Major US companies are bracing for a potentially stronger strain of swine flu this year that could threaten the nation's already fragile economic recovery.