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Heineken buys stake in Chinese brewery
Mar 31 2005 11:18PM (CT)
SHANGHAI, China (AP) - Dutch brewer Heineken NV has bought a 40 percent share in a Chinese beer maker via its Asian joint venture company Asia Pacific Breweries Ltd., expanding its interests in the world's biggest beer market.
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Survey: Japan corporate mood deteriorates
Mar 31 2005 10:08PM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - Large Japanese manufacturers are becoming less optimistic about their business outlook, a quarterly survey by the Bank of Japan said Friday, underlying growing worries about the fragility of the nation's recovery.
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Cathay to refund attendants' back pay
Mar 31 2005 10:06PM (CT)
HONG KONG (AP) - Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. said Friday it will give flight attendants back pay after a court ruled earlier that the airline violated their contracts by refusing to give them automatic annual pay rises.
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Qwest boosts bid for MCI to $8.94 billion
Mar 31 2005 9:51PM (CT)
DENVER (AP) - Qwest Communications International Inc. boosted its bid for MCI Inc. again on Thursday, offering $8.94 billion just two days after the long-distance phone company accepted a sweetened $7.51 billion proposal from Verizon Communications Inc.
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Japan, Mexico launch free-trade pact
Mar 31 2005 9:46PM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - Japan and Mexico launched a free trade agreement Friday after nearly three years of discussions and delays, with Tokyo hoping to boost exports of autos and electronics to North America and Mexico betting it can lure investment and export more farm products.
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Report: China faces trade barriers in U.S.
Mar 31 2005 9:44PM (CT)
SHANGHAI, China (AP) - China faces more trade and investment barriers in the United States than anywhere else, a government report said, echoing a similar U.S. report accusing China of harming American businesses through such obstacles.
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Real estate firm wins ATA unit at auction
Mar 31 2005 9:43PM (CT)
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - An Indianapolis real estate investment and management firm, Okun Enterprises Inc., won Thursday's auction of ATA Holdings Inc.'s Chicago Express commuter airline.
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Dollar recovers in Asian trading
Mar 31 2005 9:07PM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - The dollar recovered against the yen in early Friday trading in Asia, after a closely watched survey showed Japanese business sentiments were deteriorating.
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Tokyo stocks higher at midday; dollar up
Mar 31 2005 9:02PM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - Tokyo stocks rose Friday morning on bargain buying, after opening losses triggered by a Bank of Japan survey that reflected weakening business sentiment. The dollar was up against the yen and euro.
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Veteran executives depart Wal-Mart
Mar 31 2005 9:00PM (CT)
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Perhaps it was inevitable. After the decades of expansion that turned Wal-Mart Stores Inc. into the world's largest retailer, the discounter's sales growth is no longer phenomenal, and the culture of founder Sam Walton has started to change.
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Nissan's U.S. sales top 1 million annually
Mar 31 2005 8:56PM (CT)
DETROIT (AP) - Nissan Motor Co.'s annual U.S. sales have topped 1 million for the first time, with the milestone coming in the company's 2004 fiscal year.
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Chip-maker Transmeta reorganizes business
Mar 31 2005 8:54PM (CT)
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - Struggling chip-maker Transmeta Corp. on Thursday announced a major corporate restructuring, a 24 percent reduction in its work force and the hiring of a new chief executive as it tries to survive amid much larger rivals.
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Intel accepts Japan fair-trade order
Mar 31 2005 8:54PM (CT)
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - Accepting the punishment recommended by Japan's fair trade agency, Intel Corp. said Thursday it would change some of its business practices that critics contend gave the chip maker an unfair advantage in the personal computer market.
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ChevronTexaco plans heavy crude project
Mar 31 2005 7:18PM (CT)
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) - ChevronTexaco Corp. is planning a new project with Spain's Repsol YPF to pump heavy crude in Venezuela's Orinoco tar belt, marking the latest interest by major oil firms in Venezuela's vast reserves.
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Canada to slap surtax on American oysters
Mar 31 2005 7:08PM (CT)
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Canada said Thursday it would slap a 15 percent surtax on American oysters in retaliation for an American trade measure the World Trade Organization has ruled illegal.
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World Bank board approves Wolfowitz
Mar 31 2005 6:36PM (CT)
WASHINGTON (AP) - The World Bank's board on Thursday unanimously approved the nomination of Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, an architect of the Iraq war, to be the next president of the 184-nation development bank.
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Thursday's commodities roundup
Mar 31 2005 5:57PM (CT)
CHICAGO (AP) - Crude oil futures rose sharply at the New York Mercantile Exchange Thursday, after a Wall Street firm predicted oil prices could hit $105 a barrel.
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Ex-Tyco Auditor: Knew of 2000 bonuses
Mar 31 2005 5:24PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Tyco International Ltd.'s former lead outside auditor testified Thursday that he was aware of two special bonuses totaling millions of dollars to former top executives L. Dennis Kozlowski and Mark H. Swartz.
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Justice Dept. probes medical ties
Mar 31 2005 5:12PM (CT)
CHICAGO (AP) - A probe by the Department of Justice into makers of orthopedic devices has produced only a handful of subpoenas so far but has raised concerns about the relationship between the companies and the doctors that consult for them.
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Timken boosts profit outlook
Mar 31 2005 5:05PM (CT)
CANTON, Ohio (AP) - Timken Co., a maker of bearings and alloy steel, on Thursday raised its earnings expectations by 50 percent for the first quarter, saying it has benefited from strong demand and increased productivity.
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Cablevision proposes reducing board
Mar 31 2005 5:02PM (CT)
WASHINGTON (AP) - In a move to solidify his control of the board, Cablevision Systems Corp. Chairman Charles Dolan said he plans to propose that the board reduce its size to 12 members from 15.
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Money funds fell in latest week
Mar 31 2005 4:58PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Assets of the nation's retail money market mutual funds fell by $2.16 billion in the latest week to $820.68 billion, the Investment Company Institute said Thursday.
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Rates on 30-year mortgages climb
Mar 31 2005 4:57PM (CT)
WASHINGTON (AP) - Rates on 30-year mortgages climbed this week to their highest point in eight months, hovering just above the 6 percent mark.
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Qwest boosts MCI offer to $8.94 billion
Mar 31 2005 4:47PM (CT)
DENVER (AP) - Qwest Communications International Inc. boosted its offer for MCI Inc. to $8.94 billion Thursday, adding $500 million to its bid to wrest the long-distance phone company away from Verizon Communications Inc.
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Continental pilots approve concessions
Mar 31 2005 4:46PM (CT)
HOUSTON (AP) - Continental Airlines flight attendants rejected a tentative deal to cut wages and benefits, but the nation's fifth-largest carrier said it would implement concessions approved by other unions including those representing pilots and mechanics.
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Lawsuit claims Smith Barney discrimination
Mar 31 2005 4:45PM (CT)
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Four female financial consultants sued Citigroup Inc.'s Smith Barney division on Thursday, accusing the brokerage firm of systematically denying equal opportunities to its women employees.
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Freddie Mac 2004 profit falls sharply
Mar 31 2005 4:43PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Freddie Mac, the government-sponsored finance firm recovering from a massive accounting scandal, said Thursday that its earnings plunged more than 40 percent last year, hurt by a substantial loss on derivative contracts.
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ImClone founder wants sentence shortened
Mar 31 2005 4:42PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Sam Waksal, the biotechnology executive serving seven years in prison in the ImClone Systems stock scandal that ensnared Martha Stewart, has asked a judge to free him.
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Consultants: Wal-Mart needs soul-searching
Mar 31 2005 4:38PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - When Wal-Mart Stores Inc. holds its first-ever media conference in Arkansas next week, image consultants say the company needs to spell out how it is dealing with controversial issues that continue to dog it, from gender discrimination to wage-and-hour violations.
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A.G. Edwards' profit slips
Mar 31 2005 4:17PM (CT)
ST. LOUIS (AP) - A.G. Edwards Inc. on Thursday said profit for its latest quarter fell 7 percent, as it booked charges and was hurt by a drop in commission revenue.
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OPEC reschedules June meeting
Mar 31 2005 4:06PM (CT)
VIENNA, Austria (AP) - The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries has postponed its June meeting by a week because of lack of Vienna hotel rooms on the original date, an OPEC official said Thursday.
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Gulf economies record strong growth
Mar 31 2005 4:05PM (CT)
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) - The economies of Qatar and the United Arab Emirates are booming at record rates of growth, largely owing to high oil prices and their openness to foreign investment.
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AIG may face some pricing pressure
Mar 31 2005 3:57PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - American International Group Inc. has justified its higher rates as the price customers pay for dealing with a company that has the best credit and financial strength ratings in the industry.
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Ford to write a report on global warming
Mar 31 2005 3:56PM (CT)
DETROIT (AP) - Ford Motor Co. said Thursday it will write a report about global warming, including details on emissions from Ford vehicles and factories, in response to complaints from some shareholders that the nation's second biggest automaker isn't doing enough to reduce pollution.
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Blockbuster laying off some HQ staff
Mar 31 2005 3:53PM (CT)
DALLAS (AP) - Blockbuster Inc., nation's largest movie-rental chain, plans to lay off up to 20 percent of its headquarters staff in Dallas and the suburb of McKinney, company officials said.
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U.S. finishes Internet study
Mar 31 2005 3:50PM (CT)
WASHINGTON (AP) - Talk about turning in your homework late: The government just finished a report on Internet traffic that Congress requested seven years ago.
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Court approves US Airways investment
Mar 31 2005 3:49PM (CT)
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) - A bankruptcy judge on Thursday approved plans by a second regional airline to invest $125 million in bankrupt US Airways, moving the carrier closer to obtaining the financing it needs to emerge from Chapter 11 protection.
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Elan shares tumble; drug linked to disease
Mar 31 2005 3:48PM (CT)
DUBLIN, Ireland (AP) - Shares of Irish drug maker Elan Corp. PLC plummeted Thursday after the company confirmed that a third patient taking its suspended multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri had contracted a rare neurological disease.
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CBS hires MarketWatch founder Kramer
Mar 31 2005 3:47PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Viacom Inc., after losing a bidding contest for MarketWatch Inc., hired away the founder of the online financial news provider to run the Internet operations of Viacom's CBS unit.
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Saks, J.C. Penney shares jump on reports
Mar 31 2005 3:35PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Shares of J.C. Penney Co. Inc. and Saks Inc. each climbed more than 8 percent Thursday, fueled by published reports this week that both retailers could be selling their businesses.
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Growers plan fewer soybeans, more corn
Mar 31 2005 3:19PM (CT)
WASHINGTON (AP) - U.S. farmers are afraid of a rapidly spreading soybean disease and are anticipating lower prices, so they are planting fewer soybeans despite a drought that has wreaked havoc on crops in Brazil, the Americans' biggest competitor.
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Wall Street underwriting down
Mar 31 2005 3:15PM (CT)
WASHINGTON (AP) - U.S. investment banks issued 5 percent less stock and bonds so far this year compared to a year ago due to rising interest rates, higher oil prices and a declining stock market.
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SEC charges ex-Cisco employee
Mar 31 2005 3:13PM (CT)
WASHINGTON (AP) - Federal regulators on Thursday charged a former Cisco Systems Inc. employee and two of his brothers with trading on inside information about technology company mergers.
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Ex-Morgan Stanley execs want Purcell out
Mar 31 2005 1:03PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Eight former executives of Morgan Stanley appealed to the investment bank's board for a second time on Thursday to oust Chief Executive Philip Purcell, arguing that the firm has lost its way under his leadership.
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French economy grows 2.4 percent in 2004
Mar 31 2005 12:40PM (CT)
PARIS (AP) - France's economy grew more than expected last year, official data revealed Thursday, but new figures for February and March added to fears of a slowdown in 2005.
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Benetton says 2004 profit up 14 percent
Mar 31 2005 11:47AM (CT)
MILAN, Italy (AP) - Italian retailer Benetton Group SpA said Thursday its profit for 2004 rose 14 percent to 123 million euros ($159.46 million) due to a lower tax rate and fewer one-time charges.
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Gold Fields moves to force strikers back
Mar 31 2005 11:36AM (CT)
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (AP) - Gold Fields Ltd. has obtained a court order to force 30,000 striking miners back to work, the company said Thursday.
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Norwegian co. gets OK for oil terminal
Mar 31 2005 11:29AM (CT)
OSLO, Norway (AP) - A Norwegian company on Thursday said it had gained government approval to open a 1.9 million-barrel-per-month capacity oil shipping terminal in northern Norway to handle Russian crude.
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Bank of Ireland fouls up accounts
Mar 31 2005 11:26AM (CT)
DUBLIN, Ireland (AP) - The Bank of Ireland apologized Thursday for running the same set of electronic payments twice, a goof that brought fleeting joy, or anguish, to an estimated 60,000 households and businesses nationwide.
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Yukos shareholders vow legal action
Mar 31 2005 11:26AM (CT)
MOSCOW (AP) - An investment group said Thursday it was coordinating with a group of minority shareholders to take legal action if their losses from the Kremlin's legal assault on Yukos oil company were not recuperated.
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Shell had reserves of 11.9B barrels
Mar 31 2005 10:54AM (CT)
LONDON (AP) - The Royal Dutch/Shell Group of Cos., still recovering from a scandal that forced it to drastically reduce the level of its proven reserves, revealed Thursday that its oil and gas reserves fell by a further billion barrels last year.
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Appeals court sentences ex-Elf official
Mar 31 2005 10:48AM (CT)
PARIS (AP) - An appeals court on Thursday increased the prison sentence to seven years from four years for a former official at oil company Elf Aquitaine convicted in a massive corruption scandal.
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Hong Kong Disneyland seeks workers
Mar 31 2005 10:34AM (CT)
HONG KONG (AP) - Disney executives on Thursday kicked off a two-month recruitment drive for 3,000 future employees at its Hong Kong theme park set to open in September.
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Winn-Dixie asks to move bankruptcy case
Mar 31 2005 10:33AM (CT)
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) - Winn-Dixie Stores Inc. has asked to transfer its federal bankruptcy case from New York to its home base of Jacksonville, after one of the supermarket chain's creditors accused it of seeking a Northern venue seen as more favorable to struggling companies.
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MyTravel sees positive signs in summer
Mar 31 2005 10:21AM (CT)
LONDON (AP) - Tourism operator MyTravel Group PLC, which came close to bankruptcy last year, said Thursday that bookings for the summer season provided encouraging signs for the company's recovery.
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EU will seek to impose sanctions on U.S.
Mar 31 2005 10:11AM (CT)
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - The European Union head office said Thursday it will seek to impose additional sanctions of up to 15 percent on U.S. products to punish Washington for failing to repeal an antidumping law ruled illegal by the World Trade Organization.
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EU antitrust office OKs Honeywell takeover
Mar 31 2005 10:07AM (CT)
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - The European Union's antitrust office on Thursday said it conditionally approved the acquisition of the British industrial holding company Novar PLC by aerospace and high-tech manufacturer Honeywell International Inc.
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Branson wants flights to India unimpeded
Mar 31 2005 9:57AM (CT)
BOMBAY, India (AP) - British billionaire and Virgin Express Holdings Plc chief Richard Branson on Thursday urged the elimination of barriers on air travel between Britain and India to help increase the number of flights and lower prices.
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InBev closing Toronto's Labatt's brewery
Mar 31 2005 9:46AM (CT)
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - InBev SA, the world's biggest beer producer, said Thursday it was closing the Toronto brewery of its Canadian subsidiary Labatt's by the end of this year, putting 265 people out of work.
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Drug woes cause shares in Elan to tumble
Mar 31 2005 9:42AM (CT)
DUBLIN, Ireland (AP) - Shares in Irish drug maker Elan Corp. PLC lost more than half their value Thursday after the company confirmed that a third patient taking its suspended drug Tysabri had contracted a rare neurological disease.
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German jobless figures drop slightly
Mar 31 2005 9:26AM (CT)
BERLIN (AP) - Germany's jobless rate dipped in March, and the number of unemployed fell from the previous month's post-World War II record, government figures showed Thursday.
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Kazakhstan buys Caspian oil field stake
Mar 31 2005 9:23AM (CT)
ASTANA, Kazakhstan (AP) - Kazakhstan's national oil company said Thursday it has bought half of British Gas Group PLC's 16.67 percent stake in a project to develop a Caspian oil field.
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Jets help Bombardier return to profit
Mar 31 2005 9:21AM (CT)
MONTREAL (AP) - Bombardier Inc., a maker of airplanes and trains, Thursday said it returned to a profit in its latest quarter, helped by an increase in deliveries of business jets.
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Consob rejects Parmalat floatation plan
Mar 31 2005 8:42AM (CT)
ROME (AP) - Italian regulator Consob said Thursday it has rejected Parmalat SpA's proposal to offer shares on the Italian stock market, a decision that could delay by months the dairy company's plans to go public.
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China investigating APP charges
Mar 31 2005 8:23AM (CT)
SHANGHAI, China (AP) - China's State Forestry Administration is investigating charges that Singapore-based Asia Pulp & Paper Co., the world's largest pulp producer, is conducting illegal logging in southwestern China forests, an official said Thursday, warning that violators would be punished.
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ChoicePoint to allow people access
Mar 31 2005 8:06AM (CT)
LOS ANGELES (AP) - An executive of embattled data broker ChoicePoint Inc. said the company is developing a system that would allow people to review their personal information that is sold to law enforcement agencies, employers, landlords and businesses.
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China pledges measures to slow economy
Mar 31 2005 7:51AM (CT)
SHANGHAI, China (AP) - China's top leaders have pledged more curbs on investment, warning that excess spending on steel factories and surging prices for iron ore threaten the economy.
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China Telecom Corp. sees profits double
Mar 31 2005 7:40AM (CT)
HONG KONG (AP) - China Telecom Corp., the country's biggest non-wireless telephone operator, said Thursday its profit doubled last year after it restated its financial statements.
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China denies inaction on product piracy
Mar 31 2005 7:31AM (CT)
BEIJING (AP) - China on Thursday denied U.S. accusations that it is failing to stop product piracy, insisting it is aggressively fighting the problem to protect both Chinese and foreign companies.
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Norway predicts continued high oil prices
Mar 31 2005 7:13AM (CT)
OSLO, Norway (AP) - Oil prices are likely to remain high, and there is nothing Norway can do to increase supplies because the nation's offshore fields are already producing at full capacity, oil minister Thorhild Widvey said Thursday.
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Enel to discuss bids for mobile operator
Mar 31 2005 7:01AM (CT)
ROME (AP) - The chief executive of Enel SpA said he plans discuss bids for Wind SpA, Italy's third-largest mobile operator owned by the Italian power company, at a board meeting.
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GM names new leader for China operations
Mar 31 2005 6:43AM (CT)
SHANGHAI, China (AP) - General Motors Corp., the world's biggest automaker, said Thursday it has named a top executive from its European operations as president of its business in China.
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McDonald's in Japan unveils new strategy
Mar 31 2005 6:38AM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - McDonald's is adding a vegetarian bagel sandwich to its menu in Japan and signing on a figure-skating star to promote its healthier message as the U.S. fast-food chain continues its turnaround after years of losses.
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Sony forms joint venture to make LCDs
Mar 31 2005 6:29AM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - Japanese electronics maker Sony Corp. said Thursday it has formed a joint venture with a Japanese machinery maker to make liquid crystal displays for use in digital cameras and camcorders.
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Dollar mixed in European trading
Mar 31 2005 6:04AM (CT)
LONDON (AP) - The U.S. dollar was mixed Thursday morning against other major currencies in European trading. Gold prices rose.
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Lawsuits challenge species protections
Mar 31 2005 4:00AM (CT)
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - A conservative legal foundation has filed twin federal lawsuits challenging federal protections for 42 species _ 15 of which live only in shallow seasonal pools across much of California and in far southern Oregon.
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Northwest said to suspend union official
Mar 31 2005 3:54AM (CT)
EAGAN, Minn. (AP) - The president of the Twin Cities mechanics union at Northwest Airlines has been suspended by the airline for questioning the safety of outsourced aircraft repairs, the union said.
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