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Microsoft shares sink more than 11 pct.
Apr 28 2006 11:51PM (CT)
SEATTLE (AP) - Microsoft Corp. shares sank more than 11 percent to a new 52-week low Friday after the company said it planned to significantly beef up investments in many areas where it is not dominant, but refused to provide details.
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Meat companies planning plant closures
Apr 28 2006 11:14PM (CT)
DENVER (AP) - Some of the nation's largest meatpacking companies plan to shut down plants Monday, anticipating many of their workers will attend immigration rallies that day.
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Fannie Mae CEO's Bonus Target At $2.61M
Apr 28 2006 6:58PM (CT)
WASHINGTON (AP) - Fannie Mae set the 2006 target bonus of Chief Executive Daniel H. Mudd at 2.75 times his salary, or $2.61 million, and added a new performance goal.
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Gates, N.Y. Times tout 'onscreen reader'
Apr 28 2006 6:47PM (CT)
SEATTLE (AP) - Microsoft Corp. Chairman Bill Gates told a ballroom full of newspaper editors Friday he's developing "onscreen reader" software that will make reading news digitally a lot more like flipping through a paper.
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Judge allows racial bias suit to proceed
Apr 28 2006 6:47PM (CT)
LOS ANGELES (AP) - The first racial discrimination case brought by the government against a movie studio can proceed to trial, a federal judge ruled.
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Hyundai Motor chairman jailed in S. Korea
Apr 28 2006 6:14PM (CT)
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - The chairman of Hyundai Motor Co. was arrested and jailed Friday in an embezzlement and slush fund scandal engulfing South Korea's largest automaker.
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Krispy Kreme restates '03-'05 income
Apr 28 2006 5:59PM (CT)
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - A long-awaited restatement of doughnut maker Krispy Kreme's earnings has reduced its pre-tax income by $34 million from fiscal 2003 to the third quarter of fiscal 2005, the company said Friday.
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Lay's aggression on stand may hurt him
Apr 28 2006 5:53PM (CT)
HOUSTON (AP) - Enron Corp. founder Kenneth Lay was expected to charm jurors the same way he spent decades charming politicians, analysts, investors and employees.
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Company may close tire plant in Oklahoma
Apr 28 2006 5:24PM (CT)
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Bridgestone/Firestone's Dayton Tire plant, hit by overseas competition and shrinking demand, has been racking up millions of dollars in losses and may have to be closed, company officials said Friday.
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Delta CFO made more than $826,000 in 2005
Apr 28 2006 5:07PM (CT)
ATLANTA (AP) - The chief financial officer of Delta Air Lines Inc., Edward Bastian, earned more than $826,000 in total compensation last year, the bankrupt carrier said in a regulatory filing Friday that also detailed pay figures for the company's top executive.
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Delphi sees $56 million loss in March
Apr 28 2006 5:02PM (CT)
DETROIT (AP) - Auto parts supplier Delphi Corp., which is restructuring under bankruptcy protection, said Friday it lost $56 million in March.
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Bonds extend climb
Apr 28 2006 4:56PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Bond prices climbed Friday, as investors continued adjusting to comments Thursday from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke suggesting it is close to a pause in its rate tightening cycle.
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GM chief's '05 compensation cut in half
Apr 28 2006 4:52PM (CT)
DETROIT (AP) - General Motors Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Rick Wagoner's 2005 compensation was cut by almost half as the automaker lost billions of dollars and its credit rating was slashed to junk status, according to a proxy statement filed Friday with federal regulators.
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Oil prices rise as IAEA finds Iran defiant
Apr 28 2006 4:49PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Crude futures rose Friday, on oil supply worries after the International Atomic Energy Agency said Iran defied the U.N. Security Council by enriching uranium.
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Chevron 1Q earnings soar 49 pct. to $4B
Apr 28 2006 4:47PM (CT)
SAN RAMON, Calif. (AP) - Chevron Corp.'s first-quarter profit soared 49 percent to $4 billion, joining the procession of U.S. oil companies to report colossal earnings as lawmakers consider ways to pacify motorists agitated about rising gas prices.
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U.S. weekly oil and gas rig count up
Apr 28 2006 4:20PM (CT)
HOUSTON (AP) - The number of rigs actively exploring for oil and natural gas in the United States this week rose by 17 to 1,608.
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Stocks end lower on Microsoft, oil prices
Apr 28 2006 4:18PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Stocks finished mostly lower Friday as rising oil prices and a tepid outlook from Microsoft Corp. dampened Wall Street's reaction to a rebound in first-quarter economic growth. The major indexes ended mixed for the week and for April.
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Netflix to raise more than $100 million
Apr 28 2006 4:14PM (CT)
LOS GATOS, Calif. (AP) - Online DVD rental pioneer Netflix Inc. said Friday it will raise $105 million for its expansion plans by selling an additional 3.5 million shares at $30 each.
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Q&A: New ADM CEO sees growth potential
Apr 28 2006 4:09PM (CT)
CHICAGO (AP) - Patricia Woertz, the newly appointed president and chief executive officer of Archer Daniels Midland Co., is switching industries from oil and gas to agribusiness as she takes over as only the eighth CEO in the company's 104-year history.
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Spain's Santander reports 1Q profit up
Apr 28 2006 4:06PM (CT)
MADRID, Spain (AP) - Spain's Banco Santander Central Hispano SA, the biggest bank in the zone of 12 nations that use the common euro currency, Friday posted a 26 percent rise in first-quarter net profit, lifted by strong lending growth in Latin America and Spain.
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Prudential raises rating on major banks
Apr 28 2006 4:04PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Prudential Equity Group analyst Michael L. Mayo on Friday raised his rating on the nation's five largest banks to "neutral" from "unfavorable," his first upgrade for the money center banking sector in seven years.
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VW 1Q profit more than quadruples
Apr 28 2006 4:01PM (CT)
BERLIN (AP) - Automaker Volkswagen AG said Friday its net profit more than quadruple in the first quarter amid sharply higher sales and strengthening worldwide auto markets.
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Labopharm rises in trading debut
Apr 28 2006 3:57PM (CT)
WASHINGTON (AP) - Canadian pharmaceutical company Labopharm Inc.'s stock rose in its trading debut Friday, while shares of CPI International Inc., which makes microwave and radio-frequency products, were flat.
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Pinnacle ups bid for Aztar to $48 per share
Apr 28 2006 3:55PM (CT)
LAS VEGAS (AP) - Pinnacle Entertainment Inc. raised its bid to $48 per share in cash and stock Friday to buy casino operator Aztar Corp., trumping Ameristar Casino Inc.'s latest offer.
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AT&T holders reject exec pay resolutions
Apr 28 2006 3:54PM (CT)
SAN ANTONIO (AP) - Three resolutions to limit executive and director pay were soundly defeated Friday at the shareholders meeting of AT&T Inc., whose chief executive has become a target for critics of excessive compensation.
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Consumers are price shopping for gas
Apr 28 2006 3:54PM (CT)
LOS ANGELES (AP) - At a time when it's costing him $40 to fill up and keep his aging maroon Mercury Sable on the road, Brian Graves has learned to drive with financial defensiveness, keeping one eye on the highway and the other on prices posted in front of the gas stations.
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7 Ford plants to resume production Monday
Apr 28 2006 3:51PM (CT)
DETROIT (AP) - Ford Motor Co. plans to resume production at seven idled plants on Monday after fixing a problem that was discovered in its engine transmissions, a spokeswoman for the automaker said Friday.
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Smithfield says 4Q profit will decline
Apr 28 2006 3:49PM (CT)
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Smithfield Foods Inc., the world's largest pork processor, said Friday it expects its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings to fall far short of Wall Street's expectations due to plummeting hog prices.
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Euro rises above $1.26
Apr 28 2006 2:29PM (CT)
BERLIN (AP) - The euro rose above $1.26 for the first time in 11 months on Friday, after the Federal Reserve signaled that the U.S. central bank may halt its series of interest rate increases.
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Guilty plea marks stunning fall for Kumar
Apr 28 2006 2:24PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - The financial scandal was already engulfing Computer Associates in 2003 when Chief Executive Sanjay Kumar vowed at a conference on corporate governance that he would make the software giant the "gold standard" in the industry when it comes to ethics.
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Gold prices hit quarter-century records
Apr 28 2006 1:33PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Gold prices rose Friday to levels not seen in a quarter century, after a further fall by the dollar against the euro and ongoing political tension in the Middle East attracted investors to the metal.
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Yell buys stake in Telefonica unit
Apr 28 2006 12:32PM (CT)
LONDON (AP) - Yell Group PLC said Friday it has agreed to buy a majority stake in the telephone directories arm of Spain's Telefonica SA and announced a 3.07 billion euros ($3.85 billion) takeover bid for the entire division.
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Customer-hungry banks offering rewards
Apr 28 2006 11:40AM (CT)
CLEVELAND (AP) - A trip to the islands for paying the water bill. Free coffee and pasta dinners for grocery shopping. A clothing store gift card for picking up dry cleaning.
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Avon 1Q profit slides 67 percent
Apr 28 2006 11:00AM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Avon Products Inc., the world's biggest direct seller of beauty products, said Friday its first-quarter profit slid 67 percent, mostly due to charges from a restructuring program aimed at reviving flagging sales.
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Microsoft shares drop after 3Q report
Apr 28 2006 10:40AM (CT)
SEATTLE (AP) - Shares of Microsoft Corp. tumbled 11 percent Friday, after the world's largest software maker reported third-quarter profit that missed Wall Street expectations and lowered its earnings guidance.
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Government takes over Aloha Air pension
Apr 28 2006 10:34AM (CT)
WASHINGTON (AP) - A federal agency announced Friday that it has taken responsibility for three pension plans covering nearly 4,000 workers and retirees of Aloha Airlines, which recently emerged from bankruptcy protection.
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China signs oil deal with Kenya
Apr 28 2006 10:22AM (CT)
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) - Chinese President Hu Jintao on Friday finalized another oil deal in Africa, the poorest and most corrupt continent in the world but one that is rich in natural resources.
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Holders back Arcelor board in Mittal fight
Apr 28 2006 10:16AM (CT)
LUXEMBOURG (AP) - Arcelor SA's board won support from shareholders Friday as the steelmaker defended its actions to protect itself from a 19 billion euro ($23 billion) takeover bid from rival Mittal Steel Co.
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Tyson to shut some plants during rallies
Apr 28 2006 10:06AM (CT)
SPRINGDALE, Ark. (AP) - Tyson Foods Inc., the world's largest meat producer, says it will temporarily shut down nine of its beef and pork plants Monday because many of the workers plan to attend immigration rallies.
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German gov't raises '06 economic forecast
Apr 28 2006 9:14AM (CT)
BERLIN (AP) - The German government raised its growth forecast for this year to 1.6 percent from 1.4 percent on Friday but remained less optimistic than many private economists.
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Tsingtao Brewery says 1Q profit up
Apr 28 2006 9:10AM (CT)
HONG KONG (AP) - Tsingtao Brewery Co., China's largest beer maker by revenue, said its first-quarter net profit rose 8.7 percent from the same period last year on higher beer sales.
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S.Korea retailer to buy Carrefour unit
Apr 28 2006 8:51AM (CT)
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - The South Korean retailer E.Land Group has agreed to buy the South Korean unit of French retailer Carrefour SA for 1.75 trillion won ($1.9 billion), the companies said Friday.
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Puma shows net profit growth of 2.5 pct.
Apr 28 2006 7:20AM (CT)
BERLIN (AP) - Shoe maker Puma on Friday reported first-quarter net profit rose 2.5 percent as sales boomed in the U.S. and Asia, and raised its forecast for sales and earnings for the rest of the year.
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Microsoft appeals ruling and record fine
Apr 28 2006 6:59AM (CT)
LUXEMBOURG (AP) - Microsoft Corp. lawyers said Friday that the record antitrust fine levied against the company in 2004 should be tossed out, or at least greatly reduced, because the punishment outweighed the infraction.
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Sinopec sees 3.6 pct. drop in 1Q profit
Apr 28 2006 6:27AM (CT)
HONG KONG (AP) - China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., Asia's largest refiner by capacity, said Friday its first-quarter net profit fell 3.6 percent from a year earlier, as oil price rises were unable to offset losses in its refining operation.
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Net profit at Nomura jumps fivefold
Apr 28 2006 6:19AM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - Japan's top brokerage, Nomura Holdings Inc., said Friday its profit jumped fivefold in the January-March quarter, generated by an increase in trading fees amid the booming Tokyo stock market.
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U.S., Canada make softwood lumber deal
Apr 28 2006 6:10AM (CT)
WASHINGTON (AP) - It won't provide much relief to the wallets of U.S. home buyers, but an agreement on softwood lumber will resolve a major trade irritant that has roiled relations between the United States and Canada for more than two decades.
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Iran to invest $600M in Indonesian fuels
Apr 28 2006 5:58AM (CT)
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will sign $600 million in investments in Indonesia's gas and oil sector during a state visit next month, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said Friday.
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Toshiba's quarterly profit rises 16 pct.
Apr 28 2006 5:43AM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - Toshiba Corp. said Friday its net profit rose 16 percent in the most recent quarter on strong chip sales, and predicted earnings would grow 12 percent this fiscal year.
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Kia Motors 1Q profit plummets 80 percent
Apr 28 2006 5:26AM (CT)
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - Kia Motors Corp., South Korea's second-largest automaker, on Friday reported that net profit plunged in the first quarter as the strong Korean won hit the company's bottom line despite higher sales.
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Mazda reports 46 percent jump in profit
Apr 28 2006 5:13AM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - Japanese automaker Mazda Motor Corp. said Friday profit jumped 46 percent last fiscal year on rising sales and a one-time gain, and predicted net income would climb another 12 percent in the current business year.
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Nippon Steel sales offset by higher costs
Apr 28 2006 5:11AM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - Japan's top steel maker Nippon Steel said Friday profit was flat in the most recent quarter compared to a year ago as solid sales of high-grade steel products offset higher costs of raw materials.
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Matsushita's profits rise on healthy sales
Apr 28 2006 5:03AM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. swung back into the black during the latest quarter and saw its profit for the fiscal year more than double on healthy sales of plasma display panel TVs, digital cameras and other gadgets.
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Sony stock falls after earnings report
Apr 28 2006 4:14AM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - Sony shares tumbled 5 percent Friday, a day after the Japanese electronics and entertainment company reported that its losses widened in the most recent quarter.
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Japanese stocks fall 1.22 percent
Apr 28 2006 4:03AM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - Japanese stocks dropped to their lowest in a month Friday, with worries about the rising yen offsetting a stream of upbeat economic data. Sony's shares plunged over 5 percent.
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Study: Harvest time critical for peanuts
Apr 28 2006 3:53AM (CT)
ALBANY, Ga. (AP) - The timing of the peanut harvest can determine whether peanut butter is a roasted-tasting treat or a pain in the palate, according to a new study.
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Bank of Japan keeps 0 percent rate policy
Apr 28 2006 3:13AM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - Japan's central bank decided kept its easy money policy in place Friday, cooling jitters about a possible interest rate hike in the face of fresh economic figures that show Japanese inflation is picking up.
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Court OKs Adelphia's $1.2B credit payments
Apr 28 2006 2:51AM (CT)
GREENWOOD VILLAGE, Colo. (AP) - A bankruptcy judge in New York on Thursday approved Adelphia Communications Corp.'s $1.23 billion in interest payments to unsecured creditors, a step toward its acquisition by Time Warner Inc. and Comcast Corp.
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Company loses LIRR workers' personal data
Apr 28 2006 12:02AM (CT)
BOSTON (AP) - A company that stores records for the Long Island Railroad lost personal data including Social Security numbers for about 17,000 of the transit agency's current and former employees, apparently while the information was being delivered by a driver.
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