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Cardinal rebounds after turbulent year
Jul 14 2005 11:58PM (CT)
DUBLIN, Ohio (AP) - Medical supplier Cardinal Health Inc. is showing signs of stabilizing after a turbulent year marked by an embarrassing accounting scandal, falling earnings and a plummeting stock price.
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Delta raises fare cap, competitors follow
Jul 14 2005 11:36PM (CT)
ATLANTA (AP) - Delta Air Lines Inc. blamed persistently high fuel costs Thursday as the nation's third-biggest carrier raised the cap on its most expensive fares by $100, a move that was quickly matched by several rivals. Airline stocks rose on the news.
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Consumer inflation absent again in June
Jul 14 2005 11:31PM (CT)
WASHINGTON (AP) - Consumer prices in June were well-behaved for a second month, while consumer spending revved up overall economic activity. Two government reports released Thursday showed that inflationary pressures were contained in June. At the same time, consumers hit the shopping malls and dealer showrooms, spurred by the start of summer and attractive auto incentives.
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Ex-Enron exec pleads guilty to conspiracy
Jul 14 2005 11:08PM (CT)
HOUSTON (AP) - A former Enron vice president has pleaded guilty to participating in a scheme to recognize earnings prematurely and improperly.
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Report: Mittal buys stake in China's steel
Jul 14 2005 11:07PM (CT)
BEIJING (AP) - Dutch company Mittal Steel Co., the world's biggest steel maker, has made its first investment in China, buying a 37 percent share of a state-owned steel mill, according to a news report Friday.
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Samsung Electronics 2Q profit falls 46 pct
Jul 14 2005 11:02PM (CT)
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - Samsung Electronics Co., the world's largest memory chipmaker, said Friday that second-quarter profit fell 46 percent, amid a sharp decline in chip prices.
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Oil prices up to $58 a barrel in Asia
Jul 14 2005 10:51PM (CT)
SINGAPORE (AP) - Crude futures bounced back in Asia Friday, reversing losses in New York, as signs began to emerge that oil exports from Mexico and Venezuela could be hurt by hurricanes in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico.
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Japanese stocks rise, dollar up vs yen
Jul 14 2005 10:00PM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - Japanese stocks rose Friday morning, boosted by sharp gains Thursday on Wall Street. Those advances and positive U.S. economic data also lifted the dollar against the yen.
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Venezuela tax agency takes documents
Jul 14 2005 9:53PM (CT)
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) - Venezuela's tax authority confiscated tax-related documents at Chevron Corp.'s administrative offices on Thursday, the state-run news agency reported.
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Citigroup President stepping down
Jul 14 2005 9:00PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Citigroup Inc.'s president and chief operating officer, Robert B. Willumstad, has decided to step down from those positions to seek the top job at a public company, the financial services giant announced Thursday.
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No verdict in Enron broadband case
Jul 14 2005 8:30PM (CT)
HOUSTON (AP) - Jurors deliberated for about 6 1/2 hours Thursday without reaching a verdict in a federal conspiracy and fraud case involving five former executives of Enron Corp.'s defunct broadband unit.
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Internet audio craze spurs a land grab
Jul 14 2005 8:22PM (CT)
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - The runaway popularity of blogging, which has turned everyday people into online news outlets, caught the media establishment off guard. The industry is trying not to make the same mistake with podcasting _ which lets nearly anyone "broadcast" on the Internet.
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Nation's first Vioxx trial begins
Jul 14 2005 8:15PM (CT)
ANGLETON, Texas (AP) - The nation's first Vioxx-related lawsuit to go to trial opened Thursday with the plaintiff's lawyer contending that Merck & Co. traded its mission of treating sickness for relentless marketing and pursuit of profits.
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United seeking $310 million
Jul 14 2005 7:16PM (CT)
CHICAGO (AP) - UAL Corp., parent of United Airlines, said in court documents Thursday that it needs another $310 million in bankruptcy loans to provide a "stable environment" as the company works on its reorganization plan.
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Franklin Resources co-CEO leaving
Jul 14 2005 6:41PM (CT)
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Franklin Resources Inc. co-CEO Martin Flanagan is leaving the mutual fund family for another job, breaking up a management duo that steered the company through government inquiries into alleged trading and sales abuses that cost $88 million to resolve.
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Varig restarts talks with Portual's TAP
Jul 14 2005 5:39PM (CT)
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AP) - Brazil's Varig airlines has restarted talks with TAP Air Portugal in an effort to save the debt-laden Brazilian carrier from bankruptcy, a top executive said Thursday.
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Money funds fall in latest week
Jul 14 2005 5:18PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Assets of the nation's retail money market mutual funds fell by $2.73 billion in the latest week to $807.52 billion, the Investment Company Institute said Thursday.
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Bonds fall, shrugging off inflation report
Jul 14 2005 5:03PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Bond prices fell slightly Thursday despite a benign inflation report. The price of the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell 3/16 point, or $1.88 per $1,000 in face value. Its yield, which moves in the opposite direction, rose to 4.18 percent compared with 4.16 percent late Wednesday.
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Thursday's Commodities roundup
Jul 14 2005 5:00PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - Crude-oil futures in New York lost more than $2 on the barrel Thursday, settling at a two-week low amid rising oil inventories and a sharp recovery in oil and natural gas production in the Gulf of Mexico.
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GOP leaders consider China trade bill
Jul 14 2005 4:45PM (CT)
WASHINGTON (AP) - House Republicans picked up at least one vote Thursday in their struggle to win approval of the Central America Free Trade Agreement with a promise to take up separate legislation homing in on trade abuses in China.
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Profits down at Fifth Third Bancorp
Jul 14 2005 4:37PM (CT)
CINCINNATI (AP) - Financial services company Fifth Third Bancorp said Thursday that its second-quarter profit fell 7 percent because of low long-term interest rates and slower-than-expected deposit growth.
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Whirlpool employees claim discrimination
Jul 14 2005 4:29PM (CT)
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Fifteen black employees at a Whirlpool Corp. factory are moving ahead with a two-year-old federal lawsuit, after mediation talks failed to resolve claims they have been passed over for promotions and subjected to racial discrimination.
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AMD shares rise after beating forecast
Jul 14 2005 4:25PM (CT)
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - Shares of Advanced Micro Devices Inc. rose Thursday after the company said its second-quarter profit fell 65 percent but beat Wall Street expectations as the chipmaker reported record microprocessor sales and a drop in flash memory chip revenue.
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Bush lobbies for CAFTA in N.C.
Jul 14 2005 4:22PM (CT)
BELMONT, N.C. (AP) - After suffering through thousands of job losses when textile plants closed after the North American Free Trade Agreement, the people of North Carolina's mill towns can't be expected to rally behind another free-trade deal.
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Woman says Merck depended on animal study
Jul 14 2005 4:20PM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - In a new twist in the thousands of lawsuits filed against Merck & Co. over its now withdrawn pain reliever, Vioxx, a suit filed this week insists the pharmaceutical maker relied too heavily on animal studies to support the drug's safety.
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Panel discussing cell phones on planes
Jul 14 2005 4:11PM (CT)
WASHINGTON (AP) - Airline passengers who cringe at the idea of seatmates with cell phones have a friend in the House's top lawmaker on aviation issues.
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UnitedHealth 2Q profit jumps on growth
Jul 14 2005 3:45PM (CT)
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - UnitedHealth Group Inc., the nation's second-largest health insurer, said Thursday second-quarter earnings rose 36 percent from last year as it added members across its businesses.
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Mediators offer arbitration in NWA talks
Jul 14 2005 3:44PM (CT)
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - Mediators offered binding arbitration to Northwest Airlines Corp. and its mechanics on Thursday, a sign that talks have broken down.
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Potter retailers wage dark war for profits
Jul 14 2005 3:36PM (CT)
LONDON (AP) - As fans desperate to read the latest adventures of schoolboy wizard Harry Potter place orders for the new book due out Saturday, bookshops and other sellers are practicing some dark arts to ensure a share of the profits.
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Brazil minister says no AIDS drug deal
Jul 14 2005 2:32PM (CT)
BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) - Brazil's new health minister denied reports that an agreement was reached with a U.S. pharmaceutical manufacturer that would avert the country's plan to break an AIDS drug patent, despite the ministry's earlier statement that such a deal was finalized.
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Outlook for auto suppliers is poor
Jul 14 2005 2:16PM (CT)
DETROIT (AP) - Auto production cuts and an uncertain sales forecast will plague auto suppliers for the rest of this year, and the outlook for 2006 isn't much brighter, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said Thursday in a new report.
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Wal-Mart files papers against fired VP
Jul 14 2005 1:39PM (CT)
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said in a filing Thursday that a fired vice president who claims he deserves whistle-blower protection was dishonest, repeating claims that he helped cover up a colleague's scheme to pocket cash from gift cards and fake invoices.
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Southwest 2Q profit jumps 41 percent
Jul 14 2005 1:26PM (CT)
DALLAS (AP) - Low-cost carrier Southwest Airlines Co. said Thursday that second-quarter profit rose 41 percent from a year ago, as fare increases helped offset a 25 percent rise in fuel costs per gallon. Its shares climbed more than 4 percent.
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FCC delays work on media ownership rules
Jul 14 2005 1:21PM (CT)
WASHINGTON (AP) - Federal regulators on Thursday delayed the start of work on new, widely-awaited rules to loosen decades-old limits on how many broadcast stations and newspapers a company can own.
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SAIC signs letter of intent to make bid
Jul 14 2005 1:08PM (CT)
LONDON (AP) - Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp., which precipitated the collapse of MG Rover Group Ltd. earlier this year when it pulled out of merger talks, put itself back in the picture as a possible rescuer Thursday.
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Knight Ridder earnings drop 13.8 percent
Jul 14 2005 12:54PM (CT)
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - Knight Ridder Inc., one of the nation's largest newspaper publishers, said Thursday that second-quarter earnings fell 13.8 percent from a year ago, due in part to declines in circulation revenue as well as increased severance costs.
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EMI says Coldplay album lifts revenue
Jul 14 2005 12:42PM (CT)
LONDON (AP) - Music company EMI Group PLC on Thursday credited big sales of the new albums from Coldplay and Gorillaz for pushing revenues and operating profits for the fiscal year ahead of the same period last year.
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Apple shares surge after record quarter
Jul 14 2005 12:31PM (CT)
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - Shares of Apple Computer Inc. surged Thursday after the company reported its best quarterly profit ever, with revenue up 75 percent as sales of its iPod music player continue to be brisk.
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Ex-Qwest CFO pleads guilty to charge
Jul 14 2005 12:06PM (CT)
DENVER (AP) - A former Qwest Communications International Inc. chief financial officer pleaded guilty Thursday to a single count of insider trading, becoming the highest-ranking officer to admit to wrongdoing in a scandal that forced the telephone company to erase billions of dollars in revenue.
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Tribune's 2Q earnings more than double
Jul 14 2005 11:48AM (CT)
CHICAGO (AP) - Tribune Co. said Thursday that second-quarter earnings more than doubled from a year ago, despite a 2.3 percent drop in revenue from stagnant advertising sales and a drop in circulation across its 11 daily newspapers.
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Enron directors vote for pay raise
Jul 14 2005 11:36AM (CT)
HOUSTON (AP) - The five-member Enron Corp. board of directors has voted for pay raises that boost salaries by as much as $1 million.
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Royal Dutch/Shell estimates on project cost
Jul 14 2005 11:32AM (CT)
LONDON (AP) - The Royal Dutch/Shell Group of Cos. revealed Thursday that the cost of developing its oil and gas fields on Russia's Sakhalin island, one of its flagship projects, has likely doubled to around $20 billion.
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Marriott 2Q earnings slip on charges
Jul 14 2005 11:15AM (CT)
COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) - Marriott International Inc., the world's largest hotel operator by sales, said Thursday its second-quarter earnings fell 14 percent because of charges related to a recent hotel acquisition and an incentive program to upgrade bedding at franchisees.
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Ex-Qwest CFO pleads guilty on charge
Jul 14 2005 10:49AM (CT)
DENVER (AP) - A former Qwest Communications International Inc. chief financial officer pleaded guilty Thursday to a single county of insider trading, becoming the highest-ranking officer to admit to wrongdoing in the government's sprawling fraud investigation of the Denver-based company.
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Russian court ends limit on back-tax checks
Jul 14 2005 10:44AM (CT)
MOSCOW (AP) - Russia's Constitutional Court ruled Thursday that tax authorities could probe companies' tax history beyond the current three-year statute of limitations, a move that appeared to run counter to promises by President Vladimir Putin to rein in overzealous tax inspectors.
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Brazil to pay $5.12B in advance to IMF
Jul 14 2005 10:37AM (CT)
SAO PAULO, Brazil (AP) - Brazil has decided to pay part of the $20.75 it still owes the International Monetary Fund seven months ahead of schedule.
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FCC pulls media ownership discussion
Jul 14 2005 10:04AM (CT)
WASHINGTON (AP) - In a sign of the political difficulty the Federal Communications Commission faces in crafting new media ownership rules, the agency on Thursday pulled the issue from the agenda for its monthly meeting.
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EU Commission rebukes Britain on cuts
Jul 14 2005 9:59AM (CT)
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - The European Commission rebuked Britain on Thursday for proposed cuts in next year's European Union budget, saying they would undermine efforts to help poor nations and modernize Europe's economy.
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InBev reports increase in volume sales
Jul 14 2005 9:41AM (CT)
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - Belgium-based brewer InBev SA reported a 5.4 percent growth in volume sales in the first half of this year, fueled by big increases in beer consumption in Latin America, Russia and Ukraine.
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N.Y. authorizes out-of-state wine shipments
Jul 14 2005 9:24AM (CT)
LODI, N.Y. (AP) - Gov. George Pataki has authorized the direct shipment of wines into and out of New York, signaling a new era for state wineries hampered by alcoholic beverage laws dating back to the repeal of Prohibition in 1933.
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McClatchy Co. posts higher 2Q earnings
Jul 14 2005 9:13AM (CT)
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - Newspaper publisher The McClatchy Co. posted a 10 percent gain in second-quarter earnings Thursday compared with the same period a year ago, when results were weighed down by a charge.
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Hynix says STMicro wants to expand alliance
Jul 14 2005 8:34AM (CT)
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - Shares of Hynix Semiconductor Inc. surged 8.4 percent Thursday after the Korean chipmaker said it has been approached by Switzerland's STMicroelectronics NV to begin talks on expanding an alliance in the memory chip business.
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EU posts 1Q growth of 0.5 percent
Jul 14 2005 8:34AM (CT)
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - The European Union said gross domestic product in the euro zone and in the EU as a whole grew by 0.5 percent in the first quarter.
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EU Commission warns Italy against delays
Jul 14 2005 8:19AM (CT)
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - The European Commission told the Bank of Italy on Thursday it must respect EU rules in considering the bid by Spanish bank Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA for control for Banca Nazionale del Lavoro.
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Japan OKs Teikoku Oil's drilling request
Jul 14 2005 8:14AM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - Japan on Thursday approved a request by Teikoku Oil Co. to drill for natural gas in the East China Sea along a disputed sea border with China, prompting Beijing to warn about the possibility of worsening ties.
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Japan's high court rejects suit appeal
Jul 14 2005 7:57AM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - Japan's Supreme Court on Thursday rejected the government's appeal in a lawsuit filed by a group of former miners and their relatives over lung ailments the miners suffered after working at a northern Japan coal mine decades ago, news reports said.
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Ukraine's economic growth slows down
Jul 14 2005 7:55AM (CT)
KIEV, Ukraine (AP) - Ukraine's economy grew just 4 percent in the first six months of 2005, the government said Thursday, a sharp downturn from the rapid growth reported by the former government over the same period a year earlier.
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U.K. financial watchdog fines MyTravel
Jul 14 2005 7:48AM (CT)
LONDON (AP) - The Financial Services Authority said Thursday that it has fined tourism operator MyTravel Group PLC 240,000 pounds ($420,000) for failing to tell the stock market about a change in its profit expectations.
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Maersk to end some of its P&O alliances
Jul 14 2005 7:31AM (CT)
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) - A.P. Moeller-Maersk A/S will cancel some of Royal P&O Nedlloyd NV's commercial alliances to appease European Union regulators ahead of its planned takeover of the Dutch rival.
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Telekom Austria closes purchase of Mobiltel
Jul 14 2005 7:18AM (CT)
SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) - Austria's largest phone company, Telekom Austria AG, said Thursday it has completed its acquisition of Bulgaria's largest cell-phone carrier, Mobiltel AD, for up to 1.6 billion euro ($1.95 billion) .
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Japan bankruptcies rise in June
Jul 14 2005 7:17AM (CT)
TOKYO (AP) - Bankruptcies in Japan rose 29.3 percent in June from a month ago to 794 cases, reflecting a sharp rise in filings from the construction and retail industries, a private credit research agency said Thursday.
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EU high court upholds fines on producers
Jul 14 2005 7:02AM (CT)
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - The European Union's high court on Thursday dismissed appeals launched by Spanish, German and Italian stainless-steel producers against antitrust fines imposed by EU regulators.
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Russian court upholds exec's sentence
Jul 14 2005 7:01AM (CT)
MOSCOW (AP) - The Russian Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a 20-year prison sentence for a former Yukos oil executive convicted on murder and other charges.
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Competition slashing costs of broadband
Jul 14 2005 6:48AM (CT)
PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Telephone and cable TV companies are slashing broadband prices and boosting connection speeds as the two monopoly-prone industries prepare to lock horns on multiple fronts.
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Russian prime minister: Economy grows
Jul 14 2005 6:26AM (CT)
MOSCOW (AP) - Russia's economy grew by 5.4 percent through the first six months of this year, Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov said Thursday.
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Unocal may see richer offer from CNOOC
Jul 14 2005 5:49AM (CT)
LOS ANGELES (AP) - The battle for Unocal Corp. is shaping up as a clash of money and the politics of national security. According to news reports Thursday, CNOOC Ltd.'s board has given executives approval to increase its $18.5 billion bid for Unocal and agreed to pay the U.S. oil company's shareholders up to $2.5 billion if it is unable to close any deal to acquire Unocal.
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WorldCom's Ebbers gets 25 years, weeps
Jul 14 2005 5:32AM (CT)
NEW YORK (AP) - It was the stiffest sentence yet in the recent spate of corporate scandals _ a term tough enough to reduce once-swaggering former WorldCom chief Bernard Ebbers to tears in the courtroom.
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Korean stocks climb to 10-year high
Jul 14 2005 4:19AM (CT)
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - South Korea's benchmark stock index rose its highest level in more than 10 years Thursday, lifted by an 8.4 percent jump in Hynix Semiconductor Inc. on news of a possible expansion in its alliance with Switzerland's STMicroelectronics NV in the memory chip business.
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Novartis posts 9 pct. rise in 2Q profit
Jul 14 2005 4:19AM (CT)
BASEL, Switzerland (AP) - Novartis AG posted a second-quarter net profit of $1.65 billion on Thursday, up 9 percent due to strong sales of its prescription drugs.
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Ill. proves ripe for new crop of wineries
Jul 14 2005 2:33AM (CT)
CARBONDALE, Ill. (AP) - From his vantage point in southern Illinois, Jim Ewers doesn't think adding his new winery to the state's growing list will squeeze the market dry.
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Flying solo suits Freescale Semiconductor
Jul 14 2005 12:09AM (CT)
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - Independence appears to suit Freescale Semiconductor Inc. The former chip unit of Motorola Inc. has been trading around $23 a share, up nearly 80 percent since it was spun off in an initial public offering a year ago. Some investors expect it keep climbing, perhaps topping $30 within 12 to 18 months.
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