On Thursday October 28, 2010, 5:39 pm EDT
AP survey: Only slight
economic gains seen in 2011
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The new
Congress that begins in January will confront an economy and a job market that
will improve only slightly next year, according to an Associated Press survey
of leading economists that found them gloomier than they were three months ago.
Unemployment will dip only
a bit from the current 9.6 percent to a still-high 9 percent at the end of
2011, in their view. In fact, some economists now think unemployment won't drop
to a historically normal 5.5 percent to 6 percent until at least 2018 --
several years later than previously envisioned.
The latest quarterly AP
survey shows economists are pushing back their estimates of when key barometers
of health -- hiring, spending, economic growth -- will signal strength.
Higher energy prices boost
Big Oil profits
NEW YORK (AP) -- The major
oil companies racked up significant gains in net income for the third quarter
by charging more for oil than they could a year ago, and making money refining
it.
The companies also earned
more from producing natural gas, but a couple have signaled that the current
low price for gas could force a change in strategy.
Both oil and gas increased
in price when compared with the average price from last year. Oil prices rose
about 12 percent while natural gas increased 23 percent. As a result, Exxon
Mobil Corp. on Thursday reported 55 percent higher profits for the third
quarter, while on Wednesday, ConocoPhillips said profit doubled.
GM moves to shore up
finances ahead of stock sale
DETROIT (AP) -- General
Motors Co. has moved to strengthen its finances ahead of an initial public
stock sale, announcing plans on Thursday to cut debt and pension obligations by
$11 billion.
The automaker, whose IPO is
expected next month, will lighten its debt load by paying back money owed to
taxpayers, company retirees and a health care trust. It will pay for the moves
mainly with its stockpile of cash, which now totals about $24 billion.
The $11 billion reduction
includes paying back $2.1 billion owed to U.S. taxpayers. It also includes
paying $2.8 billion to a United Auto Workers health care trust and putting $6
billion in stock and cash toward its pension plans, which are underfunded by roughly
$27 billion.
Unemployment claims drop
sharply to 434K
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Fewer
people applied for unemployment benefits last week than in any week since July,
a hopeful sign that the job market is improving.
Still, economists cautioned
that the trend would have to continue for several more weeks before a solid
conclusion could be drawn that hiring is picking up.
Applications for jobless
benefits dropped by 21,000 to a seasonally adjusted 434,000 in the week that
ended Oct. 23, the Labor Department said Thursday.
Stocks give up early gains;
3M, Apple disappoint
NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks
struggled to a mixed finish Thursday after weak earnings news from 3M and other
companies weighed on the market.
The Dow Jones industrial
average lost 12 points, but broader indexes posted slight gains. The market had
risen steadily in the opening moments of trading following a surprise drop in
first-time claims for unemployment benefits, pushing the Dow up as high as 53.
3M Co. set a negative tone
with a downbeat view on the economy and a lower forecast for full-year
earnings. 3M's dim assessment of the U.S. and European economies was a sobering
reminder that growth in many developed nations remains weak. The maker of
everything from Post-It notes to Scotch Tape called growth in those regions
"uninspiring." Its shares fell 6.4 percent.
Apple Inc. fell about 1
percent after warning in a regulatory filing that profit margins might narrow
next year.
Microsoft fiscal 1Q net
income rises 51 percent
REDMOND, Wash. (AP) --
Microsoft Corp. said Thursday that its net income in the latest quarter rose 51
percent, boosted by higher sales of Windows and Office software.
In last year's quarter,
Microsoft deferred some revenue from Windows sales. Had it not done so, net
income would have been only 16 percent higher this year in comparison.
For the fiscal first
quarter, which ended in September, net income rose to $5.4 billion, or 62 cents
per share, from $3.6 million, or 40 cents per share, in the same period last
year.
Revenue increased 25
percent to $16.2 billion, from $12.9 billion a year ago.
Microsoft beat Wall
Street's expectations on both counts.
3M calls growth in US and
Europe 'uninspiring'
NEW YORK (AP) -- 3M Co.
said Thursday that growth in the U.S. and Western Europe is "uninspiring,"
and it continues to shift more of its business to faster moving emerging
markets.
3M also said it doesn't see
signs of a broad double-dip recession.
"More than a year ago
we forecast economic growth would slow in 2010 in some of our markets,"
CEO George Buckley said in a conference call. "Some folks disagreed with
us, thinking that perhaps we were being too conservative. But I think things
have played out largely the way we anticipated and the trend is no longer a
surprise."
Foreclosure activity up across
most US metro areas
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- The
foreclosure crisis intensified across a majority of large U.S. metropolitan
areas this summer, with Chicago and Seattle -- cities outside of the states
that have shouldered the worst of the housing downturn -- seeing a sharp
increase in foreclosure warnings.
California, Nevada, Florida
and Arizona remain the nation's foreclosure hotbeds, accounting for 19 of the
top 20 metropolitan areas with the highest foreclosure rates between July and
September, foreclosure listing firm RealtyTrac Inc. said Thursday.
Those states saw housing
values surge during the housing boom years. When the boom ended, values
collapsed and foreclosures soared.
But the latest data show
that many of the metro areas in those states saw a decline in the number of
households receiving foreclosure-related filings, while many cities in other
states saw a spike in foreclosure activity.
FCC fines Verizon Wireless
$25M for spurious fees
NEW YORK (AP) -- Verizon
Wireless has agreed to pay a fine of $25 million and at least $52.8 million in
refunds to customers who inadvertently racked up data charges on their phones
over the last three years, federal regulators said Thursday.
The Federal Communications
Commission said the fine is the largest in its history.
To forestall action by the
FCC, Verizon Wireless said earlier this month that it would issue refunds,
mostly of $2 to $6, to about 15 million subscribers. It didn't give a total
value for the refunds.
New claims made against
Toyota in defects case
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Toyota
Motor Corp. bought back cars from drivers who reported sudden acceleration
defects, but the company didn't tell federal regulators about the problem,
according to court documents filed in the sprawling litigation against the
automaker.
Plaintiffs' lawyers contend
the Japanese company compelled the owners to sign confidentiality agreements
that prevented them from speaking publicly about the issues they encountered.
By The Associated Press
The Dow Jones industrial
average fell 12.33, or 0.1 percent, to close at 11,113.95. The Standard &
Poor's 500 index rose 1.33 point to 1,183.78, while the Nasdaq composite rose
4.11, or 0.2 percent, to 2,507.37.
Benchmark crude for
December delivery added 24 cents to settle at $82.18 a barrel on the New York
Mercantile Exchange.
Natural gas rose 12.7 cents
to settle at $3.890 per 1,000 cubic feet on the Nymex. In other energy trading,
heating oil gained 0.52 cent to settle at $2.2435 per gallon. Gasoline picked
up 1.19 cents to settle at $2.1139 per gallon.
In London, Brent crude rose
35 cents to $83.58 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.