Comcast aims to reshape entertainment with NBC
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Comcast Corp. announced Thursday it plans to
buy a majority stake in NBC Universal for $13.75 billion, giving the nation's
largest cable TV operator control of the Peacock network, an array of cable
channels and a major movie studio.
Although the deal could mean that movies could reach cable more
quickly after showing in theaters, and that TV shows could appear faster on
cell phones and other devices, it was already raising concerns that Comcast
would wield too much power over entertainment.
Indeed, if the deal clears regulatory and other hurdles, Comcast
would rival the heft of The Walt Disney Co. -- which Comcast CEO Brian Roberts
already tried to buy.
Service sector activity, retail sales disappoint
NEW YORK(AP) -- Further evidence that the economic recovery will be
a slow and bumpy one emerged Thursday with reports that service sector activity
and retail sales unexpectedly shrank in November as consumers held back on
purchases.
The government did report one positive sign: New jobless claims
dropped for a fifth straight week. But productivity gains in the third quarter
showed that employers are managing to squeeze more work out of fewer workers.
That's an ominous sign for the nearly 16 million Americans looking for jobs --
and for many others who fear losing theirs.
The government is expected to report Friday that employers shed
130,000 jobs in November and that the unemployment rate will remain at 10.2
percent.
Late-day slide hits stocks ahead of jobs report
NEW YORK (AP) -- A late-day slide pulled stocks lower ahead of the
government's report on November unemployment.
Stocks began falling in the final half-hour of trading Thursday and
the drop intensified in the last 20 minutes. The Labor Department's November
unemployment report is due before the start of trading Friday.
Worries about the economy had been dogging investors following a
weak snapshot of the service industry early Thursday. The Institute for Supply
Management said its index of activity in the service industry fell to 48.7 in
November from 50.6 in October. That was below what analysts had been expecting
and signaled contraction.
The market drew some support from a Labor Department report that
new claims for unemployment benefits fell unexpectedly for the fifth straight
week.
Exec pleads guilty to bribing NY pension officials
NEW YORK (AP) -- A California venture capitalist pleaded guilty
Thursday to charges that he helped his company land a quarter-billion dollar
deal with New York's giant public pension fund by making nearly $1 million in
illegal gifts to state officials.
Markstone Capital Partners chairman Elliott Broidy entered the plea
in a Manhattan courtroom Thursday morning. He admitted to a felony charge of
rewarding official misconduct.
Broidy is the latest in a string of private equity executives and
investment advisers charged in connection with New York Attorney General Andrew
Cuomo's investigation of a pay-to-play scandal in the office of former state
comptroller Alan Hevesi.
Congress grills Bernanke, but second term likely
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Senators took aim Thursday at Federal Reserve
Chairman Ben Bernanke, linking him to rising unemployment, regulatory lapses
that led to the financial crisis and the corporate bailouts that followed.
And some warned that the Fed's record-low interest rates could feed
a new speculative bubble.
Bernanke remained stoic during the roughly five-hour hearing by the
Senate Banking Committee, which is weighing his nomination to a second
four-year term. He acknowledged some mistakes but defended his record, saying
that without the Fed's bold action, the crisis would have been "markedly
worse."
And by day's end, despite the verbal swipes and a move by one
senator to block Bernanke's nomination, his confirmation didn't appear in
doubt.
Obama calls for new ideas for creating jobs
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama on Thursday said he'd
heard many "exciting ideas and proposals" from participants at a
White House sponsored jobs forum and said he hoped some could be put into
action quickly.
"This has been a tough year, with a lot of uncertainty,"
Obama said as he wrapped up a half-day brainstorming session with some of the
nation's top CEOs, small business and union leaders and economists.
He said he welcomed the suggestions as well as some "good,
hardheaded feedback" from some people who don't always share his views,
including the former top economic adviser to 2008 Republican presidential
nominee Sen. John McCain, economist Douglas Holtz-Eakin, who also addressed a
rival GOP jobs forum earlier in the day.
Rates on 30-year mortgages set new record low
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The average interest rate for a 30-year mortgage
dropped to a record low of 4.71 percent this week, pushed down by an aggressive
government campaign to reduce borrowing costs.
The rate, published Thursday by Freddie Mac, is the lowest since
the mortgage finance company began tracking the data in 1971. The previous
record of 4.78 percent was set during the week ending April 30 and matched last
week.
The Federal Reserve is pumping $1.25 trillion into mortgage-backed
securities to try to bring down mortgage rates, but that money is set to run
out next spring. The goal of the program is to make home buying more affordable
and prop up the housing market.
Toll Bros. loses $111 million in Q4
Toll Brothers Inc.'s stock tumbled Thursday after the luxury
homebuilder reported a disappointing year-end loss and said it expects its
sales in fiscal 2010 to decline at least 7 percent.
CEO Robert Toll said homebuyer demand was strong from March through
August, but has been "choppy" since then. He also said he expects to
see the usual holiday slowdown in prospective shoppers, and little help from
the expanded federal tax credit for homebuyers.
The cautious outlook from Toll, which builds in 21 states, runs
counter to wider industry trends. Sales of new homes have increased six out of
the past seven months, according to government data. They dipped in September,
but surged in October to the highest level in more than a year.
ECB to end some liquidity support measures
FRANKFURT (AP) -- The European Central Bank left its main interest
rate unchanged at a historic low of 1 percent on Thursday and took the first
steps to withdraw some of its extraordinary liquidity support now that recovery
is under way.
Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet told reporters at his regular news
conference that the economy of the 16 countries that use the euro will grow at
a moderate pace next year, but that the recovery would be "uneven and
subject to risks" as firms try to shore up their finances in the wake of
the most savage recession in generations.
Trichet said the current rate was "appropriate" -- an
indication that interest rates won't change anytime soon -- and the decision to
keep borrowing costs unchanged was unanimously agreed by all members on the
governing council.
GM, Chrysler agree to reconsider dealer closings
WASHINGTON (AP) -- General Motors and Chrysler will reconsider
decisions to close thousands of dealerships as part of a compromise meant to
stave off federal legislation that would require them to keep showrooms open.
The decision by the two automakers, announced Thursday, raises the
prospect of new life for some of the more than 3,000 dealerships that were
slated to close. The shutdowns are part of a broad industry restructuring.
Dealers have loudly protested the decisions, saying they are unfair.
The plans call for face-to-face reviews with dealerships and offer
binding arbitration with those who face closure of their showrooms.
By The Associated Press
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 86.53, or 0.8 percent, to
10,366.15.
The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 9.32, or 0.8
percent, to 1,099.92, while the Nasdaq composite index fell 11.89, or 0.5
percent, to 2,173.14.
Benchmark crude for January delivery gave up 14 cents to settle at
$76.46 a barrel on Nymex. In London, Brent crude for January delivery rose 48
cents to settle at $78.36 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.
In other Nymex trading in January contracts, heating oil increased
1.31 cents to settle at $2.0495 a gallon and gasoline added less than a penny
to settle at $1.993 a gallon. Natural gas gave up 7.1 cents to settle at $4.459
per 1,000 cubic feet.