The market is freezing cold like the rest of us in Alberta

I am excited today. I will be headed to Vancouver for vacation. It’s freezing cold here in Fort McMurray and I am glad to get away for a few weeks. I am really looking forward to it. This was not an exciting week in the markets. I am really sensing something is going to happen in the new years. I am very hopeful that the market will jump.

I will be on holidays and I don’t know if I will be able to blog. I will try my best.

- COPENHAGEN – The largest and most important U.N. climate change conference in history opened Monday, with organizers warning diplomats from 192 nations that this could be the last, best chance for a deal to protect the world from calamitous global warming. Negotiations have dragged on for two years and only recently have shown signs of breakthroughs with new commitments from major emitters such as the United States, China and India to control greenhouse gas emissions. In a signal the Obama administration is prepared to act without congressional action, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said it has concluded that greenhouse gases are endangering Americans' health and must be regulated. The two-week conference convened in an upbeat mood after a series of promises by rich and emerging economies to curb their greenhouse gases. Still, major issues have yet to be resolved. At stake is a deal that aims to wean the world away from fossil fuels and other pollutants to greener sources of energy, and to transfer hundreds of billions of dollars from rich to poor countries every year over decades to help them adapt to climate change.

- TEHRAN, Iran – Security forces and militiamen clashed with thousands of protesters shouting "death to the dictator" outside Tehran University on Monday, beating them with batons and firing tear gas on a day of nationwide student demonstrations, witnesses said. The rallies were the largest in months, bringing tens of thousands out on more than a dozen campuses around the country and in several major squares in Tehran as university students — a bedrock of support for the pro-reform movement — energized the opposition. The anti-government movement has been reeling under a fierce crackdown since turmoil erupted over the disputed presidential election in June. Thousands of riot police as well as forces of the elite Revolutionary Guard and their allied Basij militiamen flooded the area around Tehran University since the morning, trying to seal off the campus from the outside world and prevent unrest from spilling out into the streets. Authorities covered the tall fence around the university with banners and signs bearing slogans from Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, hiding whatever took place inside. Cell phone networks around the universities were shut down, and police and Revolutionary Guard surrounded entrances, checking IDs of anyone entering to bar opposition activists, witnesses said.

- WASHINGTON (AP) -- Despite some economic improvements, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned Monday it's still too soon to declare that the budding recovery will last. "We still have some way to go before we can be assured that the recovery will be self sustaining," Bernanke said in remarks to the Economic Club of Washington. The Fed chief repeated his belief that the recovery will continue at least into next year. But he cautioned that the economy is confronting some "formidable headwinds" -- including a weak job market, cautious consumers and still-tight credit. Those forces "seem likely to keep the pace of expansion moderate," he said. Some private forecasters continue to worry that the recovery could fizzle late next year as government stimulus fades. A cautiously optimistic Bernanke said he expects "modest" economic growth next year. That should help push down the nation's unemployment rate -- now at 10 percent -- "but at a pace slower than we would like," he acknowledged. Under one Fed forecast released last month, the jobless rate would remain stubbornly high next year -- ranging from 9.3 to 9.7 percent. The Fed has warned that it could take five or six years for the job market to return to normal.

- FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – A howling winter storm barreled through the West, hitting the mountain states with snow and fierce winds as it headed toward the country's midsection on Tuesday. The far-reaching storm system stretched from California to Indiana, gathering strength as it raced eastward. Parts of Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and Wisconsin were bracing for blizzard conditions and up to 10 inches of snow, according to the National Weather Service. "The storm system is really strengthening as it goes, and that's usually a recipe for some heavy snowfall and a lot of wind, and that's what we're watching for," said Mike Welvaert of the National Weather Service in La Crosse, Wis. The storm hit nearly all of the western mountain states on Monday, leaving places like Flagstaff and Reno, Nev., under a thick blanket of snow. Heavy rain raised fears of mudslides in wildfire-devastated Southern California, but no damage was reported. The weather system also snarled traffic and closed schools in Indiana, and crashes caused one death. In the Phoenix area, fierce wind brought down power lines, left four hospitals temporarily without power and created wide outages. At one point, some 250,000 customers were without power; by early Tuesday, that number was down to about 58,000, a spokesman for Arizona Public Service Co. said.

- LAHORE, Pakistan – Two synchronized bombs ripped through a market popular with women in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore on Monday, igniting a massive fire and killing at least 34 people, authorities said. Another attack by a suicide bomber killed 10 in the northwestern city of Peshawar, part of a wave of militant strikes in Pakistan as the army presses an offensive against a Taliban stronghold in the northwest close to the Afghan border. About 100 people were wounded in the attacks in Lahore, which were timed to take place when the Moon Market was as its busiest just before 9:00 p.m. Authorities initially said both were believed to be remote-controlled blasts but later said a suicide bomber was suspected to have carried out at least one of them. The blasts came within 30 seconds of each other, leaving dozens of cars and shops ablaze late into the night. Many victims were women and children, including a dead 2-year-old, a police officer said.

- SAN FRANCISCO – AOL is shaking loose from Time Warner Inc. and heading into the next decade the way it began this one, as an independent company. Unlike the 1990s, though, when AOL got rich selling dial-up Internet access, it starts the 2010s as an underdog, trying to beef up its Web sites and grab more advertising revenue. Despite a few bright spots in its portfolio of sites, such as tech blog Engadget, AOL has a long way to go until Web advertising can replace the revenue it still gets from selling dial-up Internet access. One especially popular property, entertainment site TMZ, is a joint venture with a Time Warner unit that will keep TMZ and its revenue after AOL splits off. Now investors are getting a chance to place bets on AOL. On Wednesday, Time Warner shareholders as of Nov. 27 will get one share of AOL for every 11 of their Time Warner shares. The next morning, AOL CEO Tim Armstrong is set to ring the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange, and AOL will begin trading under the ticker symbol of the same name — the one it had when it was known as America Online and used $147 billion worth of its inflated stock to buy Time Warner in 2001.

- LONDON (AFP) – Prime Minister Gordon Brown pledged Monday to axe 3.0 billion pounds from public spending in extra savings to help cut the nation's debt. The premier, whose Labour government will announce taxation and spending plans in a pre-budget report Wednesday, outlined proposals to help achieve his aim of halving the public deficit over the next four years. Brown, tipped to lose next year's general election at the hands of the main opposition Conservatives, also warned that a "culture of excess" must change in the public sector. The government now hopes to save a total of 12 billion pounds through efficiency savings over the next four years. That is 3.0 billion pounds more than outlined in last April's annual budget. Under the proposals, Brown said he would seek to slash 20 percent from the senior civil service wages bill. Public sector salaries above 150,000 pounds and bonuses above 50,000 pounds would require ministerial approval.

- CINCINNATI (AP) -- The Kroger Co. reported Tuesday an $875 million loss in its third quarter, blaming tough price competition and the struggling California economy's hit on its grocery business. The nation's largest traditional grocery chain also cut its profit and sales forecast for the full year, with Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and club stores such as Costco Wholesale Corp sharpening industry price-cutting efforts to lure recession-pinched grocery shoppers. Kroger shares plummeted 12 percent in early trading, down $2.85 to $20. Kroger took a $1.05 billion writedown on the Ralphs division it acquired a decade ago, saying the 263-store group in California has been battered by the state's rising double-digit unemployment and housing slump. Kroger reported a loss of $1.35 a share, compared with profit of $237.7 million, or 36 cents a share, a year ago. Sales rose less than 1 percent to $17.7 billion. Without the Ralphs writedown, profit would have been $176.7 million, or 27 cents. Analysts expected 36 cents a share on $17.7 billion.

- FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – A large and powerful storm howled across the West with snow and strong winds Monday, snarling traffic, closing schools and threatening to spawn mudslides in wildfire-devastated Southern California. Virtually the entire region was suffering — from subzero wind chills in Washington state to heavy snow that closed schools and government offices in Reno, Nev., and left big rigs jackknifed across highways in several states. Blizzard warnings were in effect for northern Arizona and parts of Colorado, with forecasters predicting up to 2 feet of snow around Flagstaff. The National Weather Service said the upper elevations of the Sierra mountains could get up to 3 feet of snow, with up to 4 feet forecast for the mountains of southern Utah. Even the hills east of San Francisco Bay received a rare dusting overnight, and snow was predicted for Fresno and other communities in California's Central Valley.

- WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama is setting out fresh plans to reinvigorate the U.S. economy, focusing on incentives to small businesses and hiring to bring down the country's 10 percent unemployment rate. Senior administration officials say Obama will be looking to push money left over from the Troubled Asset Relief Programs toward the small business community for hiring. Additional funds also would be sought for infrastructure improvements and rebates to consumers who make their homes more energy efficient. The officials spoke Tuesday shortly before Obama was to detail his plans in a speech at the Brookings Institution think tank.

- Oil drops to near $73 as traders watch US dollar
Oil prices dropped to near $73 a barrel Tuesday after a strengthening U.S. dollar extended a four day sell-off in crude to two-month lows. By early afternoon in Europe, benchmark crude for January delivery was down 64 cents to $73.29 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell $1.54 to settle at $73.93 on Monday. The dollar, boosted by a better than expected U.S. jobs report last week, helped push oil prices out of a two-month range of between $75 and $82. Investors have been buying crude as a hedge against inflation as the dollar has slid this year amid massive government stimulus spending and low interest rates. When the dollar rises, traders tend to sell their positions in oil.

- BAGHDAD – A series of coordinated attacks struck Baghdad Tuesday, including two suicide car bombers and another vehicle that blew up near government sites. At least 118 were killed and hundreds wounded in the worst wave of violence in the capital in more than a month, authorities said. A total of five attacks, which also included a suicide car bomb on a police patrol, showed the ability of insurgents to strike high-profile targets in the heart of Baghdad and marked the third time since August that government buildings were targeted with multiple blasts that brought massive bloodshed. The bombings reinforced concerns about shortcomings in Iraqi security as U.S. forces plan their withdrawal, and parliament held an emergency session with many lawmakers demanding answers for apparent security lapses. Iraq's military spokesman blamed the carnage on an alliance of al-Qaida in Iraq and members of Saddam Hussein's banned Baath Party. The U.S. military has sent some troops and forensic equipment to assist the Iraqis in the aftermath, said Army Master Sgt. Nicholas Conner, a military spokesman. Overall violence has dropped sharply around Iraq in the past year, though insurgents have stepped up attacks at government sites in recent months. The bombings marked the most serious spate of violence in Baghdad since twin car bombs on Oct. 25 struck outside government offices, killing at least 155. In August, suicide bombers hit the finance and foreign ministries, killing more than 100.

- RIO DE JANEIRO – Police in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo have killed more than 11,000 people in the past six years, many execution-style, according to a report released Tuesday by Human Rights Watch. Few of the officers have been charged in the extrajudicial killings, which are often labeled in police reports as the deaths of suspects who resisted arrest, the report said. The 122-page declaration echoes a 2008 United Nations' finding that police throughout Brazil were responsible for a "significant portion" of 48,000 slayings the year before. "Extrajudicial killing of criminal suspects is not the answer to violent crime," said Jose Miguel Vivanco, Americas director at Human Rights Watch. "The residents of Rio and Sao Paulo need more effective policing, not more violence from the police." Isabel Figueiredo, Brazil's coordinator-general of human rights and public safety, acknowledged that police violence is a widespread problem and "it concerns the federal government a great deal." Figueiredo said authorities have launched a series of initiatives to confront the problem, including training police to respect human rights and the appropriate use of force, in addition to the purchase of less-lethal weapons for state police forces. Security forces "have begun to understand that instead of solving the problem, confronting criminals with weapons leads to casualties on both sides," she said. Officials from the Rio and Sao Paulo police departments did not comment.

LONDON (AP) -- World markets mostly rose Monday after Dubai said it had received $10 billion in emergency funds from its oil-rich neighbor Abu Dhabi, helping to ease investor fears that the emirate will default on its debt. In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was up 50.05 points, or 1 percent, at 5,311.62 while Germany's DAX rose 53.93 points, or 1 percent, to 5,811.97. The CAC-40 in France was 21.02 points, or 0.6 percent, higher at 3,824.74. The advance is expected to continue when Wall Street opens -- Dow futures were up 46 points, or 0.4 percent, at 10,469 while the broader Standard & Poor's 500 futures rose 6.1 points, or 0.6 percent, at 1,109.30. The gains came after Dubai government said the financing would help pay off $4.1 billion in debts owed by struggling Dubai World's property division and due Monday. The rest would go toward bills and expenses through April. The news cheered investors, who had feared the consequences of Dubai World defaulting. Since the state-owned company announced its intention last month to delay payment on its $60 billion in debts, investors have braced for more financial turmoil and been forced to reevaluate their assumptions about government promises to make good on debts. "The first reaction has been to view this as a crisis averted, and 'risk friendly' trades are benefiting," said Kit Juckes, chief economist at ECU Group.

- (CNN) -- A major sponsor for Tiger Woods announced Sunday that it is dropping the golf star in light of recent controversy swirling around his personal life. Accenture, a management consulting firm, said on its Web site that "given the circumstances of the last two weeks ... the company has determined that he is no longer the right representative for its advertising." The move ends a sponsorship arrangement that lasted six years. Another major sponsor, Gillette, said Saturday it was "limiting" Woods' role in its marketing programs to give him the privacy to work on family relationships. Woods announced on his own Web site Friday that he is taking an "indefinite break" from professional golf. The 33-year-old golfer, who tops the sport's world rankings, has been mired in controversy since he crashed his car outside his Florida mansion late last month. In the week following the crash, Woods apologized for "transgressions" that let his family down, and US Weekly magazine published a report alleging that Woods had an affair with a 24-year-old cocktail waitress named Jaimee Grubbs. "After much soul searching, I have decided to take an indefinite break from professional golf. I need to focus my attention on being a better husband, father and person," Woods said in his Friday statement.

- NEW YORK (AP) -- Citigroup Inc. said Monday it is repaying $20 billion in bailout money it received from the Treasury Department, freeing the banking giant from the close scrutiny and pay restrictions that came with the rescue program. The government will also sell its stake in the company. The New York-based bank was among the hardest hit by the credit crisis and rising loan defaults and got one of the largest bailouts of any banks during the financial crisis. The government gave it $45 billion in loans and agreed to protect losses on nearly $300 billion in risky investments. Wells Fargo & Co. remains the last national bank that has yet to pay back its bailout money. Citi is selling $20.5 billion in stock and debt to repay the government. It only has to pay back $20 billion because the remaining $25 billion was converted into a 34 percent ownership stake in the bank earlier this year. The government plans to sell that entire stake -- which has risen in value by more than 20 percent -- during the next year. The loss-sharing agreement will also end as part of the plan. The Treasury Department is in line to earn about $13 billion in profit on its support for Citigroup depending on how much it makes selling the stock, said a Treasury official, who spoke on condition of anonymity in advance of President Barack Obama's meeting with bank officials. After repaying the funds, Citi will no longer be subject to pay restrictions and other conditions of the bailout program. However, the repayment comes at a heavy cost. Raising the new capital will significantly dilute current shareholders' stake in the company. Citi's shares fell 25 cents, or 6.3 percent, to $3.70 in morning trading Monday.

Will Santa be good to us?

The market is doing a lot of up and downs over the last few months. The start of the month does not look that great to me. I am not too sure what C, FNM, CEMJQ, and OPC is not moving with the market as it was the case in the past. This is a puzzle to me. I am totally clueless. I am hoping for something which is not here yet. I am still optimistic about this market. I am sure the market will make a run, I just don’t know when.

What a terrible week and even worst weekend. I am looking forward to my trip. I just can’t wait to go to Vancouver. I guess I will have to wait another week. This will be really good for my wife. I think she will enjoy the trip.

- NEW YORK (AP) -- The economic recovery seems on track for slow but steady gains, after reports Tuesday showed growth in manufacturing activity, construction spending and contracts to buy homes. Private measure of manufacturing activity grew for the fourth straight month in November, though more slowly than in October. The Institute for Supply Management, a trade group of purchasing executives, said its index read 53.6, down from 55.7 in October. A reading above 50 indicates growth. Economists were especially encouraged that new orders -- a gauge of future production -- jumped October. That suggested that manufacturing can continue to help sustain the budding recovery. A report on construction spending also signaled growth with the first increase in six months, largely on the strength of home building. The increase was slight -- just 0.04 percent. And in part it reflected a rush by builders to begin work before the expiration of a tax credit for first-time homebuyers. The credit was extended last month and expanded to some existing homeowners. Still, the increase appeared to signal that the construction sector is stabilizing and providing support for the fledgling economic recovery. A third positive report said the number of homebuyers who signed contracts to buy previously occupied homes rose for the ninth straight month. This increase, too, came as buyers rushed to take advantage of the homebuyer tax credit.

- DETROIT – General Motors Co. CEO Frederick "Fritz" Henderson stepped down Tuesday after the board determined that the company wasn't changing quickly enough. Chairman Ed Whitacre Jr. said at a hastily called news conference that he will serve as interim CEO, and an international search for a new CEO and president is planned. Whitacre thanked Henderson for his work during a period of challenge and change, but said it is time to accelerate the pace of rebuilding the largest U.S. automaker. The resignation comes just eight months after Henderson, 51, replaced former chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner, who was ousted March 29 by the Obama administration's government's auto task force. Henderson has been with GM his entire career and was the government's choice to run the beleaguered company after Wagoner left. Whitacre, picked by the government in June to be chairman of the new GM, is considered an industry outsider, having run AT&T Inc. for 17 years.

- PRETORIA, South Africa – South Africa announced ambitious new plans Tuesday for earlier and expanded treatment for HIV-positive babies and pregnant women, a change that could save hundreds of thousands of lives in the nation hardest hit by the virus that causes AIDS. President Jacob Zuma — once ridiculed for saying a shower could prevent AIDS — was cheered as he outlined the measures on World AIDS Day. The new policy marks a dramatic shift from former President Thabo Mbeki, whose health minister distrusted drugs developed to keep AIDS patients alive and instead promoted garlic and beet treatments. Those policies led to more than 300,000 premature deaths, a Harvard study concluded. The changes are in line with new guidelines issued a day earlier by the World Health Organization that call for HIV-infected pregnant women to be given drugs earlier and while breast-feeding. By treating all HIV-infected babies, survival rates should also improve for the youngest citizens in South Africa, one of only 12 countries where child mortality has worsened since 1990, in part due to AIDS.

- WASHINGTON (AP) -- Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner affirmed Wednesday the administration's intent to soon end the $700 billion financial bailout program. Geithner did not provide details, but said the government is close to the point at which "we can wind down this program" and end it. "Nothing would make me happier," he told the Senate Agriculture Committee. Some lawmakers have been agitating for an exit from the politically unpopular bailout program, approved by Congress at the height of the financial crisis in October 2008 as a way to supply banks with fresh capital. Geithner also said legislation to bring transparency to the global, unregulated $600 trillion derivatives market was needed soon to restore confidence in the U.S. financial system. Across the Capitol, meanwhile, a key House panel voted to slap new restraints on big Wall Street banks and to demand greater openness from the Federal Reserve. That cleared a significant hurdle in the drive for a sweeping overhaul of financial regulations, including the new derivatives restraints, and set the stage for a vote by the full House next week.
- NEW YORK (AP) -- ConocoPhillips said Wednesday it plans to slash its 2010 capital spending by 10 percent as it tries to shore up cash amid plunging profits. The nation's third-largest oil company intends to spend $11.2 billion on capital projects in 2010, 10 percent below its estimated spending in 2009. In its third-quarter report given in late October, ConocoPhillips forecast a 2010 budget of $11 billion. In 2010, about 86 percent of its capital program will support ConocoPhillips' exploration and production segment, while its hard-hit refining and marketing segment represents about 12 percent of the program, the Houston-based company said. "We intend to achieve our objectives of organically replacing reserves and increasing our upstream production from a reduced, more strategic asset base, consistent with our recently announced portfolio optimization plan," said Jim Mulva, CEO of ConocoPhillips. The Houston-based company previously said it would cut capital expenditures and shed $10 billion in assets to help pay off debt and improve its cash position amid sagging profits.

- TORONTO (Reuters) – Canadian health officials said on Wednesday that the H1N1 flu outbreak might have reached its peak in Canada, but cautioned that the fight is not yet over. David Butler-Jones, Canada's chief public health officer, said that while some areas of the country have displayed reduced incidents of swine flu, other regions have seen an uptick in cases in recent weeks. "We are trying to be very careful when using the term 'the peak'. We won't know we have reached a peak in flu activity until we are clearly on the other side of it," he said during a conference call. "Passing a peak in activity doesn't mean we decrease our concern. Coming down the mountain is as treacherous as climbing it," he added. Both Butler-Jones and Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq, reiterated the need for all Canadians to be immunized, noting that only about one-third of Canadian are immune to the disease because they have been vaccinated or have already been infected by the H1N1 pandemic virus. "If the vast majority of Canadians get immunized we will not see much of this disease moving forward," said Butler-Jones. The World Health Organization said last month that the H1N1 flu was moving eastward across Europe and Asia after appearing to peak in parts of Western Europe and the United States. At least 6,770 deaths have been recorded worldwide since the swine flu virus emerged in April -- but officials always stress the confirmed numbers represent only a fraction of the actual cases, as most patients never get tested.

- MOGADISHU, Somalia – A male suicide bomber dressed as a woman attacked a graduation ceremony Thursday in a small part of the capital still under government control, killing 22 people, including three Cabinet ministers, doctors and medical students. The attack was a severe blow to a country long battered by war and underscored the government's tenuous hold even on its small area of Mogadishu. African Union peacekeeping troops protecting the government wage near daily battles with Islamic militants who hold much of central and southern Somalia and act so brazenly in the capital that they carry out public executions. "What happened today is a national disaster," said Somali Information Minister Dahir Mohamud Gelle, who confirmed that the ministers for education, higher education and health were killed in the blast. The ministers for sports and tourism were wounded in the attack inside the Shamo Hotel, he said. The assailants hit one of Somalia's most important efforts to extricate itself from anarchy and violence, explaining the presence of so many top government officials. The former medical students among the graduates came from only the second class to receive diplomas from the medical school.

- NEW YORK (AP) -- The nation's retailers posted a surprise sales decline for November after two consecutive months of gains, as a modestly positive start to holiday shopping wasn't strong enough to offset weak spending the rest of the month. The 0.3 percent decrease, according to one measure, is especially worrisome because it comes on top of a freefall last November as spooked shoppers went into a defensive crouch after the financial meltdown. Analyst had expected a strong gain. Analysts caution that a better gauge of the month may lie in government retail sales numbers, slated to be released Dec. 11. The numbers offer a broader view of spending, including online sales and results from electronics chains -- two bright spots for the holiday season, analysts said. Thursday's figures also don't include Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer. Warm weather also was a factor in depressing shoppers' appetite for seasonal apparel like coats and sweaters, analysts said. Nevertheless, most retailers' sluggish results missed already modest forecasts, a worrisome sign for an economy in the early stages of a fragile recovery. Now, merchants may have to step up discounting beyond what's planned as they try to entice financially strapped shoppers back to the stores in a season that is at best expected to be unchanged from a year ago.

- DUBLIN – A major Irish order of Roman Catholic nuns, the Sisters of Mercy, offered Thursday to pay child abuse victims, the government and charities a further euro128 million ($193.5 million) to compensate for decades of abuse in its schools and orphanages. The compensation offer to the Irish Education Department is by far the largest from 18 orders of Catholic priests, brothers and nuns found guilty of chronic child abuse. They ran scores of residential schools, workhouses and orphanages for generations of Ireland's most deprived children from the mid-19th century to the 1990s. The Sisters of Mercy said in a statement it "wholeheartedly regrets the suffering experienced by the children in their care" and hoped this latest offer would show that its nuns were being "faithful to the values of reparation, reconciliation, healing and responsibility." A nine-year state investigation in May ruled that all the orders permitted and covered up endemic rape, molestation, beatings and mental cruelty in their children's institutions. The government responded by demanding that the orders pay much more to help cover compensation payments to more than 14,000 abuse claimants worldwide topping euro1 billion ($1.5 billion).

- Bangladesh ferry death toll rises
At least 49 people have been killed and scores are missing following a ferry accident in the south of Bangladesh. MV Coco-4, which was carrying more than 1,000 people, was travelling overnight from Dhaka, the capital, to Bhola island on the country's southern tip when it sank close to the village of Nazirpura. Zakir Hossain, a police chief at the village which lies 250km south of Dhaka, said the death toll was likely to rise as dozens of people were believed to be trapped in cabins and in the hold under water. Local media reported the ferry started taking in water after it hit a raised section of the river bed in heavy fog on Friday. Amid the commotion of hundreds of passengers trying to disembark, a stampede ensued which caused the ferry to tip and take in water.

- PARIS - The decision by Swiss voters to ban minarets on Muslim houses of worship resonated across neighboring France on Monday, stoking an already emotional debate on whether burkas should be banned in public and coloring a government-sponsored debate over what it means to be French. Commentators and officials in France and across Europe took sides Monday on the surprise Swiss decision, passed in a referendum the previous day. French lawmakers who support banning the burka, the all-covering garment worn by some Muslim women, defended themselves against accusations that the move would fuel a growing phobia against Islam in Europe. French Socialist Party spokesman Benoit Hamon said the Swiss decision in effect blamed Muslims for "all of Western society's ills," and compared it to the three-month-long public debates on French identity spearheaded by conservative President Nicolas Sarkozy. "I regret that the president is surrendering himself to this type of stigmatization of foreigners and immigrants by associating national identity and immigration," Hamon said on RTL French radio. Immigration Minister Eric Besson, who is organizing the nationwide debates, said the Swiss ban on minarets stigmatized Islam. Instead, he said, "We need to favor the emergence of a French Islam that integrates into the values of the republic." He added that trying to ban the burka was not comparable because "it affects a woman's dignity." In comments to French media, Xavier Bertrand, general secretary of Sarkozy's political party, referred to the burka as a "prison."

- NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks gave up some of their early gains as investors, seeing a brighter employment picture as a sign of economic strength, worry about higher interest rates. Major stock indexes turned mixed Friday as news that employers cut fewer jobs in November has investors thinking the Federal Reserve could hike rates or remove other supports from the economy sooner than expected. Treasurys and gold fell as demand for safe-haven investments eased. The prospects of increased rates lifted the dollar. That, in turn, ate into an early surge in stocks and commodities including oil. The Labor Department said the economy shed 11,000 jobs last month, the smallest monthly loss since December 2007. That's much better than the 130,000 losses Wall Street economists expected and also an improvement from the 111,000 cuts in October. The unemployment rate fell to 10 percent from 10.2 percent in October, a 26-year high. Economists had expected the rate to remain unchanged. Meanwhile, the Commerce Department said orders to U.S. factories posted a surprise jump in October as demand jumped for aircraft and energy. Orders rose 0.6 percent in October, better than the flat reading that economists had expected. It was the sixth increase in seven months.

- OTTAWA (Reuters) – Canada's economy added far more jobs than expected in November, more than erasing the losses in October and suggesting stronger fourth-quarter growth as predicted by the Bank of Canada. Statistics Canada reported on Friday a net employment gain of 79,000 in November, beating analysts' expectations of a 15,000 gain. The unemployment rate edged lower to 8.5 percent from 8.6 percent in October. "It's all good. Obviously the headline was a shocker. Some of it came in the part-time and it was a bit of a bounce from the previous month. But most of the details were supportive," said Mark Chandler, head of fixed-income and currency strategy at RBC Capital Markets. The Canadian dollar rose to C$1.0458 to the U.S. dollar after the report from around C$1.0530 just before the data was released. Analysts said the strong details in the report point to a pickup in economic growth in the fourth quarter after a tepid 0.4 percent annualized growth rate in the third quarter, the first rise after a recession lasting three quarters. Still, the Bank of Canada is likely to hold its benchmark interest rate at an all-time low of 0.25 percent at its next meeting on December 8. It is also expected to stick to its pledge to keep rates there until at least the end of June, conditional on inflation staying on track.
- MOSCOW – Russian news agencies say an explosion apparently caused by pyrotechnics tore through a nightclub in the city of Perm, killing 76 people. Emergency officials quoted by state-run news agency RIA-Novosti say the cause was pyrotechnics, but did not specify if the explosives were being used in a show at the club or if they were in storage. RIA Novosti and other agencies cited unnamed sources in the police and local branch of the emergency ministry as saying preliminary figures show 76 people died. There were about 200 people in the club at the time of the blast early Saturday, ITAR-Tass reported, citing a police source. Perm is about 700 miles (1,200 kilometers) east of Moscow.

- RAWALPINDI, Pakistan – A Taliban suicide squad targeted Pakistani military officers and their families praying at a mosque Friday close to army headquarters in a gruesome display of the militants' ability to strike at the center of power in this U.S.-allied, nuclear-armed nation. The barrage of bombs and bullets left 37 people dead, including seven senior officers and 17 children. The deaths of so many top brass inside a heavily fortified area a few miles from the capital was a major coup for the Pakistani insurgents, who are under pressure as the army pushes an offensive against their stronghold of South Waziristan along the Afghan border. Friday's carnage also dramatized the risks Pakistan faces if it steps up its support for the United States in the war against Islamic extremists on its side of the border with Afghanistan. President Barack Obama believes Pakistan is a key partner in that war, but critics contend that Pakistan, hedging its bets in the event the Taliban eventually regain power in Kabul, has held back against Afghan insurgents who use the lawless border region as a safe haven.

- DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) -- Dubai World may unload some assets to raise cash, a senior government official said, reflecting a potential about face for the heavily-indebted conglomerate behind much of Dubai's boom. Dubai Finance Department Director-General Abdul Rahman al-Saleh did not say which pieces of the company are for sale. However, he emphasized that the assets in question would be Dubai World's alone -- underscoring the government's position that it is not responsible for debts racked up by a company it created and backed during the city-state's boom years. "Like any company that has commitments, part of getting liquidity is selling some assets. Of course local or foreign assets," he said in an interview aired by al-Jazeera Monday. A Dubai World spokeswoman declined to comment. The sale of any major Dubai World holdings would mark a stark change for the conglomerate, which repeatedly downplayed questions it would need to unload pieces of its global empire even as Dubai's financial concerns grew more acute over the past year. The company's roughly $60 billion in debt came from a multi-year building and buying spress fueled by access to cheap loans.

The market is hot and than its cold

Monday looked great for the market. It was showing a lot of potential to go higher.
X was on the move and I was thinking about taking the profit. Let’s see if it reaches $ 45 this week. OPC was on the move too. I was happy to see some movement there. It’s about time for this stock to reach $4.

The US market is closed for thanks giving holidays (Thursday and half of Friday). I am hoping for a fresh and reenergized start on Monday. I am hoping that FNM, C, STEC, CEMJQ and SPPI will make a move. I am hoping for positive news. The market is very volatile. This market can change within seconds after a bad news. The Dubai scare is the latest. The market slides downward as soon as the news hit the street but it was stable after it clear the air that the impact is sustainable.

- NEW YORK (AP) -- Americans' confidence in the economy improved slightly in November from October, but shoppers remain gloomy heading into the traditional start of the holiday shopping season amid a weak job market, according to a monthly survey. The Conference Board, based in New York, said Tuesday that it’s Consumer Confidence Index edged up to 49.5, up from a revised reading of 48.7 in October. Economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected a reading of 47.7. The index, which hit a historic low of 25.3 in February, had enjoyed a three-month climb from March through May, fueled by signs that the economy might be stabilizing. The road has been bumpier since June as rising unemployment has taken a toll on consumers. A reading above 90 means the economy is on solid footing. Above 100 signals strong growth. One component of the Conference Board's confidence gauge that measures consumers' assessment of the current economy fell slightly to 21.0, compared with 21.1 in October. The other that measures shoppers' outlook over the next six months increased slightly to 68.5 from 67.0 in October.

- AMPATUAN, Philippines – The Philippine president placed two southern provinces under emergency rule Tuesday as security forces unearthed more bodies, pushing the death toll to 46 in some of the deadliest election violence in the nation's history. Police and soldiers found 22 bodies in a hillside mass grave Tuesday, adding to the 24 bullet-riddled bodies recovered near the scene of Monday's massacre in Maguindanao province, said Chief Superintendent Josefino Cataluna of the Central Mindanao region.

- WASHINGTON (AP) -- The economy is growing modestly, with consumers too wary about spending to invigorate the recovery. That picture emerged Tuesday from reports on the nation's economy and the confidence of consumers, who power 70 percent of it. The economy grew at a 2.8 percent rate last quarter -- less than originally estimated. And forecasts for the current quarter are for similarly slight growth before a drop-off next year. The main reasons are that consumers remain reluctant to spend, commercial construction has slipped and imports are dampening U.S. growth. The Commerce Department's new reading on gross domestic product was weaker than the 3.5 percent growth rate for the July-September period estimated just a month ago. The GDP, which measures the value of all goods and services produced in the United States, also was a tad weaker than the 2.9 percent growth rate that economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected.

- KATMANDU, Nepal – Hundreds of thousands of Hindus gathered at a temple in southern Nepal on Tuesday for a ceremony involving the slaughter of more than 200,000 animals, a festival that has drawn the ire of animal-welfare protesters. A Nepalese minister said it was the largest sacrificial slaughter of animals in the world. Protests have occurred in recent weeks in towns near the Gadhimai temple and in the capital Katmandu by animals rights activists and other religious groups. However, Hindu organizers refused to halt the slaughter saying it was a centuries-old tradition. More than 200,000 buffaloes, goats, chickens and pigeons will be killed Tuesday and Wednesday at the temple in the jungles of Bara district, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) south of Katmandu, to honor the Hindu goddess Gadhimai.

- WASHINGTON (AP) -- The apparent end of the recession and stabilizing financial markets have not cured the banking industry, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said Tuesday. Banks earned $2.8 billion in the third quarter, but loan balances plummeted and the fund that insures their deposits was $8.2 billion in the red. Souring loans continued to hurt bank balance sheets, but they were buoyed by higher operating revenues and a revived market for securities, the FDIC said. The number of banks on the FDIC's "problem list" rose to 552 from 416 on June 30, the highest level in 16 years. Fifty banks failed during the quarter -- the largest number since the second quarter of 1990. The FDIC's fund that insures bank deposits fell by $18.6 billion, mostly because $21.7 billion was set aside for expected losses on future bank failures. The FDIC voted this month to require banks to prepay three years of deposit insurance premiums at the end of the year to help replenish the dwindling fund, which is at its lowest point on record. The last similar deficit was in Dec. 1991, when a predecessor fund was more than $7 billion in the red. Bank failures this year through 2013 are expected to cost the fund $100 billion -- mostly in 2009 and 2010. But depositors' money -- insured up to $250,000 per account -- is not at risk, with the FDIC backed by the government.

- NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks rose in light volume Wednesday following a drop in weekly unemployment claims to the lowest level of the year and a rise in new home sales. Trading volume was thin ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday. Light volume can exacerbate swings in the market. The Labor Department said new claims for unemployment insurance fell by 35,000 last week to 466,000. That's the fewest claims since the week ending Sept. 13, 2008, and far better than the 500,000 that economists had expected. The news suggest the job market is slowly healing, but concern remains the improvement will be temporary as the weak economy continues to push unemployment higher. The jobless rate hit 10.2 percent in October and many analysts believe it will keep rising to 10.5 percent or higher before starting to improve next summer. The Commerce Department said new home sales rose 6.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 430,000 from an upwardly revised 405,000 in September. Economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected a pace of 410,000.

- WASHINGTON – Sales of new homes rose last month to the highest level in more than a year as strong activity in the South made up for weakness in the rest of the country. The Commerce Department said Wednesday that sales rose 6.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 430,000 from an upwardly revised 405,000 in September. Economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected a pace of 410,000. The report tallies signed contracts to buy homes, rather than completed sales. Home shoppers in October were acting before lawmakers decided to extend a tax credit for first-time buyers and expand it to some existing homeowners. The credit now covers contracts signed by April 30. The surge in sales was driven entirely by a 23 percent increase in the South. Sales fell about 5 percent in the West and Northeast, and fell 20 percent in the Midwest. Despite the lack of certainty about the tax credit that buyers faced in October, sales were up 5.1 percent from a year ago, the first yearly increase since November 2005. The median sales price of $212,200 was almost even with $213,200 a year earlier, but up almost 1 percent from September's level of $210,700.

- MOUNT ARAFAT, Saudi Arabia – Muslim pilgrims holding white umbrellas against the blazing sun clambered up a rocky desert hill for prayers Thursday during the annual hajj, a day after torrential rains that killed at least 77 people. Flooding from the unusually heavy downpours hit hardest in the Red Sea coastal city of Jiddah, about 40 miles (60 kilometers) away from the holy city of Mecca and its surrounding sacred sites where the 3 million Muslims from around the world were performing the rites of the pilgrimage. Most of the deaths occurred in the shantytowns around Jiddah and along the main highway to Mecca, populated by poorer, foreign immigrants who work in the city as drivers, construction workers and domestic help. Streets were swamped with water, some houses collapsed and mudslides took place, Civil Defense officials said.

- LONDON (AP) -- The dollar tumbled to a 14-year low against the yen Thursday as investor concerns about the debt problems afflicting Dubai prompted a rush towards safe haven assets, like the Japanese currency. By mid-afternoon London time, the dollar was down 0.9 percent over the day at 86.61 yen, but a tad higher on the 86.27 yen level recorded earlier, which was the lowest level since July 1995. Sentiment in the markets has been dominated by the news that Dubai World, a government investment fund with debts totaling around $60 billion, has asked creditors if it can postpone its forthcoming payments until May. That has stoked fears of a potential default and knock-on effects through the global financial system, particularly in emerging markets. "These are the kind of stories which prompt risk aversion and reinforce the general belief that while the worst of the crisis is behind us, the global economy, and the financial system in particular, is not out of the woods yet," said Kit Juckes, chief economist at ECU Group.

- TOKYO (AP) -- Toyota is slashing bonus pay for managers as the Japanese automaker tackles a massive recall in the U.S. and deep losses for the second straight fiscal year. Toyota Motor Corp. said Thursday winter bonus payments for 8,700 managers in Japan will be cut by 20 percent. Japanese workers at major companies such as Toyota get twice-a-year bonus pay in addition to their monthly salaries which reflects the company's performance. Toyota announced in the U.S. on Wednesday a massive recall affecting 4 million vehicles to replace the gas pedals that can get stuck in the floor mats and cause sudden acceleration. The recall, Toyota's largest ever in the U.S., comes at a time when the maker of the Prius hybrid and Lexus luxury car is trying to reverse losses caused by a global slump and strengthening yen. Earlier this month, Toyota lowered its loss forecast for the fiscal year through March 2010 to 200 billion yen ($2.2 billion) from its initial projection for a 450 billion yen ($5 billion) loss.

- NEW YORK – Stocks skidded Friday as fear swept world markets that financial trouble in the Middle Eastern city-state of Dubai will upend a global economic recovery. Major stock indexes fell more than 1 percent from 13-month highs, including the Dow Jones industrial average, which is down 125 points in a shortened trading day. Stocks pulled off their worst levels but 10 stocks still fell for every one that rose at the New York Stock Exchange and all 30 stocks that make up the Dow fell. Trading volume had been expected to be weak after the Thanksgiving holiday. Light trading can intensify swings in the market. Stock markets close three hours early, at 1 p.m. EST. Bond markets close at 2 p.m. Investors' broad retreat from riskier assets pushed Treasury prices higher. The dollar gained against most other major currencies as investors sought safety following steep drops in overseas markets. Commodities prices tumbled. Investors are worried that a default by a government investment company in Dubai over $60 billion in debt payments could have a ripple effect in world financial markets. The fear is that losses in the small emirate, which has drawn wealthy tourists from around the globe in the past decade with its Las Vegas-in-the-Middle East appeal, could imperil a nascent economic rebound.

- Oil price slides to near $74 in Europe as Dubai woes deepen economic concerns, dollar rises
Oil prices dropped to near $74 a barrel Friday as Dubai's debt problems jolted world markets, raising concern about the prospects for global economic recovery. By early afternoon in Europe, benchmark crude for January delivery was down $3.94 to $74.02 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose $1.94 to settle at $77.96 on Wednesday. Just a year after the global downturn derailed Dubai's explosive growth, the emirate is now so swamped in debt that it's asking for a six-month reprieve on paying its bills. Its main development engine, Dubai World, has said it would ask creditors for a "standstill" on paying back its $60 billion debt until at least May. That news roiled markets worldwide and sent crude tumbling more than 6 percent in Asia to a six-week low of $72.39 a barrel before the price recovered. The volatility spread to Europe, where crude kept dipping below $74 but also went as high as $74.75. Dubai "provided a wake-up call that not all is yet back to normal" with the world economy, Petromatrix Research said in a report.

- ALICE SPRINGS, Australia – Australian authorities plan to corral about 6,000 wild camels with helicopters and gun them down after they overran a small Outback town in search of water, trampling fences, smashing tanks and contaminating supplies. The Northern Territory government announced its plan Wednesday for Docker River, a town of 350 residents where thirsty camels have been arriving daily for weeks because of drought conditions in the region. "The community of Docker River is under siege by 6,000 marauding, wild camels," local government minister Rob Knight said in Alice Springs, 310 miles (500 kilometers) northeast of Docker. "This is a very critical situation out there, it's very unusual and it needs urgent action." The camels, which are not native to Australia but were introduced in the 1840s, have smashed water tanks, approached houses to try to take water from air conditioning units, and knocked down fencing at the small airport runway, Knight said. The carcasses of camels killed in stampedes at water storage areas are contaminating the water supply, he added.

- CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Space shuttle Atlantis and its seven astronauts returned to Earth with a smooth touchdown Friday to end an 11-day flight that resupplied the International Space Station. With bright sunlight glinting off it, the shuttle swooped through a clear sky and landed on the runway right on time. Mission Control said no one could remember such welcoming conditions; there were no clouds in sight for the midmorning arrival, and the temperature was in the 50s. "Couldn't have picked a clearer day," commander Charles Hobaugh said during the final approach. Mission Control congratulated him on a "picture perfect" landing.
"We really had truly an amazing mission," Hobaugh said after exiting the shuttle.It was an especially sweet homecoming for two of the crew. Astronaut Nicole Stott was away for three months, living at the space station. Fellow crew member Randolph Bresnik's baby daughter was born last weekend. "Everybody, welcome back to Earth, especially you, Nicole," Mission Control radioed. Hobaugh and his crew spent a week stockpiling the space station. They delivered big spare parts and performed three spacewalks to install equipment and carry out maintenance. The pumps, gyroscopes and storage tanks should keep the outpost in business for another five to 10 years, long after Atlantis and the two other shuttles are retired. Stott was feeling the full effects of gravity for the first time since she rocketed to the space station at the end of August. Her mission lasted 91 days. Hobaugh said she was doing "great." Stott was reunited quickly with her husband and 7-year-old son, who were at Kennedy Space Center for the landing. She said throughout the flight that she also was looking forward to some pizza and icy cola. Bresnik had even bigger plans: to hold his infant daughter for the first time. Abigail Mae Bresnik was born Saturday night, right after her father took his first spacewalk. But he'll have to wait until Saturday to see her. Bresnik's wife, Rebecca, stayed home in Houston with Abigail and 3-year-old big brother Wyatt. Atlantis — which brought back broken equipment from the space station's water-recycling system — logged 4.5 million miles and circled Earth 171 times.
This was Atlantis' next-to-last mission. Only five shuttle flights remain, all to the space station next year. Station construction will essentially end at that point, so NASA used the trip to send up as many hefty spare parts as possible. None of the other visiting spacecraft — from Russia, Japan and Europe — can carry so much in a single load. Atlantis, which delivered nearly 15 tons of gear, left the space station 86 percent complete. NASA's next shuttle flight is in February. Endeavour will deliver a full-fledged module to the space station, complete with a cupola for prime Earth gazing with a domed chamber that has seven windows. The five remaining space station residents, meanwhile, may have to dodge a piece of space junk this weekend.

-India GDP growth beats forecasts
India has reported its best growth figures in more than a year, beating economists' predictions and suggesting Asia's third largest economy is fast emerging from a slowdown caused by the global financial crisis. India's economy grew by 7.9 per cent in the three months to September, the government figures, released on Monday, showed. Analysts had expected the economy to grow at only 6.3 per cent, following on from growth of 6.1 per cent in the April-June quarter, according to a poll by Dow Jones Newswires. "As upside surprises go, this was a big one," Robert Prior-Wandesforde, an HSBC economist, was quoted by the AFP news agency as saying. India's expansion, the strongest quarterly performance since early 2008, was bolstered by rising industrial production and government stimulus measures designed to combat the global downturn. The figures show manufacturing in India surged by 9.2 per cent while government spending on roads and other projects climbed by 12.7 per cent.

Don’t sing “Don’t worry, be happy” yet

It had been a dull week and a month for me. I could not do a whole lot with the trading. I am still hopeful for C, FNM and OPC. It’s just a bad week for CEMJQ. It just kept sliding down. It seems that a massive sell out is going on. Is it going to continue declining or it is going to turn around? I was flying high for a few months. My hands are tied now. I just don’t feel confident about the market. I am out of sink with the market. I am hoping that I will be in sinking soon and start collecting some dough.

The market was in turmoil on Thursday. When I thought X was going to hit $ 45, it went down to $ 40.8. I still think it will get to $ 45 but I hope it’s sooner than later. This is so weird and unpredictable. I have to clue what drives the stock price. The economic data shows strong on some areas which sometimes reflect DOW but then again it does nothing to market. What really drives this market? What is the trigger?

- NEW YORK (AP) -- Investors kept the stock market's upward momentum going Monday, sending shares sharply higher after retail sales rebounded more than expected in October and the dollar extended its slide. Major stock indexes rose more than 1 percent to new 13-month highs, including the Dow Jones industrial average, which jumped 145 points. The Standard & Poor's 500 index topped 1,110, the first convincing move above 1,100 after hovering around that level for the past month. The Commerce Department said retail sales rose 1.4 percent in October, easily surpassing the 0.8 percent increase forecast by economists polled by Thomson Reuters. It was a sharp rebound following the 2.3 percent drop in September. Excluding the gain from autos, however, sales rose just 0.2 percent, half of what economists predicted.

- WASHINGTON (AP) -- Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said Tuesday the global economy is moving toward a recovery but countries can't rely on U.S. consumers to serve as the engine of worldwide growth. In testimony prepared for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Geithner said that significant cooperation among the world's 20 major economies had helped countries to "put out the financial fire" and restart economic growth. "To establish a more global foundation for growth and avert future crises of this nature, we must rebalance global demand," Geithner said. Countries with large trade surpluses such as China will have to foster policies to support domestic growth, while countries with large trade and budget deficits will need to boost savings, he said. The personal savings rate already has risen significantly in the U.S. during the current crisis and as the economy achieves sustainable growth, the Obama administration will begin working to reduce the federal government's soaring budget deficits, Geithner said. "Emerging markets and economies with large and sustained surpluses will need to shift their growth towards domestic demand and reduce their reliance on exports," he said. "Governments around the world will need to accept this basic reality or we will all face slower growth."

- A look at the world's 10 most corrupt and 10 least corrupt countries according to the Corruption Perceptions Index report published Tuesday (November 17, 2009) by watchdog Transparency International.
The world's ten most corrupt countries:
1. Somalia
2. Afghanistan
3. Myanmar
4. Sudan
5. Iraq
6. Chad
7. Uzbekistan
8. Turkmenistan
9. Iran
10. Haiti
The world's ten least corrupt countries:
1. New Zealand
2. Denmark
3. Singapore
4. Sweden
5. Switzerland
6. Finland
7. Netherlands
8. Australia
9. Canada
10. Iceland

- BEIJING – President Barack Obama's first visit to China underscored a shifting balance of power: two giants moving closer to being equals. In this week's choreographed show of U.S.-Chinese good will, Obama's pledge to treat China as a trusted global partner won a return promise of shared effort on world troubles — but not much else. Standing stiffly together in the Great Hall of the People after a morning of talks, Obama and President Hu Jintao talked expansively Tuesday of common burdens and joint efforts on global warming, nuclear disarmament, the anemic economy and other big issues. They dealt coolly with differences over human rights and trade, leaving them out of public view or reserved for coded language. Their first formal summit featured none of the rancor that spoiled many previous summits between the nations. If there was any pressure on Beijing to make immediate concessions, neither leader let on. But Obama went into the meetings with a weaker hand than most past presidents. The battering that economic recession and wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have given U.S. prestige is felt nowhere more keenly than in a China that is busily growing and accruing global clout. "The U.S. has a lot to ask from China," said Xue Chen, a researcher on strategic affairs at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies. "On the other hand, the U.S. has little to offer China."

- Oil prices wavered on Tuesday as a rising dollar kept crude from moving higher, as fresh economic data gave mixed signals on whether demand for oil will increase. Benchmark crude for December delivery was down 43 cents to $78.47 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose $2.55 to settle at $78.90 on Monday. The euro dropped back below $1.49 on Tuesday after banking officials in Europe and the U.S. voiced support for the dollar. Because crude is traded in dollars it gets cheaper when the dollar declines. That has helped move oil higher this year after it bottomed at $32 a barrel nearly a year ago. At the same time, industrial production for October rose less than expected, suggesting that the economic recovery -- and oil demand -- will continue to be bumpy. Even with Monday's strong gain, oil has traded in a range of $75 to $82 for the past several weeks. Demand for oil continues to be weak and supplies are more than ample, and that is keeping oil prices restrained as prices for other commodities, such as gold, continue to climb because of the weaker dollar, PFGBest analyst Phil Flynn said.

- WASHINGTON (AP) -- A rising proportion of fixed-rate home loans made to people with good credit are sinking into foreclosure, adding to concerns about the strength of the economic recovery. Driven by rising unemployment, such loans accounted for nearly 33 percent of new foreclosures last quarter. That compares with just 21 percent a year ago, when high-risk subprime loans made during the housing boom were the main reason for default. At the same time, the proportion of homeowners with a mortgage who were either behind on their payments or in foreclosure hit a record-high for the ninth straight quarter. The Mortgage Bankers Association's report Thursday suggests the housing market and broader recovery could be thwarted by the continuing surge in home loan defaults, especially as the unemployment rate keeps rising. Lost jobs, rather than the shady loans made during the housing boom, are now the main reason homeowners fall behind on their mortgages. After three years of plunging prices, the housing market started to rebound this summer. While optimists hope the worst is over, pessimists say there are simply too many foreclosed properties that have yet to be dumped on the market and expect further price declines.

- WASHINGTON – Soldier suicides this year are almost sure to top last year's, but a recent decline in the pace of such deaths could mean the Army is making progress in stemming them, officials said Tuesday. Army Vice Chief of Staff General Peter Chiarelli said that as of Monday, 140 active duty soldiers are believed to have died of self-inflicted wounds. That's the same as were confirmed for all of 2008. "We are almost certainly going to end the year higher than last year — this is horrible, and I do not want to downplay the significance of these numbers in any way," he said. But Chiarelli said there has been a tapering off in recent months from huge numbers of January and February. "I do believe we are finally beginning to see progress being made," Chiarelli told a Pentagon press conference. He attributed that to some unprecedented efforts the Army has been trying to work with soldiers through new programs.
Using some U.S. bases as examples of the trend downward, Chiarelli said there were 18 suicides reported this year at Fort Campbell in Kentucky — and that 11 of those were in the first four months of the year. At Schofield Barracks in Hawaii, there were seven all year so far — five in the first five months of the year and only two since.

- LONDON – World stocks slid Thursday amid mounting concerns that current valuations are not merited by the pace of the global economic recovery. In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was down 60.09 points, or 1.1 percent, to 5,282.04 while Germany's DAX fell 65.34 points, or 1.1 percent, to 5,722.27. The CAC-40 in France was 34.10 points, or 0.9 percent, lower at 3,794.08. Losses in Europe more than doubled after Wall Street opened sharply lower. The Dow Jones industrial average was down 121.15 points, or 1.2 percent, at 10,305.16 while the broader Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 16.03 points, or 1.4 percent, at 1,093.77. Stock markets have rallied strongly since March's lows as investors reined in their economic doomsday expectations to factor in a swifter than anticipated global economic rebound, but recent disappointing U.S. housing figures and mixed earnings from some of the country's leading retailers have dented the optimism. Many investors think stock valuations are now pricing in too rapid an economic recovery.

- JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel triggered a fresh rift with Washington over settlement building on Tuesday by approving the building of 900 homes for Jews on West Bank land it occupied in a 1967 war and annexed to its Jerusalem municipality. The Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth said President Barack Obama's envoy, George Mitchell, had asked an aide to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, at a meeting in London on Monday, to block the proposed construction at the settlement of Gilo. But a government planning commission approved the addition of 900 housing units at Gilo, where 40,000 Israelis already live. The Israeli decision drew an usually sharply worded rebuke from the White House, which said it was "dismayed" and accused Israel of undermining Obama's efforts to resume peace talks with Palestinians stalled since December. "At a time when we are working to relaunch negotiations, these actions make it more difficult for our efforts to succeed," White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said. In his statement, Gibbs also said the U.S. objected to continued evictions and demolitions of Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem.

- WASHINGTON (AP) -- Ford, Subaru and Volkswagen lead the insurance industry's annual list of the safest new vehicles, according to a closely watched assessment used by car companies to lure safety-conscious consumers to showrooms. The Virginia-based Insurance Institute for Highway Safety awarded its "top safety pick" on Wednesday to 19 passenger cars and eight sport utility vehicles for the 2010 model year. The institute substantially reduced the number of awards compared with 2009, because of tougher requirements for roof strength. Ford Motor Co. and its Volvo unit received the most awards with six, followed by five awards apiece for Japanese automaker Subaru and German automaker Volkswagen AG and its Audi unit. Chrysler Group LLC received four awards followed by two each for Honda Motor Co. and General Motors Co. Toyota Motor Corp., BMW AG, Mazda Motor Corp. and Mitsubishi Motors Corp. were shut out in the annual IIHS review. Ford's recipients include the Ford Taurus and Lincoln MKS passenger cars and the Volvo S80 and C30 passenger cars and the XC60 and XC90 SUVs. Ford said in a statement it is "committed to providing customers with safe vehicles for a broad range of real-world crash conditions." Subaru recorded winners with the Subaru Legacy, Outback and Impreza cars and Tribeca and Forester SUVs. Subaru was the only automaker with an IIHS winner in all four vehicle classes in which it competes. The automaker, which has bucked the brutal U.S. sales market with a 13 percent increase during the first 10 months of 2009, attributed its safety success to a unique engine design that sits low in the vehicle chassis and moves down and under occupants in a frontal collision.

- OTTAWA (Reuters) – Inflation returned to Canada in October after a short deflationary bout but prices remained tame and are not expected to sway the Bank of Canada from holding interest rates at a record low until mid-2010. The consumer price index climbed 0.1 percent in the year to October, mainly due to less downward pressure from gasoline prices and as consumers paid more for food, household goods and services and tuition, Statistics Canada said on Wednesday. It was the first upward movement since May; a sign the economy is pulling out of a recession, but still below the average forecast in a Reuter’s poll of a 0.3 percent gain. Prices slipped 0.1 percent on the month. Core inflation, which provides a reality check by excluding gasoline and other volatile items, came in higher than expected at 1.8 percent, up from 1.5 percent in September after gaining 0.1 percent in the month. "There is a little bit of heat in this report," said Eric Lascelles, chief economics and rates strategist at TD Securities. "Headline CPI exited that technical state of deflation which is more symbolic than anything else but still attracts some attention," he said. Consumer prices fell annually by between 0.3 percent and 0.9 percent in the months from June to September. The Canadian dollar showed little initial reaction to the report, trading near its pre-data level of C$1.0469, or 95.52 U.S. cents as the market digested the numbers.

- WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of mass layoffs reported by U.S. employers fell last month from September, a government report showed on Friday, suggesting job losses were close to bottoming. The Labor Department said the 2,127 mass layoff actions reported in October -- defined as job cuts involving at least 50 people from a single employer -- was down 434 from September. The layoffs affected 217,182 workers, down from 248,006 in September. Mass layoff events were down by 77 from October 2008. Despite the decline in October, the year-to-date number of mass layoffs hit a record 25,872. A total of 619 mass layoff events were reported in the manufacturing last month, the department said. The battered labor market has been showing gradual signs of stabilizing after a surge in job losses early this year. It is being watched for clues on the strength and sustainability of the economic recovery that started in the third quarter. The U.S. unemployment rate rose to a 26-1/2-year high of 10.2 percent in October. Since December 2007, when the recession officially began, a total of 49,357 mass layoff events have been reported, the department said.

- TEHRAN, Iran – Iran has sentenced five defendants to death in a mass trial of opposition figures accused of fomenting the unrest that followed the disputed June presidential election, state television reported Tuesday. The five apparently include three death sentences announced last month. None of the five have been identified by Iranian authorities. Iran began the mass trial in August of more than 100 prominent opposition figures and activists, accusing them of a range of charges from rioting to spying and plotting what Iran's clerical rulers have depicted as a foreign-backed plot to oust them from power. In the weeks following the June 12 election, the opposition led massive street protests that drew hundreds of thousands and supporters clashed with security forces. They claimed fraud after election authorities declared President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad the winner of a second term and their anger unleashed the most serious internal unrest in Iran in the 30 years since the Islamic Revolution. A harsh crackdown ended the demonstrations and a security sweep went far beyond rounding up just protesters on the streets, snatching up rights activists and journalists, as well as pro-reform politicians. Rights groups and opposition figures in Iran have criticized the court proceedings, calling them a "show trial" and saying confessions are coerced. The opposition says 69 people were killed in the crackdown, while the government has confirmed about 30 dead.

- ATLANTA – Air travelers nationwide scrambled to revise their plans Thursday after an FAA computer glitch caused widespread cancellations and delays for the second time in 15 months. The Federal Aviation Administration said the problem, which lasted about four hours, was fixed around 9 a.m., but it was unclear how long flights would be affected. It started when a single circuit board in a piece of networking equipment at a computer center in Salt Lake City failed around 5 a.m., the FAA said in a statement. That failure prevented air traffic control computers in different parts of the country from talking to each other. Air traffic controllers were forced to type in complicated flight plans themselves because they could not be transferred automatically from computers in one region of the country to computers in another, slowing down the whole system.

- MANILA, Philippines – Dozens of gunmen hijacked a convoy carrying journalists, and family and supporters of a candidate for provincial governor, killing at least 21 of the travelers Monday in the southern Philippines' worst political violence in years. There was no claim of responsibility for the bloodshed in the predominantly Muslim region wracked by political tensions between rival clans. The convoy of vans carrying about 40 people was hijacked in Maguindanao province, about 560 miles (900 kilometers) south of Manila, and army troops later found the bullet-riddled bodies of 13 women and eight men, regional military commander Maj. Gen. Alfredo Cayton said. It was unclear if anyone survived the attack. An army and police search was under way for the other hostages. The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines said at least 10 local reporters were part of the convoy. Their organizations failed to reach them, leading them to conclude they too were killed.

Are we in for surprise in the financials?

It had been a mixed week. DOW gained some grounds but not in the area that I am interested in. C, FNM, X and OPC is standing still. I am sure the surge is coming for C, FNM and X. I am just not too comfortable putting my money in anything at the moment. It’s just a “wait and see” game. I am still optimistic about OPC. It will go to $ 3 at some point this year. I just hope that happens soon. CEMJQ is not doing anything for the last couple of weeks. I was hoping that it will go to $ 2 this week. Will it go? When will it go? Who knows? STEC is another story; I wonder what Kramer has to say about this stock. He spread optimism about this stock and a lot of sucker like me got into this stock just to find out after a few weeks that this stock tanked. I just hope that it will be back to $30’s at some point.

There are a lot of activities happening in Fort McMurray. I just hope that it stays positive for the rest of the year. I have not heard anything from Albian Sands in a while. I wonder what is going on there. What is their plan for 2010? Albian can give us a huge sparks next year. I am hoping to hire some experienced folks over the next few months. The problem is, I am not seeing too many resumes. The resumes that are coming are weak. This is a good time to build some good staff for our office.

- LONDON – European and U.S. stock markets took a breather Tuesday after a big rally in the previous session had pushed the Dow Jones industrial average to its highest level this year. Analysts said it was unsurprising trading was subdued after Monday's big gains, when sentiment was buoyed by the weekend pledge from the Group of 20 rich and developing countries to maintain stimulus measures as long as economies remained weak. In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was up only 0.62 of a point at 5,235.80 while Germany's DAX rose 11.35 points, or 0.2 percent, to 5,631.07. The CAC-40 in France was 5.38 points, or 0.1 percent, lower at 3,780.11. On Wall Street, the Dow was down 3.4 points at 10,223.54 soon after the open while the broader Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 0.89 point, or 0.1 percent, to 1,092.19. On Monday, U.S. stocks closed around 2 percent higher in the wake of the G-20 statement, with the Dow closing at 10,226.94, its best finish this year. David Jones, chief market strategist at IG Index, said there may be an "element of twitchiness creeping back into the market" as many of the world's major indexes approach their highest levels of the year. Though the Dow pushed out to fresh highs for 2009, Jones noted that the FTSE 100 and the S&P 500, for example, are still trading just below their October highs. "It would not be surprising to see markets mark time ahead of here, or even for some to book profits following the strong rise seen so far this month," said Jones. Much could well depend on whether the S&P 500 — widely considered to be a better barometer of investor appetite than the Dow — can breach its October high of 1,097.

- NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks jumped to new highs for the year Monday as the dollar extended its slide, boosting prices for commodities including gold and oil. Energy and materials stocks led the market higher. Investors were also buying stocks on growing confidence about the global economic recovery, getting a shot of optimism from news this weekend that the Group of 20 countries will keep stimulus measures in place. Investors saw the agreement as a signal that interest rates would remain low. Major stock indexes rose more than 1 percent, including the Dow Jones industrial average, which rose 150 points. Investors around the world are seeing the dollar as weaker than other currencies because of low U.S. interest rates, and so they're using it for what's known as "carry trade," to finance purchases of investments in other countries. That trend takes the dollar down when those purchases are made. Stock investors like a weaker dollar because it helps U.S. exporters by making their goods cheaper to overseas buyers and giving the companies a boost when they convert profits from abroad to dollars.

- LAS VEGAS (AP) — A 21-year-old Michigan poker professional who chose cards over college won the World Series of Poker main event in Las Vegas early Tuesday, winning $8.55 million and becoming the youngest player to win the tournament in its 40-year history. Joe Cada of Shelby Township, Mich., turned over a pair of nines early after 46-year old Darvin Moon called his all-in wager with a suited queen-jack, setting up an about-even race for most of the chips on the table. But a board of two sevens, a king, an eight and a deuce didn’t connect with either player’s cards and gave Cada the win. “I ran really well and I never really thought this was possible,” Cada said. “It was one of those dreams and I’m thankful it came true.” The hand abruptly ended a final table that saw Moon, a logger from western Maryland, bounce back to a dominant chip lead after being down 2-1 in chips to start the night. “I knew if I could catch, I got him,” Moon said of the final hand. “I just took a shot.” Cada broke a record for the tournament’s youngest winner set last year by Peter Eastgate of Denmark. Cada is 340 days younger than Eastgate. The record was previously held for two decades by 11-time gold bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth, who posed for pictures with Cada after the win.

- SANTA MONICA, Calif. (AP) -- First-day sales of Activision Blizzard Inc.'s "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2" broke records, raking in an estimated $310 million in North America and the United Kingdom alone. The video game went on sale all over the world on Tuesday, but Activision provided figures Thursday only for North America and Britain. The company estimates that it sold about 4.7 million copies of the game in the first 24 hours in those markets, making it the biggest-selling launch in the history of entertainment. The latest installment in the "Call of Duty" action franchise was expected to at least match last year's "Grand Theft Auto IV," which was the most successful video game release in history and at the time may have been the top entertainment launch ever. That game, from Take-Two Interactive Software Inc., had sold 3.6 million units on its opening day, worth $310 million worldwide. "Call of Duty" made that much in just North America and Britain. The launch of "Call of Duty" also easily brought in more than last year's record $155 million opening weekend for the Batman movie "The Dark Knight." Shares of Activision, which is based in Santa Monica, rose 23 cents, or 2 percent, to $11.61 in morning trading Thursday.

- WASHINGTON (AP) -- U.S. banks will prepay about $45 billion in premiums to replenish a federal deposit insurance fund now in the red, under a plan adopted by federal regulators. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. board voted Thursday to mandate the early payments of premiums for 2010 through 2012. Amid the struggling economy and rising loan defaults, 120 banks have failed so far this year costing the insurance fund more than $28 billion. To address concerns of small banks in weak financial condition, the FDIC also set up an exemption process for those that prove the prepaid fees would be a hardship. The FDIC expects the cost of bank failures to grow to about $100 billion over the next four years. It is the first time the agency has required prepaid insurance fees. The idea behind it is for banks to spread the costs over three years rather than paying a one-time fee that would deplete their capital reserves. The deposit insurance fund stood at $10.4 billion at the end of June -- already its lowest point since 1992 -- and since has fallen into deficit. That hasn't occurred since the savings-and-loan crisis of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Still, depositors' money is guaranteed -- up to $250,000 per account -- by the FDIC.

- DETROIT (AP) -- Ford Motor Co. said Thursday that its Fusion midsize sedan has already broken the model's annual sales record even though U.S. auto sales have dropped 25 percent. Ford sold 151,137 Fusions through Wednesday, beating the full-year sales record of 149,552 set in 2007, the company said in a statement. Fusion sales through the first 10 months of the year were up 15 percent from the same period in 2008, according to Autodata Corp. The Fusion was the top-selling car made by a Detroit automaker through October. The Fusion is made at Ford's factory in Hermosillo, Mexico. It gets up to 34 miles per gallon on the highway when equipped with a four-cylinder engine and six-speed automatic transmission. A gas-electric hybrid version gets up to 41 miles per gallon in the city. The car's base price is just under $20,000 including shipping. Even at record levels, the Fusion's sales numbers still lag behind the top-selling midsize cars in the U.S. Through October, Toyota Motor Corp. sold 294,493 Camry and Solara cars, while Honda Motor Co. sold 244,579 Accords.

- WASHINGTON (AP) -- New claims for unemployment insurance fell more than expected last week, evidence the job market is slowly healing as the economy recovers. Still, many private economists and Federal Reserve officials worry the nation could be in for a "jobless recovery" as the unemployment rate rises despite some overall economic growth. The Labor Department said Thursday that first-time claims for jobless benefits dropped to a seasonally adjusted 502,000 from an upwardly revised 514,000 the previous week. That's the fewest claims since the week ending Jan. 3, and below economists' estimates. The four-week average, which smooths fluctuations, dropped to 519,750, also the lowest in almost a year. It has fallen by more than 20 percent since its peak in the spring.

- FRANKFURT (AFP) – German luxury car maker Porsche on Thursday unveiled pre-tax losses of 4.4 billion euros (6.5 billion dollars) for its 2008-2009 financial year after a profit of 8.6 billion euros the previous year. The main reason for the massive loss over the financial year, which ended in July, was Porsche's failed bid to take over its far bigger German rival Volkswagen, Europe's top car maker. VW said last month it would buy 49.9 percent of Porsche.

- WASHINGTON – Government health officials say swine flu has sickened about 22 million Americans since April. They say about 4,000 have died, including 540 children. The startling new figures — about four times higher than previous death estimates — don't mean swine flu has suddenly gotten worse. Instead, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday called them a long-awaited better attempt to understand the virus' true toll. The CDC now believes that about 98,000 people have been hospitalized in the first six months of the nation's swine flu epidemic, including 36,000 children.

- NEW YORK – In what could be one of the biggest counterterrorism seizures in U.S. history, federal prosecutors sought to take over four U.S. mosques and a New York City skyscraper owned by a Muslim organization suspected of being controlled by the Iranian government. Prosecutors on Thursday filed a civil complaint in federal court against the Alavi Foundation, seeking the forfeiture of more than $500 million in assets. The assets include bank accounts; Islamic centers consisting of schools and mosques in New York, Maryland, California and Houston; more than 100 acres in Virginia; and a 36-story Manhattan office tower. Confiscating the properties would be a sharp blow against Iran, which the U.S. government has accused of bankrolling terrorism and trying to build a nuclear bomb. A telephone call and e-mail to Iran's U.N. Mission seeking comment were not immediately answered. John D. Winter, the Alavi Foundation's lawyer, said it intends to litigate the case and prevail. He said the foundation has been cooperating with the government's investigation for the better part of a year.

- CHICAGO (Reuters) – The National Hockey League had its most profitable year in 2008-2009 and team values rose $3 million to an average of $223 million despite a recession that curbed fan and sponsor spending, Forbes magazine said. Big revivals in markets like Chicago, Pittsburgh and Washington, as well as new deals with such companies as Honda Motor Co Ltd, Cisco Systems Inc and McDonald's Corp helped boost gate receipts and sponsorship revenue, according to the magazine's annual study. The teams dubbed the "Original Six" ranked among the top seven most valuable of the league's 30 teams, with the Philadelphia Flyers at No. 5 the only interloper, according to the list, which was released late on Wednesday. The most valuable team was the Toronto Maple Leafs, which saw its estimated value rise 5 percent to $470 million, Forbes said. It was followed by the New York Rangers (up 1 percent to $416 million), Montreal Canadiens (up 2 percent to $339 million) and the Detroit Red Wings (up 11 percent to $337 million). Other teams showing large gains in value included the Chicago Blackhawks (up 26 percent to No. 7 at $258 million); the Washington Capitals, with league's most valuable player Alexander Ovechkin (up 15 percent to No. 20 at $183 million); and the defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins (up 14 percent to No. 11 at $222 million), Forbes said.

- TOKYO – President Barack Obama is emphasizing cooperation on his first major trip to Asia, opening with a warning to North Korea that there will be tough, unified action by the U.S. and its Asian partners if the Koreans fail to abandon their nuclear weapons programs. The hard line on North Korea was to be a prominent theme of a Friday night speech that also was intended to more broadly showcase a United States that, under Obama's leadership, seeks deeper and more equal engagement in Asia. It was to be the fifth major foreign address of Obama's 10-month presidency, this one geared toward setting a new tone for the sometimes-rocky U.S. relationship with the world's fastest-growing region. In the speech, to 1,500 prominent Japanese in a soaring concert hall in bustling downtown Tokyo, Obama planned to give his most extended remarks in some time on North Korea, said Ben Rhodes, a deputy national security adviser. Previewing himself, Obama said after a meeting early Friday with Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama that "it's absolutely vital" that North Korea — and Iran in the Middle East — bow to international demands that they give up nuclear weapons ambitions. The U.S., Japan, China, Russia and South Korea are partners in talks to persuade North Korea to give up the active nuclear weapons program it has in defiance of U.N. Security Council resolutions. Pyongyang is widely believed to have enough weapons-grade plutonium for a half-dozen nuclear bombs

Uncertainty will give us stomach ache

What a bad Monday. I have not seen such Monday in a while. The market took a dive and won’t get up. It just keeps sliding down. I hope to see some light toward the end of the week. I bought C Monday to sell off by the end of the day. I am glad I did sell. OPC is still looking for a solid ground. Once it found the ground, it will rise to $ 4 in quick successions.

This is such a weird week for investment. I am sure a lot of the guys would admit that they have no clue about the Wall Street. STEC lost 36% on November 4th and I don’t know what will happen to this stock. I have no choice but to hold. My average price is over $ 20 per share. This stock is at $ 16/ share right now. I am just clueless.
There seem to be positive signs in Fort McMurray. I am getting a lot of calls about projects that are underway. I think we will be busy until the year end. I am hoping that the momentum keeps going into the New Year.

I spoke to an old friend (Kamini Chandra) this week. I am glad to talk to her after 7/8 years. It was nice to catch up. I am glad that her kids (Puchki and Jojo) are doing so well. I just wish all the best for them.


- NEW YORK (AP) -- A rise in factory orders is doing little to ease investors' concerns about the economy. The Commerce Department is reporting Tuesday that orders to U.S. factories rebounded in September after dropping in August. Orders for autos, heavy machinery and military aircraft rose. Orders rose 0.9 percent in September, slightly better than the 0.8 percent advance economists expected. Investors have also been drawing only modest comfort from investor Warren Buffett's decision to buy Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad as they worry about unemployment and banks. The Dow Jones industrials are down 38 at 9,751. The Dow was down 35 before the report. The Standard & Poor's 500 index is down 1 at 1,042. The Nasdaq composite index is down 5 at 2,044.

- NEW YORK (AP) -- Investors worried about the economic recovery drew only modest comfort from billionaire investor Warren Buffett's decision to buy one of the nation's largest railroads. Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway said Tuesday it is paying $100 a share for Burlington Northern Santa Fe in a deal valuing the railroad at $34 billion. Investors are on edge about unemployment and the stability of major financial firms in Europe. Health care products maker Johnson & Johnson said it would cut up to 7 percent of its global work force and streamline its business structure to save up to $900 million next year.

- ST. ANDREWS, Scotland – The world's top financial officials on Friday sought a blueprint for securing future global growth and worked to break a deadlock over who bears the cost of fighting climate change. Even as the world emerges hesitantly from recession, finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of 20 leading rich and developing countries meeting in Scotland are likely to agree that it is too early to pull the plug on economic stimulus measures. While Britain remains officially in recession, the United States, Germany, and Japan have all recorded renewed growth and the 16-country euro zone is expected to do the same when figures are released next week. British Treasury chief Alistair Darling, the host of the gathering, urged the group to maintain the collective approach forged in more dire circumstances at summits in London in April and in Pittsburgh in September, arguing that sustainable growth would only come from agreed action to increase trade and boost productivity. Some countries are more eager to begin sketching out exit strategies to unwind the recent massive government spending, low interest rates and expansion of the money supply that are supporting the world economy. And the European Central Bank broadly hinted Thursday that it will soon begin cutting back some of its emergency lending to banks, ramped up during the finance crisis. There are also disagreements on banking reform, with Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty acknowledging on the eve of the meeting that there were "disparate views" on how to address the problem of banks being too big to fail. Britain is forcing major bailed-out banks to sell part of their business, while the U.S. has shied away from calls to break up major banks. Meanwhile, a French official said his country is worried that the momentum behind tightening rules on bonuses is flagging. "There can be no room for complacency amongst G-20 countries this weekend," Darling said in a speech in Edinburgh on his way to chair the grouping that represents around 90 percent of the world's wealth, 80 percent of world trade, and two-thirds of the world's population. Darling acknowledged that plans for recovery must eventually be coordinated, but said "as we draw up our plans, we must accept that the biggest risk to recovery would be to exit before the recovery is real." The other key item on the agenda for the officials — holed up away from the blustering Scottish winds in a seaside golf resort — is tackling the financial cost of climate change. With the major UN climate conference in Copenhagen a month away, Darling said that "heavy lifting" was needed to push through a deal on so-called climate finance, which would give developing countries funds to help them cut emissions by switching from fossil fuels to cleaner energy such as wind and solar. EU leaders last week agreed to a euro100 billion annual package of public and private finance by 2020 to help poorer nations develop green industries and adapt to climate change.

- NEW YORK (AP) -- Criminal charges have been filed against 14 people, including attorneys and Wall Street professionals, in a widening $53 million insider trading case that has already snared one of the richest men in America, federal prosecutors said Thursday. The actions raise to 20 the number of people who have been charged in the case first disclosed last month with the arrests of Galleon Group founder and hedge fund operator Raj Rajaratnam and five others. At the time, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara called the first arrests "a wakeup call for Wall Street." "Today the alarm bells have only grown louder," he said at a news conference Thursday. Bharara said that total profits alleged by prosecutors was $40 million while the Securities and Exchange Commission raised the total to $53 million, saying it includes millions in profits not described in the criminal complaints. He said he knew people would ask if the insider trading case was the tip of the iceberg of illicit trading on Wall Street. "We don't have an answer to that but we aim to find out," he said. He said eight people were arrested Thursday on securities fraud charges and another five have already pleaded guilty are are cooperating. Another person is still at large, he said. A bail hearing for Rajaratnam, who is free on $100 million bail and has been listed among the nation's richest people, was scheduled for later Thursday.

- WASHINGTON – The Federal Reserve pledged Wednesday to keep a key interest rate at a record low for an "extended period," in a sign that the economy is growing but remains deeply dependent on government help. The Fed said economic activity has "continued to pick up" and that the housing market also has grown stronger, a key ingredient to a sustained recovery. But Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and his colleagues warned that rising joblessness and hard-to-get-credit for many people and companies could restrain the rebound in the months ahead. "Economic activity is likely to remain weak for a time," they said. Against that backdrop, the Fed kept the target range for its bank lending rate at zero to 0.25 percent. And it made no major changes to a program to help drive down mortgage rates. Commercial banks' prime lending rate, used to peg rates on home equity loans, certain credit cards and other consumer loans, will stay at about 3.25 percent, the lowest in decades. Still, some credit card rates have risen over the last several months. Part of that reflects rate bump-ups by lenders in response to escalating defaults on credit card loans. Lenders also pushed through increases before a new law clamping down on sudden rate hikes for credit card customers takes effect early next year. The average rate nationwide on a variable-rate credit card is 11.5 percent, according to Bankrate.com. Lenders charge more and credit card customers pay rates higher than the prime because the debt they run up is more risky.

- Auto sales show industry beginning to stabilize
DETROIT – After months of roller coaster-like sales, the auto industry offered signs of recovery from its yearlong slump on Tuesday, as most automakers reported higher levels of U.S. sales in October. GM, the largest U.S. automaker, reported its first monthly sales gain in almost two years, while Hyundai and Subaru were huge winners thanks for their popular models and fuel-efficient sedans. Other top automaker — Toyota, Ford, Nissan _also posted higher sales. The mood was in contrast to a year ago, when consumers were frightened away from showrooms by the early effects of the financial meltdown, plunging stock markets and the credit freeze. Automakers had said this October would be a test of the strength of the auto market after the volatile effects of the government's Cash for Clunkers program. The industry staggered through a tough September following the summer's clunker-fueled sales surge. The industry still has to see its way through a number of economic challenges, said Bob Carter, a Toyota vice president. Americans remain anxious about high unemployment, while consumer confidence remains dampened. "We expect the recovery to be very gradual, extending into next year and beyond," he said. Demand for new cars and crossovers fueled the better October sales for General Motors Co. and Detroit rival Ford Motor Co. GM's sales rose 4.7 percent, while Ford notched a 3-percent gain. Japanese rival Toyota Motor Corp. said its sales edged up less than a percent. Less rosy news came from Chrysler Group LLC, whose sales fell 30 percent, though they improved from September. Ford's top economist Emily Kolinski Morris said last month's sales signal a real underlying demand for new vehicles after the distorting impact of the clunkers program. The economy, she said, is "in transition from recession to recovery." "We expect consumers to remain cautious as the recovery continues," she told analysts and reporters during a conference call. Hyundai, based in South Korea, said its sales jumped 49 percent, boosted by its fuel-efficient Elantra sedan. Japanese automaker Subaru also topped the winner's list with a 41-percent surge, helped by strong sales in its Outback and Forester models.

- LONDON – World stock markets rose sharply Wednesday after a batch of upbeat earnings reports and expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve would indicate it will keep its easy monetary policy for quite a while yet. In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares closed up 70.68 points, or 1.4 percent, at 5,107.89 while Germany's DAX rose 90.88 points, or 1.7 percent, to 5,444.23. The CAC-40 in France was 86.08 points, or 2.4 percent, higher at 3,670.33. And on Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 122.28 points, or 1.3 percent, at 9,894.19 around midday New York time while the broader Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 11.82 points, or 1.1 percent, to 1,057.23. Sentiment, particularly in Europe, was buoyed by some forecast-busting earnings from the likes of British retailer Marks & Spencer PLC, French bank Societe Generale SA and German sportswear company Adidas AG. Though the earnings helped provide some support in Europe's markets, trading has been volatile of late and could well remain so in the coming days through to Friday's closely watched U.S. nonfarm payrolls figures for October — the data often set the tone in equity markets for a week or two.
Over the last week or two, the rally in stocks has faltered amid concerns about the pace of the global economic recovery. "Admittedly, valuations now look stretched after the gains that have been racked up this year but the favorable monetary policy backdrop and the improvement in the economic data that have fueled the rally should persist over the next few quarters," said John Higgins, an analyst at Capital Economics.

- JERUSALEM – Israeli commandos seized a ship Wednesday that defense officials said was carrying hundreds of tons of weapons from Iran bound for Lebanon's Hezbollah guerrillas — the largest arms shipment Israel has ever commandeered. The Israeli military said an Iranian document was found on board, showing that the arms shipment originated from Iran, although the paper was not shown to reporters. Rear Admiral Roni Ben-Yehuda, the deputy Israeli navy commander, said that despite its size, the shipment of weapons was "a drop in the ocean" of arms being shipped to Hezbollah. "It's a cargo certificate that shows that it was from a port in Iran," military spokeswoman Lt. Col. Avital Leibovich said. "All the cargo certificates are stamped at the ports of origin, and this one was stamped at an Iranian port." The Israelis boarded the ship before dawn in the waters near Cyprus. Israel has long accused Iran of arming its enemies.

- KABUL – An Afghan policeman opened fire on British soldiers in the volatile southern province of Helmand, killing five before fleeing, authorities said Wednesday, raising concerns about discipline within the Afghan forces and possible infiltration by insurgents. The attack Tuesday afternoon came a month after an Afghan policeman on patrol with U.S. soldiers fired on the Americans, killing two. Training and operating jointly with Afghan police and soldiers is key to NATO's strategy of dealing with the spreading Taliban-led insurgency and, ultimately, allowing international forces to leave Afghanistan. Attacks such as these will heighten concern about the effectiveness of the Afghan forces. Lt. Col. David Wakefield, spokesman for the British forces, told Sky News that the soldiers had been mentoring Afghan national police and had been working and living in the police checkpoint in Helmand's Nad-e-Ali district.

- NEW YORK (AP)—The New York Yankees bolted from the dugout even before the last grounder was scooped up. After waiting nine years for championship No. 27, no one would dare hold them back. “It feels better than I remember it, man,” captain Derek Jeter(notes) said. “It’s been a long time.” Hideki Matsui(notes) tied a World Series record with six RBIs, Andy Pettitte(notes) won on short rest and New York beat the Philadelphia Phillies 7-3 in Game 6 on Wednesday night, finally seizing that elusive title—the most in all of sports. Paint the town in pinstripes! Nearly a decade after their dynasty ended on a blooper in the desert, the Yankees are baseball’s best again. Matsui, the Series MVP, powered a quick rout of old foe Pedro Martinez(notes). And when Mariano Rivera(notes) got the final out, it was ecstasy in the Bronx for George Steinbrenner’s go-for-broke bunch. What a way for Alex Rodriguez(notes) and Co. to christen their $1.5 billion ballpark: One season, one World Series crown—the team’s first since winning three straight from 1998-2000. “The Yankees won. The world is right again,” team president Randy Levine said. The season certainly ended a lot better than it started—with a steroids scandal involving A-Rod, followed by hip surgery that kept him out until May. “My teammates, coaches and the organization stood by me and now we stand here as world champions,” said Rodriguez, who admitted using steroids from 2001-03 while with Texas. “We’re going to enjoy it, and we’re going to party!” For Chase Utley(notes) and the Phillies, it was a frustrating end to another scintillating season. Philadelphia fell two wins short of becoming the first NL team to repeat as World Series champions since the 1975-76 Cincinnati Reds. Utley tied Reggie Jackson’s record with five home runs in a Series. But Ryan Howard’s(notes) sixth-inning shot came too late to wipe away an untimely slump that included 13 strikeouts, also a Series mark. Meanwhile, Phillies pitchers rarely managed to slow Matsui and the Yankees’ machine. “I told them that I loved the way they played. We’re fighters and never quit,” Philadelphia manager Charlie Manuel said. “We want to keep what we got as far as attitude and chemistry.” For second-year manager Joe Girardi, a three-time Yankees champion as a player, it was the fulfillment of a mission. When he succeeded Joe Torre in October 2007, Girardi chose uniform No. 27, putting his quest on his back for all to see. His tenure didn’t start out so well, with New York missing the playoffs in its final season at old Yankee Stadium following 13 consecutive appearances.

- FORT HOOD, Texas – Soldiers who witnessed the shooting rampage at Fort Hood that left 13 people dead reported that the gunman shouted "Allahu Akbar!" — an Arabic phrase for "God is great!" — before opening fire, the base commander said Friday. Lt. Gen. Robert Cone said officials had not yet confirmed that the suspected shooter, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, made the comment before the rampage Thursday. Hasan was among 30 people wounded in the shooting spree and remained hospitalized on a ventilator. All but two of the injured were still hospitalized, and all were in stable condition. Military officials were trying to piece together what may have pushed Hasan, an Army psychiatrist trained to help soldiers in distress, to turn on his comrades. Cone said the 39-year-old Hasan was not known to be a threat or risk. "I'm not aware of any problems here," said Col. Steve Braverman, the Fort Hood hospital commander. "We had no problems with his job performance." An imam from a mosque Hasan regularly attended said Hasan, a lifelong Muslim, was a committed soldier, gave no sign of extremist beliefs and regularly wore his uniform at prayers. The motive for the shooting wasn't clear, but Hasan was apparently set to deploy soon and had expressed some anger about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Retired Col. Terry Lee, who said he had worked with Hasan, told Fox News said Hasan had hoped President Barack Obama would pull troops out of Afghanistan and Iraq and got into frequent arguments with others in the military who supported the wars.

- TEHRAN, Iran – A senior Iranian prosecutor accused three Americans detained on the border with Iraq of espionage on Monday, the first signal that Tehran intends to put them on trial. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton called for the release of the three. The announcement came as Washington and Tehran are maneuvering over a deadlock in negotiations over Iran's nuclear program. "We believe strongly that there is no evidence to support any charge whatsoever," Clinton told reporters in Berlin. "And we would renew our request on behalf of these three young people and their families that the Iranian government exercise compassion and release them, so they can return home." Clinton said the U.S. would continue to make that case through the Swiss channels who represent U.S. interests in Tehran. Shane Bauer, Sarah Shourd and Josh Fattal, all graduates of the University of California, Berkeley, were arrested July 31 after straying over the Iranian border from northern Iraq. The U.S. government and their families say there were on a hiking vacation and crossed accidentally. Tehran chief prosecutor Abbas Jafari Dowlatabadi says the three "have been accused of espionage" and that investigations were continuing, according to the state news agency IRNA. He said an "opinion (on their case) will be given in the not distant future."

- VERAPAZ, El Salvador – Soldiers and townspeople dug through rock and debris Monday in hopes of finding dozens of people missing in a mudslide that swept down on a town, part of a wave of floods and landslides that killed at least 124 people in El Salvador. Days of heavy rains loosed mud and boulders that rolled down the slopes of the Chichontepec volcano before dawn Sunday, burying homes and cars in Verapaz, a town of about 3,000 people 30 miles (50 kilometers) outside the capital, San Salvador.