A service of The Associated Press. Copyright 2003 All rights reserved.
The top business news from The Associated Press for the morning of Thursday, May 22, 2003:
Fla. Court Tosses $145B Tobacco Verdict
MIAMI (AP) _ A Florida appeals court erased a record-setting $145 billion award against the tobacco industry Wednesday, ruling thousands of Florida smokers could not group themselves together for a class-action attack on cigarette makers. Tobacco company stock prices jumped on news that the 68-page order by a three-judge panel of the 3rd District Court of Appeal found several flaws with the largest punitive damage verdict in U.S. history and the two-year trial that produced it.
___
American to Lower Fares, Add More Seats
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) _ There's less room coming to coach at American Airlines, which plans to restore seats to some of its jets and limit fares on a few cross-country routes. The decisions are part of a campaign to restore the world's largest carrier to profitability, although new chief executive Gerard Arpey declined to predict Wednesday when that would happen as he addressed American shareholders.
___
House, Senate Reach $350B Tax Cut Deal
WASHINGTON (AP) _ House and Senate tax writers struck agreement Wednesday on a $350 billion tax cut that Republicans leaders plan to pass by Memorial Day and that cuts President Bush's stimulus package in half. Negotiators said they had the votes to pass the bill in the House and Senate this week, much less than the $726 billion Bush originally requested. "We do have 50 votes," said Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn.
___
White House Warns on National Debt Limit
WASHINGTON (AP) _ The Bush administration warned Congress on Monday it would run out of room by May 28 to juggle the government's books to stay within the current national debt limit. Legislation to boost the debt limit by $984 billion _ the largest increase in history _ has been caught up in a battle between Democrats and the White House over President Bush's proposed new tax cuts.
___
Calif. Panel Explores Satellite TV Tax
LOS ANGELES (AP) _ Satellite television companies are rallying to stop a move to add an 8 percent tax on their services _ even before the proposal makes its way to the state Legislature. A commission looking into tax policy is considering a handful of recommendations, including the tax on satellite television, as a means to raise revenue for the cash-strapped state. A proposal to add a 5 percent tax on satellite customers failed in the Legislature last year.
___
DaimlerChrysler Drops Planned $1B Plant
DETROIT (AP) _ DaimlerChrysler has abandoned plans to build a $1 billion plant in Windsor, Ontario, that would have created 2,500 jobs, the automaker said Thursday. DaimlerChrysler cited poor economic conditions in the automotive market, including low demand and sales in the United States.
___
Poor Credit Can Drive Up Insurance Rates
Up to 95 percent of insurers now take credit into account to some extent when determining what you'll pay for your auto and homeowners' insurance policies, according to the Insurance Information Institute in New York. The trend has accelerated in the past decade, fueled by insurers' attempt to mitigate losses and develop more sophisticated ways of pricing risk. Yet the practice is far from an exact science. No direct link exists between poor credit and driving record, although there's a "strong correlation" between bad credit and an increase in claims filed, both for auto and homeowners insurance policies, according to Eddy Lo, insurance manager at Fair Isaac Corp. in San Rafael, Calif.
___
Attorney Aims to Take HealthSouth Private
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) _ Donald V. Watkins, the Alabama businessman and attorney representing former HealthSouth Corp. chief executive Richard M. Scrushy against fraud accusations, said he plans to form a consortium to buy the beleaguered company and take it private. Watkins said Wednesday he has not discussed the plan with any of HealthSouth's major shareholders, such as pension fund and money managers, who would have to agree to sell their shares. He also has not approached bondholders and banks, whose debt claims put them in control of the company.
___
WorldCom Deal in Iraq Troubles Critics
NEW YORK (AP) _ The Pentagon made an interesting choice when it hired a U.S. company to build a small wireless phone network in Iraq: MCI, aka WorldCom Inc., perpetrator of the biggest accounting fraud in American business and not exactly a big name in cellular service. The Iraq contract incensed WorldCom rivals and government watchdogs who say Washington has been too kind to the company since WorldCom revealed its $11 billion accounting fraud and plunged into bankruptcy last year.
___
Greenspan: Fed Ready to Tackle Deflation
WASHINGTON (AP) _ With short-term interest rates near rock bottom, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said he still has plenty of "monetary ammunition" to prevent a destabilizing drop in prices. The Fed's goal: pump up demand for cars, homes and other items and get the economy moving again. At Greenspan's appearance Wednesday before the congressional Joint Economic Committee, he gave his first detailed comments about deflation since Fed policy-makers warned May 6 they would be on guard against the remote possibility of such a rare and dangerous episode of widespread price declines.
___
Gold Prices
LONDON (AP) _ Gold bullion opened Thursday at a bid price of $369.50 a troy ounce, up from $368.60 late Wednesday.
___
Japan Markets
TOKYO (AP) _ Tokyo stocks closed up Thursday, led by a rise in major banking and telecom issues. The U.S. dollar was higher against the Japanese yen.
___
Dollar-Yen
TOKYO (AP) _ The U.S. dollar traded at 117.62 yen on the Tokyo foreign exchange market Thursday, up 0.94 yen from late Wednesday.
AP Executive Morning Briefing00-00-0000
A service of The Associated Press. Copyright 2003 All rights reserved.
The top business news from The Associated Press for the morning of Thursday, May 22, 2003:
Fla. Court Tosses $145B Tobacco Verdict
MIAMI (AP) _ A Florida appeals court erased a record-setting $145 billion award against the tobacco industry Wednesday, ruling thousands of Florida smokers could not group themselves together for a class-action attack on cigarette makers. Tobacco company stock prices jumped on news that the 68-page order by a three-judge panel of the 3rd District Court of Appeal found several flaws with the largest punitive damage verdict in U.S. history and the two-year trial that produced it.
___
American to Lower Fares, Add More Seats
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) _ There's less room coming to coach at American Airlines, which plans to restore seats to some of its jets and limit fares on a few cross-country routes. The decisions are part of a campaign to restore the world's largest carrier to profitability, although new chief executive Gerard Arpey declined to predict Wednesday when that would happen as he addressed American shareholders.
___
House, Senate Reach $350B Tax Cut Deal
WASHINGTON (AP) _ House and Senate tax writers struck agreement Wednesday on a $350 billion tax cut that Republicans leaders plan to pass by Memorial Day and that cuts President Bush's stimulus package in half. Negotiators said they had the votes to pass the bill in the House and Senate this week, much less than the $726 billion Bush originally requested. "We do have 50 votes," said Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn.
___
White House Warns on National Debt Limit
WASHINGTON (AP) _ The Bush administration warned Congress on Monday it would run out of room by May 28 to juggle the government's books to stay within the current national debt limit. Legislation to boost the debt limit by $984 billion _ the largest increase in history _ has been caught up in a battle between Democrats and the White House over President Bush's proposed new tax cuts.
___
Calif. Panel Explores Satellite TV Tax
LOS ANGELES (AP) _ Satellite television companies are rallying to stop a move to add an 8 percent tax on their services _ even before the proposal makes its way to the state Legislature. A commission looking into tax policy is considering a handful of recommendations, including the tax on satellite television, as a means to raise revenue for the cash-strapped state. A proposal to add a 5 percent tax on satellite customers failed in the Legislature last year.
___
DaimlerChrysler Drops Planned $1B Plant
DETROIT (AP) _ DaimlerChrysler has abandoned plans to build a $1 billion plant in Windsor, Ontario, that would have created 2,500 jobs, the automaker said Thursday. DaimlerChrysler cited poor economic conditions in the automotive market, including low demand and sales in the United States.
___
Poor Credit Can Drive Up Insurance Rates
Up to 95 percent of insurers now take credit into account to some extent when determining what you'll pay for your auto and homeowners' insurance policies, according to the Insurance Information Institute in New York. The trend has accelerated in the past decade, fueled by insurers' attempt to mitigate losses and develop more sophisticated ways of pricing risk. Yet the practice is far from an exact science. No direct link exists between poor credit and driving record, although there's a "strong correlation" between bad credit and an increase in claims filed, both for auto and homeowners insurance policies, according to Eddy Lo, insurance manager at Fair Isaac Corp. in San Rafael, Calif.
___
Attorney Aims to Take HealthSouth Private
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) _ Donald V. Watkins, the Alabama businessman and attorney representing former HealthSouth Corp. chief executive Richard M. Scrushy against fraud accusations, said he plans to form a consortium to buy the beleaguered company and take it private. Watkins said Wednesday he has not discussed the plan with any of HealthSouth's major shareholders, such as pension fund and money managers, who would have to agree to sell their shares. He also has not approached bondholders and banks, whose debt claims put them in control of the company.
___
WorldCom Deal in Iraq Troubles Critics
NEW YORK (AP) _ The Pentagon made an interesting choice when it hired a U.S. company to build a small wireless phone network in Iraq: MCI, aka WorldCom Inc., perpetrator of the biggest accounting fraud in American business and not exactly a big name in cellular service. The Iraq contract incensed WorldCom rivals and government watchdogs who say Washington has been too kind to the company since WorldCom revealed its $11 billion accounting fraud and plunged into bankruptcy last year.
___
Greenspan: Fed Ready to Tackle Deflation
WASHINGTON (AP) _ With short-term interest rates near rock bottom, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said he still has plenty of "monetary ammunition" to prevent a destabilizing drop in prices. The Fed's goal: pump up demand for cars, homes and other items and get the economy moving again. At Greenspan's appearance Wednesday before the congressional Joint Economic Committee, he gave his first detailed comments about deflation since Fed policy-makers warned May 6 they would be on guard against the remote possibility of such a rare and dangerous episode of widespread price declines.
___
Gold Prices
LONDON (AP) _ Gold bullion opened Thursday at a bid price of $369.50 a troy ounce, up from $368.60 late Wednesday.
___
Japan Markets
TOKYO (AP) _ Tokyo stocks closed up Thursday, led by a rise in major banking and telecom issues. The U.S. dollar was higher against the Japanese yen.
___
Dollar-Yen
TOKYO (AP) _ The U.S. dollar traded at 117.62 yen on the Tokyo foreign exchange market Thursday, up 0.94 yen from late Wednesday.
Комментариев нет:
Отправить комментарий