Business News

WASHINGTON - Led by higher gasoline prices, consumer inflation shot up in November by the largest amount in more than two years.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Consumer prices rose the most in more than two years in November as energy costs surged and a host of other prices marched higher, damping prospects of further interest-rate cuts from the Federal Reserve.

SHANGHAI, China - China's investments in factories, real estate and other urban assets surged 26.8 percent in the first 11 months of this year despite government curbs meant to prevent runaway spending, according to data reported Friday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Consumer prices jumped a bigger-than-expected 0.8 percent in November, the sharpest climb in more than two years and driven by surging energy costs, a government report released on Friday showed.

LONDON (Reuters) - Top European central bankers expressed concern on Friday about the success of a concerted action plan to grease the wheels of seized-up money markets, as U.S. banking giant Citigroup faced fresh strife.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Nasdaq Stock Market Inc late on Friday announced the annual re-ranking of the Nasdaq-100 Index.

NEW YORK - Stocks finished a bruising week on the downside Friday after a jump in consumer inflation raised concerns about how much freedom the Federal Reserve has to continue cutting interest rates. The Dow Jones industrial average gave up more than 178 points.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks swooned on Friday on concerns that surging inflation may prevent the Federal Reserve from lowering interest rates enough to pull the economy out of the grip of a housing and credit crisis.

Wall Street stocks hit reverse gear this week after interest rate cuts and a central bank plan to help ease banks' funding problems failed to convince investors that the worst effects of the credit squeeze were over.

After a rollercoaster week, European stocks surrendered early gains as euphoria about central banks' moves to boost liquidity in the global banking system gave way to doubts over their likely effectiveness.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Hopes for double-digit earnings growth in 2008 have all but evaporated as the credit market turmoil is expected to exert more pressure on financial services companies.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc said on Thursday fourth-quarter earnings fell 11 percent, as the credit market crisis triggered write-downs, and the company said further write-downs were possible.

SEATTLE - Warehouse retailer Costco Wholesale Corp. said Thursday its fiscal first-quarter profit rose 11 percent on increased sales and higher revenue from membership fees.

NEW YORK - Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. reported its third straight quarter of losses on Thursday, due to further turmoil in global credit markets, but the company managed to offset most of its problems and easily beat Wall Street expectations.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Pepsi Bottling Group Inc forecast 2008 earnings on Thursday that fell short of most Wall Street estimates, due in part to its expectation raw material prices such as corn and aluminum will keep rising.

DETROIT, Michigan (AFP) - Ford Motor Co. expects to complete the sale of its Jaguar and Land Rover nameplates by early next year at the latest, company executives say.

MINSK (Reuters) - Ex-Soviet Belarus agreed to join forces with Russia in opposing U.S. plans for a missile shield in Europe on Friday after the Kremlin patched up differences with its strategic ally by promising cheap gas next year.

WASHINGTON - Led by higher gasoline prices, consumer inflation shot up in November by the largest amount in more than two years.

LONDON (AFP) - Anglo-Swedish pharmaceuticals giant AstraZeneca said Wednesday it would sue seven generic drug manufacturers in the United States to defend its patent of cholesterol treatment Crestor.

NAIROBI (AFP) - French-US telecom group Alcatel-Lucent signed Tuesday an 82-million-dollar deal with a Kenyan-led consortium to build a fibre optic cable linking East Africa to the Gulf.

Late to the flat-panel game, Sony decided a couple of years ago to focus its efforts entirely on building the best liquid-crystal display, or LCD, TVs on the market. The resulting troika of Sony , Samsung, and Sharp now battle with each succeeding model for the honor of best LCD TV.

Custodial account remorse: It's the regret you feel about a special type of investment or savings account you set up for your toddler years ago. You thought you were doing the right thing at the time. But now that tot is a reckless teenager, and you're not sure he'll be mature enough to handle this much money when you hand it over to him at age 18 (or 21, depending on the state).

Finding an affordable house in a well-located, high-quality suburb is not easy, even in this climate of slumping real estate markets and omnipresent "For Sale" signs. The credit crunch is making it tougher than ever for buyers without trust funds or Wall Street paychecks to finance a dream pad in their favorite suburb.

NEW YORK - In investing, like sports, the numbers can be compelling but don't always tell the whole story.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street's rebound from its first full-fledged correction in more than four years could continue this week if investors believe a plan to keep millions of Americans from losing their homes can work.

WASHINGTON - Fannie Mae's CEO told shareholders Friday he does not expect a housing market recovery until late 2009, "at the earliest," and that the mortgage-finance company is strong enough to ride out the downturn.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - More than one in five U.S. homeowners expect their home to fall in value in the coming year, a Reuters-University of Michigan consumer survey said on Friday.

LOS ANGELES - Attorneys general in California and Illinois are investigating the lending practices of Countrywide Financial Corp., the nation's largest mortgage lender..

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Consumer prices rose the most in more than two years in November as energy costs surged and a host of other prices marched higher, damping prospects of further interest-rate cuts from the Federal Reserve.

NEW YORK (AFP) - Citigroup's move to shift troubled assets on to its balance sheet marks a radical step to right its finances, but analysts said Friday that the banking giant's financial migraine had worsened.