updated Wed December 26, 2007

Larry Ellison-Backed Software Company NetSuite Closes IPO Plus Underwriters' Option

SAN MATEO, Calif. (AP) -- Online business software service NetSuite Inc. said Wednesday that its initial public offering has closed -- totaling $185.4 million after the IPO's underwriters exercised their option...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

Nigerian Judge Orders Arrest of 3 Pfizer Officials Over Drug Trials Lawsuit

KANO, Nigeria (AP) -- A judge in Nigeria has ordered the arrest of three top officials of the U.S.-based drug company Pfizer Inc., saying they failed to honor an order to appear in court over a $2 billion suit ...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

Housing Bust Shuts One of Phoenix's Largest Home Brokers; Business Had 350 Agents

PHOENIX (AP) -- Gilbert-based Re/Max 2000, one of the Phoenix area's largest real estate brokerages, shut down its 13 offices this week, as the housing bust hits a city that was once one of the nation's hottest...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

Last-Minute Shoppers Bring Relief to Retailers, Who Are Also Counting on Post-Christmas Season

NEW YORK (AP) -- Just weeks ago, the holiday shopping season seemed headed for disaster. But in the waning hours before Christmas, the nation's retailers got their wish -- a last-minute surge of shopping that h...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

Reports: Japan's Largest Mobile Phone Carrier to Tie-Up With Google

TOKYO (AP) -- Japan's top mobile phone carrier NTT DoCoMo will join with Internet search engine Google to provide Internet search and e-mail services on the company's handsets, news reports said Tuesday. Starti...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

ALL BUSINESS: Credit Crunch Headlines in 2007; Newsmakers' Views in Their Own Words

NEW YORK (AP) -- Just last summer, analysts were predicting the subprime mortgage mess had been "contained," big bank CEOs were "dancing" over the liquidity flowing in credit markets and private-equity titans y...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

With the Rest of the World on Holiday, Asian Stock Indexes Are Mostly Higher

NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks fell in China Tuesday but surged in Japan on a quiet day for world markets as most exchanges around the world were closed for the Christmas holiday.China stocks fell Tuesday, as renewed ...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

India's Outsourcing Industry Faces Growing Health Problems, From Obesity to Depression

NEW DELHI (AP) -- The job came with a good salary, and good perks.But, 26-year-old Vaibhav Vats will tell you, it was doing him no good. His weight had grown to 265 pounds and he was missing out on social life ...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

How Can I Take Some of the Hassle Out of Returning Holiday Gifts?

Q. I got a few holiday gifts this year that I want to return -- how can I make that process more convenient, especially for the items that came from online retailers?A. If you're returning holiday gifts this ye...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

For Some Casual Bloggers, a Bigger Bite of the Online Advertising Pie

NEW YORK (AP) -- Zach Brooks pocketed $1,000 this month blogging about the cheap lunches he discovers around midtown Manhattan ($10 or less, preferably greasy, and if he's lucky, served from a truck). The site,...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

NY Town Wants to Start Program to Let Senior Citizens Work Off Property Taxes, for $7 an Hour

GREENBURGH, N.Y. (AP) -- Audrey Davison lives alone, gets a $620 Social Security check each month and worries about the sharply rising taxes on her four-bedroom house. Davison, 76, raised her family there and a...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

No. 2 Retailer Target Says Dec. Sales May Decline; Total Holiday Sales Show Modest Increase

NEW YORK (AP) -- Early holiday sales reports are weak, with Target Corp., the nation's No.2 retailer, warning that its sales may have fallen in December.A broad gauge of consumer spending released by MasterCard...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

Canadians Travel to Montana for Auto Bargains

HELENA, Mont. (AP) -- Vu Tran of Calgary, Alberta, figures he saved about $14,000 when he recently bought a new car at a Montana dealership. After driving the 400 miles back to Calgary, he told family and frien...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

Have Tourniquet, Will Travel: Virginia Company Makes Clothes Specially Designed for Warfare

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- As an Army surgeon in the Middle East, Dr. Keith Rose watched a colleague bleed to death when a truck in his convoy was hit with a rocket-propelled grenade.Rose could not get his comrade a...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

Despite Turmoil in Financial Markets, No Signs That Booming Art Market Is Softening

NEW YORK (AP) -- Art is hot. Despite turmoil in the financial markets, there are no signs that the art market is softening. The fall auction season in New York saw robust prices across most categories, with pos...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

Toyota Plans to Sell 9.85 Million Vehicles in '08, Threating GM's Position As No. 1 Automaker

NAGOYA, Japan (AP) -- Toyota plans to sell 9.85 million vehicles worldwide in 2008, the company said Tuesday, setting an ambitious target despite worries about a slowing U.S. car market, as it tries to become t...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway to Pay $4.5B for 60 Percent Stake in Marmon Holdings

CHICAGO (AP) -- Warren Buffett's investment company announced Tuesday it will pay $4.5 billion for 60 percent of Marmon Holdings Inc., a private company of more than 125 manufacturing and service businesses. Be...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway to Pay $4.5B for Controlling Stake in Marmon Holdings

CHICAGO (AP) -- Warren Buffett's investment company announced Tuesday it will pay $4.5 billion for 60 percent of Marmon Holdings Inc., a private company of more than 125 manufacturing and service businesses. Be...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

Palomar Medical Stock Likely to Face Pressure After Shares Dropped to 3-Year Low on Monday

NEW YORK (AP) -- Investors on Wednesday may take a second look at Palomar Medical Technologies Inc., after the company's stock tumbled to a three-year low during Monday's abbreviated session on news that a cont...

updated Wed December 26, 2007

Investors Poised to Take Second Look at FuelCell After Major Sell-Off on Conn. Contract News

NEW YORK (AP) -- Investors are poised to take a second look at FuelCell Energy Inc. on Wednesday after its stock faced a major sell-off in the previous trading session on disappointing news about a state contra...