February 2008 Archives

"After revealing last week that a pilot installation of controversial, buggy border-security scanner towers had finally been accepted into service, the US government has now admitted that the project is a technical failure," Lew Page observes.

Read the whole story.

WASHINGTON -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress today that the nation isn't "anywhere near" the dangerous stagflation situation of the 1970s.

With the economy slowing and inflation rising, fears have grown that the country could be headed for the dreaded twin evils of stagnant growth and rising prices known as "stagflation."

"I don't anticipate stagflation," Bernanke told the Senate Banking Committee. "I don't think we're anywhere near the situation that prevailed in the 1970s."

"I do expect inflation to come down," he added. "If it doesn't, we will have to react to it."

High energy prices and rising inflation do complicate the Fed's job of trying to keep the economy growing and inflation contained, Bernanke acknowledged.

Energy prices are creating "inflationary stress," Bernanke said. And, that is "complicating" the Fed's work in terms of shoring up the economy, he said.

President Bush, at a news conference today, noted the slow economic growth but said the nation isn't headed into a recession.

He rejected calls for additional stimulus efforts, instead advising patience. "Why don't we let stimulus package one, which seemed like a good idea at the time, have a chance to kick in?" Bush said at the White House.

Bernanke's testimony in the Senate caps back-to-back appearances on Capitol Hill that started in the House on Wednesday. The Fed chief's overarching economic message was the same on both days: The Fed stands ready to lower a key interest rate yet again to bolster the struggling economy.

Many fear the country is hurtling toward a recession or is in one already.

The central bank started lowering a key interest rate in September. Over just eight days in January, the Fed shaved 1.25 percentage points, the biggest one-month reduction in a quarter century. Economists and Wall Street investors predict the Fed will cut rates again at its next meeting, March 18.

Just before Bernanke testified, the government reported that the economy nearly stalled in the final quarter of last year. It grew at a pace of just 0.6 percent, a big loss of momentum compared with the prior quarter's brisk 4.9 percent growth rate.

The committee's chairman, Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., described the nation's economic situation as "very serious, if not perilous."

Dodd said: "Growth is slowing. Inflation is rising. Consumer confidence is plummeting, while indebtedness is deepening."

Bernanke indicated he is prepared to lower rates even as high oil prices heighten inflation risks.

To energize the economy the Fed cuts rates. To combat inflation, it would boost rates. Rising inflation can reduce the Fed's maneuvering room in terms of revving up a slowing economy.

"We are concerned," Bernanke said. "We are trying to balance a number of different risks against each other," he told lawmakers.

Still, Bernanke is hopeful that energy prices -- and overall inflation -- will moderate somewhat this year.

And, he expresses hope that the economy will turn stronger in the second half of this year, helped by the Fed's rate reductions and the recently enacted rescue package of rebates for people and tax breaks for businesses.

"I realize that my testimony wasn't the most cheerful thing you'll hear today ... but I do very much believe that the U.S. economy will return to a strong growth path with price stability," Bernanke said.

Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., however, worried that rising inflation could make it harder for the Fed to steady the wobbly economy.

Shelby wondered "how much more room the Federal Reserve will have to provide further monetary accommodation without threatening long-term price stability, which is very important to all of us."

He added: "While it's difficult to see our nation's economy experience minimal growth, the consequences of failing to restrain inflation will be far more painful and more difficult to unwind."

Bernanke, however, said the Fed's No. 1 battle right now is to shore up the economy. "At the moment, the greater risks are to the downside," Bernanke said, referring to shaky economic growth and turmoil in financial markets.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Regional sporting-goods retailer Big 5 Sporting Goods Corp. said Thursday fiscal fourth-quarter net income fell 36 percent, hurt partly by the decline in demand for wheeled shoes.

Quarterly profit fell to $6.2 million, or 28 cents per share, from $9.6 million, or 42 cents per share, in the prior-year quarter.

Revenue fell 1 percent to $232.1 million from $234.5 million last year, hurt by lower traffic amid a difficult consumer environment, as well as lower demand for wheeled shoes.

Profit still beat the consensus estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Financial, who predicted a profit of 26 cents per share on revenue of $232.1 million.

Same-store sales fell 4.7 percent. Same-store sales, or sales in stores open at least one year, is a key measure of a retailer's financial health because it measures growth at existing stores rather than newly opened ones.

For the year, profit fell 9 percent to $28.1 million, or $1.25 per share from $30.8 million, or $1.35 per share last year. Revenue rose 3 percent to $898.3 million from $876.8 million a year ago.

"Like many other retailers, we experienced weak consumer spending during the holiday selling season," Steven G. Miller, company chairman, president and chief executive.

The company also issued first-quarter and yearly guidance below analyst expectations. Shares fell 85 cents, or 7.2 percent, to $11 in aftermarket electronic trading, having closed earlier down 52 cents, or 4.2 percent, at $11.85.

U.S. economic growth is continuing to slow, with additional unpleasant surprises possible in the credit and equity markets, three top financial analysts said in remarks prepared for a panel discussion presented
by the CFA Society of Los Angeles, according to the following release:

The panelists differed on the investment outlook, with one bearish on stocks, one
bullish and the other cautioning that commodities, which have recently attracted the
interest of more individual investors, may be the next "bubble." The analysts were
interviewed by Maria Bartiromo, anchor of CNBC’s Closing Bell with Maria Bartiromo.
The economy has already entered a recession, according to Donald H. Straszheim, Vice
Chairman of Roth Capital Partners, former global Chief Economist for Merrill Lynch &
Co., and an expert on China and Asia.
"It’s clear to me that the U.S. economy is in a recession," Straszheim said in remarks
prepared for the society’s 2008 Economic & Investment Forecast Dinner at the Biltmore
Millennium hotel Wednesday. The CFA Society of Los Angeles is a network of investment
management professionals that works to disseminate useful financial information and
increase awareness of the value of the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA)
designation, which is intended to lead the investment profession by setting the highest
standards of ethics, education, and professional excellence.
"Recessions come and go and this one will too," Straszheim said. "The decline in
housing, the damage done to consumers by falling home and equity prices, and higher
energy costs, will sour consumer spending. The turmoil in the financial markets is not
over, nor is the ugliness in equities. History tells us that when market sentiment
turns as sour as it has, ultimately every stock gets taken apart."
While agreeing that the economy faces further challenges, Alison A. Deans, Managing
Director and Deputy Head of Private Asset Management at Neuberger Berman, noted that
her firm is positive on equities.
"We actually like the stock market at these levels," she said in her prepared remarks.
"We’re at a point in the Fed’s easing cycle that usually bodes well for equities. When
the Fed eases, 90% of the time equities do better - the exceptions being when stocks
have been significantly overvalued or when we’ve had a serious recession. Stock
valuations are not high at 15 times forward earnings, compared with 20 to 21 in the
late ‘90s. As well, we anticipate slow growth, but not a recession."
The nation’s credit markets, wèé;4´0»2±²picture improves, concerns about corporate cash
flows will subside, pushing investors out on the risk spectrum."
While noting that economic data may worsen in the coming months, Crescenzi agreed with
Deans that most of the bad news is already priced in and added that investors should
now be alert for buying opportunities. The key factors to watch, he said, are the
nation’s production cycle and consumer spending.
"Track whether consumer spending is picking up relative to output, because spending
levels that outstrip production will inevitably lead market-share minded companies to
raise output, lest they lose market share," he said in his remarks.
"This will turn the production cycle from vicious, where it is now, to virtuous,
leading to a renewed period of self-reinforcing economic expansion. By focusing on
spending, particularly chain store sales, car sales, and home sales, investors will be
able to spot the trough in the economic cycle. I emphasize that it is spending relative
to production that is key to watch. When you see a turn, start betting on an economic
recovery and don’t be deterred by sour news on employment and production, because it
will inevitably turn."
When production turns up, Crescenzi explained, payrolls rise and consumer spending
follows, leading to increased demand for goods and services - a virtuous cycle.
"More hours worked mean more income, resulting in increases in consumer spending and
round and round it goes, a virtuous cycle of increases in production, income, and
spending," he said.
"This is the stuff that expansions are made of. A turn in spending is probably a few
months away, but it could happen at anytime, so we must be on the lookout for contrasts
between spending and production. Spending could pick up for any number of reasons, the
most prominent which include the Fed’s rate cuts, which are reducing debt burdens and
resulting in a boom in mortgage refinancing. Fiscal stimulus will certainly boost
growth, although there is a debate about its lasting effects. I am hoping it jumpstarts
the production cycle, but much will depend on the mood of the nation at the time.
Pent-up demand can also help turn things around."
Deans said investors should be very choosy about stocks, adding that there may be
opportunities in the beaten-down financial sector.
"We’re being very selective, but we do think financial services and technology shares
could do well. We also think large-cap and global industrials -- because they aren’t
tied only to U.S. demand, which will slow -- will benefit from global demand. The
weaker dollar also helps companies that operate globally. Large cap and global are the
places to be right now."
Deans said portfolio managers at Neuberger Berman Private Asset Management have
adjusted their mix of international stocks.
"Overall, we are evenly split between domestic and foreign equities right now. We had
been overweight international, but as the dollar has come down we have become more
U.S.-centric," she said.
"Emerging markets in general, which rely on our consumption, could be soft for a while
and are not going to see the kind of growth they’ve enjoyed in the past, although some
specific markets have good prospects. As a whole, we are neutral to underweight
emerging markets."
Crescenzi said investors should be wary of the boom in commodity prices.
"If you are looking for the next price bubble, the commodity market is probably where
you will find it," he said. "The price action there fits with the mentality that grips
every bubble: ‘Just buy X and you will make money.’ In past bubbles, X stood for
dot-com stocks, housing, and credit instruments. Now it stands for commodities."
On other fronts, Straszheim anticipates new economic marching orders in China.
"The news coming out of China is about to change," he said in his prepared remarks.
"Over the last year, the talk has been that China is growing too fast with too much
inflation. China has been allowing their currency to appreciate rapidly and raising
interest rates to slow growth and to fight inflation. The recession in the U.S. and
near recessionary conditions in Japan and Europe will reduce China’s growth rate to
less than 9% in 2008 - the lowest rate since 2001. So Beijing’s concern is soon going
to shift 180 degrees, with their Number One worry being that the economy is at risk of
getting too cold, not staying too hot. Consequently, we see an end to their tightening
policy and an end to their rapid currency appreciation by mid-2008."

Hawthorne-based Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) said today that it has completed qualification testing of its Merlin 1C next generation liquid fueled rocket booster engine for use in the Falcon 1 rocket.

The single Merlin 1C will power SpaceX’s next Falcon 1 mission, scheduled to lift off in Spring of 2008 from the SpaceX launch complex in the Central Pacific atoll of Kwajalein.

Read the furll release below.

Read the story here.

Honda Accord tops 'Forbes' best certified used car list

Think about a used car and you might think junky, dirty and old. But another market is catching the attention of savvy buyers who want updated rides without paying new-car prices.

Read the whole article.

Economy Slows to Near Crawl

OR

Bush: US is not headed into recession

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House approved $18 billion in new taxes on the largest oil companies Wednesday as Democrats cited record oil prices and rising gasoline costs in a time of economic troubles.
The money collected over 10 years would provide tax breaks for wind, solar and other alternative energy sources and for energy conservation. The legislation, approved 236-182, would cost the five largest oil companies an average of $1.8 billion a year over that period, according an analysis by the House Ways and Means Committee. Those companies earned $123 billion last year.

Senate Democratic leaders said they would put the bill on a fast track and try to avoid a Republican filibuster. The White House said the bill unfairly takes aim at the oil industry. President Bush is expected to veto the legislation if it passes Congress.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., noted it was two years ago, when oil cost $55 a barrel, when Bush said oil companies need no government subsidies to pursue more oil or gas.

"With the price of oil hovering around $100 do we really believe this incentive is justified?" asked Hoyer. "Do these companies need taxpayer subsidies to look for new product? They don't need any incentive."

Republicans said the measure unfairly targeted a single industry.

"It punishes the oil and gas industry. This is wrongheaded. It will result in higher prices at the gasoline pump. It's spiteful and wrong," said Rep. Jim McCrery, R-La.

The top Republican on the Ways and Means Committee, which developed the tax proposals, he cited statistics that show that oil companies already pay more taxes than many other industries.

Hoyer acknowledged "this legislation alone will not bring down gas prices." But he said the measure will provide a needed boost to alternative energy industries -- solar, wind, biofuels, and geothermal -- and help promote energy conservation. "That may bring down gas prices three years from now, 10 years from now," he said.

The bill would roll back two lucrative tax breaks for the five largest U.S. oil companies. One helps manufacturers compete against foreign companies; the other gives American companies a tax credit related to oil and gas extraction outside the country. Democrats estimated that those current breaks would save the oil companies $17.65 billion in taxes over the next 10 years.

The House-passed bill would use that money to promote renewable energy industries -- such as wind, solar and cellulosic ethanol plants -- by extending tax credits that recently expired or are scheduled to end at year's end.

The bill would offer tax credits for more energy efficient homes and a credit for "plug-in" gas-electric hybrid cars that would capture electricity off the power grid, once such cars become available in showrooms.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said the shift of tax benefits from oil to alternative energy development was critical to increased energy independence and lowering energy costs. "We have the opportunity to invest in clean, renewable energy and energy efficiency," she said.

She noted the House twice last year passed similar tax plans, but they died in the Senate. Since then, the price of gasoline has climbed and large oil companies have made record profits, Pelosi said.

During debate, Rep Jim McDermott, D-Wash., urged lawmakers to "stop the madness of subsidizing oil companies" when the industry earned $123 billion last year.

The oil industry has lobbied intensely against the House tax legislation, calling it a "discriminatory bill" that targets companies that already pay considerable taxes. "New taxes ... will even further reduce our energy security by discouraging new domestic oil and natural gas production and refinery capacity expansions," the American Petroleum Institute said in a statement.

But other energy industries and energy efficiency advocates have campaigned for the legislation because of the tax incentives that would be directed their way.

"These incentives must be extended immediately to void significant harm to the development of clean energy industries in the United States," said a letter to lawmakers from more than 100 businesses, electric utilities, environmental groups and energy efficiency advocates.

A similar tax proposal passed the House last summer, but it was abandoned in the Senate where Democrats couldn't muster the 60 votes needed to overcome a GOP filibuster. Senate Democrats were maneuvering to avoid a repeat of that with the newly passed House measure.

The chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, Democratic Sen. Kent Conrad of North Dakota, said Democratic leaders are considering advancing the House bill under fast-track procedures related to the budget. This process would not permit an indefinite GOP stall.

The White House says singling out the oil companies for higher taxes "would reduce the nation's energy security rather than improve it" and "lead to higher energy costs to U.S. consumers and business."

Senior advisers would urge Bush to veto the bill should it pass Congress, the White House said in a statement before the House vote.

Boeing Co.'s satellite have achieved a total of 2,500 years of service, the company said today.
Boeing makes commercial and military satellites at its Satellite Development Center in El Segundo.

Boeing has built 1/3 of the roughly 250 satellites in geosynchronous orbit today. Recent satellites to enter service include DIRECTV 10, Spaceway (broadband Internet), Thuraya 3 (mobile phone service), GOES 13 (weather prediction), and the U.S. Air Force's Wideband Global SATCOM spacecraft (military communications).

Boeing's space-based contributions to the world can be traced back to 1963, when the company achieved an industry first with the launch of Syncom, the world's first communications satellite to operate in geosynchronous orbit, 22,300 miles above the equator.

"When the nightly news warns of an approaching storm, when a car's onboard navigation system provides directions, when a credit card is swiped and approved for credit, and when a warfighter receives mission-critical information, chances are a Boeing satellite is at your service," said Craig Cooning, vice president and general manager of Boeing Space and Intelligence Systems, the unit responsible for the company's communications satellites.

HONG KONG (AP) — A Cathay Pacific Airways pilot was fired after he swooped down and buzzed a Seattle-area airfield without permission while taking delivery of a Boeing 777-300ER passenger jet, the airline said Wednesday.

The Hong Kong carrier — which would not identify the pilot — said it was still investigating the Jan. 30 fly-by event at Paine Field, 30 miles north of downtown Seattle and home to a Boeing plant.

Cathay spokeswoman Carolyn Leung said the pilot was dismissed last week because he did not seek or obtain approval for the fly-by, which has been done several times before at air shows with the airline's permission.

An airline statement said another pilot on the plane has been subject to disciplinary proceedings, but Leung would not elaborate on the case or other details.

Hong Kong's South China Morning Post reported Sunday that the airline's chairman, Christopher Pratt, was on the plane when the pilot swooped back over the Boeing plant shortly after taking off.

Images of the stunt were posted on YouTube and the Web site of a Seattle-area plane spotter, Matt Cawby.

The 777-300ER is 242 feet long, weighs about 350 tons and is listed at $264 million.

A Federal Aviation Administration spokesman, Mike Fergus, told The Seattle Times the flyby was under investigation.

Toyota Motor Corp. said it expects to produce 11.3 million of its own brand vehicles by 2012, up about 30 percent from 2007, amid rapid growth in Russia, China and other emerging markets.

Japan's top car maker, with its US sales headquarters in Torrance, forecasts that its annual output, excluding those of affiliates Daihatsu Motor Co and Hino Motors Ltd, will continue to grow by 600,000 vehicles a year, the Nikkei business daily reported, quoting an unnamed executive.

Honda Motor co. said it plans to stop producing motorcycles in the US in 2009, and will transfer production work to Japan.

Honda, whose North American headquarters is in Torrance, employs about 450 people at its motorcycle production plant in Marysville, Ohio.

Honda also makes motorcycles at the Hamamatsu factory in Japan. Production at both sites will be consolidated at a new motorcycle plant in Kumamoto, Japan, next year.

The move is part of a global effort to produce certain larger motorcycles, Honda said.

Honda said it will not layoff its ohio motorcycle workers when production ends in the spring of 2009. The workers will instead help produce cars, trucks, engines and parts and fill other jobs at Honda's other operations in west-central Ohio, the company said.

Honda's Ohio opened its motorcycle plant in 1979 as Honda's first US production facility. Last year, it produced about 44,000 Gold Wing touring and VTX cruiser bikes.

Peerless Systems Corp., the El Segundo-based provider of imaging and networking technologies and components for the digital documents market, has agreed to buy substantially all of the assets of Prism Software Corp of Irvine.

Peerless Systems will pay $1.75 million in cash in addition to providing the right to receive up to $1.5 million in Peerless common stock, provided certain conditions are met. The deal also includes an "earn-out provision." The purchase is expected to close within the next 90 days.

Prism will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Peerless Systems. Prism's management team will become part of the El Segundo company.

Irvine-based Prism makes software for work processes, document flow and document creation and distribution.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- It's a toxic economic mix the nation hasn't seen in three decades: Prices are speeding upward at the fastest pace in a quarter century, even as the economy loses steam.
Economists call the disease "stagflation," and they're worried it might be coming back.

Already, paychecks aren't stretching as far, and jobs are harder to find, threatening to set off a vicious cycle that could make things even worse.

The economy nearly stalled in the final three months of last year and probably is barely growing or even shrinking now. That's the "stagnation" part of the ailment. Typically, that slowdown should slow inflation as well -- the second part of the diagnosis -- but prices are still marching higher.

The latest worrisome news came Tuesday: a government report showing wholesale prices climbed 7.4 percent in the past year. That was the biggest annual leap since 1981.

"We're in a slowdown," Press Secretary Dana Perino said at the White House, where the economics talk was still upbeat until recently.

Once the twin evils of stagflation take hold, it can be hard to break the grip. People cut back on their spending as they are stung by rising prices and shriveling wages. Businesses, also socked by rising costs and declining demand from customers, clamp down on their hiring and capital investment.

That would be a nightmare scenario for Wall Street investors, businesses, politicians and most everyone else. They're already looking to the Federal Reserve for help, but the Fed's job is complicated by the situation.

The mission of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and his colleagues is to nurture economic growth and keep inflation under control. To brace the teetering economy, the Fed since September has been ratcheting down its key interest rate. Another cut is expected in March. However, to combat inflation, the Fed would be expected to boost rates instead.

"The Fed has its hands full. It is preoccupied with the economic slowdown at the front door, but inflation looks to be sneaking in the back door," said Greg McBride, senior financial analyst at Bankrate.com. "If that trend continues, the Fed would need to show the economy some tough love, meaning higher interest rates to keep inflation from getting out of hand."

On the other hand, Brian Bethune, economist at Global Insight, said Bernanke can fight only one war at a time, and the more pressing issue right now is to shore up the ailing economy. "That's the war that needs to be fought. The war on inflation will have to come another day," Bethune said.

Maybe things won't be so bad. Stock prices rose for the day, continuing a recent mini-rally. And Federal Reserve vice chairman Donald Kohn said in a speech that he doesn't expect the recent elevated inflation readings to persist.

"But the recent information on prices underlines the need to continue to monitor the inflation situation very carefully," he added.

Some numbers underscore the concerns:

-- Prices paid by consumers are up 4.1 percent over the past year, the biggest increase in 17 years. Those higher prices -- especially for heating homes and filling up gas tanks -- are taking an ever-bigger bite out of paychecks. Workers' weekly earnings are down 1.4 percent from a year ago when adjusted for that inflation.

-- Oil prices galloped past $100 a barrel to close at a record $100.88 on Tuesday. Those lofty energy prices are a double-edged sword: They can spread inflation through the economy by boosting the prices of lots of other goods and services, and they can leave people with less money to spend on other things, thus slowing overall economic activity. There are signs high energy prices are causing some damage on both of those fronts.

People are hunkering down. Earlier this month, nervous shoppers handed the nation's retailers their worst January in almost four decades. High gas and food prices, the toll of the housing bust, the credit crunch and a tougher job market all were to blame. Disappointing sales were widespread, hitting discounters like Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and upscale merchants like Nordstrom Inc.

Wary employers eliminated jobs in January, the first nationwide loss of jobs in more than four years.

With the economy on the edge of a recession -- if it hasn't toppled over already -- the Fed for the near term is much more likely to keep lowering rates. Yet, with its own forecast revised last week to show even slower growth this year as well as higher inflation and higher unemployment than previously anticipated, Bernanke and his colleagues have made clear they'll need to stay nimble.

Can a serious bout of stagflation be avoided? Many economists believe the Fed's aggressive rate cuts along with tax rebates for people and tax breaks for businesses will lift the economy in the second half of the year.

Until then, analysts warn that it could feel like country is suffering through a mild case of stagflation-- even if technically that is not the case. "It could feel like a bad flu," said Bethune.

In the past stagflation episode in the 1970s and early 1980s, inflation sometimes hit double digits -- much higher than the current rate. And unemployment was higher, too. In 1975, for instance, the jobless rate zoomed to 8.5 percent, which at the time was the highest since the early 1940s. Last year, by contrast, the jobless rate averaged 4.6 percent.

"In the real economy, activity looks slow but not disastrous," Alice Rivlin, former vice chair of the Federal Reserve, told Congress Tuesday. But she added: "Uncertainty remains great. ... The risks are mainly on the downside and gloomier forecasts are not hard to find."

DirecTV to get new owner?

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Liberty Media Corp's acquisition of News Corp's stake in DirecTV Group Inc cleared a major hurdle on Monday as U.S. communications regulators conditionally approved the deal.

Read the whole story.

Redondo Beach's increase in median price pushed the beach city into two prominent top 10 lists produced each month by the California Association of Realtors.

Redondo Beach was No. 6 in California communities with the highest median home price. It took the No. 1 spot for communities with the greatest increase in median home price over a 12-month period.

Read about it.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Consumer confidence plunged in February as Americans worried about less-favorable business conditions and job prospects, a business-backed research group said Tuesday.
The Conference Board said its Consumer Confidence Index fell to 75 this month from a revised 87.3 in January.

The reading was the lowest since the index registered 64.8 in February 2003, just before the U.S. invaded Iraq, researchers said, and was far below the 83 expected by analysts surveyed by Thomson/IFR.

The index measures how consumers feel about the economy. It has been weakening since July, suggesting that wary consumers may retrench financially, which could fatigue the economy further.

The expectations index, which measures consumers' outlook over the next six months, fared even worse. The expectations index dropped to 57.9 from 69.3 in January. The February figure was a 17-year low, the Conference Board said, standing just a bit above the 55.3 of January 1991.

In midmorning trading, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 17.99, or 0.14 percent, to 12,588.21. Broader indexes, including the Nasdaq composite and Standard & Poor's 500, were down.

Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board's Consumer Research Center, said in a statement that the consumer confidence survey -- which is based on a sample of 5,000 U.S. households -- indicated that consumers felt economic conditions were deteriorating.

"The weakening in consumers' assessment of current conditions, fueled by a combination of less-favorable business conditions and a sharp rise in the number of consumers saying jobs are hard to get, suggest that the pace of growth in early 2008 has slowed even further," Franco said in a statement accompanying the report.

She pointed to the low "expectations" reading and added: "With so few consumers expecting conditions to turn around in the months ahead, the outlook for the economy continues to worsen and the risk of a recession continues to increase."

A third reading, the index looking at current conditions, also dropped in February to 100.6 from 114.3 the month before.

Those saying jobs were "hard to get" rose to 23.8 percent in February from 20.6 percent in January, while those claiming jobs were "plentiful" decreased to 20.6 percent from 23.8 percent.

Anthony Chan, managing director and chief economist with JPMorgan Private Client Services in New York, said he believed "jobs and energy prices are weighing down on consumer confidence."

The weakening job situation also has been reflected in growing numbers of claims for unemployment benefits, he noted. The four-week average for claims, released by the Labor Department, rose to 360,500 last week -- the highest level since claims spiked in October 2005.

Chan said he expects the first two quarters of this year to be "challenging," with a 50 percent to 55 percent chance of a recession. He expects economic growth to resume in the second half because of Federal Reserve interest rate action and the Bush administration's tax rebates this summer.

"The Fed began easing last August and began lowering rates in September ... and monetary policy impacts the economy with lags," he said. "And the stimulus package in the second half of the year will be a nice shot in the arm for consumer spending."

In Washington, meanwhile, the Labor Department reported that inflation at the wholesale level soared in January, pushed higher by rising costs for food, energy and medicine. The monthly increase carried the annual inflation rate to its fastest jump in a quarter century.

The department said wholesale prices rose 1 percent last month, more than double the 0.4 percent increase that economists had been expecting. The January surge left wholesale prices rising by 7.5 percent over the past 12 months, the fastest pace in more than 26 years.

And Standard & Poor's said Tuesday that U.S. home prices lost 8.9 percent in the final quarter of 2007, marking a full year of declining values and the steepest drop in the 20-year history of its housing index.

The S&P/Case-Shiller home price indices, which include a quarterly index, a 20-city index and a 10-city index, reflect year-over-year declines in 17 metropolitan areas with double-digit declines in eight of them.

Read an analysis.

Check the stock price.

California home sales dropped 29.8% in January compared with the same month last year, the California Asssociation of Realtors said today.

Meanwhile, the median price of an existing single-family detached home in California fell 21.9% to $430,370. It's also a 9.7% drop compared to December 2007.

The South Bay's median home price for all homes rose 0.4% to $612,500 in January, compared to a year earlier.

Redondo Beach made the top 10 highest prices communities in January at $800,100, up 11.1% year over year. That's mostly because many pricier area like Manhattan Beach or various cities on the PV Peninsula didn't sell enough homes in January to register in the report. Furthermore, a sharp rise like 11.1% for a city can often mean that more high-end homes sold than usual thereby skewing the median.

Torrance's median home price fell 1.3 % to $575,000.

LA County saw a median price drop of 12.4% for all homes to $460,000.

California home sales dropped 29.8% in January compared with the same month last year, the California Asssociation of Realtors said today.

Meanwhile, the median price of an existing single-family detached home in California fell 21.9% to $430,370. It's also a 9.7% drop compared to December 2007.

The South Bay's median home price for all homes rose 0.4% to $612,500 in January, compared to a year earlier.

Redondo Beach made the top 10 highest prices communities in January at $800,100, up 11.1% year over year. That's mostly because many pricier area like Manhattan Beach or various cities on the PV Peninsula didn't sell enough homes in January to register in the report. Furthermore, a sharp rise like 11.1% for a city can often mean that more high-end homes sold than usual thereby skewing the median.

Torrance's median home price fell 1.3 % to $575,000.

LA County saw a median price drop of 12.4% for all homes to $460,000.

"The unknown. The not knowing whether you have a great idea that will reach all its potential, or you're having crazy visions that no one will care about." -- William Timothy Rylott

Read the Q&A in today's paper.

AP - Visa Inc. said Monday its initial public offering could raise up to $19 billion — making it the largest in U.S. history — even though the credit card processor is entering the market at a difficult time.

The San Francisco-based credit card processor expects to see high demand for its stock, despite the housing-led credit squeeze that is threatening consumers' spending and their ability to keep up with debt payments.

But Visa, like its public rival MasterCard Inc., is a card processor, not a lender, and has a strong presence in other countries where many people are just starting to use plastic instead of cash. And Visa is the largest U.S. card company by market share — its transactions, in number and dollar amount, in 2006 outpaced those at MasterCard and American Express Co.

Visa said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing it will offer 406 million shares at $37 to $42 per share. There will be an option for underwriters to buy an extra 40.6 million shares to cover any excess demand.

The Visa IPO, even if it prices at the low end of the estimated range, would surpass the $10.6 billion AT&T Wireless raised in 2000 when it went public. And if demand is strong enough, it could be almost as big as the two largest past deals combined — AT&T's offering and Kraft Foods' $8.7 billion offer in 2001.

Visa would follow MasterCard from being a privately held interest to a publicly traded company. MasterCard raised $2.39 billion in its IPO nearly two years ago.

At a midpoint price, Visa could raise about $15.6 billion, or more than $17 billion if underwriters exercise their option to buy the entire lot of 40.6 million shares. Even at the low-end price of $37 a share, Visa would raise about $15 billion.

Shares of MasterCard have risen fivefold since going public and are now trading at more than $203 each. But Visa's offer comes at a time of ebbing appetite for new shares. MasterCard shares have fallen more than 5.5 percent since the beginning of the month.

Visa made its initial IPO filing in June with the SEC. The shares will be listed with the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker V.

Visa will be the last of the major U.S. card companies to go public. Discover Financial Services LLC became publicly traded last July, and since then has seen its shares tumble. But Discover, like American Express, is a true card lender. The responsibility for Visa and MasterCard cardholders' debt, in contrast, is held by the banks that issue them.

For their most recent quarters, MasterCard posted a huge increase in profit while AmEx reported a 10 percent drop in earnings and Discover posted a loss.

A successful Visa IPO would be a boon for member banks including Citigroup Inc., Bank of America Corp. and JPMorgan Chase & Co., which have suffered big credit losses and are gearing up for more as consumer credit deteriorates.

More than $10 billion of the IPO's proceeds will go to the member banks. The rest will go toward Visa's legal costs and general corporate purposes.

Visa boasts the world's biggest retail electronic payments network. According to its filing, as of Sept. 30, banks and other customers said they had issued 1.5 billion Visa cards — which since 2006 have been advertised through the slogan, "Life Takes Visa."

The latest Nilson Report on card companies said that in 2006, Visa had 44 percent of the U.S. market share in cards and 48 percent of the U.S. market share in debit cards.

Visa said it intends to pay shareholders an annual dividend of 42 cents a share.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Job growth is faltering, consumer confidence plunging. The fallout from the worst housing slump in a quarter-century grows. Wherever you look, the signs are unmistakable that the economy is in trouble.

Because of all the bad news, more and more economists foresee the country falling into a recession, according to the latest survey by the National Association for Business Economics.

The group said in a report being released Monday that 45 percent of the economists on its forecasting panel expect a recession this year. In September, only one in four economists was pessimistic enough to put the chance of a recession at 35 percent or higher.

The drumbeat of bad news since last fall has caused many analysts to consider a recession more likely now, said Ellen Hughes-Cromwick, chief economist at Ford Motor Co. and NABE's current president.

The survey shows that 55 percent still believe the country will be able to skate by without falling into an actual downturn, typically defined as two consecutive quarters of declines in the gross domestic output, the broadest measure of economic health. All the analysts, however, expect growth to slow considerably this year.

The forecasters believe GDP will expand by 1.8 percent this year, which would be the weakest growth in five years. That compares with an estimate of 2.5 percent growth for 2008 made in the previous survey, in November.

The new estimate is in line with a downgraded forecast from the Federal Reserve this past week.

The NABE forecast reflects the expectation the economy will grow only sluggishly or actually contract from January through June. Then it is seen starting to expand more strongly in the second half of the year. Helping accomplish that is a $168 billion federal aid plan, with its rebate checks for millions of families, and aggressive interest rate cuts from the Fed.

The panel of 47 top forecasters thinks "any recession, if it occurs, will be short and shallow," Hughes-Cromwick said.

The biggest change in the new survey involves the outlook for interest rates.

In November, economists expected the Fed would keep a key rate, the federal funds rate, at 4.5 percent through all of 2008. That rate, the target for overnight bank loans, already is at 3 percent, after significant cuts by the Fed in January. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke has indicated that further rate cuts will be coming if the economy fails to rebound.

So the NABE experts now predict the funds rate will end this year at 2.5 percent.

Inflation is expected to moderate greatly this year as the weak economy cools price pressures. Inflation shot up by 4.1 percent in 2007, the biggest jump in 17 years.

The Consumer Price Index is forecast to rise by 2.5 percent. That is based in part on the NABE panel's view that demand will weaken for oil and the barrel price will drop to about $84 by December. The current trend, however, is up; crude oil jumped to all-time highs above $100 per barrel over the last week.

The weaker growth will mean higher unemployment, according to the forecasters. They predict that the jobless rate for 2008 will average 5.2 percent, compared with 4.6 percent last year.

Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Economy.com and a NABE panelist, said he believed the economy entered into a recession in December and it will pull out of the downturn in June, aided by the rebate checks that begin going out in May.

If problems worsen for the financial industry, hard hit by the housing downturn, then Zandi said Washington will rush through a second rescue measure because nervous politicians will not want to be seen as dawdling before the November elections.

"A recession in an election year represents a problem for incumbents," Zandi said. "That is why the first stimulus package got passed so quickly and that is why I expect more of a policy response before this is all over."

A second panel member, David Wyss, chief economist at Standard & Poor's in New York, also believes the country is now in a recession. While he believes the economic aid plan signed by President Bush should make the downturn a mild one, he worries the economy could falter again next year.

"There is a danger that this could turn into a double-dip recession," he said. "Once the rebate checks are spent, we could go back down again."

The latest NABE forecast, however, shows the economy continuing to grow in 2009. It predicts a modest GDP increase of 2.7 percent for the whole year, compared with the 1.8 percent expected this year and the 2.2 percent actual GDP growth in 2007.

National Association for Business Economics: http://www.NABE.com

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street will face a slew of data this week: on Americans' spending, inflation at the producer level, home sales and manufacturing.

So far this year, economic data has been mixed, but worrisome overall, and that has made for a turbulent stock market. And investors are bracing for more of the same -- for some time to come.

Last week, the Dow inched up 0.27 percent, the Standard & Poor's 500 index rose a modest 0.23 percent and the Nasdaq composite index dipped 0.79 percent. The three indexes are all down sharply for the year, and there's no sign yet of a true rebound in the stock market.

"Could it fall further? Sure," said Hans Olsen, chief investment officer in JPMorgan's private client services. He noted that particularly troubling news could easily push the S&P back under the 1,300 mark, a level it briefly sunk below in January.

It's possible for the stock market to end the year with decent returns, Olsen said, but "to say we're getting a bottom here might be premature."

Stock markets generally fall 30 percent, peak to trough, during a recession, said Christian Menegatti, lead analyst at the economic and financial Web site RGE Monitor. So it's quite possible, he said, depending on how weak the economy gets this year, for stocks to fall another 15 percent.

The biggest drag on the economy has so far been, of course, the housing market.

The National Association of Realtors reports Monday on sales of existing homes last month. According to the median estimate of economists surveyed Friday by Thomson Financial/IFR, existing home sales expected to have slipped by about 1 percent in January from December. Then on Wednesday, the Commerce Department reports on sales of new homes, which are anticipated to have slipped modestly in January.

Wall Street is concerned with not only sales, but inventories, which are at very high levels because demand is so weak. The housing market can only start bouncing back once inventories start edging lower -- something that many analysts don't expect to happen for a while.

But a cash-strapped consumer is also a problem.

The government releases its readings on consumer spending and income on Friday, with both expected to rise by 0.2 percent. Anything below those levels could raise red flags for investors.

And inflation worries remain -- the consumer spending report's inflation measure is forecast to come in at 2.2 percent, year-over-year, which is above the Federal Reserve's unofficial comfort zone. And last week, the Labor Department's consumer price index showed higher-than-expected upticks.

On Tuesday, the Labor Department issues its reading on prices at the wholesale level. The Producer Price Index is expected to have risen 0.3 percent in January after falling 0.1 percent in December, and the core index, which excludes food and energy, is expected to have risen 0.2 percent, the same as the prior month.

While the consumer is struggling, businesses are having a hard time offsetting that weakness.

Wednesday, the Commerce Department reports on orders of durable goods, which are expected to drop about 3.5 percent after rising 5.2 percent in December. And the Chicago Purchasing Manager's Index -- considered a precursor to the Institute for Supply Management's U.S. manufacturing report next week -- is expected to show that activity was flat, perhaps even contracting, in February.

What Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke implies the central bank's monetary policy during his testimony to Congress on Wednesday and Thursday could provide some short-term direction.

But doubts about the effectiveness of interest rate cuts in the tight credit markets -- not to mention the gloomy tone Bernanke adopted during his last congressional appearance -- could keep investors on edge for a while. Although rates have come down fairly sharply, banks have become less willing to lend and housing demand is low.

"You can make money cheap. You can't necessarily make people take out mortgages, or have institutions want to lend that money," Olsen said.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Gas prices jumped Friday to their highest level since June, a possible preview of what many analysts believe will be a record spike in pump prices this spring.

But the current price surge could be short-lived. While gasoline has risen sharply in recent days in response to oil's dramatic climb to a new record above $101 a barrel, gas supplies have quietly grown to their highest level in 14 years.

"We've got a major supply cushion," said Jim Ritterbusch, president of energy consultancy Ritterbusch and Associates in Galena, Ill.

At the pump, gas prices rose 2.9 cents overnight to a national average of $3.115 a gallon, according to AAA and the Oil Price Information Service. That was the highest since June 8.

At the same time, March gasoline futures rose 1.17 cents to settle at $2.5337 a gallon on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Meanwhile, light, sweet crude for April delivery rose 58 cents to settle at $98.81 a barrel on concerns about potential supply disruptions and cold weather.

Many analysts believe gas prices will rise this spring to new records near $3.75 or $4 a gallon. But not everyone agrees.

Ritterbusch, for example, thinks the high level of supplies, and an eventual decline in oil prices, will pull pump prices down. He doubts prices will rise as high as $3.75 without a major overseas supply disruption or domestic refinery outage.

But Tom Kloza, publisher and chief oil analyst at the Oil Price Information Service in Wall, N.J., argues that while gasoline prices won't rise as much this spring as they have in previous years, they are starting from a much higher level. Indeed, prices at the moment are 83 cents higher than a year ago. That means retail prices could peak between $3.50 and $3.75 a gallon, Kloza said, well above May's record of $3.227 a gallon.

The Energy Department's latest forecast calls for gas prices to peak near $3.40 a gallon this spring.

Of course, gasoline prices also respond to oil futures. Oil has traded in a band between about $86 and $100 a barrel for months, a trend many analysts expect to continue throughout the year. That will likely keep gas prices oscillating in their own narrow band around $3 a gallon for most of the year.

Oil prices rose Friday on word Turkish troops pursued separatist Kurdish rebels into northern Iraq. Concerns that the Kurds would retaliate against Turkish attacks last fall by sabotaging oil shipments out of Iraq had much to do with oil's rise to $100, analysts said.

Word that the key Houston Shipping Channel was closed to oil tankers and other ships for the second day in a row also gave oil traders reason to buy.

Other energy futures also rose Friday. March heating oil futures jumped 2.49 cents to settle at $2.763 a gallon on the Nymex and March natural gas futures rose 25.5 cents to settle at $9.146 per 1,000 cubic feet. Both contracts were being pushed higher by the winter storm pounding the Northeast.

In London, April Brent crude futures rose 77 cents to settle at $97.01 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Air Force is likely days away from handing out one of the biggest Pentagon contracts in years -- a deal valued at up to $40 billion to replace 179 planes in its fleet of aerial refueling tankers.

For the three companies bidding, there is more at stake than just the monetary award: jobs and reputation.

Boeing Co. has supplied the Air Force with refueling tankers for nearly 50 years and doesn't want to let go of that. The incumbent is considered the favorite to win -- an assumption already reflected in its stock price.

But European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co. and its U.S. partner, Northrop Grumman Corp., want to be in on the game. For France-based EADS, the parent of rival Airbus, the contract is an entree into the massive American military market just as overseas spending cools. And for Northrop Grumman, it would tap into a major new military revenue stream at a time when Pentagon spending may be leveling off.

Analysts say the tanker award could be announced any time after Pentagon officials meet Monday to sign off on the Air Force's tanker purchase plan.

The contract -- worth $30 billion to $40 billion over 10 to 15 years -- is the first of three deals to replace the Air Force's entire fleet of nearly 600 tankers, which allow aircraft to refuel without landing.

For Wall Street, the award's potential really takes off with the follow-on contracts likely going to the incumbent. As much as $100 billion over the next 30 years is at stake, says Loren Thompson, a defense industry analyst with Lexington Institute, a policy think tank.

Thompson said the Air Force will eventually buy more than 400 new tankers to modernize its full fleet in "the biggest new aircraft contract anywhere in the world." The Air Force currently flies 531 Eisenhower-era tankers and another 59 tankers built in the 1980s by McDonnell Douglas, now part of Boeing.

"This is one of the biggest defense contracts to come along in decades and will be for future decades," said Scott Hamilton, an aviation industry consultant based outside of Seattle. "You have to take the plums when they come along."

Because Northrop Grumman is considered an underdog, its shares likely will jump if it wins, but may not take a drubbing if the contract goes to Boeing. Yet Boeing's stock would almost certainly take a hit if the company loses, but only rise moderately if the award comes through since a win is already factored into the share price.

On Capitol Hill, members in both parties are lobbying hard for a victor whose spoils include local jobs.

Chicago-based Boeing would perform much of the tanker work in Everett, Wash., and Wichita, Kan., and use Pratt & Whitney engines built in Connecticut. The company says a win would support 44,000 new and existing jobs at Boeing and more than 300 suppliers in more than 40 states.

"The Boeing proposal is far superior," said Rep. Norm Dicks, D-Wash., a senior member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense who represents a district that is home many Boeing jobs. "I'm very hopeful that on the merits we're going to win."

Other Boeing supporters include Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash.; Duncan Hunter of California, the top Republican on the House Armed Services Committee and former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, an Illinois Republican.

The EADS/Northrop Grumman team would perform its final assembly work in Mobile, Ala., although the underlying plane would mostly be built in Europe. And it would use General Electric engines built in North Carolina and Ohio. Northrop Grumman, which is based in Los Angeles, estimates a Northrop/EADS win would produce 2,000 new jobs in Mobile and support 25,000 jobs at suppliers nationwide.

Alabama Sens. Jeff Sessions and Richard Shelby, both Republicans, are cheering for the French to come to Mobile, as is Rep. Jo Bonner, R-Ala., who represents the district where Northrop has said it would assemble its tanker.

Presidential candidate John McCain, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, also has a keen interest in the deal. McCain played a lead role in uncovering a procurement scandal in 2003 that sent a top Air Force acquisition official to prison for conflict of interest and led to the collapse of an earlier tanker contract with Boeing.

Despite that history, Wall Street expects Boeing to win the new award because of its well-established relationship with the Air Force and prior contract wins.

"For Boeing, this is a pride issue," Hamilton said.

It's become an issue of not just corporate, but national pride. Boeing has managed to paint the competition as a fight between an American company and its European rival. Although parts of both tankers would be made overseas, Boeing has raised pointed questions about why the Air Force would award such an important contract to a foreign company.

Analysts say Boeing also has an advantage because its KC-767 tanker is smaller and lighter than the KC-30 being offered by EADS and Northrop Grumman. That means the Boeing tanker would take up less space on the ground and burn less fuel. Still, the KC-30's larger size will enable it to carry more fuel, cargo or personnel on individual flights -- making it a more efficient plane using Air Force criteria, Northrop Grumman stressed.

EADS and Northrop Grumman estimate that compared with the KC-767, the Air Force would need 20 percent fewer KC-30 tankers to meet its refueling needs.

Despite all the drama, at least one analyst stressed that losing the tanker contract would not be a disaster for any of the companies bidding on it.

After all, the contract amounts to just over one tanker a month, noted Richard Aboulafia, an analyst with the aerospace consulting firm Teal Group. And with Boeing and Airbus each booking orders for 500 planes a year, that represents just a "drop in the bucket for the huge commercial jetliner market."

Associated Press Writers Matthew Daly and Ben Evans in Washington contributed to this report.

Celina Hidalgo, 12, left, and sister Makayla, 11, from the JV Beach Bots Girls Team of Hope Chapel Academy in Hermosa Beach, make adjustments on their LEGO NXT robot Thursday. Northrop Grumman Space Technology in Redondo Beach hosted local middle and high school students Thursday for National Engineers Week. The students participated in an interactive robotics demonstration. Earlier in the week, some students teamed with Northrop engineers to build satellite models out of cans. Northrop is helping sponsor National Engineers Week 2008, an effort by 75 engineering, professional and technical societies and more than 50 corporations and government agencies to excite grade-school students about careers in math and science.







Ryan, sister Jennifer and members of Redondo Union and Mira
Costa High's FIRST Tech Challenge team, operate ring retrieval robot
remote controllers.






Ryan Sharp, 16, left, and sister Jennifer, 14, members of Redondo Union and Mira Costa High's FIRST Tech Challenge team operate a ring retrieval robot with Northrup Grumman mentor Rick Wagner.
The robot went undefeated in a recent competition.

Dennis Lee, 29, an engineer at Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems in El Segundo, was recognized as a rising star in engineering by the National Engineers Week Foundation.

His accomplishments as a South Bay Engineer place him among 14 "New Faces of Engineering", selected from hundreds of candidates across the country by the National Engineers Week Foundation.

This is the second year in a row that Raytheon's SAS has had an engineer receive top honors in this field.

Lee's work is credited with saving the lives of US troops and our allies. Lee directs a team at Raytheon SAS responsible for developing real-time imaging systems for unmanned military surveillance aircraft.

"It is an honor to be recognized by my peers for my achievements, and I hope my success will set an example for young people as to how an academic focus on math and science can lead to great things." Lee said in a statement.

Century City-based Northrop Grumman Corp. named Darryl M. Fraser, 49, as corporate vice president of communications, effective March 15.

Fraser succeeds Rosanne O’Brien, who is retiring in May to satisfy the company’s mandatory retirement policy for officers.

Fraser is currently sector vice president of Business Development and Strategic Initiatives at the
company’s Mission Systems sector. He will report to Ronald D. Sugar, Northrop's chairman and chief executive officer, and will become a member of the Corporate Policy Council.

Following March 15, O'Brien will continue to report to Sugar and assist with the transition until her official retirement date.

See Fraser's photo.

Read about Delicieuse, a Redondo Beach cafe that serves ice cream made from goat's milk, in Monday's Business section.

Read about Delicieuse, a Redondo Beach cafe that serves ice cream made from goat's milk, in Monday's Business section.

AP - NASA has picked two aerospace companies to develop a new commercial spaceship capable of flying cargo to the international space station.

The announcement Tuesday comes four months after the space agency reopened bidding after an original winner failed to secure enough private financing for its project.

NASA is giving $170 million to Virginia-based Orbital Sciences Corp. (nyse: ORB - news - people ), which makes small rockets and small systems. The other company receiving part of nearly $500 million NASA set aside in 2006 to promote development of private spacecraft is SpaceX, a startup based in El Segundo.

Christine Tierney / The Detroit News
Nissan Motor Co. is cutting back its North American design team, which is split between the company's studios in Farmington Hills and San Diego, and re-aligning the studios' responsibilities to increase efficiency and save money.

The Japanese automaker expects to eliminate close to a dozen out of about 100 jobs at Nissan Design America Inc. through voluntary buyout offers, with most of the cuts expected in the slightly larger San Diego studio, company officials said this week.

The reductions are the latest at Nissan North America, which has cut jobs at its manufacturing operations in Smyrna, Tenn., and lost many employees when it transferred its headquarters to Nashville in 2006 from Carson.

"Over the past two years, they have really focused on every penny they spend. This isn't just a designer thing," said Alexander Edwards, a partner at San Diego consulting firm Strategic Vision and head of its automotive division. "For every dollar they spend, they're getting a lot more out of it than they used to."

The strict cost controls have improved Nissan's financial performance. The automaker recently reiterated its forecast for a $4.5 billion profit for the fiscal year ending on March 31 after reporting a 27 percent jump in earnings for the October-December quarter.

But CEO Carlos Ghosn is pessimistic about the prospects for the U.S. auto market this year and has predicted that overall industry sales could drop to 15.5 million vehicles.

Nissan managers went over the budgets and activities of the U.S. studios recently as part of a global review of the design operations.

"The reason we're doing it, is that the process, from the beginning to the start of production, from the idea to the showroom, is becoming shorter," said Bruce Campbell, vice president at Nissan Design America.

The time it takes to develop a vehicle has been cut from around 48 months 10 years ago to half as long "and we've got projections to reduce that to maybe half again," he said in an interview.

That allows Nissan to bring vehicles to the market faster, but has reduced the need for staff. "We will continue to have the same output as before. Our target is to figure out how to do more with less," he said.

The buyout offer targets designers, color designers and perceived quality designers, a group numbering around 33 people. It was not extended to modelers and administrative staff at Nissan Design America.

"It's a voluntary severance plan at this moment," Campbell said. Designers have until the end of the month to consider the offers. "Fewer than 12 (job eliminations) for all of Nissan Design America is the estimate on our side," he said. "We anticipate the greatest effect will probably be felt in San Diego."

The U.S. studios have designed or contributed substantially to the design of models such as the Nissan Altima sedan and coupe, the new Nissan Rogue crossover, the Armada and Infiniti QX56 full-size SUVs and the sporty 350Z car.

The review of the design operations also will lead to a sharper division of labor between Nissan's U.S. studios. The San Diego studio, which employs 60 of the overall 100, will concentrate on designing future models and concepts and generating ideas, while the Farmington Hills studio, housed in the Nissan Technical Center North America, will take over projects as they near production. "They're on the same campus with the engineers. It makes sense," Campbell said. "It's a hallway down from production engineering."

HOUSTON, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Chevron Corp (CVX.N: Quote, Profile, Research) said Tuesday all its crude units at its 260,000 barrel per day (bpd) Los Angeles-area refinery in El Segundo, California were running after repairing instrument air problems over the weekend.

Read the rest of the story.

The National Hydrogen Association launched an educational initiative called "H2 and You" to increase understanding about hydrogen.

The initiative includes targeted public relations and the new, informative website: www.H2andYou.org. The website has been designed to act as a destination for those wanting to learn more about hydrogen while highlighting, in laymen's terms, new ways hydrogen is being used today and how these uses relate to things people really care about.

Read the Journal's short item.

Read about a proposal specialist in today's Daily Breeze.

Great story that gets to the heart of how many Americans feel today.

By Adam Geller, AP National Writer
Economic Woes Reveal a Long-Felt Unease: As Economic Tide Recedes, an Undertow of Long-Simmering Insecurities Grows Among Americans

Even when experts were declaring the economy healthy, many Americans voiced a vague, but persistent dissatisfaction. True, jobs were relatively plentiful over the last few years. It was easy to borrow and very cheap. The sharp rise in the value of homes and plentiful credit cards encouraged a nation of consumers to get out and buy. But to many people, something didn't feel right, even if they couldn't quite explain why.

Now the economic tide is receding, and the undertow that was there all along is getting stronger.

Take away the easy credit and consumers are left with paychecks that, for most, haven't nearly kept pace with their need and propensity to spend.

The frustration of $3 gas and $4 milk, the worries about health care costs that have risen four times the rate of pay, become much more real. The retirement security that is only as good as the increasingly volatile stock market seems much less certain.

Americans' declining confidence in their economy is triggered by a storm of very recent pressures, including plunging home prices, tightening credit, and heavy debt. But it is compounded by anxiety that was there all along, the result of a long, slow drip of worries and vulnerabilities.

"The economy is currently in recession or arguably close to recession and that's certainly weighing on the collective psyche," says Mark Zandi, chief economist of forecaster Moody's Economy.com. "But ... I do think there is an increasing level of angst that is more fundamental and is not going to go away even when the economy improves."

Much of that anxiety is the uncomfortable, but expected jolt of the economic roller coaster. During a downturn, people become less confident about keeping their jobs or being able to find new ones, meeting household expenses and about the prospects for the future.

But there may be more to it than just cyclical ups and downs.

What does the economic future hold? Many Americans feel increasingly unable to answer that question with assurance, and they appraise it with a sense that they are less in control of the outcome.

In Westminster, Colo., a Denver suburb, George Apodaca hears that uncertainty from the maintenance workers, drivers and others enrolled in the home budgeting class he teaches. Most have steady jobs, but are just getting by. They talk about challenges like the rising cost of getting to work or medical bills, not as new problems but as a continuing struggle.

"People in my class, they don't know what a recession means or what a boom means," says Apodaca, a counselor for Colorado Housing Enterprises. "They're worried about buying the groceries, buying the gas."

A year ago -- months before economic alarms went off -- nearly two of three Americans polled by The Rockefeller Foundation said that they felt somewhat or a lot less economically secure then they did a decade ago. Half said they expected their children to face an economy even more shaky.

Other polls have registered similar unease in the past few years, showing large numbers of Americans dissatisfied with the economy, and worried about retirement security, health care costs, and a declining standard of living.

The surprising thing about many of these readings isn't that they've recently skyrocketed. It's that in recent years they've registered consistently high levels of worry without ever seeming to ease.

"This has just been a period of great disconnect between what the aggregate economic statistics show and what leading politicians talk about and what ordinary Americans are feeling," said Jacob Hacker, a Yale University professor and author of "The Great Risk Shift," which charts increased economic insecurity. "I think people are saying, where did the gains go? Where did the boom go? And now that it's gone, what are we going to do?"

Those uncertainties have been submerged for the past few years. The war in Iraq and the threat of terrorism dominated, drawing attention away from day-to-day economic concerns. With employers adding workers, people's appraisal of the economy focused less on jobs, the long-standing measure of financial security.

Many people gauged their well-being in wealth -- looking at the stock market, and much more broadly, the rise of real estate prices, said Susan Sterne, president of Economic Analysis Associates.

Americans borrowed freely against the value of their homes. But now there is nothing left to shield them from the insecurities rooted in the old measures of economic prosperity.

Except for the late 1990s, pay has been stagnant for more than a generation, barely keeping pace with inflation. In 1973, the median male worker earned $16.88 an hour, adjusted for inflation. In 2007, he earned $16.85.

For many families, the stagnation has been moderated by the addition of a second paycheck as more women went to work, and their pay rose over the same period.

But the largest gains went to workers at the top of the pay scale. Now, economic worries are rising fastest in households with smaller paychecks, and that chasm is widening.

"Over the past decades, whether inflation was much higher or lower, or incomes grew faster or more slowly, there has never been such a wide divergence in the experiences" separating richer households from poorer ones, Richard Curtin, the director of the University of Michigan's consumer survey said in summing up the most recent figures.

That insecurity shows in small, but telling ways. Shoppers at drug store chain Walgreens Inc. are increasingly bypassing name-brand cough syrups and pain relievers and choosing cheaper store brands. Wal-Mart Stores Inc noticed that many people who received its gift cards for the holidays used them in January to buy food and other necessities instead of extras.

The pullback by consumers contrasts with years of continued spending that long seemed to contradict mounting worries.

Worker optimism, which soared in the late 1990s, never fully rebounded after the last, brief recession. Although jobs again were plentiful, it became clear the new economy's opportunities came with few of the old assurances.

Rennie Sawade, the son of a Michigan auto worker, majored in computer science because he saw no future on the assembly line. He was rewarded with a job at Oracle Corp., but lost it in late 2005 when the company shifted his department's work to India. Sawade, who lives in Woodinville, Wash. near Seattle, has been unable to find a full-time replacement, instead jumping from contract job to contract job.

The contractor offers a 401(k), but contributions are entirely up to workers. When Sawade's wife was diagnosed with thyroid cancer last year he missed the equivalent of two weeks work -- and pay -- to take care of her. The job has health insurance but still left the family with a bill for more than $2,000. Contractors call to offer other jobs, but the pay is frequently disappointing, he says.

"It was pretty well known when I was working on my bachelor's degree that the auto industry was going to move overseas," he says. "Everybody said get into technology because you'll have a career. Now it looks like the same thing is happening to technology."

Cutbacks and changes by employers also have pushed heavy responsibilities on to workers, many who find themselves unprepared.

In the past decade, scores of companies have frozen or eliminated benefit plans providing a guaranteed pension. Many have replaced them with 401(k) plans whose future worth depends on workers' investment skill. Almost half of all households are at risk of coming up short in retirement, according to the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College.

Worry also grew about the cost of health care, with good reason. Since 2001, the cost of health insurance has gone up 78 percent -- about $1,500 more per year for the average family, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. Over the same period, wages rose about 19 percent, and inflation about 17 percent. About four in 10 people polled by the group say they are worried about paying more for health care or insurance.

Even the consumption made possible by easy credit has helped turn up the financial pressure. The number of products -- from air conditioners to cell phones -- that Americans say they can't live without has grown substantially in recent years, according to the Pew Research Center. About 6 in 10 working Americans polled by the group say they don't earn enough to lead the life they want.

Economic confidence is, largely, a self-fulfilling prophecy. The more consumers believe the economy is heading downhill, the more likely they'll rein in spending that will contribute to a downturn.

"I think if people were generally more satisfied and less anxious perhaps they would be more resistant to thinking things were deteriorating rapidly," says Andrew Kohut, president of the Pew Research Center.

Maybe the downturn in optimism is temporary. Americans are voracious consumers and persistent optimists.

But some believe a fundamental change in behavior and mind-set is taking place. Since the early 1980s, consumers' contribution to the economy has risen from 63 percent, near where it had long hovered, to 70 percent. Baby boomers spent generously on growing families. Interest rates and inflation dropped, making homes and other assets worth more and cutting borrowing costs. The spread of easy credit promoted spending.

Now, those are drying up and the population is aging. Older households don't spend as much, and often assess the economy more conservatively. Over the next generation, that could drive consumers' contribution to the economy back down to the low-60 percent range, Zandi said.

"There were tail winds behind" the growth in consumer spending over the last 25 years, he says. "Now there are headwinds."

Gold often gets more of investors' attention than less precious metals such as copper or aluminum.

But look at the growth of this one aluminum mining stock, ACH, for Aluminum Corp. of China. Here's the link for the one-year chart.

And here's the one-year chart for NEM, for Newmont Mining Corp.

Read this interesting article.

International Rectifier, the El Segundo-based maker of power management devices, siad it elected Oleg
Khaykin, the firm's newly appointed CEO, and Richard J. Dahl to its board of directors.

Khaykin, 43, was appointed CEO effective March 1 of this year.

Dahl, 56, has served as a director of the NYSE listed IHOP Corp. since 2004.

Boeing Co. named Matthew Ganz as president of the company's Phantom Works advanced research and development unit, effective Feb. 22.

Ganz, 48, comes to Boeing from HRL Laboratories in Malibu, where he was president, CEO and general manager. Ganz succeeds Bob Krieger, who retired Dec. 31.

Phantom Works is based in St. Louis.

Hot Wheels kicked off its 40th anniversary with the unveiling of a diamond-encrusted car at the New York Toy Fair.

The custom jeweled 1:64-scale Hot Wheels car, was designed by celebrity jeweler Jason of Beverly Hills. This one-of-a-kind car, the most expensive in Hot Wheels history, was made to commemorate the production of the 4 billionth Hot Wheels vehicle.

The diamonds on the custom-made jeweled car, valued at $140,000, total more than 2,700 and weigh nearly 23 carats in total weight. The car is cast in 18-karat white gold with the majority of the vehicle detailed with micro pave-set brilliant blue diamonds, mimicking the Hot Wheels Spectraflame blue paint. Under the functional hood, the engine showcases additional micro pave-set white and black diamonds. The Hot Wheels flame logo on the underbelly of the car is lined with white and black diamonds. Red rubies are set as the tail lights, while black diamonds and red enamel create the “red line” tires. The custom-made case that houses the jewel-encrusted vehicle also holds 40 individual white diamonds, signifying each year in the legacy of Hot Wheels®.

Mattel Inc., the El Segundo-based toy maker, owns the Hot Wheels brand.

Here's the link for today's story.

(AP) - El Segundo-based satellite TV operator DirecTV Group says higher interest payments on its debt sent fourth-quarter earnings down 2%.

The company earned $348 million in the quarter, compared with $356 million at the same time a year ago.

Per-share income amounted to 30 cents, a penny better than analysts' estimates.

DirecTV is the largest satellite television provider in the country, ahead of Englewood (Colorado)-based Dish Network.

DirecTV has a customer support hub in Greenwood Village, and Liberty Media Corporation of Englewood is trying to acquire a 39% stake in DirecTV.

The company's revenue rose 17% to $4.88 billion, exceeding Wall Street's estimate.

DirecTV says it has 16.8 million subscribers.

Alexis C. Livanos, president of Redondo Beach-based Northrop Grumman Space Technology, was elected a
member of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE), Northrop said Thursday.

See what Livanos looks like here.

The Academy said Livanos was elected to "for contributions to the development and insertion of advanced semiconductor technology for commercial and government space systems."

Livanos is one of 65 new members who will be formally inducted in October.

The Academy honors those who have made outstanding contributions to the "pioneering
of new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of engineering or developing/implementing innovative approaches to engineering education."

Livanos joins 12 current or former Northrop executives as NAE members.

Northrop's Space Technology sector develops government satellites, military laser systems and other critical systems.

Today is Valentine's Day, largely an artificial holiday, but a holiday nonetheless.

The holiday's connection to business is unmistabkable as it is one of the most important days of the year for restaurants, florists, gift shops, jewelers, etc. And these businesses have worked hard to remind the public -- over and over and over -- how "romantic" this day is. And if you don't get your wife, girlfriend, babe or significant other something touching, then you're a goat.

I have mixed feelings about the commercialization of this day. But I have to accept that the dollar (and euro, yen, peso, yuan, etc.) makes the world go round.

And, yes, I got my wife something nice.

So I ask you: How much is too much to spend for Valentine's Day?

Foreclosures in LA County were at nearly 10,000 in January, another sign that the real estate market could be in freefall.

January saw 9,885 foreclosures, according to Default Research Inc., which tracks such data. That accounts for 2.05% of all households.

January foreclosures are up 41.6% over December's number of 6,979.

January's figure is also up a wopping 246.5% over January 2007, which saw 2,853 foreclosures in the county.

Riverside County had the worst Southern California foreclosure rate at 6.34% of households, or 44,379 foreclosures.

Orange County had the region's best foreclosure rate at 1.95%, or 19,881 foreclosures.

Find out how much you'll get back from Uncle Sam from the economic stimulus plan.

Read about it here.

The Air Force Band of the Golden West will perform at Torrance's James R. Armstrong Theatre at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. The

The 45-piece band is the only remaining active-duty Air Force band west of the Rockies.

The concert will focus on a variety of styles including traditional wind ensemble repertoire, patriotic music, marches and soloists. There'll also be a woodwind duet accompanied by the band.

Other features will include vocalists on songs selected from Broadway musicals, popular and traditional songs, and operatic arias.

Brig. Gen. Ellen Pawlikowski, vice commander of the Space and Missile Systems Center, Torrance Mayor Frank Scotto and several Torrance city council members will attend.

WGA West. Take a look here.

Read the story here.

SpaceX completed the NASA preliminary design review for the Dragon Spacecraft Mission to the International Space Station.

Read the release below.

HAWTHORNE--Feb. 12, 2008--Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) has completed the Preliminary Design Review (PDR) for the second Falcon 9 / Dragon demonstration under NASA’s Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) project. NASA representatives attended the event, held at SpaceX’s new headquarters in Hawthorne, California.
Under COTS, SpaceX will conduct three Falcon 9 / Dragon flights, demonstrating the ability to approach, berth, and ultimately deliver cargo to the International Space Station (ISS), and return cargo to Earth. The first COTS flight will demonstrate launch, operations over several orbits, reentry and return to Earth.
During this second and much longer demonstration, the uncrewed Dragon spacecraft will approach within 10 kilometers of the ISS and hold its position. The primary objective of the four day long mission is to demonstrate Dragon’s communication and control system links to the ISS. According to the SpaceX plan, astronauts and ground controllers will conduct an extensive test of the two-way Dragon-ISS UHF band communications system, which will be essential to the third COTS demonstration mission. This system, being developed and qualified by SpaceX, includes transceiver equipment planned for installation on each Dragon Spacecraft and aboard the ISS. It will permit the ISS crew to monitor and operate the Dragon craft directly.
"Planning this mission required SpaceX to collaborate closely with ISS personnel and it went very well," said Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX. "This is a working relationship that will be increasingly important as we move forward to meet NASA’s need for transport to and from the Space Station."
Although these demonstrations are for cargo re-supply, SpaceX designed the Dragon spacecraft to transport up to seven astronauts to Earth orbit and back. "We have made substantial progress and are confident we can address the gap between Shuttle retirement and Orion operations," said Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceX VP of Business Development. "We look forward to advancing with the crew-carrying Dragon configuration for NASA should they give the go-ahead."
Other objectives for this second COTS demonstration include proof of navigation and maneuvering abilities, deployment and operation of solar arrays and thermal cooling systems, Dragon receiving GPS data from the ISS, and transmission of telemetry from Dragon to SpaceX Mission Control in HawthorneZZTO via the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS).
During the meeting, held on December 19, 2007, all comments and questions raised by NASA’s experts were addressed by the SpaceX design team. SpaceX continues its record of successfully meeting all COTS milestones to date on schedule.

Story on an engagement ring box with video capability.

Read the story here.

Today, General Motors Corp. reported a $38.7 billion loss for 2007, the biggest annual loss for a car company.

Read the story here.

So I ask you: Who is to blame for the huge loss?

Is it GM's management, who focused so much on gas-guzzling SUVs when gas prices were low that they had little to offer the public when gas prices shot through the roof?

Should we blame the union, which secured huge increases in pay and benefits before GM stumbled so badly?

Or are US consumers to blame for not "buying American"?

It's here.

This might interest readers since Honda opened an Acura design center in Torrance.

Read the Q&A.

Interesting story on a government agency saying we change our vehicle oil too frequently. A spokesman for the oil change industry disagrees.

So I ask you: Is this issue unique to the auto care industry?

Read the story here.

Many in the South Bay remember when Northrop Grumman made an unsolicited offer for TRW. TRW's boarded reacted with outrage, saying the offer undervalued TRW's stock. Of course, when Northrop sweetened the offer enough, TRW's board accepted, and the two companies became one.

Now Yahoo's board reportedly has rejected Microsoft's unsolicited offer for the search engine. Yahoo reportedly says the offer is too low.

So I ask you: Will history repeat itself with a sweetened offer from Microsoft and eventual acceptance from Yahoo's board? With the two technology companies soon become one?

When Britain's Prince Andrew visited El Segundo Friday for the announcement of BT Americas' solar energy project, the Duke of York spoke about how the project will reduce green house gases blamed for global warming.

Other foreign dignitaries, including former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, have come to the US to talk about global warming.

So I ask you: How much of an impact will foreign leaders and dignitaries have on Americans' debate over global warming?

El Segundo-based CB Richard Ellis Group, Inc. today announced the acquisition of Eurisko Consulting SRL, the largest independent commercial real estate services company in Romania.

The purchase price was about $35 million, subject to a post closing audit.

"The acquisition further enhances CB Richard Ellis' ability to deliver the premier commercial real estate
services offering across Central and Eastern Europe by giving the Company a leading position in one of the region’s fastest growing economies," the firm said in a statement.

Britain's Prince Andrew attended the unveiling in El Segundo of BT Americas' plans to build a huge solar power project at its El Segundo headquarters.

The solar project will involve solar cells on the company's roof and parking lot. The project will have a tracking system that allows the solar cells to pivet to face the sun.

The project will allow BT Americas to reduce carbon emissions by an expected 642,000 pounds a year.

BT Americas is the North American arm of BT, the British telecommunications giant.

Read the story.

Prince Andrew will be in El Segundo Friday morning to help BT Americas announce a new solar initiative.

I don't have much more detail than that.

International Rectifier Corp. named Oleg Khaykin as president and chief executive officer, effective March 1, the El Segundo-based power management technology firm said today.

Khaykin will succeed Donald Dancer, who has served as acting CEO since August 30.

"Mr. Dancer will be actively involved in ensuring a smooth transition and will remain
with the Company supporting Mr. Khaykin in his new role," the company said in a release.

Khaykin, 43, brings extensive global experience in the semiconductor industry, having served most recently as chief operating officer of Amkor Technology Inc., a provider of semiconductor assembly and test services, with twelve high-volume manufacturing facilities located in South Korea, the Philippines, China, Japan, Taiwan, and Singapore and 22,000 employees worldwide.

At Amkor, Khaykin was responsible for all aspects of sales, marketing, R&D and manufacturing operations, including accountability for the development and implementation of corporate and business strategy, business development, strategic partnerships and IP management.

Britain's Prince Andrew will officiate at the opening of a new Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market in Compton this morning.

The stores are part of British retail giant Tesco's entry into the Western US.

Tesco's US arm is based in El Segundo.

At the event, an alliance of labor and community goups will try to give the British Prince letters asking Tesco to negotiate a "community benefits agreement" for the firm's US stores. The alliance seeks to negotiate with Tesco to ensure the retailer meets certain community, food safety and environmental standards. This may also lead to requests to unionize Tesco's US employees.

So far, Tesco management has declined to negotiate with the alliance.

You've probably heard the criticism about the Phoenix Suns' decision to trade Shawn Marion for Shaq, since the formerly dominant center is much slower, less energetic and more likely to get injured.

My question: Even if those criticisms are true, doesn't having Shaq on the team make sense from a business standpoint?

Think about it. Shaq is a showboat. He loves to make a scene, clown around, get his name in the paper whether it's because of his scoring or his quips. Yes, the Suns are already fun to watch. But Shaq will add a harmless circus environment to the team that will draw more people to the games. And more spectators means more tickets sold, more hot dogs and beer sold, more jerseys sold.

Think of the number of Shawn Marion jerseys sold compared to the number of Shaq jerseys sold.

Enough said.

You may have heard about the theory of decoupling. It states that a US recession may not drag down the rest of the world's economies because foreign economies have matured and diversified enough to not be so dependent on the US economy.

So I ask you: Do you believe in the decoupling theory?

Will this theory inspire you to move your money into foreign investments until the US downturn is over?

El Segundo-based DirecTV will air a new original series in high-definition called "Supreme Court of Comedy."

The first of 10 episodes will air at 10 pm March 3 on DirecTV's original entertainment channel, The 101.

DirecTV: "Taking a new spin on courtroom television, the series will feature real people trying
their small claims disputes with America’s truest judges of character--comedians. Dom Irrera will serve as the court’s resident "chief justice," and top comedians like Jamie Kennedy, Sinbad, Paul Rodriguez and Tom Arnold will represent plaintiffs and defendants in each case. Completely unscripted and totally unpredictable, the show puts the jesters in charge of justice and ends with verdicts that are hilarious, yet surprisingly just."

Phenomenex Inc., a Torrance chemical separation firm, will host a charity fair from 11 am to 1:30 pm Thursday Feb. 7.

The event is designed to encourage cooperation between the community, the company’s 500 employees and area charities.

Companies in the Torrance Technology Park and their employees are also been invited to attend.

Participating charities include:
- 4 the World
- American Red Cross
- Covenant House
- Shriners Hospital for Children
- Habitat for Humanity
- L.A. Food Bank
- Lymphoma and Leukemia Society
- Rainbow Shelter
- Shane’s Inspiration
- PhenomenKnights in Training

With the nation's economy likely sliding into recession, why were so many people trumpeting the economy's strength in the fall of last year?

Yes, the stock market was peaking (around October), but most other economic signs indicated a slowdown.

Were we too focused on our stock portfolios (trees) that we could not see the forest of trouble up ahead?

Good read about the El Segundo-based toy maker. Read the story.

Read about it here.

Read about it here.

Since it looks like Yahoo has little choice but to sell to Microsoft or another suitor -- or else team up with a company -- which would be the best course of action for the No. 2 search engine firm?

Should Yahoo sell to Microsoft or cut a deal with Google?

Does your the answer depend more on shareholder value or maintaining competition in the industry?

Read an interesting article on the yahoo issue here.

Toyota Motor Corp. said Tuesday that it will cancel 162 million shares, or 4.5 percent of outstanding shares, on March 31.

The move is meant to improve shareholder value. The cancellations will drop the number of Toyota shars to 3.448 billion.

Japan's biggest automaker also said it will buy back up to 10 million shares, or 0.3% of existing shares, from the open market by Feb. 21.