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Blank check IPOs queue up to tap public mkts in 08

Blank check initial public offerings look poised to carry their momentum from recent months into 2008, based on a bumper crop of new regulatory filings, but some say uncertain market conditions could put an end to the boomlet.

More job cuts expected in mortgage banking

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The pace of job losses in mortgage lending slowed in December, as some companies shifted workers to other areas of financial services, but the losses may pick up again in the new year as the U.S. housing market continues to weaken and credit remains tight.

U.S. auto sales end '07 on weak note

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Major automakers reported lower U.S. sales for December led by a 9 percent slide at Ford Motor Co as the industry closed out its weakest year in over a decade and faced the prospect of deeper declines in 2008.
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Latin American Markets Slightly Up

Brazilian and Mexican equities edged higher Thursday, as buyers sought bargains a day after U.S. economic worries sent stocks sharply lower.
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Kibaki offers talks, protests shake Kenya

Kenya's President Mwai Kibaki offered to talk to political rivals on Thursday as corpses lay in the street and smoke rose from burning slums after a day of battles between police and anti-government protesters.
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GM sees flat U.S. auto market in 2008

General Motors Corp Chief Executive Rick Wagoner said on Thursday the No. 1 U.S. automaker expects overall 2008 U.S. auto sales to be about the same as the depressed levels of 2007, even as global sales hit a new high. There are some obvious reasons for concern, but on balance I suspect '08 will be similar to '07 in total, although likely weaker in the first half and stronger in th...
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Oil breaks $100 as U.S. stockpiles drop

Oil prices broke above $100 a barrel for the first time on Thursday after a U.S. government report showed a steep slide in crude inventories in the world's biggest energy consumer.
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Lenovo unveils consumer PCs

China's Lenovo Group Ltd introduced its first consumer computers in the United States on Wednesday, expanding in a region it entered in 2005 with the purchase of IBM's PC business. The unveiling of three new notebook computers with advanced features is part of a broader expansion by Lenovo into the global consumer PC market. The company also plans to sell the new consumer computers in ...
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Manufacturing takes sharp turn for worse

Factory production shrank in December for the first time in nearly a year as tighter lending conditions and a slowing economy took their toll, according to a national survey published on Wednesday.
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National City slashes payout, jobs, seeks capital

National City Corp, one of the 10 largest U.S. banks, on Wednesday said it will cut its common stock dividend 49 percent and eliminate 900 jobs as it stops offering mortgages through brokers, and it plans to raise more capital to cope with weakened credit markets. The Cleveland-based company cut the quarterly dividend to 21 cents per share from 41 cents. Chief Executive Peter Raskind said the cut ...
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Stocks headed for weaker start

Stocks looked set to open lower on Wednesday, with the focus on economic data for clues about the outlook for growth and the Federal Reserve's next monetary policy move. Worries about the still escalating U.S. housing crisis and its implications for the overall economy point to a subdued start to the new year, Germany's Postbank said in a daily note.
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Jokes in short supply as talk show hosts return

The storied rivalry between Jay Leno and David Letterman takes a new twist on Wednesday when the two stars of U.S. late-night television return to the air two months into a bitter strike by TV and film writers.
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Pakistan decides in principle to delay poll

Pakistan plans to postpone next week's election after Benazir Bhutto's killing sparked turmoil in the nuclear-armed country, but officials put off a final announcement until Wednesday to consult parties.
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Existing home sales edge up from record low

The pace of existing home sales edged up in November from a record low, according to a report on Monday that offered some tentative signs of stabilization in the still-ailing housing market.
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Wachovia may face new mortgage write-downs

As more banks report write-downs tied to the global credit crunch, analysts say Wachovia Corp may have losses lurking in an area that has garnered less investor attention.
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Bush to veto defense authorization bill

President George W. Bush intends to veto defense authorization legislation over a provision that would imperil Iraqi assets held in the United States, the White House said on Friday.
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Bhutto buried, violence stalks Pakistan

Benazir Bhutto was laid to rest next to her father in the family mausoleum on Friday after the opposition leader's assassination plunged Pakistan into crisis and triggered violent protests.
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Americans more wired: survey

About 38 percent of U.S. consumers are watching TV shows online, 36 percent use their cell phones as entertainment devices and 45 percent are creating online content like Web sites, music, videos and blogs for others, according to a new-media survey from Deloitte & Touche.
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Store traffic falls in week before Christmas

Economic pressures and online deals might have led consumers to sharply limit their trips to retailers in the week leading up to Christmas, data tracker ShopperTrak RCT said on Thursday.
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Pakistan's Bhutto assassinated

Pakistan opposition leader Benazir Bhutto was assassinated by a suicide bomber on Thursday, plunging the nuclear-armed country into chaos ahead of a general election she hoped to win.
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Paris loses out: Hilton fortune pledged to charity

U.S. hotel heiress Paris Hilton's potential inheritance dramatically diminished after her grandfather Barron Hilton announced plans on Wednesday to donate 97 percent of his $2.3 billion (1.16 billion pounds) fortune to charity.That wealth includes $1.2 billion Barron Hilton stands to earn from both the recent sale of Hilton Hotels Corp. -- started by his father Conrad in 1919 when he bou...
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Oil hits one-month high over $96 a barrel

Oil rose to a one-month high above $96 a barrel on Wednesday ahead of a U.S. government report expected to show crude inventories in the world's top consumer fell for a sixth straight week.

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