Business

June 10, 2011

U.S. trade gap narrows on Japan quake impact

The gap between U.S. exports and imports narrowed slightly in April, as Japan's earthquake weighed on the global auto supply chain, according to a government report. The U.S. imported $43.7 billion more than it exported in April, down from a…

June 10, 2011

US Stocks Close Higher

U.S. stock market indexes rose in Thursday's trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced six-tenths of a percent to end at 12,124. The S&P 500 rose seven-tenths of a percent to close at 1,289 and the NASDAQ composite index gained a…

June 10, 2011

America’s lost trillions

One reason that the U.S. economy still struggles to achieve sustained growth is that Americans are a long way from recovering the trillions of dollars of household wealth lost during the Great Recession. U.S. household wealth fell by about $16.4…

June 10, 2011

Singapore enters Sin City

Who would have thought that in a little over a year, Singapore would be set to overtake Sin City in the gambling stakes? According to Frank Fahrenkopf, president of the American Gaming Association, in a report by The Straits Times, the two…

June 9, 2011

Greek joblessness at record as new austerity looms

Unemployment in debt-ridden Greece hit new record highs in March as government…

June 9, 2011

EU offers farmers US$300m for E coli crisis

Pressed hard by outraged farmers, the European Union farm chief yesterday increased his offer of compensation for the E coli outbreak to €210 million (US$306 million). EU Farm Commissioner Dacian Ciolos had initially proposed €150 million (US$219…

June 9, 2011

No output deal as OPEC talks collapse

OPEC talks broke down in acrimony yesterday without an agreement to raise output after Saudi Arabia failed to convince the oil cartel to lift production. “We were unable to reach an agreement—this is one of the worst meetings we have ever had,”…

June 9, 2011

New Gulf of Mexico energy finds for Exxon

Exxon Mobil Corp has made two big new oil discoveries and a natural gas find in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, news that underscores the importance of the prolific basin to US crude output. Oil and gas exploration in the Gulf was halted by the US…

June 9, 2011

Fitch to review US rating if no debt ceiling deal

Fitch Ratings says it might downgrade US debt if lawmakers fail to increase America's borrowing limit before the government runs out of money in August. The rating agency, based in New York, said yesterday that it will put the debt on watch for a…

May 30, 2011

Caribbean Airlines, Air Jamaica deal finally signed

The shareholder agreement between Caribbean…