French Industrial Production Climbs as Recovery Prompts Renewed Investment

French industrial production rose in July as the global economic recovery prompted companies to renew investment.

India's July industrial output surges 13.8 percent, rebounding from a 13-month low in June

MUMBAI, India - India's industrial output grew 13.8 percent in July — far more than expected — rebounding from a 13-month low in June and adding to pressure on the central bank to hike interest rates to curb inflation.

Asia stocks hit 4-month high in cautious rise (Reuters)

Reuters - Asian stocks rose to a four-month high on Friday, some investors inspired by positive U.S. economic data to pick out bargains, with the cautious shift toward risk reining in yen strength.

Insurance industry shows losses for 2009

The insurance industry in Ireland made a loss of €124.5m last year, after a profit of €121.9m a year earlier.

India's July industrial output surges 13.8 percent

India's industrial output grew 13.8 percent in July — far more than expected — rebounding from a 13-month low in June and adding to pressure on the central bank to hike interest rates to curb inflation.

BP delays Q3 results due oil spill complexities (Reuters)

Reuters - BP Plc said it would delay the release of its third quarter results by a week because of added complexities in its accounts due to costs associated with the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

Egg industry fights limits on cage use

Even before the recent salmonella outbreak, America's egg industry was struggling to fend off another threat: allegations that it was cruel to chickens.

French Industrial Output Grows More Than Expected In July

(RTTNews) - French industrial production increased 6.4% year-on-year in July, the statistical office Insee said on Friday. Economists had expected an increase of 5%.

Industrial growth rises to 13.8%

Belying fears of a slowdown, industrial growth accelerated to 13.8 per cent in July from 7.2 per cent in the corresponding month last year, on the back of a 63 per cent jump in capital goods production.

Nokia says Microsoft's Elop to be new CEO (Reuters)

Reuters - Nokia (NOK1V.HE), the world's top cellphone maker, said Stephen Elop, the head of Microsoft's Business Division, was to be its new chief executive, leading a renewed effort to compete in the smartphone market.

Gas explosion engulfs homes in San Francisco suburb (Reuters)

Reuters - A natural gas pipeline explosion ripped through a neighborhood in a San Francisco suburb on Thursday, starting fires that burned more than 50 buildings and killing at least one person, officials said.

China's imports leap, cutting trade surplus (Reuters)

Reuters - China's imports leapt in August, boding well for a strengthening of domestic demand in an economy that has become a major driver of global growth.

July industrial output surges to 13.8% y-o-y

A pick up in the industrial output growth rate could strengthen expectations for a rate increase next week, and drive bond yields higher.

Industrial Production Accelerates, Adding to Rate Pressure on Central Bank

India’s industrial output growth quickened in July, increasing pressure on the central bank to raise interest rates next week for the fifth time this year.

SEC probing certain investment advisory firms: report (Reuters)

Reuters - The securities regulator is investigating investment advisory firms that channel investors' money into hedge funds, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Embryonic stem cell funding allowed - for now (AP)

AP - The government may resume funding of embryonic stem cell research for now, an appeals court said Thursday, but the short-term approval may be of little help to research scientists caught in a legal battle that has just begun.

U.S. crude jumps on Canada-U.S. pipeline shutdown (Reuters)

Reuters - U.S. crude for October jumped to near $75 on Friday after a leak forced Enbridge to shut down the biggest pipeline supplying Canadian oil to refineries in the Midwest and to a key storage hub in Oklahoma.

Jupiter Took a Double Wallop as Amateurs Watched (SPACE.com)

SPACE.com - Two fireballs from collisions with Jupiter in June and August provided a great show for the skywatchers who spotted them, packing a punch and suggesting the gas giant could be in for frequent punishment.

Fallen peanut industry executive now consults

The peanut industry executive whose filthy processing plants were blamed in a salmonella outbreak that killed nine people and sickened hundreds more two years ago is back in the business. Business - Peanut - United States - Peanut Corporation of America - Virginia

China aims for next moon orbit shot this year (Reuters)

Reuters - China will launch its second lunar exploration probe by the end of 2010, boosting the country's effort to rise as a space power eventually capable of landing on the moon, official media said Friday.

Kraft factory shooting, 2 dead

WASHINGTON - TWO people were killed and another two critically wounded in a shooting at a Kraft factory in Philadelphia, police said late on Thursday, adding that a female suspect had been taken into custody. 'We have two confirmed dead, two critically injured and the assailant has been apprehended,' said Wilfred Frederick, a police officer with Philadelphia's Seventh District.

NPD:Videogame Industry Retail Sales For August Lowest Since `06

Tempe factory won't be closed; buyer steps up

A Tennessee company that had planned to shut down a Tempe precision-automotive-parts factory instead sold the operation to a local group.

Activist: Beached whale in Brazil can't be saved (AP)

AP - An animal-rights activist says an endangered right whale stranded on a beach in southern Brazil for two days is too weak to be rescued and returned safely to the sea.

Factory toxic gas leak in central China, two injured

A chemical factory in northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region reported a toxic gas leak Thursday, injuring two people, according to local authorities.

Video game industry gears up for battle against California law

The industry is expected to file a brief with the U.S. Supreme Court arguing for overturning a state ban on selling or renting violent video games to minors. Girding itself for its final battle, the video game industry will lay out its arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court on why California's ban on the sale or rental of violent video games to minors violates the developers' free speech rights.

USDA sued over genetically modified beet permits (Reuters)

Reuters - Groups opposed to genetically modified foods announced a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Thursday over the agency's recent decision to allow limited plantings of altered sugar beets.

Alaska sues to lift Arctic drilling suspension (AP)

AP - The state claimed Thursday that the Interior Department illegally halted offshore drilling in Artic waters, even though the department said there's no such moratorium in place.

EPA officials: Kan. must revise air permit process (AP)

AP - Federal officials told Kansas legislators Thursday that the state will be expected to cut greenhouse gas emissions as it considers air-quality permits for power plants, large factories, and oil refineries — and if it refuses, the Environmental Protection Agency could step in.

U.S. appeals court puts on hold stem cell funding ban (Reuters)

Reuters - A U.S. appeals court granted on Thursday an Obama administration request to temporarily lift a judge's ban on federal funding of research involving human embryonic stem cells.

India vehicle sales remain strong (Investor's Business Daily)

Investor's Business Daily - Aug. car sales in India rose 33.2% from a year ago, according to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers. The gain was impressive considering supply constraints have pushed up vehicle prices. Ford expects India to be the world's No. 3 auto market by decade's end, and is pushing hard to gain market share from rivals such as Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and Tata Motors . Ford plans to launch 8 more models in India. Meanwhile, Tata's domestic sales of its key medium and heavy commercial vehicles rose 34%.

IMF to sell 400 million dollars' worth of gold to Bangladesh (AFP)

AFP - The International Monetary Fund on Thursday announced it would sell 10 metric tons of gold to Bangladesh, worth around 403 million dollars.

Auto industry 'has to pick up:' Ford Canada CEO warns

Ford Canada's chief executive said the country's auto industry will face "challenges" over the next few years, forecasting that it will grow by only a few per cent annually starting in 2011.

US lawmakers to quiz Geithner on China currency (AFP)

AFP - US Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner will face a key US House committee's questions on possible new steps to press China over its currency policy, the panel's chairman said Thursday.

Snoop Dogg and Norton Team Up to Smoke Cybercrime (LiveScience.com)

LiveScience.com - Snoop Dogg may not be the first person you think of when contemplating cybersecurity, but a new ad campaign from Norton, the antivirus company, hopes to change that. Tha Boss Dogg is the face of Norton's "Hack is Wack" venture, an effort to spread the word about cybercrime to a demographic Norton feels does not take the issue seriously enough.

Night Life: Old Spaghetti Factory cranks up happy hour production

The Old Spaghetti Factory restaurant is a familiar Sacramento landmark. This ornate train-station-turned- restaurant has been the setting for happy occasions for more than three decades.

Cable industry publication gives Sunflower Broadband high marks

A leading cable industry magazine has chosen Lawrence-based Sunflower Broadband as its System of the Year.

Mortgage rates edge up; Housing market still slow (AP)

AP - Record-low mortgage rates failed to pull the housing market out of its funk. Now rates are inching higher, but don't blame them if home sales stay sluggish.

Homeowners, Beware Association Costs (Investor's Business Daily)

Investor's Business Daily - House and condo owners may face extra costs as their homeowner associations struggle with unpaid assessments, the legacy of neighbors hit by job losses and foreclosures.

Shoe seller DSW's operator says 2Q profit jumps (AP)

AP - Retail Ventures Inc., which operates the DSW shoe store chain, posted a 67 percent jump in second-quarter net income as a key revenue figure improved.

Analysis: Obama has tenuous grip on Democrats over taxes (Reuters)

Reuters - Democrats in Congress are distancing themselves from President Barack Obama's push to let taxes rise for the wealthiest Americans, fearing it will further harm them in November's mid-term elections.

Wal-Mart US merchandising now headed by four execs (Reuters)

Reuters - Wal-Mart Stores Inc will remain without a chief merchandising officer for its U.S. stores for now, instead naming four new product heads to take over that responsibility, the retailer said on Thursday.

Residents allowed home as US blaze contained (AFP)

AFP - Residents were allowed to return to their homes in parts of a wildfire-stricken area of Colorado on Thursday, as fire chiefs said they were making progress containing the blaze.

Strengthening La Nina could mean more hurricanes (AP)

AP - The La Nina climate phenomenon is strengthening, increasing the likelihood an active hurricane season could get even busier.

Irish bonds rebound, banks hold ground after Anglo (AP)

AP - Investors welcomed Ireland's plan to split up its most debt-crippled bank, Anglo Irish, by bidding strongly Thursday for government bonds. Ireland's battered bank shares also held their ground.

July industrial output growth below expectation

MALAYSIA'S industrial production grew significantly slower than market expectations in July, at 3.2 per cent. The Statistics Department said that manufacturing output increased by 7.2 per cent, while electricity output was up 4.4 per cent. However, mining - the third sector taking into account in the Industrial Production Index - shrank 5.9 per cent. Standard Chartered Bank economist Alvin Liew ...

Study: Flamboyant male dancing attracts women best (AP)

AP - John Travolta was onto something. Women are most attracted to male dancers who have big, flamboyant moves similar to the actor's trademark style, British scientists say in a new study.

Construction industry group: Enforce law, save jobs for Iowans

The head of an Iowa construction industry group is worried that out-of-state workers could take many of the 300 to 500 construction jobs created by a $131 million project to build a state prison in Fort Madison.

Laugh Factory to continue tradition of hosting Rosh Hashana services

The Laugh Factory, located at 8001 Sunset Blvd., will hold its 28th annual Rosh Hashana service at 11 a.m. today, open free to anyone.

Hotel industry seeks ways to make up lost revenue | nj.com

The nation’s hotel industry, already struggling to pull out of its worst slump in decades, is now suffering from another loss in revenue because of the booming popularity of cell phones and laptop computers. In the past, hotel operators could expect to collect extra money by charging guests for in-room phone calls and on-demand movies.