TOKYO (AP) -- But the automaker's top executive and
analysts alike said Execs grilled on oil spill 'cascade of
failures' WASHINGTON (AP) -- Congress called BP
and its drilling partners to account Tuesday for a "cascade of
failures" behind the spreading Gulf oil spill, zeroing in on a crucial
chain of events at the deep-sea wellhead just before an explosion consumed the
rig and set off the catastrophic rupture. In back-to-back Senate inquiries,
executives of the three companies at the heart of the massive spill were
chastised by senators over attempts to shift the blame to each other. And they
were asked to explain why better preparations had not been made to head off the
accident. The blame game shot into the open
Tuesday as the Senate began a hearing into the oil spill that has been
contaminating water in the Gulf of SEC: Regulators yet to determine cause
of plunge WASHINGTON (AP) -- The head of the
Securities and Exchange Commission told a congressional panel Tuesday that
regulators need more time to figure out what caused last week's stock market
plunge. SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro said her
agency has yet to pinpoint the exact reason for the sell-off that sent the Dow
Jones industrial average falling nearly 1,000 points in less than half an hour. Some causes have been ruled out, she said.
The agency's review found no evidence of terrorist activity or computer
hacking. Schapiro said establishing a stronger
system for slowing trading during periods of high volatility would help. China inflation rises as housing, food
costs jump BEIJING (AP) -- China's inflation
accelerated in April, triggering a sell-off in Chinese stocks Tuesday on fears
of overheating and a possible credit clampdown by April consumer prices rose 2.8 percent
from a year earlier, below Foreign companies and investors are
watching Chinese inflation because any moves to cool prices might slow stimulus-fueled
economic growth that surged to 11.9 percent in the first quarter. That could
hurt the global recovery if it weakens demand for foreign iron ore and other
imports. Euphoria fades over euro rescue BRUSSELS (AP) -- The German government
backed a $1 trillion rescue package for Europe's troubled currency union as
European Union officials readied tougher oversight over budgets and economies
of most member countries in an effort to contain the region's troubling debt
crisis. The startling size of the EU package,
agreed early Monday, initially lifted the euro and stock markets, but by
Tuesday the euphoria had ebbed on concerns that simply making more loans
available didn't address the crippling levels of government debt in countries
such as Greece and Portugal. Germany, Europe's richest nation which
only reluctantly backed the deal, has demanded that Greece and other countries
that use the euro must make sharp spending cuts to curb runaway deficits and
public debt in return for financial help. Stocks mostly hold gains after European
bailout NEW YORK (AP) -- The stock market
showed signs of stability Tuesday as major indexes held on to most of their
rebound from last week's big drop. The Dow Jones industrial average fell
about 37 points after fluctuating for much of the day. Broader indicators were
mixed. Analysts said it was reassuring that
the market kept most of its gains from Monday, when the Dow soared 405 points
in response to the creation of a bailout fund for weak countries like Greece.
Tuesday's trading signaled that the previous day's big move wasn't solely
driven by euphoria. Disney posts 55 percent jump in second
quarter earnings NEW YORK (AP) -- The Disney's earnings offer a partial
reading on consumer sentiment. Its amusement parks and movie releases depend on
people feeling confident enough to spend their extra cash. A year ago moviegoers coping with a
severe recession largely avoided Disney's "Confessions of a
Shopaholic." In the most recent quarter, movie studio profits surged. NY AG sues money manager in Madoff
scandal NEW YORK (AP) -- In the late 1990s,
executives at the financial advisory firm Ivy Asset Management decided
something about Bernard Madoff didn't add up, and began urging clients to back
away from the man later revealed to be Wall Street's greatest fraudster. Those warnings weren't loud enough, New
York's attorney general now says. The state sued Ivy and two of its
former executives Tuesday, claiming they had "disturbing" evidence
years ago that Madoff was lying about his investment methods, but played down
those suspicions because they feared losing millions of dollars in management
fees. Microsoft gets more aggressive with
free software SEATTLE (AP) -- Microsoft Corp. is
rolling out a new edition of its Office programs to businesses Wednesday. And
for the first time it's offering versions of Word and other programs that work
in a Web browser, for free. Office 2010 marks a milestone in
Microsoft's efforts to keep up with an industry shift from programs that run on
PCs to free, Web-based ones that can be accessed from any computer. And yet
Microsoft must be careful not to undermine its lucrative desktop software
business, which accounted for 29 percent of Microsoft's revenue and 51 percent
of its operating income in the most recent quarter. Consumers can start buying Office 2010
or using the free applications on the Web in June. Merck: Schering-Plough integration is
on track Drugmaker Merck & Co.'s integration
of Schering-Plough Corp. is progressing well, with their operations already
combined in 16 of its top 20 markets, sales rising in emerging markets and new
medicines poised for approval, company executives said Tuesday. Merck said that since the $41 billion
Nov. 3 acquisition, it's been building sales of key products, launching new
ones for depression, asthma, fertility problems and other conditions, and
retooling its marketing to focus more on doctor and patient needs. However, the
company's first effort at producing a biologic drug has flopped. The Whitehouse Station, N.J., company
gave its first business briefing since the deal that made it the world's
second-largest pharmaceutical company. By The Associated Press The Dow Jones industrial average fell
36.88, or 0.3 percent, to 10,748.26. The Dow dropped by as much as 100 points
shortly after the opening bell and rose as much as 89 points in afternoon
trading. The index has ended lower in five of the past six days. The Standard & Poor's 500 index
fell 3.94, or 0.3 percent, to 1,155.79, while the On Monday, major stock indexes recorded
their biggest advance since March 2009. The Dow rose 3.9 percent, while Benchmark crude fell 43 cents to settle
at $76.37 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That's more than $10
below the 18-month high of $87.15 reached last Monday. Oil dropped as low as
$75.36 and rose as high as $77.68 during Tuesday's session. In other Nymex trading in June
contracts, heating oil rose 1.99 cents to settle at $2.1401 a gallon, and
gasoline added 1.26 cents to settle at $2.1952 a gallon. Natural gas fell 3.9
cents to settle at $4.131 per 1,000 cubic feet. In London, Brent crude rose 37 cents to
close at $80.49 on the ICE futures exchange.