Economix Blog: Bernanke Defends Stimulus as Necessary and Effective

The Federal Reserve’s chairman, Ben S. Bernanke, picked an unusual time to offer his most recent defense of the Fed’s campaign to stimulate the economy: 7 p.m. on a Friday night in San Francisco, 10 p.m. back home on the East Coast.The basic message was the same as Mr. Bernanke delivered to Congress earlier this week: The Fed regards its current efforts as necessary and effective, and the risks, while...

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Americans Spend More and Make Less, Data Shows

WASHINGTON — Consumer spending rose in January as Americans spent more on services, with savings providing a cushion after income recorded its biggest drop in 20 years. The Commerce Department said Friday that consumer spending increased 0.2 percent in January after a revised 0.1 percent rise the prior month. Spending had previously been estimated to have increased 0.2 percent in December....

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U.S. Economy Barely Grew in Fourth Quarter, Revision Shows

Breathe a tiny sigh of relief, if not contentment: the American economy grew a tiny bit in the last quarter of 2012. Output expanded at an annual rate of just 0.1 percent, below the country’s long-term average, not to mention way below the growth needed to get unemployment back to normal. But at least the economy did not shrink, as the Commerce Department had originally estimated last...

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British Media to Challenge Secrecy Bid in Litvinenko Case

The British Broadcasting Corporation said it and other news organizations would oppose an effort on Tuesday by the British government to limit information disclosed to the planned inquest into the death of Alexander V. Litvinenko, a former officer in the KGB who died of radiation poisoning in London more than six years ago. The BBC reported that the government had planned to apply for a so-called...

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DealBook: Barnes & Noble Founder Leonard Riggio to Bid for Bookstore's Retail Business

Correction AppendedThe chairman of Barnes & Noble plans to bid for the retail business of the bookstore chain he started 40 years ago, as the company struggles with a changing competitive landscape.On Monday, Leonard Riggio told the company’s board that he would make an offer for Barnes & Noble Booksellers, barnesandnoble.com and other retail assets. The proposal would not include the e-book...

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Major Banks Aid in Payday Loans Banned by States

Major banks have quickly become behind-the-scenes allies of Internet-based payday lenders that offer short-term loans with interest rates sometimes exceeding 500 percent. With 15 states banning payday loans, a growing number of the lenders have set up online operations in more hospitable states or far-flung locales like Belize, Malta and the West Indies to more easily evade statewide caps...

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Many States Say Cuts Would Burden Fragile Recovery

States are increasingly alarmed that they could become collateral damage in Washington’s latest fiscal battle, fearing that the impasse could saddle them with across-the-board spending cuts that threaten to slow their fragile recoveries or thrust them back into recession. Some states, like Maryland and Virginia, are vulnerable because their economies are heavily dependent on federal workers,...

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DealBook: In Dell’s Waning Cash Flows, Signs of Concern

The proposed Dell buyout may be motivated more by fear than greed.Dell’s founder, Michael S. Dell, and the investment firm Silver Lake are offering to take the company private in a $24.4 billion deal. One interpretation of the offer is that savvy investors, using cheap loans, see a nice opportunity to unlock the value from a company that has fallen out of favor with stock investors. The fact that...

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DealBook: Linn Energy to Buy Berry Petroleum for $2.5 Billion

Deal-making in the oil patch continued on Thursday, as Linn Energy agreed to buy the Berry Petroleum Company for about $2.5 billion, expanding its presence in oil-rich shale formations.Under the terms of the deal, an affiliate of Linn, LinnCo L.L.C., will issue 1.25 million new common shares for each Berry share. That amounts to $46.24 a share, a premium of roughly 20 percent to Berry’s closing price...

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DealBook: Office Depot's Deal for OfficeMax Said to Have Been Announced Prematurely

A merger between Office Depot and OfficeMax has been years in the making. But it appears the deal may have been announced too hastily.A press release announcing the merger of the two office supply retailers briefly surfaced Wednesday on Office Depot’s Web site. Since then, the announcement has disappeared.The deal negotiations are ongoing, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. As of...

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Bits Blog: Tech Predictions for 2013: It's All About Mobile

If there is one theme that will be the topic of digital business this year, it is mobile.ComScore, which tracks Web and mobile usage, published a report about what happened in 2012, and what to expect in 2013.It shows that the effects of a movement toward mobile are everywhere, from shopping to media to search. According to the report, “2013 could spell a very rocky economic transition,” and businesses...

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Tech Industry Sets Its Sights on Gambling

Jim Wilson/The New York TimesCesar Miranda, left, and his brother, Edgar, working on their claw crane game in San Jose, Calif. SAN FRANCISCO — Look out Las Vegas, here comes FarmVille. Silicon Valley is betting that online gambling is its next billion-dollar business, with developers across the industry turning casual games into occasions for adults to wager. At the moment these games...

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A First Step on Continent for Google on Use of Content

PARIS — Publishers in France say they have struck an innovative agreement with Google on the use of their content online. Their counterparts elsewhere in Europe, however, say the French gave in too easily to the Internet giant. The deal was signed this month by President François Hollande of France and Eric E. Schmidt, the executive chairman of Google, who called it a breakthrough in...

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Common Sense: High Taxes Are Not a Prime Reason for Relocation, Studies Say

Pool photo by Mikhail KlimentyevGerard Depardieu with Vladimir Putin in January. Russia granted Mr. Depardieu a passport after his spat with France over taxes. Last month, Vladimir V. Putin hugged his newly minted fellow Russian citizen, the actor Gerard Depardieu, posing for cameras at the Black Sea port of Sochi. “I adore your country,” Mr. Depardieu gushed — especially its 13 percent flat tax on...

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It's Scotch, but the Owners Live Elsewhere

Kieran Dodds for the International Herald TribuneGeorge Grant's family business, the Glenfarclas whisky distillery, is one of only a handful of locally owned plants in Scotland. Copper distillation stills, above, are used in the refining process. BALLINDALLOCH, SCOTLAND — George S. Grant markets malt whisky made in the shadow of the snow-capped Ben Rinnes mountains, from the same spot where, five...

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G.M., Hurt by Europe, Still Increases Profit

DETROIT – General Motors said its profit in the fourth quarter increased slightly as continued losses in Europe offset positive results in North America. G.M., the nation’s biggest carmaker, said it had net income of $900 million in the quarter, compared to $500 million in the same period a year earlier. Revenue increased to $39.3 billion, up from $38 billion. The company said strong...

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Deere Net Income Jumps 22 Percent

MOLINE, Ill. (AP) — Farm and construction equipment maker Deere & Co. said Wednesday that its first-quarter net income leaped 22 percent on growing sales of farm machinery at higher prices. The Moline, Ill., company's earnings soundly beat Wall Street expectations. In the quarter ending Jan. 31, Deere said it earned $649.7 million, or $1.65 per share, compared with $532.9 million,...

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Finmeccanica Chief Is Arrested in Bribery Case

Italy awoke Tuesday to yet another corporate scandal with political overtones, as Milan prosecutors arrested the head of the state-controlled aerospace company Finmeccanica in an investigation related to the sale of 12 helicopters to India in 2010. The Finmeccanica chairman and chief executive, Giuseppe Orsi, was taken in for questioning by prosecutors, as was Bruno Spagnolini, head of...

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Euro in the Spotlight Ahead of Meetings

LONDON — The euro rose on Monday, but its value was vulnerable to political and fiscal uncertainty in the euro zone and growing unease among some European leaders worried about currency’s recent gains. The Group of 7 nations were considering issuing a statement this week that reaffirmed their commitment to “market-determined” exchange rates in response to heating rhetoric about a currency...

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Boeing 787 Completes Test Flight

A Boeing 787 test plane flew for more than two hours on Saturday to gather information about the problems with the batteries that led to a worldwide grounding of the new jets more than three weeks ago. The flight was the first since the Federal Aviation Administration gave Boeing permission on Thursday to conduct in-flight tests. Federal investigators and the company are trying to determine...

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