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Apple Takes a Drubbing
Apple AAPL has been taking a beating on Wall Street today. The stock is down over 10%. The reason isnt the companys holiday performance but the possibility of a weaker future. Forbes is asking if one bad Apple could spoil the bunch - meaning could Apple weakness spill over into other tech stocks. Its hard to see gadgets having as good a year this year as they did last year if we are heading into a recession.To some extent, its a case of one bad Apple AAPL spoiling the bunch. Steve Jobs & Co. is seen as the most innovative, growth-producing group in tech. And if the U.S. consumers economic troubles are starting to rattle mighty Apple, high fliers like Research In Motion RIMM and Google GOOG might not be immune, either.Indeed, Apples holiday performance showed signs that the companys not unstoppable in 2008. In particular, Apples cautious outlook, weakness in U.S. iPod growth and the unpredictability of iPhone sales left Wall Streets pessimists plenty of reason to doubt. And in this jittery market, those pessimists have a lot of power.First, a recap of Apples good news - and there was plenty of it. Apple turned in revenue of $9.6 billion and profit of $1.6 billion for the holiday quarter, blowing past the average analyst estimate. The company shipped a record 2.3 million Intel INTC-based Macs during the period, and actually sold as many iPhones as computers. In the process Apple generated $2.7 billion in cash, bringing its war chest to $18.4 billion.But there was troubling news, too. On the conference call with analysts, Chief Financial Officer Peter Oppenheimer admitted that iPod sales merely met the companys expectations, rather than exceeding them. Part of the reason, he said, was that U.S. iPod sales weakened in December - it took overseas sales to make up the difference. In the U.S., in the gift-buying season, we saw a slightly different curve, he said. That was made up for in our very, very good growth internationally.Apple did have a great holiday quarter but what will happen to Apple in the first three quarters of this year with consumers fighting off a recession and rising prices? Thats the question investors are asking about Apple and many other gadget manufacturers. There are also concerns that if people already have any iPod will they might not be as excited about owning the latest and greatest iPod - especially if things get tight.Permalink | Recent Headlines | WWFeeds.com

Stocks & Bonds A Middling Week, but a Good One for 2008 - New York Times
Nightly Business ReportStocks & Bonds A Middling Week, but a Good One for 2008New York Times - 19 hours agoBy JEFF SOMMER It was a so-so week for the stock market. The broad market declined modestly, but the Nasdaq composite index, which is heavily laden with technology stocks, managed a slight gain.Stocks end the week down Los Angeles TimesTHE WEEK IN STOCKS: Adding to a bad quarterly performance NewsdayInternational Herald Tribune - The Associated Press - Inside Futuresall 632 news articles

Delta, US Rivals Target Heathrow Amid Open Skies (Update3) - Bloomberg
BBC NewsDelta, US Rivals Target Heathrow Amid `Open Skies' Update3Bloomberg - 3 hours agoBy Tracy Alloway and John Hughes The European Union-US accord ends a lock on flights between the US and Heathrow for British Airways Plc, Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd.Video: Suddenly, No Rules for Trans-Atlantic Flights AssociatedPress'Open Skies' heralds new era in air travel CNN InternationalFort Worth Star Telegram - Houston Chronicle - Forbes - Reutersall 214 news articles

Stocks Fall to End the Week
Stocks tumbled again during the final day of the week. The Dow lost 1.2% on the week while the Nasdaq eeked out a slight gain. It was a consumer sentiment drop that hurt stocks today as well as a profit warning from JC Penny. The Dow fell 86 points to 12,216. The S&P 500 lost 10 points to 1,315. The Nasdaq gave up 19 points to 2,261. Crude oil prices dropped nearly $2 to settle at $105.62 a barrel.Next week there will be a crucial jobs report that could send stocks falling if it is weak.Permalink | Recent Headlines | WWFeeds.com

Electronic Arts extends tender offer for Take-Two - MarketWatch
BBC NewsElectronic Arts extends tender offer for Take-TwoMarketWatch - 2 hours agoBy MarketWatch NEW YORK MarketWatch -- Electronic Arts Inc. said Friday that it's amending its tender offer for Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. in light of the video-game publisher's latest rejection of its bid.EA Extends Offer for Take-Two Wall Street JournalElectronic Arts extends Take-Two offer deadline ReutersBusinessWeek - CNNMoney.com - FOXBusiness - RTT Newsall 445 news articles

Dow Up Over 400 Points
News that the Fed is going to provide additional liquidity for the credit markets help boost stocks to huge gains today The Dow scored its best one day percentage increase in 5 years according to Reuters. The Dow climbed 416 on the day and the Nasdaq was up 86 points.At the same time cities are starting to feel the impact of the tough housing markets. There are more homeless people. There is more crime. There are less revenues for U.S. cites.The mortgage foreclosure crisis has caused a drop in cities revenues, a spike in crime, more homelessness and an increase in vacant properties, a survey of elected local officials out today shows.About two-thirds of 211 officials surveyed by the National League of Cities reported an increase in foreclosures in their cities in the past year, according to the online and e-mail questionnaire. A third of them reported a drop in revenues and an increase in abandoned and vacant properties and urban blight.Theres a reduction in revenues at the same time that more services are needed, says Cynthia McCollum, president of the National League of Cities and councilwoman in Madison, Ala., a suburb of Huntsville. Because of foreclosures, people are stealing, crime is on the rise and we dont have more money for cops on the street.The market had a boost today but the foreclosure crisis is worsening.Permalink | Recent Headlines | WWFeeds.com

Delta completes jet wiring inspections - Atlanta Journal Constitution
Delta completes jet wiring inspectionsAtlanta Journal Constitution - 1 hour agoBy SA REID , MIKE MORRIS Delta Air Lines has completed a reinspection of wiring bundles on older jets and flight schedules had returned to normal Friday morning, a spokesman for the airline said.Airlines wrap up jetliner checks Los Angeles TimesHundreds of Flights Canceled for Inspections New York TimesMarketWatch - KMSS TV33 - Reuters - Cheapflights.comall 2,165 news articles

BA cancels flights as chaos persists at Heathrow T5 - Reuters
Edmonton JournalBA cancels flights as chaos persists at Heathrow T5Reuters - 43 minutes agoBy David Clarke LONDON Reuters - British Airways Plc cancelled a fifth of flights from its new $8.6 billion terminal at London's Heathrow airport on Friday as chaos from its shambolic opening spilled into a second day.British Airways Cancels Flights as T5 Chaos Continues Update2 BloombergBA Expects More Cancellations As Problems at Terminal 5 Continue Wall Street JournalMarketWatch - Times Online - USA Today - BBC Newsall 1,678 news articles