Business and Finance news

The Bank of Japan downgraded its assessment of the economy for the first time in three months, saying growth is becoming “increasingly sluggish.”
“The increased sluggishness in Japan’s economic activity will likely persist over the next several quarters as the slowdown in overseas economies becomes more evident,” the central bank said in a report […]

The U.S. Federal Reserve will probably cut interest rates to zero percent over the next two months to staunch deflation, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co.
The Fed will lower borrowing costs by 50 basis points at each of the next two policy meetings on Dec. 16 and Jan. 28, JPMorgan economist Michael Feroli […]

President-elect Barack Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi may throw as much as half a trillion dollars worth of stimulus at the economy — and have little or no growth to show for it.
The forces arrayed against recovery, including the credit contraction and cutbacks by consumers, are so powerful that they may overwhelm […]

Germany's IG Metall labor union agreed to pay increases of 4.2 percent for its 3.2 million members at companies such as Volkswagen AG and Siemens AG, lifting the threat of strike action.
The deal hammered out with the Gesamtmetall employers' association over almost 24 hours of talks is for two raises each of 2.1 […]

This week's economic-crisis summit will pit U.S. and Canadian support for free markets against European demands for greater state control.
In the middle will be developing nations that hold increasing sway over the future of the global economy and don't want the trade-off between regulation and economic expansion to come at their expense.
The […]

Finance officials from the Group of 20 nations will press their European colleagues to join a coordinated stimulus plan to tackle an impending recession when they meet in Sao Paulo this weekend.
U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown yesterday urged countries to heed the International Monetary Fund's call for coordinated action, even as other European […]

Wells Fargo said Thursday that it priced its $11 billion stock offering at $27 per share.
Wells will spend the proceeds to help pay for its planned purchase of Wachovia (NYSE: WB). The bank sold 407.5 million shares in the offering, which includes an option for the underwriters to purchase an additional 61 million shares to […]

The Bank of Japan needs to focus on the possibility that the economy will deteriorate further because of lingering global financial turmoil, Governor Masaaki Shirakawa said.
“For the time being, it's important to pay attention to the economy's downside risks, including developments in the U.S. and European financial systems and the effect of global […]

Ford Motor Co. sales in October were down more than 30 percent over October 2007.
The auto maker, which operates a transmission plant in Sharonville, sold 132,838 new vehicles in North America in October, down 30.2 percent from 190,195 a year ago.
In a news release, Ford officials attributed the sales decline to “an economic gauntlet, the […]