[November 29, 2008]

AP Business NewsBrief at 3:59 p.m. EST

(AP Online Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Early data shows strong Black Friday shoppingCHICAGO (AP) _ The nation's retailers got a much-needed sales boost during Black Friday's traditional shopathon as consumers, lured by deep discounts, spent nearly 3 percent more than they did last year. Sales on the day after Thanksgiving rose to $10.6 billion, according to preliminary figures released Saturday by ShopperTrak RCT Corp., a Chicago-based research firm that tracks sales at more than 50,000 retail outlets.

OPEC ends Cairo meeting without new output cutsCAIRO, Egypt (AP) _ OPEC held off on announcing new oil output cuts on Saturday, but its alarm over falling demand and a slumping economy potentially laid the groundwork for a big reduction when it meets again in a matter of weeks. Chakib Khelil, Algeria's oil minister and the group's president, said the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries ministers noted "with concern the continued deterioration of the global economic situation and its impact on oil demand."

100,000 stranded in Thailand after airports shutBANGKOK, Thailand (AP) _ The vacation is over for tens of thousands of tourists in Thailand. But they can't go home. The Hotel California-like drama began Tuesday when anti-government protesters shut the country's primary international airport. The following day they moved in on the capital's domestic airport, grounding all commercial flights in and out of the city.

Meltdown fallout: some parents rethink toy-buyingNEW YORK (AP) _ In a season that inspires earnest letters about toys, one notable batch is being sent not by kids to Santa's workshop but by parents to the executive suites of real-world toy makers. The message: Please, in these days of economic angst, cut back on marketing your products directly to our children.

FDA sets melamine standard for baby formulaWASHINGTON (AP) _ Two months ago, federal food regulators said they were unable to set a safety threshold for the industrial chemical melamine in baby formula. Now, however, they found a way to settle on a standard that allows for higher levels than those found in U.S.-made batches of the product. Food and Drug Administration officials on Friday set a threshold of 1 part per million of melamine in formula, provided a related chemical is not present. They insisted the formulas are safe.

Fore! Woods' split with GM a warning for athletesTurns out, Tiger Woods wouldn't really rather have a Buick. At least not anymore. When Woods ended his nine-year relationship with General Motors Corp. on Monday _ a mutual decision between a megawatt celebrity who doesn't need the work and a teetering corporation that needs every penny _ it offered yet another snapshot of how badly the American economy has deteriorated.

Still going: Energizer Bunny enters his 20th yearST. LOUIS (AP) _ Turns out he really does just keep going and going. The Energizer Bunny, the symbol of battery maker Energizer Holdings Inc., debuted in commercials in 1989 and has, well, kept going ever since.

Iceland PM defies calls to resign amid crisisREYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) _ Iceland's prime minister said Saturday he has no intention of stepping down over his country's economic meltdown, even as thousands of angry citizens demanded his resignation during a noisy protest outside parliament. Geir H. Haarde said he intended to lead Iceland through a crisis that has seen the spectacular collapse of the island's high-flying "Nordic tiger" economy _ and which he predicted would worsen next year.

Stocks end short session with 5th straight gainNEW YORK (AP) _ Wall Street climbed again Friday, wrapping up its biggest five-day rally in more than 75 years, even as investors digested signs of a bleak holiday season for retailers and fears that a flurry of reports next week will show more economic distress. On the short trading day, investors snapped up the battered shares of blue-chip stalwarts Citigroup Inc., General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co., fueling a rally that has surprised many market experts whipsawed by wild swings during the past three months.

Ill. family thanks employees with surprise bonusesCHICAGO (AP) _ Even though employees at the Peer Bearing Co. no longer work for the Spungen family that recently sold the Waukegan-based ball bearings maker, they still received a turkey each this Thanksgiving in keeping with tradition. But even better was the gift that came in mid-September, when the Spungens threw a party to celebrate the company's acquisition by a Swedish company.

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