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AP Business NewsBrief at 4:05 p.m. EDT(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Italy tug apparently seized by Libya militaryROME (AP) _ Libyan military officials on Sunday boarded an Italian tugboat docked at Tripoli's port and threatened to suspend its communications in an apparent seizure, ship owner said, as U.S. and European airstrikes enforced a no-fly zone over Libya. Italian officials warned they would do whatever was necessary to free the crew of the "Asso 22," which includes eight Italians, two Indians and Ukrainian. The tug was involved in servicing oil platforms off the Tripoli coast. AT&T to buy T-Mobile USA for $39 billionNEW YORK (AP) _ AT&T Inc., the country's second-largest wireless carrier in the United States, on Sunday said it will buy T-Mobile USA, the fourth-largest, from Deutsche Telekom AG in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $39 billion. AT&T will pay about $25 billion in cash and the balance in company stock in a deal that gives Deutsche Telekom about an 8 percent equity stake in AT&T. Radiation discovery fans food fears in JapanTOKYO (AP) _ At a bustling Tokyo supermarket Sunday, wary shoppers avoided one particular bin of spinach. The produce came from Ibaraki prefecture in the northeast, where radiation was found in spinach grown up to 75 miles (120 kilometers) from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant. Another bin of spinach _ labeled as being from Chiba prefecture, west of Tokyo _ was sold out. States push harder for online sales tax collectionSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Tax-free shopping is under threat for many online shoppers as states facing widening budget gaps increasingly pressure Amazon.com Inc. and other Internet retailers to start collecting sales taxes from their residents. Billions of dollars are at stake as a growing number of states look for ways to generate more revenue without violating a 1992 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that prohibits a state from forcing businesses to collect sales taxes unless the business has a physical presence, such as a store, in that state. Some progress seen in Japan's nuclear crisisFUKUSHIMA, Japan (AP) _ Japanese officials reported progress Sunday in their battle to gain control over a leaking, tsunami-stricken nuclear complex, though the crisis was far from over, with the discovery of more radiation-tainted vegetables and tap water adding to public fears about contaminated food and drink. The announcement by Japan's Health Ministry late Sunday that tests had detected excess amounts of radioactive elements on canola and chrysanthemum greens marked a low moment in a day that had been peppered with bits of positive news: First, a teenager and his grandmother were found alive nine days after being trapped in their earthquake-shattered home. Then, the operator of the overheated nuclear plant said two of the six reactor units were safely cooled down. Atlantic City casinos see 6.2 percent visitor dropATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) _ More than 26.6 million people visited Atlantic City casinos last year, a decrease of 6.2 percent. But a new survey finds spending per visitor fell by only half that amount, indicating that the people who have stopped coming to the nation's second-largest gambling market are the less-profitable customers the casinos have been paying less attention to in recent years. The stakes are high in Atlantic City, which is in the fifth-straight year of a revenue decline brought on by the explosion of casino gambling in neighboring states and made worse by the poor economy. Economic aftershocks of Japan quake roil AsiaEconomic aftershocks of the devastation in Japan are rolling through Asia. It is here, among Japan's neighbors, that the reverberations of the catastrophe are being felt hardest. Automakers in Thailand are slowing production. South Korean electronics manufacturerstype:bold,italic; face shortages of critical parts. Thousands of Japanese have canceled trips to Taiwan. Panic buying has driven up prices of Japanese cameras in China, while Indian policymakers brace for higher oil prices. Gold miners under threat in KyrgyzstanBISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan (AP) _ What started out as a protest quickly descended into a rampage of looting and arson by marauders on horseback. The victim of the attack was a South African-run gold exploration concession in the economically depressed Talas province in western Kyrgyzstan. A mob of young men threatened workers and raided offices, smashing furniture and throwing equipment out of windows before setting a medical clinic alight. `Limitless' tops box office with $19MCHICAGO (AP) _ There was no stopping "Limitless" at the box office. The sci-fi thriller opened at No. 1 this weekend with $19 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. Taiwan finds radiation on imported Japanese beansTAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) _ Radiation has been detected on fava beans imported from Japan to Taiwan, Taiwanese officials said Sunday, in what could be the first case of contamination in Japanese exports. The disclosure came a day after Japanese officials said radiation in low amounts had been found in spinach and milk produced near the damaged Fukushima nuclear power complex in northeast Japan that has been leaking radiation since being damaged by an earthquake and tsunami March 11. (c) 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |