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AP Business NewsBrief at 8:30 p.m. EDT(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Eying support, Venezuela's Chavez urges moderationCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) _ Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez made an abrupt political shift Friday, urging his socialist movement to reach out to the middle class and small business owners. Chavez, whose signature red shirts have long been a symbol of his radicalism, also suggested his allies ought to be more moderate in their wardrobes. Recession risks up amid slow growth, debt standoffWASHINGTON (AP) _ The economy is at risk of slipping into another recession. It nearly stalled in the first six months of the year, the government reported Friday. Economic growth was feeble in the second quarter and practically non-existent in the first. Investors pulling money out as deadline nearsGrowing nervous as a possible government default draws ever closer, more and more ordinary investors are calling their brokers and moving their money out of stocks and mutual funds for fear of a plunge in the market next week. The stock market declined for a sixth straight day Friday as financial advisers fielded a new round of calls and emails from clients wondering whether to get out or sit tight. House approves debt bill; Senate rejects itWASHINGTON (AP) _ In an unforgiving display of partisanship, the House passed emergency legislation Friday night to avoid an unprecedented government default and the Senate scuttled it less than two hours later. The final outcome _ with the White House and Senate Democrats calling anew for compromise while criticizing Republicans as Tuesday's deadline drew near _ was anything but certain. Moody's says US should retain top credit ratingWASHINGTON (AP) _ Moody's Investors Service said late Friday that the United States should be able to keep its triple-A credit rating as long as Washington works out a deal that lets it continue to pay bondholders. The credit rating agency said it thinks that even if the nation's $14.3 trillion borrowing limit isn't raised by Tuesday's deadline, the government would give priority to making interest payments on its debt and thereby avoid a default. Markets on edge as debt limit debate drags onThe word of the day in financial markets: Anxious. The Dow Jones industrial average fell nearly 100 points, its sixth straight decline, as the U.S. edged closer to a Tuesday deadline to raise the country's borrowing limit or risk the prospect of a debt default. A dismal report on U.S. economic growth this spring also pushed stocks lower and sent the yield on the 10-year Treasury note to its lowest level of the year. Experts say medical device review system 'flawed'WASHINGTON (AP) _ Federal health regulators asked the country's leading medical experts two years ago to recommend ways to improve the government's system for approving most medical devices, ranging from pacemakers to X-ray scanners. On Friday the experts came back with a surprise answer: scrap it because it fails to protect patients. Even more surprising, FDA summarily dismissed the idea. The Institute of Medicine's panel said in a report that the U.S. government should abandon the 35-year-old system used to clear medical devices because it provides little assurance that the implants are actually safe. Merck plans more job cuts; 2Q profit risesMerck & Co. plans to cut as many as 13,000 more jobs under a new round of restructuring as the drugmaker prepares for generic competition for its top-selling drug and slower revenue growth in the U.S. and Europe. The announcement came Friday as Merck reported a higher second-quarter profit than a year ago. Merck's stock fell more than 2 percent. Phone companies present rural broadband planWASHINGTON (AP) _ AT&T Inc., Verizon Communications Inc. and four other telecom companies are offering a proposal to overhaul the $8 billion federal phone subsidy program to pay for high-speed Internet connections in rural and other underserved areas. They say the plan, which was filed with the Federal Communications Commission Friday, would bring broadband service to nearly all Americans within five years. US weighing payment priorities if default comesWASHINGTON (AP) _ If the government can't pay all its bills come Wednesday, odds are it will pay bondholders. Social Security and Medicare recipients will be high on the must-pay list, too. Likely losers: federal workers in jobs deemed non-essential, private contractors and state and local governments. It seems politically certain that active-duty members of the military would be paid, but there are no guarantees as the government decides which of its 80 million monthly payments to make and which to set aside. (c) 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |