Investor's Business Daily articles from January 2004

Investor's Business Daily archives from January 2004

Labor Costs Rise 0.7%; Weak Q4 Pay Increase Offset By Benefit Hike; Jobless Claims Near 3-Yr Low; Employment Cost Index hints inflation may pick up if job market strengthens.(A)
January 30, 2004... Byline: JED GRAHAM Employment costs grew at the slowest pace in a year last quarter, and jobless claims last week held near a three-year low, the Labor Department said Thursday. Compensation rose 0.7% in the quarter, down from the...

Wal-Mart's Low-Price Obsession Puts Suppliers Through Wringer; Duct tape manufacturer welcomes efficiencies that Wal-Mart requires.(A)
January 30, 2004... Byline: MARILYN MUCH Remember the rush on duct tape after the Homeland Security Department raised the terror alert to orange last February? If you don't, Bill Kahl, executive vice president of marketing at Henkel Adhesives, can clue...

IBD'S TOP 10.(A)
January 30, 2004... Dollar Rally Dulls Gold's Luster 1Nymex gold fell $16 an ounce to $398.50 per troy ounce, below $400 and the lowest close since Nov. 26, as traders continued to react to the Fed's "patient" wording. The April contract peaked at a 15-year...

AFTER THE CLOSE.(TO THE POINT)
January 30, 2004... NORTEL made 9 cents a share in Q4, reversing last year's 4-cent loss and well above views for a 2-cent gain. Sales surprisingly rose for the first time in 3 years, up 11% to $2.83 bil. The telecom gear maker soared after hours. VARIAN...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
January 30, 2004... TECHNOLOGY TSMC posts best 3-year profit The world's largest contract microchip maker earned 12 cents a share, 6 times more than a year ago, and a penny over views. Sales rose 43%. It projected sales of semiconductors worldwide would...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
January 30, 2004... DEFENSE Boeing Q4 profit drops 30% The aviation manufacturer made 50 cents a share ex items, 4 cents above views but 21 cents below its Q4 '02 profit. The firm saw a 17% drop in commercial aircraft deliveries, with rival Airbus...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
January 30, 2004... MEDICAL Bristol-Myers misses, dims views The drug company earned 37 cents a share ex items, up 19% vs. a year ago but 2 cents under views. Sales rose 16% on the weaker dollar and a 44% surge in its anti-clotting med Plavix. But it...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
January 30, 2004... RETAIL Sears signals slow year ahead The department store chain's profit rose 6% to $2.24 a share, 22 cents over views, but the solid quarter was offset by a dour outlook. Sears forecast '04 EPS of $3.60-$3.80, well below views. The...

THE ECONOMY.(TO THE POINT)
January 30, 2004... Fed studies how it communicates A group led by Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Roger Ferguson has completed a study of how the bank announces interest rate decisions. The Fed aims to gradually make them clearer and more responsive to...

BUSINESS BRIEFS/IN BRIEF.(TO THE POINT)
January 30, 2004... GAMING Caesars loses big to rivals in Q4 The world's No. 1 casino operator made 4 cents a share ex items, a penny below views and 20% below the year ago. Caesars cited increased competition, higher taxes, plus a 5% drop in house wins...

NATION.(TO THE POINT)
January 30, 2004... 3 teens released from Gitmo Ranging in age from 13-15, they were sent back to their unidentified home country. They were alleged to have aided the Taliban during the U.S. action in Afghanistan. Two had been held at the Cuban prison since...

WORLD.(TO THE POINT)
January 30, 2004... U.S. "sure' it'll catch bin Laden The U.S. military says it'll catch Osama bin Laden this year, perhaps within months, as it readies a spring offensive against Taliban and al-Qaida holdouts. But Pakistan said it won't let U.S. troops on...

TRENDS & INNOVATIONS.(TO THE POINT)
January 30, 2004... Telecoms to ring up 8% growth It'll be the 2nd straight year spending will climb 8%, well below the double-digit growth the industry once thrived on, said the Telecommunications Industry Assoc. A rise in transport services and handset...

TRENDS & INNOVATIONS.(TO THE POINT)
January 30, 2004... ** Downloading music for personal use is an innocent act and shouldn't be illegal, but selling it is piracy, according to 75% of those surveyed by Harris Interactive. Nearly 70% say if CDs were cheaper, they would download less. **...

BE HONEST AND DEPENDABLE Wear A Suit Of Integrity.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)(IBD'S 10 SECRETS TO SUCCESS)
January 30, 2004... Byline: Robin Grugal 10 Integrity as we know it today stands for honesty and soundness of moral principle and character. But trace the word's history back to ancient Roman times, and we find it stands for much more, says ethics...

Jack Nicklaus A Major Champ; Swing To Top: His concentration and sunny attitude helped him dominate golf.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)
January 30, 2004... Byline: JAMES DETAR How you play the game can determine whether you win. Just ask Jack Nicklaus. Nicklaus' father Charlie hurt his ankle and needed to exercise. So he decided to play golf to aid his rehabilitation. "His father...

Nicklaus At A Glance.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)
January 30, 2004... Nicklaus At A Glance Born: 1940 in Columbus, Ohio. Achievements: ** Is the all-time leader in golf tournament wins. Had 100 wins in his 41-year career, with 18 of them major pro tournaments. ** Named Player of the Year five...

Mydoom Worm Aptly Named As Damage Costs Escalate.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
January 30, 2004... Byline: DONNA HOWELL E-mail attacks under way worldwide are proving costly. Early assessments suggest 2004 could approach an all-time record for worm and virus damage. Just cleaning up machines infected with the Mydoom worm, which...

HP Launches A Truly Patented Bid To Make Money; "Invent' Slogan Taken To Heart; Hewlett-Packard seeking ways to extract more gains from intellectual property.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
January 30, 2004... Byline: KEN SPENCER BROWN It's been more than four years since Hewlett-Packard Co. adopted "invent" as a corporate tag line and began touting its history of innovation. Now, like many of its peers, the tech giant wants more to show...

Veritas Shares Plummet 13% Thurs., But Storage Outlook Still Strong; Firm's View Below Analysts'; Consolidation is escalating and firms must invest more in R&D to stay in the game.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
January 30, 2004... Byline: BRIAN DEAGON When shares of Veritas Software Corp. dropped sharply Thursday, it was mainly a tempering of bullish industry expectations, analysts say, rather than a sign of bad news ahead for the storage software industry. ...

Bowl Tickets For XXXVIII Listed Online; The Catch? The Costs.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
January 30, 2004... Byline: PETE BARLAS Eric Baker expects his company will get a big kick from Sunday's Super Bowl. That will happen if Baker's Web company, StubHub Inc., sells a bunch of tickets to the game. The business of selling tickets online...

COMSTOCK RESOURCES INC. Frisco, Texas; Risk Management Fuels Gas Producer's Profit Growth.(THE NEW AMERICA)
January 30, 2004... Byline: PETER BENESH One key to success in the natural gas exploration business is a no-brainer: Don't drill dry holes. A second strategy is more subtle: Keep financial risk under control by borrowing as little as possible and...

Investors Add $14.7 Bil To Stock Funds; Inflow Above Average; Dec. caps powerful '03, which fed $152.77 billion into rebounding market.(MUTUAL FUNDS)(INVESTMENT TRENDS)
January 30, 2004... Byline: MURRAY COLEMAN Make it 10 in a row. That's how many months mutual funds have seen net inflow, says the Investment Company Institute. Its latest survey of money movement in December showed $15.58 billion of new money...

Bigger Than Iraq.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)(Editorial)
January 30, 2004... Intelligence: The misjudging of WMDs points to deeper problems. The solution to these will come from objective inquiries, not witch hunts. David Kay, former chief U.S. weapons inspector in Iraq, has been saying much in multiple venues...

Define "Armageddon'.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)(Editorial)
January 30, 2004... California: Gov. Schwarzenegger's big bond issue isn't going over so well. He needs to do a little more selling, they say. We say a little more cutting would also help. So far, about all Schwarzenegger has said is that spending cuts and...

David Kay Talks About War, Intelligence And Iraqi WMDs.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(VERBATIM)
January 30, 2004... Former chief weapons inspector David Kay had a lot to tell the Senate Armed Services Committee on Wednesday, much of it amply covered by the media. That included criticisms of U.S. intelligence in Iraq, and his opinion the U.S. isn't...

THE REAL MOST ACTIVE Dow, S&P 500 Recoup Gains In Last 2 Hours.(MAKING MONEY)
January 30, 2004... Byline: NANCY GONDO The Dow industrials reversed in the last two hours of trading Thursday to close up 0.4%, while the S&P 500 rose 0.5%. Volume was higher. The small-cap S&P 600 bucked its larger peers' uptrend, losing 0.4%. Health...

Analyze, Profit From IBD's Market Charts.(GENERAL MARKET & SECTORS)
January 30, 2004... Analyzing the price and volume changes in the major market averages each day is essential to successful investing. They reveal major tops and bottoms in the stock market. Most stocks follow the general market's trend. They tend to rise...

KV Pharma Finding Support Near 50-Day.(B)(NYSE STOCKS IN THE NEWS)
January 30, 2004... Byline: Nancy Gondo KV Pharmaceutical hit a new intraday high Dec. 3 before pulling back to start a base. The drug maker took a 10% hit Dec. 9 on heavy volume to fall well below its 50-day moving average. It recouped the loss the next...

THE REAL MOST ACTIVE Nasdaq Pares Damage, But Still Logs Third Loss.(B)
January 30, 2004... Byline: CRAIG SHAW The Nasdaq trimmed a 1.7% loss to 0.4% Thursday in the aftermath of Fed rate hike fears. Volume poured in well above normal. Networkers, computer makers and fiber optic stocks fared worst. While many leading stocks...

Hospice Firm Expands Within Its Home State.(B)(NASDAQ STOCKS IN THE NEWS)
January 30, 2004... Byline: David Saito-Chung Odyssey HealthCare recently corrected 35% from its Dec. 2 high of 38.85, but found support at its 200-day moving average. Earlier this week, the stock climbed back above its 50-day. The October 2001 IPO is...

Lack Of WMDs Laid To Failure Of Intelligence; "Almost All Wrong,' Kay Says; But ex-weapons inspector also characterizes Iraq as "gathering, serious threat".(A)
January 29, 2004... Byline: IBD STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS Former top U.S. weapons inspector David Kay told members of the Senate Wednesday that the failure to turn up weapons of mass destruction in Iraq exposed weaknesses in America's intelligence-gathering...

Fed Leaves Rate At 1%, But Lays Groundwork For A Future Tightening; Stocks, Bonds Take It Hard; FOMC no longer assures stimulative policy will last for "considerable period".(A)
January 29, 2004... Byline: JED GRAHAM The Federal Reserve held its key interest rate at a 45-year low of 1% Wednesday and signaled it's in no hurry to wean the economy from its aggressively stimulative monetary policy. But the Fed watered down its...

No-Frills Airlines Are No Longer Highfliers; Growth rates decelerate at JetBlue, Ryanair as competition accelerates.(A)
January 29, 2004... Byline: DOUG TSURUOKA Discount-airline stocks sank on Wednesday, depressed by an earnings warning at one and a downgrade of another. Ireland's Ryanair Holdings PLC, Europe's leading low-fare carrier, said it'll report its first...

IBD'S TOP 10.(A)
January 29, 2004... Fed Stands Pat, Alters Wording 1Policy-makers left the fed funds target at a 45-year low of 1%. But they unexpectedly dropped their vow to keep rates low for a "considerable period," though they said they could be "patient." The economy...

AFTER THE CLOSE.(TO THE POINT)
January 29, 2004... FOUNDRY NETWORKS made 17 cents a share in Q4, beating views by a penny and more than doubling its year ago profit, but the networker warned of a more competitive market in '04. Shares dived 16% after hours. SIERRA WIRELESS made 8 cents a...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
January 29, 2004... FINANCE Commercial Capital buys big rival The Irvine, Calif.-based thrift will pay $493 mil in stock for the bigger Hawthorne Financial, a $2.67 bil thrift based in El Segundo, Calif. Commercial Capital is offering 1.45 shares of its...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
January 29, 2004... TECHNOLOGY EU: MS settlement deadline near The European Commission said it's already circulating a draft decision, likely including a large fine and a public declaration of company wrongdoing, against Microsoft concerning its...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
January 29, 2004... CONSUMER Flu helps Procter & Gamble Q2 The consumer products giant made $1.30 a share in Q2 '04, a 22% rise over Q2 '03 and 2 cents over views. Procter & Gamble credited strong sales of over-the-counter flu medications, plus its...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
January 29, 2004... MEDICAL Tenet plans charge, hospital sales The No. 2 U.S. hospital operator's shares fell 18% to 13.18 after it said it would take a $1.4 bil charge in Q4 and sell 27 hospitals in 5 states. Tenet warned that fiscal '04 would be a...

THE ECONOMY.(TO THE POINT)
January 29, 2004... Terror jitters, political risk costly A survey by the insurer Aon estimated concerns about terror and political risks cost the global economy more than $800 bil last year by dampening corporate spending, investments and growth. Before...

BUSINESS BRIEFS/IN BRIEF.(TO THE POINT)
January 29, 2004... RETAIL J.C. Penney may split Eckerd The retailer is offering to break its ailing drug store unit into 2 parts following CVS' and Rite Aid's expressed interest in the southern stores. Eckerd stores in that region are the worst...

NATION.(TO THE POINT)
January 29, 2004... Panel hears 9-11 hijacking call A national commission investigating the attack played portions of a 23-minute cell phone call by Betty Ong, an American Air stewardess whose plane later crashed into the World Trade Center. Ong calmly...

WORLD.(TO THE POINT)
January 29, 2004... 3 killed in Baghdad bombing A suicide terrorist blew up a van disguised as an ambulance near a hotel used by Westerners. The blast killed at least two Iraqis and a South African, and injured 17 others. Bush: no Kurdish autonomy ...

TRENDS & INNOVATIONS.(TO THE POINT)
January 29, 2004... Retiree savings less than $10K Some 36% of nonretired adult American have not started saving for their golden years and 16% have saved less than $10,000. And 62% have never estimated how much money they will need for retirement, reports a...

TRENDS & INNOVATIONS.(TO THE POINT)
January 29, 2004... ** Anti-psychotic drugs raise risks of diabetes, heart disease and high cholesterol, four major medical associations warned in Feb.'s issue of Diabetes Care, marking the 1st time such a wide body has expressed formal concern about the drugs...

Try Writing With Class.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)(IBD'S 10 SECRETS TO SUCCESS)
January 29, 2004... Byline: Cord Cooper 9 Every e-mail and letter going out of your firm is a sales tool, a reflection of your brand. "You're selling yourself, your product or your firm's image -- or you're seeking a desired result," said...

John Pershing Led The Charge; March On: He spearheaded the Army from the Philippines to Europe.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)
January 29, 2004... Byline: KEN HOOVER As a young captain assigned to duty in the Philippines in 1901, John Pershing had his work cut out for him. The U.S. had won claim to the Philippines by defeating Spain. But the Moros, the fierce warriors of the...

Pershing At A Glance.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)
January 29, 2004... Pershing At A Glance Born: 1860 near Laclede, Mo. Died: 1948 in Washington, D.C. Education: Graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1886. Achievements: ** Considered the first of the modern American...

Equipment Makers May Not Rake It In As Phone Calls Move Online; Is Market Size Limited?; Telecom gear companies see growing market, but it won't be like old days.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
January 29, 2004... Byline: MIKE ANGELL Technology to send voice calls over the Internet is a growing market. But will it ever be as big as once thought? The technology, called voice over Internet protocol, or VoIP, compresses human voice into data...

Yahoo Girding For A Tough Fight In China; Joining Forces With Sina Corp.; Yahoo's auction service lags eBay globally, but it's making in-roads in Asia.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
January 29, 2004... Byline: PETE BARLAS When it comes to auctions, Yahoo Inc. is down, but not out. Despite trailing eBay Inc. badly in the online auction market, the company is fighting hard on a country-by-country basis. Take China. This month...

EBay Takes On Yahoo In Hong Kong Market; Part Of Asian Turf War.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
January 29, 2004... Byline: PETE BARLAS Yahoo Inc. has a new neighbor in Hong Kong: eBay Inc. EBay, the world's largest online auctioneer, opened up shop on the island late last month. The move sets up the latest showdown between eBay and Yahoo, which...

A Mobile Scanner Can Be A Storage Savior For Travelers.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)(COMPUTERS MADE PLAIN)
January 29, 2004... Byline: RUSSELL SHAW If you gather a lot of documents and photos on business trips, you know it can be a real pain to lug them back to the office. Mobile scanners offer an alternative. These inexpensive devices hook up to your...

ADTRAN INC. Huntsville, Alabama; Rivals Take The Risks; It Reaps The Rewards.(THE NEW AMERICA)
January 29, 2004... Byline: PETER BENESH The legendary head of the former Chrysler Corp., Lee Iacocca, got lots of play for the slogan: "Lead, follow or get out of the way." A variation on the theme is "fast follow." That's the business model for...

SAP AG Walldorf, Germany; Steadiness Is An Asset For Software Maker.(THE NEW AMERICA)
January 29, 2004... Byline: J. BONASIA After more than 30 years in business, Germany's SAP AG remains king of the hill when it comes to business software. It looks to remain that way even as one of its top rivals, Oracle Corp., tries to buy another top...

Dreyfus Fund Amps Down On Volatility; Sticks Closer To Index; Midcap Value Plus seeks broad appeal by offering investors a smooth ride.(MUTUAL FUNDS)(MUTUAL FUND PROFILE)
January 29, 2004... Byline: PAUL KATZEFF Dreyfus Midcap Value Plus was created June 29, 2001, as a less volatile version of $1.4 billion Dreyfus Midcap Value. It has performed according to that game plan. "The style of investing is similar," said David...

It's Early Yet.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)(Editorial)
January 29, 2004... Politics: The media have anointed Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts as the Democrats' presidential nominee. But despite his wins, it's too soon to make that call. After all, only a small slice of the primary delegates has been picked up...

Sell The "Beeb'.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)(Editorial)
January 29, 2004... Media: A new report exonerates Britain's Tony Blair of a BBC charge he fudged the intelligence on Iraq's weapons capabilities. Now, it's the BBC's turn for scrutiny. Britain's once-beloved "Beeb," as it's called, gets lavish public...

Exploitation Or Opportunity? World's Poor Need To Work.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(VIEWPOINT)
January 29, 2004... Byline: WALTER E. WILLIAMS Suppose you see people lining up for hours, and people willing to pay a month's salary in bribes, in order to get a $2-a-day factory job. What might you conclude? Would you guess there are higher-paying jobs...

THE REAL MOST ACTIVE Dow, S&P 500 Sink Following Fed Comments.(MAKING MONEY)
January 29, 2004... Byline: NANCY GONDO NYSE stocks dived Wednesday on heavier trade after the Fed meeting, sending the Dow industrials down 1.3%, the S&P 500 1.4% and the small-cap S&P 600 1.6%. Though rates were unchanged, Wall Street took the Fed's...

Analyze, Profit From IBD's Market Charts.(GENERAL MARKET & SECTORS)
January 29, 2004... Analyzing the price and volume changes in the major market averages each day is essential to successful investing. They reveal major tops and bottoms in the stock market. Most stocks follow the general market's trend. They tend to rise...

Mortgage Firm Keeps Building On July Base.(B)(NYSE STOCKS IN THE NEWS)
January 29, 2004... Byline: Nancy Gondo American Home Mortgage Investment broke out of a 3 1/2- month base Nov. 3 and hit an intraday high of 25.27 the next day before dropping back into a base. It's now working on the right side of the pattern. Volume has...

THE REAL MOST ACTIVE Airlines, Medicals, Techs Send Nasdaq Lower.(B)
January 29, 2004... Byline: DAVID SAITO-CHUNG The Nasdaq slumped 1.8% on higher volume Wednesday, marking a second straight day of distribution. Ryan Air Holdings plunged 14.18, or 29%, to 35.13 on the heaviest volume in more than a year. A highflier...

Security Software Firm Smashes Street Views.(B)(NASDAQ STOCKS IN THE NEWS)
January 29, 2004... Byline: David Saito-Chung After nearly tripling in price from late February to October 2003, SafeNet dropped sharply in the week ended Oct. 24. But the stock found buyers at the 200-day moving average. This long-term trend line can be...

Research Stocks Swiftly With Premium Charts.(THE SMART INVESTOR)(INVESTORS.COM CORNER)
January 29, 2004... Byline: KEN SHREVE A tech firm is showing accelerating earnings and sales growth over the past three quarters. Mutual fund ownership has increased from 50 funds three quarters ago to 125 in the latest quarter. Triple-digit annual...

Amazon's Q4 Fails To Excite Despite Record; 53% Rise Merely Met Views.(A)
January 28, 2004... Byline: PETE BARLAS Santa Claus was good to Amazon.com Inc. last quarter. To investors and analysts, though, the news was ho ho-hum. The world's largest online retailer on Tuesday said fourth-quarter earnings climbed 53% from a...

Fed's Low-Rate Policy Fueling U.S. Demand And U.S. Trade Deficit; Pressure On Central Banks; Japan, Canada have cut rates due to weak dollar; U.S. still outgrowing rivals.(A)
January 28, 2004... Byline: JED GRAHAM The Federal Reserve's superaccommodative monetary policy seems to be getting contagious. Last week, the Bank of Japan eased its own policy to stem the yen's rise against the dollar, but to little avail. The dollar...

Consumer Optimism Rises To 18-Mo. High; Americans still worried about labor conditions; outlook looking bright.(A)
January 28, 2004... Byline: CHRISTINA WISE Consumer confidence hit its highest level in 18 months, showing Americans are feeling better about the present and future, but continue to worry about the job market. The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence...

IBD'S TOP 10.(A)
January 28, 2004... Stocks Slump On Heavier Trade 1 Stocks retreated from 31-month highs as the Nasdaq logged its first clear distribution day in six weeks. The tech composite dived 1.8%, the big-cap Nasdaq 100 2.2%. The Dow industrials dipped 0.9%. Volume...

AFTER THE CLOSE.(TO THE POINT)
January 28, 2004... KRAFT will ax 6,000 jobs and shut 20 plants to cut costs in a largely expected move. The food giant met Q4 views for a 2% drop to 50 cents a share. It'll miss Q1 views. Kraft fell late. BROADCOM made 19 cents ex items, reversing a 2-cent...

BUSINESS BRIEFS/IN BRIEF.(TO THE POINT)
January 28, 2004... TECHNOLOGY EU leaning against Microsoft The European Commission, which has been investigating Microsoft on antitrust grounds following complaints that the company was restricting video- and music-software competition, is expected to...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
January 28, 2004... FINANCIAL Countrywide profit climbs 88% The mortgage giant earned Q4 $2.74 a share, beating views by 3 cents, as continued low interest rates fueled consumer loan demand and a 51% rise in revenue. In Q3, profit rose 341%, indicating...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
January 28, 2004... MEDICAL Job cuts push Merck down 25% The drug giant made 62 cents a share in Q4, meeting views but dipping 18 cents below Q4 '02. Merck blamed a 7.1% drop in sales to $5.63 bil. Sales of its money-maker cholesterol fighter Zocor...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
January 28, 2004... TELECOM SBC profit drops on directory biz The No. 2 local phone company met Q4 views for a 45% drop to 34 cents a share ex items. SBC blamed an accounting change at its directory business, which drove business down 42%. Local voice...

THE ECONOMY.(TO THE POINT)
January 28, 2004... Chain store sales rose last week Same-store sales at chains rose 1.1% in the week ended Jan. 24 after the prior week's 0.7% drop, said the International Council of Shopping Centers and UBS. Sales grew 4.4% from the year-ago week vs. the...

TRENDS/INNOVATIONS.(TO THE POINT)
January 28, 2004... Violent video games sales KO'd The portion of games rated M for mature fell to 11.9% in '03 vs. 13.2% in '02, said the Entertainment Software Association, citing market research firm NPD Group. Of the 10 best-selling console titles of...

NATION.(TO THE POINT)
January 28, 2004... Airline checks slated for summer Homeland Security officials say a government plan to check all airline passengers' backgrounds before they board could be implemented by summer. Homeland Security Undersecretary Asa Hutchinson said it's...

WORLD.(TO THE POINT)
January 28, 2004... Blair squeaks through first test After a day of arm-twisting and trading, U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair narrowly averted humiliation over an education bill with a 316-311 victory. Many Labor members of Parliament have problems with their...

DON'T BE AFRAID TO INNOVATE; BE DIFFERENT Creating A Wine Capital.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)(IBD'S 10 SECRETS TO SUCCESS)
January 28, 2004... Byline: Robin Grugal 8 When Robert Mondavi set out to create a world-class wine industry in California's Napa Valley, it defied conventional wisdom. Now the man behind the California wine movement owns the world's ninth largest...

Bob Keeshan Bounded Ahead; Follow Your Vision: "Captain Kangaroo" creator knew what kids needed to see.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)
January 28, 2004... Byline: MICHAEL MINK Bob Keeshan spent nearly 30 years playing the role of Captain Kangaroo. But he was never acting. As the creator and producer of the show, the values the Captain championed to children and adults were Keeshan's on...

Super Bowl's Super For Big-Screen TV Sales.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
January 28, 2004... Byline: PATRICK SEITZ The Super Bowl isn't until Sunday, but there's already a winner: big-screen, high-definition TV dealers. HDTV sets, which had a breakout year in 2003, will get an early 2004 blitz from football fans craving...

Few Tech Companies In Post-Bubble Days Play Super Ad Game; Thrill Gone For Net Advertisers; Monster, AOL, Expedia only ones willing to line up for spot in premier TV event.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
January 28, 2004... Byline: PETE BARLAS And then there were three. The Super Bowl is in Houston this year, but most tech companies will stay away. So far, Sunday's big football game -- which every year attracts the biggest TV audience of any single...

Mydoom Worm Slowed The Net; Attack Sunday?(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
January 28, 2004... Byline: DONNA HOWELL A worm running rampant on the Internet this week is known variously as Mydoom, Novarg, MiMail.R and Shimgapi. But it might as well be nicknamed Blitz. The worm spread so aggressively that it appears to have...

TECHBITS.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
January 28, 2004... Byline: J. Bonasia and James DeTar Firms Tout New Ways To Interface: Talking PCs, Virtual Keyboards Your computer may have fast speed, lots of memory and great graphics. But if you really want to stay on the cutting edge, get...