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]]> SAN FRANCISCO -- EBay has settled a legal skirmish with the founders of Skype that threatened to complicate eBay's plans to sell most of the Internet phone service to a group of investors for $2 billion. Sat, 7 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091107/business/911071052 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091107/business/911071050
]]> NEW YORK -- First it was books. Now it's DVDs. Wal-Mart started another price war Thursday, trimming the online preorder prices of some upcoming DVDs following its price cut on books last month. And, once again, competitors Amazon.com and Target scrambled to match the prices. Sat, 7 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091107/business/911071050 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911069948
]]> Bankrupt real estate financier Clem Carinalli was peppered with questions Friday by creditors anxious to learn how they will be repaid. Some were stunned to learn that Carinalli repaid SSU in July while halting payments to others ahead in line. Fri, 6 Nov 2009 23:10:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911069948 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911069898
]]> A Santa Rosa bankruptcy judge on Friday approved liquidation of Copia, the defunct wine, food and arts center in downtown Napa, setting the stage for the property’s sale. Fri, 6 Nov 2009 17:21:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911069898 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911069937
]]> The unemployment rate has hit double digits for the first time since 1983 - and is likely to go higher. The rising jobless rate could threaten the recovery if it makes consumers more cautious about spending as the holiday season approaches. Fri, 6 Nov 2009 14:02:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911069937 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911061086
]]> WASHINGTON -- Can't pay the mortgage? You still might be able to stay in your home. Government-controlled mortgage company Fannie Mae is going to give borrowers on the verge of foreclosure the option of renting their homes for a year. Fri, 6 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911061086 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911061080
]]> WASHINGTON -- Companies across the economy are finding ways to do more with fewer workers, dimming hopes that hiring will take off anytime soon. Employers became leaner and more efficient in the third quarter. Fri, 6 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911061080 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911061095
]]> NEW YORK -- October's retail sales results, the best performance since April 2008, show that Americans are spending a little more. But will they be willing to pay full price this holiday season? Stores are heading into the period with slashed inventories, determined not to have the fire sales that characterized last Christmas. But shoppers are... Fri, 6 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911061095 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911061098
]]> NEW YORK -- Two attorneys and Wall Street professionals were among 14 people charged Thursday in a widening $53 million insider trading case that has snared one of America's richest men and shown white collar suspects to be using the cover-up tactics of drug dealers. Fri, 6 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911061098 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911061100
]]> NEW YORK -- Big bonuses could be back in store for some top executives and traders on Wall Street as profitability returned to the investment banking industry in 2009, according to a new study released Thursday. Fri, 6 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911061100 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911061090
]]> Rates for 30-year home loans dipped below 5 percent this week after rising for three straight weeks. The average rate fell to 4.98 percent from 5.03 percent a week earlier, mortgage company Freddie Mac said Thursday. Fri, 6 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091106/business/911061090 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091105/business/911059897
]]> To live in Sonoma County, residents spend a bigger chunk of their incomes on transportation and housing than anywhere else in the Bay Area, a new study concludes. Thu, 5 Nov 2009 18:49:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091105/business/911059897 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091105/business/911059912
]]> Microscopic flakes of colorful metal are driving sales at JDSU’s Santa Rosa optical business, which grew 7 percent in the first quarter, the company said Thursday. Thu, 5 Nov 2009 17:08:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091105/business/911059912 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091105/business/911059973
]]> Cisco Systems has quietly closed its optical networking facility in Petaluma, joining the exodus of big names from Telecom Valley. A decade earlier, it made a stunning entrance into Sonoma County when it paid a record $7.3 billion for Cerent. Thu, 5 Nov 2009 12:00:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091105/business/911059973 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091105/news/911051028
]]> What goes well with Slim Jims and Slurpees? 7-Eleven wine, naturally. The convenience store chain announced Tuesday it is getting into the value wine business, releasing two low-priced proprietary wines in the United States and Japan. Thu, 5 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091105/news/911051028 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091105/business/911051042
]]> WASHINGTON -- Recognizing that a weak economy still needs a government boost, the Senate voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to provide the jobless with up to 20 weeks in additional unemployment benefits and expand a first-time homebuyer tax credit to include a far larger pool of people entering the dormant housing market. Thu, 5 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091105/business/911051042 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091105/business/911051029
]]> WASHINGTON -- The Federal Reserve pledged Wednesday to keep a key interest rate at a record low for an "extended period," signaling that the weak economy remains dependent on government help to grow. Thu, 5 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091105/business/911051029 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091105/business/911051032
]]> NEW YORK -- New York's attorney general hit Intel Corp. with an antitrust lawsuit Wednesday, claiming the company used "illegal threats and collusion" to dominate the market for computer microprocessors. Thu, 5 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091105/business/911051032 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091105/business/911051044
]]> October was far and away the best month American retailers have had since consumers put the brakes on spending last autumn. New figures show major categories had robust sales growth for the first time in more than a year. Thu, 5 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091105/business/911051044 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091104/articles/911049968
]]> Agricultural officials opened a second front Wednesday in the fight against two invasive moth species, one known for the controversy surrounding it, the other a newcomer that already is creating anxiety for its presence in Napa Valley. Wed, 4 Nov 2009 14:45:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091104/articles/911049968 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091104/business/911041070
]]> Car insurance by the tankful? Not quite, but California moved a step closer last month to pay-as-you-drive policies that could allow motorists to buy insurance like they do gasoline -- a little at a time. Wed, 4 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091104/business/911041070 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091104/business/911041059
]]> NEW YORK -- The biggest name in investing is making what he calls an "all-in wager" on the U.S. economy -- $34 billion to own a railroad that hauls everything from corn to cars across the country. Wed, 4 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091104/business/911041059 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091104/business/911041066
]]> DETROIT -- After months of roller coaster-like sales, the auto industry offered signs of recovery from its yearlong slump Tuesday, as most automakers reported higher levels of U.S. sales in October. Wed, 4 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091104/business/911041066 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091103/business/911039915
]]> Clem Carinalli is facing allegations that he defrauded lenders by using loan documents that inflated the value of properties and overstated his own fortune, increasing the amount of money he was able to borrow. Tue, 3 Nov 2009 23:11:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091103/business/911039915 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091103/business/911039953
]]> The United Farm Workers union has won another round in its long-running legal fight to continue representing about 300 Gallo vineyard workers in Sonoma County. Tue, 3 Nov 2009 17:50:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091103/business/911039953 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091103/business/911039956
]]> Symmetricom Inc. saw its Santa Rosa-based timing technology business grow 18 percent in the first quarter, as governments spent millions to upgrade their communications networks. Tue, 3 Nov 2009 17:08:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091103/business/911039956 http://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/16451/december-election-set-for-memorial-employees/
]]> Tue, 3 Nov 2009 14:18:00 -0500 http://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/16451/december-election-set-for-memorial-employees/ http://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/16353/lender-takes-back-sustainable-village/
]]> Tue, 3 Nov 2009 11:38:00 -0500 http://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/16353/lender-takes-back-sustainable-village/ http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091103/business/911031055
]]> Public health experts worried about the spread of the H1N1 flu are raising concerns that workers who deal with the public, like waiters and child care employees, are jeopardizing others by reporting to work sick because they do not get paid for days they miss for illness. Tue, 3 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091103/business/911031055 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091103/business/911031059
]]> CHICAGO -- The tool maker Stanley Works is buying rival Black & Decker Corp. for $4.5 billion, the two companies said Monday, uniting two of their industry's most iconic brands. The deal would create the largest U.S. toolmaker, Morningstar analyst Anthony Dayrit said. Tue, 3 Nov 2009 04:03:00 -0500 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091103/business/911031059