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Eternal city reveals new layers during metro dig
Fri Dec 1, 2006 1:24pm ET

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ROME (Reuters) - Raffaela La Pasta is not sure but thinks that the still half-buried skeleton she is unearthing in downtown Rome is female, and at least 1,600-years-old.

A leg-bone is sticking up through the dirt and the outline of the skull is just visible, even in this pit 8 meters (26 feet) below the surface of the city.

"She's not the only one. There are others we found too," La Pasta said, coolly.

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This archaeological site, which has also yielded a trove of Roman coins, pottery and even toys, is just one of dozens being drilled in the eternal city thanks to a metro project that is giving La Pasta and other scientists a rare, deep look below.

A few of the finds, like a 2,000-year-old Roman compass La Pasta's team found, go on display at a downtown museum starting on Saturday.

Other artifacts will join the exhibition as they are discovered in the coming months, while Rome forges ahead with its plans to punch a tunnel under the historic center to make way for a long-awaited subway line.

"You're standing on top the world's biggest archaeological collection," said the exhibit's curator, Maria Antonietta Tomei, motioning to the earth below.

"And our museum exhibit will only get bigger."   Continued...


HOW LOW CAN YOU GO?

The project is massive, with a eight-digit price tag just for the first stage of the excavations.

At spots throughout Rome, archaeologists are walling off bits of sidewalk, streets and squares trying to find out how to build the subway line -- a daunting, costly task for urban planners.

Central Rome is still full of surprises. In June, another group of archaeologists found the skeleton of a woman who they think may have ruled Rome 3,000 years ago -- before Romulus and Remus are credited with founding the city.

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The metro line aims to run deep enough underground to avoid disturbing ancient artifacts as it winds it way under an historic center that includes structures like the Forum and the Colosseum which are sensitive to vibrations in the earth.

"The issue is not the metro itself, which is going to run far enough below the surface that there is no risk," said Giovanni Simonacci, the Metro C project's technical director.

The problem, he said, is figuring out how to get people from the surface of the city down to the metro line without disturbing an important historic structure.

"We don't know where (the precise entry and exit points) will be yet because we don't know what is down there," he said.

"Phase One" of the excavations are meant to reach depths of 11 meters (36 ft) across the city. The target date was originally set for December but has already been pushed back until at least the end of March due to new discoveries.   Continued...


UNDER THE PIAZZA

It's hard to tell if Mayor Walter Veltroni is squinting because of the sunlight or because he's realizes how challenging his so-called "archaeological metro" project will be.

Standing in the middle of Rome's busiest square, Piazza Venezia, Veltroni peers below the ground into what his team of archaeologists have uncovered: a well preserved cellar of a palace built in the 17th century.

The cellar's interior window frames and staircase are intact, just as they would have been before the palace was destroyed to make way for the famous Roman square around a century ago. They had covered right over it.

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The archaeologists said they plan to tear down the cellar to find other buildings they suspect are buried even deeper below.

"We don't know what's down there," Veltroni told Reuters, raising his voice over the buzz of Piazza Venezia's traffic.

"Now we're naturally more recent. When we go deeper to look for the real Rome, we see what we find."

The metro project could have unforeseen consequences for the city. Veltroni did not rule out turning part of Piazza Venezia into a museum if there was a highly important discovery.

La Pasta said the project could yield more finds than Veltroni and others might imagine.

On a dig that she worked on a block away, the team reached a depth of 17 meters (56 feet). They found entire structures, including perfectly preserved sections of 2,000-year-old Roman wall that are now in the Rome metro building's headquarters.

"It was a whole new layer of the city," she said.

2、Dubai developer to construct Russia city By JIM KRANE, Associated Press Writer
Sun Dec 3, 1:31 PM ET



DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - A Dubai-based developer announced on Sunday that it plans to build a new Russian city on 44,000 acres near Moscow.

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The project, dubbed Great Domodedovo, was described by developer Limitless as "one of the largest projects planned by an international developer anywhere in the world today." A $11 billion investment in the project's first 7,500 acre-phase will be made in partnership with Russian investment and development company, Coalco, according to a written statement.

Limitless is the real-estate development subsidiary of Dubai World, the holding company that also operates ports giant DP World, which was forced this spring by the U.S. Congress to sell operations it had acquired in six U.S. ports.

Dubai's fast-growing developers have launched previous projects to develop entire cities from scratch. Dubai-based Emaar, the Middle East's largest developer, announced plans earlier this year to build King Abdullah Economic City, a new Red Sea port in Saudi Arabia.

In Russia, Great Domodedovo will be a full-fledged city with residential, commercial and employment units as well as educational, recreational and entertainment facilities, the statement said.

Both Russia and Gulf emirates like Dubai are reaping enormous energy revenues that are fueling audacious investment schemes. Dubai, where forests of skyscrapers are under construction, is considered by many the fastest growing city in the world. Russian vacationers and investors have flocked to the United Arab Emirates in recent years, and there are growing trade ties and numerous direct flights between the two countries.

With Gulf markets all but saturated by new projects, Dubai companies have been investing in developing markets in the Mideast and South Asian countries and beyond, including China, Egypt,     Syria, India and Pakistan.

"Russia is an extremely attractive market due to active economic development and high potential for large-scale real estate projects," Dubai World chairman Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem said.

Construction on the initial 150,000 residential units along with commercial space is expected to start late next year.

Limitless said Great Domodedovo will be a mixed community of low-rise and high-rise buildings, some of which will be developed as Russian government-mandated affordable housing.

___

On the Net:

http://www.limitless.ae

http://www.coalco.ru

3、EADS: A400M plane faces 'hurdles' Sun Dec 3, 1:25 PM ET



PARIS - The program review was ordered in September by European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co.'s two chief executive officers, and findings were presented to the board of directors on Friday, EADS said in a statement after the meeting.
The review followed a similar investigation during the summer into the problems facing Airbus' flagship project to build the double-decker A380, the world's largest airliner.
Military airlifter A400M, a versatile turboprop aircraft that will fit in between Boeing Co.'s C-17 and C-130 Hercules airlifters, is due to make its first flight in January 2008 and enter service with air forces starting in October 2009.
The Franco-German aerospace company said the review determined that the program is progressing according to schedule, though the "challenges ahead until first delivery in 2009 are assessed as significant, and the review has identified several critical risk areas."
These include systems design, notable electrical harnesses, maturity of military mission systems, engine modifications and work that remains to be done on the final assembly line in Seville, Spain, the company said.
EADS said a series of "mitigating actions" have been decided to keep the program on schedule, but it did not elaborate.
Air forces from seven European     NATO countries have ordered a total of 180 four-engined A400Ms, while South Africa has ordered eight and Malaysia four.
Airbus recently angered customers by doubling the estimated production delay blighting the double-decker A380 to two years, prompting a 4.8 billion euros ($6.3 billion) EADS profit warning.

4、WSJ will cut width, amongh other changes By SETH SUTEL, AP Business Writer
Sun Dec 3, 2:06 PM ET



NEW YORK - The Wall Street Journal, whose wide pages and text-rich look have long been an icon of the American newspaper business, is about to undergo several changes that include cutting three inches off its width.

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Along with the size reduction, which is equivalent to about one of its columns, the newspaper will add more color and graphical elements, including greater use of photographs. It also will have fewer stories "jump" inside the newspaper.

The changes, which take effect Jan. 2, were to be unveiled at a press conference in New York on Monday. Robert Christie, a spokesman for Dow Jones & Co., which publishes the Journal, described several of the features generally but declined to provide fuller details ahead of the announcement.

Other major newspapers have also cut their width in recent years as a way to save money, including The Washington Post, Tribune Co.'s Los Angeles Times and Gannett Co.'s USA Today. The New York Times is planning to reduce its width in 2008.

Dow Jones says reducing the Journal's width will save about $18 million a year. It will bring the newspaper in line with a widely used industry standard, allowing the newspaper to be printed in far more places than it is currently.

As it is, the Journal can't be printed in Hawaii because it can't find presses wide enough to accommodate its size, meaning the papers have to be flown in, Christie said.

Years ago, many major U.S. newspapers were printed in a size similar to the Journal, but most have since cut back, according to Michael Grady, director of production operations at the Newspaper Association of America.

In fact, the Journal was the last major U.S. paper to continue to print in such a wide format, Grady said, although some smaller community newspapers still use it.

The Journal has struggled more than other major newspapers in recent years due to a prolonged slump in financial and technology advertising, which are its two mainstays.

The paper has moved to diversify its revenue streams by adding an arts and leisure section called "Weekend Journal" in 1998 and a consumer-oriented section called "Personal Journal" in 2002, which was part of a broader overhaul that also brought more color and graphics to the paper. Last year, it launched a Saturday edition with more consumer-oriented coverage and advertising.

Scott Daly, who plans and purchases advertising for Dentsu America, a subsidiary of Dentsu Inc., a major Japanese advertising company, said mock-ups of the new design he had seen suggested that it was not as dramatic a change as the Journal went through four years ago.

"It still felt like the quality Wall Street Journal that I'm used to, just more in the USA Today size," Daly said. "From a reader's perspective, it is more manageable."

Dale Travis, who manages newspaper advertising buying for OMD Worldwide, a unit of Omnicom Group Inc., said he didn't think the smaller format and design changes would compromise the newspaper's reputation.

"I don't think The Wall Street Journal was broken, necessarily," Travis said. "As long as they don't compromise their journalistic integrity, then this redesign will make the newspaper more accessible and more appealing to a broader audience."

___

On the Net:

http://www.wsj.com

5、Oil, gas firms try to 'speed up' hiring By JOHN PORRETTO, AP Business Writer
Sun Dec 3, 2:30 PM ET



HOUSTON - On your mark! Get set! ... "Have you ever searched for oil under the ocean floor, or helped create products to improve fuels and lubricants? Hurry now, the clock's ticking."

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Not your typical job interview, but several oil and gas companies are resorting to unusual hiring techniques they hope will succeed where traditional recruiting has failed to fill thousands of vacant engineering positions.

Industry officials and analysts say it's nearly impossible to quantify the shortage, but the Internet is full of openings at ConocoPhillips, Chevron Corp., Valero Energy Corp. and a host of other companies.

One of them, Foster Wheeler USA, the Houston arm of a global engineering and construction contractor, says job fairs and other traditional practices have proved marginally successful, but it's time to try something new ― namely "speed interviewing."

The technique is modeled after singles gatherings called "speed dating" that became popular in the past decade. At them, participants rotate among a large number of prospective dates, narrowing the list to a choice few by session's end.

"Having to grow our work force so rapidly in the past year, we have to think outside the box for new and innovative ways to find people," said Ed King, Foster Wheeler USA's personnel director. "We've done job fairs, but everyone does job fairs. It's time for something different."

On Saturday, Foster Wheeler and three other companies held their first speed-recruiting event in Houston, the hub of hiring for oil and gas projects in the bustling Gulf of Mexico.

The turnout far exceeded expectations of several hundred attendees, said Richard Spragg, communications manager for EPCglobal, the recruiting company facilitating the event.

By 8:20 a.m., 40 minutes before the scheduled start at a Houston hotel, the line of blue-suited, resume-carrying job hopefuls snaked around the Briarpark Suite. By 10 a.m., the queue was so long that space ran out in a "holding area" next to the interview room.

But the large crowd did not slow down the speed-interviews. Each candidate checked in at a recruiting table, where EPCglobal staffers, conducted a quick, basic-skills assessment trying to determine the best fit for the individuals and companies.

The EPCglobal greeters acted like matchmakers, ushering the applicant to a hiring manager for 10- to 15-minute interviews. The idea is that companies can get face time with many more people than if they stuck to the typical 60- to 90-minute interviews.

So what can a potential employer ― and prospective employees ― take away from such brief encounters? More than you might think, says Peter Harris, content manager for Monster.ca, the Canadian version of the job-search Web site Monster.com.

One of the most important parts of any interview is the first impression.

"An interview is about fit and click," said Harris, who heard of the speed concept about a year ago. "A large pool of first impressions gives you more interaction than reviewing 100 resumes."

Such brief pitches from prospective hires also could help managers identify people who would thrive under deadline or in other tense environments.

"There's going to be a time when you have to convey your message as a representative of your company in a short period of time," Harris said. "Speed interviewing allows employees to see how a person will hold up under pressure."

The quick interview was more than enough time for Prasad Nevrekar, 53, to score a job offer from Foster Wheeler.

Nevrekar, a chemical engineer, arrived from Phoenix a bit skeptical, wondering if it would be just another job fair where his resume would end up in a "black hole." He was pleasantly surprised.

"This is an actual interview with hiring managers with the authority to hire," said Nevrekar. "This has not been a waste of time. My wife has already posted a 'for sale' sign in front of our house."

Those who make good impressions will eventually have more traditional interviews with the four companies involved.

It's anyone's guess how many hires will come from Saturday's event, Spragg said.

"It's not something we've tried elsewhere," he said.

The shortage of engineers and others has been caused by a convergence of factors, including an upsurge in offshore exploration by cash-rich oil companies and the ongoing reconstruction of the Gulf's energy infrastructure damaged by hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005.

On the engineering front, a wave of retirements from baby boomers reaching 25 and 30 years on the job has aggravated the situation.

"Those boomers are typically your most highly skilled folks," said Denise McCourt, director of general membership for the American Petroleum Institute, a trade association. "They're not easy to replace."

King said Foster Wheeler USA, whose ranks of engineers and designers have grown from roughly 200 to 800 since May 2005, could use another 200 such positions pronto ― jobs that could pay six-figure salaries. He hopes to begin filling some spots Saturday, though he and others acknowledge they're not sure what to expect.

Joining Foster Wheeler USA were Turner and Townsend, a global construction and management consulting company; AMEC Paragon, a project management and engineering services company; and SNC-Lavalin, another international engineering and construction outfit.

All are looking for engineers, though each has enough differing needs and services to make a quartet of companies feasible, Spragg said.

"There's a real urgency to bring in skills from any new source, anything they can think of they haven't done before," he said.

6、Chavez to push OPEC for high oil prices Sun Dec 3, 2:40 PM ET



CARACAS, Venezuela - President Hugo Chavez will continue pressing the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to defend high oil prices if he wins a second six-year term on Sunday, Venezuela's oil minister said.

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Over the past eight years Chavez has been one of     OPEC's leading price hawks, consistently urging the group to cautiously manage oil supply to prevent prices from falling below $50 a barrel.

"Policy will be the same," Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez told reporters after he voted in Caracas.

Venezuelans are choosing between leftist Chavez and Manuel Rosales, a moderate who favors free markets over socialism, in Sunday's presidential poll.

Ramirez said he is already holding talks with other OPEC ministers to build a consensus for a 500,000-barrel-a-day output cut at OPEC's Dec. 14 meeting in Nigeria's capital of Abuja.

Venezuela, a major supplier of crude to the United States, is the world's fifth-largest exporter.

High oil prices have brought a major boost to Venezuela's economy, as well as to Chavez's oil-funded social programs for the poor, which range from subsidized grocery stores to cash assistance for single mothers.

7、New Mexico leader faces good job market By JULIE WATSON, Associated Press Writer
Sun Dec 3, 2:50 PM ET



MEXICO CITY - As a man who touts creating jobs as the cure-all for Mexico's ills, President-elect Felipe Calderon couldn't be taking office at a better time.

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The economy is projected to expand by as much as 4.8 percent by year's end ― its fastest growth in six years ― thanks to exploding business in the construction, automobile and service industries. High oil prices have poured money into government coffers, the peso has remained stable and Mexico is on track to create 1 million jobs this year.

That makes things much easier for Calderon, who took office Friday promising to build an economy that creates enough jobs so that millions of Mexicans don't have to cross into the United States.

"Mexico has all it needs to be a country that receives investment and generates employment for its people," Calderon said, voicing optimism in his inaugural address as president.

The vast divide between rich and poor has fed the social tensions that have rippled across Mexico since Calderon won the July 2 election by less than 1 percent.

Losing candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who champions himself as the "savior of the poor," claims the election was tainted by fraud and government meddling. The leftist has sworn himself in as Mexico's "legitimate" president and has set up a parallel government aimed at impeding the conservative Calderon throughout his six-year term.

Calderon has tried to reach out to the millions who didn't vote for him, vowing to alleviate poverty by giving Mexicans "dignified work" and describing job creation as "the only effective path to fighting poverty."

It's almost exactly what President     Vicente Fox said when he took office in 2000 promising to create 700,000 jobs a year ― a goal reached only once, this year. Fox also fell far short of his economic growth promises as Mexico trailed many other Latin American countries during his term.

Calderon called on his Cabinet to encourage homegrown, small and medium businesses, saying Mexico's internal market must be the "motor" of the economy. He also vowed to cut government costs ― including his own salary ― to increase competitiveness, attract investment and create high-paying jobs.

"Migration continues to divide our families," he said Friday. "Instead of leaving to work in the United States, I want to look for investment here in Mexico for our workers."

According to government figures, the number of formal, private sector jobs is up by 943,000 so far this year.

Many of those jobs, however, are temporary.

Jose Cruz, a construction worker, said he only makes $10 a day and often goes months between jobs. Cruz, 30, said the only thing that has trickled down from the country's booming construction industry is discarded materials from pricey condo projects popping up across Mexico City. He has used the materials to construct a shack where he lives beneath a bridge.

"I only make enough to eat," he said.

While the Fox administration simplified some bureaucracy, opening a small business still involves copious paperwork and often bribery. Mexico's key industries are locked up by business moguls that include at least 10 billionaires, led by Carlos Slim, the world's third-richest man.

Critics say Calderon's Cabinet appointments are unlikely to provide the poor with real opportunities. His economic team is stacked with former government technocrats, some with direct ties to big business.

"These names are a mistake and are exactly what the people expected from him," said Jose Guadalupe Acosta, secretary-general of Lopez Obrador's Democratic Revolution Party.

Calderon's communications and transportation secretary, Luis Tellez, is the former CEO of Desc, S.A. de C.V., one of Mexico's largest companies with nearly $2 billion in sales. The industrial conglomerate has businesses in the auto parts, chemicals, food production, brand management and real estate sectors.

Tellez currently is the managing director for the Mexican operations of the Washington-based global equity firm Carlyle Group.

Labor Secretary Javier Lozano is the former president of the Federal Telecommunications Commission, which has done little to rein in some of the world's highest phone rates. He also is a former lawyer for Grupo Alfa, a $6 billion conglomerate with businesses in the petrochemical, frozen food, automobile and telecommunications sectors.

"These people have only deepened the economic model in past administrations that has led to more poverty," said Hector de la Cueva, coordinator of the non-profit Center of Labor Research in Mexico City.

"In Mexico, the wealth is enormously concentrated in only a few hands, which has led to this social polarization," de la Cueva said. "The problem is, the government with one hand combats poverty with social programs while with the other hand it creates more poor by favoring these monopolies."

Calderon will be aided by the fact his National Action Party has the largest bloc ― though not a majority ― in the recently elected Congress as he tries to win tax, labor and energy reforms meant to accelerate the Mexican economy.

Fox faced a hostile opposition-led Congress that blocked such reforms aimed at allowing more private investment in the state-run energy sector, cracking down on tax evaders and trimming workers' rights so that businesses can better compete.

Mexico needs booming job creation to raise demand ― and pay ― for minimum wage workers earning only $4.50 a day. Millions of Mexicans eke out a living in the informal sector, working as maids, street vendors or in other jobs paid under the table.

Even the largest business interests acknowledge the problems of Mexico's vast inequality.

"There is no doubt that fighting poverty isn't just an ethical, moral and social obligation, but it is also an economic need," Slim said at an October business conference.

7、Starbucks cashes in on loyalty card By ELIZABETH M. GILLESPIE, AP Business Writer
Sun Dec 3, 2:56 PM ET



SEATTLE - If there are eight people in line at a typical Starbucks, chances are one of them paid up before even setting foot in the store.

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In the five years since the Seattle-based coffee retailer launched its Starbucks Card, it's become a fixture in the wallets of millions of loyal customers. It's also emerged as one of the company's most heavily promoted and hottest-selling holiday gift items.

Most major retailers have been offering gift and loyalty cards for years, but industry observers say few have seen so many of their customers hang on to them as long, use them as often and reload them as regularly as they do at Starbucks.

"It's unique in the sense that most retailers aren't the kind where you have that everyday purchase," said Scott Krugman, spokesman for the National Retail Federation, a trade group based in Washington.

During last year's holiday shopping season, customers activated a record 15 million cards that raked in nearly $170 million once they were redeemed, accounting for 12 percent of the company's North American revenue stream that quarter.

"The card has exceeded our expectations, absolutely," said Sandra Stark, Starbucks' director of marketing program management. "We knew it would be a great program. We had no idea that we would reach 12 percent of tender."

About 96 million Starbucks cards have been activated in the United States and Canada since November 2001, and customers have reloaded their cards about 38.6 million times, bringing in $2.17 billion in revenue.

In early November, Starbucks started offering its card in Britain, selling so many it had to order more than double the number in the initial batch to keep up with demand. The card is also available in Japan, Spain, Germany, Greece, Australia and Thailand.

Starbucks plans to expand to other countries but isn't saying where or when. It declined to release figures for international card sales, but spokeswoman Lisa Passe said the company is pleased with how customers are receiving the card in overseas markets.

Some fast-food restaurants have jumped into the fray recently.

Wendy's International Inc. started promoting its new gift card around Thanksgiving. "Cards have become so commonplace in the retail sector that you really need to have one to be able to compete effectively," spokesman Bob Bertini said.

McDonald's and Burger King began offering customers reloadable convenience cards about a year ago. Both say they're pleased with the results they've seen so far but would not share any sales figures.

Starbucks has been promoting its card in display cases near counters, offering buyers free rhinestone-studded stocking-like holders. Stark wouldn't offer any hints about how card sales have been going in the early days of the holiday shopping season, but said the company has high expectations.

So do many other retailers. The National Retail Federation predicts that gift card sales in the United States will total $24.8 billion this holiday season ― about $6 billion more than last year, based on a survey conducted by market research firm BIGresearch.

Gift cards used to be frowned upon as the last-ditch choice of only those who couldn't be bothered putting any thought into the presents they got their loved ones. But in recent years, they've become more popular as gift givers and recipients alike have embraced the notion that it can be nice to give people the option of picking out their own presents.

"It's just such a home run not to have to pick out something for someone, which they're going to end up returning in 40 percent of the cases," said Howard Davidowitz, chairman of Davidowitz & Associates, Inc., a national retail consulting and investment banking firm in New York.

Whether they receive them as gifts or use them like debit cards, customers say the Starbucks cards offer a quick, convenient way to pay for their caffeine fix.

"It's a lot easier to use the card when you don't have cash and you feel like an idiot putting $2 on your credit card," Erik Carels, 34, said one recent morning after using his Starbucks card in Seattle.

Companies can't claim the money loaded onto their cards as revenue until a customer redeems it toward an actual purchase. They can, however, earn interest on unredeemed card balances, though Starbucks wouldn't disclose how much.

Registered Starbucks card holders, who number about 2 million, can reload their balances at the cash register, online or sign up to have their banks automatically reload their cards whenever they dip below a certain balance.

Jeff Phillips, a salesman who's used his Starbucks card regularly for years, wonders why the company doesn't offer card holders more perks, like a free latte for every 10 purchased.

"These guys are so successful they probably don't feel like they want to give things away, but I always think there are ways to drive loyalty to be even stronger," said Phillips, 35. "A lot of companies fall very short on that."

Occasionally, Starbucks e-mails registered card holders with surprises like $5 coupons toward a new seasonal drink, but Passe said the company has opted not to offer any regular promotions.

With competitors like Dunkin' Donuts, McDonald's and Burger King recently having raised the quality of their coffee ― while keeping much lower prices ― some suggest Starbucks will have to start sweetening its card rewards or risk losing customers.

"I think Starbucks has to react to the marketplace," Davidowitz said. "One way they can is to enhance this card. It's important, and I think they will."

___

On the Net:

Starbucks Card: http://www.starbucks.com/card

National Retail Federation: http://www.nrf.com

Wendy's: http://www.wendys.com

McDonald's: http://www.mcdonalds.com

Burger King: http://www.bk.com

8、Market eyes jobless, factory order news By TIM PARADIS, AP Business Writer
Sun Dec 3, 5:49 PM ET



NEW YORK - With December under way, Wall Street might begin counting down the number of shopping days left ― not until the holidays, but until retailers can say with certainty how the shopping season fared and whether consumer spending held up as hoped.

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Investors have received mixed signals on the health of retailers and consumers in general recently and in the coming week will be eyeing reports on factory orders as well as unemployment to gauge whether the economy is headed toward a soft landing as many hope following more than two years of interest rate hikes.

Strong consumer spending has been a pillar of the robust economic growth seen in recent years, but uneven reports from retailers raised questions about whether consumers will deliver for Wall Street this year. Last week, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. surprised investors by posting a drop in its November same-store sales, a primary retail measure reflecting sales at stores open at least a year. It was the first decline in a decade for the world's largest retailer.

As it seeks more data on how consumers are faring, Wall Street will no doubt take note of Friday's employment report from the Labor Department, particularly the government's jobs creation figure. Weekly unemployment claims rose unexpectedly last week to a 13-month high, causing some concern about the direction of the economy. While unemployment has been near five-year lows recently, a spike in jobless claims could signal businesses are cutting back ahead of an expected downturn.

Some on Wall Street keeping tabs on retailers are also watching the housing sector, wondering whether consumers might pare spending at the mall if they have concerns about falling home values. Investors have been wondering whether the well-documented slowdown in housing might pull the economy into recession or perhaps merely serve as a drag on growth. A quarterly report from upscale homebuilder Toll Brothers Inc. this week could lend some additional insight into the state of the sector.

In any case, investors will be hoping for a better week. Last week, the markets gave up ground, with the Dow Jones industrial average losing 0.70 percent. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 0.30 percent, while the Nasdaq composite index lost 1.91 percent.

ECONOMIC DATA

On Tuesday, the Labor Department reports revised productivity figures for the third quarter, though Wall Street isn't expecting a sizable change.

Also Tuesday, the     Commerce Department reports factory orders for October, and the Institute for Supply Management issues its services sector business index. That follows an important report Friday, November's ISM manufacturing figure, which showed the first decline in manufacturing in more than three years.

Thursday brings weekly data on weekly jobless claims. Later that day, the     Federal Reserve is expected to release its consumer credit report for October, a sometimes volatile reading of consumer debt.

Friday brings the Labor Department's November employment report, which includes the number of jobs created, average hourly earnings and the unemployment rate. The jobs creation figure often draws interest as it indicates the degree to which the economy might be growing or contracting.

The day also brings the University of Michigan's preliminary consumer confidence reading for December. The mood of consumers is of particular concern to Wall Street during the holidays because a strong showing in either direction could signal how retailers might make out during what is for many the most important selling period of the year.

EARNINGS

The earnings schedule is light for the week and gets started Tuesday with a third-quarter report from grocer Kroger Co., which is expected to earn 28 cents per share. The company, which has traded between $18.05 and $24.15 in the past 52 weeks, closed Friday at $21.65.

Wall Street also expects to hear from Toll Brothers Inc. Tuesday and predicts the company will earn $1.06 per share for its fiscal fourth quarter. The stock closed Friday at $32.16 and has traded between $22.22 and $39.98 in the past 52 weeks.

The same day, Novell Inc., which makes open-source software, including a version of the     Linux operating software, plans to report its fiscal fourth-quarter results. Wall Street is expecting a profit of 4 cents per share. The stock closed Friday at $6.29 and has traded between $5.73 and $9.83 in the past 52 weeks.

On Thursday, National Semiconductor Corp. is seen as reporting fiscal second-quarter earnings of 27 cents per share. The chip maker, which has traded between $20.56 and $30.93 in the past 52 weeks, closed Friday at $24.17.

9、Morales nationalizes Bolivia natural gas By DAN KEANE, Associated Press Writer
Sun Dec 3, 1:17 PM ET



LA PAZ, Bolivia - President Evo Morales signed into law Sunday contracts giving the government control over foreign energy companies' operations, completing a process begun May 1 with the nationalization of Bolivia's petroleum industry.

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The deals, signed by the companies last month, also grant Morales' government a majority share of the foreign companies' revenues generated in Bolivia. Companies that signed contracts include Brazilian state energy giant Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras), Spanish-Argentine Repsol YPF, France's Total SA, and British Gas, a unit of BG Group PLC.

Morales also announced Sunday that Royal Dutch Shell PLC had agreed to transfer to his government majority control of its Bolivian subsidiary Transredes, which operates the country's largest network of gas pipelines.

Bolivia's natural gas reserves are South America's largest after Venezuela's.

"We thank the Bolivian people who have struggled to recover their natural resources," Morales said in a signing ceremony at the presidential palace in the capital of La Paz. "We have now completed the first step. This process will continue next year with the recovery of other natural resources benefiting the Bolivian people."

Morales has said he also plans to nationalize Bolivia's mining sector.

Bolivia's first Indian president, Morales has vowed to reverse centuries of dominance by the country's European-descended minority, granting greater political and economic power to the poor indigenous majority.

Morales recently returned from a trip to Nigeria, which like Bolivia remains bitterly poor despite its vast petroleum reserves. On Sunday he said he hoped that nationalization initiatives similar to his own might lift oil-rich African nations from poverty.

"If we want to free ourselves as a people, if we want to resolve our social and economic problems, we must both liberate human beings and liberate their economies ― their natural resources, especially," Morales said. "Only then will there be justice and equality."

The contracts signed by the president Sunday were ratified by Bolivia's Senate in a hastily called session Tuesday night, during which lawmakers from Morales' Movement Toward Socialism party also pushed through a sweeping land-reform bill and an open-ended military cooperation pact with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.

The session ended a boycott by conservative lawmakers who intended to block Morales' reforms. But opposition leaders have questioned the legality of the session, in which assistants of two absent senators were called in to vote.

Completion of oil and natural gas nationalization has given Morales a sizable political boost. A poll published this week in the Bolivian newspaper La Razon found Morales' approval rating leaping to 67 percent in November from a low of 50 percent in October.

The poll of 1,019 residents in Bolivia's four largest cities was conducted Nov. 13-20 and had a margin of error of 3 percent points.