Business news with words department+expected+prices. 34 news.

CRUDE oil futures jumped yesterday on supply concerns, stoked by a new round of Turkish airstrikes in northern Iraq and a growing belief that US oil inventories fell last week. Turkey's military said its warplanes bombed eight suspected Kurdish rebel positions in northern Iraq on Wednesday. It was the third Turkish strike inside Iraq in less than two weeks. Iraq produced 2.32 million barrels of oil a day in November, according to the International Energy Agency, or about 2.7 percent of the world's oil supply. As much as 400,000 barrels a day is exported north across Iraq's border with Turkey, and the air assaults raise the risk of retaliatory strikes against oil infrastructure, analysts said. "People are nervous about a possible disruption of supply on some important pipelines" in the area, Mike Fitzpatrick, an analyst at MF Global in New York, told Dow Jones Newswires. The new attacks came as oil investors awaited inventory data from the Energy Department's

OIL prices drifted higher in light holiday trading yesterday after predictions of a drop in crude inventories raised new supply concerns. With little other news to motivate buying or selling, investors focused on forecasts by analysts including Addison Armstrong, director of exchange traded markets at TFS Energy Futures LLC, who predicted crude inventories fell by 1.5 million barrels last week. Tim Evans, an analyst at Citigroup Inc, predicted that crude stocks fell by 2 million to 3 million barrels. The Energy Department's Energy Information Administration reports oil inventories on Thursday this week, a day late due to Christmas. Light, sweet crude for February delivery rose 82 cents to settle at US$94.13 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after falling as low as US$92.50 earlier. Prices rose more than US$2 on Friday after the government reported consumer spending jumped more than expected in November, raising hopes that the economy will weather the crisis roiling

CRUDE oil futures rose yesterday after the government said stocks of crude and heating oil fell sharply last week while gasoline inventories jumped. In its weekly inventory snapshot, the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration reported crude stocks dropped by 7.6 million barrels last week, much more than the 1.5 million barrel decline analysts surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires, on average, had expected. Much of the decline was due to a sharp drop in imports, almost a million barrels a day, because fog closed the Houston Ship Channel last week, said Jim Ritterbusch, president of Ritterbusch and Associates in Galena, Illinois. "That's basically what drew crude supplies lower," Ritterbusch said. Traders expect crude supplies will rebound in next week's report, which will reflect deliveries that were delayed by the fog, Ritterbusch said. Meanwhile, investors were focusing on other aspects of the report, which were mixed. For instance, heating oil

HOUSING prices in 70 major Chinese cities jumped by 10.5 percent in November, according to an official with the country's top economic planning body. The growth rate was the largest monthly rise since July 2005 when China started to cover more cities in its monthly housing price survey. From January to November, housing prices grew by 7.3 percent year on year, with the cost of new homes jumping 7.9 percent, Cao Changqing, director of the pricing department under the National Development and Reform Commission, said in an online interview. Rising property prices, driven up by speculation, have become a major concern for Chinese citizens. "Despite falling sales, housing prices in parts of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen still remain high," he said. Prices are expected to remain stable as macro-control policies are starting to yield results, Cao said. The government introduced a string of policies to cool off the red-hot real estate market.

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- The dollar strengthened against other major currencies early Friday, getting a boost after the Labor Department reported hotter-than-expected consumer price inflation for November. The dollar rose 0.7% against the yen at 113.07 yen. The euro gave up 1% at $1.4491. The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback against a basket of other major currencies, rose 0.8% at 77.145. The consumer price index increased 0.8%, driven by a 5.7% gain in energy prices, the biggest gain in consumer prices in more than two years. Core inflation, which excludes food and energy prices, rose 0.3%, the biggest gain since January. The numbers were worse than expected. Economists were forecasting the CPI to rise 0.7% and the core rate to rise 0.2%, according to a survey conducted by MarketWatch.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - The underlying rate of U.S. inflation accelerated in November, the Labor Department said Friday. The consumer price index increased 0.8%, driven by a 5.7% gain in energy prices, the fastest increase in energy prices since March. This is the biggest gain in consumer prices in more than two years. Food prices rose 0.3%, and apparel, airline and drug prices also spiked. The core CPI, which excludes food and energy costs, was up 0.3% in November, the biggest gain since January. Economists were expecting the CPI to rise 0.7% in November after a 0.3% gain in October. The core rate was expected to rise 0.2% after rising 0.2% in the previous month.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Wholesale prices rose 3.2% in November - the largest change since 3.5% in August 1973 -- as energy price growth hit a new record, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Wholesale energy prices rose 14.1% in November, beating the prior record growth of 13.4% in January 1990. Growth in gasoline prices of 34.8% also hit a new record - beating the prior record of 28.8% in April 1999. Food prices had 0.0% growth, compared with a gain of 1.0% in the prior month. Excluding volatile food and energy, the core producer prices grew 0.4%. Economists had expected November's PPI to grow 1.8% and the core to grow 0.2%.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - U.S. retail sales rose a better-than-expected 1.2% in November, the best gain in six months, the Commerce Department estimated Thursday. The sales gains were widespread across most kinds of retail outlets, including gasoline, department stores and hardware stores. Auto sales were the only major source of weakness, falling 1%. The consensus forecast of Wall Street economists was for retail sales to rise 0.7%. Excluding autos, sales rose 1.8%. Wall Street had expected a increase of 0.7%. Higher prices at the pump contributed to the November sales gain. Excluding gasoline, sales increased 0.6%.

OIL futures rose sharply yesterday after the government reported unexpected declines in stocks of crude and heating oil last week and the Federal Reserve announced a plan to help banks weather the credit crisis. Crude supplies fell 700,000 barrels during the week ended December 7, according to a weekly inventory report from the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration. Analysts had expected a 100,000 barrel increase. And supplies of distillates, which include heating oil and diesel fuel, fell 800,000 barrels; analysts had expected inventories to rise by 300,000 barrels. "Traders are concerned about that drop in distillate supplies," said Phil Flynn, an analyst at Alaron Trading Corp., in Chicago. Earlier, the Fed said it was working with other central banks to try to counter the credit crisis. That alleviated some of investors' disappointment that the Fed on Tuesday cut interest rates by just a quarter percentage point. Many investors had hoped for a

OIL futures fell yesterday to their lowest level in six weeks after a mixed government inventory report failed to offset a belief that supplies are growing faster than demand. Investors shrugged off OPEC's decision to keep production levels steady, a possible sign prices have peaked for the year, analysts said. In its weekly inventory report, the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration said crude supplies plunged by 8 million barrels last week, much more than the expected 700,000 barrel decline. That caused oil prices to jump briefly above US$90 a barrel. But other aspects of the report weighed on prices as the day wore on. Crude supplies grew at the closely-watching Nymex delivery terminal in Cushing, Oklahoma. Inventories of heating oil rose when analysts had expected a decline, and gasoline supplies rose more than expected. "Overall, this is a mixed report," said Tim Evans, an analyst at Citigroup Inc, in a research note. Earlier yesterday,

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Growth in U.S. consumer spending ground to a halt in October, while inflation eroded American households' modest gains in income, the Commerce Department reported Friday. Nominal incomes rose just 0.2% in October. But after accounting for the 0.3% rise in prices, real after-tax incomes fell 0.1%. Consumer spending increased 0.2% in nominal terms and was flat after adjusting for inflation. Both incomes and spending were slightly weaker than expected on Wall Street. Inflationary pressures were steady in October. The personal consumption expenditure price index rose 0.3% for a second straight month. Core prices, which exclude food and energy prices, rose 0.2% for the second straight month. Core inflation was steady at 1.9% over the past year, just within the Fed's unofficial comfort zone.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Builders slashed prices at the fastest pace in 26 years in October, boosting sales of new homes from a much lower level of sales in September than was originally reported, according to Commerce Department data released Thursday. Sales rose 1.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 728,000 in October from a downwardly revised 716,000 in September, which was a 11-year low. September's sales pace was originally reported as 770,000. August's sales were also revised sharply lower to 717,000 from 735,000 estimated a month ago, and 795,000 estimated in the first release. Sales are down 23.5% in the past year. The October sales pace was much weaker than the 740,000 expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch.

CRUDE oil futures closed down in choppy trading yesterday, failing to breach US$100 a barrel after the government reported that crude oil inventories at a key Midwest oil terminal rose for the first time in weeks. The news helped offset the market impact of an overall drop in crude oil stocks. Light, sweet crude for January delivery fell 74 cents to settle at US$97.29 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Stocks of distillates, including heating oil, also dropped more than expected last week, the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration reported. That could mean more bad news for heating oil customers already expecting costs to rise 22 percent this winter. Heating oil futures fell 0.27 cent to settle at US$2.6874 a gallon on the New York Mercantile Exchange after earlier hitting US$2.7154, a new record. Crude prices -- which rose as high as US$99.29 on the New York Mercantile Exchange earlier Wednesday and broke the previous intraday record of US$98.62

ENERGY futures fell yesterday after the government reported unexpected increases in crude oil and gasoline inventories last week and OPEC forecast fourth-quarter demand for oil would be less than expected. In its weekly inventory report, the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration said oil inventories rose by 2.8 million barrels during the week ended November 9. Analysts surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires, on average, had expected a decline of 300,000 barrels. That helped send light, sweet crude for December delivery falling 66 US cents to settle at US$93.43 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after trading off more than US$2 a barrel earlier. Crude prices have been volatile this week, falling more than US$3 on Tuesday and rising more than US$2 on Wednesday after hitting a record of US$98.62 one week ago. The drop in crude was limited, however, by an unexpectedly large drop in heating oil supplies, a mixed report on Iran's compliance with UN demands over

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - The consumer price index increased 0.3% in October, driven by a 1.4% gain in energy prices, the Labor Department said Thursday. This was the fastest increase in energy prices since May. Food prices rose 0.3%. The core CPI, which excludes food and energy costs, was up 0.2% in October. Economists were expecting the CPI to rise 0.3% in October after a 0.3% gain in September. The core rate was expected to rise 0.2% in October after rising 0.2% in the previous month.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Wholesale prices rose 0.1% in October, as food prices rose and energy prices fell, the Labor Department reported Wednesday. Energy prices decreased 0.8% in October, compared with a gain of 4.1% in the prior month. Food prices rose 1.0%, compared with a 1.5% gain in the prior month. Excluding volatile food and energy, the core producer prices were flat with the prior month's level. Economists had expected both the PPI and core to rise 0.1%.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Orders for U.S.-made factory goods rose 0.2% in September on higher gasoline prices, the Commerce Department reported Friday. Orders for durable goods fell 1.7% on a big drop in orders for defense aircraft and other defense goods. Orders and shipments for nondurable goods rose 2.1%. The value of shipments from petroleum refiners jumped 11.2% on the month, accounting for all the gain in nondurables. Total factory orders were stronger than the 0.7% decline expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch. Factory orders had fallen a revised 3.5% in August. Special one-time factors in both directions clouded the underlying trends in September. Compared with a year ago, orders were down 0.1%, while shipments were off 0.2%.

CRUDE oil prices shot higher and then retreated yesterday, reaching a new record of US$96 a barrel before concerns about the US economy and France's decision to release oil from its strategic petroleum reserve motivated investors to cash in some of their recent gains. The Commerce Department's report that consumer spending rose by 0.3 percent in September, less than the 0.4 percent increase analysts expected, raised the prospect of a slowing economy that could depress demand for oil. And downbeat news about manufacturing came from the Institute for Supply Management, which said industrial activity grew in October at the weakest pace since March. Still, oil prices have surged 20 percent in one month, and when any market rises that far that fast, investors tend to sell to lock in some of their gains. The Federal Reserve's decision to cut interest rates a quarter-percentage point on Wednesday got a mixed reception in the oil market but probably contributed to some of Thursday's

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - The U.S. economy shook off the worst housing downturn in a generation to grow at a 3.9% annual pace in third quarter, the best performance in six quarters, the Commerce Department estimated Wednesday. The increase in gross domestic product was better than the 3.4% gain expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch. Growth was well-balanced in the period from July to September, with strong contributions from consumers, exports, capital spending, military spending, and inventory building. Housing investments continued to be a major drag. Despite rising worries about commodity prices, the GDP price index, the broadest measure of price changes in the economy, rose just 0.8% annualized, matching a nine-year low. Consumer prices rose 1.7%, while core consumer prices, which exclude food and energy prices, rose 1.8%, just within the Federal Reserve's target zone.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - U.S. consumer prices increased 0.3% in September on higher food and energy prices, but core inflation rose a more-moderate 0.2% for the fourth month in a row, the Labor Department reported Wednesday. The 0.3% increase in the consumer price index was the biggest since May. The figures came in exactly as expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch. The CPI figure will be used by the Social Security Administration to set next year's cost-of-living adjustment for benefits, which are expected to rise 2.8% in January to match the gain in the CPI for workers over the past 12 months. The core CPI, which excludes food and energy prices to get a better look at inflationary trends, has risen 2.1% in the past year.