Business news for Thu, 29 Nov 2007 & with word prices. 100 news.

THE International Monetary Fund (IMF) is likely to revise lower its 2008 estimate of world economic growth due to financial market turmoil and surging oil prices.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Thursday hinted that another interest rate cut may be needed to bolster the economy. The worsening credit crunch, a deepening housing slump and rising energy prices probably will create some "headwinds for the consumer in the months ahead," he said.

MGIC Investment, the largest mortgage insurer in the US, said it will raise its prices and tighten policy requirements in a bid to increase revenue and stem payouts

The nation’s biggest brewer will continue raising prices to counter a rise in the cost of ingredients, according to Chief Financial Officer W. Randolph Baker.

Reuters - Soft sales and plunging prices for new homes, together with a surge in claims for new jobless benefits highlighted a slide in U.S. economic activity that forced the Bush administration on Thursday to scale back its estimate for growth in 2008.

Dell Inc. said earnings grew 27 percent in the third quarter, buoyed by growth in overseas markets like Brazil and by prices falling for memory chips and other components.

FOREIGN developers and corporations will start to pay a land-use tax from next year in Shanghai, according to a notice issued by the city government. The land-use tax will range between 1.50 yuan and 30 yuan (US$4.06) per square meter per year depending on the size and location of the property, the notice said late on Wednesday. Foreign companies are exempted from the tax before the notice takes effect but they still need to pay certain fees for land use. Domestic companies have been paying the tax since 1988. Individuals are exempt from the tax on their residences. The new policy means that developers have to pay tax for the land approved by authorities for construction of property projects. The move is widely expected to add costs to developers which are hoarding land in order to fetch higher selling prices in the future. "The tax won't affect the city's housing prices since it has been imposed for many years," said Xue Jianxiong, head of research at Shanghai

ASTON Martin, the British iconic car maker made famous by suave British secret agent James Bond in his movies, yesterday drove into China's rapidly growing luxury sports car market when it opened its first showroom in Shanghai. The Shanghai Aston Martin Retail Center, franchised by GruppeM and located in Xintiandi, extends Aston Martin's global dealership network into China for the first time in the company's 94-year history. The country's flagship store boasts a double-deck exhibition space which is designed to hold five sleek models including the DB9 Volante, DB9 coupe and V8 Vantage. These models went on sale yesterday with prices costing between two million yuan (US$270,270) and three million yuan each. Aston Martin will also build an exclusive service facility close to Hongqiao airport in Shanghai. Its second showroom in China will soon open in Beijing early next month. "China is one of the fastest growing markets which Aston Martin has not previously made a

The biggest plunge in new home prices in 37 years was not enough to revive October sales, according to the government's latest reading on the battered housing and home building markets.

Reuters - Sears Holdings Corp reported sharply lower third-quarter profit on Thursday, sending its shares down as much as 14 percent to new lows, as sales fell at its U.S. Kmart and Sears stores and it cut prices to clear excess inventory.

One theme is increasingly being heard around Europe: namely the notion that inflation is eating into purchasing power.

More gloomy news on housing from three reports: The first quarterly decline in home prices in 13 years, one foreclosure for every 555 households, and a modest increase in home prices in October - but only after a particularly bad September.

Oil prices edged back after jumping sharply because of an explosion and fire that killed two people and briefly shut down a pipeline that supplies 20 per cent of US crude imports

Also on Thursday, government data showed that U.S. home prices had marked a quarterly decline for the first time in 13 years in the third quarter.

WORLD oil prices rebounded strongly after a fire struck a key pipeline linking Canada with the US, which is the biggest energy consumer in the world.

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) - More than 10,000 workers walked off the job at a South Korean plant that makes shoes for Nike, demanding higher pay to keep pace with rising prices in Vietnam, officials said Thursday.

NEW YORK - Treasury prices rallied Thursday, pressing the benchmark 10-year note yield back below 4 percent, after weak labor and housing reports stirred hopes that the Federal Reserve will cut rates again soon.

FT.com - London stocks closed higher on Thursday after mining and oil stocks gained on rising commodity prices, buoying an otherwise jittery market.