NOLA's startup scene draws out-of-town interest

NEW ORLEANS -- When Derrius Quarles was looking for a new headquarters for his Chicago-based startup, New Orleans wasn't the only city on his list.

Quarles, cofounder of Million Dollar Scholar, also considered New York, Philadelphia and Atlanta as places to grow the online platform he created to help college students secure financial aid.

His participation in an entrepreneurship program sponsored by PowerMoves.Nola, a group focused on attracting minority-owned businesses to the city, helped settle the issue. Quarles moved his one-and-a-half year old company to New Orleans earlier this month, aided in part by a five-figure investment from PowerMoves.

"It became very clear this city is very ripe for innovation, and education is one of the sectors receiving a great deal of attention and resources," Quarles said. "We just thought we were a really good fit."

A burgeoning entrepreneurial community eager to provide support, along with a variety of economic incentives and lower business costs, are prompting early-stage companies to move to New Orleans, according to their owners.

Economic development leaders say more financial investment and workforce are needed to keep them here.

From 2010 to 2012, the rate of business startups was 56 percent higher in metro New Orleans than the national average, according to The Data Center.

Four businesses are moving to the city from other states this summer and fall, spurred in part by PowerMoves' recruiting push. Officials there and with the New Orleans Business Alliance say at least five other viable candidates are seriously considering relocation plans.

Luke Cooper said he's planning to move the Baltimore, Maryland, headquarters of Asurvest, an online marketplace for insurance products, in October. Cooper, who participated in a PowerMoves.Nola boot camp and received $50,000 from the group, said the move is "primarily opportunity-driven."

"We wanted to be in an environment where we have access to talent and also some level of support from the city and level of interest in our business. We saw that at PowerMoves," he said.

PowerMoves.Nola this year has spent $200,000 on a half dozen early-stage companies that started in the city or have moved here. It has awarded additional money in scholarships and pitch competitions.

Other startups say state incentives and local support helped them make the move. At least three of those relocated from the East Coast into the New Orleans BioInnovation Center, including Crutcher Reiss and his wife Sarah, owners of myMix Nutrition, a dietary and supplement e-commerce platform.

Reiss, who grew up in New Orleans, said he was lured from New York City by incentives such as a tax credit that gives cash rebates to startups that create new jobs or spend capital in certain areas.

His company operates at a lower cost in the BioInnovation Center, and a BioFund loan program offers him lower rates on financing administrative expenses, equipment, refurbishments and general inventory.

Instead of paying $3,600 per month to work and live in a 450-square-foot New York City apartment, the couple spends $1,900 monthly for a wet lab and office space in New Orleans that are almost double the size. They also plan to attend an accelerator program this fall sponsored by The Idea Village, one of several local organizations that offer help to early-stage companies.

"With the incubator-style facility we are in, the accelerator program and the state tax credit environment .. that trifecta was more robust than we saw in a city anywhere else," Reiss said.

Aaron Walker's nonprofit fellowship program for early-stage social entrepreneurs, Camelback Ventures, didn't qualify for incentives when it moved from New York last month. But he said "the general entrepreneurial energy" that he saw while working with 4.0 Schools and participating in New Orleans Entrepreneur Week steered him to New Orleans.

"When you're trying to accomplish really big things, local commitment is important," Walker said. "Knowing there's political will around the issue is an important factor in tipping the factor toward New Orleans."

The city's popularity presents some challenges, though, including how to raise enough money to retain the new businesses. When it comes to early stage investment, Louisiana ranks 41st in the U.S., according to a 2010 PricewaterhouseCoopers/National Venture Capital Association MoneyTree Report.

"Some companies are being born here but moving somewhere else into adulthood," said Michael Hecht, CEO of the economic development organization Greater New Orleans Inc. "We have to continue to attract more institutional funding in Louisiana."

Finding enough workers can also be difficult, particularly in technology sectors, he said. And although the city has recently topped some favorable lists, its perception as a party town remains a problem, Hecht said.

"We spend a lot of our time trying to explain that this is a place you can come for not only a long weekend but also a long company," he said. "That is a challenge that we have, from startups all the way up to Fortune 500 companies."

Besides raising money, connecting early-stage companies to resources and people who will help them is paramount, said Leslie Jacobs, founder of PowerMoves.Nola and CEO of the New Orleans Startup Fund.

Information from: New Orleans CityBusiness, http://bit.ly/1gDTMhn

No incumbent advantage in Delaware treasurer race

DOVER, Del. -- Delaware's race for state treasurer is becoming more focused on experience and qualifications now that Chip Flowers has said he will not run for re-election, leaving no one with the built-in advantage of being an incumbent.

A tearful Flowers announced recently that he was quitting the race, following a harassment complaint filed by his former deputy and lingering questions about his knowledge of her repeated use of a state credit card for personal purchases.

The decision by Flowers, whose tenure also was marked by repeated clashes with lawmakers and other state officials, clears the way for his erstwhile primary opponent, Sean Barney, to become the Democratic nominee. Republicans Ken Simpler and Sher Valenzuela will square off Sept. 9 in a GOP primary.

The state treasurer manages the collection and disbursement of state funds and oversees, with the guidance of the Cash Management Policy Board, the investment of the state's $1.8 billion cash portfolio.

But the office also has been used as a political platform and launching pad. Gov. Jack Markell and U.S. Sen. Tom Carper each started his political career as Delaware's treasurer, and Flowers also had aspirations for higher office.

The dual perspectives of the treasurer's office have resulted in differing approaches by the candidates seeking to replace Flowers.

"Why would you trust your money to someone who has never managed a dollar ... who has never been a finance officer?" said Simpler, a chief financial officer for a Delaware-based hotel management company who previously oversaw a billion-dollar portfolio as a hedge fund executive.

While neither Barney nor Valenzuela has Simpler's financial expertise, both suggest that there's more to the treasurer's office than serving, as Valenzuela suggested in a recent debate, as "a highly paid bookkeeper."

Valenzuela, who along with her husband built a commercial upholstery business that has landed several lucrative government contracts, says she would be "a true watchdog for taxpayers." She envisions the treasurer's role as working for lower taxes, smaller government and limited regulations to help boost economic development.

"We would use the microphone of this office to advocate for change and deliver results for the taxpayer," said Valenzuela, who was the Republican candidate for lieutenant governor two years ago.

Barney, likewise, sees public advocacy as a key component of the treasurer's job. He has vowed to be a "voice for the financially stressed" and an "advocate for individuals, families and communities who seek a brighter economic future."

"It's worth having someone who has broad experience and can make the most of that opportunity," said Barney, a former policy director for Markell and former aide to Carper. "Delaware deserves a treasurer who can also realize the full potential of the office to make a broad difference in people's lives."

While Barney acknowledges that the main responsibility of the treasurer is "making sure the money goes where it's supposed to go," he says he also would build on financial literacy programs for Delaware families that Markell established during his tenure as treasurer.

Simpler argues that the job of helping individuals learn about household budgets and personal finances would be better left to public schools or the Department of Labor. The treasurer's office should instead focus its financial literacy efforts on helping taxpayers better understand the state's finances and what is being done with their tax dollars, he said.

"The treasurer's office can be the place from which we advocate for the most sound fiscal foundation for the state of Delaware," Simpler said.

All three candidates agree that the treasurer also should work to make information about the state's finances more transparent and easier to understand, and to identify and eliminate wasteful and inefficient spending within state government.

"The role of the treasurer is to manage the people's money and to rout out waste and to be accountable for how those dollars are spent," Valenzuela said.

Grain lower, livestock mixed

CHICAGO -- Grain futures were lower Friday in early trading on the Chicago Board of Trade.

Wheat for Dec delivery was unchanged at $5.7175 a bushel; Dec corn was 2 cents lower at $3.6725 a bushel; Dec oats were unchanged at $3.41 a bushel; while Nov soybeans lost 6.75 cents to $10.22 a bushel.

Beef was mixed and pork higher on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

Oct live cattle was .15 cent higher at $1.5025 a pound; Oct feeder cattle was .52 cent lower at 2.1425 a pound; Oct lean hogs rose 2.28 cents to $.9775 a pound.

American Airlines fares back on Orbitz after deal

NEW YORK -- After a three-day public tiff, American Airlines fares have returned to Orbitz.

Orbitz said Friday that it has reached an agreement with the airline that will allow it to continue selling American Airlines and US Airways tickets on its websites.

Terms of their agreement were not disclosed. The online travel company said that tickets previously bought on its sites are still valid.

American, which combined with US Airways in December, pulled flight listings from Orbitz sites as part of a dispute over the fees Orbitz charges to list and sell the flights. American said on Tuesday that it had already dropped its fares from Orbitz.com, CheapTickets, and ebookers.com, and said that US Airways would do the same on Monday. That drove Orbitz shares down about 5 percent Tuesday.

The dispute mostly affected customers booking leisure travel in the U.S. because the Orbitz sites continued to sell American flights listed by the company's code-sharing partners, including British Airways and Japan Airlines. Corporate customers also would have still been able to book travel through Orbitz.

Orbitz Worldwide Inc. shares rose 3.4 percent to $8.20 on Friday, but were still off 4 percent for the week. The Chicago company's stock rose 5 cents to $8.25 in aftermarket trading. Fort Worth, Texas-based American Airlines Group Inc. stock dipped 4 cents to $38.84 in extended trading Friday. Its shares have lost 2.4 percent this week.

Federal Judge Blocks Texas Restriction On Abortion Clinics

Opponents and supporters of a law that restricts abortion in Texas rallied outside the Texas Capitol in Austin as the bill was debated in July 2013. Eric Gay/ASSOCIATED PRESS hide caption

itoggle caption Eric Gay/ASSOCIATED PRESS

A federal judge in Austin struck down part of a Texas law that would have required all abortion clinics in the state to meet the same standards as outpatient surgical centers. The regulation, which was set to go into effect Monday, Sept. 1, would have shuttered about a dozen abortion clinics, leaving only eight places in Texas to get a legal abortion — all in major cities.

Judge Lee Yeakel ruled late Friday afternoon that the state's regulation was unconstitutional and would have placed an undue burden on women, particularly on poor and rural women living in west Texas and the Rio Grande Valley.

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, a Republican running for governor, immediately filed an appeal with the 5^th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

"We applaud today's ruling from Judge Yeakel," says Rochelle Tafolla, a spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast in Houston. "But we also understand that the fight to protect women's access to medical care, including safe and legal abortion, is not over."

Shots - Health News

State Abortion Laws Face A New Round Of Legal Challenges

Shots - Health News

Texas Law Could Lead To Closure Of Clinics That Offer Abortions

Supporters of the law argued that the surgical center requirement would make abortion safer, but the judge found no health benefit. He ruled that the effect might actually be the opposite, writing: "Higher health risks associated with increased delays in seeking early abortion care, risks associated with longer distance automotive travel on traffic-laden highways, and the act's possible connection to observed increases in self-induced abortions almost certainly cancel out any potential health benefit associated with the requirement."

Yeakel also noted that the intent of the Texas rule was to close existing abortion clinics, given that the state left no provision for "grandfathering" existing clinics that could not afford millions of dollars in upgrades to come into compliance with the regulation codes that govern surgery centers.

A local Houston obstetrician-gynecologist who performs abortions calls Yeakel's ruling "beautiful." (The physician asked not to be identified because he fears retribution from abortion protesters.)

The doctor says that if the Texas law had been upheld, he would have had to stop performing abortions in his two office locations, because they do not meet the surgery center requirements, which include particular hallway dimensions and certain equipment. He says he cannot afford to construct or purchase an outpatient surgery center, and leasing space in an existing center is difficult because other tenants don't want protesters around.

"This was a good case," he says "There is no medical anything, anywhere, to show that having this done in a hospital or ambulatory surgical center is safer. It's nonsense; it's not. Complications are the same, risks are the same."

With the day the law was supposed to go into effect fast approaching, the doctor says he told some patients who called this week seeking abortions to make appointments, but to keep in contact with his office.

" 'You call me, listen to the news, keep your fingers crossed and pray for the women of Texas to have their constitutional rights restored.' That's what I told patients today," he says.

Texas Right to Life, a Houston-based group, said in a statement that "Pro-Life Texans are disappointed in the dangerous ruling and disconcerted by the prospect that the financial interests of big business abortionists are placed in higher regard than the safety and health of women. The women of Texas have been subjected to shoddy, sub-par and potentially dangerous abortion facilities for too long."

In the decision, Judge Yeakel, who was appointed to the court in 2003 by President George W. Bush, focused on poor, rural and disadvantaged women. He says the burden did not just involve the hundreds of miles some women would have had to travel. He says that distance had to be assessed along with other factors such as the need for child care, the unreliability of transportation, the inability to take time off work, and even immigration status and the inability to pass immigration checkpoints.

He writes in the decision: "When viewed in the context of the other state-imposed obstacles a woman faces when seeking an abortion in Texas — including a sonogram requirement, a waiting period, and the reduced number of abortion performing physicians resulting from the admitting-privilege requirement – the court is firmly convinced that the State has placed unreasonable obstacles in the path of a woman's ability to obtain a pre-viability abortion."

The Houston doctor who says he's relieved by Yeakel's decision, also says he realizes he may have to cancel abortion appointments next week — depending on how the Fifth Circuit responds. He says his patients have to become more proactive.

"I'm there to support them in their right to choose," he says. "But you know I'm not going to take the whole thing on my head. If they want it, they should be out there, actually protesting and voting too."

This story is part of NPR's reporting partnership Houston Public Media and Kaiser Health News.

BC-Cotton Bale

NEW YORK -- Cotton futures No. 2 closed 5 cents a bale lower to $2.30 a bale higher Friday.

The average price for strict low middling 1 & 1-16 inch spot cotton advanced 33 cents to 66.86 cents per pound Friday for the seven markets, according to the Market News Branch, Memphis USDA.

WFP funds aid to Palestinian refugees from Syria

BEIRUT: The World Food Program (WFP) signed an agreement Friday to fund 50 percent of the UNWRA food program designated for Palestinian refugees who have entered Lebanon from Syria.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East and WFP signed the memorandum of understanding at the office of the United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Derek Plumbly, in Yarze.

Under the agreement, a $30 credit will be given monthly by UNRWA to each individual Palestinian refugee who has fled the violence in Syria, the agency's press release said.

The amount is equal to the one assigned by WFP’s regional project.

“This is an encouraging example of how cooperation among partners within and outside the UN system can help ease some of the suffering of the Palestinian refugees from Syria,” Plumbly said, welcoming the initiative.

According to Ann Dismorr, UNRWA’s director in Lebanon, “the Palestinian refugees from Syria rely heavily on UNRWA’s services and are increasingly vulnerable, especially since May, when further restrictions were introduced that limited their freedom of movement.”

“They have limited access to work in Lebanon and for many families, if not most, UNRWA’s cash assistance is their only source of income,” she added.

WFP's country director in Lebanon, Imad Osman Saleh, also welcomed this new partnership between the two agencies.

“We are confident that this cooperation will be fruitful and will lead to the improvement of the situation of the Palestinian communities from Syria, especially in terms of food security,” he said, addressing a crowd of officials, diplomats and U.N. agencies' heads.

While UNRWA depends on voluntary contributions for 97 percent of its budget, the agency has been suffering from a significant deficit, which has reached $54 million in 2014, according to the press release.

Firm: Money from closed casinos should stay in AC

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. -- A Wall Street firm predicts much of the money that had been going to three Atlantic City casinos that are closing will remain in Atlantic City after they're gone.

Fitch Ratings predicts Atlantic City's casino revenue will decline to $2.5 billion in 2015 from $2.86 billion last year.

In a report issued Friday, the firm also predicts a good chunk of the money being won by the Showboat, Revel and Trump Plaza should go to the eight surviving Atlantic City casinos.

Showboat and Revel are closing this weekend, and Trump Plaza is shutting down Sept. 16.

Fitch says the three Marina District casinos — the Borgata, Harrah's and the Golden Nugget — may benefit more than the Boardwalk casinos.

It also predicts more business for the Taj Mahal, Caesars and Bally's.

3 cited in Omaha area on ridesharing allegation

LINCOLN, Neb. -- State regulators have cited three people in suburban Omaha in connection with ridesharing, a smartphone-based service that's not allowed in Nebraska.

Public Service Commission director Mark Breiner told the Lincoln Journal Star (http://bit.ly/1zQzrMF ) that commission investigators on Wednesday ticketed three suspected Lyft drivers in Sarpy County on suspicion of four violations, including driving without a commission permit.

Lyft spokeswoman Chelsea Wilson says Lyft will help the drivers fight the citations.

On Thursday Uber announced that its UberX service would be joining Lyft, its ridesharing rival, in offering service in Lincoln.

The commissioner has told the two San Francisco-based companies that they need the commission's permission to offer services in Nebraska.

Lebanon's Army arrests militants after brief clash in Arsal

ISIS beheads Iraq Kurdish fighter: monitor

ISIS has posted video of the execution of a captured Kurdish fighter, in a warning to Iraqi Kurdish leaders to end...

Rai calls for UN-led military force against ISIS

BEIRUT: The United Nations should lead a military force against ISIS Maronite Patriarch Beshara Rai said Friday, while partially blaming the international community for the rise of extremism.

In a speech tackling possible solutions to the crises faced by the international Christian community, Rai called for the creation of “a military force under the hospices of the United Nations and the Security Council to put an end to the invasion by the terrorist organizations.”

Rai gave the address at the International Catholic Legislators Network’s conference in the Vatican City, which joins together Christian figures and government officials from numerous states, most notably the U.S., France, Germany, Italy, Canada and Spain.

The prelate blamed the international community for “bearing some responsibility for the growth of terrorist organizations,” and the tragedies occurring across the Middle East.

“Everyone knows that those countries are victims of international struggle motivated by political, economic and strategic interests [that are] related to the gas and the petrol in those countries,” he said.

Stressing that the world “should put an end to the terrorist organizations and especially ISIS," Rai said that the Arab and Islamic states should be especially concerned, given the harm such groups are causing to Islam.

Groups such as ISIS are “offering a distorted image of Islam by presenting it to the world as a religion that rejects diversity and persecutes those who are different,” he said.

Rai warned that the ongoing attacks on Christians in Iraq and Syria might lead to the creation of new, catastrophic realities.

“Christians are ending up paying the heaviest price and their very presence in the region, dating back to the time of Christ, is now in real jeopardy."

He said the different communities across the region need to consolidate in order to move toward modern states, following the Lebanese model.

“We all should work toward reconciliation among the various components of those countries and among denominations of the same religion.”

“In order for the countries of the Middle East to enjoy a just, global and lasting peace,” he continued, “they ought to endeavor to separate religion and the state, and establish the secular state according to Lebanon's example.”

While Lebanon separates the church and state, he explained, “it pays homage to almighty God and respect to all religions, as well as to their creeds and personal law.”

Rai arrived at the Vatican Thursday morning on an official visit to participate in the conference and meet with Pope Francis.

Agency seeks comment on Arizona Memorial tickets

PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii -- The National Park Service is accepting feedback on its new offering of "next day" tickets for the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor.

The park service said Thursday it's making 300 tickets available to people who make reservations one day in advance using the recreation.gov reservation system.

The agency began the new service last month.

It did so after tour companies reserving tickets for large groups months in advance resulted in limited tickets being available for visitors who decided to go to Pearl Harbor after they arrived on Oahu.

A maximum of 4,350 visitors may visit the memorial above the sunken battleship each day.

The public may go the website http://bit.ly/1lzRdDf to submit comments.

Feds reviewing Reynolds' deal to buy Lorillard

RICHMOND, Va. -- Federal regulators are putting Camel cigarette maker Reynolds American Inc.'s planned $25 billion takeover of rival Newport maker Lorillard Inc. under the microscope.

The nation's second-biggest tobacco company said Friday that the Federal Trade Commission has asked for additional information as part of an antitrust review of the deal.

The move announced in July to combine two of the nation's oldest and biggest tobacco companies would create a formidable No. 2 to rival Altria Group Inc., owner of Marlboro maker Philip Morris USA. It also would create a new major player in the country's tobacco market — the U.K.'s Imperial Tobacco Group, which would triple its share of the U.S. cigarette market by buying some of the companies' other brands for $7.1 billion.

The deal, which Reynolds and Lorillard value at about $27 billion including debt, is expected to close in the first half of 2015 but faces further scrutiny over how the combination would affect competition in a highly competitive market and cigarette prices, which have grown about 5 percent annually in the last 10 years.

Once complete, the new company, which will remain based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, is projected to have more than $11 billion in revenue and claim an about 34 percent share of the U.S. retail cigarette market. It also would a powerhouse in menthol cigarettes, which are becoming a bigger part of the business and gives the combined company some breathing room even as people smoke fewer cigarettes every year. The company, however, will sell off Lorillard's dominant Blu e-cig brand to focus on Reynolds' rechargeable Vuse e-cigarette brand, which expanded nationally in June.

While the companies did not say what specific information regulators have requested as part of the review called a second request, federal merger guidelines place importance on future competition.

Analysts have focused specifically on the share of adult smokers under 30 years old as a predictor of future market share positions and trends. Currently the industry distribution of that market is split between three companies but would shift to two companies having about 45 percent share of adult smokers under 30.

Other issues include enhanced market power, particularly in the menthol category, in which Newport and Camel are two of the largest players. On its own, Newport accounts for 37 percent of the menthol segment.

CLSA analyst Michael Lavery places the likelihood of the deal being approved as-is at 30 percent. Others believe there's a 40 percent chance it's blocked altogether and other brands may need to be sold to pass muster.

"The process is inherently unpredictable (and possibly political), but we believe the guidelines point to real hurdles to approval," he wrote in an investor note.

While regulators have declined to comment on the content of or timeline for the review, an analysis of average investigation length in the Antitrust Law Journal, indicates the review could take around 170 days.

Michael Felberbaum can be reached at http://bit.ly/1dbspXO.

Contract workers offer to help fix power shortages

BEIRUT: Striking workers said they would work to end the drastic power cuts in Beirut, as Electricite du Liban and the contract workers traded blame Friday for the increasing blackouts.

“The contract workers' committee is ready to help and carry any repairs that fall under its domain and specialization,” the strikers said in a statement released Friday.

While power cuts are a regular experience in Lebanon, rationing has increased, with many areas experiencing almost total blackouts, in recent weeks as the workers have occupied EDL headquarters and branches across Lebanon for three weeks.

The contract workers' statement said a “malfunction at the UNESCO station” - which controls the electricity flow to the whole of Beirut - was the responsibility of the Transport Administration at EDL. However, the contract workers said that the facility’s doors “are open to take out any equipment required” to fix any problems.

According to the National News Agency, a representative of the contract workers called the head of the Parliament's Public Works and Energy Committee, MP Mohammad Qabbani, to inform him of their decision to cooperate.

“Qabbani welcomed the move and tasked the institution’s administration to act immediately,” the NNA reported.

The workers’ offer of help came after EDL released a statement earlier Friday, refusing to take any blame for the severe electricity rationing in the capital.

“We, the executives of all the institution’s departments, are forcibly denied access to our working place," EDL’s executives said in a letter to company Chairman Kamal Hayek.

“We are not able to do our job responsibilities outside our offices to ensure the continuity of electricity flow,” the letter said. “Thus, we deny culpability over any consequences of the occupation of the headquarters.”

The blocking of the facilities by the contract workers, employed by private service providers, has sparked a call to strike by the EDL's full-time employees.

“The union of workers and employees at Electricite du Liban ... decided to strike Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday,” in the coming week, a union statement said.

The employees called for the opening of EDL’s headquarters and the protection of the right of company personnel to freely enter and exit their workplaces.

“What has been happening in the institution during the last 21 days has never happened in any other institution on Lebanon’s territory,” the statement said, “in parallel to a horrible silence and negligence by all officials and politicians toward this vital port.”

The strike will only exclude the power plant workers, the “coordination workers in the transportation administration,” and the workers at “the main transfer station,” according to the statement.

US consumer spending dips 0.1 percent

WASHINGTON -- U.S. consumer spending fell in July, with a drop in auto purchases accounting for most of the weakness. Income growth also slowed.

Consumer spending edged down 0.1 percent last month after a 0.4 percent increase in June, the Commerce Department reported Friday. It was the first decline in spending since January. Income growth slowed to 0.2 percent in July, the weakest showing in seven months.

The fall in spending came primarily from a decline in auto sales, which took a breather in July after posting big gains in recent months, although spending in other areas was also weak.

Consumer spending accounts for 70 percent of economic activity, so it needs to recover for the economy to keep its momentum in the second half of the year.

The July spending fall reflected a 0.7 percent drop in purchases of durable goods such as autos and a smaller 0.1 percent dip in purchases of nondurable goods. Spending on services was flat, which reflected in part less spending on utilities because of cooler-than-normal weather in July.

With a slight income gain and spending declining, the personal saving rate rose to 5.7 percent of after-tax income in July, up from 5.4 percent in June. The July saving rate was the highest since it stood at 10.5 percent in December 2012.

An inflation gauge tied to consumer spending edged up 0.1 percent in July and was 1.6 percent higher than 12 months ago. That is still below the Federal Reserve's inflation target of 2 percent, although it is up from its recent lows of 1 percent increases year-over-year.

The government reported Thursday that the overall economy grew at an annual rate of 4.2 percent in the April-June quarter, even faster than the previous estimate. It was a solid rebound after the economy went into reverse in the January-March quarter, shrinking at an annual rate of 2.1 percent. That setback came in the wake of unusually cold weather that kept shoppers away from the malls, reduced factory production and disrupted other economic activities.

Analysts are hopeful that the momentum that emerged during the second quarter will keep pushing the economy forward in coming months. Many expect growth in the current quarter to come in around 3 percent, and they believe the economy will expand by around 3 percent in the fourth quarter as well.

Much of that optimism stems from strong job growth this year. Jobs gains have averaged 244,000 a month since February, the best six-month string in eight years. Those gains have pushed the unemployment rate down to 6.2 percent.

An improving job market means rising household incomes, greater consumer confidence and thus, more consumer spending.

Financial markets are looking for signs that the Federal Reserve will begin raising interest rates out of concerns over inflation. However, Fed Chair Janet Yellen in remarks last week at an annual conference at Jackson Hole, Wyoming, gave no hint that she is ready to support an increase in the Fed's benchmark short-term interest rate, which has been near zero since December 2008.

Many economists believe the first rate hike will not occur until next summer. Still, some believe that if the job market keeps surpassing expectations, the central bank may see the need to raise rates sooner, possibly as early as next March.

Largest UK retailer warns on profits, shares drop

LONDON -- Tesco shares have dropped sharply after Britain's largest retailer by revenue issued another profit warning and slashed its dividend to shareholders by 75 percent.

The supermarket giant says market conditions remained challenging, cutting its forecast for 2014-2015 trading profits to between 2.4 billion pounds ($3.9 billion) and 2.5 billion pounds. Forecasts had been for 3.3 billion pounds.

Tesco says Dave Lewis, most recently an executive at Unilever, would start his job as CEO on Monday, a month earlier than planned. The company says he will review "all aspects of the group in order to improve its competitive position."

He replaces Philip Clarke, who struggled amid intense competition from retailers catering to customers hit by tough economic times.

Shares were down 4.7 percent to 234.85 pence Friday.

Ecuador heralds digital currency plans

QUITO, Ecuador -- Ecuador is planning to create the world's first government-issued digital currency, which some analysts believe could be a first step toward abandoning the country's existing currency, the U.S. dollar, which the government cannot control.

The virtual currency, which Central Bank officials say they expect will start circulating in December, does not yet have a name and officials would not disclose technical details, though they said it would not be like Bitcoin. The amount of the new currency created would depend on demand.

Deputy director Gustavo Solorzano said it is to exist in tandem with the greenback and, by law, be backed by liquid assets. It would be geared toward the 2.8 million Ecuadoreans — 40 percent of participants in the economy — too poor to afford traditional banking, officials say.

Users initially will be able to make and receive payments at minimal cost using their cellphones, Solorzano said. Such mobile payments schemes are already popular in African nations including Kenya and Tanzania, where they are privately run.

The new currency was approved, and stateless crypto-currencies such as Bitcoin simultaneously banned, by Ecuador's National Assembly last month.

Leftist President Rafael Correa has said the project's only problem is that it has taken this long, defending it against "pseudo-analysts who have appeared in the media trying to smear (it)." He denies any plan to replace the U.S. dollar, which Ecuador set as its currency in 2000 after a crippling banking crisis.

The official in charge of the new currency, Fausto Valencia, said the software is already used in Paraguay by cellphone companies.

He said it is not like Bitcoin, whose advantage is in its technical underpinnings: Only a limited amount of Bitcoin can be minted. Without that safeguard, economists have warned, a government could theoretically create as much as it wants, risking inflation.

Nathalie Reinelt, an emerging payments analyst with the U.S.-based Aite Group, said she does not understand any other motivation for creating such a currency than to allow Ecuador to increase its money supply and, essentially, devalue its U.S. dollar holdings.

"It is far too early to know how they are thinking of making the electronic money work," said analyst Juan Lorenzo Maldonado of Credit Suisse LLC.

Some believe it could be a first step to abandoning the U.S. dollar, Ecuador's currency since January 2000. Correa denies it puts dollarization in peril.

His government has tripled social spending, and opposition lawmaker Ramiro Aguilar says it "has a serious fiscal liquidity problem. It needs money ... It doesn't mint money. It has no control over what circulates."

The state is currently $11 billion in debt, mostly to China, which buys most of Ecuador's oil. It recently sold $2 billion in bonds with a 7.95 percent return, as well as obtaining another $400 million from Goldman Sachs in exchange for part of its gold reserves.

Use of the currency will be voluntary and it will not be used to pay public employees or state contractors, according to the law. Nor can it be used to buy financial instruments the Finance Ministry emits.

Some question whether Ecuador's Central Bank is constitutionally empowered to create such a currency.

"Let's remember that the Central Bank has no autonomy, and this could lend itself to all manner of political maneuvers," said independent political analyst Jaime Carrera.

Associated Press writer Frank Bajak contributed to this report.

India, Japan each seek deals during Modi's visit

TOKYO -- Japan and India both have much to gain from a visit by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and more than a dozen Indian steel, energy and IT tycoons that begins Saturday in the ancient capital of Kyoto.

The two countries have complementary economies, given Japan's wealth and technological prowess and India's natural resources and drive to modernize its economy.

So far, though, they have failed to capitalize much on those mutual interests. The two countries signed an economic cooperation agreement in 2011 that is gradually dismantling tariffs, but trade between the two — despite gains — remains a tiny fraction of their overall import and export flows. That's partly because of India's restrictive policies toward foreign investment and partly because Japanese companies have been so focused on China.

Analysts expect Modi's visit with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to yield some substantial agreements, and possibly a long-awaited deal on cooperation in nuclear power generation technology. But in the long run, Modi must deliver on promises to improve his country's investment environment while balancing India's growing engagement with both Japan and rival China.

"I think there'll be some very big agreements, on the energy side also, not just nuclear but also renewable energy. India has been lagging on that and needs help from Japan," said Rajiv Biswas, chief Asia-Pacific economist at IHS Economics.

In the run-up to their meeting, Abe and Modi have been exchanging endearments on Twitter.

"I deeply respect his leadership & enjoy a warm relationship with him from previous meetings," Modi wrote of Abe, adding that he hoped to take to take the relationship "to a new level."

"India has a special place in my heart. I am eagerly waiting for your arrival in Kyoto this weekend," tweeted back Abe, who is taking the unusually cordial step of traveling to Kyoto to escort Modi and his delegation before they fly to Tokyo late Sunday.

Since taking office in late 2012, Abe has been trotting the globe to help clinch big contracts for Japanese industrial giants like Hitachi and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, as part of his "Abenomics" agenda to help restore the country's economic dynamism. India, which plans to spend some $1 trillion on roads, railways and other infrastructure in 2012-2017, is a VIP customer.

And Modi will be trying to woo Japanese investment in three of his favorite projects, including railway modernization, an industrial corridor between New Delhi and Mumbai, and a plan to build 100 "smart cities" with high-tech communication facilities and modern infrastructure.

"Who is a better expert in bullet train technology than Japan?" said Kunal Singh, a researcher at the Center for Policy Research, a New Delhi think tank.

The financial newspaper Nikkei reported Thursday that the two sides may also expand cooperation on India's mining of rare earths, as Tokyo diversifies away from a longstanding reliance on China for the minerals used in many high-tech applications.

To help move things along, India needs to attract investment by slashing red tape, experts say.

Yet it remains unclear if Japan would proceed with sales of nuclear technology and related equipment to India. Such exports have been hampered by sensitivity in Japan over India's atomic tests and its refusal to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

"It is not an easy ride, definitely," Singh said. But he added that while India is balking at limits Japan wants to impose, the personal camaraderie between Abe and Modi might help, adding "the personal equations have to kick in, and we know they share a good bonhomie."

So far, Japan's investments have been concentrated mainly in India's thriving pharmaceuticals sector and auto industry — Maruti-Suzuki, a subsidiary of Japan's Suzuki Motor Corp., is India's biggest carmaker. In the energy sector, the Japan Bank for International Cooperation and other Japanese banks agreed earlier this year to co-finance a $550 million loan for Reliance Industries Ltd.'s expansion of petrochemical and gasification plants and a refinery.

And Abe's moves to ease restrictions on exports of defense-related equipment dovetails with Modi's goal of refurbishing India's military.

During a visit by Abe to India in January, the two sides agreed on closer cooperation in the energy and telecom sectors. The two sides also agreed to hold regular consultations between their national security councils on security issues. India invited Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force to participate in this year's India-U.S. naval exercises off India's western coast, and it wants to buy an amphibian aircraft called the US-2 and to participate in its production.

Japan's exports to India, especially of electronics, iron and steel, have jumped in the past decade. From India, Japan imports mostly refined petroleum products, gems and seafood.

Yet Japanese brokerage Nomura said in a recent research report that noted that despite a 15 percent annual rate of increase in two-way trade between the two countries in recent years India accounts for only 1 percent of Japan's total trade, and Japan only 2 percent of India's.

Despite his keenness on Abe and Japanese investment to help support his economic agenda, Modi can only go so far. Shortly after his return home, he will be playing host to visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping.

"He's going to have to play a balancing act," said Biswas at IHS Economics. "He will be playing it relatively even-handedly. Both are important economies and he won't want to be seen as playing favorites."

Associated Press writers Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo and Tim Sullivan and Vineeta Deepak in New Delhi contributed to this report.

Fiat investor tally shows Chrysler deal on course

ROME -- Fiat says an ongoing tally of investors suggests there are not enough opposed to a merger with Chrysler to derail the deal.

This month, Fiat shareholders overwhelming approved the merger, but Italian law gives dissenters the right to cash out. Fiat said that if investors cashed out more than 500 million euros ($650 million) in shares, the merger to create Fiat Chrysler Automobiles would be off.

Fiat SpA will announce the final tally by Sept. 4.

The company said Friday that so far the maximum number of shares to be cashed is below the cap.

Sergio Marchionne, CEO of Fiat and Chrysler, said he is "reassured" that most shareholders support the plan. The merger has been in the works since Fiat took a 20 percent share of Chrysler in 2009.

Lebanon minister vows to pay municipalities telecoms revenue

BEIRUT: Lebanon will soon transfer overdue telecoms revenue to municipalities, the finance minister pledged Friday, while calling into question millions in missing revenues.

“We are committed to distributing the accumulating funds to the municipalities and we will continue demanding answers and seeking accountability for those who neglected to grant the municipalities their lawful rights,” Ali Hasan Khalil told reporters in a news conference at his ministry.

“The municipalities should be confident that we, as politicians and officials in the government, will secure your right to access the funds.”

He said he was in the process of drafting a decree that would put forward a mechanism to distribute the revenues to municipalities.

Municipalities have been demanding that the government released telecoms revenues similar to what happened in 2013.

Former Telecoms Minister Nicolas Sehnaoui has accused successive governments in Lebanon of withholding these funds from the municipalities and using most of them to settle part of the budget deficit.

Despite repeated requests to the Telecoms Ministry to provide the Finance Ministry with a detailed report about the revenues designated for the municipalities, Khalil said he only received the report in July of 2014.

“The accumulated revenues for the municipalities now stand at LL673 billion from the start of 2010 to the end of March 2014,” he said.

“From 2003 to 2009, the revenues were estimated at LL685 billion. This amount was apparently transferred as telecoms revenues to the Finance Ministry without designating it to the municipalities.”

Khalil said the Finance Ministry had no clue “what the amount was or what had happened” to the revenues that should have been transferred to the municipalities between 1993 and 2002.

He said that the amount most likely had gone to the state treasury instead, noting that the government was now indebted to municipalities due to the failures of previous ministries.

Spirit AeroSystems offers voluntary retirements

WICHITA, Kan. -- Spirit AeroSystems is offering a voluntary retirement program to some management and salaried employees in Wichita and Kinston, North Carolina.

Company spokesman Ken Evans said Thursday the employees must be older than 55 and have worked at least 10 years with the company to qualify for the program. The company did not release any further details.

Evans says the company has not set a specific number of employees it wants to retire.

The Wichita Eagle reports (http://bit.ly/VUVLrf ) Spirit is cutting costs and making other changes, such as bolstering top management, reducing overtime for hourly workers and putting its Tulsa wing plant up for sale.

Why Are We Still Watching Football?

Published in the September 2014 issue

I know but one thing about the upcoming football season:

I'm going to watch it.

And I'm going to feel a little bad about watching it.

Not bad enough to stop watching it, but bad, especially when a player goes down and everybody's hushed and waiting for him to move or when they keep replaying another player's anatomy being pushed beyond the breaking point. I can hear the announcer now: "Oh. Oh. Folks, I don't know if you want to watch this… ."

But I'll watch that, too, with near forensic intensity, and wonder why.

And I won't be the only one. Football, as we all know, is under siege. It's under siege from former Pro Bowlers who want the NFL to account for their morbidities and their mortalities. It's under siege from college players who want to get paid. It's under siege from mothers who don't want their boys to be offered up as ritual sacrifices. But mostly it's under siege from the American conscience, which has finally started to ask questions about the human cost of our autumnal weekend entertainment.

But not enough to stop watching.

At the same time football has endured the endless attack, it has grown bigger than ever and is at the very apotheosis of its power. Like many American institutions, it's too big to fail yet too big to be morally sustainable, and its decline seems both impossible and inevitable. It can't go on; it must go on. It must be stopped; it can't be stopped.

And yet we keep watching. Why?

There are two books out this season that seek to answer that question: Mark Edmundson's Why Football Matters: My Education in the Game (Penguin, $27) and Steve Almond's Against Football: One Fan's Reluctant Manifesto (Melville House, $23). As their titles indicate, they are very different books, but they start from the same premise: Boys watch football to connect with their fathers. And then, depending on which author you believe, they become either men or unwitting cogs in a horrible industrial machine that feasts on our bodies and our souls.

Edmundson believes they become men. Forty-five years ago, he was a soft and nearsighted kid who surprised his friends by going out for his high school football team and surprised himself by making it. Today he is an English professor at the University of Virginia with a bunch of books under his belt. In Why Football Matters, he argues that he wouldn't be what he is today if he hadn't made the team then, if football hadn't built his character and made a man of him. He is not unconvincing in his assertion, because as a writer he is a lot like he describes himself as a player—a little slow, a little soft, but hardworking and achingly sincere. The character that football built is very much on display in his prose—to the point that it seems to prevent him from seeing that football is no longer merely a timeless game but also a symptomatic one. Does football still matter? Of course it does, but you can't read, say, the Wells Report—the NFL-commissioned investigation of the abuses Jonathan Martin suffered in the Miami Dolphins' locker room—without thinking that it matters in all the wrong ways.

And that's where Almond steps in. He believes that we watch football because we have been told that it matters—because we have been told that it's turning players into men, when in reality it's turning them into meat. He believes that we watch football for the same reason we still drive our cars, even as we know of the catastrophic climatic consequences, and eat our hamburgers, even as we know of the horrors of industrial beef production. According to Against Football, we are in the hands of Big Football just as surely as we are in the hands of Big Oil and Big Meat. And though Almond's short book is essentially a long blog post—it gets more and more echo-chambery as it goes, eventually placing every failure of the progressive ideal, from our militarism to our religiosity, on football's doorstep—his argument will be hard to shake when it comes time to watch football this fall.

But I will watch. I will watch football because I connected with my father through football. I will watch because, like Edmundson, I played high school ball and after years of warming the bench finally succeeded at the end of my senior season, receiving such a boost in confidence that I know I wouldn't be doing what I'm doing now without it. I will watch because it's the only game that has ever mattered to me, and, as Nate Jackson wrote in his stellar NFL memoir, Slow Getting Up, "the ball in flight is still the most beautiful sight I know." I will watch because I manage to wring aesthetic bliss from its armored violence and because I still can gaze upon The Starry Night knowing what it cost van Gogh. But I'll also watch because it's in the same untenable position as America itself, too big to fail and yet failing, and I own it even as it owns me.

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German economic fears growing but Merkel strong

BERLIN -- Ordinary Germans are spooked about the future. Businesses are starting to see black clouds on the horizon. And an economy that has been the envy of Europe is showing cracks, shrinking unexpectedly last quarter amid the conflict in Ukraine.

It might seem like enough to put any leader into trouble. But Chancellor Angela Merkel's popularity remains sky-high — with nobody in sight to touch her.

It shows the German public is prepared to endure some hardships — such as a rise in energy costs if the sanctions war with Russia escalates — as long as Merkel is seen as dealing strongly with the crisis.

"She holds her line, and this gives the German electorate the impression she is doing a good job in the interests of Germany," said Nils Diederich, a political scientist at Berlin's Free University. "I don't think that there are very many governments in Europe with such a stable position as the German government at this moment."

Merkel's support stands at 65 percent according to the latest polls, and her party was also by far the most popular in Germany. While Merkel's measured approach has helped the perception that she is steering the country deftly through chaotic times, she also benefits from the fact that Germany is not in as vulnerable a position as others, especially Eastern European countries.

Germany is the largest single purchaser of Russian gas, but it only represents around 30 percent of its overall gas supply. If Russian President Vladimir Putin stopped gas flows from Russia completely — something Merkel has noted didn't even happen at the height of the Cold War — Germany could increase supplies from elsewhere, albeit at greater cost. It could also ramp-up other sources of energy production, like coal-fired electrical plants, to take up much of the slack.

"The Russians need the German money," said Carsten Brzeski, chief economist at ING-DiBa bank in Frankfurt. "I would think that if Putin starts to retaliate on energy, he will go for Eastern European countries because they are sometimes as much as 100 percent dependent on Russian gas.

"He would cause much more pain there than he would in Germany and he would lose less money."

In terms of trade, German exports to Russia were worth 36.1 billion euros last year — no small change, but only 3.3 percent of the country's overall foreign trade. Imports from Russia were 40.4 billion euros, or 4.5 percent of the total.

That places Russia as Germany's No. 11 trade partner, behind France, the Netherlands, China, the U.S., the U.K., and several other European countries. And Brzeski said sluggish growth among many of the more important trade partners represents a far greater threat to German exports than the Ukraine conflict does.

Still, while the second quarter 0.2 percent contraction is seen largely as a temporary slowdown due primarily to a mild winter and other one-off factors, Merkel did caution this week that the Ukraine crisis remains an "uncertainty" for the economy. The Finance Ministry said the shrinkage was also "related to the effect of sanctions and negative effects on confidence due to the Ukraine crisis."

Germany's Committee on Eastern European Economic Relations, a joint organization of leading business associations, already estimates that in the first half of the year, sanctions and political tensions contributed to a 15.5 percent decline in exports to Russia.

Early in the crisis, businesses had been largely against trade measures against Russia, but the powerful Federation of German Industry in July backed the possibility of more sanctions following the downing of Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 — saying that they may come at a painful cost, but should not be ruled out.

It seems now that businesses are willing to accept some damage to their bottom line to mitigate greater risks, Brzeski said.

He pointed to the GfK study released Tuesday, which reported that economic expectations among German consumers had "completely collapsed" over concerns about the conflicts in Iraq, Israel and Ukraine. At the same time, the Ifo institute's business climate study released Monday showed companies' expectations for the next six months down only slightly in August.

Businesses don't seem particularly worried right now, but that could change quickly if Ukraine fears prompt people to put off high-priced purchases — like a new Mercdes, BMW, Audi or Porsche — he said.

"Businesses see the risk of potential psychological spillovers," he said. "At first they screamed Russia is very important, but I think now the risk of a war in the area would have a bigger impact on sentiment than the real actual impact from sanctions and a trade war."

Key events in the history of Malaysia Airlines

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia -- Key dates in the history of Malaysia Airlines from its start as a one route airline until its almost unfathomable double passenger jet disasters in 2014.

1937 — Malayan Airways Ltd., the forerunner of Malaysia Airlines, is formed to provide flights between Penang in Malaya and Singapore, both part of the British empire at the time.

1963 — A now independent Malaysia absorbs neighboring British colonies and the national carrier becomes Malaysian Airlines Ltd.

1972 — The carrier is renamed Malaysian Airline System and later branded as Malaysia Airlines.

2012 — Wins "World's Best Crew" award from airline rating firm Skytrax, the 7th time it has claimed that industry accolade since 2001.

2013 — Losing ground to budget airline rivals, losses at Malaysia Airlines balloon to 1.17 billion ringgit ($363 million), nearly three times larger than its 433 million ringgit loss in 2012.

March 8, 2014 — Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 severs contact with air traffic control en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing and veers far of course with 239 people on board; searchers have still not located the plane which is believed to have crashed into the southern Atlantic Ocean.

March 10 — Shares of Malaysia Airlines plunge 20 percent when stock market trading opens on the Monday after Flight 370 vanished.

May 29 — The Malaysia Airlines union calls for the resignation of CEO Ahmad Jauhari Yahya, saying new management is needed to revive the beleaguered flag carrier.

June 25 — CEO Ahmad Jauhari Yahya says the airline's business is seeing a "significant recovery" from the Flight 370 tragedy but must undergo radical changes to survive.

July 17 — Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 is blasted out of the sky over an area of Ukraine controlled by pro-Russian rebels, killing all 298 people on board.

July 18 — Malaysia Airlines shares drop 14 percent. Analysts estimate the airline is losing $1.6 million a day and won't survive a year without a bailout.

Aug 25 — Malaysia Airlines says passengers dropped 11 percent in July compared with a year earlier.

Aug 29 — Malaysia's state investment fund, which is the majority shareholder of Malaysia Airlines, says 6,000 of the airline's 20,000 staff will be cut as part of a $1.9 billion overhaul to return the airline to profit by 2017.

Chinese e-commerce rivals challenge Alibaba

BEIJING -- China's biggest property developer, Wanda Group, and Internet giants Baidu and Tencent unveiled a new e-commerce venture Friday in a challenge to industry leader Alibaba Group ahead of its U.S. stock offering.

The three companies said they will integrate online and offline selling, with e-commerce services in Wanda's 107 shopping malls, as well as its hotels and resorts. They said they would invest 5 billion yuan ($814 million) to start.

The venture adds to competition for Alibaba, whose Taobao, Tmall and other platforms account for some 80 percent of Chinese online commerce. The company is preparing for a U.S. initial public offering that analysts say might value it between $150 billion and $200 billion.

The new venture will develop services including online finance, the owners said. That could pose a challenge to Alibaba's popular banking service, Yu'ebao.

China is the world's most populous Internet market, with more than 600 million people online. The consulting firm McKinsey has said online shopping might triple from 2011 levels to $400 billion a year by 2015.

Wanda will own 70 percent of the new venture, the Wanda E-Commerce Co.

Baidu Inc., operator of China's most popular search engine, and Tencent Holdings Ltd., which operates games and the popular WeChat instant message service, each will hold 15 percent.

The development of such online-to-offline, or O2O, models is "an inevitable trend" in e-commerce, said the CEO of Wanda E-Commerce, Dong Ce, in a statement. He said the joint resources of the three owners should make the company the biggest of its kind.

Tencent also owns a stake in JD.com, China's second-largest e-commerce company. Tencent has launched ventures to integrate e-commerce and online finance services with WeChat, which it says has more than 400 million active users.

Alibaba, Baidu and Tencent are increasingly intruding into each other's core businesses. They have spent more than $7 billion since the start of 2013 to acquire or launch e-commerce, entertainment and other ventures.

The companies are trying to become one-stop services for Web surfers who increasingly go online using smartphones and want more convenience, industry analysts say.

Wanda said it estimates its shopping malls and other outlets will attract 5 billion customers a year by 2020, making the company the "world's largest offline commerce platform."

Dong said the company expects to sign up 40 million e-commerce users this year and increase the total to 100 million by next year.

Shelly Sterling talks about husband, Clippers sale

LOS ANGELES -- When Shelly Sterling was approached by former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer about buying the Los Angeles Clippers, the wife of disgraced team owner Donald Sterling did not know who Ballmer was. But in short order she convinced him that the team was worth an unprecedented $2 billion.

In an exclusive interview with The Associated Press, Shelly Sterling offered details of how she negotiated one of the richest deals in sports after her husband's racist rant to a girlfriend became public, prompting the NBA to ban him for life and decree he give up the team.

At that point, Shelly Sterling stepped in.

"I was given the task and I did it," she said Thursday. "I just did what I had to do."

Prospective buyers started lining up when Ballmer entered the scene. She already had a bid of $1.65 billion from David Geffen and an Egyptian princess was entering the bidding war.

Ballmer called her at 7 a.m. on a Saturday.

"He was really enthusiastic," she recalled. "He said I want to come see you immediately."

She put him off until the next day and quickly called a girlfriend to find out who this man was.

"He was a like a little child. He was so excited, so happy," she said of their meeting. "We sort of connected. I felt he would be good for the team."

She said he asked her how much others had offered and then bid $1.9 billion. But she was not through negotiating.

"I told him: 'You won't have to build an arena or a practice field.' So he was getting a bargain. And I told him, 'We have great players, a great coach and you'll never have the chance to buy a team in Los Angeles again."

After her speech, she recalled "He said, 'O.K. I'll give you two (billion).' He really really wanted the team."

She said she extracted a promise that he would never move the team to Seattle, his home town. The deal closed after a bitter probate fight with her husband.

Ballmer gave Shelly Sterling the title, owner emeritus and said she would have floor tickets for all games.

In a wide ranging interview just days before her 80th birthday, the elegant, blond wife of the beleaguered businessman exuded energy and enthusiasm of a much younger woman. For a half century she had worked in Donald's shadow , renovating and decorating their properties while he built a real estate empire.

"I never liked the spotlight. I didn't like to get up and speak," she said. "But you don't know your potential until you're thrown into something."

She was thrown into the center of a publicity maelstrom with the release of explosive audio tapes of her husband denouncing his young girlfriend for bringing black men to Clippers games.

She declined discuss details about her legal battle with V. Stiviano, the woman who released the tapes.

"I think it was very unfortunate that she would have done what she did," Sterling said.

In her new role, Shelly Sterling signed up well known litigator Pierce O'Donnell. He asked her how much she wanted for the team and she handed him a piece of paper on which was written, "$1.5 to $2 (billion)."

Once Ballmer's offer was accepted the drama moved to probate court. Sterling had removed her husband from the family trust saying he was suffering from the early stages of Alzheimer's disease. Doctors testified but he insisted he was in full control of his faculties. When she tried to approach him in court he growled, "Get away from me, you pig."

It was a painful moment in a 59-year marriage and she said he has since apologized. She blames his illness.

The marriage has had rough patches, she said, and they have been estranged since the death of their diabetic son from a drug overdose last year.

She remembered their high school romance when "he crashed my 16th birthday party," and the years they spent building a real estate empire with 160 apartment buildings in Los Angeles.

Asked if she knew her husband was unfaithful to her over the years, she said: "I can't say if I was blind to it or I didn't know to ask. I was raising my three kids and I was very involved in taking care of the buildings... There were always excuses that he was working with one girl or another. Maybe I didn't want to realize it. "

She considered divorcing Donald but was told by lawyers: "It was of no benefit."

"What's the point at our age?" she said. "I still feel sorry for him. I think he's going to make it right and he'll be OK. "

These days, she said, "We're on better terms. We try not to talk about the case. We have a business together so we have to talk."

Asked about his mental condition, she said, "He's been a little better, a little sweeter and softer. Losing the team he loved was very hard on him," she said. "But I'll always feel it's our team."

Worrying eurozone inflation sags again to 0.3 pct

FRANKFURT, Germany -- Inflation in the 18 countries that use the euro sank to 0.3 percent in August, a worrying sign of economic weakness that is putting pressure on the European Central Bank to take more drastic steps to keep a weak recovery from stalling completely.

Eurostat, the EU statistics agency, said Friday the figure is down from 0.4 per cent in July, as expected by market analysts. Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy, sent a modestly brighter signal as it rose to 0.9 percent from 0.8 percent.

The low inflation figure comes amid increasing worry about the health of the European economy, a major pillar of the global economy with some 17 percent of world annual output. The eurozone showed no growth in the second quarter as fears about the Ukrainian crisis weighed on consumers and investment decisions. Unemployment remained high at 11.5 percent in July, unchanged from the month before.

ECB President Mario Draghi has warned that inflation expectations are worsening and says the bank, the top monetary authority for the eurozone, will add more stimulus if needed.

Many analysts predict the ECB will launch large-scale purchases of financial assets to pump more money into the economy. The bank's governing council meets on Thursday, but many experts think it will hold off for several more months as it waits for earlier stimulus efforts to show effect. The bank has already taken steps to boost growth and prices, cutting in June its key interest rate to 0.15 percent and offering cheap loans to banks on condition they lend more to companies.

Consumers like low inflation because it makes their paychecks go further in stores. But it is a sign of overall weak demand. And it has been so low for so long that it has raised fears of deflation, a crippling downward price spiral that comes about when people hold off buying things because they think prices will fall further.

Europe's economy grew for four quarters but then the recovery came to a halt in the second quarter of this year as core economies France and Germany stalled. Most economists predict growth will resume in coming quarters but it is feared that uncertainty over the crises in Ukraine and the Middle East will keep the recovery too weak to reduce high unemployment.

Draghi has said that if needed the bank could make large-scale purchases of financial assets, known as quantitative easing, or QE. That step adds newly created money to the economy and in theory can lower longer term borrowing costs for companies and increase the rate of inflation.

By considering more stimulus, the ECB is leaning in the opposite direction from that of the U.S. Federal Reserve, which is expected to halt its asset purchases later this year as the U.S. economy grows more strongly.

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Tesla, Chinese firm to build 400 charging stations

BEIJING -- Tesla Motors Co. and a state-owned Chinese phone carrier have announced plans to build 400 charging stations for electric cars.

The plan announced Friday calls for China Unicom Ltd. to provide space for construction and basic services in 120 cities while California-based Tesla operates the charging stations.

Promoters of electric cars see China as a promising market due to Beijing's support for the technology and eagerness to reduce smog. But the lack of charging infrastructure in this vast country is seen as a major hurdle to winning general acceptance.

Tesla delivered its first electric sedan to Chinese customers in April and CEO Elon Musk said then the company planned to invest several hundred million dollars in building a network of charging stations in China.

Man cited for mining coal without a permit

FRANKFORT, Ky. -- Kentucky officials have cited an eastern Kentucky man for illegally mining coal in Letcher County.

The Kentucky Division of Mine Safety and the Division of Mine Reclamation and Enforcement say Bryan Lee Wagner mined about 700 tons of coal at a surface mine. He has been charged with mining without a permit and mining without a license.

In a violation notice, Wagner, who headed the small operation, was directed to immediately cease mining operations and begin reclaiming the land and install temporary sediment control.

The civil penalty for illegal mining under surface mining reclamation regulations is from $5,000 up to $25,000 per day. Officials say Wagner's penalty is being calculated.

Automotive parts maker expanding Smyrna facility

SMYRNA, Tenn. -- An automotive parts manufacturer is expanding its distribution facility in Smyrna and is expected to create more than 130 additional jobs in Rutherford County.

Gov. Bill Haslam and Community Development Commissioner Bill Hagerty say Federal-Mogul is investing more than $6 million to expand.

As part of the expansion, the company will increase its Smyrna footprint from 600,000 square feet to 800,000 square feet.

Federal-Mogul is a leading global supplier of products and services to the world's manufacturers and servicers of vehicles and equipment in the automotive, light, medium and heavy-duty commercial, marine, rail, aerospace, power generation and industrial markets.

In addition to its Smyrna location, Federal-Mogul has operations in Smithville and Sparta, Tennessee.

Altogether, the company currently has about 1,000 employees in Tennessee.

Stewart returning to competition after fatal crash

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Tony Stewart should be back in his comfort zone at a NASCAR track, ready for racing.

His return from a three-week hiatus isn't so simple.

Stewart will emerge from seclusion Friday at Atlanta Motor Speedway for the first time since his car struck and killed a fellow driver during a dirt-track race.

But he comes back to Sprint Cup competition with a decision pending on whether he will be charged in Kevin Ward Jr's death. The three-time NASCAR champion has not raced since his car hit Ward at an Aug. 9 sprint car event in upstate New York. Stewart pulled out of the NASCAR race at Watkins Glen the next morning, then skipped races at Michigan and Bristol Motor Speedway.

Stewart, who was described by police as "visibly shaken" the night of Ward's death, has been in seclusion ever since. Stewart-Haas Racing executive vice president Brett Frood has said the emphasis was on giving Stewart time needed to get him "in a better place than he is."

Stewart's only comment since the crash was a statement the day after the crash in which he said "there aren't words to describe the sadness I feel about the accident that took the life of Kevin Ward Jr."

He will talk to the media for the first time since the fatal crash on Friday.

Ward had climbed from his car after it had spun while racing for position with Stewart. The 20-year-old walked down onto the racing surface waving his arms in an apparent attempt to confront Stewart.

Authorities said the first car to pass Ward had to swerve to miss hitting him. The front of Stewart's car then appeared to clear Ward, but Ward was struck by the right rear tire and hurtled through the air. He died of blunt force trauma.

Ontario County Sheriff Philip Povero has said investigators did not have any evidence to support criminal intent by Stewart. Povero said Thursday the investigation is still ongoing.

Meanwhile, the 43-year-old NASCAR superstar will move forward with his career and attempt to salvage his season.

NASCAR released a statement saying that Stewart was eligible to return because he "has received all necessary clearances required to return to all racing activities." NASCAR said it would have no further comment until President Mike Helton speaks Friday afternoon.

Stewart, who has 48 career Cup wins in 542 starts, is one of the biggest stars in the garage. His peers have been protective of him as questions emerged in the aftermath of the crash, and it pained them that Stewart was grieving in private and had cut off communication with so many of them.

"Great to have Smoke back at the track," tweeted Watkins Glen winner AJ Allmendinger.

"Glad to have my boss and my friend back at the track this weekend. #14 #SmokeWillRise," said Tony Gibson, Danica Patrick's crew chief at SHR.

NASCAR rules state a driver must attempt to either qualify or race the car in every points-paying event to be eligible for Chase for the Sprint Cup championship, unless a waiver is granted. There was no immediate word if NASCAR would grant that waiver.

Since Ward's death, NASCAR has announced a rule that prohibits drivers from exiting from a crashed or disabled vehicle — unless it is on fire — until safety personnel arrive. Last week, Denny Hamlin crashed while leading at Bristol and stayed in his car until safety personnel arrived.

But Hamlin then exited his vehicle and angrily tossed a safety device at Kevin Harvick as he passed by moments later. He was not penalized.