Today's Headlines

Bloomberg:
- North Korea doesn’t plan to test a second nuclear device, a spokesman for China’s Foreign Ministry said today in Beijing.
- Vanguard Group and American Funds joined Fidelity Investments as trillion-dollar mutual-fund managers in the third quarter, lifting total US assets to more than $10 trillion for the first time and further concentrating assets at the top of the industry.
- Iraqi forces should be able to take over the country’s security from coalition troops within 18 months, the top US commander in Iraq said.
- US Treasury Secretary Paulson said he is looking at ways to ease the demands of the Sarbanes-Oxley corporate governance law and class-action lawsuits that are overwhelming some American companies and costing jobs.
- Tuition and fee increases slowed this year at US colleges, the College Board said.
- Global aluminum demand will slow next year as economic growth declines, according to Norsk Hydro ASA, the world’s fourth-largest producer.

Wall Street Journal:
- Exxon Mobil(XOM), Royal Dutch Shell Plc, BP Plc(BP) and other big oil companies may have trouble maintaining surging profit growth now that oil prices have fallen from summer peaks.
- NBC Universal Television Group’s cable networks have decided not to take part in Nielsen Media Research’s new commercial-ratings system to measure the average viewership for all national commercial minutes during a program.
- Cargill Inc., the largest US agricultural company, may today say it plans to participate in a venture that will convert livestock manure into methane gas.
- Residents of San Francisco’s Tenderloin district are fighting to preserve the neighborhood’s seedy atmosphere which they say creates its own personality and helps maintain the city’s diversity.

NY Times:
- Whole Foods Market(WFMI) will start selling meat with an “animal compassionate” label, indicating humane treatment of livestock before slaughter.
- A federal judge ordered the NY Times to reveal sources that columnist Nicholas Kristof used in writing that a former Army scientist was responsible for anthrax attacks in 2001 that left five people dead.
- Democratic Senator Barack Obama of Illinois, who is considering running for president in 2008, said he smoked marijuana and used cocaine before he entered politics. He didn’t use heroin because he didn’t like the person selling it, he said.

NY Post:
- Sotheby’s, the second largest auction house, may reach a record $1 billion in sales for the year during the company’s fall auctions over the next three weeks.
- Transgender people can use any bathroom they choose in Metropolitan Transportation Authority rail stations in NY after a settlement in a case filed by a woman who was arrested three times. The complaint was filed at the city’s Human Rights Commission by a 70-year-old woman who was arrested for using the women’s room at Grand Central Station. Helena Stone, formerly known as Henry McGuinness, also was awarded $2,000 to cover her legal fees.

Star-Ledger of Newark:
- Wynn Resorts(WYNN) would build a new casino on the site of Trump Plaza in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in a deal that’s been discussed by developers Stephen Wynn and Donald Trump.

AP:
- Democratic Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, running for re-election as an independent, exchanged criticism over the Iraq war with Democratic opponent Ned Lamont during the last of three debates. Lamont said President Bush’s policy in Iraq would lead to “failure.” Lieberman said Lamont backs a plan that would cause “retreat and disaster.” Lieberman has the support of 52% of people who plan to vote on Nov. 7, according to the latest polling data, while 35% plan to vote for Lamont.

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung:
- The German output of electricity generated from renewable sources is rising more quickly than the government expected, citing the German electricity networks association.

China Securities Journal:
- China will issue more rules on wind power projects by the end of the year as the government promotes the use of clean energy.

Xinhua News Agency:
- Investment in China’s cement industry, the world’s largest, fell in the first eight months on government curbs.