Bloomberg:- Japan’s government extended the deployment of its troops in Iraq for one year, Transport Minister Kitagawa said.
- Donald Trump is planning to build a $1 billion seaside resort complex in Israel, Yediot Aharonat said, citing Israel’s consul-general in Miami.
- Bill Gross, who manages the world’s biggest bond fun, told CNBC that the Fed will drop the word “accommodation” from its statement next week when it raises its benchmark interest rate.
- Crude oil is rising and natural gas surged to a record as cold weather in the northern US bolsters heating-fuel demand and refiners try to increase production.
- The US dollar is falling the most in eight days against the yen and the euro after Japanese and European policy makers suggested they will raise borrowing costs.
- US Treasuries are rising amid optimism that the Fed may stop raising interest rates early next year.
- Qualcomm raised its forecast after a surge in holiday sales of phones that surf the Internet and download music.
- Chevron plans to increase capital spending next year by 35% to $14.8 billion to boost production.
Wall Street Journal:- Cisco Systems is seeking to benefit by supplying equipment that moves video from the Internet to the home, citing CEO Chambers.
- US physicians are taking part in a growing debate over whether the increased use of feeding tubes for elderly patients and the terminally ill should be curtailed.
- Merrill Lynch intends to remove its name from mutual funds and other money-management items offered to small US investors, to encourage rival brokers to start selling the products.
- New satellite-radio receivers that mimic Apple Computer iPods in their ability to store and organize hundreds of songs may threaten the music industry’s attempts to protect copyrights and royalties.
- The US Congress and the Bush administration should make cutting or eliminating the 15% maximum tax on savings their top priority among changes to the tax code, Martin Feldstein wrote. Feldstein, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors under President Reagan, said taxing income from savings is unfair because it charges people twice if they postpone spending.
USA Today:- More African Americans in the US are participating in a migration toward southern states as they retire, spurred by increasing wealth and rising home ownership.
NY Times:- Anthony D. Romero, the executive director of the ACLU, has been accused of ignoring the group’s principles such as dissent and free speech, as he increased fund raising efforts. An “unusual” number of board members have resigned since Romero took over 4 days before 9/11.
Guardian:- Harold Pinter, the winner of the 2005 Nobel Prize for literature, devoted the bulk of his Nobel lecture to a denunciation of the United State’s role in the world for the past 50 years.
