JOBLESS INCREASE: The slowdown led to a prediction that the unemployment rate will tick up modestly to 4.7 percent this year and then 4.8 percent next year
The US economy, restrained by a worse-than-expected slump in housing, will grow this year at the slowest pace in five years, leading economic forecasters say. They predict consumers will get a break on inflation from falling energy prices.

[ FULL STORY ]

POWER BROKING: Two proposed buyouts of US utilities have failed in recent years, and two of the largest utility mergers have also been undone by political opposition
Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co and Texas Pacific Group agreed to acquire TXU Corp, the largest power producer in Texas, for US$44 billion in the biggest-ever leveraged buyout (LBO), said two people with knowledge of the deal.

[ FULL STORY ]

Asian economies face new threats that could destabilize the region, despite the current boom that resulted from success in overcoming the 1997 financial crisis, a top UN official said yesterday.

[ FULL STORY ]

GAS GUZZLERS: High energy demand within the oil-rich Emirates is caused by a reliance on air conditioning and chilled swimming pools
Leaders of the United Arab Emirates said on Sunday they were plunging into the field of renewable energy, announcing a joint research venture into green energy with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

[ FULL STORY ]

BitTorrent Inc, makers of a technology often used to trade pirated copies of Hollywood movies, is launching a Web site that will sell downloads of films and TV shows licensed from the studios.

[ FULL STORY ]

■ Computing
New graphics chip unveiled
[ FULL STORY ]