U.S. stocks fall after inflation report
NEW YORK, March 16 (UPI) -- U.S. stock indexes fell Friday morning after reports both U.S. consumer prices and industrial production rose.
The Dow Jones industrial average was down 35.41 points, or 0.29 percent, to 12,124.27 in late-morning trading. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 stock index slipped 2.96, or 0.21 percent, to 1,389.32.
The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index lost 7.61, or 0.32 percent, to 2,371.09.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 index closed down 116.24 points, or 0.69 percent, to 16,744.15. The broader Topix index fell 1.01 percent to 1,677.06.
The 10-year U.S. Treasury note was down 4/32, yielding 4.551 percent, while the 30-year bond was off 6/32, yielding 4.712 percent.
The U.S. dollar fell to 116.84 yen from 117.56 yen late Thursday. The euro rose to $1.3326 from $1.3237 at the end of the day Thursday.
Wal-Mart drops plan to enter banking
BENTONVILLE, Ark., March 16 (UPI) -- Wal-Mart Stores said Friday it would drop its plan to enter the U.S. banking business, citing delays in the process and the plan's "manufactured controversy."
The Bentonville, Ark., retailer said its action followed the U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s decision to extend a moratorium on some pending industrial loan company applications, which Wal-Mart said would extend its approval process to "years rather than months."
Industrial loan companies, or industrial banks, are limited-service banks that do not offer checking or savings accounts or any other type of financial service to consumers.
Wal-Mart said Friday its plan had "been surrounded by manufactured controversy" since its July 2005 submission and reiterated it had not intended to open retail branches, unlike what "critics have suggested."
The world's largest retailer said it wanted a Utah bank to reduce third-party transaction costs it currently incurs from processing credit and debit cards and electronic-check transactions in its stores.
"Wal-Mart made a wise choice. This decision will remove the controversy surrounding their intentions," Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairwoman Sheila Bair said.
Caremark shareholders OK CVS takeover
NASHVILLE, March 16 (UPI) -- Caremark Rx Inc. shareholders approved U.S. drugstore chain CVS Corp.'s $26.5 billion takeover bid, the pharmacy-benefits manager said Friday.
CVS shareholders approved the takeover Thursday.
The approval -- announced after a shareholder meeting in Nashville, where the company is based -- ended a many-month bidding war between CVS and Express Scripts Inc. for Caremark.
Express Scripts' hostile offer was $700 million higher than CVS's but faced antitrust scrutiny. Last week, federal regulators made a second request for more information about the proposed deal.
Express argued it would have provided more shareholder value because it would have combined two similar companies, whereas the CVS deal combined a drug retailer and a pharmacy-benefits manager.
Together, No. 2 U.S. drugstore chain CVS and Caremark said they would create a $75 billion drug distribution company that could handle more than a quarter of all U.S. prescriptions, giving it leverage to negotiate better prices from manufacturers.
They estimated their merger would bring $500 million in yearly cost savings and nearly $1 billion in revenue from new offerings in 2008.
Federal regulators approved the Caremark-CVS deal in December.
Nissan CEO gives up North American post
TOKYO, March 16 (UPI) -- Nissan Motor Co.'s chief executive will give up his post as head of North American operations, the automaker said Friday in announcing a management shake-up.
Carlos Ghosn, who is also chairman and chief executive of Renault SA, will focus on leading France's 8-year-old Renault-Nissan alliance, which seeks to recover from declining sales and profits.
The move followed Nissan's February warning it expected lower 2006 profits for the first time in seven years due to sluggish sales in Japan and North America, its two biggest markets.
European Executive Vice President Hiroto Saikawa will take over Ghosn's North American duties April 1. Hidetoshi Imazu will take replace Saikawa in Europe.
Nissan Chief Operating Officer Toshiyuki Shiga will focus solely on Nissan's Japanese domestic operations, rather than also head general overseas markets. European manufacturing Senior Vice President Colin Dodge will replace Shiga's general overseas duties.
"The priority for our new management team is to act decisively on the multiple challenges facing Nissan and to boost our overall performance in 2007," Ghosn said.
Nissan also said it would cut vehicle production at two Japanese factories between April and June. Nissan's new fiscal year starts April 1.
