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International Business News
India cuts interest rates
to boost economy
AFP, Mumbai
India's central bank on Saturday slashed its two key short term interest rates by a full percentage point each to stim ulate an economy hit by the global recession and shaken further by the Mumbai attacks
The Reserve Bank of India reduced its repo rate the rate at which it lends to commercial banks to 6.5 per cent and its reverse repo rate —- the rate at which it bor rows overnight - - to 5.0 percent.
"The measures are to arrest the downturn in the econ omy and revive growth," said the bank's governor, Duwuri Subbarao.
"Business confidence has been affected and corporate credit dented." he told a news conference.
The rate cuts -- the third by the bank in less than two months were seen as part of a wider stimulus package expected to galvanize India's trillion-dollar economy which has been slowing significantly.
Government officials said the measures could be unveiled on Saturday, but the Press TYust of India said the announcement could now come on Sunday.
Media reports say the relief package -• aimed at helping sectors hit by a slump in domestic demand like the auto industry -- could total 15 billion dollars.
Microsoft still interested in Yahoo search: CEO
AhP, New York
Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer said Friday the US software giant remained interested in acquiring Yahoo's search business and would rather do a deal "sooner than later."
"I think a search deal makes great sense for Microsoft, and Yahoo," Ballmer said in an interview published in the online edition ofThe Wall Street Journal. "I think I've been very open about that."
"I think good ideas are usually better done quickly titan slowly, so it would probably be better for both us, and certainly for Yahoo, if we were to do it sooner than later," he said.
"But at the end of the day, that would have be something Yahoo would be as interested in as I have expressed our interest."
Asked by the newspaper whether the Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft and Sunnyvale. California-based Yahoo were in talks, Ballmer replied: "The answer is no, but I wouldn’t tell you if there were."
Ballmer, who hired former Yahoo executive Qi Lu this I week to be Microsoft's online services chief, said if Microsoft and Yahoo tied up on search, market leader Google "would have perhaps a real credible competitor _ sooner."
Shareholders approve Bank of America deal for Merrill Lynch
AFP, New York
Bank of America's acquisition of Merrill Lynch won approval from shareholders of both firms Friday, marking the final chapter for the Wall Street icon battered by the housing and credit crisis.
Approval by Merrill shareholders was followed hours later by a positive vote from Bank of America stock owners, setting the stage for closing of the deal, which has been cleared by US and European antitrust regulators.
The all-stock acquisition, initially valued at 50 billion dollars when it was announced September 15, now carries a value of 19.7 billion dollars, due to the slide in the price of Bank of America shares.
"When this transaction closes, Bank of America will have the premier financial services franchise anchored by the cornerstone relationship products and services of deposits, credit and debit cards, mortgages and wealth management," said Bank of America chairman and chief executive Kenneth Lewis.
Facebook delays employee stock sale: WSJ
AFP, New York
Social network Facebook has delayed a plan to allow its employees to sell their shares in the privately held company because of the global economic downturn, The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.
The Journal said Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg had notified the startup's employees in an email on Thursday that the stock sale plan would not be proceeding as scheduled.
"I'm writing this note to let you know some bad news," technology website Valleywag.com quoted the email from Zuckerberg as saying. "Despite a lot of work, we have not been able to finalize a plan for the employee stock sale we announced in August. "
The plan would have allowed some Facebook employees to sell a portion of their shares vested by November 1 at around a four billion dollar company valuation, the Journal said, citing people familiar with the details.