Stocks fell again on Wednesday, and oil prices briefly crossed the $100-a-barrel mark after violence escalated in Libya. Oil traders are spooked about the possible spread of turmoil. Tech bellwether HP's disappointing outlook also hurt.
Unless there's a breakthrough in battery technology, gasoline will remain the primary auto fuel in the U.S. for years. But our dependence on imported oil comes with a major risk of supply disruption. And the U.S. has a domestic alternative that's ready and reliable: natural gas.
The Qatar-based network is getting international kudos for its coverage of the growing Middle East crisis. But acclaim and a growing audience don't yet equal profits and market share for Al Jazeera, which has almost certainly been losing money since its launch in 1996.
The U.S. State Department says it will sell as much as $60 billion worth of military aircraft to Saudi Arabia over the next two decades in an attempt to protect the Middle East against the threat of Iranian military expansion. Boeing and United Technologies could benefit from the deal.
Research In Motion is willing to block adult websites and allow governments to monitor messages so it can avoid official bans on the use BlackBerry devices.
Embattled BP CEO Tony Hayward traveled to Abu Dhabi to meet business partners, with rumors flying that the company is seeking to raise funds to help the company pay for the clean up operation in the Gulf of Mexico. Hayward arrived in the Emirati capital on Tuesday and plans to stay "a couple of days," company spokesman Andrew Gowers told the Associated Press. Gowers declined to comment on whether or not Hayward would be meeting with investment funds.
Should it matter to U.S. investors that Middle East stock markets are among the worst-performers this year, with many trading at or near 52-week lows? Hard to know for sure, but here's why this is a development that bears watching.
