Group contends popular Zhu Zhu Pets toys unsafe 
ST. LOUIS — A consumer group contends one of the holiday season's must-have toys is unsafe.
San Francisco-based GoodGuide named the robotic Zhu Zhu Pets hamsters on Saturday as one of the top-selling toys with low ratings. It says it found a higher-than-allowed level of a chemical called antimony, which can cause health problems.
The group assigned the toy a rating of 5.2 on a 10-point scale.
Economy 101: Long-term unemployment worsens
WASHINGTON — Within the vast pool of 15.4 million unemployed workers, a split is emerging: The number of long-term jobless — those out of work six months or longer — is growing, while the number of short-term unemployed is declining.
The trend highlights a considerable challenge for the economy and policymakers: finding a way for the millions of Americans laid off last fall and early this year to get back to work.
The data, buried in Friday's unemployment report, are stark: The number of Americans out of work for 27 weeks or more reached 5.9 million last month, the most on records dating from 1948. That's 18 percent more than just three months ago, when the total was just below 5 million.
Dollar Rally Erases Gain in Commodities, US Stocks After Jobs
Dec. 4 (Bloomberg) -- The biggest rally in the U.S. dollarsince June snuffed out an advance in commodities and equities asan unexpected drop in the unemployment rate triggered bets theFederal Reserve will lift borrowing costs. Gold slid the most ina year and two-year Treasuries tumbled.
The Dollar Index, a gauge of the currency against six majortrading partners, jumped as much as 1.5 percent. Odds that theFed will boost interest rates by its June meeting rose to 53percent from 31 percent a week ago, according to Fed fundsfutures trading. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index lost 0.2percent to 1,097.31 at 2:23 p.m. in New York, erasing a 1.8percent rally, and oil and copper reversed earlier gains.
“Good economic news is a boost for the dollar, becauseultimately the Fed raises rates, and by raising rates you aregoing to push your currency up,” said Quincy Krosby, a marketstrategist for Newark, New Jersey-based Prudential FinancialInc., which oversees about $641 billion.
Unexpected drop in jobless rate sparks optimism
WASHINGTON — A surprising drop in the unemployment rate and far fewer job losses last month cheered investors Friday and raised hopes for a sustained economic recovery.
The rate unexpectedly fell to 10 percent, from 10.2 percent in October, as employers cut the fewest number of jobs since the recession began. The government also said 159,000 fewer jobs were lost in September and October than first reported.
If part-time workers who want full time jobs and laid-off workers who have given up looking for jobs are included, the so-called underemployment rate also fell, to 17.2 percent from 17.5 percent in October.
US Economy Lost Only 11000 Jobs in November
In the strongest jobs report since the recession began, the government reported Friday that the nation’s employers had all but stopped shedding jobs in November, taking some of the pressure off of President Obama to come up with a jobs creation program.
The Labor Department reported Friday that the United States economy shed 11,000 jobs in November, and the unemployment rate fell to 10 percent, down from 10.2 percent in October.
The government also significantly revised September and October numbers. September was adjusted to show a loss of 139,000 jobs instead of 219,000, and October 111,000 instead of 190,000.
Nation's jobless rate falls slightly
The U.S. unemployment rate edged down to 10 percent in November from 10.2 percent the month before, offering fresh evidence that the economy is stabilizing and that employers may soon stop shedding workers.
The number of jobless Americans stood at 15.4 million in November, down slightly from October but still more than double the number at the start of the economic slowdown.
The pace of job recovery remains sluggish enough that President Obama next week is likely to endorse a proposal by top House Democrats to use a portion of the government's $700 billion financial bailout fund for a new jobs creation program.
Only time can tell in NBC-Comcast deal
The media landscape of the past decade is littered with mega-mergers that became mega-failures. Why should Thursday's proposed marriage of Comcast and NBC Universal be any different?
If the past is any guide, the answer is often hidden at first, which is why these mergers are such expensive gambles -- there's little way of knowing how they'll turn out.
"I think this is a different time and a different deal than any previous transaction," Comcast chief executive Brian Roberts told investors Thursday, when asked pointedly why this deal is different. "The timing is, I think, very fortuitous, because of where the economy hopefully is going. The size, the deal, really is quite appropriate. It is not really stressing."
Bernanke Sees No 'Extreme Misvaluations' in US
Dec. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S.Bernanke said he sees no sign of “extreme misvaluations” ofasset prices in the U.S.
“We do not see at this point any extreme misvaluations ofassets in the United States,” Bernanke told the Senate BankingCommittee today during a hearing on his nomination to a secondterm as chairman. “It is inherently very difficult to know ifasset prices are appropriate or correctly valued.”
Fed policy makers said for the first time last month thattheir decision to cut interest rates to zero may be fuelingundue financial-market speculation, according to minutes oftheir Nov. 3-4 meeting released last week.
Stocks set for higher open on Bank of America plan
NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks gained at the open on Thursday after Bank of America Corp (BAC.N) said it would repay $45 billion in taxpayer bailout funds and data showed initial jobless claims fell last week.
The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI was up 24.57 points, or 0.24 percent, at 10,477.25. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX gained 3.22 points, or 0.29 percent, at 1,112.46. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC rose 10.36 points, or 0.47 percent, at 2,195.39.
Comcast Gets NBC From GE, Reshaping the TV Industry
After nearly nine months of negotiations, Comcast, the nation’s largest cable operator, finally reached an agreement on Thursday to acquire NBC Universal from the General Electric Company.
The deal valued NBC Universal at about $30 billion.
The agreement will create a joint venture, with Comcast owning 51 percent and G.E. owning 49 percent. Comcast will contribute to the joint venture its stable of cable channels, which includes Versus, the Golf Channel and E Entertainment, worth about $7.25 billion, and will pay G.E. about $6.5 billion in cash, for a total of $13.75 billion. For now, the network will remain NBC Universal, but ultimately Comcast could decide to change the name.
