Israel's Channel 10 seeks emergency government funding to avert shutdown

TEL AVIV - Israel's Channel 10, which for years has been struggling to pull itself out of a financial black hole, will go dark for good on Dec. 31 without an emergency injection of cash from the government.

On Sunday night, however, three days before their looming closure, the station halted its broadcasts for several hours and instead displayed a photograph of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. It was accompanied by the message, "In three days, Channel 10 will close. The prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who serves as the communications minister, refuses to find a solution."

In a move that sent the Israeli government into turmoil earlier this moth, Netanyahu summarily fired several members of his cabinet and called for fresh elections. He has since been serving as acting minister of communications in addition to his prime minister duties, but has refrained from making a statement on the status of Channel 10.

Channel 10 is one of only two private television networks in Israel. Its closure will mean a monopoly on news reporting for rival Channel 2. Many critics in Israel are calling the situation a genuine threat to Israel's democratic character.

Israeli President Reuven Rivlin weighed in on the situation on Monday, writing on his public Facebook page, "The TV blackout casts a shadow on Israeli democracy, especially during election time. Given the limited competition in the Israeli communications market, we cannot afford to lose the channel, especially at a time when we need to be exposed to the spectrum of opinions and attitudes."

Channel 10 was previously brought back from the grave in 2012 when Israel's parliament gave it a two-year reprieve to pay back the significant funds it owed to the government. Two years later, the station remains mired in debt, but its employees are also operating under a near-unanimous contention that Netanyahu wants to see them shuttered following a series of damning news items about him, his wife and their associates.

© 2014 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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Program that backed Solyndra now showing successes

WASHINGTON — At the RV Park he owns in a remote corner of southwestern Kansas, Jan Leonard is seeing the benefits of one of the federal government's most contentious programs.

Development is booming in tiny Hugoton, a town of roughly 3,900 people. The town is the site of a new cellulosic ethanol refinery that was funded in part by a loan guarantee from the Department of Energy. The same program funded high profile flops like Solyndra, the California-based solar company that filed for bankruptcy and led to hearings over the Barack Obama administration's backing of unproven green-energy projects.

But in Hugoton, which Leonard describes as "pretty far from nothing," more trailers rolling in to his park and new businesses are popping up.

"There's a Dollar General getting built, a new motel getting built. Another grocery store getting built," Leonard said in a phone interview. "There's a lot of different people coming to town. It's been big."

The plant has a work force of 75 and an annual payroll of $5 million. When it was established in 2009, as part of Obama's stimulus package, the clean energy loan guarantee program was billed as a two-fer: It would provide billions of dollars for environment-friendly energy and it would create jobs.

Instead, the program became synonymous with failure and a regular talking point for conservatives.

Besides Solyndra, three other subsidized companies went bust at a cost of $780 million. Critics, especially Republicans in Congress, seized on it as an example of government waste.

But roughly six years on, there are more signs that the program is working. In California, Tesla Motors has flourished, paying back a $465 million loan nearly 10 years early. A handful of companies have opened solar energy sites and signed long term contracts to sell power to utility companies.

And then there is the Abengoa biorefinery in Hugoton, where Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz came in October for the opening. He was joined by two Kansas officials who voted against the stimulus package: Republicans Sen. Pat Roberts and Gov. Sam Brownback, a former senator.

"This program, let me say, not only here in Hugoton, but across the board has been a tremendous success," Moniz said. "I mentioned $30 billion in loans with a 2 percent default rate — that is a pretty enviable in any portfolio."

Roberts and Brownback say they voted against the stimulus package for other reasons.

"The governor strongly supports the Abengoa project," said Eileen Hawley, a spokeswoman for Brownback.

Despite the program's failures, the department now projects a profit of between $5 billion and $6 billion over the next 20 to 25 years. Overall, 20 of the program's 30 enterprises are operating and generating revenues so far, according to the department.

The successful projects include a site in Alamosa, Colorado, that is the world's largest generator of high concentration photovalic energy, which is a type of solar power. The operator, power company Cogentrix, has 10 permanent operations positions in addition to supply line jobs.

Overall, the Department of Energy claims the program has created or saved roughly 35,000 permanent jobs.

Republicans have argued that the investments are risky and the program mismanaged, as Solyndra demonstrated, though improvements have been made.

"We are not out of the woods by any stretch," said Michigan Rep. Fred Upton, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. "Our oversight efforts will continue as problems still persist, and more needs to be done to protect billions of dollars in taxpayer interests."

But supporters say government investment is necessary for innovative energy enterprises.

"It's very hard to get commercial scale financing, especially for these types of projects," said Nancy Pfund, a managing partner with DBL Investor, a San Francisco-based venture capital company with holdings in two companies backed by the program. "It's been a very positive force in that respect."

Mike Garland, CEO of Pattern Energy Group, a company focused on wind energy investments, said he was turned down by the program in part because he could get other financing.

"I kind of respected that about the program," said Garland. "I would have liked to have had a lower cost of capital, lower cost of debt. But it is run in a way that said, 'your deal is too good. You don't need it.'"

The loan program's director, Peter Davidson, said the program had a specific target.

"Commercial lenders are often unwilling to finance the first few commercial-scale projects that use a new technology because there is not yet a history of performance or operation," he said.

The refinery in Hugoton, built by Seville, Spain-based Abengoa, is the largest cellulosic biorefinery in the world, producing up to 25 million gallons ethanol fueled by non-edible waste. About $132 million of the plant's $500 million cost was backed by the loan guarantee program.

Abengoa buys biomass from local farmers that would otherwise be useless and sells the refined biofuels through trading companies in the U.S., Europe and parts of Asia.

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Vermont Yankee plant prepares to shut down

VERNON, Vt. — The Vermont Yankee nuclear plant is getting ready to shut down.

Its owner, Entergy Corp., says it is closing the plant for economic reasons. The plant in Vernon is expected to disconnect from the regional power grid Monday.

The plant employed more than 600 people when it announced it would close. The workforce will be cut in half after a round of layoffs and retirements Jan. 19.

In 2016, the plant will see another big reduction as it prepares for a 30-year period during which time its radiation will cool. The plant likely won't be dismantled until the 2040s or later.

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Key decisions on drones likely from Congress

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is on the verge of proposing long-awaited rules for commercial drone operations in U.S. skies, but key decisions on how much access to grant drones are likely to come from Congress next year.

Federal Aviation Administration officials have said they want to release proposed rules before the end of this month, but other government and industry officials say they are likely to be delayed until January. Meanwhile, except for a small number of companies that have received FAA exemptions, a ban on commercial drone flights remains in place. Even after rules are proposed, it is likely to be two or three years before regulations become final.

That's too long to wait, say drone industry officials. Every year the ban remains in place, the United States loses more than $10 billion in potential economic benefits that drones could provide, according to the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International, a trade group.

"We need some sort of process that allows some of the low-risk operations," said Jesse Kallman, the head of regulatory affairs for Airware, a drone technology company backed by Google Ventures. "I think Congress understands that, and hopefully they'll take steps in the coming year to address that."

That appears to be what some key lawmakers have in mind. "We in Congress are very interested in UAS," Rep. Bill Shuster, R-Pa., chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said at a hearing this month, referring to unmanned aerial systems, or drones. "We understand UAS are an exciting technology with the potential to transform parts of our economy. ... It is our responsibility to take a close look."

One of the committee's first priorities next year is writing legislation to reauthorize FAA programs and overhaul aviation policy. The bill is expected to include directions from lawmakers on how to integrate drones into the nation's aviation system. The last reauthorization bill, passed in 2012, directed the agency to integrate drones by Sept. 30, 2015, but it's clear the FAA will miss that deadline.

The FAA is expected to propose restricting drones weighing less than 55 pounds to altitudes below 400 feet, forbid nighttime flights and require drones be kept within sight of their operators. Drone operators may also be required to get pilot's licenses, a possibility already drawing fire from critics who say the skills needed to fly a manned aircraft are different from those needed to operate a drone.

Shuster indicated he's concerned that requiring pilot's licenses might be burdensome and unnecessary. And keeping drones within sight of operators would be too strict and limit their usefulness, he said.

The reason for keeping drones within line of sight is that they don't yet have the ability to detect and avoid other aircraft.

AUVSI, the drone industry trade group, recently hired Mark Aitken, former legislative director to Rep. Frank LoBiondo, R-N.J., as its government relations manager. LoBiondo is chairman of the House Subcommittee on Aviation, which will write the FAA reauthorization bill.

"We're really looking at an incremental approach still," Aitken said. "It's not something that is going to happen overnight."

FAA officials have been working on drone regulations for nearly a decade. The agency twice drafted regulations that were later rejected by the White House or Transportation Department. The FAA has long maintained that unmanned aircraft must meet the same regulations as manned aircraft unless waiving or adjusting those regulations doesn't create a safety risk. However, FAA officials more recently have begun talking about "risk-based" regulations, giving industry officials hope the agency might propose a blanket exemption from regulations for the smallest drones — usually defined as weighing under 5 pounds — as long as operators follow a few basic safety rules. Canadian authorities recently approved a blanket exemption for very small drones.

Congress already is getting pushback from private and commercial pilots who worry about possible collisions. The FAA receives reports nearly every day about drones sighted flying near manned aircraft or airports.

"As a (Boeing) 737 captain, I'll be damned if myself and 178 other people are taken down by a 12-pound or a 50-pound or a 150-pound piece of metal coming through my windshield," said Ben Berman at a recent forum hosted by the Air Line Pilots Association. "There are too many near misses occurring every day like this."

Mark Baker, president of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, which represents private pilots, said online videos show that "operators are flying near airports, in the clouds and in congested airspace." He called such actions "reckless" and said they will inevitably lead to a collision.

FAA regulations permit recreational users to fly small drones as long as they stay at least 5 miles away from an airport, limit flights to less than 400 feet in altitude, keep the aircraft in line of sight and fly only during the daytime.

Last week, drone industry trade groups teamed up with the FAA and model aircraft hobbyists to launch a safety campaign aimed at amateur drone operations. The campaign includes a website, www.knowbeforeyoufly.com , where operators can find FAA regulations and advice on how to fly safely. The trade groups said they also plan to distribute safety pamphlets at industry events and are working with manufacturers to see that safety information is enclosed inside the package of new drones.

Retailers say small drones, which are indistinguishable from today's more sophisticated model aircraft, were popular gifts this Christmas.

___

Follow Joan Lowy on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/AP_Joan_Lowy

___

Online:

Drone safety campaign: http://www.knowbeforeyoufly.com

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Allianz says it's lead insurer for AirAsia plane

BERLIN — Allianz says it is the lead insurance firm for the AirAsia jetliner that went missing off Indonesia with 162 people on board.

The Munich-based reinsurance giant said Monday that its subsidiary Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty UK is the lead insurer for AirAsia, including for liability insurance.

Allianz said in a statement that it is too early to comment on the incident itself, but expressed its support for those affected by it.

An international search is underway to determine the fate of AirAsia Flight 8501, which disappeared from radar Sunday morning over the Java Sea on its way from Surabaya, Indonesia, to Singapore.

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AirAsia's brash CEO in spotlight after jet disappears

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — His airline empire began, Tony Fernandes likes to say, with the purchase of a bankrupt company for less than a dollar. Now, after years of growth that made him the king of Asian budget travel, the flamboyant Malaysian businessman is facing the horror of the disappearance of an AirAsia jet with 162 people on board.

Fernandes, who built AirAsia's regional network on cheap fares, a love of the spotlight and occasionally provocative advertising ("There's a new girl in town. She's twice the fun and half the price."), was clearly exhausted by the time he met reporters late Sunday at the airport in Surabaya, Indonesia, where the missing flight had taken off.

"We are very devastated by what has happened. It is unbelievable," he said. In an earlier tweet to his employees, Fernandes said, "This is my worst nightmare."

Fernandes pioneered regional low-cost air travel by launching AirAsia in January 2002, growing it from two planes to more than 180 by breaking the dominance of national airlines and making flying affordable for the millions of Asians entering the middle class. Today, he has an estimated net worth of $650 million.

A massive air and sea search has so far turned up no confirmed sign of AirAsia Flight 8501, which vanished from radar Sunday morning about 42 minutes after taking off from Surabaya en route to Singapore.

The missing jet was the third major airline incident this year involving Malaysia. First came Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, which disappeared on its way to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur on March 8 and has not been found. A few months later, Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was shot down over Ukraine.

But this marks the first tragedy for Malaysia-based AirAsia, which has a strong safety record. Flight 8501 was operated by AirAsia Indonesia, a subsidiary that is 49 percent owned by AirAsia Malaysia.

Earlier this year, AirAsia boasted in its in-flight magazine that its well-trained pilots would never lose a plane. The airline withdrew the magazine and Fernandes apologized for the article, which was written before Flight 370 disappeared. Fernandes also courted controversy on the day that flight lost contact. An active Twitter user with more than a million followers, he tweeted that the plane's radio had failed and that all on board were safe. He later deleted the tweet.

Shukor Yusof, an aviation analyst with Endau Analytics in Malaysia, said Fernandes had reacted well so far to the latest crisis, communicating properly and quickly traveling to Surabaya.

"There will be some adverse knee-jerk reaction, but I don't think it will cripple the airline," Shukor said. "AirAsia has sound fundamentals in terms of its business model and management, and this crisis should not suppress its growth."

Last year, AirAsia flew 42.6 million people across the region.

A 50-year-old Malaysian of Indian-Portuguese descent and a serious music buff — he plays keyboards and the drums — Fernandes earned a finance degree in the United Kingdom and rose quickly in the music industry, first at Virgin Group and later at Warner Music International. He was appointed Warner's chief in Malaysia in 1992 at age 28, the youngest person to hold that post.

Warner CD sales jumped during his tenure, but he left after Time-Warner's merger with AOL to enter the airline business, a longtime dream.

Fernandes got together with three other investors, mortgaged his house and withdrew his savings to buy the floundering AirAsia on Sept. 8, 2001, paying a symbolic 1 ringgit, or about 25 U.S. cents. Three days later, New York and Washington were hit by terrorist attacks.

But AirAsia coasted through the crisis. With its tagline "Now Everyone Can Fly," it revolutionized cheap air travel in the region and repaid its 40 million ringgit ($11.4 million) debt in less than two years.

Today, it has more than 8,000 employees and flies to 132 destinations in Asia. AirAsia is now a major competitor to full-service carriers such as Singapore Airlines and Thai Airways, which have since set up budget offshoots to vie for a bigger share of passengers.

In many ways, Fernandes' career echoes the empire Richard Branson created at Virgin Group — both in terms of how the men love attention, and how they have expanded across industries.

From short routes of up to four hours, AirAsia has expanded into long-haul flying through its sister airline AirAsia X. Through his Tune Group, which owns AirAsia, Fernandes also started a hotel chain and offers car rental, insurance and credit cards in tie-ups with banks.

He was, in many ways, ahead of the industry curve, sensing a need for low-cost flights in what is now the world's fastest-growing region for airlines.

"Air travel is made for Asia," Fernandes told The Associated Press in 2002. "You can generally drive from one end of Europe to another or take a train, but that's not the case here. You want to try driving from Kuala Lumpur to Bangkok? Good luck, mate!"

Fernandes is a vocal leader who enjoys interacting with the public at airports and on social media. AirAsia passengers often tweet him photos of their vacations, images Fernandes then shares with his followers.

In 2011, Fernandes stepped into the sports world when he bought a majority stake in the Queens Park Rangers, an English Premier League soccer club. The same year, Britain honored him as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire and France made him an Officier de la Legion d'Honneur.

He also has funded a Formula One racing team, making lavish bets with owners of competing teams. But he sold his shares in the F1 team this year.

Last year, Fernandes further put AirAsia in the spotlight by hosting the Asian version of the reality TV series "The Apprentice." Filipino Jonathan Yabut won and now works for AirAsia in his country.

Since the disappearance of Flight 8501, Fernandes has focused on encouraging his staff not to buckle under the pressure.

"Be strong," he told his staff in another Twitter message. "Continue to be the best. Pray hard."

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Associated Press writers Scott Mayerowitz in New York and Tim Sullivan in New Delhi contributed to this report.

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In crowded skies, lost plane's request for new path denied

SURABAYA, Indonesia — The plane sought permission to climb above threatening clouds. Air traffic control couldn't say yes immediately — there was no room. Six other commercial airliners were crowding the surrounding airspace, forcing AirAsia Flight 8501 to remain at a lower altitude.

Minutes later, the jet carrying 162 people was gone from the radar. No distress signal was issued. It is believed to have crashed into Indonesia's Java Sea on Sunday morning, but exactly what happened — and whether the plane's flight path played any role — won't be determined until after the aircraft is found.

Broad aerial surveys on Monday spotted two oily patches and objects in separate locations, but it's unknown whether any of it is related to the missing Airbus A320-200.

The plane left Surabaya, Indonesia, but vanished halfway into what should have been a two-hour hop to Singapore. Officials on Monday saw little reason to believe the flight met anything but a grim fate.

"Based on the coordinates that we know, the evaluation would be that any estimated crash position is in the sea, and that the hypothesis is the plane is at the bottom of the sea," Indonesia search and rescue chief Henry Bambang Soelistyo said. Search officials did, however, plan to expand their search efforts onto land on Tuesday.

The last communication from the cockpit to air traffic control was a request by one of the pilots to increase altitude from 32,000 feet (9,754 meters) to 38,000 feet (11,582 meters) because of the rough weather. The tower was not able to immediately comply because of the other planes, said Bambang Tjahjono, director of the state-owned company in charge of air-traffic control.

Sarjono Joni, a former pilot with a state-run Indonesian carrier, said the usual course of action when planes run into rough weather is to veer either left or right. A request to climb would most likely come if the plane was experiencing heavy turbulence or otherwise causing serious passenger discomfort, he said.

He added that heavy traffic is not unusual for any given airspace.

The twin-engine, single-aisle plane was last seen on radar four minutes after the final communication from the cockpit.

Search and rescue crews were looking for the plane with at least 15 ships, seven aircraft and four helicopters, national search and rescue spokesman Jusuf Latif said. Most are Indonesian but Singapore, Malaysia and Australia have contributed planes, and a ship and aircraft from Thailand were awaiting clearance from Indonesia's Foreign Ministry.

Those numbers do not include Indonesian warships taking part in the search. Many fishermen from Belitung island also have joined in, and all vessels in that area of the sea have been alerted to be on the lookout for anything that could be linked to the plane.

Jakarta's air force base commander, Rear Marshal Dwi Putranto, said an Australian Orion aircraft had detected "suspicious" objects near an island about 100 miles (160 kilometers) off central Kalimantan. That's about 700 miles (1,120 kilometers) from the location where the plane lost contact, but within Monday's greatly expanded search area.

"However, we cannot be sure whether it is part of the missing AirAsia plane," Putranto said. "We are now moving in that direction, which is in cloudy conditions."

Air Force spokesman Rear Marshal Hadi Tjahnanto told MetroTV that an Indonesian helicopter spotted two oily spots in the Java Sea east of Belitung island, much closer to where the plane lost contact than the objects viewed from the Australian plane. He said oil samples would be collected and analyzed to see if they are connected to the missing plane.

An Associated Press photographer flew in a C-130 transport carrier with Indonesia's Air Force for 10 hours Monday over a large section of the search area between Kalimantan and Belitung. The flight was bumpy and rainy at times. It hovered low at 1,500 feet, giving clear visibility to waves, ships and fishermen, but there was no sign of the plane.

The disappearance and suspected crash caps an astonishingly tragic year for air travel in Southeast Asia, and Malaysia in particular. Malaysia-based AirAsia's loss comes on top of the still-unexplained disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 in March with 239 people aboard, and the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 in July over Ukraine, which killed all 298 passengers and crew.

"Until today, we have never lost a life," AirAsia group CEO Tony Fernandes, who founded the low-cost carrier in 2001, told reporters in Jakarta airport. "But I think that any airline CEO who says he can guarantee that his airline is 100 percent safe, is not accurate."

He refused to address compensation issues or any changes that may be made to the airline as a result of this incident.

"We have carried 220 million people up to this point," he said. "Of course, there's going to be some reaction, but we are confident in our ability to fly people."

Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo was in Indonesia's Papua province when the plane disappeared but was back in Jakarta, the capital, on Monday. He said he ordered an immediate review of all aviation procedures.

"I was very shocked (by the disappearance) and I could feel the concern, the frustration and the sadness experienced by the passengers' families, and I believe also felt by all the people of Indonesia," Jokowi said at a press conference.

Nearly all the passengers and crew are Indonesians, who are frequent visitors to Singapore, particularly on holidays.

Ruth Natalia Puspitasari, who would have turned 26 on Monday, was among them. Her father, Suyanto, sat with his wife, who was puffy-eyed and coughing, near the family crisis center at Surabaya's airport.

Suyanto remembers the concern his daughter showed for the families of the MH370 tragedy. Puspitasari once told him how sad it must be for the victims' relatives who were left waiting for their loved ones with no certainty.

"Now she is gone in the missing plane, and we should face this sorrow, I can't believe it!" he said, tears rolling down his cracked cheeks. "This is too hard to be faced."

He was still sleeping when Puspitasari left for the airport with her fiance and future in-laws for a New Year's vacation. But he called her just before she boarded, and she told him excitedly that they planned to celebrate her birthday in Singapore.

"I don't want to experience the same thing with what was happened with Malaysia Airlines," he said as his wife wept. "It could be a long suffering."

Few believe this search will be as perplexing as the ongoing one for Flight 370, where what happened onboard remains a total mystery. Authorities suspect the plane was deliberately diverted by someone on board and ultimately lost in a remote area of the Indian Ocean where the water is notoriously deep. Flight 8501 vanished over a heavily traveled sea that is relatively shallow, with no sign of foul play.

Flight 8501 had been airborne for about 42 minutes when it lost contact.

The plane had an Indonesian captain, Iryanto, who uses one name, and a French co-pilot, five cabin crew members and 155 passengers, including 16 children and one infant, the airline said in a statement. Among the passengers were three South Koreans, a Malaysian, a British national and his 2-year-old Singaporean daughter. The rest were Indonesians.

AirAsia said the captain had more than 20,000 flying hours.

"Papa, come home, I still need you," Angela Anggi Ranastianis, the captain's 22-year-old daughter, pleaded on social media late Sunday, which was widely quoted by Indonesian press. "Bring back my papa. Papa, please come home."

At Iryanto's house in the East Java town of Sidoarjo, neighbors, relatives and friends gathered Monday to pray and recite the Quran to support the distraught family. Their desperate cries were so loud, they could sometimes be heard outside where three televisions had been set up to monitor search developments.

"He is a good man. That's why people here appointed him as our neighborhood chief for the last two years," said Bagianto Djoyonegoro, a friend and neighbor.

Many recalled him as an experienced Air Force pilot who flew F-16 fighter jets before becoming a commercial airline pilot.

His co-pilot, Remi Plesel, had been in Indonesia three years and loved to fly, his sister, Renee, told France's RTL radio.

"He told me that things were going well, that he'd had a good Christmas. He was happy. The rains were starting, the weather was bad. It was raining a lot," she said.

___

Mason reported from Jakarta. Ali Kotarumalos, Niniek Karmini and Robin McDowell in Jakarta, Joan Lowy in Austin, Texas, Scott Mayerowitz in New York and Lori Hinnant in Paris contributed to this report.

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S. Korea officials face punishment over 'nut rage'

SEOUL, South Korea — Four South Korean officials will be punished for improper conduct during an investigation into a former Korean Air Lines executive who forced a flight to return over a bag of macadamia nuts, the Transport Ministry said Monday.

The punishments could include dismissals, salary reductions or formal reprimands, according to Shin Eun-chul, the official who headed the ministry's internal investigation. The ministry also issued warnings to four other lower-ranking officials who were involved in the investigation.

Earlier this month, then-Korean Air executive Cho Hyun-ah, the daughter of the airline's chairman, forced a plane that was preparing to take off in New York to return to the gate and kicked off the chief flight attendant because she had been served nuts in a bag, not on a plate.

The ministry has been under fire following revelations that some officials leaked information and committed other improper acts during the investigation.

One of the officials to be reviewed for punishment was arrested Friday over allegations that he leaked information about the ministry's probe to a current Korean Air executive, surnamed Yeo, through several telephone conversations and text messages.

The ministry found other officials responsible for allowing Yeo to attend the ministry's questioning of the flight attendant forced off the plane and failing to interview other first-class passengers, one of whom who told prosecutors that Cho had assaulted and threatened the flight attendant.

A Seoul court is expected to decide Tuesday whether to issue an arrest warrant for Cho, who resigned as vice president at the airline earlier this month amid mounting public criticism over the incident. Prosecutors are also seeking to arrest Yeo over suspicions that he pressured airline employees to cover up the incident.

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Greece heads for early election, stoking financial concerns

ATHENS, Greece — Greece's government was forced Monday to call early national elections, stoking financial concerns as investors worry the main opposition party will win — and want to renege on the country's bailout deal.

The stock market closed 3.9 percent lower, recovering from an earlier 11.3 percent plunge on news of the election, which was triggered by parliament's failure to elect a new president. European markets also fell, with the Euro Stoxx index down 0.6 percent.

Investors fear the left-wing opposition Syriza party, which has a narrow but steady lead in opinion polls, might act on popular resentment over six years of government austerity by seeking to overhaul the international bailout deal.

At the height of the eurozone crisis in 2010-2012, Greece's financial turmoil risked breaking up the currency union, an event which would have shaken the global economy.

The risks today are not as great, analysts say. For one, little of Greece's debt is held by private investors around the world, but mainly its bailout creditors, the International Monetary Fund and other eurozone countries.

Also, the European Union and European Central Bank now have programs meant to stabilize markets and support confidence in eurozone markets.

"Due to the policy advances made, the safeguards that have been put in place and the (European Central Bank's) stated public commitment to doing whatever is necessary to keep the eurozone together, events in Greece now pose much less of a threat to the eurozone" than a few years ago, IHS Global Insight economist Howard Archer said in a note.

However, should a new government seek changes to the deal, Greece's access to credit would be delayed just as its bailout loans are coming to an end. Greece still cannot finance itself independently on bond markets, so it faces the danger of a default that could hurt the finances of fellow European countries.

The IMF said Monday the current bailout review — upon which depends the payment of the next batch of rescue loans — will resume only after the new government is in place. It said Athens faces no immediate financing needs, however. The review has been stalled for months due to disagreements on new spending cuts.

Greek conservative Prime Minister Antonis Samaras said national elections, the fourth in six fraught years of financial crisis, will be held "at the soonest possible date" — Sunday, Jan. 25, 18 months early.

"The country has no time to waste," Samaras said in a televised address after the presidential vote. "The people must learn the truth about how easy it is to relapse into the deepest and most dramatic crisis."

In the presidential vote, his coalition's candidate for the post, 73-year-old former European commissioner Stavros Dimas, garnered 168 out of 300 possible votes— short of the 180 needed to win. It was the third and final round of voting. According to the constitution, the vote's failure means parliament has to be dissolved within 10 days.

Syriza has pledged to roll back some of the reforms Greece implemented to qualify for 240 billion euros in rescue funds. But it has recently softened its rhetoric about unilaterally pulling out of the bailout deal.

Syriza leader Alexis Tsipras said Monday's vote marked a "historic day for Greek democracy."

"Today Mr. Samaras' government, which for two and a half years plundered our society and had already decided and committed to take new (austerity) measures, belongs to the past," Tsipras said. "With the will of our people, in a few days, the austerity agreements will also belong to the past."

Commenting on the elections, European Finance Commissioner Pierre Moscovici said a "strong commitment to Europe" and backing for reforms will be "essential for Greece to thrive again within the euro area."

Greece lost market confidence and nearly went bankrupt in 2010, after years of profligate spending, dodging public sector reforms and hiding the extent of its bloated public deficit and debt.

The EU-IMF bailouts kept the country afloat, but drastic belt-tightening demanded by creditors hammered incomes and living conditions, sending unemployment to a post-World War II high. Ensuing resentment fuelled support for anti-austerity parties, from Syriza — whose pre-crisis support was under 5 percent — to the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn.

Samaras, 63, presided over a historic coalition that united his conservative party with their historic socialist rivals to hammer out further draconian spending cuts that balanced the budget after decades and led to a modest economic recovery this year.

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Derek Gatopoulos in Athens contributed to this report.

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Gas in Massachusetts drops 11 cents per gallon

BOSTON — Another double-digit drop in the cost of a gallon of gasoline in Massachusetts has brought prices to their lowest level in more than five years.

AAA Southern New England reports Monday that self-serve, regular fell 11 cents in the past week to an average of $2.46 per gallon. Prices were last this low in October 2009.

The current price is exactly a dollar below where it was at this time last year and 39 cents lower than a month ago.

The price in Massachusetts, however, is 17 cents above the national average.

AAA found self-serve, regular selling for as low as $2.23 per gallon in Massachusetts and as high as $2.89.

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Stocks mostly higher at midday, extending advance

Major stock indexes edged mostly higher Monday but the gains were held back by discouraging data on U.S. home sales and a deepening slide in oil prices.

The market is coming off a big advance last week, which gave the Standard & Poor's 500 its second-biggest weekly gain this year.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 78 points, or 0.4 percent, to 17,873 as of 11:45 a.m. Eastern. The S&P 500 was flat at 2,070. The Nasdaq composite rose a point to 4,766.

The price of oil fell $1.74 to $55.39 a barrel.

Homebuilders fell following a report that sales of previously occupied homes fell last month to the slowest pace in six months.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.18 percent.

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Express Scripts turns to AbbVie in huge hepatitis C deal

The nation's largest pharmacy benefits manager is throwing its weight into a fight over the high cost of treating hepatitis C, saying it will cover a new drug from AbbVie while pulling back on more expensive options from rival drugmakers.

Express Scripts Holding Co. said Monday it will no longer cover Sovaldi and Harvoni from Gilead Sciences Inc. or Johnson & Johnson's Olysio starting Jan. 1, except under limited circumstances. AbbVie Inc.'s Viekira Pak, approved only Friday, will become the preferred treatment for patients who have genotype 1 hepatitis C, the most common form of the liver-destroying virus.

Express Scripts will still cover the other drugs if patients have already started treatment or if the patient has a clinical exception and needs those particular drugs.

It also will still cover Sovaldi and Olysio for patients with other genotypes of hepatitis C and advanced liver disease.

The three drugs that will no longer be covered are part of a wave of effective but expensive treatments that hit the market in the past year. Patients and insurers have been hoping that growing competition will help reduce prices or give payers like Express Scripts some leverage to negotiate better rates.

Express Scripts Chief Medical Officer Dr. Steve Miller said that leverage can only be used if competing drugs are considered at least clinically equivalent, meaning they are as good or better than the more expensive treatments. Express Scripts said a committee of independent experts has verified this for the pharmacy benefits manager.

Express Scripts manages prescription drug benefits for about 85 million people, and this decision affects about 25 million of its commercial customers. But that total could grow.

Miller said other customers have expressed interest in this approach.

Pharmacy benefits managers, or PBMs, run prescription drug plans for employers, insurers and other customers. They process mail-order prescriptions and handle bills for prescriptions filled at retail pharmacies.

Sovaldi, which was approved late last year, costs $84,000 for a course of treatment.

That price can rise up to $160,000 when Olysio is paired with it, Dr. Miller said.

Harvoni was approved in October, and Gilead has said the new drug will cost $94,500 for a 12-week supply.

Gilead executives have said their drugs are cost effective, despite their large upfront cost, because they cure more patients in less time than older drugs, and prevent the catastrophic problems for patients like liver failure.

Representatives of Gilead and Johnson & Johnson did not immediately return calls from The Associated Press seeking comment Monday morning.

AbbVie has said the shortest approved course of therapy for Viekira, 12 weeks, will cost about $83,320 at wholesale prices.

An Express Scripts spokesman said his company received a "significant discount" for its coverage of Viekira Pak off of that price, but he declined to offer details.

Shares of Gilead sank nearly 11 percent, or $11.67, to $96.78 Monday morning, and AbbVie also slipped 75 cents to $66.96 while broader indexes rose slightly.

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Full text of statement from North Korea's National Defence Commission

Full text of statement from North Korea's National Defence Commission

U.S. Urged to Honestly Apologize to Mankind for Its Evil Doing before Groundlessly Pulling up Others

Pyongyang, December 21 (KCNA) -- The Policy Department of the National Defence Commission of the DPRK issued the following statement Sunday:

Strange thing that happened in the heart of the U.S., the ill-famed cesspool of injustice, is now afloat in the world as shocking news.

The Sony Pictures Entertainment, the biggest movie producer in the U.S., which produced the undesirable reactionary film "The Interview" daring hurt the dignity of the supreme leadership of the DPRK and agitating even terrorism and had a plan to distribute it, was exposed to surprisingly sophisticated, destructive and threatening cyber warfare and has been thrown into a bottomless quagmire after suffering property losses worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

The public in the U.S. is now describing this case as "disgrace suffered by Sony Pictures Entertainment," "very sorry thing caused by the U.S.," "Sony Pictures Entertainment showing a white flag before hackers" and the "unprecedented disaster suffered by the U.S."

Those who meted out a stern punishment of justice were reported to be cyber experts styling themselves "guardians of peace".
Seized with terrible horror and threat in face of their merciless hacking attack in retaliation against unjust actions, many movie and drama distributors in North America including 41 states of the U.S. and Canada immediately canceled the screening of the reactionary movie. And it was reported that the Sony Pictures Entertainment which directly sponsored its production and distribution hastily issued a statement on Dec. 25 that it would suspend the screening of the undesirable movie which had been planned in 63 countries.

The NDC of the DPRK highly estimates the righteous action taken by the "guardians of peace," though it is not aware of their residence.

It, at the same time, considers as fortunate the step taken by the Sony Pictures Entertainment to give up the overall distribution of the above-said movie due to the decision and strong pressure of the movie and drama distributors for stopping the screening of the reactionary movie, though belatedly.

This is an official stand of the army and the people of the DPRK on what happened in the heart of the U.S.

This stand is taken by the DPRK because the movie "The Interview" is an undesirable and reactionary one justifying and inciting terrorism which should not be allowed in any country and any region.

Another reason is that the movie is run through with a story agitating a vicious and dastardly method of assassinating a head of a legitimate sovereign state.

No wonder, even political and social circles of the U.S. commented that it is quite wrong to defame the head of the state for the mere reason that his politics is different from that of the U.S. and it is in the hostile relationship with the latter and, therefore, the Sony Pictures Entertainment got into a serious trouble and paid a due price.

For these reasons, the DPRK is more highly praising the "guardians of peace" for their righteous deed which prevented in advance the evil cycle of retaliation- terrorism sparks terrorism.

It is quite natural that the movie and drama producers should refrain from undesirable deeds contrary to the noble mission to lead morality and civilization.

But what matters is that the U.S. and its followers are groundlessly trumpeting that the recent cyber attack was made by the DPRK.

The FBI issued the results of the investigation into the hack at the Sony Pictures Entertainment on December 19.
According to them, it suffered tremendous losses.

One may say this is the due price incurred by wrong deed, the evil act of hurting others.

The U.S. released a statement asserting that this loss was caused by the DPRK.

No matter how big and disgraceful the loss may be, the U.S. should not pull up others for no reason.

The FBI presented a report on the results of technical analysis of hacking program used by the "guardians of peace" for this attack, citing it as the ground that the serious hacking was caused by the DPRK.

The report says the malignant code had access to north Korea's IP already known several times and the hacking methods applied in the "March 20 hacking case" and during cyber warfare against media and various other computer networks in south Korea in recent years are similar to that applied against the Sony Pictures Entertainment this time, being another ground that "this was done by the north".

The report, in particular, adds that the malignant code and algorithm applied during the attack are similar to what was used during the hacking attack on south Korea, citing it as a proof.

Not satisfied with those groundless "evidence", the FBI is letting loose ambiguous remarks that it is hard to fully prove due to the "protection of sensitive information sources."

This means self-acknowledgement that the "assertion about the north's deed" came from an intentional allegation rather than scientific evidence.

It is a common sense that the method of cyber warfare is almost similar worldwide. Different sorts of hacking programs and codes are used in cyberspace.

If somebody used U.S.-made hacking programs and codes and applied their instruction or encoding method, perhaps, the "wise" FBI, too, could not but admit that it would be hard to decisively assert that the attack was done by the U.S.

Moreover, the DPRK has never attempted nor made a "cyber-attack" on south Korea. The rumor about "cyber-attack" by the DPRK was a concoction made by the south Korean puppet regime and its plot.

After all, the grounds cited by the FBI in its announcement were all based on obscure sci-tech data and false story and, accordingly, the announcement itself is another fabrication. This is the DPRK's stand on the U.S. gangster-like behavior against it.

What is grave is that U.S. President Obama is recklessly making the rumor about "DPRK's cyber-attack on Sony Pictures" a fait accompli while crying out for symmetric counteraction, strict calculation and additionally retaliatory sanctions.

This is like beating air after being hit hard. A saying goes every sin brings its punishment with it. It is best for the guilty to repent of its evil doings and draw a lesson when forced to pay dearly for them.

The DPRK has clear evidence that the U.S. administration was deeply involved in the making of such dishonest reactionary movie.
It is said that the movie was conceived and produced according to the "guidelines" of the U.S. authorities who contended that such movies hurting the dignity of the DPRK supreme leadership and inciting terrorism against it would be used in an effective way as "propaganda against north Korea".

The U.S. Department of State's special human rights envoy went the lengths of urging the movie makers to keep all scenes insulting the dignity of the DPRK supreme leadership in the movie, saying it is needed to "vex the north Korean government".

The facts glaringly show that the U.S. is the chief culprit of terrorism as it has loudly called for combating terrorism everywhere in the world but schemed behind the scene to produce and distribute movies inciting it in various countries of the world.

It is not exaggeration to say in the light of the prevailing situation that the U.S. administration and President Obama looking after the overall state affairs of the U.S. have been behind the case.

Can he really cover up the crimes he has committed by trying so hard to falsify the truth and turn white to black.

So we watched with unusual attention what had been done by the "guardians of peace" to avert terrorism and defend justice.

Yet, we do not know who or where they are but we can surely say that they are supporters and sympathizers with the DPRK.
The army and people of the DPRK who aspire after justice and truth and value conscience have hundreds of millions of supporters and sympathizers, known or unknown, who have turned out in the sacred war against terrorism and the U.S. imperialists, the chieftain of aggression, to accomplish the just cause.

Obama personally declared in public the "symmetric counteraction", a disgraceful behavior.

There is no need to guess what kind of thing the "symmetric counteraction" is like but the army and people of the DPRK will never be browbeaten by such a thing.

The DPRK has already launched the toughest counteraction. Nothing is more serious miscalculation than guessing that just a single movie production company is the target of this counteraction. Our target is all the citadels of the U.S. imperialists who earned the bitterest grudge of all Koreans.

The army and people of the DPRK are fully ready to stand in confrontation with the U.S. in all war spaces including cyber warfare space to blow up those citadels.

Our toughest counteraction will be boldly taken against the White House, the Pentagon and the whole U.S. mainland, the cesspool of terrorism, by far surpassing the "symmetric counteraction" declared by Obama.

This is the invariable toughest stand of the army and people of the DPRK.

Fighters for justice including "guardians of peace" who turned out in the sacred drive for cooperation in the fight against the U.S. to defend human justice and conscience and to dismember the U.S. imperialists, the root cause of all sorts of evils and kingpin of injustice, are sharpening bayonets not only in the U.S. mainland but in all other parts of the world.

The just struggle to be waged by them across the world will bring achievements thousands of times greater than the hacking attack on the Sony Pictures Entertainment.

It is the truth and inevitability of the historical development that justice prevails over injustice.

Whoever challenges justice by toeing the line of the biggest criminal U.S. will never be able to escape merciless punishment as it is the target of the sacred drive for cooperation in the fight against the U.S.

The U.S. should reflect on its evil doings that put itself in such a trouble, apologize to the Koreans and other people of the world and should not dare pull up others.

© 2014 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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Russia bails out bank following ruble slide

MOSCOW — Russia has bailed out a mid-sized bank for about $500 million to save it from bankruptcy— a clear sign that the slide in the value of the ruble in the wake of sliding oil prices is straining the banking system.

The Central Bank said Monday it will give Trust Bank 30 billion rubles that will allow it to continue operating as normal.

It will also place Trust Bank under its own supervision until it finds an investor. Major Russian banks said they had no interest in acquiring Trust, a top 30 Russian bank with about $5 billion in assets.

The problems afflicting Trust Bank follow a tumultuous period for the ruble, which is one of the worst-performing currencies this year, along with the Ukrainian hryvnia. A respected former Russian finance minister warned that the country is headed for "a full-blown economic crisis."

It has fallen by a half this year as oil prices have fallen. Last week, its descent gathered pace, sparking a consumer boom as worried Russians flocked to shops to buy cars and durable goods before prices rose further.

Still, deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov said Monday he expects the ruble to rally following some signs of stability over the past few trading sessions. Following moderate gains at the end of last week, the ruble surged 8 percent in early evening trading on Monday, at 54 against the U.S. dollar.

He also said the government is not planning to introduce currency controls on Russian companies. The ruble's collapse has stirred rumors that Russia could introduce capital and currency controls to keep the rate high.

The Russian currency has been battered by low oil prices, now around $60 a barrel, down from a June high of $107, as well as the sanctions that the West imposed on Russia for its involvement in Ukraine and the annexation of Crimea.

The fall in oil prices is one of the major reasons why Russia is expected to fall into recession next year.

Alexei Kudrin, a well-respected former Russian finance minister, said oil prices weren't the main reason why the ruble has suffered this year. In comments to reporters, he said low oil prices account for as little as a quarter of the ruble decline whereas the sanctions imposed on the country could be contributing up to 40 percent of the collapse.

Kudrin warned that Russia will enter recession even if oil prices are as high as $80.

"We are entering or have already entered a full-blown economic crisis, and we're going to feel it to the full next year," Kudrin said. "This is a serious challenge to the economy."

President Vladimir Putin has overseen a full decade of economic growth boosted by high oil prices and the expanding consumer market, but the collapse of the ruble and the rise of inflation could pose a threat to consumer expectations next year.

For the first time since 2000, according to Kudrin, disposable income in Russia is going to drop signify

cantly, by about 4 percent.

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How Obama took Sony's crisis from bad to worse

If there are such a thing as textbooks in the field of crisis management, the Sony Pictures hack might end up in the chapter labeled "Worst Case Scenario."

But as much as Sony seemed to mishandle its sorry situation in recent days, the severity of the circumstances Sony faced are so extreme that it begs the question of whether anyone could have handled it better. Every step of the way Sony has been faced with no-win situations and just plain bad luck.

Just when things couldn't have looked any worse for the studio, President Obama turned sharply critical of Sony in a news conference Friday, second-guessing its decision to withdraw "The Interview" from theaters.

Why he bothered to pass judgment on Sony at all may have come as some surprise at a time when assembled reporters were likely more interested in hearing more about the investigation into North Korea's involvement, as well as the U.S. response.

Cynics might suggest targeting Sony gave Obama something to distract from the precious little he offered on what he knew or planned to do next. Blaming the studio also shifts already mounting criticism that the U.S. lacks any coherent cybersecurity strategies despite the growing number of attacks pounding not only the government but many other corporations.

In other words, think of the Obama subtext thusly: "Cut me some slack on not defining what exactly the "proportionate' response to North Korea will be because, hey, it's not my fault (cue finger-point at Sony)."

There's also a more generous interpretation of the president's motives. Second-term presidents are more inclined to follow their own convictions, and a constitutional scholar like Obama may genuinely take offense at Sony not doing more to stand up for the First Amendment.

It's interesting to note this isn't the first time this winter that Obama has inserted himself this forcefully and unexpectedly into the media business. Just think of the tough stance he took last month pressuring the FCC to enforce net neutrality.

But whereas that probably won't do much to alter the course of a battle that's probably going to play out on Capitol Hill for at least another year, Obama's Sony remarks ratcheted up the pressure on the studio to get this movie released somehow someway soon.

What happened after Obama's comments didn't help matters, and here Sony only has itself to blame. Sony Pictures chairman Michael Lynton gave an interview to CNN's Fareed Zakaria in which he appeared to rebut the president's assertion that Sony didn't consult with the White House with regard to yanking the film. But what wasn't clear from his remarks was that the consultation with the administration occurred before the decision to pull the film.

That same day Obama sat down with CNN's Candy Crowley for a separate interview in which he made clear the White House wasn't consulted specifically about pulling the film. The mere fact that the president saw fit to even address Lynton's remarks is bad enough, but Obama's clarification made Lynton seem to have engaged in obfuscation. PR 101: Getting caught in a he said/she said with the President of the United States is not generally a good idea (unless you're John Boehner).

In interviews that day on CNN and NPR, Lynton also made clear that Sony was actively seeking new digital distribution alternatives for "The Interview." That represented a contradiction in the stance the studio had taken just days earlier when emphatically stating that the movie was "canceled" and not to appear on theaters or any other kind of platform. Whether Sony didn't intend to shut the door so tight on future options for "The Interview" or Obama simply made it impossible to maintain that stance going forward is anybody's guess.

What's strange about this new focus on finding a digital distribution alternative is that while Sony gets to avoid the scorn of Obama and many in Hollywood for not upholding the First Amendment, it puts the studio right back in the crosshairs of the hackers the second a release plan gets announced. Getting criticized by the president may not be fun for Lynton but it sure sounds better than suffering yet another round of 'Read My Private Emails.'

Let's not forget the hackers purport to have plenty of "gifts" they seemed more than prepared to put under his Christmas tree come Dec. 25th. Perhaps after withstanding nine previous data dumps, you get so numb you don't even feel it when the leak total climbs into double digits.

If Sony gained any ground Friday, it was probably in shifting the blame for its decision to the exhibitors, and rightfully so. It's an oversimplifcation to put Sony and Sony alone in the hot seat because had the major theater chains agreed to screen the movie, "The Interview" would be good to go for Dec. 25.

© 2014 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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Problems surround Alibaba Pictures as it reveals $57 million loss

HONG KONG -- Alibaba Pictures Group, the film investment and distribution arm of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, has revealed losses of US$57.1 million (HK$443 million).

The figures amount to a painful house cleaning exercise and a demonstration of the many hazards of doing business in the Chinese film industry.

The losses were incurred in the six months to June and reflect impairments to the value of some of the company's film and TV properties, as well as a restatement of the value of some derivative financial instruments.

Alibaba took control of the Hong Kong-listed company, through a 60% share stake costing US$775 million (HK$6 billion), at the end of June and changed the company's name from Chinavision to Alibaba Pictures Group. The losses relate to the period before Alibaba's control, but were only discovered after takeover, in August, prompting an investigation by auditors that only ended recently.

Revenues dropped from US$61.2 million (HK$474 million) in the first half of 2013 to just US$14.6 million (HK$113 million). The write-offs amounted to US$48.9 million (HK$379 million) while trading losses of US$8.36 million (HK$64.8 million) added a further burden.

The company revealed the numerous difficulties encountered in the past year as it tried to muscle its way into the forefront of the business.

Among the $9.68 million (HK$75 million) of film-specific losses, the company revealed a costly "restriction imposed by the PRC authority on the broadcasting of a film in the PRC;" and a "dispute between a film distributor and a film producer on profit sharing of a film in which the group has invested." This is understood to be a reference to Chinavision's stake in Stephen Chow's Feb 2013 $200 million blockbuster "Journey To The West," which was distributed by Huayi Brothers Media.

Notes to the accounts reveal that part of Alibaba Pictures Group's array of deals with prominent regional film makers is also coming undone.

As Chinavision, it paid US$8.14 million (RMB50 million) for Stephen Chow to offer it investment positions in five future movies. But it chose not to go ahead with any of them and so forfeited its deposit.

In March this year, it signed a deal with Taiwan-based producer Angie Chai to deliver a slate of films involving writer-director Giddens Ko. However that is treated as a loss in the June accounts.

More happily, in May this year it also paid RMB50 million to Wong Kar-wai as down payments on five movies for Wong or his associates to deliver. Alibaba Pictures says that it expects one of those to go ahead before June 2015 - Wong recently revealed a project involving a monk travelling to India -- and has restated that investment as a current asset.

Alibaba Pictures also bought mainland Chinese distribution rights to two Hong Kong movies, actioner "Rise of A Legend" and comedy "Temporary Family."

Shares in the group began trading again Monday, after months of suspension, and in early trade rose 2% to HK$1.64 apiece.

© 2014 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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Stocks mostly higher in morning trading, extending rally

Major stock indexes edged mostly higher Monday morning but the gains were held back by discouraging data on U.S. home sales and a deepening slide in oil prices, which hammered energy stocks. Stocks have notched gains the past three trading days.

KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average rose 68 points, or 0.4 percent, to 17,873 as of 11:12 a.m. Eastern time. The Standard & Poor's 500 index was flat at 2,070. The Nasdaq composite was up a point at 4,766.

SANTA RALLY: Stocks are continuing a pre-Christmas advance, which traders often refer to as a "Santa" rally. Major indexes ended last week on a strong note, finishing higher three days in a row. The Dow and S&P 500 are both up for the month, while the Nasdaq is down.

THE QUOTE: "With the Dow being up substantially more than the S&P 500, I would tend to say what's holding back the S&P is more related to its makeup than it is a problem related to investors' perception or concerns," said Sam Stovall, U.S. equity strategist at S&P Capital IQ. "We're firmly in a Santa Claus rally."

SECTOR WATCH: Seven of the 10 sectors in the S&P 500 index rose, led by technology stocks. Semiconductor services company KLA-Tencor rose $1.84, or 2.6 percent, to $71.56. Energy stocks declined. The sector is down about 10 percent this year.

SHELL GAME: Shares in Caesar's Entertainment jumped 19.9 percent on news the casino operator will buy an affiliate in a bid to smooth the reorganization of another struggling division and balance its debt load. The stock gained $2.69 to $16.18.

HOUSING SPUTTERS: The National Association of Realtors reported that sales of previously occupied homes fell 6.1 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.93 million. That's the slowest pace in six months. Over the past 12 months, sales have risen 2.1 percent. The disappointing data sent shares in most homebuilders lower. NVR led among the decliners, sliding $31.26, or 2.5 percent, to $1,205.10.

PUSHING BACK: Shares in drugmaker Gilead Sciences fell 13 percent after pharmacy benefits manager Express Scripts said it will no longer cover two of Gilead's hepatitis C drugs as part of an effort to battle the high cost of treatment for the disease. Gilead slid $14.15 to $94.32.

EYE ON OIL: Benchmark U.S. crude fell $1.67, or 2.9 percent, to $55.85 a barrel. Oil peaked at $107 a barrel in June but has plunged since then due to weak demand and abundant supplies, especially after Saudi Arabia and other OPEC members agreed to maintain production levels.

ENERGY SLUMP: Several oil production and exploration companies tumbled as the slide in oil prices deepened. Nabors Industries fell 95 cents, or 7 percent, to $12.68, while Chesapeake Energy slid $1.31, or 6.6 percent, to $18.55. Range Resources shed $3.33, or 5.6 percent, to $56.54. Southwestern Energy dropped $1.76, or 5.7 percent, to $29.24.

OVERSEAS MARKETS: In Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 rose 1.2 percent, while Germany's DAX rose 0.6 percent. France's CAC 40 gained 0.1 percent. In Asia, China's Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.6 percent, while South Korea's Kospi added 0.7 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 1.3 percent, while Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 0.1 percent.

BONDS: U.S. government bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.18 percent from 2.17 percent late Friday.

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Springfield TV pioneer Putnam dies

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — William Lowell Putnam, who founded the Springfield area's first television station and the first licensed UHF television station in the United States, has died.

WWLP-TV said in a statement that Putnam died Sunday. He was 90.

Putnam was also a decorated World War II veteran, a Harvard University graduate, an accomplished mountain climber, and for 26 years, the sole trustee of the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, founded by his great-uncle, Percival Lowell.

As a member of the 10th Mountain Division, Putnam served in the Aleutians and Italy during World War II, rising to the rank of first lieutenant and earning two Purple Hearts, a Silver Star and a Bronze Star.

After earning a geology degree from Harvard, he founded WWLP in 1953. He sold the station in the 1980s.

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Massachusetts gas prices down another 11 cents

BOSTON — The holidays are a little happier for Massachusetts residents who are seeing another steep drop in gas prices.

AAA Southern New England reports Monday that the price of a gallon of self-serve, regular dropped another 11 cents in the past week to an average of $2.57.

That's 30 cents lower per gallon than a month ago and 87 cents lower than at the same time last year.

Yet despite the sharp drop, the price in Massachusetts is 18 cents higher than the national average.

AAA found self-serve, regular selling in Massachusetts for as low as $2.39 per gallon to as high as $2.79.

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US home sales hit slowest pace in 6 months in Nov.

WASHINGTON — Fewer Americans bought homes in November as buying slid to its slowest pace in six months.

The National Association of Realtors said Monday that sales of existing homes fell 6.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.93 million. That was down from a revised annual pace of 5.26 million in October. Over the past 12 months, sales have risen 2.1 percent.

The combination of higher home prices and relatively stagnant incomes has reduced affordability and restrained buying. A recent decline in mortgage rates has yet to lure more buyers into the market. At the same time, fewer distressed properties and bargains, which tend to attract investors, are coming onto the market.

The Realtors estimate that 2014 sales will end up below 2013 levels. Sales have slumped much of this year after a three-year rally that followed the recession and the implosion of the housing market. Harsh winter weather crippled home buying at the start of 2014. Lower affordability, resulting from tight credit, rising home prices and essentially flat incomes, held back sales for the rest of the year.

The Realtors have estimated that 4.94 million existing homes will be sold this year, down 3 percent from 5.09 million in 2013. Analysts say sales of roughly 5.5 million existing homes are common in a healthy real estate market.

The median price rose 5 percent over the past 12 months to $205,300. That's a positive for owners looking to sell, though it creates an additional challenge for would-be buyers.

The share of first-time buyers climbed to 31 percent last month from a recent average of 29 percent. Still, that's well below the 40 percent share that has been historically common. The modest percentage of first-time buyers is a sign that affordability remains an obstacle for many who would like to purchase but lack the savings or credit record to do so.

November sales fell in all four major geographic regions: Northeast, Midwest, South and West. Buying activity fell over the past 12 months for homes worth less than $250,000.

A sudden blast of cold weather and snowstorms at the end of November might have cut into sales, noted Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics. This November was the coldest since 2000, contributing to the slowest annualized sales pace since May.

The supply of homes for sale also fell from October. There were 2.09 million homes listed for sale in November, down 6.7 percent from the prior month.

Some of the weakness in sales has resulted from a healthier market. Just 9 percent of sales last month were due to foreclosures and short sales, compared with 14 percent last year. The share of purchases by investors was 15 percent in November, compared with 19 percent 12 months ago. This indicates that the market continues to recover from the housing bust, despite the absence of sales growth.

There are signs that sales may improve in 2015. Mortgage rates have fallen sharply in the past few weeks, which should make homes more affordable. The average rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage dropped last week to 3.8 percent, from 3.93 percent the previous week. That was the lowest level since May 2013.

Rates have fallen as investors have plowed their money into 10-year U.S. Treasury notes, after being spooked by plummeting oil prices and signs of slowing growth overseas that make lower risk investments more attractive.

At the same time, consistent job growth has lowered the unemployment rate to 5.8 percent from 7 percent 12 months ago. Steady hiring should eventually boost pay at a pace meaningfully above inflation, which would help boost home sales.

Sales may also pick up as the housing market continues to heal from its boom-and-bust last decade. Real estate data provider Zillow said last week that the proportion of U.S. homeowners with mortgages who are "under water" — meaning they owe more than their house is worth — has fallen by almost half in the past two years.

Rising prices and foreclosures have reduced that figure. As more homeowners gain equity in their homes, they are more likely to list their homes for sale, keeping home prices in check and spurring more sales.

Stan Humphries, Zillow's chief economist, forecasts that sales of existing homes will rise to 5.2 million next year from just under 5 million in 2014.

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Court rules for energy firm in class-action suit

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court won't make it tougher for defendants in class-action lawsuits to transfer cases from state courts to more business-friendly federal court.

The justices on Monday ruled 5-4 in favor of a Michigan energy company that wanted to move a class-action case from Kansas state court to federal court without showing evidence that damages in the case would exceed $5 million. That is the minimum amount required for transferring such cases.

The case involved a group of royalty owners who sued Dart Cherokee Basin Operating Co. alleging they were underpaid royalties on oil and gas wells.

A federal judge refused to transfer the case without evidence of damages. A federal appeals court declined to consider an appeal, but the Supreme Court said the law does not require such evidence.

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US stock slip after biggest weekly loss since 2012

NEW YORK — U.S. stocks are falling slightly in morning trading Monday following the market's biggest weekly loss in two and a half years. The Russian ruble hit a record low against the dollar.

KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell four points, or 0.2 percent, to 1,998 as of 11:14 a.m. Eastern. The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 43 points, or 0.3 percent, to 17,238. The Nasdaq composite fell 22 points, or 0.5 percent, to 4,632.

OIL: The price of oil moved lower, erasing an early gain. Benchmark U.S. crude fell $1.11, or 1.9 percent, to $56.71 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil has fallen about half since June on waning global demand and abundant supplies. The recent drop to five-year lows has been roiling stock markets.

BUYOUT BOUNCE: Riverbed Technology and PetSmart are soaring on news that they each have agreed to sell to buyout funds. Riverbed, a maker of computer-network equipment, jumped $1.61, or 9 percent, to $20.35 after agreeing to a $3.6 billion sale to private-equity firm Thoma Bravo and a Canadian pension fund. Pet-supplies chain PetSmart rose $3.26, or 4.3 percent, to $80.92 after announcing Sunday that it had agreed to a $8.7 billion sale to a group of investors led by BC Partners.

FACTORY FIX: U.S. manufacturing output in November surpassed its pre-recession peak as auto production ramped up. The Federal Reserve figures are an encouraging sign that America's factories are somewhat insulated from the global economic slowdown.

RUSSIA'S PAIN: The ruble plunged 9 percent to 63.47 to the dollar. The ruble started the year at 32.85 to the dollar. The falling price of oil, which is the chief source of Russian exports and tax revenue, has weighed heavily on the currency.

EUROPEAN STOCKS: France's CAC 40 lost 1.6 percent and Germany's DAX fell 1.3 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 was down 1.1 percent.

JAPAN ELECTIONS: Japan's ruling coalition won in lower house elections Sunday, giving Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Liberal Democrats up to four more years. However a business survey released Monday highlighted the challenges facing Abe's government, which is using large-scale monetary and fiscal stimulus to try to end two decades of stagnation. More than two-thirds of companies surveyed said the outlook for the coming quarter wasn't favorable.

THE QUOTE: "The fears around an oversupply of oil are refusing to go away ... resurfacing questions over the global economic recovery," said Jameel Ahmad, chief market analyst for FXTM.

ASIAN SCORECARD: Japan's Nikkei closed down 1.6 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 1 percent and Seoul's Kospi shed 0.1 percent. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 dropped 0.6 percent. China's Shanghai Composite reversed losses to close up 0.5 percent.

BONDS: Prices for U.S. government bonds fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.12 percent from 2.08 percent late Friday.

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London banker banned for dodging rail fares

LONDON — A London banker has been banned from working in the financial services industry after he was caught dodging rail fares.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said in a statement Monday that Jonathan Burrows has been banned for not being "fit and proper."

The former BlackRock director would board a train at Stonegate, a suburb nearly 60 miles southeast of London, for his daily commute and, after arriving at London's Cannon Street, pay only 7.20 pounds ($11.70) for the journey, instead of the full 21.50 pounds price that was required for that journey, railway officials said.

By boarding at a station without a ticket gate barrier, Burrows was able to use a loophole in the system of pre-paid transport passes. When arriving in London he touched out with his pass, which is only valid for travel within London, and was charged only 7.20 pounds. He should instead have bought a full ticket for traveling into the city from Stonegate.

Burrows paid 43,000 pounds ($67,000) in an out-of-court-settlement with Southeastern railways.

Michelle Ulyatt, a Southeastern spokeswoman, said the company believed Burrows was dodging fares for up to five years.

He was finally caught by inspectors at Cannon Street station on November 19 last year.

Burrows said in a statement Monday that he had apologized to all concerned. "I have always recognized that what I did was foolish," he said.

The amount the company asked Burrows to repay was based on its calculations on the basis of single fares.

This meant the settlement cost him around 20,000 pounds more than if he had bought season tickets.

Tracey McDermott, the FCA's director of enforcement and financial crime, said in a statement that Burrow's "conduct fell short of the standards" of a senior manager.

Burrows left his job as a managing director of BlackRock Asset Management Investor Services earlier this year after the fare-dodging was uncovered.

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Riverbed Technology accepts $3.6B takeover bid

SAN FRANCISCO — Private equity firm Thoma Bravo and a Canadian teacher pension will pay about $3.6 billion to take Riverbed Technology private a couple months after the computer networking equipment maker promised a thorough review of its business.

The San Francisco company said Monday that its stockholders will receive $21 in cash for each share from Thoma Bravo and the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan. That represents a 12 percent premium to the stock's closing price Friday of $18.74

The company's shares jumped more than 9 percent after the deal was announced.

Riverbed Technology Inc. had said in October that its board would review ways to enhance shareholder value, and it planned to cut costs by up to $25 million to help improve its annual operating profit.

The company had rejected in January a $3.08 billion buyout offer from Elliott Management, saying it undervalued the company.

Elliott is one of Riverbed's biggest shareholders, with a 9.6 percent stake in the company, according to FactSet.

Elliott executive Jesse Cohn said in a separate statement Monday that his firm was "delighted" with the latest buyout offer, and they commend Riverbed's board for "taking this bold step."

Thoma Bravo focuses on technology-related investments. It said in September that it would spend about $2.5 billion to buy Compuware and take the software developer private.

Riverbed shareholders and government regulators still need to approve the deal, which is expected to close in the first half of next year.

Shares of Riverbed jumped 9.1 percent, or $1.71, to $20.45 Monday in morning trading, as broader trading indexes started off nearly flat. The stock had climbed only about 4 percent so far this year, as of Friday.

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Dutch watchdog demands privacy changes from Google

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — A Dutch privacy watchdog on Monday ordered Google to make changes to the way it handles users' personal data or face fines of up to 15 million euros ($18.7 million).

The College for the Protection of Personal Data announced it is giving the Internet giant until the end of February to comply with measures aimed at giving consumers in the Netherlands more clarity about how their personal information is used across the suite of Google services.

Jacob Kohnstamm, chairman of the organization, said Google's practice of combining data from different services to tailor ads and personalize services like YouTube "catches us in an invisible web of our personal information, without telling us or asking our permission."

The authority said Google must clearly ask users for permission to combine personal data from the company's different services and further amend its privacy policy so that users are "clearly and consistently informed" about what personal data is used by Google services.

Data Protection Agencies (DPAs) in six European countries, including the Netherlands, opened investigations into Google after it amended its privacy policy early in 2012.

"We're disappointed with the Dutch DPA's order, especially as we have already made a number of changes to our privacy policy in response to their concerns," said Al Verney, a spokesman from Google. "However, we've recently shared some proposals for further changes with the group of European DPAs and we look forward to discussing with them soon."

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Belgian strike paralyzes traffic, idles industry

BRUSSELS — A general strike paralyzed Belgium's air and rail traffic and idled scores of companies across the country Monday as trade unions capped a month of labor action against government austerity policies.

The strike targeted measures by the nation's business-friendly government to cut into employees' income, extend working time and restrict social services. They also protest the lack of additional capital gains taxes.

"We have not been heard so far," said Socialist trade union leader Rudi De Leeuw. There is talk of extending labor action into the new year, but concrete measures have yet to be put forward.

The strike had an immediate international impact since Brussels Airport, a busy hub with connections throughout Europe and beyond, had no traffic whatsoever. The high-speed rail links to London and France and the Netherlands were also scrapped for the day.

The series of labor actions, the toughest in years, started last month with a demonstration that drew some 120,000 protesters.

Airport spokeswoman Florence Muls said some 600 flights have been canceled, affecting 50,000 passengers. Going with the Thalys or Eurostar trains was no option either since the whole rail network was paralyzed.

Almost all activity at Antwerp port too was stopped for the day.

From early morning, striking workers started small fires at entrances to factories throughout the nation, discouraging people from working. Some small and medium sized businesses were able to operate normally.

Since regional strike action had already affected highways into the capital Brussels and major cities for the past three weeks, workers took the general strike in stride.

Masses worked from home and the expected traffic jams during the morning rush hour did not materialize.

Other EU nations also face labor action protesting measures that are widely seen as undercutting the vestiges of Europe's famed welfare state.

Tens of thousands of people demonstrated in several Italian cities last Friday to protest economic reforms that they say erode their social rights.

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Raf Casert can be followed on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/rcasert

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US homebuilder sentiment slips in December

U.S. homebuilders are feeling slightly less confident in their sales prospects heading into next year, even as their overall sales outlook remains favorable.

The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo builder sentiment index released Monday slipped this month to 57, down one point from 58 in November.

Readings above 50 indicate more builders view sales conditions as good, rather than poor.

Builders' view of current sales conditions and their outlook for sales over the next six months also declined slightly. A measure of traffic by prospective buyers held steady.

The index also found sentiment had improved in the West and Northeast, but took a step back in the Midwest and South, which accounts for half of the new-home market.

The latest reading reflects a housing market that is slowly recovering, said David Crowe, the NAHB's chief economist.

"As we head into 2015, the housing market should continue to recover at a steady, gradual pace," Crowe said.

Housing, while still a long way from the boom of several years ago, has been recovering over the past two years.

New home sales reached a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 458,000 homes in October, the highest point since May. Still, sales remain sharply below the annual rate of 700,000 seen during the 1990s.

At the same time, home prices continue to climb.

The median price of a home sold in October was $305,000, up 16.5 percent from a year ago. November data on new-home sales are due out next week.

The steady rise in home prices has held back many potential buyers, particularly first-time buyers. Many lack the savings and strong credit history needed to afford a home, causing them to rent or remain in their existing homes instead of upgrading.

Tight credit and flat incomes also have limited the number of buyers who could afford a home.

In the latest NAHB index, which was based on responses from 375 builders, the index gauging current sales conditions for single-family homes slipped one point to 61. Builders' outlook for sales over the next six months also fell, shedding one point to 65. A measure of traffic by prospective buyers was unchanged from November at 45.

Though new homes represent only a fraction of the housing market, they have an outsize impact on the economy. Each home built creates an average of three jobs for a year and generates about $90,000 in tax revenue, according to NAHB data.

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Brian Williams renews contract with NBC news

NBC News said it has signed Brian Williams, the anchor of its evening newscast and the public face of the NBCUniversal-owned unit, to a new long-term deal.

No financial terms were offered, but the Los Angeles Times reported that the pact could be for as much as five years, and that Williams could receive as much as $10 million per year. Deal comes shortly after Williams' celebrated his 10th anniversary as anchor and managing editor of "The NBC Nightly News."

"Brian is one of the most trusted journalists of our time. He has led this organization through every major news event for the last decade, from Hurricane Katrina in his first year in the anchor chair to his exclusive interview with Edward Snowden this year, through elections, wars, natural disasters, tragedies and triumphs," NBC News prexy Deborah Turness said in a memo announcing the new deal. "In all of those cases he's taken 'Nightly News's' viewers to the heart of the stories that matter most in a way that's uniquely his."

"Nightly News" in recent months has faced a strong challenge to its ratings dominance rom the growth of ABC's "World News" following the anchor handoff from Diane Sawyer to David Muir in September. Williams took over NBC's flagship newscast in 2004 from Tom Brokaw.

Williams' renewal at NBC News was no surprise, even though his name has been mentioned for a range of possible other gigs ranging from the host slot on "Jeopardy" to latenight talkers. He's a frequent guest on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon," where he demonstrates his sense of humor with the "Slow Jamming the News" segment and other bits.

Here's a link to a video NBC News assembled to mark Williams' 10th anniversary on "Nightly News."

© 2014 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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Vermont girl recovering from brain surgery in Boston

BOSTON — A 9-year-old girl whose friends from a Vermont music school traveled to Boston Children's Hospital so she could finish a holiday concert she'd been unable to complete after falling ill is recovering from surgery.

Sophie Fellows underwent surgery Friday to remove a brain tumor, the day after an emotional concert at the hospital.

Sophie had been stricken with severe headaches during a performance earlier this month and was unable to finish.

About two dozen of her fellow students and her teacher, Carolyn Bever, joined her in Boston on Thursday to finish the Christmas show. Sophie said it lifted her spirits.

Her family said in a statement that Sophie was smiling and talking after surgery, and even requested chocolate pudding.

Doctors say the week ahead will be critical in determine her recovery.

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Massachusetts gas prices down a dime

BOSTON — Massachusetts drivers continue to benefit from tumbling prices at the pump.

AAA Southern New England reports Monday that the cost of a gallon of self-serve, regular dropped a dime in the past week to an average of $2.68.

The current Bay State average is a quarter lower than a month ago and 75 cents lower than at this time last year, but still 13 cents per gallon above the national average.

AAA found self-serve, regular selling for as low as $2.48 and as high as $3.09 per gallon.

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Pulitzer Prizes expand eligibility in 2 categories

NEW YORK — The Pulitzer Prizes have expanded eligibility for two categories.

The board overseeing the journalism awards announced Monday that the Investigative Reporting and Feature Writing categories will now include many online and print magazines.

The board has also amended its rules regarding partnerships.

Eligible news organizations will now be allowed to nominate journalists employed by partnering organizations even if those organizations are themselves ineligible to compete for Pulitzer Prizes.

Danielle Allen, chair of the Pulitzer Prize Board, says great journalism is reaching American audiences "in new formats and new channels" that the panel supports "cross-media partnerships, new platforms and new tools to strengthen the cause of journalism."

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Big Mac hurting as customers get pickier

NEW YORK — Hold the pickles, onions and special sauce. The Big Mac is becoming a victim of finicky tastes.

As sales continue to slide in the U.S., McDonald's plans to expand a test that lets people build their own burgers by tapping on a touchscreen to pick the bread, cheese and toppings they want. The company says it will bring the option to 2,000 of its 14,000 U.S. locations next year.

The "Create Your Taste" program is a departure for McDonald's, which was built to deliver food consistently, quickly and affordably. That model has come under pressure as people gravitate toward places like Chipotle, which lets people pick what goes on their bowls and burritos as they walk down a line.

According to industry executives and analysts, the ability to customize food orders is becoming more important, particularly among people in their 20s and 30s. McDonald's has already been trying to adjust by installing new kitchen prep tables that can hold more toppings and sauces.

The plans to offer greater customization come as McDonald's fights to boost declining sales and customer traffic. On Monday, it said U.S. sales fell 4.6 percent in November at established locations. The figure fell 4 percent in the unit that includes the Asia-Pacific region, where the company is fighting to recover from a food supplier scandal. Overall, global sales declined 2.2 percent for the month.

Back in the U.S., CEO Don Thompson has conceded the company hasn't done enough to keep up with shifting habits and that changes are in store.

"We haven't been changing at the same rate as our customers' eating-out expectations," Thompson said in October.

Offering greater customization could be a challenge for McDonald's, however. For "complicated" orders, burgers might take as long as five to seven minutes to prepare, Greg Watson, senior vice president of menu innovation, said in a phone interview. That's more than the couple of minutes it should take for regular orders, he said.

The customized burgers are also more expensive than core items like Big Macs, Watson said. But it's not clear whether people will be willing to wait longer or shell out more money for a burger from McDonald's.

Watson said McDonald's hasn't yet decided on expansion of "Create Your Taste" beyond the 2,000 locations next year. In Australia, McDonald's said earlier this year a customized burger option would be expanded nationally. The locations that have the "Create Your Taste" option still offer the regular menu as well.

As for the regular menu, McDonald's plans to remove some items "with slower movement" from the national menu in the U.S. The Bacon Clubhouse burger, which McDonald's introduced this year as a premium offering, could become a regional offering, Watson said.

In the meantime, McDonald's is also trying to address long-held perceptions about the quality of its food. It recently launched a campaign that answers questions about its food, such as, "Does McDonald's beef contain worms?" and is planning new marketing for the year ahead.

McDonald's troubles aren't isolated to the U.S. In Asia, the company has been trying to bounce back since the summer, when a TV report in China showed workers at one of its suppliers repackaging meat that was alleged to be expired. The claim has not been publicly confirmed by the supplier or the government.

The Oak Brook, Illinois, company said comparable sales for Europe fell 2 percent in November with a strong performance in the U.K. more than offset by weakness in Russia, France and Germany.

McDonald's has more than 35,000 locations in more than 100 countries. Its stock fell $2.81, or 2.9 percent, to $93.50 before the market opened Monday.

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Follow Candice Choi at www.twitter.com/candicechoi

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Super Bowl ads: GoDaddy kicks off early-bird advertising for big game

NBC won't televise Super Bowl XLIX for more than a month, but advertisers have already commenced what has become the inevitable rush to promote their participation in the event weeks before most fans have even started working on a game-day menu.

Doritos, part of PepsiCo's Frito-Lay snacks unit, has already put out its annual call for amateur submissions for ad concepts that will air during the Super Bowl next February 1. And Web-service company GoDaddy is expected to announce Monday that is has selected a nine-week old golden retriever to star in its planned ad for the 2015 gridiron classic alongside spokeswoman Danica Patrick, as well as the fact that the pooch needs a name. Fans will be asked to submit ideas before t the company starts shooting on Thursday - that's the commercial, not the dog.

In doing so, GoDaddy seems to be kicking off what has become the de rigueur thing to do for Super Bowl advertisers since 2011: Get started early. "it really feels like the conversation has moved into the pre-game part of things," said Barb Rechterman, GoDaddy's chief marketing officer, in an interview. "At the game, people are pretty much done talking about it" (Doritos will not unveil its finalists until January).

Three years ago, in December of 2011, Volkswagen sparked reams of pokes, likes, tweets and shares by posting online a clever Super Bowl ad in which a child pretends to be Darth Vader. The ad notched 10 million online views before the Super Bowl started.

Sensing that social media can help them gain millions of dollars in free publicity for ads that cost millions of dollars just to put on the air (NBC is seeking $4.4 million to $4.5 million for a 30-second ad in next year's game), most advertisers followed the trail of Volkswagen's exhaust. Only a few, like Chrysler Group, still keep the content of their Super Bowl ads under wraps until the last minute.

Last year, freshman Super Bowl sponsor Jaguar kicked things off in mid-November by running a "teaser" ad that offered viewers a look at the theme it had chosen for its debut commercial.

GoDaddy is best known for Super Bowl ads featuring scantily-clad actresses but the company has in fact been one of the early leaders of the pre-game trend. For several years, the company would make early versions of its ads available online, hoping to galvanize fans to push TV networks to allow the saucy commercials on air without demanding revisions.

"Building up and educating people about the commercial gets the engagement via social media," said GoDaddy's Rechterman. "And that has become really fruitful in advance of the game."

Critics note that the new method has ruined much of the surprise of the ads in the most recent Super Bowl Sundays. GoDaddy intends to maintain an element of surprise, said Rechterman, even as it urges fans to pick the dog's name, and in days to come, gives them a chance to follow the pup on social media. She promises a humorous twist to the Super Bowl ads that will not be disclosed until the spot runs next February 1.

© 2014 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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New Delhi bans Uber after alleged rape by driver

NEW DELHI — The Indian capital on Monday banned taxi-booking service Uber after a woman accused one of its drivers of raping her.

Transport official Satish Mathur made the announcement as the 32-year-old suspect appeared in a New Delhi court.

The court ordered Shiv Kumar Yadav held for three days for police questioning over allegations that he raped the finance company employee after being hired to ferry her home from a dinner engagement on Friday night. The court also ordered Yadav's cellphone confiscated, according to Press Trust of India.

The case, almost two years after a young woman was fatally gang raped on a bus in the capital, has renewed national anger over sexual violence in India and demands for more effort to ensure women's safety.

The government rushed through legislation last year to double prison terms for rape to 20 years and to criminalize voyeurism, stalking and the trafficking of women. But activists say much more needs to be done, including better educating youths and adding basic infrastructure such as street lights and public bathrooms.

The CEO of San Francisco-based Uber, Travis Kalanick, said the company would do "everything to bring the perpetrator to justice and to support the victim and her family in her recovery."

He also sought to deflect some of the blame on to officials, saying the company would work with the government to establish clear background checks that are "currently absent in their commercial transportation licensing programs."

It was not immediately clear if Uber itself performed any background check, nor was it clear whether Yadav would even have been flagged. Police told Press Trust of India they were working to verify Yadav's claims that he had been acquitted of rape charges in 2011, after spending seven months in jail. PTI did not give any further details or name the police source.

The New Delhi ban is a blow for Uber, which has courted acclamation and controversy around the world with a service based on hailing taxis from a smartphone app. It has faced restrictions in other countries after licensed taxi operators claimed the service was competing unfairly.

The service, which uses private cars rather than licensed cabs, promises a quicker response time that is often less than 10 minutes. Drivers respond using their own Uber-provided smartphones mounted on the dashboard and follow a GPS map to an exact location.

Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh said the government "strongly condemns this dastardly act" and pledged justice in the case.

He said the 26-year-old victim had fallen asleep during the ride home. When she woke up, she found the car parked in a secluded place. The driver then threatened her, raped her and then took her home around 1 a.m. Saturday.

Police arrested the driver Sunday night in his hometown of Mathura, about 160 kilometers (100 miles) from the capital, after he had abandoned the Uber-registered car and fled New Delhi. The car has been brought to Delhi for forensic examination, Singh told parliament.

Dozens of angry protesters rallied outside the home minister's house on Monday morning to demand more action to ensure women's safety. Police detained several people who were part of another anti-violence protest group that burned an effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in front of his political party's headquarters.

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Associated Press writers Nirmala George and Chonchui Ngashangva contributed to this report.

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