Girl Scouts byting into digital for cookie sales

NEW YORK — Watch out world, the Girl Scouts are going digital to sell you cookies.

For the first time since sales began nearly 100 years, Girl Scouts of the USA will allow its young go-getters to push their wares using a mobile app or personalized websites.

But only if their scout councils and guardians say OK.

"Girls have been telling us that they want to go into this space," said Sarah Angel-Johnson, chief digital cookie executive for the organization covering about 2 million girls. "Online is where entrepreneurship is going."

And the best news for these digital natives: They can have cookies shipped directly to your doorstep.

More than 1 million scouts, from kindergarten-age Daisies to teens, were expected to opt in as cookie-selling season cranks up this month and the scouting organization gets digital sales underway. But the tactic is intended to enhance, not replace, the paper spreadsheets used to generate an estimated $800 million in cookie sales a year — at anywhere from $3.50 to $5 a box, depending on scout council.

There are important e-lessons here, scout officials said, such as better articulating and tracking goals, learning to handle customers and money in a new way, and more efficiently processing credit card information.

"A lot of people have asked, 'What took you so long to get online?' We spend a lot of time thinking how do we make this safe, scalable and smart," Kelly M. Parisi, chief communications executive for Girl Scouts of the USA, said at a recent demonstration for select media.

Councils were offered one of the two platforms but not both. For web-based sales, scouts customize their pages, using their first names only, and email prospective customers with links to click on for orders. They can also put up videos explaining who they are and what they plan to do with their proceeds.

The mobile platform offers tabs for tracking sales and allows for the sale of bundles of different kinds of cookies. It can be used on a phone or tablet.

"They can get them quicker than waiting for me to deliver them because sometimes it takes me a long time to deliver," offered 11-year-old Priscilla at the preview. The adults at the event asked that only first names of scouts be used.

Added 7-year-old Anna: "My favorite part is that now I can sell more Girl Scout Cookies." She pulled down about 200 boxes last year and has upped her goal to 600. Girl Scouts use their cookie money to pay for community service work or troop activities such as camping and other trips.

The websites will not be accessible without an email invitation, requiring the girls to build client lists. And personal information is as protected as any digits out there, for both the scouts and customers, using encryption in some cases.

Much of the responsibility to limit identifying details about scouts online falls on parents.

Troop Leader Karen Porcher of the Bronx has an 11-year-old scout and is particularly psyched about the digital options. They live in a house rather than an apartment, and she and her husband work at home, eliminating at-office cookie and neighborly building sales.

"During cookie season my daughter is wearing her (scout) vest on the subway and people are so excited to see a Girl Scout," Porcher explained. "Strangers actually will buy a case of cookies and wait for her to call. This is going to be amazing because now she can just say 'Give me your business card,' or 'I'll take your email address,' send the email and they can be delivered. This is gonna be sweet."

Porcher also sees word-of-mouth value in getting cookies delivered quickly.

"People are going to be walking around with cookies and others are going to say, 'Whoa, how did you get those already?'"

Zack Bennett of Manhattan has a 9-year-old scout who sold more than 1,000 boxes last year. She hopes to increase her goal to 1,500 this season and went through training to learn how to set up her new cookie website.

But dad won't be letting her loose alone.

"I'll be sitting in the backseat to help her, certainly when it comes to credit cards, things of that sort," he said. "But it makes perfect sense to have it be on the computer. It's definitely time the Girl Scouts came into the 21st century."

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Follow Leanne Italie on Twitter at http://twitter.com/litalie

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Move over unions _ French bosses protesting, too

PARIS — In France, workers aren't the only ones who take to the streets to protest — their bosses do, too.

Several thousand French business owners, particularly from small companies, demonstrated Monday in Paris to plead with the government to simplify regulations and make it easier and cheaper to hire.

Protester Jean-Pierre Hutin, a hotel owner, urged more flexibility for part-time work, while others complained that layers of taxes and labor rules have made it impossible for France to compete globally.

They argued that the government needs business owners to hire. Socialist President Francois Hollande has sought to loosen labor laws but critics say it doesn't go nearly far enough.

French unemployment is around 10 percent and economic growth has stagnated, threatening to push the whole eurozone back into recession.

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People magazine publishes Kirk Douglas' pre-written obituary

People Magazine accidentally published its pre-written obituary for Kirk Douglas on Sunday night.

It's not uncommon for major publications to write their elaborate obituaries in advance, and People Magazine clearly didn't mean to run the story as evident from the "DO NOT PUB" in the headline.

Still, "Spartacus" and his family members can't be happy.

Douglas, who turns 98 next week, isn't the first celebrity 'death' botched by People.

In 1982, Abe Vigoda was erroneously referred to as "the late Abe Vigoda" in People Magazine, which became a running joke about Vigoda on talk shows like "Late Night with Conan O'Brien." Vigoda is, of course, still alive.

Bloomberg made a similar obituary gaffe when it published news of Steve Jobs' death in 2008 three years before the Apple co-founder's actually passing in 2011.

The editors of Bloomberg quickly posted a retraction and apologized for the mistake.

So far, no mea culpa from People Magazine's editors.

Douglas' reps could not be reached for comment.

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

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MIT engineers have high hopes for cheetah robot

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — It's a robot unlike any other: inspired by the world's fastest land animal, controlled by video game technology and packing nifty sensors — including one used to maneuver drones, satellites and ballistic missiles.

The robot, called the cheetah, can run on batteries at speeds of more than 10 mph, jump about 16 inches high, land safely and continue galloping for at least 15 minutes — all while using less power than a microwave oven.

It's the creation of researchers at the Massachusetts of Technology, who had to design key elements from scratch because of a lack of or shortcomings in existing technology.

That includes powerful, lightweight motors; electronics that control power for its 12 motors; and an algorithm that determines the amount of force a leg should exert during the split second that it spends on the ground while running — the key to helping the robot maintain balance and forward momentum. An onboard computer organizes data from various sensors and sends commands to each motor.

"This is kind of a Ferrari in the robotics world, like, we have to put all the expensive components and make it really that instinctive," said MIT professor Sangbae Kim, who leads the school's Biomimetic Robotics Lab that designed the robot. "That's the only way to get that speed."

Insight gleaned from the design of their prototype could have real-world applications, including the design of revolutionary prosthetics, wearable technologies, all-terrain wheelchairs and vehicles that can travel efficiently in rough terrain much like animals do, Kim said. There are hopes the robot will be able to be used in search and rescue operations in hazardous or hostile environments where it's too risky to send a human rescuer.

"When the robot is running, at every step, we calculate the appropriate amount of the force to the legs so that the robot can balance itself," said MIT research scientist Hae-Won Park, who wrote the complex algorithm used to control the cheetah, which weighs around 70 pounds — about the same as one of its female feline counterparts.

Sensors inside the robot measure the angle of the leg and that information is sent to an onboard computer that also organizes data from the Inertial Measurement Unit, or IMU, which is also used to maneuver drones and ballistic missiles, Park said.

The project is funded by the U.S. Department of Defense's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. The military research arm is also funding a similar robot being developed by Boston Dynamics. The company says its version is powered by an off-board hydraulic pump and uses a boom-like device to keep it running in the center of the treadmill.

Crafting the cheetah robot took five years of designing, testing, tweaking and plenty of confidence to ignore those who said electric motors aren't strong enough to propel a running mechanical cheetah powered by batteries.

Researchers had to exercise a lot of patience during test runs. The robot broke dozens of legs manufactured by 3-D printers and reinforced with Kevlar strips and carbon fiber.

The results?

Strong, lightweight components that made untethered running possible, including a carbon fiber-and-foam sandwich frame that can absorb the forces generated by running and jumping.

Some off-the-shelf components, including an Xbox controller for maneuvering the robot and wireless Internet communications for sending commands to the mechanical cheetah, also came in handy.

Each leg is propelled by three motors that can generate powerful forces at slow speeds.

Still, researchers continue to tweak their prototype, looking to add additional sensors that would eventually make the robot autonomous.

"In the next 10 years, our goal is we are trying to make this robot to save a life," Kim said.

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Online:

MIT Biomimetic Robotic Lab: http://biomimetics.mit.edu/

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Follow Rodrique Ngowi at www.twitter.com/ngowi

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Worcester hopes to boost fines for bridge strikes

BOSTON — Officials in Worcester are hoping to be able to increase fines to $5,000 or more for truckers who hit low bridges.

The Telegram & Gazette reports that Worcester City Manager Edward Augustus is expected to ask the City Council on Tuesday for permission to petition state lawmakers to approve a bill allowing the city to penalize those who hit a bridge whose height is clearly marked with a $5,000 fine plus the cost of the city's emergency response.

One bridge — the Cambridge Street bridge — had been hit at least 20 times this year. There were eight other bridge strikes in Worcester according to police who began electronically tracking bridge crashes for the first time at the beginning of 2014.

Currently, drivers receive $40 tickets for hitting a bridge.

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Information from: Telegram & Gazette (Worcester, Mass.), http://www.telegram.com

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US businessman jailed in Russia over broken window

MOSCOW — Last year, he tried to bring NFL superstar Tim Tebow to Moscow to play for his American football team on a $1 million-per-game contract. Now, accused of breaking a window, American businessman Mike Zaltsman shares a packed jail cell with drug dealers.

Much has changed for the Boston entrepreneur since a dispute over an office he rented from a Russian billionaire escalated into a weeks-long standoff in downtown Moscow and ended with his arrest in April.

The case puts into relief the unpredictable business environment in Russia, where thousands of people have ended up in jail as the result of business disputes or raids by business rivals. Even seemingly petty crimes are routinely used to keep people in Russian prisons for months or even years.

It is difficult to determine who is right and who wrong in the murky property dispute. But Zaltsman's treatment, advocates say, is excessive by any standard: "The fact that he was jailed for a broken window — this is cruel and sadly typical of Russia," said Yana Yakovleva, founder of the advocacy group Business Solidarity. Moscow police and investigators refused to comment on the Zaltsman case.

Zaltsman, who has dual Russian and U.S. citizenship, was accused of hooliganism — the same charge leveled against members of the feminist punk band Pussy Riot, landing them in a remote prison camp. If convicted, he could be imprisoned for up to seven years.

The entrepreneur, who denies allegations he was delinquent on his rent, says he has had no contact with U.S. Embassy officials. A State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the media, disputed this. He said U.S. diplomats have been in contact with Zaltsman and were monitoring the case.

Zaltsman's jailing coincided with escalating tensions between Moscow and Washington over Ukraine, which were accompanied by a sharp rise in Russia of anti-American sentiment and suspicion of U.S. intentions. In St. Petersburg this fall, four U.S. students were detained for hours during a leadership conference, while two American journalists were briefly detained while teaching an investigative journalism workshop. In both cases, the Americans were accused of having the wrong type of visa.

There has been no suggestion that these tensions played a role in the Zaltsman case, however.

Zaltsman grew up in Russia before moving to Boston in 1996 at age 19 with his parents as one of many Russian Jews to leave the chaos and poverty of their home country in the aftermath of the Soviet Union's collapse. He became a U.S. citizen five years later.

After brief periods studying at Northeastern University and operating a Russian bookshop in Boston, ventures in shipping and media helped him amass a fortune he values at $10 million. He moved back to Russia in 2005, using his money to build his Black Storm football team, which last year had six American pros on the roster as it won the Russian championship. He failed, however, in his audacious bid to sign former Denver Broncos quarterback Tebow.

Until recently Zaltsman, 37, divided his time between Los Angeles, Boston and Moscow. Now home is Moscow's pre-trial Detention Facility No. 5. Seven months since his arrest, Zaltsman says he shares a crowded cell with up to 15 others, with no sign of a trial. Floor space per prisoner, he says, is just two square meters (21 square feet), barely enough to lie down.

"Almost no sky and sun can be seen here," he said. "I'm forgetting how it looks."

Dmitry Popkov, the former coach of Zaltsman's team, was arrested with him. He suffers from a chronic health condition, which led to the botched removal of his gallbladder while in jail and left him in constant pain. In October, Popkov pleaded guilty in order to leave jail and receive treatment while under house arrest.

"Serious health issues that I had have gotten worse while I have been in jail," Popkov said in a written statement shortly before his release. "I will have to plead guilty to the crime that I did not commit at the next hearing to extend my time in jail. Right now this is the only way for me to get out of prison."

There are sharply contrasting versions of how Zaltsman came to be in jail.

Zaltsman claims he was persecuted by Andrei Gorodilov, a publicity-shy tycoon who counts London-based billionaire Roman Abramovich, owner of the Chelsea football club, as a longtime business partner and friend. Neither Gorodilov nor his representatives agreed to comment for this story.

Abramovich testified in 2011 during a high-profile London trial that Gorodilov helped him seal the business deal that made his name and fortune: the creation of the oil company Sibneft in the 1990s. Abramovich later sold 75 percent of Sibneft to Russian state firm Gazprom for $13 billion. Gorodilov briefly entered politics with Abramovich, serving as his deputy during his time as governor of the remote Chukotka region.

In August 2013, a company controlled by Zaltsman signed a five-year lease on an office in one of Moscow's most upscale neighborhoods from a businesswoman associated with Gorodilov. Within a few months, Zaltsman says, he came under pressure to break the lease from Gorodilov, who took over as the registered owner of the property as the dispute escalated.

When talks broke down, Zaltsman claims, Gorodilov sent about 30 men, some armed, to occupy the office and smash furniture belonging to Zaltsman's businesses. Zaltsman also claims they stole office equipment worth around $20,000.

Kyle Israel, a Black Storm player who witnessed the events unfold, says he tried to dissuade Zaltsman from putting up a fight.

"I had told him: 'Hey, why don't you back off? Why do you do this?'" Israel recalls, but adds: "Once Mike had his mind made up about something, he is going to do what he believes he needs to do to make this come to fruition."

Zaltsman says he and some "friends" reacted first by filming the raiders and trying to generate publicity over what they saw as an attack. Then they moved to more aggressive methods.

On April 13, Zaltsman says, he and his supporters tried to execute a plan to scare Gorodilov's security into leaving the office. The Boston businessman himself shouted that he was from the SOBR police special forces — the Russian equivalent of SWAT — and that "anyone who doesn't leave in the next 10 seconds will be shot on the spot." The occupants left, but in the confusion, Zaltzman says, one threw a chair through a window.

Zaltsman and Popkov were arrested 10 days later. Zaltsman was accused of breaking the window himself, while his associate was accused of assaulting one of the security guards.

In two civil cases brought against Zaltsman, the courts sided with Gorodilov and said the eviction was legitimate. The court ruled that Zaltsman's company had stopped paying rent and had therefore ceased to be the legal tenant. Zaltsman insists he paid rent in compliance with the terms of the lease. Neither he nor his company was represented at some of the hearings.

While the criminal case is under investigation, police have refused to comment, after passing a written request from one office to another for weeks. They agreed only to provide the article of the criminal code under which the men are charged. It specifies that they are accused of hooliganism while acting as part of a group and resisting police or security guards.

In addition, Zaltsman is charged with failing to formally notify Russian authorities that he holds dual citizenship, under a law that came into force this summer when he was already in custody.

Dionis Dedov, Zaltsman's lawyer, said his client is a victim of capricious justice.

"He believed he was merely restoring his rights as a tenant since there were no court rulings ordering him to evict," Dedov said. "Even with the charges that have been put forward, the detention for such a long period of time seems excessive."

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Ellingworth reported from London. Varya Kudryavtseva in Moscow also contributed.

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Cyber Monday gears up to get online shoppers hyped

NEW YORK — Retailers rolled out discounts and free shipping deals on Cyber Monday, with millions of Americans are expected to log on and shop on their work computers, laptops and tablets after the busy holiday shopping weekend.

But with retailers extending their online deals into "Cyber Week" and even "Cyber Month," some shoppers aren't quite seeing the jaw-dropping deals they were hoping for online.

Still, the day is expected to be the biggest online shopping day again, as it has been each year since 2010. That would be good news for retailers after a Thanksgiving weekend that saw fewer shoppers and lower spending than last year, according to some estimates.

Courtney Lane Greenley, 25, from Alexandria, Virginia, was feeling regret on Monday that she didn't buy a knife block and cutlery earlier in the week, when she saw better deals online. She saw a deal on Amazon, which has been running limited time "lightning offers," for some Rachel Ray cookware on Friday that was under $100, but on Monday it cost more than $100.

"I should have pulled the trigger earlier," she said.

Forrester analyst Sucharita Mulpuru said that since people are expected to shop on Cyber Monday, retailers can play it safe with deals.

"Cyber Monday offers aren't super compelling, but don't need to be," she said. "It's been the biggest shopping day of the year for the last few years, so they know that people are going to come."

Karen Manley, 44, of Bowling Green, Kentucky, took advantage of cyberdeals well before Cyber Monday. She started shopping online early last week, and snagged deals including puffer vests from Aeropostale that she bought before Thanksgiving that were $46 marked down to $14, plus free shipping. She planned to hit Dillard's and Forever 21 sites after work to look for Uggs shoes and sweaters for her three children age 13, 15 and 18, as well as free shipping offers.

"It's easier and more convenient to shop online," she said.

Research firm comScore said late Sunday that e-commerce spending for the first 28 days of the November and December shopping season totaled $22.7 billion, up 15 percent from last year. Sales jumped 32 percent to $1 billion on Thanksgiving Day and 26 percent on Black Friday to $1.51 billion.

The firm expects people to spend about $2.5 billion on Cyber Monday alone. The NRF predicts 126.9 million people will shop online this year, down 4 percent from last year.

ComScore Chairman Gian Fulgoni said the strong spending online so far stems from the "overall health in consumer spending, responsiveness to the strong deals being offered online, and perhaps some shoppers opting to stay home on Thanksgiving rather than head out to the stores that opened their doors early."

More people shopping on mobile devices is also spurring growth. The NRF expects one in five people will use a mobile device to shop on Cyber Monday. IBM Digital Analytics Benchmark said this year marked the first weekend after Thanksgiving where mobile traffic accounted for more than half of all online traffic on Saturday and Sunday.

Overall, online sales were up 17 percent compared with the same weekend in 2013, according to IBM.

On Monday, online retailers promoted deals throughout the day. Gap and Banana Republic offered 40 percent off all purchases. Amazon offered up to 45 percent off some Samsung TVs and a deal later in the day for its Amazon Fire TV video streaming box marked down to $69 from $99.

Wal-Mart said it has doubled its Cyber Week deals to 500 compared with last year, including up to half off some TVs, tablets and toys with free-shipping offers. Wal-Mart is also rolling out new deals later in the day in its so-called "Evening Edition" round of deals, including a Straight Talk Moto E Android Phone for $9.99, 90 percent off its regular price.

The name "Cyber Monday" was coined in 2005 by the National Retail Federation's online arm, Shop.org, to encourage people to shop online. After retailers revved up deals, it became the busiest online shopping day in 2010. The name was also a nod to online shopping being done at work, where faster connections made it easier to browse, less of a factor now.

Cyber Monday comes after a weekend that saw 5.3 percent fewer shoppers and 11 percent less spending, according to estimates by the National Retail Federation.

The National Retail Federation has forecast overall holiday sales will increase 4.1 percent to $616.9 billion in 2014.

Elsewhere in the world, like Asia and Europe, Black Friday and Cyber Monday have increasingly been used as marketing ploys by retailers, even though Thanksgiving isn't celebrated. Still, in Asia, Singles Day, which occurs on Nov. 11, is by far the biggest shopping day, with sales of $9.3 billion this year. That's bigger than sales of Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday combined.

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US factory growth slips in Nov. but still healthy

WASHINGTON — U.S. factories were slightly less busy in November, as production and hiring slowed, though the level of activity remained strong.

The Institute for Supply Management, a trade group of purchasing managers, said Monday that its manufacturing index slipped to 58.7 last month from 59 in October. Any reading above 50 signals expansion. October's figure matched a three-year high reached in August.

Manufacturing has been a key driver of growth this year, as Americans have ramped up their purchases of autos and electronics. Yet other manufacturing data has pointed to a recent slowdown in output, and many economists said Monday that factories are probably not growing as fast as the ISM's survey suggests. The index has topped 56 since June, up from an average of just 53.9 last year.

"Although we remain optimistic about the outlook....we're not convinced that conditions are quite as good as the ISM implies," Paul Dales, senior economist at Capital Economics, said in a note to clients.

The U.S. figures are also far ahead of many overseas economies. A European manufacturing index fell to 50.1 in November, the lowest in 17 months and just barely in expansion territory. And manufacturers in China are also barely growing, according to a survey by the bank HSBC Corp. Brazil's manufacturing sector contracted for the seventh time in eight months.

Yet a measure of U.S. export orders rose in November, the ISM said, surprising many economists. In addition to slowing overseas growth, the dollar has strengthened, which makes U.S. goods more expensive overseas.

A measure of new U.S. orders rose and order backlogs jumped, both signs that output will likely remain solid in the coming months. A gauge of hiring dipped, but still pointed to steady job gains among manufacturing firms.

Lower oil prices are providing a big boost, the ISM found. Its measure of prices paid for raw materials plummeted to 44.5, the lowest in two years. Cheaper oil benefits plastic manufacturers, who use oil as an ingredient, and steelmakers and other manufacturers who use it for heating and shipping.

Other recent manufacturing reports have been mixed. Businesses ordered fewer big-ticket manufactured goods in October, excluding the volatile aircraft category, the government said last week. Orders in a key category reflecting business investment plans fell for the second straight month.

That's raised concerns that economic growth could slow in the final three months of this year. The economy expanded at a 4.25 percent annual rate in the April-June and July-September quarters. That was the best six months of growth for the U.S. economy since 2003.

But there have been recent signs that growth is slowing. Consumer spending rose only modestly in October. Many economists now forecast growth will slide to a 2.5 percent rate in the current October-December quarter.

Hiring has been healthy this year, helping propel the economy. Employers had added an average of 229,000 jobs a month this year, up from 194,000 in 2013. That has helped lower the unemployment rate to 5.8 percent, a six-year low, down from 7.2 percent 12 months ago.

But the additional jobs have yet to spur meaningful wage growth.

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NLRB: Mercedes violated labor law at Alabama plant

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The National Labor Relations Board has upheld a ruling that Mercedes violated federal labor laws by stopping United Auto Workers union supporters from handing out literature inside its Alabama plant.

The ruling by the three-member board panel requires ordered Mercedes to update its employee handbook to say that workers are allowed to discuss union issues during non-work times and that they can solicit their colleagues in mixed-use areas like team centers and atriums.

Mercedes must also post notices at the plant to acknowledge the violation and to reaffirm that management won't "interfere with, restrain, or coerce" workers seeking to unionize the plant.

Mercedes parent Daimler has long declared that it is neutral on union questions. The UAW and labor leaders on the Daimler board have been ramping up unionization efforts.

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Stocks sink after retail sales slip, China slows

NEW YORK — Signs of weakness in China's economy and a weak start to the holiday shopping season knocked the stock market lower on Monday.

KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 16 points, or 0.8 percent, to 2,051 as of 12 noon Eastern time. The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 55 points, or 0.3 percent, to 17,774, while the Nasdaq composite fell 64 points, or 1.3 percent, to 4,727.

HOLIDAY SHOPPING: Earlier sales, more online shopping and a mixed economy meant fewer Americans showed up to shop over Thanksgiving weekend, the National Retail Federation said Sunday. The trade group estimated that total spending for the weekend totaled $50.9 billion, down 11 percent from last year.

REACTION: Major retail stocks slumped. Macy's lost $1.72, or 3 percent, to $63.20, and Target fell $1.15, or 2 percent, to $72.81. Best Buy lost $2.18, or 6 percent, to $37.23.

LOOKING AHEAD: After six straight weeks of steady gains, the stock market may be due for a breather, said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital. Reports of slow economic growth around the world and falling oil prices could be the catalyst. But he thinks any setback will likely prove temporary. "Maybe the weakness in the global economy will take some of the starch out of our economy," he said. "It probably will, just not so much that it really hurts corporate earnings."

PENGUINS: DreamWorks Animation slumped after its latest movie, "Penguins of Madagascar," had a weaker box-office opening over the Thanksgiving weekend than analysts had expected. The sequel to its popular "Madagascar" movie took second place to the newest installment of "The Hunger Games" series. DreamWorks' stock plunged $1.79, or 7 percent, to $22.07.

PAST PRECEDENT: December has proven to be the stock market's best month. The S&P 500 has ended the month with an average gain of 1.7 percent since 1950, according to the "Stock Trader's Almanac." But after an 11 percent run this year, the market looks relatively expensive. The S&P 500 index trades at 17.6 times its profits over the past 12 months, well above the long-term average.

OIL: U.S. benchmark crude rose $1.89 to $68.04 a barrel in New York after hitting a five-year low earlier Monday. The recent slide in the price of oil has pushed Russia's currency, the ruble, down nearly 5 percent against the dollar. Russia's economy depends heavily on oil revenue.

EUROPE: Major stock markets in Europe closed with slight losses. Germany's DAX sank 0.2 percent, and France's CAC 40 dropped 0.3 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 slid 1 percent. Russia's RTS index lost 1.6 percent.

CHINA'S FACTORIES: A survey by HSBC showed Chinese manufacturing activity weakened in November, adding to signs an economic slowdown is deepening. HSBC said its purchasing managers' index edged down to 50 from 50.4 the previous month. On the index's 100-point scale, numbers below 50 indicate contraction. The bank said domestic demand was sluggish and new orders were weak. China's economic growth slowed to a five-year low of 7.3 percent in the latest quarter.

ANALYST'S TAKE: "The November PMIs confirm that growth in China's industry remains under downward pressure," Louis Kuijs of Royal Bank of Scotland wrote in a report to investors. "The surprisingly meager development of the new export order component in today's PMI indices suggests that global demand growth also remains subdued."

ASIA'S DAY: Hong Kong's Hang Seng index plunged 2.6 percent, while the Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.1 percent. In Japan, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 added 0.8 percent.

SAFE SPOTS: Prices for U.S. government bonds slipped. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note inched up to 2.19 percent from 2.16 percent late Friday, still close to its low for the year. High demand for bonds keeps yields low. The dollar fell to 118.51 yen from Friday's 118.61 yen. The euro rose to $1.2489 from $1.2448.

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AP Business Writer Joe McDonald contributed from Beijing.

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