TOP STORIES
U.S. STOCKS POST STRONG GAINS FOR AUGUST
The Dow industrials rose in a quiet preholiday session, capping
their biggest monthly gain since February. The DJIA added 19 points
to 17098, closing out its fourth-straight weekly gain to finish
3.2% higher on the month.
U.S. CONSUMER SPENDING FALLS
Household spending fell in July, a sign cautious consumers could
hold back economic growth. Personal spending fell a seasonally
adjusted 0.1%. Personal income rose 0.2%. Economists expected
spending would rise 0.1% and income would rise 0.3%.
PUTIN LASHES OUT AT UKRAINE OVER FAILURE OF TALKS
President Vladimir Putin lashed out at Kiev and its Western
supporters, accusing them of foot-dragging on new peace talks with
rebels in eastern Ukraine, while sidestepping Moscow's role in the
conflict.
U.S. SEES NO 'SPECIFIC, CREDIBLE' THREATS FROM ISLAMIC STATE
The U.S. said it doesn't know of any "specific, credible"
threats to America related to developments in Iraq and Syria, but
top U.S. officials said they have been in close contact with the
U.K. government, which raised its domestic threat level.
PANELS THROWS OUT $1.3 BILLION JURY VERDICT IN ORACLE CASE
A three-judge federal appeals panel threw out a $1.3 billion
jury verdict in Oracle's copyright infringement case against rival
SAP saying the award had been "based on undue speculation," and set
damages at $356.7 million.
LEW TO SPEAK ON TAX REFORM, INVERSIONS
Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew is planning a Sept. 8 speech about
a controversial corporate strategy known as tax inversions,
suggesting that the White House could be progressing in its effort
to upend the practices.
U.S. SENTIMENT INDEX IMPROVES
The Thomson-Reuters/University of Michigan final-August
sentiment index rose to 82.5 from a preliminary reading of 79.2 and
the final July reading of 81.8. The latest reading was above the
80.2 expected by economists.
TESLA IN DEAL TO ADD CHARGING STATIONS IN CHINA
Tesla Motors struck a deal to greatly expand its network of
charging stations in China with China United Network
Communications--or China Unicom--a telecom company. Tesla's shares
rose 2%.
TIME WARNER ENDS TALKS WITH VICE MEDIA
Time Warner is said to have ended talks to forge a joint venture
with Vice Media to revamp its struggling HLN channel in an effort
to find a younger audience and improve ratings.
BOMBARDIER CSERIES JETLINER HIT WITH ANOTHER DELAY
Bombardier's CSeries single-aisle jetliner program has suffered
another setback as Swedish carrier Braathens Aviation said it would
step back from its role as the first operator of the plane and that
it may seek other changes to delivery plans.
J&J, BAYER AIM TO EXPAND XARELTO'S USES
Johnson & Johnson and Bayer announced plans to launch
clinical trials of the anticoagulant Xarelto against three new
diseases in an ambitious bid to widen the market for a drug poised
to exceed $1 billion in sales this year.
======= DOW JONES NEWSWIRES ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARIES =======
The Wall Street Journal
WITH IRAN TALKS AT CROSSROADS, U.S. LEVELS NEW SANCTIONS
The U.S. imposed a range of sanctions designed to exert new
pressure against Iran and deter international business leaders from
circumventing Washington's existing punitive measures as talks
continue over the country's nuclear program.
Heard on the Street
GETTING TO THE CORE OF THE ECB'S INFLATION PROBLEM
The European Central Bank is under pressure to loosen policy
because energy and food prices are dragging inflation lower. The
euro zone seems at greater risk of a panic over deflation than of
experiencing the phenomenon itself.