AP Executive Morning Briefing

The top business news from The Associated Press for the morning of Tuesday, March 13, 2007:

Futures Point to Moderately Lower Open

NEW YORK (AP) _ U.S. stocks appeared headed for a moderately lower opening Tuesday as investors waited to see if economic and earnings figures would justify a further rebound from last month's selloff. Tuesday's data arrive as investors try to determine the fallout from the subprime mortgage industry. Shares of New Century Financial, after further describing a raft of financial troubles Monday, remained halted Monday as the New York Stock Exchange began a review of the stock's listing status.

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Stardust Casino Imploded in Las Vegas

LAS VEGAS (AP) _ The venerable Stardust casino-hotel on the Las Vegas Strip was imploded early Tuesday morning in a hail of fireworks to make way for Boyd Gaming Corp.'s $4.4 billion megaresort Echelon. The property, known for its bargain rooms, friendly service and mobbed-up past, opened on July 2, 1958, billing itself as the world's largest resort hotel with 1,032 rooms.

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World's Third-Richest Man Gaining Wealth

MEXICO CITY (AP) _ The world's third-richest man, Carlos Slim, is gaining rapidly on Bill Gates and Warren Buffett with a fortune that grew $19 billion last year _ the largest wealth gain in the past decade tracked by Forbes magazine. It's also a sign of the wealth gap in Mexico's monopoly-laden economy.

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Hertz Reports First Quarter Profit

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) _ Hertz Global Holdings Inc., the world's largest renter of cars, reported Monday night that it made a profit on record revenues in its first quarter since going public in November. Hertz reported net income of $39.8 million, or 14 cents a share, for the three months ended Dec. 31. It said it would have reported a loss of $27.6 million, or 12 cents a share, for the same period a year earlier.

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New Discover Card Rewards Consumers

NEW YORK (AP) _ Amid the growing proliferation of credit card rewards programs, Discover Financial Services has come up with a new card that rewards consumers who carry a balance and make their monthly payments on time. Discover Financial, a unit of the Morgan Stanley brokerage, said Tuesday it will begin offering its Discover Motiva card nationwide following a six-month trial. The card also carries Discover's regular cash-back bonus awards.

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China Tax Reform Said Ready for Vote

BEIJING (AP) _ Leaders of China's legislature have finished revisions of a law to end three decades of blanket tax breaks for foreign companies and are sending the measure to lawmakers for a final vote, a state news agency reported. The presidium of the National People's Congress issued the decision Monday after expanding deductions for environmental conservation and charitable donations in the proposed law, the Xinhua News Agency said.

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Dollar General OK's $6.9B Bid From KKR

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) _ Dollar General, which is in the middle of a restructuring to boost sales and reduce turnover, said Monday that it agreed to go private in a $6.9 billion deal. The deal calls for private-equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. to pay $22 per share for Dollar General, which helped drive the discount retailers shares up $4.29, or 25.6 percent, to close at $21.07 on the New York Stock Exchange. The shares hit a 52-week high of $21.40 earlier in the session.

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Oil Prices Climb Back Above $59 a Barrel

SINGAPORE (AP) _ Oil prices rose Tuesday as traders perceived that an overnight drop of nearly 2 percent was overdone given the outlook for continued strong energy demand and declining U.S. gasoline inventories. Light, sweet crude for April delivery gained 33 cents to $59.24 a barrel in Asian electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, mid-afternoon in Singapore. The contract dropped $1.14 to settle at $58.91 a barrel Monday.

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U.S. Govt to Listen to Business Concerns

WASHINGTON (AP) _ Business interests that have grumbled for years about government regulations are getting the ear of federal officials considering changes in those policies. An unusual summit-like gathering of business leaders and former government officials, called for Tuesday by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, follows months of campaigning by American business for an easing of laws and regulations established after the Enron debacle.

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Ford Sells Major Stake in Aston Martin

DETROIT (AP) _ Ford Motor Co. is selling a controlling stake in Aston Martin, creator of exotic $100,000-plus sports cars made famous in James Bond movies. Aston Martin now will be run by a consortium of investors, including racing mogul David Richards, car collector John Sinders and the Kuwaiti companies Investment Dar and Adeem Investment Co. Ford officials announced the sale Monday at Aston Martin's headquarters in Gaydon, England. Ford will receive $848 million and retain a $77 million stake in the company. The companies placed the total value of the deal at $925 million.

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Gold Prices

HONG KONG (AP) _ Gold closed at $649.60 an ounce on Tuesday in Hong Kong, down $3.50 an ounce from Monday's close of $653.10.

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Japan Markets

TOKYO (AP) _ Japanese stocks fell moderately Tuesday after three trading sessions of gains as investors sold blue-chip exporters like Sony and Toyota.

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Dollar-Yen

TOKYO (AP) _ The dollar fell against the yen in Asian trading Tuesday as short-term focused Japanese and overseas players sold the dollar amid speculation that U.S. retail sales data might prove disappointing.

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