AP Executive Morning Briefing

The top business news from The Associated Press for the morning of Friday, April 27, 2007:

Microsoft's Vista Sales Boost 3Q Profit

SEATTLE (AP) _ Windows Vista buoyed Microsoft Corp.'s quarterly results, easing fears that the new operating system is too pricey, requires too many hardware upgrades and doesn't work with other companies' applications. For the quarter ended March 31, Microsoft's profit jumped 65 percent to $4.93 billion, or 50 cents per share, from $2.98 billion, or 29 cents per share, in same period last year, boosted by sales of Vista and Office 2007, and by upgrade coupons issued over the holidays.

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Exxon Mobil 1Q Profit Up 10 Percent

NEW YORK (AP) _ Oil giant Exxon Mobil Corp. kicked off 2007 with a 10 percent rise in profits, its best-ever first quarter, as higher margins on refining and chemical operations offset lower prices for crude oil and natural gas. Exxon Mobil, the world's largest publicly traded oil company, said Thursday it earned $9.3 billion in the January-March period, beating Wall Street expectations, even as revenue slipped and fell well short of analysts' forecasts.

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Oil Prices Climb Above $65 a Barrel

SINGAPORE (AP) _ Oil prices rose Friday on worries of tightening U.S. gasoline supplies amid refinery problems in the United States and declining stocks of the fuel. "Concerns about U.S. gasoline supply are underpinning the crude oil futures market," said Victor Shum, energy analyst with Purvin & Gertz in Singapore.

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No Charges Against Frist in Stock Sale

WASHINGTON (AP) _ The Securities and Exchange Commission has decided not to file insider-trading charges against former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist in connection with the sales of stock in the hospital chain his family owns, The Washington Post reported Friday. An 18-month investigation by the SEC staff and the U.S. attorney in the Southern District of New York ended without action against the Tennessee Republican, the Post reported.

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Shareholders Aim to Block LaSalle Sale

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands (AP) _ Dutch shareholder rights group VEB said Friday it filed a suit attempting to prevent ABN Amro NV from selling its U.S. arm LaSalle Bank to Bank of America Corp. for $21 billion. VEB chief Peter de Vries said the LaSalle sale, announced by ABN Amro Monday along with a merger agreement with Barclays PLC, was an attempt by ABN Amro NV to foil a possibly higher hostile takeover offer worth as much as $100 billion from a consortium of three banks led by Royal Bank of Scotland that wants to divvy up ABN's operations.

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Japanese Stocks Decline; Dollar Down

TOKYO (AP) _ Japanese stocks slipped Friday as investors digested the first round of earnings reports, seeking hints for the overall trend. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index fell 28.76 points, or 0.17 percent, to finish at 17,400.41 points on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. On Thursday, the index gained 1.12 percent.

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NWA, Flight Attendants Make a Deal

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) _ Flight attendants at Northwest Airlines Corp. tentatively settled on pay cuts on Thursday, giving them a shot at a $182 million share of the airline's reorganization in exchange for the millions more they have given up. The union said the bankruptcy claim could be worth $15,000 to $18,000 per flight attendant. That could serve as an incentive for the rank-and-file to approve the new contract. Flight attendants rejected tentative agreements twice last year _ with 80 percent of the vote in June, and with 55 percent of the vote in July.

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Japanese Consumer Prices Fall 0.3 Pct.

TOKYO (AP) _ Japan's central bank left its key interest rate unchanged Friday after the government said consumer prices marked their sharpest decline in two years in March, fueling concerns that deflation remains a threat. The core consumer price index, which excludes volatile food prices, slid a worse-than-expected 0.3 percent last month. It was the second straight decline after the index fell 0.1 percent in February, the first drop in 10 months, and the biggest decline since a 0.3 percent drop in March 2005.

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Halliburton 1Q Profit Grows 13 Percent

NEW YORK (AP) _ Oilfield services conglomerate Halliburton Co. said Thursday its first-quarter profit rose 13 percent, a boost driven largely by increased business in the Middle East that helped offset lower commodity prices in North America. The Houston-based company also said it agreed to acquire a smaller competitor, UK-based PSL Energy Services, for an undisclosed amount.

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US Airways 1Q Profit Up 2 Percent

PHOENIX (AP) _ US Airways Group Inc. on Thursday said profit edged up 2 percent in the first quarter on modest revenue growth, and the airline company backed its forecast for a profitable year. But Chief Executive Doug Parker told analysts on a conference call that revenue growth for the Tempe, Ariz.-based company would be flat and competition was keeping airlines from passing on higher fuel prices to passengers.

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Gold Prices

LONDON (AP) _ Gold bullion opened Friday at a bid price of $672.20 a troy ounce, down from $674.50 late Thursday.

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Dollar-Yen

TOKYO (AP) _ The dollar slipped against the yen in Asian trading Friday on recent data suggesting that the U.S. economy is slowing faster than expected.

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