AP Executive Morning Briefing

The top business news from The Associated Press for the morning of Friday, March 28, 2008:

Mitsubishi to Manufacture Regional Jets

TOKYO (AP) — Mitsubishi Heavy Industries is going ahead with its mid-sized regional jet — the first "made in Japan" passenger aircraft in three decades. The announcement from the company President Kazuo Tsukuda came Friday, a day after major Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways placed the first orders for the twin-engine aircraft that seats about 70 to 90 people.

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Bear Stearns CEO Cayne Sells Stake

NEW YORK (AP) — Bear Stearns Cos. Chairman James Cayne on Thursday sold his holdings in the embattled investment bank ahead of its expected acquisition by JPMorgan Chase & Co. Cayne sold 5.66 million shares for exactly $10.84 a share for $61.3 million. However, it was not known if those shares were dumped into the open market or if Cayne sold them to another party.

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Google Paid Clicks Data Generate Debate

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — New data confirming slowing growth in Google Inc.'s paid clicks renewed debate Thursday on Wall Street over whether the Internet search company's revenue can quickly adjust to changes it made in how it generates clicks. Citing data that comScore Inc. released after the market closed on Wednesday, analysts said growth in Google's click-through rate has nearly ground to a halt.

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California Lowers Auto Emissions Rule

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California air regulators on Thursday slashed the number of battery-powered and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles that must be sold in the state, a setback for environmentalists and health advocates. The decision is expected to affect 12 other states that had adopted California's target for zero-emission vehicles.

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Oil Below $107 After Overnight Jump

SINGAPORE (AP) — Oil prices fell Friday after jumping more than $1 a barrel in the previous session as the bombing of a key Iraqi oil pipeline heightened supply concerns. Thursday's bombing appeared to cut oil exports from the southern oil city of Basra, despite oil officials' statements to the contrary.

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Mitsubishi Closes Australian Factory

ADELAIDE, Australia (AP) — Mitsubishi's Australian factory has built its last cars — three of them for charities and one for permanent display — and will close Friday after 28 years in operation. About 500 workers will leave the assembly factory Friday; another 430 will stay on for a year to decommission the plant and produce a stockpile of spare parts.

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China to Pay More for Rice, Wheat

BEIJING (AP) — China said Friday it will pay farmers more for rice and wheat, trying to raise output and cool surging inflation that threatens to fuel unrest ahead of the Beijing Olympics. Beijing has frozen retail prices of rice, cooking oil and other goods in an effort to rein in food costs that jumped 23.3 percent in February over the same month last year. But analysts warn that holding down prices paid to farmers will discourage them from raising production and easing shortages blamed for the increases.

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Japan Inflation Up, Jobless Rate Worsens

TOKYO (AP) — Japan's inflation rate climbed at its fastest rate in a decade in February and the jobless rate worsened to 3.9 percent under data released Friday, raising concerns about the health of the world's second-largest economy. The core consumer price index, which excludes volatile fresh food prices, rose 1.0 percent in February from a year ago — the fastest reading since March 1998, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said.

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Samsung Cuts Sales Forecast

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Samsung Electronics Co. trimmed its sales forecast for this year on global economic woes, but said profit will increase, helped by earnings growth in key areas such as memory chips, flat-panel displays and mobile handsets. "Global economic uncertainty will continue this year, affecting our management conditions," Chief Executive Yun Jong-yong said Friday at the annual shareholders' meeting. "We expect competition to become fiercer globally amid higher oil prices and the dollar's weakness."

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Dirt Flies in Missouri River Fight

WASHINGTON (AP) — The state of Missouri and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have spent years tussling over water policy on the Missouri River. Now they are fighting over dirt. Corps officials want to dredge about 23 miles of side channels and then dump up to 24 million tons of the soil into the river to help create a better habitat for endangered fish.

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Gold Prices

LONDON (AP) — Gold bullion opened Friday at a bid price of $943.45 a troy ounce, down from $945.40 late Thursday.

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Japan Markets

TOKYO (AP) — Japan's stock market rose to its highest level in two weeks Friday as last-minute buying before the end of the fiscal year lifted a wide range of blue chips, including electronics and financial shares. The benchmark Nikkei 225 stock index rose 1.71 percent at 12,820.47, its highest level since March 12.

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Dollar-Yen

TOKYO (AP) — The U.S. dollar was higher against yen in Asia, rising to 100.18 yen in late afternoon trading.

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