BRIEFCASE.Byline: -- Staff and Wire Services Harley-Davidson profits climbing MILWAUKEE -- Another quarter of surging international sales pushed Harley-Davidson Inc.'s third- quarter profit up a better-than-expected 18 percent. The iconic i·con·ic adj. 1. Of, relating to, or having the character of an icon. 2. Having a conventional formulaic style. Used of certain memorial statues and busts. motorcycle maker said Thursday growth in international sales will continue to outpace out·pace tr.v. out·paced, out·pac·ing, out·pac·es To surpass or outdo (another), as in speed, growth, or performance. outpace Verb [-pacing, domestic sales. Net income for the quarter ended Sept. 24 totaled $312.7 million, or $1.20 per share, compared with a profit of $265 million, or 96 cents per share Cents per share The amount of a mutual fund's dividend or capital gains distributions that a shareholder will receive for each share owned. , a year ago. Revenue climbed 14 percent to $1.64 billion from $1.43 billion last year. Costco revenue climbs 19% SEATTLE -- Costco Wholesale Corp. said Thursday its fourth-quarter profit edged up less than a percentage point as its revenue climbed 19 percent and operating results were unexpectedly strong late in the quarter. The results from the nation's largest wholesale club operator beat Wall Street estimates, and Costco shares surged nearly 8 percent. Net income grew to $355.6 million, or 75 cents per share, for the 17-week period ending Sept. 3, up 0.25 percent from $354.7 million, or 73 cents per share, a year ago. Mortgage rates rose this week WASHINGTON -- Rates on 30-year mortgages, after having fallen to a seven-month low, rose this week for the first time in five weeks. Mortgage-giant Freddie Mac Freddie Mac: see Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation. reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages rose to 6.37 percent, up from 6.30 percent last week, which had been the lowest level since they were at 6.24 percent the first week of March. Analysts attributed the increase to lingering fears in financial markets about inflation. Rates on 15-year, fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.06 percent last week, up from 5.98 percent last week. Rates on one-year adjustable rate mortgages This article is about the US mortgage type. For an international perspective, see Variable rate mortgage. An adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) is a mortgage loan where the interest rate on the note is periodically adjusted based on an index. jumped to 5.56 percent, up from 5.46 percent last week. Rates on five-year adjustable rate mortgages rose to 6.10 percent, up from 6.00 percent last week. Microsoft buys Colloquis Inc. SEATTLE -- Microsoft Corp. said Thursday that it had acquired Colloquis Inc., a privately held company privately held company A firm whose shares are held within a relatively small circle of owners and are not traded publicly. that helps other companies automatically answer customers' online questions. Redmond-based Microsoft and New York-based Colloquis did not disclose financial terms of the sale. Microsoft said it would hire all 36 of Colloquis' employees. Michael O'Hara, general manager with Microsoft's communications sector, said the deal was part of Microsoft's effort to add more Web-based services to its portfolio of products. Microsoft's main cash cows, Windows and Office, rely mainly on the traditional method of selling software that people install in their desktop computers. Microsoft said it planned to rename Re`name´ v. t. 1. To give a new name to. Verb 1. rename - assign a new name to; "Many streets in the former East Germany were renamed in 1990" Colloquis's product Windows Live A family of free desktop and Web-based applications from Microsoft, most of which can be accessed from a personal home page as well as a Windows Live browser toolbar. Launched in late 2005, Microsoft integrated and rebranded its Hotmail and MSN and Windows instant messaging as "Windows Service Agent. |
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