U.S., Japan reach trade deal over auto parts

WASHINGTON >> The United States and Japan have agreed to replace a contentious 1995 auto trade pact with regular consultations on efforts to boost sales of U.S.-made autos and auto parts in Japan.

The Bush administration announced yesterday that the new U.S.-Japan Automotive Consultative Group will hold its first meeting early next year.

Commerce Secretary Don Evans called the agreement, which came after two days of negotiations this week in Washington, a "major step forward in our goal of resolving trade, regulatory and competition policy issues" involving auto trade with Japan. The new arrangement will replace a 1995 auto pact.

Microsoft earnings drop 42 percent in 3rd quarter

SEATTLE >> Microsoft Corp., struggling with a much-weakened market for personal computers and hurt by losses from investments, saw earnings drop by 42 percent in its fiscal first quarter, but still managed to beat Wall Street's reduced expectations.

The software giant warned, however, that second-quarter and full-year earnings results would fall shy of analysts' projections.

For the three months ended Sept. 30, Microsoft earned $1.28 billion, or 23 cents per share, compared with $2.21 billion, or 40 cents per share, in the year-ago period. The results include a hefty $1.24 billion charge, or 20 cents per share, related to investment losses, primarily in telecommunications.

GM blames foreign operations for loss

DETROIT >> Underachieving foreign operations, rising marketing costs, and slowing fleet sales counteracted a strong showing for General Motors Corp.'s North American operations in the third quarter.

The world's largest automaker Thursday reported a loss for the July-September period of $368 million, or 41 cents a share, but still exceeded Wall Street expectations. Chief financial officer John Devine warned, though, that GM will fall short of its fourth quarter target.