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SFGate: Business & Technology

Business and technology news. From SFGate.com: the Bay Area's home page, online home of the San Francisco Chronicle and much more.

Calif. wine patriarch Robert Mondavi dies at 94
Robert Mondavi, the vintner who built his career and helped an iconic Northern California industry blossom by insisting that Napa Valley wines can compete with the best in the world, died in the valley Friday. He was 94. Mondavi died peacefully at his home in...
Intel agencies seek help recruiting new immigrants
The U.S. is its own worst enemy when it comes to the desperately important task of recruiting immigrants as spies, analysts and translators in the war on terror, new Americans are telling intelligence officials. The government's policies raise suspicions and...
UAW, American Axle reach deal that may end strike
A bitter 80-day United Auto Workers strike against an auto parts maker that has crippled dozens of General Motors Corp. factories could be coming to an end soon with a tentative contract agreement reached Friday. Renee Rogers, spokeswoman for American Axle...
Bush fails to win Saudi help on gas prices
President Bush failed to win the help he sought from Saudi Arabia to relieve skyrocketing American gas prices Friday, a setback for the former Texas oilman who took office predicting he would jawbone oil-producing nations to help the U.S. Bush got a red-...
Winning numbers in California's 'SuperLotto Plus' game
The winning numbers drawn Friday night in the California Lottery's "SuperLotto Plus" game were: 47-11-46-39-06. Meganumber: 26. Jackpot: $196...
France criticizes Myanmar for barring aid ship
France criticized Myanmar's military junta on Friday for refusing to allow a French Navy ship with 1,500 tons of aid for victims of Cyclone Nargis to deliver food and medicine with small boats and helicopters. Ambassador Jean-Maurice Ripert said the ship...
Phelps struggles in tune-up to Olympic trials
Six weeks before the U.S. Olympic Trials, the best American male swimmer isn't feeling comfortable in his signature event. Michael Phelps won the 400 individual medley at the Santa Clara Grand Prix on Friday but was far from his dominant self, finishing in 4...
Death toll from Myanmar cyclone nearly doubles
The official death toll nearly doubled to 78,000 from Myanmar's killer cyclone as heavy rains on Friday lashed much of the area stricken two weeks ago, further hampering relief efforts. Aid workers shackled by the country's military regime struggled to get...
Victorville area rancher shoots coyote that killed ostriches
An ostrich rancher from the Victorville area says he shot a coyote after it killed 22 of his birds. Doug Osborne, who has been ranching in the Victor Valley since 1994, says he decided to kill the coyote after San Bernardino County sent two of its best...
Financier sentenced to 8 years in Cunningham bribery case
A New York financier was sentenced Friday to more than eight years in federal prison for laundering bribes to former U.S. Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham. A tearful Thomas Kontogiannis apologized and pleaded for leniency, but District Judge Larry Burns ordered...
Oil sets record near $128; pump price at high, too
News that Saudi Arabia had boosted its oil output by 300,000 barrels a day was greeted as a non-event on oil markets _ the move wasn't anywhere near the kind of production increase needed to bring prices down on Friday. And traders were equally unimpressed by...
Surprise rebound in housing, outlook still shaky
Construction of new homes increased by the biggest percentage in more than two years in April, a rare spot of good news amid the worst downturn in housing in more than two decades. Analysts, however, played down the increase, noting that all the strength came...
Stocks pare losses to finish mixed after oil spikes
Wall Street capped a week of big gains with modest moves Friday as investors grappled with surging energy prices that overshadowed news of a surprise increase in home construction. Investors hoping for an economic rebound in the second half of the year and...
GE confirms plans to exit appliance business
NEW HAVEN, Conn. _ General Electric Co. plans to sell or spin off the business that for a century has put appliances in American homes, a decision that could presage further asset sales, analysts said. The industrial conglomerate, one of the world's largest...
Macy's signs deal to put FAO Schwarz in its stores
FAO Schwarz will open toy stores in nearly 700 Macy's department stores over the next two years in a move that both stores hope will drive traffic in a tough economic environment. The two companies announced Friday that about 75 full-size FAO Schwarz toy...
Fannie Mae scraps higher downpayment requirements
Fannie Mae is doing away with higher minimum down-payment requirements for borrowers in parts of the country where home prices are dropping. The government-sponsored mortgage finance company said Friday it will require minimum down payments of between 3...
California's unemployment rate holds steady at 6.2 percent
California's unemployment rate held steady at 6.2 percent in April, as job losses in the construction and banking sectors were offset by strength in other pockets of the economy, the state said Friday. California shed a negligible 800 of its nearly 15.2...
Treasury secretary says markets are calmer now
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said Friday that financial markets are "considerably calmer" now than they were two months ago. He predicted the economy will be rebounding by the second half of this year. In a speech to business executives in Washington,...
Industrial output, manufacturing fall / Analyst expects another drop as industry feels the impact of a weak economy
Industrial output plunged in April as factories making everything from autos to heavy machinery felt the adverse effects of the weak economy. Analysts held out hope that production will revive in the second half of the year, helped by the government's...
Rivals demand Virgin America release data
Virgin America Inc., the startup airline based in Burlingame partly owned by billionaire Richard Branson, should be forced to disclose operating data, six competitors have told federal regulators. The U.S. Transportation Department collects data monthly on...