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Volkswagen board moves closer to Porsche merger

German carmaker Volkswagen AG said Friday its supervisory board had approved certain agreement contracts for the planned merger with German sportscar builder Porsche, taking the companies one step closer to completing the deal.

To lower interest rates, Citi customers must spend

For Citibank credit card holders, there is one way to escape the bank's rate hikes currently under way: Meet a monthly spending requirement. Those who meet the spending minimum - in some cases $750 a month - will be able to get a rebate on their total interest charges for that month.

U.S. panel sets fees for big firms, aims to slow Fed

Taking aim at Wall Street and the U.S. central bank, an important House committee voted Thursday to assess fees on large financial firms to pay for the failure of their peers and to require a sweeping congressional audit of the secretive Federal Reserve.

EBay completes sale of Skype for $2 billion

EBay has completed its sale of Skype for about $2 billion to an investor group that included the founders of the Internet phone service.

Sony hopes online service will build brand loyalty

Sony's new online service connecting the whole range of its gadgets to downloadable content like movies and games should help build brand loyalty, a top executive said Friday.

Dozens arrested in deaf phone call service scam

Authorities say a number of companies schemed to create phony calls to a video service that allows the deaf to converse over phone lines to hearing people. Authorities have made arrests in New York, New Jersey, Florida, Texas, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Nevada, Oregon and Maryland.

Economist: Recession over, except for job market

State economist Tom Potiowsky said job losses should continue until an uptick occurs well into next year. Potiowsky said recovery to pre-recession job levels is likely to take until early in 2013. "There is a big difference between when a recession ends and when the jobs come back," he said.

Leggo my Eggo! Kellogg fights waffle shortage

Kellogg Co. says there will be a nationwide shortage of its popular Eggo frozen waffles until next summer because of interruptions in production at two of the four plants that make them.

AOL offers buyouts to one-third of work force

AOL LLC, an Internet company struggling to adapt to an advertising-driven economy, is looking to shed more than a third of its work force as it prepares to spin off from Time Warner Inc. next month.

Foreclosures hitting more people with prime loans

A rising proportion of fixed-rate home loans made to people with good credit are sinking into foreclosure, adding to concerns about the strength of the economic recovery.