Consumer Reports magazine said the 2009 Toyota Prius Touring edition offers the best value for a new car. The magazine’s April edition, which goes on sale Tuesday, released results Thursday of its best cars of 2009. Typically, the magazine offers a list of “top picks” in various car and light truck categories, but given sagging consumer confidence during a recession, it added a “best car value” rating. The ranking takes into account the total cost of ownership over five years, and weighs fuel costs, maintenance and repairs, insurance costs, depreciation, financing rates and taxes against the price and reliability of the vehicle.
Economic news getting worse
As bad as it is already, the economy keeps getting worse — and government figures Thursday provided more evidence that the downward spiral won’t end anytime soon. The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits topped 5 million for the first time since record-keeping began in 1967. And the number of first-time claims hit 667,000, the highest level in more than a quarter-century. Both figures were worse than experts expected. Orders for cars, computers, machinery and other durable goods plunged a larger-than-expected 5.2 percent in January as global economic troubles reduced demand from customers in the United States and abroad.
Dell profits drop 48 percent
Dell Inc. said Thursday its profit dove 48 percent during the fiscal fourth quarter as the recession forced consumers and businesses to spend less on technology. The company also said it expects to make further cuts to its work force. Earnings for the quarter that ended Jan. 30 sank to $351 million, or 18 cents per share, from $679 million, or 31 cents per share. Excluding one-time charges, Dell would have earned 29 cents per share in the quarter, just above the 26 cents per share expected by analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.
Yahoo CEO mounts manager shakeup
After spending six weeks diagnosing Yahoo Inc.’s numerous troubles, new Chief Executive Carol Bartz started to prescribe a cure Thursday with a management shakeup that will usher out the Internet company’s chief financial officer. Besides pushing CFO Blake Jorgensen out the door, the overhaul will expand the responsibilities of Yahoo’s chief technology officer, Ari Balogh, and the company’s top advertising executive in the United States, Hilary Schneider. Bartz also created two jobs: a chief marketing officer and her own chief of staff. Elisa Steele, who has been working at NetApp Inc., will join Yahoo as its chief marketing officer on March 23, while Joel Jones, a former McKinsey consultant who has been Yahoo’s corporate strategist, becomes Bartz’s chief of staff starting today, officials said.
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