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According to "Mobile Market View," a new mobile consumer study conducted by The Kelsey Group with research partner ConStat, 44.7 percent of U.S. mobile phone users surveyed say a mobile phone with better Internet capability will be a key factor in their next mobile phone purchase decision. According to the survey, only 26 percent of mobile phone service subscribers currently opt for an Internet access plan.

Citigroup Inc. announced that dislocations in the mortgage-backed securities and credit markets, and deterioration in the consumer credit environment are expected to have an adverse impact on third quarter financial results. Citi currently estimates that it will report a decline in net income in the range of 60% from the prior-year quarter, subject to finalizing third quarter results.

In March 2007, China Mobile built their own "TD Trial Commercial Use" networks in 8 cities, namely Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Shenyang, Qinghuangdao, Xiamen, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, marking substantial progress in the development of TD in China. In addition, China Telecom and China Netcom will also extend the capacity of their TD network in Baoding and Qingdao. The two operators may inject one billion Yuan respectively.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) will invest EUR 25 million in the Enercap Power Fund, which will support renewable energy infrastructure projects in Central and South-Eastern Europe. A significant proportion of the investments made by the Fund are expected to be in Hungary, Slovakia, Poland, Croatia, and the Czech Republic.

With the need to focus on differentiation possibilities such as R&D for product innovation and sales and marketing, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) are outsourcing their electronics manufacturing activities to concentrate on their core competencies. For electronics manufacturing services (EMS) providers, this is an opportunity to create economies of scale by spreading fixed costs to a number of OEMs.

Holiday sales growth will be the slowest it has been in five years, according to TNS Retail Forward. The company forecasted that fourth-quarter growth in 2007 would slow to 3.3% from 4.6% in 2006.

U.S. venture-backed companies and their investors may be in the midst of another liquidity boom, according to the Quarterly U.S. Liquidity Report released by Dow Jones VentureOne. The report shows that 90 venture-backed companies raised more than $10.5 billion in merger and acquisition (M&A) transactions in the third quarter, a 31% increase over the same period last year and the highest quarterly amount since 2000. The quarter also saw 11 venture-backed companies complete initial public offerings (IPOs), raising $662.5 million, a 4% increase over last year. In addition, 46 other companies filed to go public during the quarter, setting the stage for a blockbuster fourth quarter in terms of liquidity.

The outlook for the restaurant industry remained positive in August, as the National Restaurant Association's comprehensive index of restaurant activity registered a modest gain. The Association's Restaurant Performance Index (RPI) - a monthly composite index that tracks the health of and outlook for the U.S. restaurant industry - stood at 101.1 in August, up 0.2 percent from its July level of 100.9. In addition, the RPI remained above 100 for the 52nd consecutive month, which represents expansion in the Association's composite index of eight key industry indicators.

Despite a rising tide of identity theft, employees say they are confident their employers protect their vital personal information from ID thieves. According to the recent "Getting Paid In America" survey, released by the American Payroll Association, 88 percent of respondents are confident their employers protect their vital personal information from identity theft and data breaches.

New research from PriceGrabber.com(R), an Experian company, indicates consumers are environmentally conscious in many of their buying decisions today but seek help in understanding the landscape of "green" products available to them.