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Early-stage studies in mice have shown that adult blood could be a richer source of insulin-creating stem cells than fertilized eggs, according to Dr. Yong Zhao, assistant professor at the University of Illinois.

Original post by FeedZilla

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — Trade unions in Nigeria have ended the general strike they called to protest a government-imposed increase in gasoline prices, according to media reports. The four-day strike has captured the attention of energy traders, who pushed the price of the benchmark crude-oil contract above $69 a barrel on Friday. Despite its status as Africa’s leading exporter of crude, Nigeria must import gasoline for domestic consumption because of the poor state of the nation’s oil refineries. Talks between the unions and the government of President Umaru Yar’Adua yielded a pledge that prices at the pump would not be increased any further for a year and that a proposed hike in the value-added tax rate won’t be implemented. In return, the union agreed to accept the government’s plan to increase pump prices by nearly 8%. Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — A survey from the Society for Human Resource Management showed an increase in the number of businesses offering various forms of employee benefits, according to a statement from the group Sunday. The number of companies offering programs such as vision insurance, transit subsidies, telecommuting programs and reimbursement for fitness center memberships all increased, according to the survey. One area that saw a decrease was in the number of companies offering traditional pension plan programs, which decreased from 48% of companies surveyed to 40%. Overall, the organization said that employee benefits ”remained relatively stable” from 2006 through 2007. Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

Original post by FeedZilla

As frustrated as travelers may be with crowded planes and delayed flights, these are the realities of the leaner U.S. airline industry as it claws its way back to profitability after a brutal years-long slump.

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SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Aetna Inc. has reached a deal with the HR Policy Association, which represents nearly 250 large corporations, to offer a retiree medical coverage program. The offering, named the Retiree Health Access program, is designed to provide health coverage to both pre-65 and post-65 retirees. The program will begin on Jan. 1, 2008. The program is designed especially for pre-65 retirees who are not yet eligible for Medicare, which the HR Policy Association said in a statement ”presents a vexing problem for large employers.” Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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SAN FRANCISCO (Marketwatch) — Yahoo Inc. said Sunday that it has combined its sales teams for search and display advertising into one unit as the struggling Internet portal works to stem market-share losses to rival Google Inc.

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WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — Yahoo Inc. will combine its search and display advertising-sales teams, the Internet bellwether said Sunday. The revamp ad-sales operation will report to David Karnstedt, currently the Sunnyvale, Calif.-based company’s senior vice president of search sales. The move is the latest in a series of steps that Yahoo’s taken since the beginning of 2007 to organize product management, engineering, and distribution around marketing customers rather than advertising products. Marketing executive Karnstedt joined Yahoo in September 2001.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

Original post by FeedZilla

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — The big-budget comedy ”Evan Almighty” scored the top spot at the box office over the weekend but came in below the openings for other recent blockbusters and severely underperformed its predecessor ”Bruce Almighty.”

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After a spat between two of the world’s largest Internet companies, online auctioneer eBay Inc. resumed running advertising through Google Inc. on Friday.

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