PRESS DIGEST - Wall Street Journal - Aug 20
Aug 20 (Reuters) - The following were the top stories in The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
* Freddie Mac (FRE.N) was forced to offer unusually rich terms in a $3 billion auction of its debt, fueling concerns about a possible bailout for the mortgage giant and its sibling, Fannie Mae (FNM.N).
* Delaware Sen. Joseph Biden returned from a visit to the war-torn country of Georgia to find himself in a new spotlight as speculation intensifies over Barack Obama's imminent choice of a running mate.
* In an early sign that investors are starting to pounce on the billions of dollars of troubled land and construction loans that banks are looking to unload, a venture headed by LandCap Partners is buying $40 million of such assets from Wachovia Corp WB.N.
* India's Reliance ADA is hunting for U.S. acquisitions in the mobile-content market, seeking to extend its U.S. foothold beyond movies.
* Russian forces solidified control of strategic points in Georgia, seizing Georgian prisoners and U.S. military Humvees at the port of Poti and blowing up a Georgian naval vessel.
* U.S. producer prices soared at their highest annual rate in 27 years last month, showing inflation is still running high even as the U.S. economy slows. Separately, housing starts fell 11 percent, reversing a quirky rise in June.
* Crude oil rebounded to settle at $114.53 a barrel, a gain of $1.66, as the slipping dollar helped spur a rally. The dollar posted its biggest declines against the euro since early July after a steady rise over the past month.
* Hewlett-Packard Co's (HPQ.N) profit rose 14 percent as the technology giant saw robust sales overseas and strong demand for laptops, offering further proof that the sector is weathering the shaky economy much better than many other industries. HP also issued an optimistic outlook for the current quarter.
* India's information-technology industry is losing steam. The credit crunch and spending slowdown in the U.S. are hurting the companies' biggest market, while a cheaper dollar shrinks their profits. Competition is rising from other low-cost nations.
* Intel Corp (INTC.O) is accelerating efforts to boost computing performance without increasing power consumption, including a new "turbo" technology on forthcoming chips. The technology was disclosed at the company's twice-yearly forum for developers.
