It took a $1.9 billion writedown in the quarter ended Nov. 30 as its mortgage-backed securities continued to lose value amid the global credit crisis. That was much larger than the $1.2 billion it expected in November.

Bear Stearns' fiscal fourth-quarter loss, and collapse of two hedge funds it managed during the summer, prompted Chief Executive Jimmy Cayne to pass on his 2007 bonus. Members of the company's executive committee also will not receive year-end bonuses.

Cayne is under pressure like other chief executives on Wall Street, as global banks have written off more than $100 billion in assets this year. Bear Stearns and other firms have seen writedowns from subprime-related investments and fixed-income trading come in much steeper than first expected.

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NEW YORK (AP) — The credit crisis spread to the nation's largest bond insurer Thursday, sending shares of MBIA Inc. plunging and calling into question the safety of tens of billions of dollars of company and local government debt held by investors.

The Fitch Ratings service warned that it might cut its rating on MBIA in the next six weeks if the company cannot find $1 billion in new capital. That followed a disclosure by MBIA that of the $30 billion in mortgage debt guarantees it issued, some $8 billion were for the the riskiest types.

One analyst said he was shocked by the magnitude of that exposure. A call seeking comment from MBIA officials at the company's headquarters in Armonk, N.Y., was not returned immediately Thursday.

For the last decade, Wall Street firms have profited by bundling and selling pools of mortgages, auto loans, credit card bills and more to investors. The riskiness of these securities was thought to be offset by the promise from insurers like MBIA that they would step in to make principal and interest payments if issuers defaulted.

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NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks finished higher Thursday as investors set aside some concerns about downbeat economic reports and focused on strong profits from Oracle Corp.

Corporate results and economic news offered investors a mixed picture and kept stocks fluctuating throughout much of the session.

Oracle Corp.'s upbeat results poked holes in Wall Street's recent pessimism, and even a report from Bear Stearns Cos. of its first-ever quarterly loss seemed to offer relief to those fearing its results could have been worse.

Economic news appeared to weigh on investors at times during the session. The Philadelphia Federal Reserve said Thursday its index of regional business conditions showed a reading of a negative 5.7, down sharply from a positive 8.2 in November.

The Fed report came after word that a gauge of future business activity fell last month to its lowest level in more than two years. The Conference Board said its index of leading indicators, which looks three to six months ahead, dropped 0.4 percent in November. The reading suggests the economy could weaken this winter and possibly into the spring amid tight credit and continued troubles in the housing sector.

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WASHINGTON (AP) — With U.S. antitrust clearance for its DoubleClick purchase, Google's focus now turns to European regulators, who are expected to be more critical of the top search engine linking up with a market leader in online advertising.

The proposed $3.1 billion transaction, which is strongly opposed by privacy advocates, cannot be completed without approval from the European Commission, whose review deadline is April 2.

The Federal Trade Commission said that the deal won't significantly lessen competition in the online advertising market, rebuffing complaints from Microsoft Corp. and AT&T Inc. that it would give Google a dominant position.

The European Commission declined to comment on the FTC's decision, spokesman Jonathan Todd said. ———

WASHINGTON (AP) — The economy sprinted ahead at its fastest pace in four years during the summer, although it is expected to limp through the final three months of this year as housing and credit woes weigh on individuals and businesses.

The Commerce Department reported Thursday that the gross domestic product grew at a 4.9 percent pace in the July-to-September period, unchanged from an estimate a month ago. The performance was impressive given that the housing market plunged deeper into despair. Builders slashed spending on housing projects in the third quarter at an annualized rate of 20.5 percent, the most in 16 years.

Economic growth in October through December is expected to have slowed to a pace of just 1.5 percent or less. Some analysts fear that economic activity might even contract slightly. Gross domestic product measures the value of all goods and services produced in the United States.

The big worry is that people will cut back on spending and throw the economy into a recession. Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan and others say the odds of that happening have grown this year. Greenspan recently warned that the economy is "getting close to stall speed."

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DETROIT (AP) — His critics would say he didn't move quickly enough, but few would dispute that Rick Wagoner has started to turn the giant freighter known as General Motors Corp.

Since a devastating $10.6 billion loss in 2005, the company has cut labor and other costs, expanded sales overseas and moved to upgrade products to rival those made by the Japanese.

But just as years of work start to right the once-plodding industrial giant, Wagoner is faced with a gloomy U.S. auto market that could hamper GM's recovery plan.

Yet the 54-year-old chairman and chief executive of the largest U.S. automaker is optimistic the rays will return and says his company is far better positioned to weather a tough 2008 than it was during past downturns.

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CHICAGO (AP) — Real estate magnate Sam Zell took control of newly private Tribune Co. on Thursday and began shaking up the newspaper and TV company the moment the $8.2 billion buyout he led closed, reshuffling the board, naming two top executives and promising more action ahead.

Taking on the CEO and chairman roles, Zell made clear he won't hesitate to make sweeping changes at the media conglomerate even though he has no previous experience in the industry.

He signaled he has no immediate asset sales in mind at the company that owns 23 television stations and nine daily newspapers, including the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune, although the Chicago Cubs baseball team and Wrigley Field are to be auctioned off by July.

However, he made clear that other changes are coming.

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HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Rite Aid Corp. shares fell to a 52-week low Thursday on sharply wider third-quarter losses, with fewer customers making holiday purchases or buying the cold and flu remedies that typically boost sales this time of year.

The nation's third-largest drugstore chain lowered its 2008 profit outlook for the second time this year, prompting a sell-off that drove shares briefly as low as $2.71. By early afternoong, shares had recovered somewhat, but were still trading down $1.08, more than 26 percent, at $3.02.

Rite Aid's chairman, president and chief executive, Mary Sammons, said she was disappointed with the results, but that she was pleased with progress toward integrating more than 1,850 Brooks and Eckerd stores acquired in June.

She touted improvements in pharmacy sales, gross margin rate and customer satisfaction surveys, and urged investors to focus on the company's long-term growth strategy, instead of quarter-by-quarter results.

By The Associated Press

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 38.37, or 0.29 percent, to 13,245.64.

Broader stock indicators also gained. The Standard & Poor's 500 index advanced 7.12, 0.49 percent, to 1,460.12, and Oracle's results helped push the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index up 39.85, or 1.53 percent, to 2,640.86.

Light, sweet crude for February delivery fell 18 cents to settle at $91.06 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

January heating oil fell 0.84 cent to settle at $2.5895 a gallon on the Nymex, while January gasoline futures fell 0.43 cent to settle at $2.3276 a gallon.

January natural gas futures fell 4.2 cents to settle at $7.137 per 1,000 cubic feet on the Nymex after the government reported that inventories fell last week by 121 billion cubic feet, less than analysts had expected.