NEW YORK — Stocks wilted Wednesday as comments from former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan and worries about upcoming economic data deflated a rally fed by takeover activity.

Stocks initially rose, lifting the Dow Jones industrials briefly above 13,600 for the first time, after the market got a fresh load of deal-related news that included a possible bidding battle over aluminum producer Alcan Inc. But the excitement waned after a media report that Greenspan expressed concern about an eventual sharp decline in China's stock market — which has recently been hitting record highs.

Wall Street's mood also dampened when energy prices failed to ease despite a rebound in U.S. crude and gasoline inventories last week. And with key reports on durable goods and new home sales due for release Thursday and the long Memorial Day weekend looming, investors adopted a defensive stance.

Strong merger and acquisition activity has for weeks been the primary force lifting the Dow, which crossed over the 13,000 milestone less than a month ago. So after some cautionary comments from Greenspan, analysts were not surprised to see investors take a breather.

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HOUSE APPROVES PENALTIES FOR GAS PRICE GOUGING

WASHINGTON — The House, eager to do something about record high gasoline prices in advance of the Memorial Day weekend, voted narrowly Wednesday to approve stiff penalties for those found guilty of gasoline price gouging.

The bill directs the Federal Trade Commission and Justice Department to go after oil companies, traders or retail operators if they take "unfair advantage" or charge "unconscionably excessive" prices for gasoline and other fuels.

The White House called the measure a form of price controls that could result in fuel shortages. It said President Bush would be urged to veto the legislation should it pass Congress.

The bill needed the approval of two-thirds of the members of the House because the leadership considered it under an expedited legislative process. Thus, the 284-141 vote was only one over the threshold for passage. A similar measure is being considered by the Senate.

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U.S., CHINA TRADE TALKS ENDS

WASHINGTON — The United States and China concluded high-level trade talks Wednesday with progress reported in a few areas but no breakthrough in the biggest dispute, China's undervalued currency.

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Vice Premier Wu Yi both sounded positive notes on the importance of the new high-level discussions.

But the scant signs of success left China's critics vowing to push ahead with legislation seeking to punish China for what are seen as unfair trading practices that have driven U.S. trade deficits to record levels and cost thousands of manufacturing jobs.

Hoping to head off punitive legislation, Wu and other members of her team — the largest high-level Chinese delegation ever to visit the United States — met behind closed doors with congressional leaders after the talks with members of President Bush's Cabinet had concluded.

Paulson headed a U.S. team that included 18 Cabinet and other top economic officials, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke among them. Wu's team included 17 top Chinese government officials.

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FORMER COCA-COLA OFFICIAL GETS 8-YEAR TERM

ATLANTA — A federal judge ignored a former Coca-Cola secretary's plea for mercy Wednesday and sentenced her to eight years in prison for conspiring to steal trade secrets from the world's largest beverage maker.

U.S. District Judge J. Owen Forrester told Joya Williams, 42, that he was giving her a longer sentence than recommended by federal prosecutors and sentencing guidelines because, "This is the kind of offense that cannot be tolerated in our society."

Williams had faced up to 10 years in prison on the single conspiracy charge in a failed scheme to sell Coke's trade secrets to rival PepsiCo Inc. for at least $1.5 million.

But sentencing guidelines, which federal judges are not bound by, called for a sentence of 63 months to 78 months. Williams was convicted Feb. 2 following a jury trial in U.S. District Court in Atlanta, where The Coca-Cola Co. is based.

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TARGET BEATS WALL STREET EXPECTATIONS

MINNEAPOLIS — The first quarter was a tough one for many retailers, so Target's 18 percent profit growth took investors by surprise Wednesday.

Despite worries about rising gas prices and a cool, wet April keeping some shoppers away, Target managed what Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and jeweler Zale Corp. could not. It beat Wall Street expectations and predicted full-year results would be in line with analyst expectations, although it warned that growth would not be as fast during the rest of the year.

But for the moment, at least, it appears that Target's higher-income customers are still spending in a way that other retailers are not seeing.

Target shares rose 56 cents to $58.60 Wednesday after rising as high as $60.63 earlier in the day. The high for the past year was $64.74 in February.

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EU BACKS CHEAPER CELL PHONE RATES

STRASBOURG, France — Mobile phone users in the European Union could enjoy cheaper rates for calls made and received abroad as early as August, after EU lawmakers endorsed a deal Wednesday to cap mobile phone roaming fees in the 27-nation bloc.

The European Commission, the bloc's executive arm, has long argued operators are reaping massive, unjustified profits from high roaming charges. The caps will force them to slash the prices they charge consumers for making and receiving calls outside their home markets by up to 70 percent.

The landmark measure, which is all but certain to be backed by EU telecommunications ministers next month, should become binding on June 29, said German Economy Minister Joachim Wuermeling, whose country holds the rotating EU presidency.

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BUMP UP IN GAS PRICES BOOST OIL PRICES

NEW YORK — Oil prices inched higher after a U.S. government report showed gasoline stocks rose unexpectedly, but still not enough to dispel supply fears at the kickoff of the summer driving season.

The Energy Information Administration reported that gasoline stocks grew by an average of 1.5 million barrels last week to 196.7 million barrels, nearly doubling analysts' expectations but still well below the lower end of the average for this time of year.

Crude oil supplies rose by 2 million barrels to 344.2 million barrels, just above the upper end of the average. The forecast was for a drop of 200,000 barrels.

The EIA reported that refinery utilization rose 1.6 percent last week to 91.1 percent. Output is now at average levels after this spring's unprecedented number of refinery outages that have dragged down U.S. gasoline supplies.

Distillate inventories, which include heating oil and diesel fuel, edged up 500,000 barrels to 120.3 million barrels, falling short of analysts' estimate of 900,000 barrels.

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FORMICA CORP. TO BE UNDER NEW OWNERSHIP

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Building materials maker Fletcher Building Ltd. will buy Cincinnati-based surfacing products manufacturer Formica Corp. for $700 million.

The current owners, private equity groups Cerberus Capital Management LP and Oaktree Capital Management LLC, brought the company out of bankruptcy three years ago.

Formica, which has more than 3,800 employees in 14 manufacturing and 33 distribution facilities across Asia, Europe and North America, said Wednesday it doesn't expect the ownership change to have a major effect on daily operations and will add growth opportunities.

Formica will become a business unit within the Fletcher Building Laminates & Panels division, and Riddick will retain his current titles, said Formica, whose roots date to 1912.

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ALCAN FENDING OFF TAKEOVER BID BY ALCOA

MELBOURNE, Australia — Canadian aluminum maker Alcan Inc. is in talks with Australia's BHP Billiton Ltd. to try to fend off a hostile $27 billion takeover bid by U.S. rival Alcoa Inc., according to an article published Wednesday in Canada.

Alcan has rejected Alcoa's offer and Chief Executive Dick Evans has said Alcan is having "ongoing discussions with third parties about various other transactions."

Canada's Globe and Mail cited unnamed sources in its report that Alcan is in talks with BHP Billiton, the world's biggest resources company.