Economic activity across the United States weakened in September with businesses more pessimistic about the outlook but still heartened by a few bright spots in the economy, revealed the Federal Reserve in its Beige Book report on Wednesday.

The report springs no surprise about the growth rate, crippled as the economy is by the recent market meltdown and the consequent credit freeze. A decline in economic activity was reported in all the twelve Federal Reserve districts while consumer spending fell in most regions of the country. Sectors like retailing, auto and tourism recorded significant decline in sales while manufacturing continued to be weak along with real estate.

However there were some bright spots too in the report which marked a positive growth in sectors like agriculture as well as natural resources. Another bit of good news was that inflationary conditions had weakened to some extent which had relaxed the pressures of high prices.

Findings of the Beige Book report will be utilized by the Federal Reserve officials when they meet on October 28 and 29 to consider changes in interest rates. The Federal Reserve recently joined other central banks in a co-ordinated half-point interest cut on October 8 in an attempt to stimulate bank lending and remove the credit crunch in global financial markets.

Intel Corp posted higher-than-expected profits in the third quarter and was hopeful that sales might rise in this period due to increased demand for laptops. The results brought cheers to investors who had been fearful that the credit meltdown would freeze orders.

Intel’s net income for the third quarter rose by 12% to $2.01 billion or 35 cents a share from $1.79 or 30 cents a share a year ago. This was higher than the 34 cents a share forecast made by analysts in a Bloomberg survey. Intel’s revenue for the quarter climbed by 1.3% to $10.2 billion.

Based in Santa Clara, California, Intel is the largest chipmaker in the world. The company had been worried that the crisis in financial markets would hit demand for personal computers. Even though sales of corporate PCs have slowed down, the demand for laptop processors, which bring in more revenue than desktop chips, has continued to rise and recorded an increase of 20% last quarter. The company is now confident that sales in fourth quarter would be in the range of $10.1 billion to $10.9 billion.

Intel’s rise in profits was reflected in higher values of its stocks at the share market. Shares rose by 4.5% or 71 cents to $16.64 in late Tuesday trading at the NASDAQ Stock Market.

Finance companies in the US have decided to seek permission from the Treasury Department to allow them to sell of bad auto loans to the government as part of America’s sweeping financial measures to revive the credit markets and stimulate economic growth.

The proposal has come from the American Financial Services Association which represents several reputed finance companies including major auto affiliates like Ford Motor Credit Co as well as GMAC LLC, controlled by Cerberus Capital Management which owns Chrysler. General Motors too has a 49% stake in GMAC LLC.

Even though auto loans traditionally perform well, the recent credit meltdown has led to an increased number of defaults by consumers who have failed to pay back. The association said that it would try and convince the government to buy the bad auto loans that so that auto finance companies can improve their books and start lending to new borrowers.

The $700 billion bail out plan passed by the US Congress last month is in the process of being implemented by the Bush administration. The bail out plan allows the Treasury to mop up bad auto loans if they appear to endanger the health of the economy as a whole.

Two of the biggest domestic airlines in India, Kingfisher Airlines and Jet Airways have decided to merge in a bid to cut costs and remain operational in an increasingly difficult time for the Indian aviation industry.

Cost cutting is being seen as the main reason why once-bitter rivals have now decided to join hands. According to Vijay Mallya, Chairman of the Kingfisher Airlines, the merger will lead to cost savings which can then be passed on to the customers. Some of the important ways in which the merger is expected to cut costs are by reducing the number of flights in the same routes, sharing of ground resources as well as honouring frequent flier miles.

However the merger of Kingfisher Airlines and Jet Airways might not be all good news for the customer if aviation experts are to be believed. Jayesh Desai, head of infrastructure in Ernst & Young points out that the alliance will lead to a “minimisation of options” for the customers besides increasing the possibility of monopoly fares since Kingfisher Airlines and Jet Airways together control as much as 60% of the domestic aviation market share.

These are tough times for Indian aviation. Like the rest of the world, the airlines industry in India too has been hit hard by skyrocketing fuel prices and declining passenger traffic.

Well-heeled diners at New York’s top restaurants are aware that waiters here expect tips of 15% to 20% or $60 on a $300 dinner for two. What is less well-known however is that the money does not all go down to the waiters and more lowly staff. This has led to several lawsuits filed over the past three years in which the staff have accused several top line New York restaurants of stealing tips and cheating them out of overtime wages.

Among those named in the lawsuits are the exclusive haunt Pastis, three in the global Nobu chain, Michelin-starred Jean Georges and other restaurants co-owned by celebrities like Robert De Niro, French chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten as well as hip hop star Jay Z’s 40/40 Club.

In June this year, a New York judge approved the first payment in a settlement totalling $3.9 million for workers at the Red Eye Grill and five other eateries controlled by the Fireman Hospitality Group. As part of the settlement, Fireman agreed not to let the managerial staff claim a share of the tips.

According to Carolyn Richmond, an attorney representing several restaurants the situation has risen out of decades-old labour laws and workplace regulations as well as state and federal laws which do not clarify who can share in the tips and how they should be divided.

The Middle East remains an eternal enigma for most travelers across the globe. Its rich heritage of arts, religion and culture offer a fantastic counterpoint to amazing inventions in landscape and architecture besides great shopping opportunities. Letsgo2.com brings several attractive Dubai Holiday deals which are bound to appeal to travellers of varied interests.

The uber-fashionable shopping malls of Dubai like the Diera City Centre and The Pyramids are famous for stocking gold, precious metals and jewellery at much reduced prices than in Europe or USA. Besides these, the malls offer lots of products in electronics, perfumes and gadgets at duty-free rates and thus figure prominently in any Dubai holidays. Other attractions of Dubai include lavish 5-star hotels, vibrant restaurants, bars, clubs and Letsgo2.com features a list of the city’s hot-spots which are bound to appeal any traveller.

For those inclined towards culture, Dubai Holidays offer the chance to get a glimpse into the region’s art and history. Some of the must-sees in this category are the Dubai Museum, the Bastaqiya quarter, the Jumeira Mosque as well as the Dubai Heritage and Diving Village accompanied by the Dune dinner. Letsgo2.com brings package holidays to Dubai which include both accommodation and flights and thus offer its travellers competitive prices. Overall a great site for holidays Dubai kind of travelers.

Sneaking in a holiday in today’s fast-paced life need not always be hijacked by the lack of a companion. In fact today there are more than four million people traveling without a companion for a variety of reasons. Just You is the leading provider of holidays for singles in the UK. It offers escorted touring holidays and singles cruises to various parts of the world like Europe, USA, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Central and South American as well as Asia.

Some of the most popular packages on Just You include singles cruises – both on rivers and at the sea. Among exotic river cruises for singles are those on Portugal’s Douro river, on the Nile with the Pyramids as well as on Venetian and Spanish waterways. Single cruise holidays at seas feature sun-kissed destinations like Florida, the Bahamas as well as the Californian and Mexican coasts.

Besides single cruises, Just You also offers several touring holidays by air or coach as well as short breaks to popular destinations across Europe and other continents. Each tour is accompanied with a professional tour manager and most of the excursions feature 4-star accommodation on a half-board basis, group activities as well as dinner parties.