WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) – The U.S. economy expanded at a 2.5% pace in the first three months of 2013, up from 0.4% in the fourth quarter, as consumer spending rose at the fastest rate in two years and businesses restocked warehouse shelves. Yet government spending fell sharply again ands imports surged to act as drags on economic growth, according to data released Friday by the Commerce Department. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch had forecast growth to rise to 3.2%, so the less-than-expected number could weigh on U.S. markets. Consumer spending – the motor of the U.S. economy – rose 3.2% to mark the sharpest gain since the end of 2010, though some of the increase was the result of higher oil prices. Inventories also soared to an estimated $50.3 billion after a scant $13.3 billion increase in the prior quarter, but that buildup is probably unsustainable. Final sales of U.S.-made goods and services, a more precise gauge of demand, rose a much smaller 1.5%. That matched the lowest increase in eight quarters. Investment in residential housing, a source of recent economic strength, jumped 12.6% to mark the third straight strong advance. Business spending on equipment and software rose 3%. In a bit of a surprise, military spending sank 11.5% after an unusually steep drop of 22.1% in the fourth quarter. And overall government spending fell 4.1% in the first three months of the year, perhaps partly reflecting federal spending cuts that began to take effect in early March. Meanwhile, imports surged 5.4% after falling 4.2% in the fourth quarter, spurred by higher oil prices. Americans had to pay more to fill up at the gas station. Exports climbed 2.9% after a 2.8% drop in the fourth quarter. Inflation as measured by the PCE price index rose at an annual rate of 0.9%, down from 1.6% in the prior two quarters. Core PCE rose slightly faster at 1.2% The GDP report will be refined through two further updates over the next few months.

$FB Facebook upgraded at Raymond James: Full Story bit.ly/ZyYjM0

— The Fly on the Wall (@theflynews) April 26, 2013

The 26-year-old Chinese entrepreneur had just pulled his new Mercedes to the curb on Brighton Avenue to answer a text when an old sedan swerved behind him, slamming on the brakes. A man in dark clothes got out and approached the passenger window. It was nearly 11 p.m. last Thursday.

The man rapped on the glass, speaking quickly. Danny, unable to hear him, lowered the window — and the man reached an arm through, unlocked the door, and climbed in, brandishing a silver handgun.

“Don’t be stupid,” he told Danny. He asked if he had followed the news about Monday’s Boston Marathon bombings. Danny had, down to the release of the grainy suspect photos less than six hours earlier.

“I did that,” said the man, who would later be identified as Tamerlan Tsarnaev. “And I just killed a policeman in Cambridge.”

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BREAKING: Law enforcement official: Arrest imminent in marathon bombing, suspect to be brought to court.

-CNBC

From a design point of view, the Galaxy S 4 iterated from the Galaxy S III, while still offering a more streamlined, refined design. The screen is now 5 inches but the body of the device doesn’t feel much larger than the Galaxy S III. Moreover, Samsung made the device slimmer and stronger. Gone is the plasticky feel of the Galaxy S III; the Galaxy S 4 is light, but feels higher quality.

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We’re going to get an announcement from the company as to how they intend to reallocate some of their cash,” Ward said in an interview today on Bloomberg Radio’s “Surveillance” withTom Keene. “They will put a floor under their stock at a higher price than it is today.”

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Icahn Raises Stake in Herbalife from 13.6% to 15.5% $HLF

— Benzinga.com (@Benzinga) March 7, 2013

Carl Icahn bought 14 million shares of Herbalife for a 12.98 percent stake. $HLF is up 20% in after hours. Let the mother of all short squeezes begin.

Feb. 5 (Bloomberg) — David Ko, chief operating officer of Zynga Inc., talks about the company’s fourth-quarter profit, growth strategy, and some of its best performing online social games. Ko, speaking with Emily Chang on Bloomberg Television’s “Bloomberg West,” also discusses the company’s plans for online gambling (Online gambling mention @ 6:30).

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(Reuters) - North Korea said on Thursday it would carry out further rocket launches and a nuclear test that would target the United States, dramatically stepping up its threats against a country it called its “enemy”.

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Today was the 12th annual no pants subway ride held in NY. Apparently there is a group of people who meet up on trains, take their pants off, and act like nothing is wrong. Read More

Here is the 2012 video:

#NPSR is the hashtag they are using on twitter

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Police shot and critically wounded a gunman Saturday in a San Diego movie theater as more than a dozen moviegoers ducked for cover on the floor.

No moviegoers or officers were hurt in the shooting inside Reading Cinemas Carmel Mountain innorthern San Diego, officer David Stafford said.

The suspect, whose name was not immediately released, was taken to a hospital with several gunshot wounds and was expected to survive, Capt. Terry McManus told U-T San Diego. He became the target of an intense police search after witnesses reported seeing him confront his 19-year-old girlfriend at a parking lot across the street from a shopping plaza where the Cineplex is located.

Witnesses tried to intervene, but he threatened them with a gun and ran to the shopping plaza.

The owner of a business next to the Cineplex said police shut down the shopping center’s parking lot and stopped every car to look for the man. Officers with dogs checked each store, while a police helicopter hovered above.

“There were 20 police cars blocking the entrance, then the fire truck and the ambulance rushed in,”Steve Krongard, the owner of the Nickel City arcade, said. “Then we saw seven cops with what looked like rifles, then paramedics went into the theater.”

McManus said police turned their attention to the Cineplex when two women told officers the suspect they were looking for matched the description of someone they saw inside the Cineplex. Police searched theater by theater and evacuated moviegoers until two officers spotted him in a theater with about 15 others.

McManus told the paper that the man initially complied with officers’ order to put his hands up, but then he put them back in his lap and brandished a handgun. He said one of the officers opened fire.

The officers thought their lives were threatened, he said, “and more importantly, they thought the lives of others were in jeopardy.”

The theater’s manager told Krongard the shooting occurred during a screening of “Les Miserables.”

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