WORLD

WORLD
BP invests heavilyin Russian oil company
LONDON -- British energy group BP PLC said Friday it has completed the biggest foreign direct investment ever in post-Communist Russia -- a $7.7 billion deal that gives BP a 50 percent share in a major new Russian energy company.
BP signed an agreement late Thursday with its Russian partners -- Alfa Group and Access-Renova -- to combine their interests in Russia to create a new business with 5.2 billion barrels in proven oil reserves and daily crude production of 1.2 million barrels.
Upon final regulatory approval, the new company, TNK-BP, would be Russia's third-largest energy concern, with stakes in five refineries and 2,100 retail outlets, BP said.
The agreement is a strategic bet on the future of Russia's vast wealth of oil and gas and comes four years after BP almost abandoned that country following a commercial dispute.
NATION
Hershey Foods to sellgroup of gum brands
HERSHEY, Pa. -- Hershey Foods Corp. agreed to sell a group of gum brands to Farley & amp; Sathers Candy Co. for an undisclosed amount.
The sale involves Fruit Stripe chewing gum, Rain-Blo gum balls and Super Bubble gum.
Hershey bought Fruit Stripe in 2000 as part of a $135 million acquisition of several Nabisco gum brands, while Rain-Blo and Super Bubble were part of the Leaf brands purchased in 1996.
Report shows decreasein consumer confidence
NEW YORK -- Consumer confidence levels waned modestly in August because of diminished assessments of both current and future economic circumstances, according to a report released Friday.
Market sources who have seen the University of Michigan's report on consumer sentiment for the end of August said that the overall index fell to 89.3, the lowest level since the spring, from 90.9 in July and 98.7 in June.
It stood at 90.2 in the preliminary estimate for August.
The report is released only to subscribers, and is based on a telephone survey of around 500 households.
The final August reading was lower than the 90.5 predicted in a survey of economists.
Associated Press