WORLD briefs

NEW YORKTraders are turning cautious about the prospects for the economy. Stocks slid Tuesday as the Federal Reserve began a two-day meeting that could provide new insight into how the economy is faring. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 75 points and bond prices jumped as investors looked for the safety of government debt. It is widely expected that policymakers will hold interest rates steady at near zero, but investors are waiting to see what the central bank has to say in its assessment of the economy when the meeting concludes Wednesday."It's pretty clear that a lot of people are pulling back any bets pending what is going to happen with the Fed," said Max Bublitz, chief strategist at SCM Advisors in San Francisco. Stocks extended their losses after the Commerce Department said businesses cut inventories at the wholesale level for a record 10th consecutive month in June. The drop has contributed to the recession. In one bright spot, sales rose 0.4 percent for a second straight month, the first back-to-back increases in a year.

WASHINGTON – The Obama administration used economic stimulus money to pay for 50 airport projects that didn't meet the grant criteria and approved projects at four airports with a history of mismanaging federal grants, a government watchdog said. Transportation Department Inspector General Calvin Scovel said he plans to examine the Federal Aviation Administration's process for selecting programs for the $1.1 billion in grant money. Among the projects that Scovel said didn't meet the FAA's minimum score was $14 million that went to Akiachak, Alaska, a town of 659 residents, to replace its airfield. The town has a seaplane and is only 14 nautical miles from the state's fourth busiest airport. Nearly $15 million went to another Alaska town, Ouzinkie, that has 167 residents, to replace its gravel runway. The town has a float-plane landing area in its harbor. Barges also provide cargo delivery from Kodiak, 10 miles away.

OSLO. Seven Norwegian towns, some clustered around the Arctic Circle, have sued US banking giant Citigroup for more than 200 million dollars of losses plus damages linked to the sub-prime mortgage crisis, their lawyer said Tuesday. The lawsuit was filed in a New York court which will hear the case soon.