IN BRIEF

MILWAUKEE

Earnings decline for Sara Lee, Kraft Foods

Consumers may be returning to grocery stores but they are not racing for name-brand products, Kraft Foods Inc. and Sara Lee Corp. said as they released their latest quarterly results Wednesday.

Kraft Foods said its fourth-quarter profit fell 72 percent due to costs related to a restructuring program.

The maker of Velveeta, Oreo cookies and Maxwell House coffee reported net income of $163 million, or 11 cents per share, down from $585 million, or 38 cents per share, a year earlier. Revenue rose 6.2 percent to $10.77 billion from $10.14 billion.

Sara Lee Corp., meanwhile, said it lost $17 million in its second quarter, largely due to a write-down related to a U.S. unit.

Sara Lee's quarterly loss amounted to 2 cents per share for the three months ended Dec. 27. That reverses a profit of $182 million, or 25 cents per share, a year ago. Revenue fell 2.1 percent to $3.34 billion from $3.41 billion.

BOSTON

Profits rise 35 percent in quarter for Visa

Visa Inc. said Wednesday its fiscal first-quarter profit rose by 35 percent as the shift from cash toward electronic payments maintained its staying power, even while consumers tightened spending amid the recession.

The world's largest electronic payment network reported net income of $574 million, or 74 cents per share, for the three months ended Dec. 31. That's up from $424 million, or 55 cents per share, in the same quarter a year earlier, when Visa was privately held before its initial public offering last March. Revenue rose 16.8 percent to nearly $1.74 billion from $1.49 billion.

LOS ANGELES

Write-down for cable hurts Time Warner

Media and entertainment giant Time Warner Inc. reported a fourth-quarter loss, hurt by a previously expected $24.2 billion write-down for its cable, publishing and AOL assets.

The New York-based company, which owns Time magazine, cable networks CNN and Home Box Office, and the Warner Bros. movie studio, posted a loss of $16.03 billion, or $4.47 per share, in the three months to Dec. 31. That reversed a profit of $1.03 billion, or 28 cents per share, a year ago. Revenue fell 2.6 percent to $12.31 billion from $12.64 billion.

Report shows job loss accelerating in America

Jobs disappeared at an accelerating pace in January as a dismal holiday shopping season brought more gloom to the United States' battered retail sector, according to a report released Wednesday. And a fresh round of layoff announcements brought little hope for a quick turnaround.

U.S. companies announced 241,749 layoffs last month, Chicago employment firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. reported. That was the highest one-month layoff total since January 2002 and 222 percent higher than the 75,000 job cuts announced in the first month of 2008, the firm said. It was the fourth-highest total since the firm began tracking layoff announcements in 1993.

"The variety of industries represented among the top five job-cutting sectors in January is further evidence of how far the impact of this recession has spread," said Challenger Gray CEO John Challenger.

Pulte Homes has ninth straight quarterly loss

Pulte Homes Inc., the largest U.S. homebuilder, reported its ninth consecutive quarterly loss as the recession and falling house prices drove away buyers.

The fourth-quarter net loss narrowed to $338.2 million, or $1.33 a share, from $874.7 million, or $3.46, a year earlier, the Bloomfield Hills, Mich.-based company said in a statement. Revenue fell 43 percent to $1.65 billion and new orders plunged 61 percent to 1,763.

NEW YORK

Treasury prices mixed as stocks plummet

Treasury prices ended mixed as stocks fell Wednesday.

The benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell 0.44 points to 106.84, and its yield rose to 2.91 percent from 2.84 percent. The 30-year bond rose 0.09 points to 114.78, and its yield rose to 3.68 percent from 3.67 percent.