Business_Finance

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Gasoline prices higher than $5 per gallon are posted at a Menlo Park, Calif., Chevron station on Friday. In California, gasoline prices jumped overnight by as much as 20 cents a gallon, ending a week of soaring costs that saw some stations close. (Associated Press)

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In announcing the plant closing last week, Hallmark Senior Vice President Pete Burney admits that “competition in our industry is indeed formidable.” The closing will eliminate 300 jobs. (Associated Press)

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“Natural gas exploitation could be a very strong incentive for reunification of the island,” said Cyprus’ Foreign Minister Erato Kozakou-Marcoullis. (Associated Press)

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The Space Exploration Technologies Corp., or SpaceX, Falcon 9 rocket, with its Dragon capsule attached on top, is seen at Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral in Florida on Tuesday, Oct. 2, 2012. (AP Photo/NASA)

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Cars line up to get gas at a Costco gas station in Sacramento, Calif., Friday, Oct. 5, 2012. Californians woke up to a shock Friday as overnight gasoline prices jumped by as much as 20 cents a gallon in some areas, ending a week of soaring costs that saw some stations close and others charge record prices. The average price of regular gas across the state was nearly $4.49 a gallon, the highest in the nation, according to AAA's Daily Fuel Gauge report. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

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** FILE ** In this Monday, Sept 17, 2012, file photo, Robert Orkin, of the company TxT-Alert, third from left, talks with job seekers during a job fair held by National Career Fairs, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Economists forecast that the unemployment rate edged up in September to 8.2 percent from 8.1 percent, according to a survey by FactSet. Employers are expected to have added 111,000 jobs. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File)