By The Associated Press,

Saturday, September 18, 2010 at 5:39 p.m.

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. ?
Ben Chappell passed for a career-high 366 yards as Indiana defeated Western Kentucky 38-21 on Saturday, giving the Hilltoppers their 23rd straight defeat.

Chappell completed 32 of 42 passes to break his old record of 333 yards against Illinois last year.

After Western Kentucky (0-3) went 91 yards for a touchdown on its opening drive, Indiana (2-0) scored 31 unanswered points in the second and third quarters.

The Hilltoppers managed only 197 total yards after their first successful drive.

Two Hoosiers had at least eight receptions as Demarlo Belcher caught nine passes for 118 yards and Terrance Turner had eight receptions for 55 yards.

Bobby Rainey carried 21 times for 105 yards and two touchdowns for Western Kentucky, but had only 42 yards after the first drive of the game.

Indiana converted 10 of 12 third-down opportunities, punting only once all game.

By The Associated Press

Thursday, August 19, 2010 at 4:49 p.m.

SAN FRANCISCO ?
China-based solar cell maker Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. said Thursday that it earned a profit in the second quarter as revenue from sales of its photovoltaic modules jumped.

Yingli earned 217.8 million renminbi ($32.1 million), or 1.46 renminbi (21 cents) per American depositary share in the quarter. That compares with a loss of 393.7 million renminbi, or 3.03 renminbi per ADS, in the same quarter a year earlier.

Analysts expected a profit of 19 cents per share.

Revenue rose to 2.70 billion renminbi ($398.1 million) from 1.50 billion renminbi in the year-ago quarter. Analysts had been looking for $371.1 million.

Yingli saw a large increase in sales of photovoltaic modules — revenue rose to 2.66 renminbi ($391.6 million) from 1.46 billion renminbi in the previous year.

Research and development expenses fell to 38.8 million renminbi ($5.7 million) from 46.1 million renminbi last year but total operating expenses climbed, rising to 339.7 million renminbi ($50.1 million) from 189.5 million renminbi last year. The company said this was due mostly to higher selling expenses that stemmed from its sponsorship of the 2010 FIFA World Cup and higher research and development expenses.

Yingli’s ADS fell 10 cents to $10.87 in after-hours trading, after finishing regular trading down 48 cents, or 4.3 percent, at $10.77.

In the wider, 27-nation EU, which includes non-euro member Britain, annual
inflation rose to 2.1pc in July compared to 1.9pc a month earlier.

Germany boosts eurozone growth

Last week, official figures showed that the eurozone economy grew at the
fastest pace in four years in the second quarter as it surged past a
retreating United States.

A resurgent Germany helped the combined gross domestic product of the 16
countries that use the euro rise to a better-than-expected 1pc, compared
with the first three months of the year.

It was the strongest quarterly expansion since the second quarter of 2006,
despite at 1.5pc contraction in Greece. On an annual basis, Eurostat said
the eurozone economy grew by 1.7pc

The figures confirm that the eurozone grew faster than the US during the
quarter, contrary to expectations just a couple of months ago when Europe
was threatened by a severe government debt crisis.

Growth across the US slid back to just 0.6pc in the second quarter of 2010,
having touched 0.9pc in the first three months of the year, Eurostat said,
whereas Europe had barely managed 0.2pc growth up to March.

The wider 27-country EU, which includes non-euro members such as Britain and
Sweden, also grew by a quarterly rate of 1pc for an annual increase of
1.7pc.

Germany’s economy surged ahead in the second quarter, growing 2.2pc ? the
fastest pace since reunification two decades ago and beating market
forecasts ? as a global recovery fed demand for its exports.

By The Associated Press

Thursday, August 5, 2010 at 12:39 p.m.

NEW YORK ?
Hugh Hefner’s Playboy media empire managed to narrow its losses in the most recent quarter. But only because it booked fewer one-time expenses.

Revenue from the company’s flagship magazine and its TV operations continued to erode, a trend that has put Playboy’s future in question.

The company said it continued to cut staff during the quarter. It eliminated 18 jobs, bringing the total down to about 550.

Playboy Enterprises Inc. announced in July that Hefner was proposing to buy the portion of the company he doesn’t already own. FriendFinder Networks Inc., the corporate parent of rival Penthouse magazine, also made a bid to take the company private.

Playboy’s board is considering both offers. But, because Hefner holds about 70 percent of the company’s voting shares, he will make the final call.

Playboy said Hefner has made it clear he doesn’t want to sell.

The second-quarter results released Thursday illustrate Playboy’s struggle to turn a profit as the Web supplants print and TV as a source of adult content.

The company reported a net loss of $5.4 million, or 16 cents per share, for the three months that ended June 30. A year earlier, it lost $8.7 million, or 26 cents per share.

But last year’s quarter included $9.1 million in one-time restructuring costs, largely expenses related to closing its New York offices. The most recent quarter included only $1.6 million in such charges.

Revenue dropped 10 percent to $56 million.

Revenue fell at the U.S. version of Playboy magazine by 38 percent to $10.2 million, in part because it comes out less frequently. Counting international and special editions as well as online operations, revenue at the company’s print/digital segment fell 26 percent to $20.9 million.

TV revenue slipped 5 percent to $22.7 million.

The one upbeat note came from Playboy’s licensing division, which leases out the Playboy name and iconic bunny ears for consumer products. Licensing revenue climbed 23 percent to $12.4 million.

Playboy shares slipped 4 cents to $5.35 in afternoon trading.