Friday morning headlines

Stocks open higher: Looking for a rally to end the week, though the economic news isn't so hot this morning.

GDP revised downward: The economy grew at an annualized rate of 2.8 percent in the fourth quarter, down from the earlier estimate of 3.2 percent. Analysts had expected a slightly higher revision, so this is surprising news. (Reuters)

L.A. gas prices reach $3.60: And that's just for the average gallon of self-serve regular, according to the Auto Club. Prices haven't been this high since 2008. Meanwhile, oil prices have fallen a bit, to $97.56 a barrel.

Brown meets with L.A. chamber: The governor will sit down with members of the chamber's executive committee. No specifics on topics, but presumably the budget will be discussed. (Capitol Alert)

Production shuts down on "Two and a Half Men": CBS and Warner Brothers finally have had enough of Charlie Sheen, at least for the rest of the season. From the NYT:

The decision is certain to create speculation that the show, which has been the biggest hit comedy of the last decade, may never return. Mr. Lorre has said in the past that he was not interested in reframing the show as "One and a Half Men." If the show does not return to production next season, it would be a considerable loss for both CBS and Warner Brothers, but as one senior executive involved in the decision summed it up on Thursday, "We had to do it."

MySpace attracting some interest: Parent News Corp. will start showing the books. Around 20 companies are looking at the Bev Hills-based social networking site. (WSJ)

McCourt loan effort is vetoed: Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig turned down a proposal in which Fox would have lent the Dodgers owner about $200 million. The loan could have extended the Dodgers' contract with Fox, which expires in 2013. (LAT)

Kings move to Anaheim still in doubt: The Maloof family has asked for an extension of the March 1 deadline by which time team owners must notify the NBA about relocating next season. From the OC Register:

Tim Frank, the NBA's senior vice president of basketball communications, confirmed the request Thursday in a statement issued by the league, saying the extension would "give Kings ownership the opportunity to discuss their options with the Board of Governors at its April 14-15 meeting" and that "the Board is currently considering the request." The board, comprised of the 30 NBA owners or their designated representatives, is expected to grant the request, which would enable the Kings to close out their regular-season schedule at Arco Arena in April before a decision on the team's future was announced.

More by Mark Lacter:
American-US Air settlement with DOJ includes small tweak at LAX
Socal housing market going nowhere fast
Amazon keeps pushing for faster L.A. delivery
Another rugged quarter for Tribune Co. papers
How does Stanford compete with the big boys?
Those awful infographics that promise to explain and only distort
Best to low-ball today's employment report
Further fallout from airport shootings
Crazy opening for Twitter*
Should Twitter be valued at $18 billion?
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Mark Lacter
Mark Lacter created the LA Biz Observed blog in 2006. He posted until the day before his death on Nov. 13, 2013.
 
Mark Lacter, business writer and editor was 59
The multi-talented Mark Lacter
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